6/2/2013
IRA Interstate Racing Association
CEDAR LAKE SPEEDWAY PULLS OFF TRIPLE CROWN EVENT – BALOG BESTS COMPETITORS AND WEATHER THREAT!
CEDAR LAKE SPEEDWAY PULLS OFF TRIPLE CROWN EVENT – BALOG BESTS COMPETITORS AND WEATHER THREAT!
Balog Fends off Moughan for $3,000 Payday!
New Richmond, WI, June 1, 2013 – On a cold and damp evening, Cedar Lake Speedway was able to successfully fend off the weather threat and present its Triple Crown show for the loyal fans of the speedway. Those in attendance witnessed a fast paced program with very few cautions in the main events presented during the evening which also included NASCAR Late Models and Modified in addition to the Bumper to Bumper IRA Outlaw Sprints.
The drivers of the Winged 410 sprints did their part with only a single caution in the 30 A-main main which was captured by Bill Balog. Balog outdistanced Jim Moughan who made the long haul from Springfield, Illinois payoff with a second place finish in his first series appearance of the year.
While Balog may not be planning to run the entire Bumper to Bumper IRA Outlaw Sprint series schedule in 2013, when the five-time and defending champion pulls into the pit area his fellow competitors face quite a challenge… beating the #17b machine to the checkered flag.
Moughan came close to having the magic formula, applying the pressure to Balog early in the main event but after the long caution for a spin by Allen Gilbertson, Balog simply gave it the gas and hid from the field enroute to his second straight series victory. Moughan would settle for second a dozen car lengths back with former series champion Travis Whitney who was also making his first showing of the season a successful one with a third place finish.
The 30 lap A-main event would get underway with a steady mist in the air and a strong cold wind blowing, but things were about to heat up.
A full field of Winged 410 sprints accepted the green flag with Scott Neitzel getting the jump on polesitter Whitney who would later indicate he spun his tires on the start breaking his momentum.
This allowed Neitzel to assume the opening lead of the event with Whitney immediately coming under challenge for Balog who had started in the second row. Balog wasted little time working by Whitney for second and now the chase was on. Neitzel looking to overcome some early season bad luck would pace the contest until lap three before Balog shot to the front. It was a spot he would hold for the duration of the contest.
The only slowdown appeared on lap five as the yellow flew with Gilbertson looping his ride in turn four. On the restart Balog was back to showing the way with Whitney working past Neitzel for second. Neitzel would lose another position on the next lap as Moughan was showcasing the speed in his #1mm ride reaching the third spot.
Moughan seemed to be the only driver able to match Balog’s pace and he quickly began to challenge Whitney for runner-up honors. Moughan was able to grab second on lap 16 with his next challenge was to try and close on Balog.
Making some excellent maneuvers in lapped traffic Moughan managed to close within a few car lengths of Balog, but over the final ten laps Balog turned up the wick extending his lead on Moughan while putting on a passing exhibition of the lapped cars.
Balog had lapped up to the fifth spot when the checkered flag fell taking a convincing victory. Moughan’s efforts were rewarded with a rewarding second place showing and Whitney held on to the final podium spot in third.
Fourth place was hotly contested throughout much of the contest as Neitzel was able to fend off repeated challenges from Jeremy Schultz for fifth. Schultz the leading Rookie of the year candidate and current point leader completed the top five and was the final competitor on the lead lap. Schultz had finished third in all four IRA events so far, had his podium streak broken but he is the only driver to have finished in the top five in every race in 2013.
Russel Borland finished sixth after a spirited battle with Balog over the final laps as he attempted to stay on the lead lap. Though he would go down a circuit to Balog by the finish Borland secured a well-earned sixth place finish. Nick Alden, Ryan Wilson, rookie of the year contender Lance Fassbender and Kris Spitz completed the top ten runners.
21 of the 22 starters were still on the racing surface at the checkered flag.
A B-main was held as 25 cars had checked into the pit area in spite of threatening weather. Bill Wirth would set the pace in that contested outrunning Gilbertson for the win. Phillip Mock, Tommy Sexton, Bryon Walters and Michael Decker earned transfer spots by finishing in the top six.
Heat races this evening proved especially important as qualifying was dropped in effort to beat any weather threat. As such the Bumper to Bumper IRA Sprints opted to use passing points in the heat races to determine which drivers would make the feature event with the balance running the B-main. Heat victories were captured by Neitzel, Whitney and Balog.
