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Return of the Late Models @ I-37 Speedway

By JM Hallas
Pleasanton, TX.,(Aug. 20Th, 2022) It's not the heat, it's the humidity.

The Late Models returned for their fifth visit of the season on the ¼ mile, semi-banked, dirt oval south of San Antonio. In the four previous appearances this year defending track champ, Brandon Brzozowski and newcomer to the class, Ray Doyon III have split the wins with two each. Doyon came within about 6” of a third win in his first Late Model showing.

Brzozowski leads the way in points, but only by four over Kody Hardage. Mark Taylor comes into the night third, sixteen behind, Andrew Hesler fourth minus twenty one and Ray Doyon fifth, despite missing the Late Model season opener.

It was a full race card with the IMCA Modifieds, Limited Modifieds, Factory Stocks, Sport Compacts and Go-Karts also in action.

Factory Stocks saw some bonus money up for grabs; $10 for each lap led, $50 for leading at halfway and $25 for the hard charger. To add a little twist, the top 6 heat race qualifiers would redraw for starting spots in the feature.

Mid-week rain helped with track conditions as well as refilling track water well. The track was hammer down for the heat race, but come feature time everyone was hunting for moisture as the track slicked off throughout night.

Brzozowski Back on Track

It was brutal start in the 20-lapper for the Late Models. The first try saw Ron Sprayue, Jason Kelly and Landon Sowder tangle in turn 1-2. The next try didn't even make it to green when a mid-pack stack up had Sowder getting turned by Barry Quade who couldn't stop in time. The third time was a charm with the shop team mates, Brandon Brzozowski and Kody Hardage staying door to door until Brzozowski got the advantage.

Hardage tried to hang with Brzozowski, as Ray Doyon, Sowder, and Andrew Hesler fell in line behind the lead duo. Mark Taylor brought out a caution on lap 3 when he slapped the front stretch wall ending his night. On the restart, Hardage got a run on Brzozowski into turn 1 and got the nose out front on lap 6. Brzozowski fought back retaking the top spot on lap 7. Hardage tried a slide job, but Brzozowski crossed him back over retaining the point.

Behind the lead scrap, Matt Fox took fifth from Hesler, then fourth coming the halfway showing Brzozowski, Hardage, Doyon, Fox and Sowder in the top five. The last half saw Brzozowski find a rhythm and put some distance on Hardage, who now had Doyon closing. Sowder and Fox had their own little fight, trading fourth.

Coming to the white flag, Brzozwski had built a half straightaway edge over the Hardage-Doyon battle for second. Brzozwski(La Vernia) went on unchallenged to take the win in his Billy Bobs Repair & Tires, Lone Star Pressure Equipment, Mo Bags Suspension & Technology, Texas Industrial Radiator, Magnum by Nilfisk, The Trash Can Cleaners, Pressure Pro, Schaeffers Oil, Vinyl Tricks, crate powered Rocket XR1 Chassis.

“Last night was a special night for me.” commented Brzozowski. “Kate and I were both able to pick up a win! It’s a lot of work with both of us racing but it’s also a lot of fun with results like this.”

"Kody(Hardage) and I had a great race going early. He was able to slide me and take the lead at one point and I was able to drive back up under him. It’s a lot of fun racing hard like that with guys you trust. Especially one of your good friends.”

“Thank you to all of our sponsors, family, friends, and fans who come out to support us. Special thank you to my wife for supporting Kate and I and helping us. I also want to thank Byrne and Julio for their help last night getting the cars going and making adjustments all night.”

