FREMONT, OH (5-27-12)By Brian Liskai – Dale Blaney says his job is easy driving the Ti22 Performance #2 sprint car. He made it look easy Sunday at Fremont Speedway, cruising to the University of Northwestern Ohio All Star Circuit of Champions $10,000 payday to make it a clean sweep of the two-day show at The Track That Action Built.

“George and Troy and Bobby and Junior make my life easy. This car has been operating phenomenally all year…back to where we were in about 08. I finally started racing a little better and the car’s a little better. Everybody is working so good together…we just want to race every day,” said Blaney of his fourth All Star win of 2012.

“This car is phenomenal. Any where we’ve gone this year it’s been really, really good. George (Fisher) designs them things and Barry Jackson makes them. If we can duplicate that exact car every time I’ll take it. We’re going to Lawrenceburg tomorrow to race against the Outlaws, but I’m looking forward to our next trip to Central Pennsylvania. I think we’ve got a car good enough to go win out there at Williams Grove and Lincoln. I just have to go out there and do it. I’ve never won a race at either place…I just have to go get it done,” added Blaney in the Engine Pro Victory Lane.

It was Blaney’s 14th career win at Fremont and his 9th UNOH All Star win at the track, which has now hosted 101 series events in its 61 year history. Blaney now has 88 career UNOH All Star wins, just 10 behind all-time series winner Kenny Jacobs. Blaney is only one victory away from tying Jack Hewitt for the most All Star wins at Fremont.

For local driver Bryan Sebetto, Sunday’s second place run was a bit of redemption from Saturday night when he admittedly made a bad move causing Brandon Martin to flip.

“Dale was just flat better than us tonight. We had nothing for him. We had a second place car. I’m happy to run second to Dale when he’s that quick…he’s a class act and one of the best out here,” said Sebetto beside his Hammer Pallets, Gressman Powersports, JLH General Contractor, Crown Battery, Meggitt’s Powdercoating, Big D’s Pizza backed #24h.

“With the exception of all the drama last night, it was a good weekend. We made it on the front stretch both nights. It’s not what we wanted…we wanted wins, But we got top threes both nights and we will take that. The guys worked their butts off on the car with Aaron, Timmy P., Guhn, Randy and Gibbs.”

There’s just something about a 50 lap race at Fremont that seems to bring out the best in Greg Wilson. He would storm from his 10th starting spot to a third place finish.

“I told somebody earlier make these things 100…we’ll put on a hell of a show for the fans. I want to thank all the fans for coming out this weekend. The team worked hard and made a big turnaround from last night. I have to thank Veryl Warnimont for doing this thing, DNC Hydraulics, Ohio Logistics and Hercules Tires. What a turn around from last night. We wanted to crawl under a rock and stay there. We came out tonight and ran good. Brian Kemenah and the guys did an awesome job. We changed some stuff today and it’s great to be standing on the front stretch,” said Wilson.

Bryan Sebetto and Kyle Larson would bring the field of 24 to the green with Sebetto gaining the advantage while Paul McMahan, Blaney, Craig Mintz and David Gravel in tow. Broc Martin would spin after two laps were scored with the running order Sebetto, Larson, Blaney, Mintz, McMahan, Gravel and Stevie Smith. On the restart, Martin would spin again and go pitside.

On the ensuing restart, Blaney would drive into second and quickly closed on Sebetto. With Sebetto running the top ledge and Blaney in the middle, they pulled away from Larson, Mintz, McMahan, Smith and Wilson. On lap eight, Blaney would drive under Sebetto and slide up in front exiting turn four to take the lead.

Blaney would catch the rear of the field on lap 13 and as they raced side by side it allowed Sebetto to close slightly. Larson continued to run third with Mintz, McMahan and Wilson in pursuit. Just as Blaney crossed the finish line to complete the half-way point, the caution would fly for a David Gravel spin.

On the ensuing restart Blaney had three lapped cars separating himself from Sebetto. That allowed Blaney to rocket away. Sebetto would steadily pick his way around the lapped cars while Wilson blasted from fifth to third by lap 27. Blaney would again catch the back of the pack by lap 32 and again they were racing each other hard, holding up the leader’s progress. Blaney’s patience would pay off as he picked them off one by one, putting more and more of the field between himself and Sebetto.

