From Tyler Altmeyer
PLYMOUTH, Ind. (August 22, 2020) – Scoring his first Ollie’s Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions presented by Mobil 1 triumph since Ohio Sprint Speedweek competition at Fremont Speedway on July 5, Clute, Texas’ Aaron Reutel marched his way back to All Star victory lane on Saturday night during a visit to Plymouth Speedway in Plymouth, Indiana, doing so by commanding the final 32 laps of the 35-lap contest while fending off the likes of three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion and NASCAR Hall of Famer, Tony Stewart.
The $5,000 triumph, his third in a row at the northern Indiana bullring, was accomplished from the outside of row one, first surviving a slide job battle with fellow front row starter, Hunter Schuerenberg, only to find himself in a constant mix of slower traffic for the remainder of the 35-lapper.
Despite Schuerenberg’s early attempts, and some hints of pressure from Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing, Reutzel maintained in control, now on top of the 2020 All Star championship points battle by 84 markers.
Tony Stewart held on to finish second at Plymouth Speedway, followed by Hunter Schuerenberg, a hard-charging Justin Peck, and Shane Stewart.
“That was the longest I’ve ever gone without winning in the last five or so years. Someone had to draw a map for me to even get down to victory lane,” an excited Aaron Reutzel stated, driver of the Folkens Brothers Trucking/Fischer Body Shop/Hollywood Blasting & Coating/Dissolvalloy/No. 87 sprint car. “We’ve had a lot of bad luck. Some of it was self inflicted, some of it not. It’s not from a lack of effort, I can sure tell you that. We try as hard as we can every single night and I think that’s why you see us get frustrated with each other because we are trying so hard.”
Despite the initial four circuits consisting of a turn-to-turn battle with pole sitter Hunter Schuerenberg, actually exchanging the lead nearly every corner with Schuerenberg leading laps one and three and Reutzel leading laps two and four, the only other sense of pressure for Reutzel came in the form of Tony Stewart.
Stewart, who started fifth on the feature grid, powered his way to second on lap four, next setting his aim on the tailtank of Aaron Reutzel. The Columbus, Indiana-native kept pace with the two-time and defending All Star champion in traffic initially, but Reutzel’s stride eventually became too much to maintain. By lap 17, Reutzel was beginning to escape through the tail of the field, first utilizing a caution flag on lap ten to build momentum through clean air.
A caution on lap 29 would give Stewart one final chance to sneak by the familiar No. 87, but it was too late.
“Tonight we came in here with some confidence, especially since we haven’t lost here as an All Star,” Reutzel continued. “This is a track that really fits my driving style. It gets wide and the harder you run through the corners, the more speed you can make up. You don’t get that with a lot of tracks. This is definitely a one-of-a-kind racetrack and I really enjoy coming (Plymouth Speedway).”
Ollie’s Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions
Plymouth Speedway
Plymouth, Indiana
Saturday August 22, 2020
Lincoln Electric Qualifying
1. 87-Aaron Reutzel, 11.472[8]
2. 17-Ian Madsen, 11.578[6]
3. 14-Tony Stewart, 11.624[1]
4. 22M-Dan McCarron, 11.717[2]
5. 7BC-Tyler Courtney, 11.832[9]
6. 02-Brandon Long, 12.033[3]
7. 21-Brinton Marvel, 12.112[12]
8. 07-Gerard McIntyre Jr, 12.119[4]
9. 5R-Ryan Ruhl, 12.121[10]
10. 55-Hunter Schuerenberg, 12.136[7]
11. 99-Skylar Gee, 12.187[13]
12. 71-Shane Stewart, 12.295[20]
13. 23-Cole Macedo, 12.308[11]
14. 11-Zeb Wise, 12.368[21]
15. 26-Cory Eliason, 12.476[17]
16. 13-Justin Peck, 12.561[22]
17. 21N-Frankie Nervo, 12.826[18]
18. 16C-Chase Ridenour, 12.930[23]
19. W20-Greg Wilson, 12.935[19]
20. 14W-Chad Wilson, 12.960[14]
21. 8M-TJ Michael, 12.978[15]
22. 10S-Jay Steinebach, 13.313[16]
23. 27K-Zac Broughman, 13.735[5]
24. 18S-Micheal Summers, 59.999[24]
Ford Performance Heat Race #1 (8 Laps)
1. 55-Hunter Schuerenberg[1]
2. 87-Aaron Reutzel[4]
3. 23-Cole Macedo[5]
4. 13-Justin Peck[6]
5. 22M-Dan McCarron[3]
6. W20-Greg Wilson[7]
7. 10S-Jay Steinebach[8]
8. 21-Brinton Marvel[2]
All Pro Aluminum Cylinder Heads Heat Race #2 (8 Laps)
1. 99-Skylar Gee[1]
2. 7BC-Tyler Courtney[3]
3. 11-Zeb Wise[5]
4. 07-Gerard McIntyre Jr[2]
5. 17-Ian Madsen[4]
6. 14W-Chad Wilson[7]
7. 21N-Frankie Nervo[6]
8. 27K-Zac Broughman[8]
Hunt Brothers Pizza Heat Race #3 (8 Laps)
1. 71-Shane Stewart[1]
2. 14-Tony Stewart[4]
3. 26-Cory Eliason[5]
4. 02-Brandon Long[3]
5. 8M-TJ Michael[7]
6. 16C-Chase Ridenour[6]
7. 18S-Micheal Summers[8]
8. 5R-Ryan Ruhl[2]
Kears Speed Shop Dash (6 Laps)
1. 55-Hunter Schuerenberg[1]
2. 87-Aaron Reutzel[3]
3. 17-Ian Madsen[5]
4. 71-Shane Stewart[8]
5. 14-Tony Stewart[2]
6. 99-Skylar Gee[4]
7. 7BC-Tyler Courtney[6]
8. 22M-Dan McCarron[7]
Ollies Bargain Outlet A-Main (35 Laps)
1. 87-Aaron Reutzel[2]
2. 14-Tony Stewart[5]
3. 55-Hunter Schuerenberg[1]
4. 13-Justin Peck[14]
5. 71-Shane Stewart[4]
6. 7BC-Tyler Courtney[7]
7. 11-Zeb Wise[10]
8. 99-Skylar Gee[6]
9. 17-Ian Madsen[3]
10. 26-Cory Eliason[11]
11. 22M-Dan McCarron[8]
12. 8M-TJ Michael[15]
13. 21-Brinton Marvel[22]
14. 5R-Ryan Ruhl[23]
15. 21N-Frankie Nervo[19]
16. 14W-Chad Wilson[18]
17. 18S-Micheal Summers[21]
18. 27K-Zac Broughman[24]
19. 10S-Jay Steinebach[20]
20. 16C-Chase Ridenour[16]
21. W20-Greg Wilson[17]
22. 02-Brandon Long[12]
23. 23-Cole Macedo[9]
24. 07-Gerard McIntyre Jr[13]