Matt Sheppard out of Waterloo, NY is doing everything he can to win the 2011 Tracey Road Equipment Big Block Modified Track Championship at the Brewerton Speedway.
Friday night Sheppard started seventeenth and steadily worked his way forward taking the lead on lap22 from race leader Willy Decker. Once in the lead Sheppard held off Jimmy Phelps for the win. Points leader Stewart Friesen recovered from an early race incident to finish fifth.
Going into next Fridays, September 2nd final point race, Stewart Friesen leads Matt Sheppard by 12 points and Jimmy Phelps by 17 points. This sets up an epic battle to decide the 2011 track champion.
Other winners on NAPA, Dig Safely New York night were, Tim Sears Jr. $1,000 to win NAPA Late Models, Tim Devendorf Beaver River Distribution ESDCA Mod Lites, Stephen Denton Metalico Four Cylinder Super Stocks and David Ferguson Pizza Logs 600 Sprint Tour.
Tony Steiner out raced Steve Hulsizer, and the rest of the 26 car starting field to lead the opening lap of the 35 lap Tracey Road Equipment Big Block Modified feature. Steiner’s lead would last one lap before Mike Bowman took over the top-spot before a quick yellow that involved point’s leader Stewart Friesen.Friesen would continue at the rear of the field.
With Bowman out front setting a quick pace, Willy Decker who started sixth, ran down Bowman using the top of the speedway to be scored the new leader on lap seven.
By lap 10, Decker opened a quarter of a straightaway lead over Bowman, as Steiner, Chris Hile and Pat O’Brien were in a tight battle for third through fifth.
Just before the halfway point, Decker was on rails as he started putting cars a lap down. Bowman, O’Brien, Matt Sheppard and Steiner showed in the top-five just before a yellow that would wipe out Decker’s lead.
On the restart, Sheppard shot by Bowman into the runner-up spot and set his sights on Decker. On lap 22 running the bottom of the speedway, Sheppard would drive by Decker to be scored the new leader of the race.
On lap 25, Jimmy Phelps moved into second and started putting pressure on Sheppard trying every groove on the track trying to find a way by Sheppard with Pat Ward right there in third within striking distance.
A final yellow would fly on lap 31 setting up a shootout to the finish. The yellow was just what Sheppard needed as he was able to keep a couple car lengths between himself and Phelps to be the first under the checkers. Pat Ward, Steve Hulsizer and Stewart Friesen finished third through fifth.
“This car has just been awesome the second half of the year. I think, by far we have been better than anyone else has,” Said Matt Sheppard after exiting his Xtreme Lubricants, No.9s, Bicknell in victory lane. “We have stumbled onto to something; it’s just been so good. Unless something happens and we can’t get through traffic, we have one of the fastest cars everyweek.”
“This place is tough, it was so racey tonight . The groove changed about three or four times tonight . The top was fast, then the bottom was fast, then the middle was fast. It’s tough, especially being the leader trying to keep up with the lane changes. I was pretty good on the bottom and found I had to move to the top at the end,” to hold off Jimmy Phelps for the win.
In the exciting $1,000 to win 25 lap NAPA Late Model feature it was a battle between Gordy Button, Larry Wight and late in the going Tim Sears Jr. joined the fight that came down to the final laps. On the final lap, Sears was able to work his way Wight for the narrow 0.504 of a second win. Gordy Button, Dale Caswell and Sean Beardsley rounded out the top-five.
Tim Devendorf took care of business in the 20 lap Beaver River Distribution ESDCA Mod Lite feature in his drive for the championship. Devendorf took over the lead on lap 8 and was never headed from there picking up the win. Mike Mullen, Joe Isabell, Jeff Isabell Jr. and Jim Bogett rounded out the top five. Going into the final point’s race, Devendorf holds a 31 point lead over Joe Isabell.
Stephen Denton took the lead at the start of the 15 lap Metalico Four Cylinder Super Stock feature out running Chuck Powelczyk to the checkers for his tenth win of the year. Jim Money, Wendell Washington and Jessica Redhead rounded out the top-five.
