10/7/2022
RacinBoys
Friesen Takes Checkers as Super DIRT Week Honors 50 Years of Champions
By Michelina Friss, Super DIRTcar Series PR (Oswego, NY<) -- From the inaugural winner in 1972 to the most recent driver to take the checkered flag, NAPA Auto Parts Super DIRT Week celebrated 50 years of history on Thursday by honoring past champions of the event.
PHOTO CREDIT: Michael Fry
After each former winner — from 1972 winner Buzzie Reutimann to 2021 winner Mat Williamson — was introduced to the crowd, 13 of those superstars raced against each other in a 25-lap special event showcasing the event’s legends.
With Reutimann giving the call to start their engines and four-time winner Gary Balough pacing the field in his iconic #112 “Batmobile” it was a night all in attendance will remember.
Stewart Friesen, the last driver to win the on Syracuse’s Moody Mile at the New York State Fairgounds and the first driver to win after Super DIRT Week shifted to Oswego Speedway, took advantage of a four-car invert following Time Trials and jumped out to lead the pack.
Two-time Super Dirt Week Champion Matt Sheppard wanted some of the action and was hot on Friesen’s heels by Lap 2 after passing Billy Dunn.
The Super DIRTcar Series standouts remained out in front of the field with Sheppard challenging Friesen in the corners of the 5/8-mile dirt-covered Steel Palace. Ultimately, Friesen held off the hard-charging Waterloo, NY driver to win.
“It was fun, it was just an honor to be a part of that,” said Friesen, of Sprakers, NY. “A lot of great car owners and sponsors I’ve driven for led to that. It was really cool to be out there with all those guys and to win it was even more special.”
Billy Dunn, the 2013 Super Dirt Week champion, found a rhythm after being passed by Sheppard and managed to drive a solid race to round out the podium.
“We haven’t done a whole lot of Big Block racing lately,” Dunn said. “We were really comfortable. I was really surprised at our Time Trial lap. We really didn’t have enough to hang with Matt and Stew [Friesen], but it was a really good run.”
Two-time defending Super DIRT Week champion Mat Williamson finished fourth and Larry Wight finished in fifth.
Friday the Big Block Modified action will continue with the Billy Whittaker Cars and Trux 200 Time Trials, where the top-six finishers will be locked into Sunday’s championship race. It will be followed by three 25-lap Qualifying Heats.
RESULTS
Past Champions Race (25 Laps): 1. 44-Stewart Friesen[1]; 2. 9S-Matt Sheppard[4]; 3. 49-Billy Dunn[2]; 4. 88-Mat Williamson[5]; 5. 99L-Larry Wight[3]; 6. 19-Tim Fuller[6]; 7. 43-Jimmy Horton[8]; 8. 115-Kenny Tremont Jr[7]; 9. 91-Billy Decker[10]; 10. 39-Vic Coffey[12]; 11. 20-Brett Hearn[11]; 12. 17-Richie Tobias Jr[13]; 13. 27J-Danny Johnson[9]; 14. (DNS) 19B-Kenny Brightbill
Qualifying - Past Champions (2 Laps): 1. 9S-Matt Sheppard, 00:20.686[10]; 2. 99L-Larry Wight, 00:20.718[13]; 3. 49-Billy Dunn, 00:20.909[4]; 4. 44-Stewart Friesen, 00:20.966[5]; 5. 88-Mat Williamson, 00:20.970[14]; 6. 19-Tim Fuller, 00:21.234[6]; 7. 115-Kenny Tremont Jr, 00:21.240[12]; 8. 43-Jimmy Horton, 00:21.314[8]; 9. 27J-Danny Johnson, 00:21.326[9]; 10. 91-Billy Decker, 00:21.334[3]; 11. 20-Brett Hearn, 00:21.379[7]; 12. 39-Vic Coffey, 00:21.622[2]; 13. 17-Richie Tobias Jr, 00:22.298[11]; 14. (DNS) 19B-Kenny Brightbill, 00:22.298
Hot Laps - Past Champions (10 Laps): 1. 9S-Matt Sheppard, 00:21.165[10]; 2. 44-Stewart Friesen, 00:21.395[5]; 3. 91-Billy Decker, 00:21.611[3]; 4. 19-Tim Fuller, 00:21.637[6]; 5. 88-Mat Williamson, 00:21.708[14]; 6. 43-Jimmy Horton, 00:21.731[8]; 7. 20-Brett Hearn, 00:21.741[7]; 8. 49-Billy Dunn, 00:21.785[4]; 9. 27J-Danny Johnson, 00:21.821[9]; 10. 99L-Larry Wight, 00:21.858[13]; 11. 115-Kenny Tremont Jr, 00:21.901[12]; 12. 39-Vic Coffey, 00:22.398[2]; 13. 19B-Kenny Brightbill, 00:22.593[1]; 14. (DNS) 17-Richie Tobias Jr, 00:22.593
