ABBOTTSTOWN, PA, 8/8/2015 –How dominant was Chandler Leiby at Lincoln Speedway Saturday night?
So dominant that he gave up a half-lap lead when the final caution flag of the event came out with five laps to go, and so dominant that his margin of victory was 6.82 seconds at the end. And so dominant that only eight cars finished on the lead lap.
“It’s all because of these guys right here,” said Leiby in pointing to his crew after scoring his first win of the year and claiming the $2,700 top prize in race 3 of the four-race Nouse Signs & Graphics Summer Series feature event, “This car was fast tonight, and thanks to Fred (Putney) for an awesome track. You could run anywhere here tonight.”
Ryan Higgins started on the outside of the front row and led the first two laps before yielding to fourth-starting Leiby on lap three.
Leiby covered nearly every square foot of the surface in successfully maneuvering lapped traffic over the middle stages of the race. There were four lapped cars between Leiby and second-place Matt Campbell when a caution came out for a spin by Wyatt Hinkle in turns one and two of lap 20.
One lap later, Jeff Halligan blew a motor on the backstretch and dropped oil on the track. Last week’s winner Kody Lehman rolled over Halligan’s left rear and barrel-rolled down the backstretch, collecting Brad McClelland, who rolled into the third turn. None of those driver were injured.
While circling to line up for the restart, Campbell had a tire go down and pitted to make the change, handing the runner-up spot to points contender Doug Hammaker.
That made difference to Leiby, who still had four lapped cars between his Leiby’s Seal Coating/MATCO Tools #119 and Hammaker. Leiby drove away to his third career Lincoln win, with Hammaker second, series sponsor and hard-charger Kevin Nouse third (after starting 15th), Chris Arnold fourth, and Jeff Rohrbaugh fifth. Campbell came back to finish sixth, with Adrian Shaffer and Ryan Higgins the only other cars on the lead lap.
Unofficially, Hammaker’s second-place finish combined with Campbell’s sixth put Hammaker back on top of the season-long points chase by just five points.
Heats for the 33 358’s on hand were won by Rohrbaugh, Higgins, Doug Hammaker, and McClelland, with Brie Hershey winning the consolation.
Bob Stough padded his points lead by leading all but one lap in the 15-lap Central PA Legends feature event. Though he was scored the leader on every lap but lap nine (Harlon Leppo), Stough bounced back and forth between first and third in a three-car battle for the lead several times in the middle of several laps.
Bill Diehl crossed second, followed by Leppo, Chad Earnst, and Joe Ehrisman.
Heats for the 26 Central PA Legends on hand were won by Scott Haudeshell, Travis McClelland, and Justin Mitchell, with Justice Forbes winning the consolation.
Mercersburg’s Shane Sixeas started third, wrestled the lead away from Jeremy Ott on the fourth lap, and led the rest of the way in the 20-lap main event for PA mini-stocks.
Frankie Gordon came through from 11th-starting spot to grab the runner-up spot from Ott late in the race and cross second, with Ott settling for third, 14th-starting LeRoy Long fourth, and 15th-starting Zach Myers fifth.
Heats for the 17 PA mini-stocks on hand were won by Ott and Sixeas.
Next Saturday night, August 15, 2015 it will be PREMIER AUTO WORKS/AUTO LOCATOR NIGHT for the 410 Sprints, along with an EMMR Exhibition. Gates open at 5:30 PM, with racing action getting underway at 7:30 PM.
To get all the latest news, results, schedule changes and rule changes, visit Lincoln Speedway’s website at http://www.lincolnspeedway.com to stay up-to-date on all the action or pending weather conditions at Central Pennsylvania’s “Premier” Saturday night race track – The Fabulous Lincoln Speedway.
RACE RESULTS
Saturday, August 8, 2015
LINCOLN SPEEDWAY
Abbottstown, PA
Nouse Signs & Graphics Summer Series
358 SPRINTS
358 SPRINT FEATURE FINISH (25 laps) – 1. 119-Chandler Leiby ($2,700); 2. 66-Doug Hammaker; 3. 1J-Kevin Nouse; 4. 23-Chris Arnold; 5. 45-Jeff Rohrbaugh; 6. 16-Matt Campbell; 7. 27S-Adrian Shaffer; 8. 13-Ryan Higgins; 9. 30-Seth Kerchner; 10. 66A-Cody Fletcher; 11. 97-Brie Hershey; 12. 28-Matt Findley; 13. 5A-Brian Allman; 14. 19D-Wyatt Hinkle; 15. 9-Ryan Hanson; 16. 45H-Jeff Halligan (DNF); 17. 47K-Kyle Lehman (DNF); 18. 6R-Brad McClelland (DNF); 19. 66R-Russell Hammaker (DNF); 20. 19-Troy Wagaman, Jr. (DNF); 21. 35-Tyler Esh (DNF); 22. 38D-Kyle Denmyer (DNF); 23. 17-Cole Young (DNF); 24. 4R-Niki Young (DNF). No Time
Lap Leaders – Ryan Higgins (1-2), Chandler Leiby (3-25)
358 Sprint Heat One Finish (10 laps/5 qualify) – 1. 45-Jeff Rohrbaugh; 2. 119-Chandler Leiby; 3. 47K-Kody Lehman; 4. 35-Tyler Esh; 5. 19D-Wyatt Hinkle; 6. 97-Brie Hershey; 7. 28-Matt Findley; 8. 21X-Kyle Abrahims; DNS – 19Z-Isaac Sneeringer. Time – 2:27.06
358 Sprint Heat Two Finish (10 laps/5 qualify) – 1. 13-Ryan Higgins; 2. 45H-Jeff Halligan; 3. 9-Ryan Hansen; 4. 38D-Kyle Denmyer; 5. 17-Cole Young; 6. 66R-Russell Hammaker; 7. 15-Lucas Montgomery; 8. 23J-Jake Eldreth. No Time
358 Sprint Heat Three Finish (10 laps/5 qualify) – 1. 66-Doug Hammaker; 2. 23-Chris Arnold; 3. 16-Matt Campbell; 4. 1J-Kevin Nouse; 5. 4R-Niki Young; 6. 00-Chris Frank; 7. 89-Ashley Cappetta; DNS – 5-Phil Walter. Time – 2:26.03
358 Sprint Heat Four Finish (10 laps/5 qualify) – 1. 6-Brad McClelland; 2. 27S-Adrian Shaffer; 3. 66A-Cody Fletcher; 4. 5A-Brian Allman; 5. 30-Seth Kerchner; 6. 19-Troy Wagaman, Jr.; 7. 22-Nathan Prezenica; 8. 47-Michael Hamer. No Time
358 Sprint Consolation Finish (10-laps/4 qualify) – 1. 97-Brie Hershey; 2. 66R-Russell Hammaker; 3. 28-Matt Findley; 4. 19-Troy Wagaman, Jr.; 5. 00-Chris Frank; 6. 15-Lucas Montgomery; 7. 89-Ashley Cappetta; 8. 22-Nathan Prezenica; 9. 47-Michael Hamer; 10. 23J-Jake Eldreth; 11. 21X-Kyle Abrahims; DNS – 5-Phil Walter, 19Z-Isaac Sneeringer. Time 2:38.38