OHSWEKEN, Ont. (June 29, 2018) – A busy night at Ohsweken Speedway saw 123 cars sign in across four divisions to start the Canada Day weekend of Friday Night Excitement on June 29. When the dust settled and the roar of the engines ceased, it was Mack Deman claiming his first career Kool Kidz-Corr/Pak 360 Sprint Car Feature win and Holly Porter who scored the Strickland’s GMC Crate Sprint Car win. For the stock cars, it was rookie Mark Bazuin winning his first career Middleport Mechanical Thunder Stock Feature and Tim DeBoer collecting the checkered flag in the HRW Automotive Mini Stock main event.
KOOL KIDZ-CORR/PAK 360 SPRINT CARS
Mack DeMan and Ryan Turner brought the 21-car field to the green flag for the 20-lap main event. DeMan jumped out to an early lead, but before the first lap couple was completed, third-starting Cory Turner flipped end over end in turn four to bring out the red flag.
A complete restart followed and DeMan jumped out to a big advantage over Ryan Turner before the second caution with one lap complete for a spun Shawn Sliter. DeMan again got an excellent restart and checked out from the rest of the field before working into lapped traffic on lap five. With seven laps down, Ryan Turner struggled to navigate through the slower cars and went off the top in turns one and two, allowing both Jim Huppunen and Tyler Hendricks to get past.
DeMan was strong again on a restart on lap eight that also saw Dylan Westbrook race into the top-five after starting 19th. Before DeMan had to work into traffic again, the caution flag waved again on lap 12 when Jamie Turner and Conor Mahoney spun separately in turn four.
The final restart proved no issue for DeMan as he ran away from the field over the final eight laps to score the victory. On the final lap, Westbrook was able to steal the runner-up spot from Huppunen in turn four. Hendricks and Ryan Turner completed the top-five.
Hendricks, Scott Kreutter and Huppunen won qualifying heats. Kreutter was also the Ackland Insurance Top Gun. Lewiston, NY native Derek Jonathan made his first appearance of the season, but flipped in hot laps, ending his night prematurely. He was uninjured.
STRICKLAND’S GMC CRATE SPRINT CARS
Lucas Smith and DJ Christie brought the field to the green flag for the 20-lap Strickland’s GMC Crate Sprint Car main event. Smith jumped out to an early advantage, but Christie quickly drew to the outside to challenge for the lead. Cautions on laps one and four slowed the race, but Smith maintained the point on both restarts while Hannah Ferrell jumped forward to third on the latter green flag.
As Smith approached the halfway point, he maintained a slight advantage over Holly Porter, who had climbed forward to the second spot past Ferrell. Just as Smith hit lapped traffic on lap 12, the caution flag waved when Christie slowed in turn one after some contact with the outside wall.
On the ensuing restart, Porter took the lead from Smith and two laps later Shone Evans moved past Ferrell for third. Porter cruised over the next six laps while Smith fought to hold on to second and appeared to have the checkered flag in hand, but the caution waved when Blaine Barrow spun in turn three while Josh Hill rolled on his side in turn one with 19 laps completed.
That set up a one lap shootout at the finish. Smith got an excellent restart, but didn’t have enough to make a move on Porter who drove to her second Feature win of the season. Smith, Evans, Jesse Costa and Ferrell completed the top-five.
Costa, Evans, Christie and Baily Heard won qualifying heats earlier in the night while Jerry Hill won the B-Main. Hannah Ferrell also earned the Ackland Insurance Top Gun award as the night’s top qualifier.
MIDDLEPORT MECHANICAL THUNDER STOCKS
Mike Ferguson and Aaron Rewutzsky started on the front row for the 20-lap A-Feature and Ferguson used the front row starting spot to grab an early lead. Ferguson held the point position until lap five when rookie Mark Bazuin rocketed to the top spot with a pass in turns one and two. Bazuin opened a lead of five car lengths before it was erased by the first caution on lap seven.
Bazuin chose the outside lane on the restart and held the lead while several drivers raced four-wide for spots inside the top-10. As the field reached the halfway mark, Bazuin was working to stay ahead of Billy Bleich Jr. after the top two had opened a half straightaway lead over Ferguson, Logan Shwedyk and Jason Lungaro.
The final caution came on lap 13 when Jay Liverance got into the concrete blocks in turn four. Bazuin led again on the restart, but couldn’t distance himself from the rest of the top-five, who ran single-file with three laps to go. On the final lap, Bazuin got sideways in turns three and four with Bleich making some contact. The two drivers raced off turn four to the finish with Bazuin claiming the win by a bumper, or 0.121 seconds. Shwedyk, Chris Hale and Ryan Dinning completed the top-five.
Bazuin, Trevor DeBoer and Chris Dickie won qualifying heats earlier in the night and Rob Hoskins won the B-Main.
HRW AUTOMOTIVE MINI STOCKS
Cody Sommerville and Aidan Nigh paced the field to the green flag for the 15-lap HRW Automotive Mini Stock Feature and were instantly embroiled in a busy battle for the top spots. Sommerville led the opening three laps after a lap one caution while six cars battled in two rows of three-wide action at the front of the field. By lap three, Sean Iftody had found his way to third after starting 18th.
One lap later, Tim DeBoer drove to the point amongst a gaggle of cars and led until a lap six caution for a spun Mike Taylor. On the ensuing restart, Iftody grabbed the lead in turns one and two while Matt Nuell joined the top trio before DeBoer re-took the lead off turn four.
With five laps to go, DeBoer paced Nuell and Kyle Wert who were separated by just five car lengths total and raced a half straightaway ahead of Iftody. In the closing laps, Nuell threw everything he had at DeBoer, but couldn’t muster enough momentum to steal the win as DeBoer claimed his first career Feature victory.
Jason Dixon, Andy Ryckman, Dale Millard and Dusty DeBoer won qualifying heats earlier in the night while Wert and Gillian Hills won a pair of B-Mains.
UP NEXT AT OHSWEKEN SPEEDWAY
Ohsweken gets set to kick start the month of July on Friday, July 6 as O’Neil’s Farm Equipment and Case IH present the Frankie Turkey Memorial and Media Appreciation night. A full card of racing features the Kool Kidz-Corr/Pak 360 Sprint Cars, Strickland’s GMC Crate Sprint Cars, Middleport Mechanical Thunder Stocks and HRW Automotive Mini Stocks. Race time is 7:30pm and adult admission is just $14. For additional event information, visit www.ohswekenspeedway.ca.
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.
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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