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STEWART FRIESEN, MARC JOHNSON, MATT WILLIAMSON SCORE THURSDAY NIGHT THUNDER TRIUMPHS
By Nick Graziano, Super DIRT Week PR (Oswego, NY) – A battle of titans has been set up for the 2022 DIRTcar 358 Modified Salute to the Troops 150 during the 50th Running of NAPA Auto Parts Super DIRT Week.
Time Trials and three Qualifying Heats Thursday night at Oswego Speedway locked 30 drivers into Saturday’s main event and showcased who the top contenders will be.
During the afternoon, Stewart Friesen added another surprising first to his Super DIRT Week stats book. The defending Salute to the Troops 150 champion claimed his first SRI Performance Pole Award for the race with a 21.604 second lap.
“We didn’t do too much to it in practice, honestly, just a couple little things,” Friesen said. “We got out there first on a fresh track in the first group. I don’t know if that hurt or helped but we were able to hang on to it the whole time.”
Marc Johnson earned the Finishing Touch Construction Outside Pole Award, locking his starting position for Saturday's Feature along with Mat Williamson (third), Rocky Warner (fourth), Gary Lindberg (fifth) and Matt Sheppard (sixth).
Then, the DIRTcar 358 Modifieds went into their three Qualifying Heats later in the night. Each 20 laps and transferred eight to the Salute to the Troops 150.
QUALIFYING HEAT 1
Friesen picked up where he left off in the first DIRTcar 358 Modified Qualifying Heat of the night, launching ahead of the field on the start and never looking back.
Second-place Rocky Warner attempted to challenge the overall six-time Super DIRT Week champion for the lead in the first quarter of the race but by the halfway point, Friesen found his rhythm and pulled away.
Behind them, Erick Rudolph was on the move in the closing laps. He passed Warner for second with two laps to go, but by that point Friesen was about a straightaway ahead.
Friesen took home the victory and $1,000 check, while Rudolph finished second, Warner third, Peter Britten fourth and Lance Willix fifth.
QUALIFYING HEAT 2
Like Friesen, Johnson kept his momentum going throughout the night by winning the second Qualifying Heat. However, a rogues gallery of contenders where thrown at “The Dark Knight” up to the final lap.
On the initial start of the race, Johnson fell to third with Gary Lindberg passing him for the lead and Jimmy Phelps passing him for second. Then, Max McLaughlin found grip around the high side of the track and rocketed to the front, pushing Johnson back to fourth.
McLaughlin held the lead for three laps before Lindberg stole it back on a Lap 6 restart. At the same time, Johnson began his trek forward. He found his way to second by Lap 8 and then began his hunt for Lindberg.
Johnson was able to get within a car length of Lindberg, but never had the run to pass him. Then, luck came in play for Johnson while misfortune came for Lindberg.
On the final lap, Lindberg struggled to get around a lap car before Turn 1, allowing Johnson to dive underneath him. The two dragged raced all the way to the checkered flag with Johnson edging Lindberg by a bumper for the win.
“We’ve had a really good car all week,” Johnson said. “Been top 10, top five, every time we’re out pretty much. Just happy to have the guys I have behind me and give me a good car to position ourselves well.”
