RGeeProductions
09-23-2013, 02:18 PM
The 25th Annual US Open, Western New York ’s racing finale, saw eight different divisions of competitors, each vying to get the win and their name on the coveted trophy. With Saturday’s events rained out, all qualifying and feature events will condensed into a marathon day of racing at the historic speedway.
In the 4 Cylinder division, Peter Koschuk started on the pole alongside Ken Hejna, who were followed by Jayme Thompson. Koschuk grabbed the lead on the start and stayed there through multiple early race cautions. By halfway Koschuk had Matt Druar, who had started fifth, on his bumper and challenging for the lead. As the laps wound down in the 30 lap feature, Koschuk faced increasing pressure from Druar, who in turn had Rich Bartel, Hejna, and Thompson on his bumper. Koschuk was able to hold on though and capture his first 4 Cylinder US Open feature win.
The After Hours Imaging TQ Midgets ran a 30 lap memorial race in honor of Harry Macy, a longtime TQ driver, car owner, and supporter who passed away this past year. Timex Morgan lead the field to the green flag and soon had company up front with Jon Reid and Andy Jankowiak. A few double file restarts allowed Jankowiak to eventually restart on the outside of Morgan and he took the lead on lap 10. Soon Jankowiak had built an impressive lead over Morgan, and Shawn Nye. However, with just two laps to go, the Jankowiak car broke with mechanical problems, handing the lead back over to Morgan who went on to capture the checkered flag.
Jeremy Haudricourt led all 15 laps of the Legend feature to secure another US Open feature win in the division. He fended off charges by Jake Lutz throughout the race, especially in the latter stages as the leaders encountered lap traffic.
The Street Stock division pitted 2013 Street Stock Champion TJ Cochrane on the front row against Dave Vona. They were followed by Matt Druar and Terry Weldy. At the green, Cochrane jumped into the lead and never looked back. The race stayed clean and green for the entire 35 laps and by the end Cochrane had amassed almost a half track advantage over second place Druar.
The touring Big 10 Super Stock Series started 23 cars, with Jason Dieter, who had started on the outside pole, grabbing the lead. Dieter’s luck up front was short lived however as he seemed to develop mechanical problems and fell fast through the field. Mike Ramos, who had started third, and Sam Fullone, who had started fourth waged a spirited battle for the lead, with Ramos prevailing by lap five. A yellow flag on lap 11 of 35 reset the field with Ramos, Joe Mancuso, Fullone, Lee Sharpsteen, and Dave Johnson – who had battled back from a first lap mishap, up front. Ramos, however, was the dominant car and began pulling away from Mancuso. Although Mancuso tried to catch up with Ramos, Ramos had the dominant car and took the feature win in the Big 10 Super Stock feature.
The New York State Super Stock race saw many repeat competitors from the Big 10 race and it was Sharpsteen, Ramos, Willie Strusz, and Terry Cheetham starting up front. Sharpsteen and Ramos battled side by side after the green flag waved and eventually Sharpsteen prevailed, leading laps 1-7. However on lap 8, Sharpsteen’s car number 8, ran out of luck as he broke and was done for the night. Ramos inherited the lead although he now had Mike Scott and Jay Mudra on his bumper. Scott challenged Ramos hard for the lead until a yellow on lap 25 of 50, which saw Scott going tail after spinning. Ramos, Mudra, Bobby Lippa Jr. now inherited first through third although Scott began a charge back up through the field. By lap 35, Scott had moved his way back up to second although Ramos had decent lead over him. Scott was unable to move up to challenge Ramos and Ramos went on to win his second feature event of the day.
The open wheeled Sportsman ran a slightly shortened 91 out of 100 laps as they were later on in the day’s program and the track was approaching their time curfew. At the beginning of the race, it was a pair of 65’s on the front row with George Skora III and Andy Lewis leading the rest of the 25 car field to the green flag. Skora took control of the race as the field settled in single file for the first 32 laps. A yellow on lap 32 led to Skora, Kirk Totten, Andy Jankowiak, Tony Hanbury, TJ Potrzebowski, and Jimmy Zacharias up front on the double file restart. The rest of the race was plagued by yellow fever as multiple yellow flags were displayed throughout the remaining laps. Throughout the cautions, Totten was able to grab the lead from Skora on lap 40, taking Potrzebowski and Jankowiak with him as Skora faded back. By lap 65, it was a two car battle for the lead, with Potrzebowski finally getting by Totten on lap 74 for the lead. Behind them Jankowiak followed closely in third while Hanbury and Tom Macleod ran fourth and fifth respectively. On lap 80, Totten spun in turn 4 and parked his car for the rest of the race, leaving Potrzebowski, Jankowiak, Hanbury, MacLeod, Andy Lewis, and Skora up front. With ten to go, the battle for the lead was heating up as Jankowiak was looking for anyway around Potrzebowski for the lead. However, with the next caution, with nine laps to go, the race was called due to time constraints. Potrzebowski won on the track, but following post race technical inspection, was disqualified, giving the US Open Sportsman win to Jankowiak.
