By Tyler Altmeyer
WILMOT, Wis. (August 21, 2020) – For the second time in as many starts, Visalia, California’s Cory Eliason is an Ollie’s Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions presented by Mobil 1 main event winner, accomplishing his feat during All Star/IRA Outlaw Sprint Series co-sanctioned action at Wilmot Raceway in Wilmot, Wisconsin, on Friday evening, August 21. Impressive, nonetheless, leading 21 circuits of the 30-lap contest while maneuvering through wave after wave of slower traffic, the 2020 All Star championship hopeful was forced to manhandle an ill-handling car, as ignition trouble kept the Rudeen Racing powerplant from reaching full potential.
Despite the loss of horsepower, Eliason held strong, ultimately holding off advancements by Ian Madsen, Hunter Schuerenberg and Tyler Courtney during a pair of green-white-checkered restarts. The Wilmot Raceway victory, Eliason’s first with the Series at the southern Wisconsin short track, was accompanied by a $5,000 top prize.
“This just goes to show how hard these guys work back at the shop,” Cory Eliason said in victory lane, driver of the Rudeen Racing/Hager Realty/Rayce Rudeen Foundation/Rudeen Management/No. 26 sprint car. “It was an eventful few weeks for us with all the racing at Knoxville, but it was nice to come to a place like Wilmot and run at a track that really reminds me of back home in California. I’m not really sure what happened, but by lap three, the motor started to really go flat. Honestly, that may have helped me overall because it didn’t allow for the tires to spin. But regardless, I can’t thank Kevin Rudeen and his family enough for what they do for this race team. I’m sure they were all watching at home tonight.”
Starting third on the feature grid by way of dash result, Eliason’s initial jump proved to be an instant turning point, allowing the driver of the familiar blue No. 26 get around pole sitter Hunter Schuerenberg to secure second by the completion of lap one. At the time, Aurora, Illinois’ Blake Nimee was the main event leader, followed by Eliason, Aaron Reutzel and Schuerenberg.
By lap five, the top three found themselves staring at the back of the field, which was stacking up to be two and three wide and engulfing all lanes of the speedway. The gaggle of slower cars actually proved to be a major benefit for Eliason, who was chipping away at Nimee’s lead in a hurry.
Just four laps later, Eliason was all over Nimee for the top spot, eventually utilizing a slingshot move into corner three to blast around the race leader and a slower car. The move was successful, leaving Nimee in his tracks with Aaron Reutzel and Ian Madsen in tow.
With a caution on lap 15 making way for a clear track and clean air, Eliason’s campaign at the front of the field was relatively uneventful during the middle segment of the main event, that until caution flags reappeared with only two laps remaining, brought about by two-time All Star Circuit of Champions champion and current point leader, Aaron Reutzel, who did a 360-degree spin while battling in the fourth position.
The ensuing restart was only a tease, as Tyler Courtney, who had battled his way from tenth to second, and looked strong enough to challenge Eliason for top honors, spun to a stop in turn one collecting a handful of other competitors. Contact between Ian Madsen’s front bumper and Courtney’s rear bumper ignited the small pileup.
Despite the pause, and a sour engine, Eliason held tough on the following restart, keeping Ian Madsen, Hunter Schuerenberg, Zeb Wise, and Gerard McIntyre at bay.
What’s Next:
The Ollie’s Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions presented by Mobil 1 will continue their two-day sweep through Wisconsin and Indiana with a Saturday night visit to Plymouth Speedway in Plymouth, Indiana, on August 22. The Plymouth invasion will feature Tony Stewart’s All Stars in the Hoosier State for the first and only time in 2020. For more information, fans are encouraged to visit Plymouth Speedway online at www.plymouthspeedway.net.