Lindberg finished second, Anthony Perrego third, Larry Wight fourth and McLaughlin fifth.
QUALIFYING HEAT 3
After claiming his third straight Hurricane Harvey 75 victory at Brewerton Speedway Wednesday night, Mat Williamson brought that car’s setup to Oswego Speedway for more success.
He launched ahead of second-place Matt Sheppard on the start of the Heat and pulled ahead by almost a straightaway on the first lap. No one had anything for the defending Billy Whittaker Cars 200 champion throughout the 20-lap race.
However, a caution on the final lap gave Sheppard the shot he needed to try and best Williamson. While the field behind them dueled for positions during the green-white-checkered finish, Williamson again rocketed ahead for another DIRTcar 358 Modified win this week.
“We beat Matt (Sheppard) for probably the first time this year,” Williamson said with a chuckle. “It’s tough to win the Thursday night portion of this event. Saturday is going to be even tougher. We have a little bit of work to do. I didn’t feel fantastic out there, but I didn’t feel bad either. I think come Saturday we can have this thing dialed in a little better and contend for a win.”
Sheppard finished second, Dave Marcuccilli third, Mike Mahaney fourth and Billy Dunn fifth.
UP NEXT: The DIRTcar 358 Modifieds will run their Last Chance Showdowns on Saturday, Oct. 8, before the $20,000-to-win Salute to the Troops 150 (at 6pm ET). For tickets, CLICK HERE.
If you can’t make it to the track, you can watch all the action live on DIRTVision – either at DIRTVision.com or by downloading the DIRTVision App.
RESULTS
Heat 1 (20 Laps): 1. 44-Stewart Friesen[1]; 2. 25-Erick Rudolph[3]; 3. 97-Rocky Warner[2]; 4. 21A-Peter Britten[4]; 5. 31W-Lance Willix[9]; 6. 4V-Billy VanInwegen Jr[7]; 7. 83-Danny Johnson[6]; 8. 7Z-Zachary Payne[11]; 9. 9M-Tyler Meeks[12]; 10. 27W-Nick Webb[18]; 11. 39-Ryan Bartlett[13]; 12. 7S-Shaun Shaw[16]; 13. 1NY-Gregory Atkins[8]; 14. 2J-Robert Bublak[10]; 15. 8-Rich Scagliotta[15]; 16. 74-Dave Flannigan Jr[19]; 17. 32C-James Meehan[17]; 18. 01R-Robert Gage[20]; 19. 879-Darryl Mitchell[22]; 20. 11S-Steve Lewis Jr[21]; 21. 22-Tanner Van Dohren[5]; 22. 32R-Ronnie Davis[14]; 23. (DNS) 02-Roy Bresnahan
Heat 2 (20 Laps): 1. 3J-Marc Johnson[1]; 2. 37S-Gary Lindberg[2]; 3. 4-Anthony Perrego[6]; 4. 99L-Larry Wight[15]; 5. 8H-Max McLaughlin[5]; 6. 3RS-Tim Fuller[3]; 7. 8R-Tim Sears Jr[7]; 8. 21C-Brian Calabrese[12]; 9. 26R-Corey Cormier[8]; 10. 98H-Jimmy Phelps[4]; 11. 5-Brock Pinkerous[21]; 12. 34-Rusty Smith[11]; 13. 15-Todd Root[18]; 14. 66W-Derek Webb[10]; 15. 713-Tommy Collins[19]; 16. 58M-Marshall Hurd[9]; 17. 37-Alex Tonkin[13]; 18. 11-Justin Crisafulli[20]; 19. 115-Montgomery Tremont[23]; 20. 50-William August[16]; 21. 3M-Michael Stanton[14]; 22. 16-Aaron Jacobs[22]; 23. (DQ) 28T-Michael Trautschold[17]
Heat 3 (20 Laps): 1. 6-Mat Williamson[1]; 2. 9S-Matt Sheppard[2]; 3. M1-David Marcuccilli[4]; 4. 35-Mike Mahaney[3]; 5. 49-Billy Dunn[6]; 6. 215-Adam Pierson[7]; 7. 21-Taylor Caprara[10]; 8. 15X-Justin Stone[13]; 9. 28-Jordan McCreadie[15]; 10. 12S-Darren Smith[8]; 11. 29-Matt Caprara[5]; 12. 21R-RJ Tresidder[14]; 13. 31-Corey Barker[20]; 14. 26-Michael Mandigo[19]; 15. 88T-Tyler Jashembowski[12]; 16. 24P-Brian Pessolano[18]; 17. 14-CG Morey[17]; 18. 52-Jessica Power[16]; 19. 20K-Kyle Inman[11]; 20. 14S-Brian Swarthout[21]; 21. 60-Jackson Gill[9]; 22. 12-Ryan Macartney[22]; 23. (DNS) 13-Ted Starr
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CONRANT, STONE WIN DIRTCAR PRO STOCK HEAT RACES AT OSWEGO
By Mike Warren, Super DIRT Week PR (Oswego, NY) -- – A strong field of 30 DIRTcar Pro Stocks from the United States and Canada made the trip to Oswego Speedway for NAPA Super DIRT Week 50. However, one area of New York showed its dominance in Qualifying—the Capital Region.
