Dirt Racing
Macri Gets Third Straight Kauffman Classic at Port Royal; Amantea and Craig Perigo Also Score
PORT ROYAL, PA (April 27, 2024): Anthony Macri won the Keith Kauffman Classic for the third straight time, but it was not an easy victory. Macri inherited the lead when Chase Dietz blew his left rear tire. But T.J. Stutts surprised Macri on the restart, and it took several laps for the nation’s win leader to regain the top spot. Macri collected $15,000 for the effort. Also scoring wins were Joey Amantea (USAC East Coast 360 Sprints) and Craig Perigo (Wingless Sportsmen).
“It took us a couple of laps to get up to speed,” Macri noted. “He (Stutts) had a really good restart. But I knew it is not good to follow cars on a big track like this, so I pulled my wing back and I was able to get by.”
The original start of the race was marred by a massive crash in turn one that eliminated six competitors. The incident began when Jeff Halligan got turned and backed across the track toward the outside wall. Five other racers, all from the outside line, were collected in the wreck. Heavy damage was inflicted on the cars of Halligan, A.J. Flick, Lance Dewease, and Cullam Williamson. Steve Buckwalter and Austin Bishop had less damage. Fortunately, none of the drivers sustained any reported injuries.
So, the revised starting line-up went like this. On the front row were Dietz and Logan Wagner. Danny Dietrich and Macri were in row two. Stutts and Justin Whittal were in row three. Mike Wagner and Freddie Rahmer, Jr. were the new partners in the fourth row. Devon Borden and Kody Hartlaub were in row five, with Mike Walter, Jr. and Dylan Cisney in row six.
Dietz got the jump on Logan Wagner. Macri and Dietrich led Stutts, Rahmer, Mike Wagner, Cisney, Walter, and Whittal. The running order did not change through the first five laps. On lap six, though, Macri slid past Wagner for second, but he was still far behind Dietz at the time.
Macri began to close in on Dietz as the race neared the midpoint.
On lap thirteen, Macri closed quickly on the lapped car of Aaron Bollinger. There was contact. Macri was able to keep moving, but Bollinger spun toward the wall in turn two. He hit the wall and turned over. Logan Wagner, who was racing in third, struck Bollinger’s car and spun toward the inside of the track. Dietrich tried to get low enough to avoid contact with Wagner, but the two cars collided. Dietrich bent the left rear wheel and flattened the tire. Borden also sustained a flat in the melee. Both Dietrich and Borden were able to restart the race.
Dietz took off again on the restart. He had a commanding lead when his left rear tire exploded midway down the back stretch.
That put Macri on the point for the restart. Stutts lined up in second, with Rahmer, Mike Wagner, Cisney, Lucas Wolfe, Whittal, Walter, Jacob Allen, and Dietrich trailing.
Macri entered turn one on the cushion, but Stutts charged on the inside. He slid up across Macri’s nose to take the lead, much to the delight of the crowd. Stutts held control for the next seven laps before Macri used his own slider in turn one to retake the lead.
Macri reeled off the remaining seven laps without further ado. Stutts remained in second, followed by Rahmer, Mike Wagner, and Wolfe. Whittal, Cisney, Allen, Dietrich, and Borden completed the top ten.
The four heat winners were Whittal, Logan Wagner, Dietrich, and Stutts. Allen turned in an inspired performance in his heat race, coming from the last row to transfer into the A Main. Gerard McIntyre, Jr. was best in the B Main. Macri set the fastest lap in qualifications. His time of 15.089 was best in Group B. Dietz was fastest in Group A with a time of 15.123.
When the leaders of the USAC East Coast 360 Sprint Car race collided on lap fifteen, a good race became a great one. The misfortunes of Alex Bright and Briggs Danner put Christian Bruno on the point for the restart, with Joey Amantea right behind him. What happened after that left the race fans speechless. Bruno and Amantea traded slide jobs lap after lap, swapping the lead at opposite ends of the track, until Amantea got just enough of an advantage on lap twenty-two that Bruno could not slide him back to regain the lead. But, Bruno then came under attack from Carmen Perigo and Steve Drevicki in the final laps of the race. At the checkers, Amantea claimed his first win of the season and the second in his career with the series, with Perigo just a second behind him.