With 10 laps to go, Blaney held a commanding lead while Sebetto now had his hands full with Wilson with Mintz, Tim Shaffer and Smith in tow. With two laps to go Wilson raced inside Sebetto for second but did a 360 spin in turn four. Wilson would maintain third.

Blaney would pull away for the win with Sebetto, Wilson, Mintz and Shaffer rounding out the top five.

The UNOH All Stars have a week off before embarking on a grueling month of racing. It all kicks off with a trip to Pennsylvania where the All Stars have never defeated the PA Posse. First up is Williams Grove Speedway on Friday, June 8, then on to Lincoln Speedway on Saturday and up to Utica Rome Speedway on Sunday. Then there a bit of a break before the 30th Annual Ohio Sprint Speedweek featuring 9 straight nights of racing across the Buckeye State.

For more information go to www.allstarsprint.com

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FREMONT, OH (5-26-12) By Brian Liskai – Dale Blaney survived a lengthy red and a caution late in the race to score his 87th career University of Northwestern Ohio All Star Circuit of Champions victory to open the double-header weekend at Fremont Speedway Saturday, May 26.

For Blaney, it was his third UNOH All Star win of 2012 and 13th career victory at “The Track That Action Built” on Kear’s Speed Shop Night. It was the 100th appearance of the UNOH All Stars at Fremont Speedway and Blaney is second to Jack Hewitt in the number of series victories at the track with 8.

“You never know…the wins could stop tonight…you never know. The way it’s going we’ve been running really, really well this year. I don’t think we’ve had a night where we’ve been disappointed. Last Saturday we weren’t real good, but we will take fourth for not being very good. I love my guys, George, Troy, Bobby…Junior and Rick were here. It’s pretty awesome to have all those guys working on it…they give me a great car every night,” said Blaney beside his Ti22 Performance backed machine.

“I love coming here to Fremont…I’ve had a lot of success here and I’m looking forward to coming back tomorrow,” said Blaney of Sunday’s $10,000 to win finale. “Sitting in the race car you don’t even think about what it pays. Hopefully we’ll get here, draw a decent number, qualify well and take it from there. If this was a 50 lapper tonight it would have gotten interesting. The track changed a whole bunch toward the end. Fifth laps tomorrow…it will be fun.”

Just like they did earlier this year at Attica, Blaney and former Fremont track champion Craig Mintz battled early for the lead. Mintz led laps 1-6 before Blaney drove under him. Mintz would stay close to Blaney and at one time early in the event when they were racing in traffic, there was a tremendous battle between those two, Tim Shaffer and Bryan Sebetto.

“It’s just hard to be George (Fisher, owner of Blaney’s car) and Dale and that car…they are just good and Dale doesn’t make many mistakes,” said Mintz of his second place run. “I would have liked to have gotten into lapped traffic and had a little race there but that #2 just kept getting smaller, smaller and smaller.”

“These guys behind me…my dad and Brad and Kemp and my fiancée and Kevin Shammo and all my sponsors, Real Geese Decoys, Erie Shore Propane, KS Sales and Service, Kistler Engines, Wasserman Construction…these guys put this car here and I just put my foot on the floor,” added Mintz.

After being involved in a tangle with Brandon Martin while battling for third on lap 21, which sent Martin flipping violently into turn four with his wing flying into the stands (no one was seriously hurt…a few fans were taken to the hospital for a check-up), Sebetto would get a last lap pass of Phil Gressman to finish third.

“That was 100 percent my fault. I ran it in there…we were just racing hard. That’s what you get with a one lane race track…everyone is fighting to run in the same place. I feel bad for Brandon…we’ve been racing together since we were kids in go-karts. He’s one of the last guys I’d do that to…I don’t ever want to do that to anyone. I feel bad and I apologize. I know he’s mad and I deserve the criticism…that was a pretty crappy move,” said Sebetto beside his Hammer Pallets, Gressman Powersports, JLH General Contractors, Meggit Powdercoating backed machine.