Josh Coonradt and Nick Stone each scored $500 Heat Race Victories, gaining valuable knowledge for Saturday’s DIRTcar Pro Stock 50.
Kim Duell and Chuck Dumblewski will lead the field to the green of the 50-lap Feature, after earning the top two spots in Thursday’s Qualifying sessions.
HEAT RACE 1
Josh Coonradt picked up where he left off after winning Tuesday’s Super DIRT Week Kickoff Party victory at Weedsport, using the outside lane to score the win in Heat Race 1.
Rich Crane gained the lead on Lap 1 of the 10-lap affair, but a caution for Brian Carter on Lap 3 put Coonradt next to the Connecticut driver.
On the restart, Coonradt and Crane battled side-by-side for two laps before Coonradt’s momentum inched him ahead of Crane for the lead.
From there, Coonradt held on to score the $500 prize and built more momentum entering Saturday.
The Fort Johnson, NY driver, said the changes he made between Time Trials and the Heat Races paid off.
“We went back and made some changes,” Coonradt said. “We really didn’t have anything to lose. Everyone is making the show this weekend, and we did some things and got some pointers from Nick (Stone).
“Our car is pretty good, and there’s a lot of bite out there.”
Crane held on for second, while Luke Horning, Jason Casey, and Pete Stefanski rounded out the top five.
HEAT RACE 2
Nick Stone used the same line as Coonradt to power around Chuck Dumblewski and won the second 10-lap DIRTcar Pro Stock Heat Race on Friday.
Stone needed only two laps to reach the front, inching ahead of Dumblewski at the start-finish line.
The Rotterdam, NY driver dominated the final eight laps and took the checkered flag worth $500.
He said he decided what line to run after watching Coonradt’s move in the first Heat Race.
“Watching the first Heat (Race) is a huge advantage,” Stone said. “I saw Josh (Coonradt) up top there, and I said, well, we’re starting outside. Chucky chose the bottom, and it was kind of a good opportunity where we started.
“I’m still a lot tighter than I want to be. I have to fix my race car.”
Dumblewski finished second, while Jay Casey, Kenny Wallace, and Bruno Richard rounded out the top five.
TIME TRIALS
Earlier in the day, the 30-car field battled to see who would start in the first three rows of Saturday’s DIRTcar Pro Stock 50.
Another Capital Region driver, Kim Duell, was the fastest overall in Qualifying earning the SRI Performance Pole Award.
From Porters Corners, NY, Duell said starting on the pole is part of the Super DIRT Week dream.
“It’s part of the dream to put it on the pole,” Duell said. “We’ve been in the top five before, but the pole is pretty special.
“The car is really handling well. We’ve done nothing but work on it since we got here trying to adjust it to the track and the gearing and everything, and I finally think we’ve hit on it.”
Dumblewski will line up next to Duell on Sunday, as he grabbed the Finishing Touch Construction Outside Pole Award.