Ollies Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions presented by Mobil 1 / Bumper to Bumper Interstate Racing Association
Wilmot Raceway
Wilmot, Wisconsin
Friday August 21, 2020
Lincoln Electirc Qualifying
1. 17-Ian Madsen, 13.109[16]
2. 87-Aaron Reutzel, 13.138[19]
3. 26-Cory Eliason, 13.186[10]
4. 13-Justin Peck, 13.237[12]
5. 07-Gerard McIntyre Jr, 13.338[34]
6. 68-Dave Uttech, 13.408[31]
7. 7BC-Tyler Courtney, 13.420[30]
8. 79-Blake Nimee, 13.439[14]
9. 14-Tony Stewart, 13.439[35]
10. 17B-Bill Balog, 13.476[32]
11. 55-Hunter Schuerenberg, 13.479[23]
12. 5J-Jeremy Schultz, 13.534[4]
13. 23-Russel Borland, 13.542[27]
14. 11-Zeb Wise, 13.563[3]
15. 14R-Sean Rayhall, 13.607[13]
16. 25-Danny Schlafer, 13.613[8]
17. 99-Skylar Gee, 13.635[17]
18. W20-Greg Wilson, 13.698[33]
19. 55D-Austin Deblauw, 13.702[20]
20. 19-Todd Daun, 13.708[28]
21. 43-Jereme Schroeder, 13.717[11]
22. 2W-Scott Neitzel, 13.735[24]
23. 65-Jordan Goldesberry, 13.780[9]
24. 10V-Matt VandeVere, 13.787[25]
25. 73-Jake Blackhurst, 13.800[1]
26. 4B-Scott Biertzer, 13.868[5]
27. 21N-Frankie Nervo, 13.868[29]
28. 20R-Rob Pribnow, 13.919[18]
29. 4K-Kris Spitz, 13.933[6]
30. 77-Wayne Modjeski, 13.969[15]
31. 0-John Fahl, 13.996[7]
32. 73AF-Scotty Thiel, 14.016[22]
33. 29-Hunter Custer, 14.058[2]
34. 14M-Jack Routson, 14.303[21]
35. 5H-Patrick Haynes, 14.775[26]
Ford Performance Heat Race #1 (10 Laps)
1. 11-Zeb Wise[3]
2. 65-Jordan Goldesberry[1]
3. 25-Danny Schlafer[2]
4. 5J-Jeremy Schultz[4]
5. 73-Jake Blackhurst[5]
6. 4K-Kris Spitz[7]
7. 4B-Scott Biertzer[6]
8. 0-John Fahl[8]
9. 29-Hunter Custer[9]
All Pro Aluminum Cylinder Heads Heat Race #2 (10 Laps)
1. 13-Justin Peck[2]
2. 79-Blake Nimee[1]
3. 26-Cory Eliason[3]
4. 99-Skylar Gee[6]
5. 17-Ian Madsen[4]
6. 20R-Rob Pribnow[8]
7. 14R-Sean Rayhall[5]
8. 77-Wayne Modjeski[9]
9. 43-Jereme Schroeder[7]
Hunt Brothers Pizza Heat Race #3 (10 Laps)
1. 55-Hunter Schuerenberg[3]
2. 23-Russel Borland[2]
3. 87-Aaron Reutzel[4]
4. 73AF-Scotty Thiel[7]
5. 2W-Scott Neitzel[5]
6. 14M-Jack Routson[8]
7. 10V-Matt VandeVere[6]
8. 5H-Patrick Haynes[9]
9. 55D-Austin Deblauw[1]
Mobil 1 Heat Race #4 (10 Laps)
1. 7BC-Tyler Courtney[2]
2. 14-Tony Stewart[1]
3. 07-Gerard McIntyre Jr[4]
4. 17B-Bill Balog[5]
5. W20-Greg Wilson[6]
6. 68-Dave Uttech[3]
7. 19-Todd Daun[7]
8. 21N-Frankie Nervo[8]
Kears Speed Shop Dash #1 (4 Laps)
1. 55-Hunter Schuerenberg[2]
2. 26-Cory Eliason[4]
3. 11-Zeb Wise[1]
4. 13-Justin Peck[3]
5. 07-Gerard McIntyre Jr[5]
Elliotts Custom Trailers and Carts Dash #2 (4 Laps)
1. 79-Blake Nimee[1]
2. 87-Aaron Reutzel[2]
3. 17-Ian Madsen[4]
4. 5J-Jeremy Schultz[3]
5. 7BC-Tyler Courtney[5]
Classic Ink USA B-Main (12 Laps)
1. 19-Todd Daun[6]
2. 20R-Rob Pribnow[3]
3. 14R-Sean Rayhall[2]
4. 10V-Matt VandeVere[7]
5. 4B-Scott Biertzer[8]
6. 77-Wayne Modjeski[10]
7. 21N-Frankie Nervo[9]
8. 55D-Austin Deblauw[13]
9. 0-John Fahl[11]
10. 43-Jereme Schroeder[14]
11. 68-Dave Uttech[1]
12. 5H-Patrick Haynes[12]
13. 29-Hunter Custer[15]
14. 4K-Kris Spitz[4]
15. 14M-Jack Routson[5]
Ollies Bargain Outlet A-Main (30 Laps)
1. 26-Cory Eliason[3]
2. 17-Ian Madsen[6]
3. 55-Hunter Schuerenberg[1]
4. 11-Zeb Wise[5]
5. 07-Gerard McIntyre Jr[9]
6. 14-Tony Stewart[11]
7. 99-Skylar Gee[16]
8. 5J-Jeremy Schultz[8]
9. 2W-Scott Neitzel[19]
10. 65-Jordan Goldesberry[13]
11. W20-Greg Wilson[18]
12. 73AF-Scotty Thiel[17]
13. 23-Russel Borland[12]
14. 87-Aaron Reutzel[4]
15. 13-Justin Peck[7]
16. 79-Blake Nimee[2]
17. 10V-Matt VandeVere[24]
18. 25-Danny Schlafer[14]
19. 7BC-Tyler Courtney[10]
20. 17B-Bill Balog[15]
21. 20R-Rob Pribnow[22]
22. 19-Todd Daun[21]
23. 14R-Sean Rayhall[23]