OHSWEKEN, Ont. (September 7, 2018) – Insta-Panels presented Sprint Car Championship night and the Brock Leonard Memorial as 124 cars signed in across four weekly divisions on Friday, September 7 at Ohsweken Speedway. It was the final points night of the season for Kool Kidz-Corr/Pak 360 Sprint Cars and the Strickland’s GMC Crate Sprint Cars. It was also the prestigious 50-lap Brock Leonard Memorial for the Middleport Mechanical Thunder Stocks/Insta-Panels Duel on the Dirt Series.
Prior to the action on the track, fans had the chance to meet some of their favourite drivers behind the grandstand area for autographs and had the opportunity to purchase some of their favourite drivers’ merchandise in the final Racers’ Marketplace of the season.
At intermission, the Strickland’s GMC Crate Engine draw took place, with all drivers who had 100% attendance in the Thunder Stock division in 2018 entered to win. Track owner Glenn Styres pulled Jim Lampman’s name as the winner of the new engine.
On the track, it was Rockwall, Texas native Sam Haferetepe Jr. who claimed his fourth career win in the Kool Kidz-Corr/Pak 360 Sprint Car Feature. Sixteen-year-old Josh Hansen scored his first career Sprint Car win in the Strickland’s GMC Crate Sprint Car and Action Sprint Tour combined Feature.
For the stock cars, it was Chris Hale who became the eighth different winner in as many races for Thunder Stock Brock Leonard Memorial while Jason Tolton closed out the night with a win in the HRW Automotive Mini Stock Feature.
Kool Kidz-Corr/Pak 360 Sprint Cars
Jim Huppunen and Sam aefertepe Jr. led the field to the green flag for the Kool Kidz-Corr/Pak 360 Sprint Car A-Feature. The opening lap caused some chaos as Mack DeMan nearly spun in turn one while Shawn Sliter and Scott Burk did get turned around to bring out the first yellow.
On the complete restart, Hafertepe jumped out to an early advantage over Huppunen while fourth-starting Dylan Westbrook quickly raced into second. Haferetepe of Rockwall, Texas, quickly caught traffic which slowed his pace and prevented him from growing his lead over Westbrook.
Still, Hafertepe found a way around each lapped car to keep his lead at 1.9 seconds at the halfway mark. With four laps to go, that gap narrowed to just over one second before the final caution with four laps remaining when Shawn Sliter stopped in turn three. The restart provided Hafertepe a clear track and saw him drive away to his fourth career Ohsweken win over Westbrook, Mikey Kruchka, Mack DeMan and Scott Kreutter.
Hafertepe, Mitch Brown and Westbrook were heat race winners earlier in the night. Hafertepe was the Ackland Insurance Top Gun after earning the most passing points in heat race action.
Westbrook’s second-place finish was enough to officially make him the Ohsweken 360 Sprint Car track champion for the second straight year, joining only his car owner Glenn Styres as the only drivers to win consecutive Sprint Car championships at Ohsweken.
Strickland’s GMC Crate Sprint Cars/Action Sprint Tour
Lucas Smith and Liam Martin lined up on the front row for the 20-lap championship Feature in the Strickland’s GMC Crate Sprint Cars and Action Sprint Tour division. The opening lap was disastrous for championship contenders Aaron Turkey and Jacob Dykstra, who were collected in a backstretch incident that also involved Trevor Young. Both drivers suffered race-ending damage, eliminating them from championship contention with the Action Sprint Tour and Strickland’s GMC Crate Sprint Cars.
The ensuing restart saw Martin drive to the inside in a bid for the lead, but Smith held off the challenge with a strong drive up top. Then on lap four it was Baily Heard driving to second past Martin following an excellent multi-lap battle before the caution waved the following lap when Holly Porter spun to bring out the yellow flag.
The restart saw Heard challenge Smith to the inside and the two drivers raced side-by-side until the next caution on lap eight when Brad Herron spun in turn three. The final restart on lap eight saw Heard try to drive outside Smith in turn one, but the challenge was unsuccessful.
