Selinsgrove, PA — (April 6, 2013) — Three-time NASCAR champion Tony Stewart of Rushville, Ind., flew into Selinsgrove Saturday evening from Martinsville (Virginia) Speedway, where the elite Cup series is competing this weekend, to race in Selinsgrove Speedway’s Empire Super Sprint (ESS) Mach 1 Chassis 358-360 sprint car challenge race and came away with a convincing victory in the 30-lap, $3,000-to-win feature.
In qualifying, Stewart set a new one-lap track record for 360 sprint cars at Selinsgrove in 17.168 seconds (111.053 average miles per hour) and also won his eight-lap heat race. Stewart qualified 26th on Friday for this Sunday’s STP Gas Boosters 500 NASCAR Cup race at Martinsville Speedway.
Coleby Frye of Dover scored the $1,500 win in the 25-lap late model feature. Shaun Miller of Tower City was awarded the victory in the 15-lap pro stock feature, while Bob Bussey of Northumberland won the 12-lap roadrunner race.
Selinsgrove Speedway will present a four division show of 358 sprint cars, late models, pro stocks and roadrunners at 6 p.m. Saturday, April 13. Fans will be permitted to enter the pit area prior to the start of Saturday’s racing program as part of Camera & Autograph Night.
Second-place starter Jessica Zemken stormed into the lead at the drop of the green flag in the sprint car feature and a spirited side-by-side battle for the lead unfolded between Zemken and third-place starter Pat Cannon by the third circuit.
The event’s first caution flag unfurled on lap six when polesitter Steve Collins stopped on the track. For the lap seven restart, Zemken led Cannon, sixth-place starter Mark Smith and eighth-place starter Stewart.
After swapping the lead with Zemken for several laps, Cannon secured the lead on lap nine as Stewart advanced to third. On lap 11, Stewart drove by Zemken for the runner up position and set out on a high-speed chase after Cannon.
At the halfway point, Stewart made the winning pass by Cannon using the inside lane entering turn three. Once he pulled into the lead, Stewart checked out from the field and kept his Chevrolet Performance No. 14 out in front for the duration of the race.
At the checkered flag, Stewart was victorious by 2.5 seconds over Cannon, Smith, 17th-place starter TJ Stutts, and 10th-place starter Jason Shultz.
Outside front row starter Jeff Rine took the lead at the start of the late model feature. A three-car melee caused a yellow flag and set up a lap two restart with Rine in the lead and polesitter Kenny Trevitz in second.
When the race resumed, sixth-place starter Coleby Frye flew around the high side and into second. By lap seven, Rine began to encounter slower traffic with Frye and third-place starter Bryan Bernheisel in pursuit.
With 10 laps remaining, Frye was in striking distance of the leader, only to have Rine spin on a lap 21 restart in turn two and have to restart the race on the rear of the field. Frye took command of the field and led the rest of the way, posting a 1.2 second margin of victory over last weekend’s winner and seventh-place starter Dylan Yoder. Jerry Bard, Andy Haus, and B. Bernheisel completed the top five. Rine was able to rebound for a seventh-place finish.
Front row starter Shaun Miller powered into the lead at the start of the pro stock feature. Miller was chased by last week’s winner and fourth-place starter Brad Mitch for the first three laps until third-place starter Matt Hornberger moved into second.
Kyle Bachman, who started 10th, stormed into the runner up position on lap six and set his sites on Miller. The race was stopped on lap seven when Troy Miller and Nathan Long crashed hard on the backstretch. No driver injuries were reported.
On the ninth circuit, Bachman drove by Miller for the lead and went on to take the checkered flag, only to have his race car fail a post-race technical inspection. Miller was awarded the victory over Tommy Slanker, Terry Lauver, Jeff Ceballo, and Tom Hartman.
Second-place starter Ricky Bender led the first lap of the roadrunner race until fifth-place starter Bob Bussey pulled into the lead. Bussey and Bender raced one-two with fourth-place starter John Schoch holding down the third position.
Last week’s winner and sixth-place starter John Fowler Jr. advanced to third on lap seven. Bussey held off the challenges and scored his first win of the season over Fowler, who passed Bender for the runner up position on the final lap. Bender, Johnson, and Schoch completed the top five.