Nogalitos Gear Late Models
104 Brandon Brzozowski, 12 Kody Hardage, 9 Ray Doyon III, 08 Landon Sowder, 53x Matt Fox, 19 Barry Quade, 5 Ryan McDonald, 42 Ron Sprayue, 1x Andrew Hesler, 77 Mark Taylor, 57 Jason Kelly

Late Model heats
Heat 1; 104 Brandon Brzozowski, 5 Ryan McDonald, 42 Ron Sprayue, 08 Landon Sowder, 19 Barry Quade, 57 Jason Kelly

Heat 2; 12 Kody Hardage, 9 Ryan Doyon, 1x Andrew Hesler, 77 Mark Taylor, 53x Matt Fox

Whiteaker With the Win from the Back, Twice

As the 12-car, 20-lap IMCA Modified feature fired off it was Marin Samford getting to turn 1 first, but it was four wide off turn 2 with Samford, Robert Liese, Brandon Welker and Landon Bednarz. Liese got the spot with Greg Dinsmore moving up into the mix and Steve Whiteaker, from row 5 moving into the top five.

Dinsmore got by Liese, who would spin, for the lead on lap 1. Whiteaker took third from Bednarz on the restart while Chris Morris and Chandler Fox making contact in the pack. Whiteaker caught Dinsmore using the top, but would go around in turn 3. Once back to green, Whiteaker was quickly back to fourth as Morris got by Ryan Doyon for second.

Whiteaker continued his march forward getting by Morris for second on lap 5. Morris tried to fight back off turn 2 getting a run on the back stretch, but couldn't make the pass in turn 3. A second spin by Liese brought out a lap 6 caution, ending Liese's night. On the restart Whiteaker went around Dinsmore for the lead using the high side.

On a restart after a Darrell Boyd spin, Dinsmore and Morris traded some paint as Whiteaker sailed away. Raymond McSpadden found a groove going past Doyon for fourth and getting alongside Morris for third. At the crossed flags it was Whiteaker, with a big lead, Dinsmore, McSpadden, Doyon and Morris.

McSpadden would slip, giving Doyon the opportunity to take third before a Brandon Welker spin slowed the action. Whiteaker got away quickly on green while Morris and McSpadden stayed wheel to wheel for fourth. The duo continued to swap the spot. Up front it was Whiteaker(Robstown) easing away for the win in his D&SS Construction, 3-D Landscaping, Billy Bobs Truck Repair, Supreme Vinyl Works, Windshield Repair of Texas, G&M Oilfield Service, Cottrell Racing, Maxima Racing Oil, Sames Ford, WW Bodies, raceXR.com, Karls Performance Chevrolet crate powered, CDR by 89 Motorsports.

Price Chevrolet IMCA Modifieds
89c Steve Whiteaker jr., 8jr Greg Dinsmore, 5 Ryan Doyon, 48 Raymond McSpadden, 94 Chris Morris, 22z Darrell Boyd, 16 Landon Bednarz, 44x Brandon Welker, 77 Robert Liese jr., 53x Chandler Fox, 28 Marlin Samford, 56 Gilbert Amezquita---dntg

IMCA Modified heats
Heat 1; 89c Steve Whiteaker jr., 8jr Greg Dinsmore, 5r Ryan Doyon III, 16 Landon Bednarz, 28 Marlin Samford, 44x Brandon Welker

Heat 2; 48 Raymond McSpadden, 94 Chris Morris, 53x Chandler Fox, 77 Robert Liese jr., 22z Darrell Boyd, 56 Gilbert Amezquita

Beaver Best of the Bunch in Limiteds

Trent Beaver beat James Cole off turn 2 to grab the point of the 15-lap Limited Modified feature. Cole fell in into a three wide battle with Daniel Preston and Cody Beddoe with Nathan Titzman fifth. Beddoe came out with second and Preston third before pulling off. Titzman would then get around Cole for third.

At halfway it was Beaver, Beddoe, Titzman, Cole and Sterling Tausch in the top five. Titzman snagged second from Beddoe, while Tausch got alongside Cole for fourth before Cole went around in turn 2 for the races only caution. Beaver got away on the restart while Beddoe and Titzman swapped second.

