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Weekend Racing Recap

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PITTSBURGH, PA (Pittsburgh Racing Now) – A busy weekend of racing around Western and Central Pennsylvania as well as nationally.  Here’s a recap of all the action:

Sodeman Jr., Beck, King Jr., and Bish Win At Lernerville:

  • Jack Sodeman Jr. returned to victory lane at Lernerville on Friday winning the Peoples Natural Gas Sprint feature.  Sodeman now sits 4th in the Championship standings 32-points behind leader A.J. Flick.
  • Tommy Beck recovered from an early spin and stormed back through the field to win the Precise Racing Products Late Model Feature.  The win was Beck’s second career victory at “The Action Track”.  Kenny Schaltenbrand sits atop the Championship standings, 15-points ahead of Tyler Dietz.
  • Rex King Jr. captured the checkered flag in the Diehl Automotive Big Block Modified feature to pick up his third win of the season.  Garrett Krummert finished second to remain atop the Championship standings, 11-points ahead of John Mollick.
  • Curtis J. Bish held off Chris Schneider to win The Homack/Penn Ohio Pro Stocks feature.  Jason Fosnaught, Mike Miler and Darryl Charlier rounded out the top 5.

Rahmer Races To Victory at Williams Grove:

  • Freddie Rahmer Jr. was victorious in the Bob Stewart Tribute Night at Williams Grove on Friday.  Brent marks and Anthony Macri rounded out the podium.  Read our Lou Long’s full report here.

Tim Shaffer Wins All-Stars “Attica Ambush” Opener:

  • The “Steel City Outlaw” Tim Shaffer led wire-to-wire to win the Ollie’s Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions ‘Attica Ambush’ opener Friday night at Attica Raceway Park.  Read our full report here.
  • Rico Abreu led the final 27-laps to win Saturday night’s Attica Ambush finale at Attica Raceway Park.  Aaron Reutzel finished second and Cap Henry rounded out the podium.

Kyle Lukon Wins Red Miley Rumble at PPMS:

  • Kyle Lukon is the 2020 Red Miley Rumble Winner.  Lukon held off Ben Policz and Daryl Charlier to claim the victory in the 33-lap RUSH Late Model feature.  Policz won the 20-lap feature earlier in the night.
  • Tony Tatgenhorse took home the victory in the RUSH Sportsman Modified feature, holding off Kole Holden and Jacob Jordan to win the 15-lap feature.
  • Daryl Charlier was victorious in the Pro Stocks feature beating Ryan Moyer and Nick Kocuba to the checkered flag.
  • Stephen Shelpman won the Keystone Coach Works Hobby Stock feature over Frank Magill and Cody Koteles.
  • Philip Bubeck beat Bill Tennant and Andy Garlinger to capture the Four Cylinders victory.
  • Noah Bubeck captured the checkered flag in the Young Guns feature followed by Wyatt Mock, Dylan Clipp and Cameron Hollister.
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Awtey and Golik Win First of 2020 at Jennerstown Speedway:

  • Former Track Champion Barry Awtey earned his first win of the season in the Martella’s Pharmacies Late Model division of racing.  Teddy Gibala finished second followed by Albert Francis.
  • Tom Golik won the Stoystown Auto Wreckers Modified race with Adam Henry finishing second followed by Anthony Aiello.
  • Casey Fleegle took home the checkered flag in the Ron’s Collision Center Street Stocks feature.  Mel Wilt and Zac Todaro rounded out the podium.
  • Dale Kimberly held off Steven Singo to win Farmers Union Co-Op Chargers feature.  Will Hemminger rounded out the podium.
  • Evan Nibert was victorious in the Somerset Trust Company Fast ‘n Furious 4-Cylinders feature.  Jeff Vasos charged from his 10th starting spot to finish second followed by Lance Shawley in third.

Dietrich Doubles at Lincoln:

  • Danny Dietrich swept both ends of the Twin Twenties comprising the Bob Leiby Memorial Saturday at Lincoln Speedway.  Read our Lou Long’s full report here.

Macri and Rine Share Victory Lane at Selinsgrove:

  • Anthony Macri scored career win number one and Jeff Rine won his 112th career win at Selinsgrove Speedway.  Read our Lou Long’s recap here.