“We don’t have to change anything on this car for tomorrow…it was good enough to get up there and race with Craig and Dale but I just kept screwing up and blowing it through the cushion,” added Sebetto.

Blaney and Mintz would bring the field to the green for the 30-lap feature with Mintz grabbing the lead with Blaney glued to his rear bumper while Shaffer raced into third and Sebetto and David Gravel in tow. Mintz and Blaney would pull away from a tremendous battle for third between Shaffer and Sebetto with Danny Smith grabbing fifth.

The leaders would race into lapped traffic by the 7th circuit with Blaney driving under Mintz for the lead while Sebetto and Shaffer closed. Shaffer would do a 360 spin in turn two on the eighth lap to bring out the caution. Blaney and Mintz would pull away on the restart with Sebetto now battling 10th place starter Brandon Martin for third with Smith continuing to run fifth.

On lap 12, Todd Heller made contact with another car and slammed into the turn two soft wall to bring out the red. Heller was taken to the hospital for a precautionary check.

On the ensuing restart Blaney and Mintz would again pull away from the battle for third between Martin, Sebetto and Phil Gressman. By the 17th lap the leaders again raced into lapped traffic with the running order Blaney, Mintz, Martin, Gressman and Sebetto. Sebetto would drive back around Gressman into fourth on the 19th lap and began racing Martin hard for third.

On the 21st lap, the caution would fly for Andrew Palker who spun in turn two. On the restart, Blaney and Mintz would pull away with Martin and Sebetto still racing hard for third. As the drove into turns three and four, Sebetto and Martin got together, with Martin taking a nasty flip with his top wing flying over the tall front stretch fence into the stands. A few fans received bumps and bruises and were taken to the local hospital for a check up while track crews worked to repair the fence. Martin was uninjured.

Also in that incident, Brian Smith got upside down on the back stretch and was not injured. With nine laps to go when the green came back out and a clear track ahead of him, Blaney would pull away slightly from Mintz while Sebetto and Gressman battled for third.  Sebetto would slide off the top side of turn two on lap 24, dropping back to fifth.

A Dean Jacobs spin on lap 25 would give Mintz one more shot at Blaney. Blaney would drop the hammer on the restart and pulled away to a three car length lead with Gressman, Smith, Sebetto and Gravel in tow. Sebetto would get around Smith with two laps to go to take fourth. As Blaney drove to the win over Mintz, Sebetto would slide in front of Gressman for the third spot coming to the checkered as Gravel would take fifth.

MERCER, PA (5-12-12) By Brian Liskai – Sometimes you just need to go home.

For Aliquippa, Pennsylvania’s Tim Shaffer it was just what the doctor ordered. The three time and defending champion of the University of Northwestern Ohio All Star Circuit of Champions travelled just up the road from his residence Saturday and proceeded to dominate the 30-lap series event at Mercer Raceway Park to score his first All Star win of 2012.

Shaffer has shown his Aaron Call/Janet Holbrook Motorsports team can win against any competition over the past three years. But, during the off-season, the team under went a few internal changes, leaving many to wonder if “The Steel City Outlaw” could dominate as he has, winning All Star championships and even the 2010 Knoxville Nationals.

And while Shaffer has been very competitive so far in 2012, there have been little things that have gone wrong and even some bad racing luck that have kept him from victory lane.

“It’s been a tough year. We’ve put ourselves in a position four or five times and just couldn’t make it happen,” said Shaffer in victory lane beside his Kistler Engines/Kistler Racing Products/VRP Shocks backed machine. “We started on the pole tonight and then you kind of worry, ‘what’s going to happen tonight?’ It’s been that kind of a year.”

“What a great job by the team. I have Craig Stevens, Aaron Call, James and A.J….there’s five or six guys that are doing a great job on the car. We’re just trying to gel and work together and make this thing fast,” added Shaffer of his 46th career All Star victory. “We will continue to work hard and if we continue to run up front and be competitive the wins will come.”

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania’s Danny Holtgraver also liked racing close to home, driving his Kargo Quality Cars/Alternative Power Sources backed #D4 to a second place finish.

