From Brian Liskai, image courtesy of Rick Rarer
ATTICA, Ohio – Sam Hafertepe Jr. blasted from fifth to second on a lap 23 restart and then traded slide jobs with Bryan Sebetto for the lead before assuming the top spot with four laps remaining and going on to his first ever win at Attica Raceway Park.
“We had that car super tight we were terrible early and I was just fighting it fighting it fighting it. I didn’t give up there at the end. I wasn’t going to settle for losing. I didn’t care what I had to do to get it done..I was just going to get it done,” said Hafertepe beside his Plumbfast Racing, Lonestar Speedway backed #15h.
“We ran pretty clean there with a lot of guys…we might have rubbed them up a little bit but we got the win. We’ve been on our game lately. It’s just me and one other guy – Daryl Turford…we’re really figuring out our car. It’s awesome getting a win in front of these fans…Ohio probably has the greatest fans in the country,” added the Sunnyvale, Texas driver in the Engine Pro Victory Lane.
In the Sunoco American Late Model Series feature, Ada, Ohio’s Jon Henry took the lead on lap two and held off Doug Drown on a late race restart to score his 7th win of the year at Attica. His victory on Quality Welding/Ohio Logistics Night padded his point lead in the ALMS.
“We can win on the bottom and win on the top. I don’t care…this race car is awesome. The guys put a good package together for the feature. When I rolled on the top and tried to keep my car as straight as I possibly could and I was just hooked up the entire race. I couldn’t believe how fast I got around Ruhlman (Brian) at the start…he jumped the cushion and I was able to get around him,” said Henry beside his JLH Contractors/Wide Open Graphics, Fultz Fabrications/Ron Spencer Real Estate backed #15.
“I keep getting those darn cautions every time with just a few laps to go. This car was just so good. Go to jonhenryracing.com and share this experience with us,” added Henry in the Engine Pro Victory Lane.
Paul Weaver would lead all 25 laps in the Fremont Fence & Guardrail 305 Sprint feature to claim his 26th career victory to take over sole possession of first on the Attica Raceway Park’s all-time win list for the division. Weaver had a little luck as well, as his right rear tire started leaking air as he pulled into the Engine Pro Victory Lane.
“We were real tight and when that red flag came out we made a small minor adjustment and it seemed like the clear track helped a ton,” said Weaver beside his M&L Excavating, Schiets Motorsports, Spanky’s Pizza backed #1w.
“We’ve got three wins this season and we started on the front row for each. If you look at all the winners this year they all pretty much started up front. But, when you have restarts and you look up at the board and you see who’s behind you you know you’re not going to get a wild slide job…you can race with them. Luckily I didn’t have to fend them off too bad,” added Weaver about his second win of the year at Attica.
In the 30-lap O’Reilly Auto Parts 410 Sprint feature, Jac Haudenschild and Cole Duncan would lead the field to the green with Duncan grabbing the lead. Haudenschild would pressure Duncan with Bryan Sebetto battling Byron Reed, Brad Haudenschild, Phil Gressman and Brandon Martin. Sebetto would slide around Haudenschild on lap four for second with Reed and Gressman pressuring.
As Duncan hit lapped traffic on the 10th circuit, Sebetto quickly closed. The two ran nose to tail, slicing and dicing through traffic while Haudenschild battled Reed, Jacobs and Martin for third. Reed would take the spot on lap 12 and Jacobs would follow into fourth a lap latter. On lap 16 Sebetto would execute a slide job for the lead. Just as Reed closed on Duncan, he would slide off the high side of turn one on lap 19 to bring out the first caution.
A lap and a caution for Jody Keegan who slowed on the back stretch, and Sebetto would pull away with Duncan battling with Jacobs and Martin for second. Meanwhile, Hafertepe, who started 13th, had worked his way up to sixth. On the ensuing restart, Sebetto would pull away with Duncan comfortably in second while a wild battle took place for third between Jacobs, Martin and Haudenschild. That battle would take an ugly turn on lap 23 when Martin and Jacobs made contact exiting turn four resulting in Martin taking a wild flip.
The restart is when Hafertepe would make his move, using the extreme high line to vault from fifth to second just as Haudenschild would spin off the high side of turn one. On the restart it was Sebetto leading Hafertepe, Duncan, Jacobs and Darren Long. Sebetto would duck to the bottom with Hafertepe running up top. As they entered turn three with six laps to go, Hafertepe dove low and executed a slide job with Sebetto turn left to drive back by to maintain the lead. The pair did the exact same thing the next lap as Sebetto maintained the lead by just a wheel at the flag stand.