Smith opened a considerable lead before ninth-starting Josh Hansen raced past Heard to take second on lap 14. Then, on lap 17, Smith stepped over the banking in turn three, allowing Hansen to use the bottom lane and drive to the lead. Smith held on to the second spot, but the 16-year-old Hansen ran a flawless final three laps to score his first career Sprint Car win while Smith settled for second ahead of Shone Evans.
With his third-place finish, Evans claimed both the Strickland’s GMC Crate Sprint Car 2018 Championship and the inaugural Action Sprint Tour powered by RaceRivalz.com championship. Ryan Hunsinger drove from the 21st starting spot to fourth while Baily Heard took a fifth-place result.
Liam Martin, Jordan Hill and Hannah Ferrell were Heat Race winners earlier in the night while Aaron Turkey won the B-Main.
Middleport Mechanical Thunder Stocks/Insta-Panels Duel on the DIrt Series
Lee Winger and Steve Shaw paced the field to the green flag for the 50-lap Brock Leonard Memorial for the Middleport Mechanical Thunder Stocks/Insta-Panels Duel on the DIrt Series with Shaw taking the early lead.
Shaw paced the field through the first caution on lap six before Chris Hale drove to the inside of Shaw in a battle for the lead that continued for the next 19 laps with Blake Bomberry Jr. and Dave Bailey also challenging for second following a lap 19 restart.
At the halfway mark, Shaw continued to lead Bomberry, Hale, Ryan Beagle and Bailey. While Shaw stayed out front, he was never able to pull away by more than a couple of car lengths from a variety of second-place runners.
With 12 laps to go, Hale tried the outside for the first time to get past Shaw and drove to the point on lap 38 by just a nose. Hale was able to pull away while Shaw fought off Beagle for second. As the action heated up, so did the temperature under the hood of Teeple’s No.11 car. A fire under the hood of Teeple’s car brought out the red flag with six laps remaining.
The stop didn’t bother Hale as he led the final six laps, including another restart, to score his third straight Feature win. Shaw took second ahead of Beagle while 24th starting Jonny Lowenberg was fourth and Brighton Speedway regular Justin Ramsay rounded out the top-five.
Chris Hale, Ken Sargent, Dave Bailey and Steve Shaw took heat race victories earlier in the night while Wade Purchase and Jay Liverance won the B-Mains.
HRW Automotive Mini Stocks
The HRW Automotive Mini Stock feature started with Jeff Elsliger and Cody Sommerville on the front row. The first lap saw Rob Twitchett and Mike Taylor come together in turn one for the first caution. When the race resumed, it was Fabio Olivieri who jumped out to lead the opening lap after starting third.
Kevin Thorne joined Olivieri in a two-car breakaway up front while a swarm of six cars battled two and three-wide for the lead five laps in to the event. The caution waved again on lap six when Kyle Wert spun in turn four and collected Cody Sommerville with damage to his right-front wheel.
On the restart, Olivieri maintained the point, but Mike Sarantakos was able to take second briefly before Kevin Thorne retook the spot. The battle for third was a four-car battle between Sarantakos, Tim DeBoer, Wayde Thorne and Jason Tolton.
On lap 11, Kevin Thorne and Jason Tolton made it three-wide to the inside of Olivieri. Then, on lap 12, Olivieri slipped over the cushion in turn two, allowing Tolton to take the lead and Kevin Thorne to drive into second.
On the final corner, Kevin Thorne drove to the inside to try and steal the win, but Tolton held the middle line and claimed the win. Olivieri took third over Sarantakos while Matt Nuell drove to a fifth-place finish on just three wheels after losing his left-rear with two laps to go.
Olivieri, Tolton, Dusty DeBoer and Matt Nuell took heat race victories to begin the night while Sean Iftody won the B-Main.