The Pizza Logs 600 Sprint Tour made a special appearance that saw David Ferguson make a late race pass of Daryl Ruggles to pick up the 20 lap win. Nick Cooper, Daryl Ruggles, Tyler Walker andMatt Farmham chased Ferguson across the line.
This coming Friday night September 2nd The Waterfront and Calypso Cay Restaurants present the 2011 Season Championship Night as track titles will be handed out in all divisions on the final points race of the season. The Syracuse Crunch mascot and team representatives will be on hand all evening.
Adult grandstand admission will be $12 with everyone 18 years old and younger admitted free to the grandstand. Gates will open at 5:30 with racing at 7:30.
The countdown is on for the 19th Annual Hurricane 100 presented by SUNY Canton on Thursday night October 6th. With the race paying at least $7,500 to the winner and for the first time including Big Block Modifieds, look for the Brewerton regulars to defend their turf against what promises to be a stout field of invaders.
Get your tickets now for what competitors and fans alike are calling “The Race Of The Week” by contacting Cory Reed at 315-668-6906 or cory@brewertonspeedway.com.
Don’t forget to follow Fulton Speedway on Facebook and on Twitter at twitter.com/Fultonspeedway. Brewerton Speedway is also active on both Facebook and Twitter at twitter.com/BrewertonSpdway).
(TRACEY ROAD EQUIPMENT BIG BLOCK MODIFIEDS 35 LAPS) – MATT SHEPPARD, Jimmy Phelps, Pat Ward, Steve Hulsizer, Stewart Friesen, Larry Wight, Mike Bowman, Ryan Phelps, Willy Decker, Alan Johnson, Pat O’Brien, Billy Decker, Matt Fink, Chad Phelps, Gary Tomkins, Tony Steiner, Chris Hile, Mike Mahaney, Roy Bresnahan, Rich Scagliotta, Chuck Bower, Jim Davis, Peter Britten, Jim Witko Jr., Dan Vauter.
(NAPA LATE MODELS 25 LAPS) – TIM SEARS JR., Larry Wight, Gordy Button, Dale Caswell, Sean Beardsley, Alan Fink, AJ Kingsley, Shayne Tenace, Steven Coit, Aaron Jacobs, Jim Southard, Dave Talbot, Art Halliday, Scott Fowler, Ryan Halliday.
(BEAVER RIVER DISTRIBUTION ESDCA MOD LITES 20 LAPS) – TIM DEVENDORF, Mike Mullen, Joe Isabell, Jeff Isabell Jr., Jim Bogett, Nick Graziano, Joe Garafolo, Doug Williams, Lowell Zehr, Russ Brown, Zach Babcock, Lorrie Herbert, Kelly Skinner, Jeff Blackburn, Jeff Isabell Sr., Sterling Miller, Lane Bush, Cody Fleming, Sam Usborne, Terry Lapham, Jamie King, Rick DeGroff, Rick Demo, Chris Harvey, Rob Grzelka,
(METALICO FOUR CYLINDER SUPER STOCKS 15 LAPS) – STEPHEN DENTON, Chuck Powelczyk, Jim Money, Wendell Washington, Jessica Redhead, Keith Shay, Lorraine Powelczyk, Sam Carista, Richard Leahey, Art Dupra, Sam Curcie, Bill Carista, Corie Locke, Jake Gagnon, Brian Jewell, Matt Fay.
(PIZZA LOGS 600 SPRINT TOUR 20 LAPS) – DAVID FERGUSON, Nick Cooper, Daryl Ruggles, Tyler Walker, Matt Farmham, Kevin Carlson, Megan Allen, Colton Wilson, Dan Naegele, Tyler Hill, DJ Forbes, Cody Shurgot, Nate Hendrix, Joe Trenca, Hank Stanhope, Dylan Zacharias, Keith Granholm, Matt Jones, AJ Bogino, Jeremy Groescup, Dan Kuhn.