Hafertepe had the momentum though and would slide into the lead in turn one. He would pull away slightly as Sebetto ran comfortably in second while Duncan and Jacobs battled for third with 14th place starter Mike Linder – who was racing with a heavy heart as his mother, Carol, had passed away earlier in the day – raced into sixth.
Hafertepe would take the checkered about three car lengths ahead of Sebetto with Duncan, Jacobs and Linder rounding out the top five.
In the Fultz Fabrications and Speed Shop UMP Late model feature John Mayes Jr. and Brian Ruhlman would lead the field to the green with Ruhlman gaining the advantage as fourth place starter Henry moved into second, bringing third place starter Doug Drown into third. Henry would drive around Ruhlman on lap two and again Drown would follow with J.R. Hotovy pressuring Ruhlman for third. Henry pulled away slightly but the battle for second was a dandy between Drown, Hotovy, Ruhlman, Rusty Schlenk and Ryan Missler.
The first caution would fly on lap five for a Ryan VanderVeen spin. The restart order was Henry, Hotovy, Drown, Schlenk, Ruhlman and Missler. Again Henry was able to pull away as Hotovy, Frown and Schlenk battled for third. Just as Henry hit lapped traffic on lap 13, Hotovy would spin on lap 11 as he battled with Drown and Schlenk for the runner-up spot.
With a clear track Henry was able to pull away again while Drown battled with Schlenk, Ruhlman and a surging Devin Shiels. Henry would catch the rear of the field with seven laps remaining, but Drown was too busy fighting with Schlenk, while Ruhlman, Shiels and Mike Bores waging their own war for fourth.
Casey Noonan would stop with a flat on lap 27 to bring out the caution, giving Drown and Schlenk one more shot at Henry. But, “The Steel Driver” was just too strong as he rolled to the $3,000 payday. Drown, Schlenk, Ruhlman and Shiels would round out the top five.
In the 25 lap 305 spring feature, Jess Stiger and Paul Weaver would lead the field to the green with Weaver getting the upper hand as Nate Reeser drove into second and Paige Polyak into third. On lap two disaster struck as Reeser and Stiger got together in turn one with Reeser flipping and collecting Steve Rando. During the ensuing wait as rescue crews carefully extracted Rando who went to the hospital to be checked out for a shoulder injury, Polyak would go pit side, handing second to Nate Dussel with Caleb Griffith in third and D.J. Foos into fourth.
Weaver would pull away on the restart as Dussel and Griffith battled hard for second with Foos and Jason Keckler racing side by side for fourth. Weaver would hit lapped traffic by the ninth circuit, but Griffith could not close as Dussel ran comfortably in third with Foos, Keckler and Stuart Brubaker battling for fourth. The final caution would fly on lap 15 just as Griffith began to close in lapped traffic.
With a clear track ahead, Weaver would fly around the top side the last 10 laps to take the win. Griffith would finish second with Dussel, Foos and Keckler rounding out the top five.
Attica Raceway Park will host its last Friday night event of the 2011 season on Aug. 5 on Edward Jones of Clyde/Mike Neill Financial Advisor Night with the 410 sprints, UMP late models and 305 sprints. After a week off for the Attica Fair, “Ohio’s Finest Racing” speedplant will race on Saturday nights the final three events of the season.
