6/25/2023
Drake Troutman
Podium finish in Hell Tour stop at Federated Raceway at I-55
For the second week on tour with the DIRTcar Summer Nationals, Drake Troutman followed the Hell Tour to Moberly Motorsports Park (Moberly, Mo.) on Tuesday afternoon for round six.
In a field of 32 cars, Troutman followed up the sixth-fastest lap in his time trial group with a second-place finish in his heat. Starting the feature in fifth, Drake soared ahead of early race-leader Billy Moyer Jr. on lap 17 only to suffer an exploded right-rear tire five circuits later. With too much body damage to continue, Troutman retired on lap 23.
For another $5,000-to-win DIRTcar Summer Nationals event on Wednesday at Davenport Speedway (Davenport, Iowa), Drake topped his qualifying group with a 13.676-second lap before placing first in his heat. Battling his third flat tire in a one-week span, Troutman was running third on lap 11 when his right-rear tire gave way. His team was able to repair the flat and he rallied to finish eighth in the 40-lapper.
With Thursday’s Hell Tour stop at Spoon River Speedway (Banner, Ill.) cancelled by faulty track equipment, Troutman raced his way into Friday’s DIRTcar Summer Nationals feature at Brownstown Bullring (Brownstown, Ill.) with a second-place showing in his heat. With $10,000 on the line, Drake charged forward five spots to register a sixth-place finish.
On Saturday afternoon at Federated Raceway at I-55 (Pevely, Mo.), Drake outran Frank Heckenast Jr. in his heat to pick up the eight-lap victory. Starting the $10,000-to-win A-Main in third, Troutman challenged late leader Ashton Winger for the top spot in the closing laps before ultimately finishing third. He trailed Stormy Scott and Winger to the checkers with Heckenast and Jason Feger completing the top-five finishers.
In a night to forget on Sunday at Lincoln Speedway (Lincoln, Ill.), Troutman took a provisional into the weekend finale after another car ended up on his hood in his heat. Starting in 23rd, Drake was an early retiree from the 40-lap affair on lap 24.
Drake finished fifth in the week two Hell Tour point standings.
Full results from the events are available at www.DIRTcarSummerNationals.com.
Article Credit: DirtonDirt.com photo