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Lepak Edges Prunty to Win The Pepsi
Challenge 80 Presented by Russ Darrow Toyota!
By Dan Margetta |
(Slinger,
WI); August 12, 2007 -
Jeremy Lepak out-dueled David Prunty in a thriller Sunday night at
the Slinger Super Speedway to win the Pepsi Challenge 80 presented
by Russ Darrow Toyota by a car length.
“I had to work pretty hard for that one,” Lepak told an excited
crowd following the event. “It was real exciting there and I’m glad
we put on a good show for the fans as he (Prunty) made it
interesting.”
Steven Schulz battled Fred Winn for the lead at the green flag
before Winn used the outside to gain the top spot on lap two. Mike
also moved forward, taking over the second spot by lap ten while
David Prunty followed in third, just ahead of Dale Prunty and
Schulz. David Prunty was able to work his way into second by lap 14,
just before a spin by Nick Schumacher in turn two produced the first
caution flag. Winn was able to maintain the lead on the restart but
three laps later, Prunty was able to track him down, passing him to
take the lead and opening the door for Egan to grab second.
As Prunty began to extend his lead, Lepak methodically picked his
way through the field, entering the top five by lap 20. Utilizing
his car’s ability to turn well on the inside exiting the corners,
Lepak used the lower groove to race into third place by lap 30
before charging around Egan for second on lap 32. The leaders
approached lapped traffic and Lepak began to cut into Prunty’s
advantage while Egan battled with Matt Kocourek over third. A spin
by Race McComb in turn two on lap 49 brought out the yellow flag and
bunched up the field for the restart with Prunty choosing the inside
lane, leaving Lepak to line up alongside on the high lane.
Prunty was on the mark for the restart and kept the lead while Lepak
made serious challenges for the top spot in the high groove, moving
alongside, but not able to clear Prunty’s car as they exited the
corners. On lap 51, Lepak finally made the move stick and he edged
by to take the lead while Kocourek advanced into third place and
Nick Schumacher began to charge ahead and into the top five. Lepak
was unable to shake Prunty as the defending track champion remained
in his tire tracks when a tangle between Winn and Egan in turn four
brought out the caution flag for the final time on lap 60.
The final 20 laps produced some of the best racing of the season as
Prunty used the inside lane while Lepak worked the top as they
battled for the lead. The two remained close together for the final
laps with Prunty able to pull up to Lepak’s rear quarter panel only
to have Lepak ease ahead with a better run off the corners. On the
final lap, Lepak was able to maintain his advantage, taking the win
with Prunty nearly alongside at his rear bumper. Schumacher
recovered from the earlier spin to impressively come home with a
third place finish while Kocourek and Dale Prunty rounded out the
top five. Al Schill took the checkered flag in sixth place ahead of
Mike Strupp and Gary LaMonte while Nick Hammer and Race McComb
completed the top ten finishers.
Tommy Hromadka captured the win in the 30-lap late model
semi-feature over Mike Meyerhofer who edged Brad Bennett in a photo
finish for the final transfer spot into the main event. Joe
DeStefano Jr. and Jerry Eckhardt were fourth and fifth respectively.
Matt Kocourek was the winner of the late model fast dash and Nick
Schumacher was the fastest qualifier at 11.458 seconds.
Jon Reynolds Jr. took home top honors in the limited late model
feature that finished under caution with 18 laps in the books.
Jerry Eckhardt and Ryan DeStefano traded the lead in the opening
laps before Eckhardt was able to take sole possession of the spot by
lap five. A spin by Mike Schmitz in turn four on lap six slowed the
event under the caution flag with Eckhardt leading DeStefano, Corey
Funk, Chris Blawat, and Steve Apel. As racing resumed, Eckhardt
continued to lead as Funk raced his way into second place and Apel
charged forward into third. Behind the leaders, Reynolds was
beginning to slice his way towards the front, entering the top five
by lap nine. Several single car spins strung out the field and the
caution flag appeared again when Blawat and DeStefano tangled in
turn four. As the green flag reappeared, Funk and Reynolds used the
outside lane to charge around Eckhardt and into first and second
place respectively on lap ten. One lap later, Reynolds worked his
way around Funk to grab the lead while Eckhardt held onto third and
Apel raced with Rob Braun and Scott Ascher for the fourth spot. On
lap 13, Braun’s car got out of shape exiting turn two and as he
attempted to save it, the front of the car clipped Apel in the right
rear, nosing Apel’s car hard into the turn three wall as the yellow
flag waved. Reynolds maintained the lead on the restart over
Eckhardt as Chris Ratajczyk raced into third just in front of Funk
and a hard charging Chris Purdy. As the white flag waved over
Reynolds and Eckhardt, Purdy made contact with Ratajczyk, touching
off a multi-car incident in turn four, effectively ending the race
under the caution flag. Reynolds took the win over Eckhardt with
Ratajczyk, Scott Ascher, and Funk rounding out the top five.
Chris Blawat drove to the win in the limited late model fast dash
and Jon Reynolds Jr. set fast time with a lap of 12.308 seconds.
Jeff Holtz captured the win in the 25-lap Midwest Sportsman feature,
leading the final two laps en route to the victory.
