3/4/2014
Aaron Reutzel
Reutzel Confident after Cocopah Opener!
Lonnie Wheatley, CLUTE, Texas (March 4, 2014) – Aaron Reutzel kicked off his pursuit of the Lucas Oil ASCS National championship with a pair of feature starts in this past weekend’s series season-opening double at Cocopah Speedway in Yuma, AZ.
With a 14th place finish in Friday night’s opener and then a DNF in Saturday’s main after being awarded a Promoter’s provisional, Reutzel and the Stafford Performance-powered Bob and Christie Miller’s Car Parts Machine/Wren’s Motorsports No. 87 Triple-X team are enthused about the rest of the 2014 season.
“We had a good car, things just didn’t quite fall right to get the finishes we wanted,” Reutzel explained. “Plus, Bob (Miller) wasn’t able to be there. He’s the one that really knows how to tune the engine, hopefully he’ll be feeling good enough to go to Devil’s Bowl on March 21-22 and we’ll be in good shape.”
After consistently drawing near the tail of heat races during non-wing Winter Challenge action to kick off the year in January, the trend continued with Reutzel drawing the tail of a heat race on both Yuma nights with 42 cars filling the pit area.
“We gained enough in Friday’s heat that I knew we’d be in good shape in the “B”,” Reutzel explained. “But on Saturday the track was heavy from the rain and then one of the cars we could have passed in the heat race scratched, it really made it tough.”
After driving the Danny Sanders Construction/ButlerBuilt/Lone Star Hydro Maintenance machine to victory lane in Friday’s “B” Feature action, the Clute, TX, driver gridded the “A” Main field 18th and was on the move early.
“We had a really good car Friday,” Reutzel commented. “We went from 18th to 14th almost immediately and then it took rubber. I tried a little bit up high to gain some but was about to lose some spots so I just fell in line and rode there to the finish.”
Mired deep in Saturday’s “B” Main action, Reutzel and the BC Fundz/Momentum Racing Suspensions/Wright Way Logistics entry moved on to the 25th starting position in the weekend finale via a Promoter’s provisional.
“We were just gonna make a lap or two and pull in since you don’t get points with a Promoter’s provisional,” Reutzel explained. “But we changed a couple things on the car and it really worked after we had struggled on the heavier track earlier in the night.”
The past ASCS Gulf South champion began moving through the field immediately, picking off cars at a rapid rate.
“We went from 25th to 16th in about 12 laps, I thought we were going pretty good and then (Christopher) Bell lapped us,” Reutzel commented. “I just went ahead and pulled off then. I didn’t want to be lapped traffic in that situation, there was really nothing to gain. I thought for a while we might have a top ten car though, it was really working well.”
“We had a good car, we just have to fine tune a few things and that’ll get us up near the front,” Reutzel concluded.
Leaving Yuma ranked 20th in series points and among the top ten of those that will actually be full-time ASCS National contenders, Reutzel and crew now eye gaining some ground at Devil’s Bowl Speedway in Mesquite, TX, on March 21-22. Reutzel’s most recent podium finish in ASCS National action came atop the storied, half-mile Devil’s Bowl clay oval last October when he placed third in the Winter Nationals.
2014 Quick Stats: 7 races, 7 “A” Main starts, 3 top-tens, 1 “B” Main win.
Up Next: The Devil’s Bowl Speedway Spring Nationals in Mesquite, TX, on March 21-22 is the next stop on the Lucas Oil ASCS National trail.
Keep Track: Keep track of Aaron Reutzel’s on track-action including schedule and results at http://www.aaronreutzelracing.com/, on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Aaron-Reutzel-Racing/117666254913127 or on Twitter at @AaronReutzel. You can also e-mail Aaron at aaronreutzel@yahoo.com.
If you would like Aaron Reutzel Racing press releases e-mailed directly to you, send your e-mail address to Lonnie Wheatley at lonniewheatley@gmail.com.
Penning the recurring series of “The Wheatley Chronicles” articles on racinboys.com, Lonnie Wheatley provides media, public relations and more for select tracks, drivers and events. For more information, Wheatley may be contacted at lonniewheatley@gmail.com.
Article Credit: Lonnie Wheatley
Submitted By: Shelbey Reutzel
