Saturday night proved to be an exciting evening as far as sprint car and open wheel racing is concerned.
Mercer Raceway Park had Fully Injected written all over it last night; as two FI teammates took heat race victories. Scott Priester and Rod George kicked off their Saturday night’s capturing 2 of the 3 heat races in the Saturday night format.
After taking a heat race victory, Scott Priester, driving the familiar pink and purple Dionise #15, would start fourth in the feature; but, unfortunate events would forfeit his up front running position. On lap 5, Priester would be involved in a caution sending the 25 year veteran to the back. No time would be taken for granted at the Mercer bullring as he eventually hard charged from the back to still salvage a top 10 finish; crossing the line in 10th.
Rod George had what seemed to be a solid evening working out for him. After winning his heat race, Rod found himself earning a 3rd place starting position in the feature event. While maintaining the 3rd spot, rear axle issues threw all hopes of a positive finish out the window. The rear axle would eventual snap ending his night early again at the Mercer Raceway Park. Tough luck. Hopefully the string of mishaps is soon to fade away.
Brandon “Wheelman” Matus allowed himself to have a positive evening as well; qualifying for the feature event -starting deep within the pack, and finishing 12th. The young Fully Injected teammate would rally from the back and gain 10 spots after starting 22nd. The Wampum native will be back at it again next weekend, along with the other Fully Injected teammates, in hopes to cash in hard charges for victories.
Scott Priester and Brandon Matus having some fun with the camera. Photo by Kirstie Priester.
Kolten Gouse had an exciting evening of his own last night at the Tri-State Speedway in Haubstaudt, Indiana. Kasey Kahne Racing has 2 finishers in the top 3 last night including Paul McMahan and Joey Saldana. Saldana, who Kolten works for as a Tire Specialist, was the night’s fastest qualifier and also a heat race runner-up. He would follow Sammy Swindell, a 3 time winner this year on the WoO tour, and Paul McMahan, his KKR teammate, across the line.
Jason Dollick would take the Mercer Raceway Park victory over a solid field of 30+ cars. Port Royal Speedway would see Greg Hodnett back in Victory Lane last night with the All Star Circuit of Champions. Matt Westfall was the wingless sprint car winner at the Eldora Speedway . Willie Croft won the King of the West Series event last night at Marysville Raceway Park. Tim Kaeding and Andy Gregg rounded out the top 3. Cory Haas, a now full time member of 410 sprint car competition in central Pennsylvania, picked up the Lincoln Speedway victory last night. He would be followed by Adam Wilt and Danny Dietrich. Danny Lasoski found himself back in victory lane last night at the legendary Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, IA. The multi-time track champion now has 94 wins at the speedway. ASCS Regional competition would see multiple winners all across the country this weekend. Big names such as Gary Taylor, Jason Johnson, Tommy Tarlton, and Dustin Daggett all took regional wins. Round 4 of FAST competition at the Fremont Speedway saw Bryan Sebetto take the victory over the 35 car field.
I would like to take the time to thank Bill and Suzanne Stivason of Suzanne Stivason Motorsports for supporting Fully Injected. Bill Stivason competes regularly in the Mod Lite division at Mercer Raceway Park and Blanket Hill Speedway, just outside of Kittanning, Pennsylvania. Although they do not compete in what may be considered an “open wheel” class, their support is much appreciated and Fully Injected wants to thank them. Suzanne Stivason Motorsports is also one of the prime sponsors and supporters of Rod George Racing. That open wheel connection and support is greatly appreciated.
Fully Injected decal on the Suzanne Stivason Motorsports Mod Lite driven by Bill Stivason. Photo by Cory Stivason.
Don’t forget to check back tomorrow evening for the Monday Night Review!