For more information go to www.atticaracewaypark.com
Attica Raceway Park – 7/29/2011
Quality Welding / Ohio Logistics Night
O’Reilly Auto Parts 410 Sprints (29 Cars)
[#]-Starting Position
Heat 1 – Engine Pro (8 Laps – Top 6 finishers transfer to the A-feature)
1. 11X-Brandon Martin[3] ; 2. 6-Jac Haudenschild[5] ; 3. 51-Brad Bowman[1] ; 4. 22-Cole Duncan[7] ; 5. 15H-Sam Hafertepe[10] ; 6. 7-Darren Long[2] ; 7. 11D-Bryce Dickson[4] ; 8. O-Mike Dussel[6] ; 9. 91-Aaron Middaugh[8] ; 10. 93-Sheldon Haudenschild[9]
Heat 2 – Ultra Schield Race Products (8 Laps – Top 6 finishers transfer to the A-feature)
1. 16-Bryan Sebetto[2] ; 2. 5T-Travis Philo[5] ; 3. 5R-Byron Reed[7] ; 4. 97-Dean Jacobs[9] ; 5. 312-Mike Linder[8] ; 6. 2+-Brian Smith[6] ; 7. 60-Jody Keegan[4] ; 8. 45L-Brian Lay[10] ; 9. 14H-Todd Heller[3] ; 10. 98-Robert Robenalt[1]
Heat 3 – Bell Racing (8 Laps – Top 6 finishers transfer to the A-feature)
1. 53-Phil Gressman[1] ; 2. 10-Brad Haudenschild[2] ; 3. O9-Craig Mintz[6] ; 4. 45-Kevin Lee[4] ; 5. 78-Todd Kane[9] ; 6. 22T-Miranda Throckmorton[3] ; 7. 9Z-Duane Zablocki[8] ; 8. 11N-Ed Neumeister[7] ; 9. 69-Scott Curren[5]
B-Main – Computer Man Inc. (10 Laps – Top 4 finishers transfer to the A-feature)
1. 60-Jody Keegan[2] ; 2. 45L-Brian Lay[5] ; 3. 11D-Bryce Dickson[1] ; 4. O-Mike Dussel[4] ; 5. 14H-Todd Heller[8] ; 6. 9Z-Duane Zablocki[3] ; 7. 11N-Ed Neumeister[6] ; 8. 91-Aaron Middaugh[7] ; 9. 69-Scott Curren[9] ; 10. 98-Robert Robenalt[11]
A-Main – (30 Laps)
1. 15H-Sam Hafertepe[13]; 2. 16-Bryan Sebetto[4]; 3. 22-Cole Duncan[2]; 4. 97-Dean Jacobs[9]; 5. 312-Mike Linder[14]; 6. 7-Darren Long[16]; 7. 45-Kevin Lee[10]; 8. 78-Todd Kane[15]; 9. 5R-Byron Reed[3]; 10. O9-Craig Mintz[11]; 11. 5T-Travis Philo[7]; 12. 45L-Brian Lay[20]; 13. 2+-Brian Smith[17]; 14. 11D-Bryce Dickson[21]; 15. 22T-Miranda Throckmorton[18]; 16. 6-Jac Haudenschild[1]; 17. 11X-Brandon Martin[12]; 18. 60-Jody Keegan[19]; 19. 51-Brad Bowman[6]; 20. 10-Brad Haudenschild[5]; 21. O-Mike Dussel[22]; 22. 53-Phil Gressman[8]
Hard Charger: 15H-Sam Hafertepe[+12]
ALMS – Fultz Fabrication & Speed Shop Late Models (34 Cars)
[#]-Starting Position
Heat 1 – Engine Pro (10 Laps – Top 4 finishers transfer to the A-feature)
1. 13-JR Hotovy[4] ; 2. 12D-Doug Drown[6] ; 3. 40-Wayne Maffett Jr.[2] ; 4. 27-Ken Hahn[9] ; 5. 12-Michael Stiltner Jr.[1] ; 6. 5M-Ryan Markham[7] ; 7. 3-Rick DeLong[3] ; 8. 1D-Curtis Deisenroth[5]
Heat 2 – Ultra Schield Race Products (10 Laps – Top 4 finishers transfer to the A-feature)
1. 50Y-Ryan Missler[2] ; 2. 91-Rusty Schlenk[4] ; 3. 51-Devin Shiels[5] ; 4. 36-Matt Irey[3] ; 5. 83-Bill Hahn[1] ; 6. 21-Larry Kingseed[8] ; 7. O6-Kyle Perry[6] ; 8. 1N-Casey Noonan[7] ; 9. 28-Rodney Schroyer[9]
Heat 3 – Bell Racing (10 Laps – Top 4 finishers transfer to the A-feature)
