By Steve Inch
SELINSGROVE, Pa. — The 75th Anniversary Season Finale Saturday at Selinsgrove Speedway was a night of high speeds and high stakes with $20,075 on the line to win the River Valley Builders Jim Nace Memorial 39th Annual National Open for 410 sprint cars.
For the second year in a row, Anthony Macri of Dillsburg took the checkered flag and the big check in the 40-lap tribute race honoring the memory of the speedway’s only five-time sprint car champion Nace.
Macri started eighth in the Macri Concrete/J&S Fabrication No. 39 and dueled with Brian Brown of Grain Valley, Mo., and Danny Dietrich of Gettysburg, both of whom also led laps in the intense race, before securing the lead on lap 30.
The victory was Macri’s second of the season at Selinsgrove and 11th overall in 410 sprint car competition this year. He also set fast time in qualifying over the 33-car field with a lap of 15.625, almost eclipsing his own one-lap track record of 15.544 that was set one year ago in the race.
Derek Hauck of Allenwood closed out the 305 sprint car season with his first career win at the track in the 20-lap main event.
Selinsgrove Speedway will hold a huge demo derby and figure 8 racing at 1 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 16, to close out the season.
Second-place starter Brian Brown grabbed the lead from polesitter Danny Dietrich at the start of the sprint car main event. Before the completion of the first lap, eighth-place starter Anthony Macri stormed into the third position.
By lap seven, the leaders started to encounter slower traffic and an intense three-car battle unfolded at the front of the pack. Dietrich and Macri went back and forth for the second position as Brown led the way.
On the 10th circuit, Dietrich powered by Brown at the start/finish line for the lead. Macri then challenged Brown for the runner up spot. At the halfway point, when the field was stopped for refueling, Dietrich led Brown, Macri, fifth-place starter Lance Dewease, and 10th-place starter Brent Marks.
When the race resumed, Macri drove by Brown for second and set his sights on Dietrich. By lap 26, Macri reeled in Dietrich and a war on wheels developed for the lead. Dietrich was taking evasive action and blocking Macri for the lead for several laps before Macri made the winning pass with a charge down on the backstretch on lap 30.
Macri stretched his lead until the red flag stopped the race on lap 37 when Michael Walter’s car developed a small fire. For the chase to the checkered flag, Macri held off Dietrich by just 1.6 seconds for the victory. Brown, Dewease, and Marks rounded out the top five.
Original seventh-place starter Derek Hauck took the lead from ninth-place starter Fred Arnold on the second circuit of the 305 sprint car feature. Austin Reed raced third with Domenic Melair and Doug Dodson in the top five.
At the halfway point, Hauck was encountering slower traffic as Reed challenged Arnold for the second position. Reed powered into second on lap 11 as Dodson advanced to third by lap 14.
In the final three laps, Reed was in striking distance but Hauck held on for his first win at the track by 1.2 seconds. Dodson, Arnold, and D. Melair rounded out the top five.
SELINSGROVE SPEEDWAY RACE SUMMARY – 25 September 2021
410 Sprint Cars – 33 Entries
40-Lap Nace Memorial National Open: 1) 39M Anthony Macri $20,075 2) 48 Danny Dietrich 3) 21B Brian Brown 4) 69K Lance Dewease 5) 19 Brent Marks 6) 51 Freddie Rahmer 7) 18 Gio Scelzi 8) 67 Justin Whittall 9) 11T TJ Stutts 10) 27 Devon Borden 11) 21 Matt Campbell 12) 12 Blane Heimbach 13) 0 Lynton Jeffrey 14) 44 Dylan Norris 15) 0 Rick Lafferty 16) 33W Michael Walter 17) 23 Pat Cannon 18) 39 Chase Dietz 19) 20 Ryan Taylor 20) 75D Tyler Ross 21) 35 Jason Shulz 22) 19M Landon Myers 23) 28F Davie Franek 24) 5W Lucas Wolfe 25) 00 Steve Buckwalter
Heat Winners: Gio Scelzi, Steve Buckwalter, Danny Dietrich, Pat Cannon
B-Main Winner: Chase Dietz
Time Trials: 1) Anthony Macri 15.626 2) 21 Brian Brown 15.765 3) 1 Logan Wagner 15.772 4) 5W Lucas Wolfe 15.821 5) 18 Gio Scelzi 15.887 6) 00 Steve Buckwalter 15.892 7) 48 Danny Dietrich 15.903 8) 23 Pat Cannon 15.974 9) 67 Justin Whittall 15.980 10) 0 Lynton Jeffrey 11) 69K Lance Dewease 16.013 12) 51 Freddie Rahmer 16.029 13) 19M Landon Myers 16.051 14) 11T TJ Stutts 16.056 15) 19 Brent Marks 16.087 16) 44 Dylan Norris 16.138 17) 20 Ryan Taylor 16.142 18) 39 Chase Dietz 16.154 19) 27 Devon Borden 16.155 20) 21 Matt Campbell 16.169 21) 75 Tyler Ross 16.221 22) 12 Blane Heimbach 16..238 23) 0 Rick Lafferty 16.321 24) 35 Jason Shultz 16.329 25) 19 Curt Stroup 16.361 26) 33W Michael Walter 16.381 27) 8S Trent Shaffer 16.404 28) 24B Dustin Baney 16.588 29) 97 Brie Hershey 16.588 30) 19 Colby Womer 16.809 31) 28F Davie Franek 16.982 32) 17 Jason Wagner 19.667 33) 99M Kyle Moody DNT
305 Sprint Cars – 29 Entries
20-Lap A-Main: 1) 33 Derek Hauck 2) 34 Austin Reed 3) 20 Doug Dodson 4) 88 Fred Arnold 5) 55 Domenic Melair 6) 5 Logan Spahr 7) 1M Paul Moyer 8) 25 Dustin Young 9) 95 Garrett Bard 10) 8B Will Brunson 11) 54 Mike Melair 12) M1Justin Mills 13) 99A Devin Adams 14) 67 Ken Duke 15) 7 Drew Young 16) 14 Cale Reigel 17) 46 Mike Alleman 18) 0Z Zach Rhodes 19) 2 Erin Statler 20) 23M Tom Wise 21) 28R Jason Roush 22) 56 Tyler Snook 23) 69K Kassidy Kreitz 24) 31 Roger Weaver
Heat Winners: Tom Wise, Paul Moyer, Dominic Melair
B-Main Winner: Mike Alleman