Harvick, Jones and Rhodes Grab NASCAR Wins At Darlington:

  • Kevin Harvick won the first round of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoff opener after Martin Truex Jr. crashed into leader Chase Elliott trying to pass the No. 9 going into turn one.  Read our report here.
  • Brandon Jones was as fortunate as Kevin Harvick in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race.  Jones was running third when leader Ross Chastain and second place Denny Hamlin made contact in Turn 3 with 2-laps to go opening the door for Jones.  Jones was able to pass the wounded machines to take the checkered flag first.  Chastain finished second with Hamlin falling to fifth.
  • Ben Rhodes held off rookie Derek Kraus to win the  NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series South Carolina Education Lottery 200.  The win was Rhodes first since 2018 and third of his career.

Acura Sweeps Road Atlanta:

  • Acura swept the six-hour TireRack.com Grand Prix at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta as Acura Team Penske’s Helio Castroneves and Ricky Taylor piloted their Acura ARX-05 prototype to the overall honors, while the Meyer Shank Racing trio of Mario Farnbacher, Ricky Taylor and Shinya Michimi took their Acura NSX GT3 Evo to the win in the GTD class.

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Alex Palou and Scott Dixon grab Top 10’s to lead Chip Ganassi Racing at St. Pete

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Penske Entertainment: James Black

ST. PETERSBURG, FL (March 10, 2024) – Chip Ganassi Racing’s Alex Palou and Scott Dixon grabbed Top 10 finishes in Sunday’s NTT INDYCAR SERIES season-opening Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Presented by RP Funding.

Palou, the defending and two-time series Champion, started 13th on grid and by the midway point in the race he had worked his way up to the 11th spot in the No. 10 DHL Honda.

Palou continued to gain spots and after his final pit stop he was just outside the Top 5, finishing sixth.

“I’m happy to finish in the top-six and it’s a great start,” said Palou, who was the fourth biggest mover over the course of the race (+7). “That first yellow really didn’t help us, as it put everyone in the same position so we had 35 laps less of the race to do something. We finished two spots better than what we did last year. We started struggling at the beginning of the weekend, so it was an amazing recovery by Chip Ganassi Racing and the No. 10 DHL Honda team. ”

Dixon started right outside the Top 10 in the 12th position and on the opening lap avoided disaster when several drivers split Romain Grosjean, who appeared to approach Turn 1 cautiously.  Grosjean drifted right to avoid the driver on his left, only to make contact with Dixon’s No. 9 PNC Bank Honda.  Luckily Dixon was able to continue without damage to his machine eventually finishing 9th.

“It was a bit of a bland day,” said Dixon, who will be inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame on Tuesday. “I thought we had a good situation at the start and then it all kind of closed down to go off-track to make sure that we didn’t hit anybody. There was just no tire degradation so there wasn’t as much racing as I would have liked. Ultimately, I think the PNC Bank crew should have had a fifth, sixth or seventh, so it’s not the absolute best way to start the season.”

Rookie Kyffin Simpson impressed in his INDYCAR debut, starting 23rd and advancing 9-positions to finish 14th in the No. 4 Journie Rewards Honda.

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“What an incredible day,” said Simpson, who finished the day as the top placing rookie. “I’m stoked to have such a good first race in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES. I felt like we had a good start to the race and then we just kept it clean. It was definitely tight at times with some side-by-side racing, but we were able to push through and keep things clean. We were able to really push it on the greens at the end with great pace. I’m very happy with the entire day for the Journie Rewards team.”

Linus Lundqvist was running ahead of Simpson and was sitting in 15th place at the midway point of the race and was methodically picking up spots.  Disaster struck on Lap 64 when Grosjean attempted a pass approaching Turn 10, sending the No. 8 American Legion Honda backwards into the tire barrier.  The No. 8 CGR crew replaced the rear wing on pit road and sent the 2022 INDY NXT Champion back into the fight.  Grosjean took responsibility for the ill-advised attempt and served a drive-thru penalty but that little solace for the No. 8 team.

“We were fighting on the edge of the top-10 and then sadly got taken out,” said Lundqvist. “It’s quite unfortunate because the guys and girls with the American Legion team did such a phenomenal job to be fighting for that top-10 position. It is a long season and we will definitely bounce back from that and bring the positives from the speed that we had.”

Marcus Armstrong and the No. 11 Ridgeline Lubricants Honda also showed speed all weekend and was the best qualifying car out of the CGR stable starting 11th and working his way into the Top 10 during the first 25-laps of the race.

Turn 10 challenged drivers all day because of a tricky tail wind going into the turn and Armstrong fell victim on Lap 27 when he ended up in the tire barrier.

