LONDON, ON- Delaware Speedway Late Model championship contender Matt Pritiko survived a caution-filled August 22nd event, carving out a 3rd place finish to keep him atop the weekly point standings with one points-paying event remaining.
“We didn’t quite have the car we wanted tonight”, admitted Pritiko post-race. “Coming into this event, our game plan had us keeping our eyes on the points battle. We stuck to the plan. I’m proud of my guys”
After a pair of top-5s in his qualifying heat races, Pritiko started 5th in the feature and battled within the top-3 for the majority of the event, through a number of mid-race caution periods and restarts.
“Points racing puts a lot of emphasis on give-and-take”, said Pritiko. “We were fighting the car tonight, and I just wanted to be mindful not to push the envelope when I didn’t need to. I knew we didn’t have a car that could contend for the win, but we had a car that was strong enough for a good points night”
“We just took what we could get tonight”, continued Pritiko. “We’ve worked so hard to get to where we are right now, I’m not about to throw it away by overdriving the car when I don’t need to”
Pritiko’s No. 21 Global Warranty/Burwell Auto Body Toyota will enter August 29th’s season finale with a 25-point lead, as he works towards his first career weekly Late Model championship.
“I’ve been the championship runner-up three times”, said Pritiko. “We’ve had great programs all three of those years, but I feel as though what we’ve been able to assemble this season tops them all. This has been a phenomenal season for our team. We have all the pieces necessary to clinch this championship. With one night left, all we have to do is be smart and hopefully we’ll be able to claim the head table at the banquet for the first time”
Details for Delaware Speedway’s ‘Championship Night’, including gate times and ticket prices, can be found at www.DelawareSpeedway.com.
Matt Pritiko’s 2014 championship campaign is made possible thanks to Global Warranty, Toyota Town, Palasad: London’s Best Entertainment & Eatery, Serengeti Sunglasses, AQUAhydrate, NAPA Certified Body Shop, Cadillac Industrial Cleaning, Driven Steering Wheels, Burwell Auto Body, SellToWin.com, Snap’d London and In2Communications.
Fans can stay up to date with Matt as he hopes to clinch his first career weekly Late Model championship by following on Twitter @MattPritiko or visiting the brand new www.MattPritiko.com.
By Spencer Lewis (@itsspencerlewis)
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