BARBERTON SPEEDWAY: On the coldest night of the year, the hottest action was witnessed in front of the many fans who packed Barberton Speedway. More than race wins were on the line tonight. Championships were to be handed out, and drivers knew if they wanted to be atop of the standings when the night was done, strategy was needed. Some went for broke, and others played it safe.
The night started off with the Bandolero division. Chris Breads took home the win and the championship after fighting hard with Steve Mitch. When the green flag fell, Madison Lengyel took the early lead but was passed by Mitch. Mitch worked hard to see if he could secure 2nd in points as he led many of the early laps. He was eventually passed by Chris Breads. As Breads got to leading, Mitch did not let him go far. The duo battled it out for the final laps of the race nose-to-tail, eventually concluding with Breads taking the win and the season championship!
The Legends were on hand also, and Cale Grimes was the one who not only won it all, but got the bad luck cloud off of his back. As the race started, it was Madalynn Minnear leading early. The 2016 champion was closely followed by Cale Grimes. Grimes pushed hard trying to work around his fellow racer, eventually making a move off of turn four to get the lead at halfway. Grimes began stretching his lead and took home the win. As he got out of the car, he was happy to be celebrating his championship. After losing it last year in the final race, this one was all the more sweeter.
The Late Models were on hand next, and the big headline going into the night was John Ambrose. He took the win once again tonight, and was joined in victory lane by championship winner Roger Smith.When the green flag fell, Jeff Walker led the field to green and began battling with Doug Sommers. Sommers and Walker worked on each other for many of the opening laps until Sommers got the upper hand. As Sommers grabbed the lead, Ambrose moved into 2nd. He did not stay there long as he moved around Sommers on the outside and to the lead. Several cautions kept the field tight. Doing that meant plenty of passing. One such driver that took advantage of the passing was Aaron Prater. Prater moved into 2nd place and worked hard on Ambrose. The duo batted down to the wire with Ambrose taking the race win. Roger Smith came home in the top five and took home the championship after several hard battled in the night's race.
The biggest battle of the night was the Street Stock event. Jim Raines took home the win, and the championship by a narrow margin. When the green flag fell, rookie Shawn Meloy led the opening laps. His lead lasted for several laps until veteran Rick Pereces took over the lead. Pereces led many laps until his biggest competitor Cyler Bertram moved through the field and to the front, taking the lead from Pereces. Up until that point, the championship duo of Kuykendall and Raines were 3rd and 4th, respectively with Kuykendall having points advantage. The duo moved into the 2nd and 3rd places and set their sights on Bertram. A yellow came out that bunched the field up. On the restart, Raines worked from 3rd around Kuykendall to grab the 2nd place position, and eventually took the lead from Bertram. A late race yellow came out that bunched up Raines, Kuykendall, and Mark Lushes. The trio battled hard over the final five laps, with Raines taking home the win barely over Kuykendall.
The Modified feature was won by Dave Dobbins. Though Dobbins had a mathematical shot at winning the championship, Bob Sibila's heat race finish was enough to guarantee that no matter the feature outcome, Sibila would win the championship by one point minimum (worst case scenario). When the green fell, Dobbins rocketed to the lead and worked hard to keep his blue #53 in front. Sibila played it safe, knowing he had the championship won. He stayed around the 6th to 7th position and did not take many risks if he could avoid it. As the race wore on, Dobbins had over a straightaway lead on the field. He took home the dominant win as Sibila came home to finish a quiet 4th place. The duo shook hands in victory lane and congratulated each other on a hard fought season.
The Compacts were up for the final race of the night. Brandon Halcomb won the event and Sheldon Sommers brought home his first championship. When the green flag fell, Scott Plaufcan led early. He was followed close by Halcomb and Austin Stoll. The trio battled it out for many laps as positions changed behind them. One driver making his way up was Tim Farrar. Farrar moved into fourth but made contact with Halcomb, sending the #6 spinning. Farrar took fault and served his penalty. When the race resumed, Halcomb moved from 3rd the 1st quickly and was followed by rookie Natalie Collier. Collier Reeled Halcomb in but could not get around him. The duo finished the race with Halcomb winning. Sheldon Sommers took home the championship by finishing in the top five. Halcomb and Sommers celebrated in victory lane together and congratulated eachother on the season's success.
Article By Billy McKinney
Next Event is September 29th, 30th and October 1st!
3rd Annual Cavalcade
Legends, Banodleros, Late Models, Modifieds, Street Stocks, and Compacts all on hand!
Rules and Payout will be released Monday or Tuesday 9-11 or 9-12!
Bandolero:
Top Qualifier- #01 Chris Breads
Heat- Breads, Madison Lengyel, Steve Mitch
Feature- Breads, Mitch, Lengyel
Point Champion- #01 Chris Bread
PIA Legend Cars:
Top Qualifier- #11 Cale Grimes
Heat- Aaron Mulrooney, Madalyn Minnear, Mike Mazzagatii, Austin Tapia,
Feature- Grimes, Mulrooney, Mazzagatii, Minnear, Tapia
Points Champion- #11 Cale Grimes
Aarons Own It Late Models:
Top Qualifier- #43 Roger Smith
Heat #1- Doug Sommers, Aaron Prater, John Ambrose, Larry Baker
Heat #2- Jeff Walker, Tony Hillard, Dino Campolito
Feature- Ambrose, Prater, Sommers, Smith, Walker, Baker, Willis, Campolito, Hillard, Klein
Points Champion- #43 Roger Smith
Ritzman Muffler Modifieds:
Top Qualifier: #82 Bob Sibila Jr
Heat- Dave Dobbins, Scott Archer, Sibila Jr, Tim Gullatta
Feature- Dobbins, Prater, Archer, Sibila Jr, Short, Elkins Jr, Gullata, Ridenour
Points Champion- #82 Bob Sibila Jr
All Rocks R Us Street Stocks:
Top Qualifier- #112 Mark Lushes
Heat #1- Rick Pereces, Jeff Kuykendall, Jim Raines Jr, Gregory Bernard
Heat #2- Mark Kramer, Matt Hicks, Barry West, Shawn Meloy,
Feature- Raines Jr, Kuykendall, Lushes, Pereces, Schmitt, Meloy, Hicks, Kramer, Berkhart, West, Barnard, Sticola
Points Champion- #55 Jim Raines Jr
Summit Racing Compacts:
Top Qualifier- #59 Tim Farrar
Heat #1- Austin Stoll, Farrar, Jim Mickinley, Dan Smith
Heat #2- Scott Plaufcan, Scott Kitchen, Breanna Garrett, Zack Prunty
Feature- Halcomb, Collier, Stoll, Sommers, Farrar, Smith, Garrett III, Jones, Plaufcan, Treadway, Garrett, Kitchen, Prunty, Tulley Jr, Stewart, Hrdlicka, Wolf, Greathouse, Poling, Collins, Mickinley, Alyson Smith
Points Champion- #3 Sheldon Sommers