Richards Pulls Off Unprecedented $42,000-Plus Sweep of Firecracker 100 Weekend at Lernerville Speedway

SHINNSTON, W. Va. - July 1, 2013 - Josh Richards added another highlight to his ever-growing racing resume with a historic performance at Lernerville Speedway in Sarver, Pa.

The 25-year-old from Shinnston, W.Va., pulled off an unprecedented sweep of the World of Outlaws Late Model Series Firecracker 100 weekend, backing up his victories in the 30-lap preliminary A-Mains on Thursday night and Saturday afternoon with a powerful drive to the checkered flag in Saturday evening's seventh annual 100-lap finale.

Richards not only became the first driver to sweep the Firecracker 100 extravaganza since it was expanded to three full racing programs in 2010 but also the first to capture both preliminary events - a triple worth $42,950. His commanding performance over one of the most talented fields dirt Late Model racing will see all season continued his already spectacular return to full time action in the full-fender division this season.

"It means a lot to me to win a race of this much prestige - as well as (the fact that) this is the place I ran my first Outlaw race (in 2004)," Richards said in a WoO LMS press release detailing Saturday night's Firecracker 100 finale. "This track means a lot to me and to get a crown-jewel (event win) here is huge. There are a lot of great cars here and just to be able to win one of the (weekend) races means a lot - and to win all three is unreal."

After earning a pole position starting spot in a Firecracker 100 heat race on Saturday night thanks to his preliminary A-Main triumphs, Richards raced to victory in the 10-lap sprint to earn an opportunity to redraw for a top-six start in the century grind. He took full advantage of the prime position for his Valvoline-sponsored Mark Richards Racing Enterprises Rocket Chassis No. 1, chasing early leader and defending Firecracker 100 winner Scott Bloomquist before surging into the top spot for good on lap 16.

In a tough race (11 caution flags, two red flags) that was run on a four-tenths-mile oval made tacky and fast by rain that delayed the start of the Saturday-night program for two hours, Richards never faltered once in command. He survived challenges from Bloomquist, Shane Clanton, John Blankenship, Rick Eckert and Tim McCreadie en route to registering a $30,650 victory that ranks as the second-richest of his racing career.

"I just had to try to stay focused and race smart," said Richards, who beat McCreadie to the finish line by 0.976 of a second after Eckert's bid ended when he stopped to bring out a caution flag on lap 96 due to a broken rear-end. "We just had to try to harness it all and be fast but not get out of control. You have to just stay smooth, and when guys pressure you-you still gotta stay focused and do your thing."

Richards wore a big smile after celebrating his Firecracker 100 victory in the early-morning hours of Sunday, but he deflected praise for his third career 100-lap win to his supporters.

"I'm happier for all the guys who are a part of this team," Richards said of his hard-working road crew comprised of Mark Richards, Matt Barnes and Cody Duncan, all the staff back at the Rocket Chassis shop and his financial backers. "For me personally it means a lot to win any race, but more importantly to do it for them - all my sponsors and my fans - to finally pull it off for them is real satisfying. They put a lot of effort into me and give me a lot of support, so I'm thrilled to have a weekend like this for them."
  
After rain pushed Friday night's second Firecracker 100 preliminary program to Saturday afternoon - setting up a huge doubleheader at Lernerville - Richards picked up where he left off. He won his heat race, picked the pole position for the feature and then ran away to another victory on the sun-baked afternoon surface.

"The pill draw was huge," Richards said of his afternoon triumph, "but we still had to earn our spot up front. We went out second-to-last in qualifying (Group 'B'), but I knew we had a really good car so I just tried to make a smooth lap and we ended up qualifying fifth. Then I was able to get by (Ron) Davies there in the heat (for the win); I had to make the move early because I knew once everybody got in line it would be hard to pass and we were able to get that done."

With his Lernerville hat trick, Richards became the first driver in WoO LMS history to win three A-Mains in as many days at a single track. He also pushed his 2013 World of Outlaws win total to six - tied with Darrell Lanigan for the most on the tour this season - and extended his WoO LMS points lead from eight to 44 points over Clanton.

Richards will have a few days to regroup before heading out on his most far-flung trip of the season: the WoO LMS Wild West Tour. The six-race swing begins on July 5 at Amsoil Speedway in Superior, Wis., and continues at Deer Creek Speedway in Spring Valley, Minn., on July 6; Black Hills Speedway in Rapid City, S.D., in July 8; Gillette (Wyo.) Thunder Speedway in July 9; Red River Co-op Speedway in Winnipeg, Manitoba, in July 11; and River Cities Speedway in Grand Forks, N.D., on July 12.