“I don’t think we had a winning car tonight, but with Alex and Briggs taking each other out, that gave us an opportunity,” Amantea said.
Bruno was on the pole for the twenty-five lap affair, with Bright as his running mate. Amantea and Bruce Buckwalter lined up in row two, with Perigo and Drevicki right behind them. Bobby Butler and Danner made up row four.
Bright blasted into the lead in turn one, with Bruno, Amantea, Danner, and Buckwalter dicing for positions in the top five. Bright set a brisk pace in the early laps, but Danner worked his way into second by lap five. Bruno held third, ahead of Perigo, Amantea, Buckwalter, Drevicki, Bruno, Tommy Kunsman, and Ed Aiken.
Danner was closing in on Bright when the caution waived on lap ten for Buckwalter’s spin in turn four.
On the ensuing restart, Danner provided a glimpse of things to come. With Bright up on the cushion, Danner entered turn one on the low side, looking for an opening to slide up the track and take the lead away. But, Danner did not carry enough speed into the corner and he could not complete the pass. Bright’s momentum propelled him into the lead coming through turn two.
But Danner wasn’t about to give up just yet. He came storming back after Bright. The duo played cat and mouse for several more laps, but there was no change in the running order.
The race took a dramatic change on lap fifteen. Once again, Bright was up on the cushion, and Danner threw his car into turn one on the inside. He began to slide up through the middle and drew up beside Bright. Bright’s car bumped the cushion and became unstable. He started to come down toward the middle as the rivals entered turn two. There was contact, and the first two cars spun much to the surprise of all. Both cars headed to the infield pit area, and only Bright was able to resume the race.
Bruno inherited the lead, with Amantea in second. Perigo restarted in third, ahead of Drevicki, Butler, Kunsman, Aiken, Dalton Herrick, Matthew Swift, and Michael Smith.
When the race went green again, Bruno and Amantea began an intense battle for the lead. Amantea’s first slide job in turn one came up short, but he had a full head of steam entering turn three, and he easily passed Bruno. Bruno returned the favor in turn one, and Amantea rallied again in turn three. Bruno regained the lead with a slider of his own on lap nineteen.
A caution on that lap for Rich Carnathan interrupted the flow, but soon thereafter Bruno and Amantea were locked in a battle for the lead again. Amantea was able to claim the lead for the final time with three laps remaining.
Amantea led Bruno by a couple of car lengths and the final laps played out. But now Bruno was being challenged for the second spot. Perigo and Drevicki came on to make it a three car contest for the second position. Any one of the three contenders could have taken it, but the outcome remained in doubt until the final corner.
Perigo slid past Bruno in turn four on the last lap to earn the second position. Bruno held off Drevicki, who darted to the inside. Bright marched back through the pack to salvage a fifth place finish.
Butler, Kunsman, Aiken, Buckwalter, and Herrick completed the top ten.
“We were going at it pretty good, and then I took his line away,” Amantea explained. “It was pretty good racing with Chris. He’s a really good racer, and he raced me clean,” he added. Amantea said that the victory would give him added confidence when he next faces the USAC National Sprint Car Series at Eldora Speedway.
There were a pair of heats, with wins going to Danner and Bright. There was no B Main.
The Wingless Sportsmen wore the nightcap, and that race did not disappoint either. Craig Perigo was the leader on each of the twenty laps, although he did briefly surrender the point to Jay Fannasy. When Fannasy spun from second place, Cliff Brian took up the chase, with Steve Wilbur in tow. The three racers put on an entertaining contest for the last eleven laps. Perigo came out on top, with Brian a close second. Wilbur bobbled on the last lap and surrendered third to Trent Yoder. Brett Perigo took the fifth spot.
The sixth through tenth place finishers were Chad Thomas, Chad Baker, Curt Stroup, Brandon Shearer, and Joe Gabner.