Up Next at Ohsweken Speedway
Ohsweken Speedway returns to action for its biggest weekend of the season on Friday, September 14 for the Burger Barn Night Before the Nationals and Saturday, September 15 for the Arrow Express 14th Canadian Sprint Car Nationals. The top 360 Sprint Car racers in the Northeast will converge on Ohsweken to battle for the $10,000 USD-to-win and $1,000 USD-to-start prize in Saturday’s 35-lap A-Feature. Friday’s night before the nationals features twin 15-lap Features for the Kool Kidz-Corr/Pak 360 Sprint Cars as well as the rained out Patriot Sprint Tour Feature from July 20. It will also be the final points night for the Middleport Mechanical Thunder Stocks and HRW Automotive Mini Stocks. On Saturday, the Strickland’s GMC Crate Sprint Cars join the Canadian Sprint Car Nationals show. Race time each night is 7:30pm.
Reserved adult grandstand admission is $20 for the Burger Barn Night Before the Nationals on Friday, September 14 and children 12 and under are $5 or less. Reserved adult grandstand admission is $40 for the Arrow Express 14th Canadian Sprint Car Nationals and $15 for children 12 and under. Reserved tickets can be purchased online in advance at www.ohswekenspeedway.ticketforce.com. For additional event information, visit www.ohswekenspeedway.ca.
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Canadian Sprint Car Nationals Tickets and Camping Available Now!
Advanced reserved seating tickets are on sale now for the 14th annual Canadian Sprint Car Nationals on September 14-15 are on sale now! The event features two full nights of Sprint Car action, including Saturday’s $10,000-to-win Feature Event. Visit www.ohswekenspeedway.ticketforce.com or call 519-717-0023 to order and for more information. For the full 2018 schedule of events, click here.
Ohsweken Speedway Live Stream
Can’t make it to the track or don’t live within driving distance? No problem! Check out all of Ohsweken’s weekly Friday Night Excitement action live online for free via the Ohsweken Speedway Live Stream. The stream goes live at 7:30pm EST each race night at www.OhswekenSpeedway.ca and on our official Facebook page.
2018 SEASON
Ohsweken Speedway’s 23rd season of weekly Friday Night Excitement features four divisions of racing, including the Kool Kidz-Corr/Pak 360 Sprint Cars, Strickland’s GMC Crate Sprint Cars, Middleport Mechanical Thunder Stocks and HRW Automotive Mini Stocks. Visit www.OhswekenSpeedway.com to view the schedule or call (519) 717-0023 for more information.
About Ohsweken Speedway: Founded in 1996, Ohsweken Speedway is a motorsports complex which includes a 3/8 (0.375) mile clay oval track. The facility is owned by the Styres family, and located in the village of Ohsweken, Ontario, Canada. Ohsweken’s weekly Friday night racing program runs from May to September each year, featuring 360 Sprint Cars, Crate Sprint Cars, Thunder Stocks and Mini Stocks. The season finishes each year with the track’ annual Canadian Sprint Car Nationals. Ohsweken Speedway also hosts weekly Micro Sprint racing on Thursday nights.
OHSWEKEN SPEEDWAY MEDIA
Phone: (519) 717-0023
Email: media@ohswekenspeedway.com
Website: www.OhswekenSpeedway.com
Facebook: www.Facebook.com/OHSWEKENSPEEDWAY
Twitter: @OhswekenSpdway
Instagram: www.Instagram.com/OhswekenSpeedway
YouTube: www.YouTube.com/user/OhswekenSpdway
Ohsweken Speedway thanks the following partners for their support in 2018: Arrow Express, Kool Kidz Ice & Water, Corr/Pak Merchandising Inc., Renway Energy, Case IH O’Neil’s Farm Equipment, Hoosier Tire Canada, EPIC Racewear, McDonald’s Restaurants of Paris & Brantford, Ackland Insurance, Strickland’s GMC, Lucas Oil Products, Burger Barn, Pinty’s Delicious Foods, Creative Edge Signs & Graphics, Insta-Insulation, Middleport Mechanical, HRW Automotive, and Gale’s Auto Aftermarket.
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