 

For more information on Josh Richards, visit www.joshrichards.com and follow him on Twitter at @Josh_Richards1 and on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/JoshRichardsRacing.

Josh Richards' No. 1 team carries support from Valvoline, Seubert Calf Ranches, Ernie D's, Ace Welding, Petroff Towing, Sallack Well Service, Tony Stewart Racing, Rocket Chassis, Roush Yates Engines, Hoosier Racing Tires, Sunoco Racing Fuels, Keyser Manufacturing, Integra Shocks, Sweet Manufacturing, Slavic Custom Tee Shirts And Graphics, Brown and Miller, Brazwell Carburetors, Bazell Racing Fuels, ButlerBuilt Seat, Beyea Headers, Performance Rod and Custom, Wilwood Disc Brakes, Frankland Rear Ends, Simpson Safety Equipment, J E Pistons, Strange Oval, Wrisco Aluminum, R2C Filters, Aurora Rod Ends, Snap On Tools, Scott Wires, Trick Carbon Fiber Drive Shafts, Five Star Bodies, Jones Racing Products, Howe Racing, Performance Bodies, Turbo Start Batteries, Brinn Transmissions, Eagle One, Car Brite, ATL Fuel Cells, Dohm's Cycles, Weld Wheels, Barnes Oil Systems, Tel-Tac, MSD Ignitions.

 

Honey Rentz Carrigan
Rising Star Management Group
hcarrigan@risingstarmg.com
(704) 658-7650

 

 

Contact: Shawn Miller
Inside Line Promotions
sprintcarreporter@yahoo.com | (541) 510-3663

Bruce Jr. Excited for Month-Long Road Trip with Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour

Inside Line Promotions - OWASSO, Okla. (June 30, 2013) - After taking last weekend off, Tony Bruce Jr. is set to embark upon a busy month of July.

Bruce Jr., who ranks fifth in the Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour championship standings through the first 18 events, will compete in nine races at six tracks in four states, including the annual summer trip to the Northwest.

"We're about to go on the road for a while and once we leave the Northwest it's the long haul over to the Knoxville Nationals," he said. "This is definitely a busy time of the year with some big shows, so it's nice to have some momentum after a strong showing during the Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour Speedweek."
Prior to his weekend off, Bruce Jr. secured a fifth-place finish during the six-race, nine-day Speedweek. He garnered three top-five finishes, five top 10s and officially passed a series-high total of 46 cars during the features.

Now the focus shifts toward a big road trip throughout South Dakota, Montana, Washington and Oregon, which begins on Saturday at I-90 Speedway in Harford, S.D. Bruce Jr. won at the 3/8-mile track in 2008 and has three top-10 finishes in the four seasons since.

"It's always fun to go to a track where you have had success," he said. "Hopefully this year we can get another victory to start the month on the right note."

From there, Bruce Jr. and the Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour make two visits in Montana next week - Monday, July 8, at Billings Motorsports Park in Billings and Wednesday, July 10, at Electric City Speedway in Great Falls - before the three-week trek in the Northwest.

Grays Harbor Raceway in Elma, Wash., hosts a doubleheader on Friday and Saturday, July 12-13, before two straight weekends in Oregon at Cottage Grove Speedway in Cottage Grove (July 19-20) and at Willamette Speedway in Lebanon (July 26-27).

"It's always great to get out to the Northwest to see the fans and friends we have in that part of the country," Bruce Jr. said. "It's a long trip out there so hopefully we can continue to put together solid performances and pick up a couple of wins."

SEASON STATS -
27 races, 2 wins, 11 top fives, 18 top 10s, 25 top 15s, 27 top 20s

UP NEXT -
Saturday at I-90 Speedway in Harford, S.D., with the Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour

SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS -
Website: http://www.tonybrucejr.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/tonybrucejr

VIDEO -
Here is a link for RacinBoys' footage of Bruce Jr.'s victory at Boyd Raceway on April 26: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Wx3nrOFTDyg

APPAREL -
Bruce Jr. has black and white t-shirts in adult sizes for sale at his race trailer at each of his races. For his schedule, visit http://www.TonyBruceJr.com/schedule.

SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT - Lubbock Wrecker Service
With locations in Lubbock and Synder, Texas, Lubbock Wrecker Service has more than 50 years of combined experience providing heavy duty, medium duty and light vehicle towing. For more information, visit http://www.LubbockWrecker.com.
"It's an honor to be associated with Scott Brown and Lubbock Wrecker Service," Bruce Jr. said. "They have been involved with racing for a long time and we are fortunate to have them join our team for the 2013 season."
Bruce Jr. would also like to thank The Oil Medics, Wheeler Metals, Eagle Motorsports, Hinchman Racewear, Smiley's Racing Products, SWE, Maxwell Industries, FK Rod Ends, ButlerBuilt Professional Seat Systems, Factory Kahne Shocks, DriverWebsites.com, RacinBoys.com, Wilwood, Schoenfield Headers, Hoosier Tires, HRP, Kaeding Performance, Schaeffer Oil, Fuel Safe, Bell Helmets, Four Seasons Radiator, Southern Trailer Works, KSE, Brown and Miller Racing Solutions, Weld Wheels, ISC Racers Tape and Pressure Tek 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.

RUNNER-UP FINISH FOR SALDANA AND 71M TEAM AT CEDAR LAKE SPEEDWAY

NEW RICHMOND, Wis. (June 20, 2013) – A huge crowd gathered at Cedar Lake Speedway tonight to watch The World of Outlaws STP Sprint Car drivers continue their acceleration infatuation for the third consecutive night.

The Motter Motorsports team had one of their best nights of racing, leading the lion’s share of laps in an edge of your seat action packed A-Main, ultimately finishing in the runner-up position.

Joey Saldana drove the Motter Equipment Fatheadz Eyewear 71M Sprint Car to the No. 4 qualifying position, lapping the one-third mile oval in 11.599 seconds.

After applying the Outlaws formula to the qualifying position to determine heat race starting positions, Saldana was assigned a starting berth on the inside of the second row for the first heat race.  At the drop of the green, the two front row starters, Chad Kemenah and Craig Dollansky, fought for the lead with Kemenah winning the battle.
Dollansky was second, with Saldana in pursuit.  With a very narrow racing surface, there wasn’t room to safely make a pass and the cars began to string out.  At the checker it was Kemenah with the win, Dollansky was second and Saldana came home third, earning a spot in the dash and the A-Main.

After the inversion draw, Saldana was awarded the No. 3 starting position in the dash.
As the field was unleashed for the six-lap event, polesitter Chad Kemenah jumped to the lead, followed by Saldana who held his line and protected his second place position to the checkered flag.

Because the dash finish determines the A-Main starting lineup, Saldana started on the outside of the front row in the feature next to polesitter Sammy Swindell.  At the flutter of the green, Saldana, riding the high side, took the lead.  By lap four he began to encounter lapped traffic.  The yellow flew with five laps complete when Craig Dollansky spun to a stop.  For the restart, Saldana chose the high side once again, and Swindell was on the inside.  At the green, Swindell took the lead, but the start was called back because Ian Madsen jumped the start.  Taking a page out of Swindell’s playbook for the next restart, Saldana chose the inside line.

This time when the green flew, Saldana was out in front.  With eight laps complete, Saldana started to pull away, and quickly encountered traffic.  The yellow came out with 13 laps complete for David Gravel who suffered front end damage when he tangled with the wall in turn three. 

Green again, and Saldana was off and running with a one-second lead at the halfway point of the feature.  With 15 laps to go, Donny Schatz was on the move and passed Swindell for second, pulling up for a side-by-side, stride-for-stride battle with Saldana.  While they were engrossed in the crusade for the lead, one of the cars in front of them, R.J. Johnson, flipped upside down, collecting Kraig Kinser, James McFadden, and ultimately Schatz.  With 11 laps to go, the red was displayed.  All drivers were okay, Schatz and Kinser were able to make repairs and re-fire.

Saldana brought the field down for the restart and jumped to the lead while Steve Kinser was able to pass Swindell for second.  But action was short lived as the yellow came out for Dollansky who made contact with another car.  Another restart, and Saldana began to pull away after he took the green.  With eight laps to go, Schatz caught one of the inside tire markers and flipped bringing out the red one more time.  Schatz was okay and went to the work area to make repairs. For yet another time, Saldana brought the field down slowly from the inside line.  This time there was a different outcome.  As Saldana passed the flagstand he spun the tires briefly but the momentary bobble was enough for Swindell to maneuver past Saldana and take the lead which he held to the checkered flag.  Saldana was runner-up and Steve Kinser was third.

“We had a good car tonight,” said Saldana in his post-race interview.  “We just came up a little bit short.  Dan and Ruth Motter (car owners) are here tonight.  This race is one of the closest to home for them and even though we weren’t able to get the win, it was a great effort by the whole Motter team.”