Once Titzman secured the spot he closed in on Beaver, whose car seemed to be losing power. As the white waved the gap was down to car length as Titzman dove low in turn 1. Beaver(China Grove), using the high side was able to hold him off for the win his Beaver Heating & Air, Beaver Medical Group, Howell Crane & Rigging, WW Bodies, CBR Shocks, Best Racing Engines, Innovative Race Car.

“The track was pretty moistured up on the top side,” said Beaver. “We were down a cylinder, but managed to hold them off and get the win. We were trying to just limp it through. It's got about 50 nights on it. I don't know what happened. We had a crate motor in it and it just wasn't getting so we put this other motor in. It's all good.”

“I went out before the race and checked the track. I had a plan to go to the top. It looks like it worked. It was pretty slimy in the heat race. It was still tacky on the top side for the feature. We just made sure everything was good on the car for the feature. I knew if I could could keep the momentum up running the top I could survive. I knew it would hurt me if I tried to get off the bottom if I went down there.”

State Farm Insurance Limited Modifieds
14 Trent Beaver, 1t Nathan Titzman, 77 Cody Beddoe, 95s Sterling Tausch, 14jr James Cole, 95 Jeff Markert, 91 Jack Lewis, bd2 Daniel Preston

Limited Modified heat
Heat 1; 14 Trent Beaver, 14jr James Cole, bd2 Daniel Preston, 77 Cody Beddoe, 95s Sterling Tausch, 1t Nathan Titzman, 95 Jeff Markert, 91 Jack Lewis

Dinsmore Flies to First Factory Feature Win

The start of the 20-lap Factory Stock feature saw Mike Lyon lead the way into turn 1, but he was three wide coming to the line with Daniel Lopez and Kasey Krauss. As they sorted out Krauss took second with Jared Maupin now side by side with Lopez and Cameron Dinsmore fifth. After dispensing of Lopez, Maupin moved along side Krauss for second.

A tractor tire brought out the first yellow that saw Maupin get past Lyon after the restart for the lead on lap 4 while Dinsmore took fourth from Lopez bringing Dylan Kowalik along to fifth. A drive shaft on track brought out the caution on lap 5. Once back to racing, Dinsmore picked off third from Krauss, then second from Lyon. This left Krauss, Lyon and Kowalik three wide for third.

Dinsmore then showed to the nose Maupin for the lead going door to door getting along side and the nose out front on lap 8. Kowalik was able to get third from Krauss. Coming to halfway it was Dinsmore, Kowalik, Krauss, Lyon and Frank Okruhlik in the top five after Maupin pulled off. The yellow would wave after Dustin Hurley looped it in turn 3.

Dinsmore would get a good launch on the restart leaving Krauss and Kowalik side by side for second. Okruhlik would get by Lyon for fourth, then Kowalik for third. Okruhlik and Kowalik would begin to swap second until Eric Ramos went around for a lap 15 yellow.

On the now, single file restart, Dinsmore got away with Krauss now trying the high side. With two to go Dinsmore had two car lengths on Krauss, still on the high side. The last lap saw Krauss sail it in high in turn 3, but Dinsmore(Kerrville) had the drive off the bottom of turn 4 to take his first Factory Stock win in the Sundowner Performance Diesel, Allens 24/7 Towing, Lowery Plumbing, Good Ol Days Garage, Relief for Troops, Swenson Racing Shocks, Wild Child Chassis powered by an in-house built motor.

“It's been a long time,” exclaimed Dinsmore. “This is the same car I was upside down in. It's been crazy trying to get it back together right. I'm happy how the car is acting. This is an old Wild Child car with some tweaks on it. They built a pretty good car.”

“Jared(Maupin) is an amazing driver. I look up to Jared in the Factory Stocks because of how quick he is. To get by him was just like a dream. I saw Kasey(Krauss) come up on my right side near the end. It scared me a bit because the motor was popping and banging. I was just trying to hold it as long as I could.”

“I was really nervous once I got out in the lead. I thought they were just all over my bumper. I was trying to protect the bottom. The car was laying down a lot more on that last restart. The two restarts before that, the car would take off.”