“I had a good care and was able to get through lapped traffic and get by a couple of cars…I’m happy,” said Holtgraver.

“I saw him (Shaffer) when we got to traffic and I saw the two to go and said ‘man I wish it was five to go.’ We came on strong at the end so I can’t complain,” added Holtgraver. “I have to thank Mark and Pam from Kargo…they have a booth up here. And I have to thank Alternative Power Source and Tim Shaffer…he helps me a lot.”

Three time UNOH All star champion Dale Blaney from nearby Hartford, Ohio, would have liked to have his qualifying effort back. But, “The Low Rider” passed Ed Lynch Jr. late in the race for a third place finish.

“This is as good as we’ve run here the past couple of years. I shot myself in the foot qualifying. I didn’t make as good of a lap as I could have and that got us behind. We had a really good race car from there on out. But, if you have to start behind those two guys…it’s hard to pass them,” said Blaney beside his Ti22 Performance/George Fisher Racing #2.

Before the 30-lap feature could get underway, contender David Gravel, who had fired off his #89G, went pit side, refired and again went to the pits to end his night.

Shaffer and Rob Chaney would lead the field to the green, with Shaffer grabbing the lead over Lynch, Chaney, Holtgraver and Blaney. Holtgraver would drive around Chaney into third a lap later with Blaney moving into fourth on lap four.

Shaffer, Lynch, Holtgraver, Blaney and Chaney would continue in that order a caution on lap 11 when Rod George got sideways in turn four, collecting Brian Steinman. Both were done for the night.

On the restart, Scott Priester hit the restart cone, bringing the caution back out. Priester was sent to the tail of the field.

When the green came back out, Shaffer pulled away slightly while Holtgraver began pressuring Lynch for second. Holtgraver was able to take the runner-up spot on lap 18. Meanwhile, Cap Henry, who scored a win during weekly competition at Mercer last season, had raced his way from his eighth starting spot into the top five.

Another car on the move was two-time All Star champion Greg Wilson. Wilson, who started 19th, cracked the top 10 on lap 18 and would ride home 9th to earn the night’s “hard charger” honor.

As Shaffer raced into lapped traffic, Holtgraver was able to close.

“I tried to move around in traffic and I lost some time. I just tried to be patient and not get caught up and do something dumb,” said Shaffer.

With five laps to go, Blaney, who leads the All Star’s national point standings, was able to drive around Lynch into third, but ran out of time to catch Shaffer and Holtgraver. Lynch would bring his Howard Concrete machine home in fourth with Henry rounding out the top five.

The UNOH All Star Circuit of Champions head back to Ohio to wrap up the month of May, with a double-header weekend at the historic Fremont Speedway, Saturday and Sunday, May 26 and 27 (there is a Monday rain date for the finale). The Sunday finale will pay the feature winner $10,000.

For more information go to www.allstarsprint.com or follow the All Stars on Twitter.

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Camargo, IL (5-8-12) - Western Pennsylvania has ALWAYS been a big part of the University of Northwestern Ohio All Star Circuit of Champions heritage. The series will travel to the three-eighths mile oval Saturday to take on the tough regular competitors.

Saturday's event will be like a homecoming for the UNOH All Stars. The series, founded in Western Pennsylvania by area businessman Bud Miller and others, has long roots in the region and Mercer was one of the tour stops from the very beginning. The first UNOH All Star Circuit of Champions titlest was hometown favorite Ralph Quarterson.

Times have changed, but there is one constant - successive generations of UNOH All Star Circuit of Champions heroes hailed from Western Pennsylvania including Hall of Fame driver Brad Doty and current NASCAR star Dave Blaney. Among the contemporary UNOH All Star Circuit of Champions are three time and defending champion Tim Shaffer, of Aliquippa, Pa., and three time series champion and current All Star national points leader Dale Blaney of Hartford, Ohio, who has two series wins in 2012 and sits second in the All Stars' all-time win list with 86 victories. And, the younger set is well represented by 2010 Lernerville champion Danny Holtgraver, of Pittsburgh, and Pete Miller, III, of Port Vue, Pa., the All Star's 2011 Rookie of the Year who recently scored a win at Lernerville.