So to recap the night:  Saldana finished third in his heat race, second in the dash, and second in the A-Main, leading 27 of 35 laps.

Game on!  The team can’t wait to get back into action Wednesday night, July 3 in Brandon, S.D.

# # #

Contact: Shawn Miller
Inside Line Promotions
sprintcarreporter@yahoo.com | (541) 510-3663

Wood Earns Fourth-Place Finish at Huset's Speedway in Only Fifth Career 410 Event

Inside Line Promotions - BRANDON, S.D. (July 1, 2013) - Cole Wood capped a weekend with a trio of races in three states by putting together one of his best performances in a 410 class.

In only his fifth career race with a 410ci engine, Wood qualified sixth quickest and charged from fourth to second in his heat race on Sunday at Huset's Speedway.

With the feature inversion being six, that put Wood on the pole for the 25-lap main event. He led the first nine laps before a miscue cost him three positions.

"I started on the pole and jumped out front," he said. "Going through (turns) three and four I jumped the cushion and (Mark) Dobmeier, (Lynton) Jeffrey and (Terry) McCarl got by me. I ran in fourth the rest of the race.

"I was extremely happy to have a night like that because that's only my fifth time in a 410. The cushion was up against the fence. We were really good on the cushion all night."

Wood's fourth-place result was his seventh top-five finish of the season.

He also took advantage on Saturday of one final opportunity to log some laps in the 410 class at Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, Iowa, before the famed 53 rd annual FVP Knoxville Nationals in August. In his first career 410 race at the half-mile track, Wood qualified 25th quickest and finished eighth in his heat race.
That put him seventh in the B Main, which he advanced to fourth to earn a transfer to the main event. He then moved from 22nd to place 18 th.

"It was way more important to be smooth," Wood said of the difference between 410 and 360 cars at Knoxville Raceway. "They just react so fast. One little turn will bring you across the race track. It definitely made me more comfortable and it helped me to realize how important being smooth is. I have a bunch of 360 experience there, but it's so different. I'm glad I got to experience the difference between the two."
The week opened on Wednesday at the Spring Sprint Car Nationals at Jackson Speedway in Jackson, Minn. In his first appearance at the half-mile oval, Wood started and finished third in his heat race to advance to the feature.

He began on the inside of the eighth row and ended 14th to notch his 19th top-five finish of the season.
"There was a tricky groove," he said. "I just felt really uncomfortable. I talked to a bunch of the locals and they said there are specific grooves you have to run. Out of turn two the track was blown off and it fell off onto a little driveway type deal. You had to come off the bottom in turn two and I think that's where we struggled the most."

Wood is scheduled to compete on Saturday at I-90 Speedway in Harford, S.D., with the Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour.

QUICK RESULTS -
June 26 - Jackson Speedway in Jackson, Minn. - Heat race: 3 (3); Feature: 14 (15).
June 29 - Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, Iowa - Qualifying: 25; Heat race: 8 (9); B Main: 4 (7); Feature: 18 (22).
June 30 - Huset's Speedway in Brandon, S.D. - Qualifying: 6; Heat race: 2 (4); Feature: 4 (1).

SEASON STATS -
33 races, 0 wins, 7 top fives, 12 top 10s, 20 top 15s, 29 top 20s

UP NEXT -
Saturday at I-90 Speedway in Hartford, S.D., with the Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour

MEDIA LINKS -
Website: http://www.ColeWoodRacing.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/wood17w
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Cole-Wood-Racing/246046125428603?fref=ts

APPAREL -
Wood has t-shirts and hats available at his race car trailer at every race. For a schedule of events, visit http://www.ColeWoodRacing.com.

SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT - Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center at Elk Grove Ford
Located at Elk Grove Ford in Elk Grove, Calif., Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center is one of more than 650 branches of efficient vehicle servicing companies. For more information, visit http://www.ElkGroveFord.dealerconnection.com/QuickLane.

"The guys in the Quick Lane department of Elk Grove Ford are extremely helpful with the CWR team," Wood said. "For anyone who needs an oil change, tire inspection or most anything else involved in servicing a car, check out Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center at Elk Grove Ford."
Wood would also like to thank Elk Grove Ford, A.R.T. Speed Equipment, Roush Yates Racing Engines, Wion's Body Shop, Keizer Aluminum Wheels, Awesome Racewear, ButlerBuilt Professional Seat Systems and The Joie of Seating for their continued support.