“I was working on a fuel number and touched the brakes and locked the brakes immediately,” explained a dejected Armstrong. “I’m so disappointed by that mistake and I feel terrible for the No. 11 Chip Ganassi Racing Ridgeline Lubricants group because we were fast. To be honest, we weren’t pushing hard at the time. We were fuel saving and waiting for our time to push. It was a costly mistake and it stinks.”

Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden was basically untouchable all weekend leading 92-of-100 laps en route to the victory.

Next up for the NTT INDYCAR SERIES is the $1,000,000 non-points race at The Thermal Club.

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Racing Notebook: PA Motor Speedway cancels Test & Tune; INDYCAR at St. Pete; Kris Wright in Phoenix and more!

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Photo: Steve Skarupa

Pittsburgh’s Pennsylvania Motor Speedway cancels this weekend’s ‘test & tune’; The NTT INDYCAR SERIES gears up for the season-opening Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg presented by RP Funding; Kris Wright takes on Phoenix this Friday and more in the Pittsburgh Racing Now Notebook:

PPMS Cancels Test & Tune

  • Persistent rain on Tuesday and Wednesday have forced Pittsburgh’s Pennsylvania Motor Speedway to cancel this Saturday’s ‘Test & Tune’ one week before the season-opening ‘Pot of Gold 75’.  The Pits open at 9 a.m. and the Grandstands open at 11 a.m. with the Saturday program scheduled to start at Noon.  For more information visit PPMS.com.
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INDYCAR Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg

  • The NTT INDYCAR SERIES kicks off the 2024 season on Friday with one practice session to get teams ready for Sunday’s season-opening Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg presented by RP Funding.  Mayor Ken Welch, PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon and other dignitaries raised the flag Thursday morning at 10 a.m. at City Hall to signify the official civic event kickoff to the race weekend.

Kris Wright Gets Ready for Phoenix

  • Wexford native Kris Wright and his Venturini Motorsports team descend on Phoenix Raceway for Friday’s ARCA Menards Series General Tire 150. This weekend marks Wright’s first start at Phoenix in the ARCA Series. Wright has previously competed in a NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) race in 2022 and a NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series (NCTS) race in 2021 at the Avondale, Ariz., venue.  Wright has participated in two ARCA Menards Series West races, including one event with Venturini Motorsports. “I’m excited to return to Phoenix Raceway after having a fast car there in the fall. Our No. 15 Venturini Motorsports team has been working on it during the off-season, and we’re looking forward to heading back West for this race.”

Chip Ganassi Racing Unveils Season 2 Trading Cards

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Chip Ganassi Racing Unveils Season 2 of Trading Cards Series

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Chip Ganassi Racing

ST. PETERSBURG, FL (March 7, 2024) – Sports fans have a great opportunity to get their hands on some cool Chip Ganassi Racing (CGR) team-official collectables and help out a great cause in the process.

CGR unveiled Season 2 of their classic trading card series Thursday, benefitting The American Legion and their Be The One initiative, which is a national platform to reduce the rate of veteran suicide. The program destigmatizes asking for mental health support, provides peer-to-peer support and resources and educates people on how they can Be The One.  Everyone can Be The One by asking veterans in your life how they are doing, listening when a veteran needs to talk and reaching out when a veteran is struggling.

Fans are invited to make a $10 donation for a single pack of eight random cards, drawing from the collection of 36 unique designs. Bulk ordering options are also available again, with quantities offered at 5, 10 and 20 packs.

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“We are excited to see the return of the Chip Ganassi Racing trading cards,” said Dean Kessel, Chief Marketing Officer of The American Legion. “This project was wildly popular last season because it not only provides a remarkable product to race fans across the country, but it also directly impacts our mission to support the veteran community and save lives. We’re proud of this partnership that continues to make a positive impact on the lives of those who have served our nation.”

Season 2 of the #CGRCards feature standard cards, unique chrome cards and rare, autographed inserts from the current Chip Ganassi Racing NTT INDYCAR SERIES driver lineup.

The chrome cards feature notable achievements from this past season and throwbacks to Chip Ganassi Racing lore, including ‘The Pass’ at Laguna Seca by Alex Zanardi, CGR’s first championship with Jimmy Vasser in 1996 and the team’s first Indianapolis 500 win in 2000 with Juan Pablo Montoya.

The trading cards will be available exclusively at ChipGanassiRacing.com/CGRCards. Only 2,000 packs of cards will be available through the 2024 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season so be sure to make a donation today and collect all 36 cards.

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