By Justin Zoch
It’s been an incredible year for Bill Balog as he pursues his third consecutive IRA championship and he added to his accolades by scoring the prestigious Frank Filskov Memorial race at Sheboygan County Fair Park in Plymouth, Wisconsin, last Saturday night.
The 27-lap feature, a distance designated to honor Frank Filskov and the number he ran before losing his life in a Sprint Car accident in 1996, went to the green flag with polesitter Bill Warren glued to the bottom and working to hold off a high-flying Mike Reinke. Warren maintained the lead through the early going before a yellow was applied when Todd King knocked an infield cone into racing groove in turn four.
On the restart, Balog zipped past Reinke and went to work on Warren. Balog rode the rim while Warren patiently worked the bottom. Balog eventually swept past into the top spot and put some distance between himself the battle for second between Warren and Reinke.
A yellow on lap 18 for a stalled Russel Borland gave the rest of the field a shot at Balog but he proved too strong and cruised to his seventh victory of the season and his 21st consecutive top-five finish in IRA action. “I just keep waiting for this thing to break but my guys do such a great job, it just keeps going,” quipped Balog in victory lane. Warren held off Reinke, despite a great charge from the latter, to take second. Brian Kristan slipped by John Haeni at the checkered flag to steal the fifth spot. Defending Frank Filskov Memorial winner Mike Kertscher did his best to rebound from mechanical failure in the heat race and charged from 19th to seventh at the finish.
In Osborne and Sons Trucking Qualifications, it was Billy Balog over Phillip Mock and Scott Biertzer while Scott Neitzel, Dave Uttech and Haeni won heat races. Todd King notched the B-main over Jim Melis. The IRA Sprints return to action next weekend with a show on Saturday the 25th at Wilmot Speedway in Wilmot, Wisconsin, and a Sunday show on September 26 at Lasalle Speedway in Lasalle, Illinois.
27-Lap Frank Filskov Memorial A-main
1. Bill Balog (4), 2. Bill Warren (1), 3. Mike Reinke (2), 4. Brian Kristan (12), 5. John Haeni (7), 6. Wayne Modjeski (8), 7. Mike Kertscher (19), 8. Scott Biertzer (3), 9. Bill Wirth (9), 10. Donny Goeden (15), 11. Scott Neitzel (5), 12. Tommy Sexton Jr. (17), 13. Nick Alden (20),14. Scott Uttech (10), 15. Michael Emme (21), 16. Todd King (11), 17. Russel Borland (14), 18. Ty Bartz (22), 19. Johnny Fahl (13), 20. Jim Melis (16), 21. Matt Vandervere (18) (DNF), 22. Dave Uttech (6) (DNF)
Behling Racing Products B-main
1. King, 2. Melis, 3. Vandevere, 4. Kertscher, 5. Alden, 6. Emme, 7. Bartz / 8. Phillip Mock, 9. KenJay Fiedler, 10. Ryan Wilson, 11. Kris Spitz, 12. Brandon Thone, 13. Andy Hunt, 14. Jimmy Sivia, 15. Billy Hafemann, 16. Jereme Schroeder
Weld Racing Heat 1
1. Neitzel, 2. Kristan, 3. Balog, 4. Modjeski, 5. Warren / 6. Hafemann, 7. Schroeder, 8. Melis, 9. Spitz, 10. Vandevere, 11. Kertscher (DNF)
Lane Automotive Heat 2
1. D. Uttech, 2. Reinke, 3. S. Uttech, 4. Borland, 5. Sexton Jr. / 6. Thone, 7. Wilson, 8. Bartz, 9. Mock, 10. Sivia (DNF)
DMI/King Racing Products Heat 3
1. Haeni, 2. Goeden, 3. Biertzer, 4. Fahl, 5. Wirth / 6. Alden, 7. Fiedler, 8. King, 9. Hunt, 10. Emme