Dan Church and Jay Shambeau swapped the lead at the beginning of the
race as Holtz moved into third place ahead of Jake Vanoskey and Dave
Thomas. Shambeau was able to ease ahead of Church to take the lead
on lap seven while Holtz advanced forward to battle with Church for
second. Holtz passed Church for second place on lap 17 and looked to
close in on Shambeau for the lead while Thomas and Mike Graczkowski
raced into the top five. Shawn Utphall spun on lap 22 to bring out
the lone caution flag of the race with Shambeau leading Holtz,
Church, Thomas, and Graczkowski. On the restart, Holtz took to the
outside and moved alongside Shambeau in a bid for the lead. Holtz
made the move work a lap later, using the outside to take the lead
while Thomas worked his way by Church for third. At the stripe,
Holtz drove to the win over Shambeau while Thomas, Church, and
Graczkowski rounded out the top five.
Chris Beine drove to the win in the 12-lap Midwest Sportsman
semi-feature over Mark Kissinger and Eric Schuetz. Tom Elsinger
finished fourth and Shawn Hoefler took the checkered flag in fifth
place. Dave Thomas won the Midwest Sportsman fast dash and Kenny
Joosten was the fastest qualifer at 12.771 seconds.
Wes Biswell won the 25-lap Midwest Modified feature over Steve
Schulz and Joe Houpt.
Roy Aitchison lead the opening lap before drifting wide in turn one
on lap two following heavy pressure from Biswell for the top spot.
Biswell took the lead on the second lap and soon found himself under
pressure from Steve Huelsbeck by lap five. Biswell and Huelsbeck
raced side by side with neither driver able to get enough of an
advantage to clear the other as Steven Schulz charged ahead to join
the lead battle up front. On lap 15, Huelsbeck slipped momentarily
on the outside as Biswell took command of the event and Schulz moved
into the second spot. Once out front, Biswell was never headed as he
drove to the win over Schulz while Joe Houpt was able to edge
Huelsbeck for third. Ron Schmitt finished in fifth place.
Steve Huelsbeck was the winner of the Midwest Modified fast dash and
Steven Schulz paced qualifying after touring the speedway in 12.433
seconds.
Aaron Cain sliced his way forward from the tenth starting position
to win the 16-lap Thunderstock feature.
Nathan Matz took the lead at the start and paced the event until lap
14 when Cain was able to race his way around for the lead. Cain
drove to the win over Matz while Al Stippich charged from his
twelfth starting spot to finish third ahead of Ryan Gutknecht and
Seth Lootans. Cain was also the fastest qualifier at 12.878 seconds.
Tanya Manke raced her way through the pack to take the lead on lap
ten before driving to a popular victory in the 16-lap Slinger Bee
feature. Michael St. Martin finished in second place ahead of Jason
Hennes while Stephanie Losiniecki started last and drove to an
impressive fourth place finish. Matt Westphal was fifth. Earlier in
the evening Stephanie Losiniecki set fast time for the night with a
lap of 16.527 seconds.
Paul Polznanski was the winner of the Speedway Guest Car event and
Brian Davis took top honors in the Spectator Eliminator races in his
Subaru. Shane Becker captured the win in the Figure 8 race and Chris
Minor was the last man standing in a ten-car demolition derby to
close the evening.
For Complete
results from the RACESTAT computer
CLICK HERE
Old Wisconsin
Smoke House Fan Appreciation Night
$2 Bill – Happy Hour – Free Beer & Soda
(Slinger, WI) Sunday Night August 19th:
Old Wisconsin Fan Appreciation Night! The first 1500 adult fans will
get a $2 Bill with their general admission ticket. Happy hour will
be from 6 – 7 pm with buck beer, buck soda, and buck Old Wisconsin
Hot Dogs. Plus, free beer and soda after the races and fan
give-a-ways throughout the evening.
The Old Wisconsin 60 Late Model Race
will highlight the racing activities. Late Models will be joined by:
Limited Late Models, Midwest Sportsman, Thunderstock, Slinger Bee’s,
one on one spectators, The West Bend Savings Bank Speedway Guest
Cars, and those wild and crazy Figure 8’s. Gates open at 4:45,
Qualifying at 5:15, and Racing at 7:00.
Every racer knows there’s only one way to spice up the action on the
track. So, get on over to your local grocery store for the
all-natural spices of Old Wisconsin Sausage, the official sausage of
Slinger Speedway. And let the better flavor of Old Wisconsin drive
you all the way to victory lane. Check out Old Wisconsin on line at:
www.oldwisconsin.com
There are select advertising and sponsorship opportunities available
for the 2007 season. For more information, contact the speedway’s PR
and Marketing at: 262-370-0440, slingerspeedway1@aol.com, or visit
our web site at: www.slingersuperspeedway.com.
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Jon Reynolds Jr. (#10) the current Limited Late Model point
leader enjoys his time in victory lane after capturing another
feature race.
Ryan DeStefano (#0) and Chris Blawat (#26) had an unplanned
gathering during the Limited Late Model main event.
With so many cars on hand this evening, a Midwest Sportsman
semi-feature was held with Chris Beine (#45) taking the victory.