The series completes its weekend your with a stop at Eagle Valley Speedway on Sunday Night, June 2nd, some 45 minutes east of Cedar Lake Speedway. The show marks the only stop of the 2103 at the facility, while the series will return to Cedar Lake Speedway again on September 7th for the prestigious 13th Annual Jerry Reichert Memorial race.
For more information on the IRA Outlaw Sprints check out the tour website at www.irasprints.com or logging onto the series Facebook page at www.facebook.com/irasprints
The IRA Outlaw Sprint Series is proudly supported by Bumper to Bumper Auto Parts & Service Centers, Hoosier Tire, Osborn & Son Trucking, TW Metals, Onan, Carriage Auto Body, Polaris DEFENSE, and Mother's Polishes and Waxes. The office of the IRA Sprints can be reached at 815-759-9269 or by e-mail at steve@irasprints.com
BOX SCORE:
Event: #5 Cedar Lake Speedway – June 1, 2013
A Feature (30 Laps): 1. 17B-Bill Balog[3]; 2. 1MM-Jim Moughan Jr[6]; 3. 16-Travis Whitney[1]; 4. 2W-Scott Neitzel[2]; 5. 5J-Jeremy Schultz[4]; 6. 23-Russell Borland[10]; 7. 8A-Nick Alden[7]; 8. 19-Ryan Wilson[13]; 9. 7F-Lance Fassbender[5]; 10. 4K-Kris Spitz[9]; 11. 83-Tommy Sexton Jr[20]; 12. 97-Todd King[12]; 13. 7-Scott Uttech[14]; 14. 97X-Alan Gilbertson[18]; 15. 14AJ-Wayne Modjeski[8]; 16. 53W-Bill Wirth[17]; 17. 1M-Phillip Mock[19]; 18. 11-Darrell Dodd[11]; 19. 12-Michael Decker[22]; 20. 68-Dave Uttech[15]; 21. 5-Bryon Walters[21]; DNF 14X-Joe Symoens[16]
B Feature (10 Laps): 1. 53W-Bill Wirth[2]; 2. 97X-Alan Gilbertson[1]; 3. 1M-Phillip Mock[3]; 4. 83-Tommy Sexton Jr[4]; 5. 5-Bryon Walters[7]; 6. 12-Michael Decker[5]; 7. 3TK-Tony Kaus[6]; 8. 41-Dennis Spitz[8]; 9. 71-Chad Tessman[9]
Heat 1 (10 Laps): 1. 2W-Scott Neitzel[1]; 2. 23-Russell Borland[2]; 3. 1MM-Jim Moughan Jr[9]; 4. 19-Ryan Wilson[3]; 5. 97-Todd King[7]; 6. 97X-Alan Gilbertson[5]; 7. 83-Tommy Sexton Jr[6]; 8. 5-Bryon Walters[4]; 9. 71-Chad Tessman[8]
Heat 2 (10 Laps): 1. 16-Travis Whitney[1]; 2. 5J-Jeremy Schultz[6]; 3. 11-Darrell Dodd[2]; 4. 7-Scott Uttech[3]; 5. 8A-Nick Alden[8]; 6. 53W-Bill Wirth[5]; 7. 1M-Phillip Mock[7]; 8. 41-Dennis Spitz[4]
Heat 3 (10 Laps): 1. 17B-Bill Balog[3]; 2. 4K-Kris Spitz[1]; 3. 14AJ-Wayne Modjeski[4]; 4. 7F-Lance Fassbender[8]; 5. 68-Dave Uttech[2]; 6. 14X-Joe Symoens[6]; 7. 12-Michael Decker[5]; 8. 3TK-Tony Kaus[7]
Passing Points: 1. 5J-Jeremy Schultz; 2. 17B-Bill Balog; 3. 2W-Scott Neitzel; 4. 16-Travis Whitney; 5. 23-Russell Borland; 6. 4K-Kris Spitz; 7. 14AJ-Wayne Modjeski; 8. 8A-Nick Alden
These are actually high point cars due to using passing point system at this race. The inclement weather did not allow us to qualify in an effort to get the program completed.
Article Credit: Jeffrey Sachse
Submitted By: Kim Tennyson