“That was a lot of fun on my end,” the winner said enthusiastically. “I didn’t have enough gear. I knew I couldn’t go low to block Brian because there was not enough gear. I had to keep my momentum up.”
Craig Perigo, Fannasy, and Yoder were the winners of the three heat races. There was no B Main.
Port Royal Speedway will present a three division program on May 4, featuring the 410 Sprint Cars, Super Late Models, and 305 Sprints. The track will be dark on May 11, in deference to the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series event at Williams Grove Speedway. Racing will resume at the Speed Palace on May 18 with the 410 Sprints, a Super Late Model Championship, and the Limited Late Models.
TULSA, OK (January 15, 2024) – Sye Lynch is planning on competing full-time in the Kubota High Limit Racing Series in 2025 the Apollo, PA native announced Wednesday night at the Chili Bowl Nationals in Tulsa.
“This is all I’ve ever grown up knowing,” Lynch told the FloRacing broadcast in Tulsa. “I’ve gotten some good advice from some good people. A lot of thought has been into what it takes to become a national team.”
Lynch, a third-generation driver, is the son of Ed Lynch Jr and grandson of the late Ed Lynch Sr. and started out on Friday night’s at Lernerville Speedway. The past few years has seen Lynch running events sanctioned by the World of Outlaws and the All Star Circuit of Champions, which has become High Limit.
“For my operation, being a local, homegrown operation with my main partner since I’ve had since day one, we’ve really just looked at our goal from three years ago, which was to become a full time All Star (Circuit of Champions) team,” explained Lynch. “Then with it transitioning into High Limit, it obviously caught out attention”.
Lynch ran 25 High Limit races in 2024, scoring two podium finishes to go along with his 2023 podium in 23-race. All of that running was exactly what Lynch needed to confirm the next step in his plans.
“Running with those guys night-in and night-out was obviously only the top of the iceberg as far as seeing if we could do it.”
Next up for Lynch is trying to qualify for the 2025 Chili Bowl, which he will attempt to do Thursday night at Tulsa Expo Raceway.
TULSA, OK (January 14, 2025): Landon Brooks, a relatively unknown Sprint and Midget racer from California, scored a major upset win on Tuesday night at the Chili Bowl. His victory was the first for car owner Matt Wood, and gave that small team the distinction of having two cars locked into the Saturday A Main. The lead driver for Matt Wood Racing, Shane Golobic, finished second to Kyle Larson on Monday and spent Tuesday acting as crew chief and driver coach to the twenty-one-year old pilot.
“It honestly feels unbelievable,” Brooks noted. “I haven’t taken it all in yet. When I passed the checkered flag, I couldn’t believe it. I fell back to seventh there and, you know, I started rolling the bottom and got back to fifth. They all kind of creeped to the bottom, and I was able to rip the top and get to second. Luckily, I was able to reel in Brenham (Crouch) and throw a few sliders on him and pull it off.” He added, “by the end of it I was trying to go where they weren’t. Luckily, when I did go to the bottom I could make up some ground and, when I went to the top, I was able to pass some cars.”
The thirty lapper had Brenham Crouch and Hunter Schuerenberg paired up on the front row. Kevin Thomas, Jr. and Gunnar Setser were in row two, followed by Corbin Rueschenberg and Clinton Boyles. Brooks was inside Billy VanInwegen in row four. Then came Stevie Sussex and Brad Sweet. Derek Hagar and Jake Bubak occupied row six. Further back in the field were former winners Hank Davis and Buddy Kofoid (both in row nine), and notable veterans Jonathan Beason and Thomas Meseraull (both in row ten).
Crouch staked out an early lead, but a quick caution for Thomas nullified the start. Crouch again surged ahead, with Rueschenberg, Schuerenberg, Setser, and Boyles giving chase.
Sweet and Bubak tangled on lap two, and their skirmish was followed by another involving Schuerenberg and Sussex three laps later.