All in Design Factory Stocks
8c Cameron Dinsmore, 53k Kasey Krauss, 41 Frank Okruhlik, 29k Dylan Kowalik, 20 Mike Lyon, 21r Eric Ramos, 7 Aaron Leddy, 24 Paul Reyes, 4d Dustin Hurley, 43 Michael Keylich, 15L Daniel Lopez, 92r Robert Keylich, 3d Johnny Brown, 40 Dakota Hurley, 91 Jared Maupin, 38 Donald Kinnaman, 66 Johnny Torres---dns, 44 Austin Bean---dns

Factory Stock heats(top 2 redraw)
Heat 1; 91 Jared Maupin, 15L Daniel Lopez, 29k Dylan Kowalik, 24 Paul Reyes, 92r Robert Keylich, 7 Aaron Leddy

Heat 2; 8c Cameron Dinsmore, 53k Kasey Krauss, 40 Dakota Hurley, 3d Johnny Walker, 38k Donald Kinneman, 44 Austin Bean---dns

Heat 3; 4d Dustin Hurley , 20 Mike Lyon, 41 Frank Okruhlik, 21r Eric Ramos, 43 Michael Keylich---dns, 66 Johnny Torres---dns

Hernandez on a Hot Streak

As green waved on the 20-lap Sport Compact feature it was Jamie Garner, from row 2, getting the early lead coming off turn 2. Ryker Hernandez moved back up alongside Garner with Levi Hernandez, Donald Lewis and Joshua Garcia side by side for fourth. R. Hernandez grabbed the lead from Garner on lap 2.

R. Hernandez then pulled out to a lead while Lewis and L. Hernandez battled for third. Justin Sitterle moved to the top four, but retired with a left front flat. Coming to halfway Garner was closing the gap on R. Hernandez for the lead, and Lewis was running down both from third. At the midway point it was R. Hernandez, Garner, Lewis, Brandon McCall and L. Hernandez.

Garner began pressuring R. Hernandez for lead looking low in turn 1-2. This allowed Lewis to close on the lead duo. The lead trio then caught traffic that saw Garner make contact with John Thomas, sending him around to the infield and a lap 15 caution. R. Hernandez got a good restart over Lewis while Garner quickly made up spots to fourth.

Garner continued his charge back to the front getting by McCall and Lewis for second. By this time R. Hernandez had built a half straightaway advantage with only a couple circuits to go. At the checkers it was R. Hernandez(San Antonio) in his Irace Enterprises, Reflective Wrecker, TLC Graphics, Unifirst, 2005 Chevy Cavalier scoring his third victory of the season.

“It's been a lot of work,” replied Hernandez. “We do a lot of preventive maintenance during the off time. I wasn't too worried about Jamie(Garner) when he caught me. The lapped cars are a bit scary, it can be a bit sketchy not knowing which line they're going to run.

Sport Compacts
55 Ryker Hernandez, 33 Jamie Garner, 14 Brandon McCall, 28 Levi Hernandez, 76y Donald Lewis, 35 John Thomas, 43 Jennifer Kidd, 12 Ronnie Schoenfeldt, 32 Joshua Garcia, 70 Rod Tait, 88 Justin Sitterle, 21t Shaun Tracy

Sport Compact heats
Heat 1; 28 Levi Hernandez, 33 Jamie Garner, 76y Donald Lewis, 35 John Thomas, 21t Shaun Tracy, 12 Ronnie Schoenfeldt

Heat 2; 32 Joshua Garcia, 55 Ryker Hernandez, 14 Brandon McCall, 88 Justin Sitterle, 70 Rod Tait, 43 Jennifer Kidd

Go-Karts

Adult Predator; Noah VanBlarcum, Cody Clegg, Daniel Preston, Ryker Hernandez, Levi Hernandez, Brandin Stevens

Senior Division; Gage Urbanovsky

Junior Division; Beau Payton, Ryker Welker

Youth Division; Kate Brzozowski, Leighton Broussard

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