9/4/2019
Sam Hafertepe Jr
Hafertepe Earns Trio Of Top Fives Including Eighth Victory Of 2019 Season
(Image Credit: Steve Eichelberger)
Bryan Hulbert – ELDON, Mo. (September 4, 2019) Taking on three nights with the Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series presented by the MAVTV Motorsports Network across Iowa and Missouri this past Labor Day Weekend, Sam Hafertepe, Jr. cracked off three top-five finishes, including a weekend ending victory at Lake Ozark Speedway.
“It was a good weekend. We had a really good car all three nights. I wish we would have had better track position on Friday, but we made up for it,” commented Sam of his overall weekend.
Rolling into 34 Raceway on Friday, Hafertepe played some catchup after finding himself just shy of transferring into the A-Feature. Winning the opening B-Feature convincingly, the feature saw Sam work through the field from 17th to fifth.
“We just needed better track position but that’s part of it. We obviously had a really good car in the feature, and we were able to move forward. Just starting so far back, it took a little bit to get there.”
Moving to Lake Ozark Speedway, Hafertepe began the weekend with a runner-up finish to Robbie Price. With the track receiving over four-inches of rain the night before, track conditions were tough to navigate.
“With the way the track was on Saturday, we were just happy to get through the race. We actually ended up breaking a right rear radius rod and knocked the front wing down on the car," explained Sam.
"The wing went down on the last restart, and that made it really tough to drive then without about five to go is when we broke the radius rod and it was almost impossible to drive so really, to do all that and still run second, we were happy. I do have to give everyone at that track credit. Most places would have called it, but they kept working and got it in.”
Moving to Sunday, sunshine brought the track to what teams normally see when they roll into Lake Ozark Speedway. Positioning the Hills Racing Team No. 15h to the right of the front for the second night in a row, Sam bolted to the race lead and never looked back for 40 non-stop laps.
“That was the race we’ve been waiting for since we had our crash there on Memorial Day Weekend. We wanted to get that win to rectify what happened and show everyone that we were supposed to win that one too, so I had a lot of pressure on myself to win."
Lapping everyone but the top-five, Sam said the car was actually going away in the latter part of the race.
"We were actually fading a little bit there towards the end. We tried some stuff and ended up wearing the tires a little more than anticipated. Not normally running a 40-lap race and running that hard that early, you don’t know how they’re going to hold up, but we still had good speed. We were still catching guys in front of us. I think [John] Carney was probably the second fastest car on the track and we were still able to reel him in so I knew we were still alright.”
With the Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series presented by the MAVTV Motorsports Network off until the 9th annual General Tire Hockett/McMillin Memorial at Lucas Oil Speedway on September 19, 20, and 21, Hafertepe has jumped north of the border to take on the Canadian Sprint Car Nationals at Ohsweken Speedway.
Using this Friday, September 6 as a test and tune for the 15th edition of Canada’s premier Sprint Car event, the last time Hafertepe topped the Canadian Sprint Car Nationals was in 2011.
“I have a lot of laps around Ohsweken and I really want to win this one again. We’ve been really fast there the last couple years and just let things slip away and last year had some other issues, but we’re going to use this week to shake the car down and see what we can do.”
Racing on Friday, September 6 is presented by Epic Racewear and is the final regular point’s night for the track. Races get underway at 7:30 P.M. (ET). The 15th annual Canadian Sprint Car Nationals opens with a Test and Tune on Thursday, September 12 with the event taking place Friday, September 13 and Saturday, September 14 with both nights going green at 7:30 P.M. (ET).
The event will be broadcast live on MAVTV Canada.
For continued updates on Sam Hafertepe, Jr. log onto http://www.sam15.com and make sure to find him on Twitter (@samhafertepejr). For news on Hill's Racing Team, log onto https://www.facebook.com/hillsracing/ and on Twitter (@HillsRacingTeam).
2019 Season to Date:
Events: 40; Wins -8 ; Top 5 – 20; Top 10 – 26; Top 20 – 32;
Coming Up:
September 6, 2019 at Ohsweken Speedway
Sam Hafertepe, Jr. Online:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100011628097506
Website: http://www.sam15.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/samhafertepejr
The Sponsors:
Hill’s Racing Team, Townline Variety, Heidbreder Foundation Service, Kiebler & Sons Lawn and Landscaping, Fisher Racing Engines, Super Shox, J&J Chassis, Smiley’s Racing Products, Hoosier Tire, Huggins Cams, Champion Oil, The Sparks Family, Lonestar Speedway, Keizer Wheels, XYZ Machining, Simpson Racing Products, CP-Carrillo, KSE Power Steering, FK Rod Ends, BMRS, Allstar Performance, Saldana Racing Products, Vortex Wings, DMI, Wilwood Brakes, Kinsler Fuel Injection, Hwy. 79 Collision.
Submitted By: Bryan Hulbert