SELINSGROVE SPEEDWAY RACE SUMMARY – 6 April 2013
358/360 Sprint Cars – 32 Entries
30-Lap A-Main: 1) 14 Tony Stewart ($3,000) 2) 3 Pat Cannon 3)1 Mark Smith 4) 23 TJ Stutts 5) 2 Jason Shultz 6) 89 Robbie Stillwaggon 7) 28F Davie Franek 8) 1Z Jessica Zemken 9) 7C Dylan Swiernik 10) 25 Michael Parent 11) 65 Dave Ely 12) 77 Derek Locke 13) 13 Kevin Ward Jr. 14) 5B Josh Beard 15) 16 Ryan Ruhl 16) 88B Andy Best 17) 15 Mark Bittner 18) 66 Ryan Kissinger 19) 21 Duane Mausteller 20) 71 Jessica Anderson 21) 28 Steve Poirier DNF 22) 49 Todd Hoddick DNF 23) 99K Cody Keller DNF 24) 34 Austin Reed DNF 25) 67 Steve Collins DNF
Heat Winners: Tony Stewart, Pat Cannon, Jessica Zemken, Mark Smith
B-Main Winner: Andy Best
Time Trials: 1) 14 Tony Stewart 17.168 (new track record for 360 sprint cars) 2) 3 Pat Cannon 17.216 3) 13 Kevin Ward Jr. 17.262 4) 1 Mark Smith 17.279 5) 28 Steve Poirier 17.319 6) 16 Ryan Ruhl 17.416 7) 65 Dave Ely 17.473 8) 49 Todd Hoddick 17.533 9) 89 Robbie Stillwaggon 17.552 10) 21 Duane Mausteller 17.566 11) 1Z Jessica Zemken 17.594 12) 25 Michael Parent 17.601 13) 99K Cody Keller 17.655 14) 71 Jessica Anderson 17.661 15) 67 Steve Collins 17.664 16)5B Josh Beard 17.665 17) 88B Andy Best 17.682 18) 29 Matt Horst 17.752 19) 47 Eric Riggings Jr. 17.759 20) 28F Davie Franek 17.785 21) 23 TJ Stutts 17.787 22) 2 Jason Schultz 17.807 23) 66 Ryan Kissinger 17.874 24) 90 Matt Tanner 17.877 25) 15 Mark Bittner 17.925 26) 77 Derek Locke 17.956 27) 5 Phil Walter 17.957 28) 19 Colby Womer 18.039 29) 55 Patrick Vigneault 18.155 30) 7C Dylan Swiernik 18.184 31) 34 Austin Reed 18.246 32) 1J Ryan Greth 18.287
Late Models – 20 Entries
25-Lap A-Main: 1) 91F Coleby Frye 2) 24 Dylan Yoder 3) 26 Jerry Bard 4) 76 Andy Haus 5) 119B Bryan Bernheisel 6) 99Z Dave Zona 7) 2J Jeff Rine 8) 16 Matt Cochran 9) 61T Ken Trevitz 10) 91 Chad Davis 11) 90 Kyle Rhoads 12) 10 Dave Stamm 13) 119 Jim Bernheisel 14) 27 Jim Yoder 15) 7M Meade Hahn 16) 88 Tony Adams 17) 9 Hayes Mattern 18) 15 Luke Hoffner 19) 88C Randy Croop 20) 45 Eric Hons
Heat Winners: Chad Davis, Brian Bernheisel, Jeff Rine
Pro Stocks – 11 Entries
15-Lap A-Main: 1) 115S Shaun Miller (Awarded Win) 2) 19H Tommy Slanker 3) 85 Terry Lauver 4) 28J Jeff Ceballo 5) 32 Tom Hartman DNF 6) 10M Brad Mitch 7) 88 Matt Hornberger DNF 8) 115 Troy Miller DNF 9) 63 Nathan Long DNF 10) 34 Hank Steffen DNS 11) 99 Kyle Bachman DQ
Heat Winners: Brad Mitch, Matt Hornberger
Roadrunners – 13 Entries
12-Lap A-Main: 1) 76 Bob Bussey 2) 02 John Fowler Jr. 3) 29 Ricky Bender 4) 201 Brian Johnson 5) 89 John Schoch 6) 31 Brandon Shultz 7) 22 Ray Rothfuss 8) 28 Curtis Lawton 9) 15 Dustin Snook 10) 44 Corey Collier 11) 99 Chris Hoffman 12) 8 Jeremy Kline 13) 55 Lori Croop 14) 7 Butch Shaffer
No Heat Races