Contact: Shawn Miller
Inside Line Promotions
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Marks Ends His Best-Ever PA Speedweek Sixth in the Standings
Inside Line Promotions – SELINSGROVE, Pa. (July 10, 2013) – While he didn’t get that elusive victory, Brent Marks recorded four top-four finishes as he placed sixth in the PA Speedweek standings.
“This was my best Speedweek overall,” he said. “We’re having a good year and it just carried over to Speedweek. We were able to make every race and were in contention to win almost every night.”
After two top fives and three top 10s during the opening weekend of Speedweek, the teams had Monday off before Tuesday’s event at Grandview Speedway in Bechtelsville, Pa., was cancelled because of rain.
Marks returned to action on Wednesday at Hagerstown Speedway in Hagerstown, Md., where his worst qualifying performance of the week set him back. Marks timed in 23rd quickest, but charged from eighth to fourth to earn a spot in the feature, which he started on the outside of the 11th row.
“We totally missed it in time trials,” he said. “That put us behind all night.
“I ran up to eighth in 10 laps and the car just mediocred off there. We were having rear end problems at the end of the race.”
After maneuvering from 22nd to eighth in the first half of the race, Marks was slowed by a rear end failure and finished 11th.
He nearly picked up his first Speedweek win at Lincoln Speedway in Abbottstown, Pa., on Thursday, when he qualified 11th quickest, placed second in his heat race and started the 30-lap feature on the inside of the second row.
“We were really fast,” said Marks, who took the lead on Lap 4. “The track was slick from the bottom all the way up to the wall. My car was good against the wall and that was the fastest way around the track three quarters of the way. I guess the bottom started taking rubber and came in the last few laps.”
Stevie Smith capitalized and took the top spot with two laps remaining.
“Stevie got underneath me going down the backstretch coming to the white flag. I raced Stevie pretty hard there the last lap. I just put it up against the fence trying to make things happen. I was right at his right rear (tire) and Alan Krimes was right at my left rear. We were all right there.”
Smith narrowly edged Marks for the victory.
“That was a bummer there,” Marks said. “That would have been a huge race for us to win.”
The team was again in contention for the victory on Friday at Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, Pa., where Marks qualified fifth quickest and advanced from third to second in his heat race to make the feature redraw.
He started fifth and climbed to the runner-up position with about 10 laps remaining.
“I thought we had a winning car,” he said. “I was catching Danny (Dietrich) and I got caught up in lapped traffic. A car got sideways in front of me and I ended up checking up and jumping the cushion and dropping to fourth. We really had a shot at winning that thing. That was a heartbreaker there.”
Marks finished fourth, which was his 16th top-five result of the season.
On Saturday, Marks competed at Port Royal Speedway in Port Royal, Pa. After qualifying fourth quickest and finishing fourth in his heat race, Marks started 11th in the main event.
“We were up to seventh and the car was just starting to come in,” he said. “Unfortunately Port Royal had the track pretty rough. It took a bad bounce and I ended up flipping it.”
Marks’ night ended with a 17th-place finish, which dropped him to sixth in the standings – only 15 points out of the top five.
Then the Speedweek finale at Selinsgrove Speedway in Selinsgrove, Pa., rained out on Sunday.
Marks is scheduled to race at Williams Grove Speedway on Friday and at Lincoln Speedway on Saturday.
QUICK RESULTS –
July 3 – Hagerstown Speedway in Hagerstown, Md. – Qualifying; 23; Heat race: 4 (8); Feature: 11 (22).
July 4 – Lincoln Speedway in Abbottstown, Pa. – Qualifying; 11; Heat race: 2 (2); Feature: 2 (3).
July 5 – Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, Pa. – Qualifying; 5; Heat race: 2 (3); Feature: 4 (5).
July 6 – Port Royal Speedway in Port Royal, Pa. – Qualifying; 4; Heat race: 4 (4); Feature: 17 (11).
SEASON STATS –
41 races, 5 wins, 16 top fives, 31 top 10s, 35 top 15s, 38 top 20s
UP NEXT –
Friday at Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, Pa., and Saturday at Lincoln Speedway in Abbottstown, Pa.
MEDIA LINKS –
Website: http://www.BrentMarksRacing.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Brent_Marks
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brentmarksracing?fref=ts
VIDEO –
Here is a link to a highlights package by PaPosseRacing.com of Marks’ first victory of the season at Williams Grove Speedway on June 21: http://youtu.be/OayAFmI9z2Q
Here are highlights of Marks’ first career win at Selinsgrove Speedway on May 26 courtesy of WHPTV: http://www.whptv.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoid=4077437
Check out Dirt Station highlights of Marks’ victory at Lincoln Speedway on May 11: http://youtu.be/WWQnrUF5ArI
Here is a link to a highlights package by PaPosseRacing.com of Marks’ win at Lincoln Speedway on May 11: http://youtu.be/9lltxaHih4k
Here is a link to a highlights package by PaPosseRacing.com of Marks’ win at Lincoln Speedway on March 30: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GHZvZdKZCk4
Here is a link to a highlights package by PaPosseRacing.com of Marks’ win at Lincoln Speedway on March 9: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zlz27Ec4jA
APPAREL –
Marks has a variety of apparel, including t-shirts, sweatshirts, long-sleeve shirts, hats and stickers. The apparel is located in front of the truck at Williams Grove Speedway and at T-shirt Alley at Lincoln Speedway each weekend.
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – BAPS Auto Paint and Supply
With three stores in Central Pennsylvania and one in Massachusetts, BAPS Auto Paint and Supply is a distributor of Quality Automotive, Industrial, and Commercial Coatings and Supplies. For more information, visit http://www.BAPSpaint.com.
“BAPS Auto Paint and Supply has sponsored me ever since I started racing go-karts in 1999,” Marks said. “They have been longtime family friends and a huge support of my career.”
Marks would also like to thank Fredericksburg Eagle Hotel, Creekside Auto Sales, Russell Heller Builder, TJ’s Body Shop, KC Automotive, Wolf Run Landscaping, Glenna Straley Hair Design, Sprint Aces, Robison Racing Products, KSE Racing Products, Penske Racing Shocks, Triple X Race Co., MEMTEC Services and special thanks to Tim Spangler and Jake’s Carts for their continued support.
INSIDE LINE PROMOTIONS –
Inside Line Promotions specializes in affordable public relations, media management and merchandising services for sprint car teams. ILP Founder Shawn Miller leverages professional journalism with new media technologies and social networking to improve your exposure and your sponsors’ return on investment.
To meet the media relations needs of your team, contact Shawn at 541-510-3663 or sprintcarreporter@yahoo.com. For more information on Inside Line Promotions, visit http://www.insidelinepromotions.com.