The Amsterdam, NY driver stated he’s happy with his run because he knows the importance of starting up front at Oswego.
“You want to be in the front here,” Dumblewski said. “It’s hard to pass here, so if you start in the front, it’s a huge advantage.
“In 2018, we lost it from the pole, so maybe we can win it from the outside pole this year.”
Luke Horning, Stone, Crane, and Jay Casey also punched their ticket into Saturday’s race, making up rows two and three.
UP NEXT: The DIRTcar Pro Stocks return to “The Clay Palace” on Saturday Oct. 8 for the DIRTcar Pro Stock 50.
If you can’t make it to the track, you can watch all the action live on DIRTVision – either online or through the DIRTVision App.
Heat 1 (10 Laps): 1. 00X-Josh Coonradt[5]; 2. 69-Rich Crane[3]; 3. 2H-Luke Horning[2]; 4. 324-Jason Casey[4]; 5. 2-Pete Stefanski[10]; 6. 17-Nick Hilt[8]; 7. X15-Tyler Bushey[9]; 8. 7-Rob Yetman[6]; 9. 56-Jay Fitzgerald[15]; 10. 14J-Johnny Rivers[12]; 11. 4-Dean Charbonneau[11]; 12. 55-David Stickles[13]; 13. 00C-Michael Clark[14]; 14. 6C-Brian Carter[7]; 15. 14-Kim Duell[1]
Heat 2 (10 Laps): 1. 8N-Nick Stone[2]; 2. 7D-Chucky Dumblewski[1]; 3. 322-Jay Casey[3]; 4. 36-Kenny Wallace[5]; 5. 72-Bruno Richard[7]; 6. 6-Shane Playford[9]; 7. 25-Chad Jeseo[4]; 8. 7C-Caden Dumblewski[10]; 9. 1X-Justin White[6]; 10. 75-Eli Gilbert[8]; 11. 09J-Shawn Perez[11]; 12. 9S-Ken Schrader[15]; 13. 30-Zach Daniels[12]; 14. 57-Charles Mcspirit[13]; 15. 76-Frank Hoard[14]
Qualifying (2 Laps): 1. 14-Kim Duell, 00:25.320[12]; 2. 7D-Chucky Dumblewski, 00:25.338[22]; 3. 2H-Luke Horning, 00:25.340[19]; 4. 8N-Nick Stone, 00:25.379[30]; 5. 69-Rich Crane, 00:25.453[3]; 6. 322-Jay Casey, 00:25.458[27]; 7. 324-Jason Casey, 00:25.466[14]; 8. 25-Chad Jeseo, 00:25.495[5]; 9. 00X-Josh Coonradt, 00:25.556[10]; 10. 36-Kenny Wallace, 00:25.563[2]; 11. 7-Rob Yetman, 00:25.882[8]; 12. 1X-Justin White, 00:25.890[9]; 13. 6C-Brian Carter, 00:25.954[13]; 14. 72-Bruno Richard, 00:26.056[25]; 15. 17-Nick Hilt, 00:26.104[7]; 16. 75-Eli Gilbert, 00:26.137[23]; 17. X15-Tyler Bushey, 00:26.160[24]; 18. 6-Shane Playford, 00:26.170[26]; 19. 2-Pete Stefanski, 00:26.171[1]; 20. 7C-Caden Dumblewski, 00:26.196[16]; 21. 4-Dean Charbonneau, 00:26.310[17]; 22. 09J-Shawn Perez, 00:26.330[18]; 23. 14J-Johnny Rivers, 00:26.536[6]; 24. 30-Zach Daniels, 00:26.669[11]; 25. 55-David Stickles, 00:26.741[20]; 26. 57-Charles Mcspirit, 00:26.918[21]; 27. 00C-Michael Clark, 00:26.922[28]; 28. 76-Frank Hoard, 00:26.936[29]; 29. 56-Jay Fitzgerald, 00:27.086[15]; 30. 9S-Ken Schrader, 00:27.086[4]
Submitted By: Kirk Elliott