The home team, the Luxaire Heating & Cooling Sprint Cars, will be led by former UNOH All Star Circuit of Champions travelers Rod George, who won last week’s feature, and Bob Felmlee, the defending track champion.

Also expected to compete are Ed Lynch, Jr. and Brian Ellenberger, both of whom have won on the road with the UNOH All Star Circuit of Champions, and in their own back yards and at Mercer.

All of the other Mercer talents will be on hand, such as Brent and Brandon Matus, Brandon Spithaler, Eric Williams, and many more.  Other visitors expected include Lee Jacobs and Rob Chaney, both of whom were testing the waters last weekend, and Cap Henry, who was victorious last season at the Mercer Raceway Park.

Could someone like Daryn Pittman, who leads the UNOH All Star's Eastern Region points and its $20,000 prize and sits in the top three of the series' Ohio Region show up? Or Stevie Smith and his Black Bandit team?

Saturday’s race will be the first of two visits for the UNOH All Star Circuit of Champions, whose drivers swept both programs last season. The UNOH ALl Stars have three regional championship point standings and a national title. Saturday's race at "The Park" is part of the Ohio Region and mufflers are required for all teams.

Can the home team even up the score? You won’t want to miss this rematch.

Joining the powerful 410 Sprints will be their cousins, the TI22 Performance Outlaw Sprint Warriors. The Precise Racing Products Stock Cars and the Mini Stocks will complete the racing card.

Racing starts at 7 p.m., and front gates will open at 4.

Adults will be admitted for $23, seniors for $21, and students for just $9. Children 8 and under are always admitted free. The Family Pass will cost $48, and that will be good for two adults and up to four children of any age. Pit passes will be just $35.

For more information, check out www.mercerracewaypark.com or www.allstarsprint.com

Camargo, IL (4-29-12) - The race for April 29 at Clinton County Raceway has been rescheduled until Sunday, August 26th. This creates a 2 day race weekend beginning Saturday, August 25th, at Mercer Raceway Park and moving to Clinton County Raceway on Sunday, August 26th. For more information please visit www.allstarsprint.com or follow us on twitter at www.twitter.com/ascoc.

PORT ROYAL, PA (4-28-12) By Brian Liskai - Confidence. Simply put, it’s important in any sport, but particularly in sprint car racing. And when Greg Hodnett of Thomasville, Pa. walks through the gates at Port Royal Speedway, he exudes confidence. He led 29 of the 30 laps of the Weikert’s Livestock University of Northwestern Ohio All Star Circuit of Champions Bob Weikert Memorial Saturday to take home $10,000 plus $2,900 in lap money.

“I’m very fortunate to have a team that has always run well here. We had a little racing luck tonight…several guys didn’t transfer from their heat and that put us in the dash and we were able to capitalize and start up front in the feature.  I don’t know what it is, but this place just fits my driving style. I’ve been good here since the first time I raced here with the All Stars in 1998,” said Hodnett beside his Trone Outdoor, Eagle Steel, Macri Concrete, H&H Excavating, Apple Chevrolet, Eagle Evergreens, Brickers backed #39.

It was Hodnett’s second consecutive win of the Bob Weikert Memorial and his third win of 2012 at Port Royal. He now has 27 career victories at Port Royal. Hodnett  now has six wins in 2012. The UNOH All Star victory is Hodnett’s 15th career win with the series.

The UNOH All Star drivers fared well at the Juniata County oval, taking four of the top seven finishing positions against the Pennsylvania Posse.

Watertown, Connecticut’s David Gravel and Hodnett started on the pole and flew the UNOH All Star colors high throughout the event after leading the first lap, as did third place starter Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania’s Danny Holtgraver.

After Gravel led the first circuit of the race, Hodnett pulled a slider in the first corner to take the lead and began to pull away. Hodnett’s pace was halted before three laps could be completed however when fifth starter Stevie Smith looped his car exiting turn two and got hit hard by Blaine Heimbach. The red flag unfurled for the crash that saw Heimbach’s #12 turn over. There were no injuries, but both drivers were done for the night.