With those early incidents out of the way, the racers finally got into a rhythm. Crouch maintained his advantage for a dozen laps, with Setser holding second. Boyles was third, and coming, but his crash in turn two ended his race soon after the midpoint in the contest.
Meanwhile, Brooks was working his way forward again, having lost several positions in the early going. He was up to fourth, and held his own through a pair of cautions.
The next five laps consisted of Crouch fighting off Setser and Rueschenberg with Brooks searching for an opening. He found the top line and, with five to go, he began to assert himself. He rolled by Crouch with three to go. Crouch came back on the next round, but he could not complete the pass. The duo traded sliders on lap twenty-nine.
While that excitement was happening, Kofoid climbed into contention. He was hovering around seventh and he picked up a couple of spots before the stretch run. He was third and closing when the checkers waved.
Crouch noted that he was able to stay in clean air quite a bit with the cautions. “I kept looking over and they just kept telling me ‘you are doing good, good.’ They didn’t tell me anybody was doing anything I wasn’t. I just stuck to the top. I started stripping the nose and I started getting up on the wall there a couple of times. I figured, you know, somebody’s gotta be coming. I just felt comfortable up there. Landon (Brooks) got by me and he did the same thing, and we kind of got to racing. I kind of thought maybe I slide myself and I wanted to keep my momentum up, I thought I chose the best option. Landon was able to get back by me when I made a mistake, ultimately ran second. As hard as it is to be mad at myself to run second, we are in the show and we accomplished what a lot of people can’t, so just very grateful for that.”
Kofoid explained his run to third thusly. “I needed to pick off some guys and kind of make up most of passes early. I was able to kind of run the bottom a little bit and then get to the top. I was good on restarts and then once we had some of those crashes in front of me that kind of helped me out. I looked up and I was running seventh or eighth. I had a good restart and I was, like, I’ll try the bottom and I think I got to fifth. I think maybe another restart and was almost third and had the yellow and had to go back to fifth. Some of the guys moved to the bottom and I probably showed them the bottom, and some of them got up through there. Landon (Brooks) got up through there, so I was, like, OK, I guess I’ve got to go back to the top. I actually fell back to like sixth or seventh and kind of started hunting them down. I was trying to minimize my mistakes and not use the cushion as mush as maybe some other people were and (I) was able to pick and choose where I was able to pick up the cushion. I was able to pick up the cushion. I was able to not throw the nose and get close to guys and slide them and kind of put them away. When it gets that slick you can’t really cross people over. I was just able to pick them off one by one.”
After Brooks, Crouch, and Kofoid came Rueschenberg and Setser, making for a very unlikely top five. Kameron Key, Davis, Kaylee Bryson, Bubak, and Derek Hagar rounded out the top ten. Ricky Thornton, Jr. came from the shotgun position to reach twelfth.
The nine heat winners were Setser, Bubak, Kofoid, Nathan Crane, Mason Hannagan, Davis, Bryson, Brooks, and Brandt Twitty. Crouch, Brooks, Sussex, and Sweet captured the qualifiers. High Limits race director Mike Hess was a C Main winner, along with Caleb Stelzig. Davis and Kofoid won their respective B Mains.
TULSA, OK (January 13, 2025): Kyle Larson completed the NASCAR sweep on night one of the 2025 Chil Bowl. After finishing seventh to Christopher Bell in the Race of Champions, Larson came back in the nightcap to earn the first qualifying night win. Larson benefited from a lap twenty-nine caution which set up a green-white-checkered finish. His slide job in turn one on the final restart came up a bit short, but he nailed a perfect one at the other end of the speedway. Then he held off desperate counter attacks from Shane Golobic during the final lap.
Larson explained the final two circuits thusly. “Well, I was obviously happy that the caution came out, and it just felt like if I could exit with (Golobic) on the restart I would try and slide him but he did a really good job in one and two. I got a good enough kind of ramp off of the wall down the backstretch, and just going to try the same thing and hope that he didn’t nail that corner. I think that’s what happened, and then (I) didn’t really know what to do after that. I didn’t really want to leave that door open and run the wall. I felt like I could protect myself enough just sliding myself enough for the next lap. Great race, but I need to be a lot better. It was a lot of work to get back to the front. We’ll work on it and hopefully hit on something for Saturday.”