1. 15B-Mike Bores[2] ; 2. 69-John Mayes Jr.[3] ; 3. 77-Steve Kester[8] ; 4. 29-Rocky Owens[7] ; 5. 11-Ky Harper[5] ; 6. 98-Chuck Hummer[1] ; 7. 12M-Bobby Michaels[4] ; 8. 30-Nate Potts[6]
Heat 4 – Friendship Food Stores (10 Laps – Top 4 finishers transfer to the A-feature)
1. 15H-John Henry[1] ; 2. 49-Brian Ruhlman[4] ; 3. WD40-Dusty Moore[5] ; 4. 23V-Ryan VanderVeen[7] ; 5. 5H-Ernie Haynes[3] ; 6. 11B-Jeff Babcock[8] ; 7. 48B-John Bores[2] ; 8. 99-Steve Sabo[6]
B-Main #1 – Computer Man Inc. (12 Laps – Top 2 finishers transfer to the A-feature)
1. 21-Larry Kingseed[4] ; 2. 5M-Ryan Markham[3] ; 3. 12-Michael Stiltner Jr.[1] ; 4. 3-Rick DeLong[5] ; 5. O6-Kyle Perry[6] ; 6. 83-Bill Hahn[2] ; 7. 1N-Casey Noonan[8] ; 8. 1D-Curtis Deisenroth[7] ; 9. 28-Rodney Schroyer[9]
B-Main #2 – Computer Man Inc. (12 Laps – Top 2 finishers transfer to the A-feature)
1. 11-Ky Harper[1] ; 2. 11B-Jeff Babcock[4] ; 3. 5H-Ernie Haynes[2] ; 4. 99-Steve Sabo[8] ; 5. 98-Chuck Hummer[3] ; 6. 48B-John Bores[6] ; 7. 12M-Bobby Michaels[5]
A-Main – (30 Laps)
1. 15H-John Henry[4]; 2. 12D-Doug Drown[3]; 3. 91-Rusty Schlenk[8]; 4. 49-Brian Ruhlman[2]; 5. 51-Devin Shiels[10]; 6. 15B-Mike Bores[7]; 7. WD40-Dusty Moore[12]; 8. 11-Ky Harper[18]; 9. 36-Matt Irey[14]; 10. 40-Wayne Maffett Jr.[9]; 11. 27-Ken Hahn[13]; 12. 77-Steve Kester[11]; 13. 5M-Ryan Markham[19]; 14. 21-Larry Kingseed[17]; 15. 11B-Jeff Babcock[20]; 16. 13-JR Hotovy[5]; 17. 1N-Casey Noonan[21]; 18. 23V-Ryan VanderVeen[16]; 19. O6-Kyle Perry[22]; 20. 69-John Mayes Jr.[1]; 21. 50Y-Ryan Missler[6]; 22. 29-Rocky Owens[15]
Hard Charger: 11-Ky Harper[+10]
Fremont Fence 305 Sprints (22 Cars)
[#]-Starting Position
Heat 1 – Engine Pro (8 Laps – Top 8 finishers transfer to the A-feature)
1. 1-Nate Dussel[1] ; 2. 40-Caleb Griffith[4] ; 3. 13-Junior Felver[2] ; 4. 83X-Nate Reeser[5] ; 5. M28-Josh Muntz[7] ; 6. 9-Jimmy Colvin[6] ; 7. 36X-Dustin Keegan[8] ; 8. 22D-Dan Hammond[3]
Heat 2 – Ultra Schield Race Products (8 Laps – Top 8 finishers transfer to the A-feature)
1. 35-Stuart Brubaker[5] ; 2. 19R-Steve Rando[1] ; 3. 1W-Paul Weaver[3] ; 4. 25-Jason Keckler[2] ; 5. 5-Dustin Dinan[4] ; 6. 36-Seth Schneider[6] ; 7. 717-Jim Cushing[7]
Heat 3 – Bell Racing (8 Laps – Top 8 finishers transfer to the A-feature)
1. 27-Paige Polyak[5] ; 2. 11F-D.J. Foos[4] ; 3. 8J-Jess Stiger[1] ; 4. 4M-Jamie Miller[7] ; 5. 5R-Jordan Ryan[3] ; 6. 72C-Ross Moore[6]
A-Main – (25 Laps)
1. 1W-Paul Weaver[2]; 2. 40-Caleb Griffith[7]; 3. 1-Nate Dussel[5]; 4. 11F-D.J. Foos[6]; 5. 25-Jason Keckler[10]; 6. 35-Stuart Brubaker[11]; 7. 5-Dustin Dinan[14]; 8. 4M-Jamie Miller[8]; 9. 9-Jimmy Colvin[16]; 10. 13-Junior Felver[9]; 11. 8J-Jess Stiger[1]; 12. 36-Seth Schneider[17]; 13. M28-Josh Muntz[13]; 14. 36X-Dustin Keegan[19]; 15. 72C-Ross Moore[18]; 16. 5R-Jordan Ryan[15]; 17. 717-Jim Cushing[20]; 18. 27-Paige Polyak[4]; 19. 83X-Nate Reeser[3]; 20. 19R-Steve Rando[12]; 21. 22D-Dan Hammond[21]
Hard Charger: 5-Dustin Dinan[+7]