Hodnett restarted in control and flew away the final 28 non-stop laps. Holtgraver blasted into second on lap 11 after a spirited battle with Gravel, and for a short time, was able to close on Hodnett as he worked lapped traffic. But, Hodnett’s experience at the oval was just too much, as he was able to extend his lead over the last half of the event, taking the checkered with nearly a half track advantage. Holtgraver, competing at Port Royal for the first time in his career, would finish second followed by Gravel. The top three finishers would receive a jacket from the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame and Museum.

Fourth went to Sam Hafertepe Jr. with All Star regular Paul McMahan finishing fifth. All Star East Region point leader Daryn Pittman would come home sixth with three time series champion and current national points leader Dale Blaney seventh followed by Aaron Ott, Mark Smith and Fred Rahmer. 

“I caught him (Hodnett) once in traffic, but once he got clear he was gone. I’m happy as hell to hold on to second having never seen this place before. It’s a fun track…very fast. I can’t wait to come back here,” said Holtgraver beside his Kargo Quality Cars, Alternative Power Source, Mel Bagley Auto Service, BKW Transport backed machine.

Gravel too expressed how impressed he was with Hodnett’s performance.

“I don’t know what they did between the dash and feature…we beat him pretty good in the dash. What ever it was, he was gone. We will take third and continue to work hard. I know we have some wins coming our way,” said Gravel beside his Musco Fuel, P&M Transportation, JRC Transportation, Model Craft backed #89G.

Heat races for the 38-car field worth $100 each in honor of late journalist Jerry Reigle as sponsored by hoseheads.com went to Tim Shaffer, Chad Layton, Brian Montieth and Doug Esh.

Jac Haudenschild set fast time over the stellar field with a fast lap of 15.693 seconds, just off of the track record of 15.652. Haudenschild pocketed $200 for his efforts.

Gravel won the dash to earn the pole for the feature and set a new six-lap track record with a time of 1:40.595.

Rahmer set a new 12-lap track record by scoring the B Main with a time of 3:30.028.

Mike Erdley, who suffered motor ills in warm-ups and scratched for the night, and Nate Snyder each received $100 as the highest drivers in Port Royal points who failed to qualify for the event. The awards were sponsored by Crankwerkz of Newville and Guisewite Moving Services of Paxtonville.

Port Royal Speedway thanks the following sponsors of the 2012 Bob Weikert Memorial: Weikerts Livestock, Fairfield PA; Virginia Cattle Compay, Moorefield WV; Hickory Bridge Farms, Orrtanna PA; Folkens Brothers Hauling, Lester IA; Roadcap Livestock, Quicksburg VA; Highland Farms, Gettysburg PA; Scott's Body Shop, Gettysburg PA; South Branch Livestock Exchange, Moorefield WV; Craig Livestock Market, Shippensburg PA; Nicholas Packing, Loganton PA; Joel Stein Show horses, Fairfield PA; Weiss Transport, Adrian MN; Upper Marsh Creek, Orrtanna PA; Miller & Associates Real Estate LLC, Gettysburg PA; Virginia Livestock Inc, Front Royal VA; Greencastle Livestock Market, Greencastle PA; Stan's Beverage, Carlisle PA; Antelope Springs Ranch, Blackwell TX; Steven K Bierly Trucking, Mill Hall PA; Mike Vis, Valley Springs, SD; Seth Snyder, Gettysburg PA; Omaha Commodities, Omaha NE; JB Cattle LLC, Biglerville PA; Hy Plains Feedyard, Montezuma KS; Heritage Cattle Company, Garden City KS; JAB Livestock Hauling LLC, Jersey Shore PA; JW Trueth Inc., Baltimore, MD; M&R Livestock Hauling, Gettysburg, PA; Stone Ridge Manor, Gettysburg PA; Flying W Express Inc., Fairfield PA; Todd Grim, East Berlin PA; Holtapp Trucking, Pomeroy IA; S & B Livestock, Herndon PA; Puckett and Associates, Nathalie VA; Crankwerkz, Newville PA; hoseheads.com, Drums PA; Guisewite Moving Services, Paxtonville PA; National Sprint Car Hall of Fame, Knoxville IA.
 

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