For his part, Golobic was frustrated that he did not win, but he was nonetheless pleased that he again put himself into a good position for Saturday, given that the top two finishers were locked into the grand finale. “Last lap didn’t go our way. I thought maybe if I could just circle him in (turns) one and two when he threw that slider I thought that we were going to be OK. Then I tried to slip it in and get it rotated into three, and I didn’t. (It) pushed real bad and got up on the wall and let him by. I felt like we got a good run off two down the backstretch, and then he slid himself obviously which was the thing to do. I thought that I might try to out-slide him (but) I wasn’t going up and try and destroy the thing in three and four and run the wall like in three and four. Thought about hooking the bumper, honestly, but didn’t abd, heah, we’re in a good spot for Saturday, we’ll take it.”
Golobic was paired with Tanner Carrick in row one for the thirty lap finale. Briggs Danner and Larson lined up behind them. Then came Ashton Torgerson and Zach Wigal. Cannon McIntosh and Trey Marcham made up row four. Justin Peck and Jerry Coons, Jr. were in row five. Gary Taylor and Cap Henry rounded out the first half of the field.
Golobic wrestled the lead from Carrick on the opening lap. Torgerson, McIntosh, and Danner followed. Danner moved forward, reaching second by lap five. Carrick attempted to regain the position but he hit the treacherous berm in turn four, causing the car to bicycle and losing two spots in the process.
On the next trip around the tight oval, Danner made a bid for the lead. Unfortunately, his car tripped over the curb in turn four and Danner crashed out of the race.
McIntosh inherited the second position for the restart, with Torgerson, Carrick, Larson, and Peck in tow.
On lap eight, McIntosh slid by Golobic for the lead. The duo battled for the top spot for the next eight laps. A caution gave them a clear track. With more room to move around, Golobic regained the lead with a slider in turn four on lap twenty-three.
Meanwhile, Larson was working his way toward the front. He had just taken the third position when a caution was displayed on lap twenty-five.
On the restart, McIntosh tried a slider to regain the lead, but Golobic was up to the task. McIntosh’s failed attempt gave Larson the outside line and he built some momentum. Now, McIntosh and Larson were trading sliders for second.
Larson assumed control of second on lap twenty-seven and he began to close in on Golobic as the laps counted down. Golobic was pressing, and his car bounced off the berm in turn one, but he was able to maintain a slim advantage over Larson as they took the white flag.
Before the leaders could complete the final lap, however, the caution came out one, last time. That set up a two lap dash for the cash.
Larson tried to slide Golobic entering turn one when the race resumed. Golobic held him off. But Larson got a good run into three and his slider for the lead was perfectly done. Golobic fought back in the final two lap, but he could not overtake Larson.
At the checkers, it was Larson over Golobic and McIntosh. McIntosh explained that he may have been too conservative in the late stages of the race. “I just slowed the pace down too much trying not to take ourselves out, Obviously, you’ve got to think big picture. As much as winning a prelim night is cool, you definitely want to be there on Saturday. Just slowed the pace down too much and they (Golobic and Larson) were able to capitalize, and (I) just didn’t have enough there at the end. I think we know what to do come Sarurday and hopefully go win that B and put ourselves in a good spot.”
Brent Crews charged through the field to take fourth. Interestingly, he advanced from the C to the B just before this impressive run. Torgerson was fifth. Coons, Joe B. Miller, Peck, Trey Marcham, and Dillon Welch rounded out the top ten.
Heat race wins went to Larson, Peck, Nick Hoffman, Torgerson, Coons, Danner, Golobic, and Gary Taylor. The four qualifiers belonged to Golobic, Danner, Torgerson, and Carrick. Crews and Cade Taylor scored in the C Mains, and Crews and Carson Bolden prevailed in the B Mains.
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