The Race of Champions Modified Tour saw 22 Modifieds take the green flag with Andy Jankowiak, Austin Kochenash, Billy Putney, and Mike Leaty up front. Jankowiak took the lead and held it through a few early race cautions although he soon had company up front in the form of Bobby Holmes, who had started fifth. Holmes was all over Jankowiak for the lead, eventually claiming it on lap 17 after a double file restart. Jankowiak had headed to the pits during the yellow, leaving Holmes with Erick Rudolph, Rick Kluth, Matt Hirschman, and Chuck Hossfeld immediately behind him. Holmes managed to hold onto the lead and as the laps clicked off, Hossfeld moved into second and Hirschman into third. A yellow flag on lap 47 resulted in many cars heading pit side for a new tire, mixing up the running order a bit. On the ensuing restart Holmes led Jankowiak, Rudolph, Daren Scherer, Nick Pecko, Hirschman, and Hossfeld. Hirschman was on the move, however, and was in third just a few laps later, and eventually taking over the lead on lap 59. A yellow flag on lap 88 saw yet another round of pit stops and a number of cars, including Holmes, ducked pitside. The single file restart saw Hirschman up front, followed by Rudolph, Hossfeld, Scherer, and Leaty. While Hossfeld battled Rudolph for second, Hirschman was able to build some breathing room up front. Soon the field began to spread out and Hirschman extended his lead up front. As the checkered flag flew, Hirschman crossed the finish line first and took home another US Open feature win.
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In the 4 Cylinder division, Peter Koschuk started on the pole alongside Ken Hejna, who were followed by Jayme Thompson. Koschuk grabbed the lead on the start and stayed there through multiple early race cautions. By halfway Koschuk had Matt Druar, who had started fifth, on his bumper and challenging for the lead. As the laps wound down in the 30 lap feature, Koschuk faced increasing pressure from Druar, who in turn had Rich Bartel, Hejna, and Thompson on his bumper. Koschuk was able to hold on though and capture his first 4 Cylinder US Open feature win.
The After Hours Imaging TQ Midgets ran a 30 lap memorial race in honor of Harry Macy, a longtime TQ driver, car owner, and supporter who passed away this past year. Timex Morgan lead the field to the green flag and soon had company up front with Jon Reid and Andy Jankowiak. A few double file restarts allowed Jankowiak to eventually restart on the outside of Morgan and he took the lead on lap 10. Soon Jankowiak had built an impressive lead over Morgan, and Shawn Nye. However, with just two laps to go, the Jankowiak car broke with mechanical problems, handing the lead back over to Morgan who went on to capture the checkered flag.
Jeremy Haudricourt led all 15 laps of the Legend feature to secure another US Open feature win in the division. He fended off charges by Jake Lutz throughout the race, especially in the latter stages as the leaders encountered lap traffic.
The Street Stock division pitted 2013 Street Stock Champion TJ Cochrane on the front row against Dave Vona. They were followed by Matt Druar and Terry Weldy. At the green, Cochrane jumped into the lead and never looked back. The race stayed clean and green for the entire 35 laps and by the end Cochrane had amassed almost a half track advantage over second place Druar.
The touring Big 10 Super Stock Series started 23 cars, with Jason Dieter, who had started on the outside pole, grabbing the lead. Dieter’s luck up front was short lived however as he seemed to develop mechanical problems and fell fast through the field. Mike Ramos, who had started third, and Sam Fullone, who had started fourth waged a spirited battle for the lead, with Ramos prevailing by lap five. A yellow flag on lap 11 of 35 reset the field with Ramos, Joe Mancuso, Fullone, Lee Sharpsteen, and Dave Johnson – who had battled back from a first lap mishap, up front. Ramos, however, was the dominant car and began pulling away from Mancuso. Although Mancuso tried to catch up with Ramos, Ramos had the dominant car and took the feature win in the Big 10 Super Stock feature.
The New York State Super Stock race saw many repeat competitors from the Big 10 race and it was Sharpsteen, Ramos, Willie Strusz, and Terry Cheetham starting up front. Sharpsteen and Ramos battled side by side after the green flag waved and eventually Sharpsteen prevailed, leading laps 1-7. However on lap 8, Sharpsteen’s car number 8, ran out of luck as he broke and was done for the night. Ramos inherited the lead although he now had Mike Scott and Jay Mudra on his bumper. Scott challenged Ramos hard for the lead until a yellow on lap 25 of 50, which saw Scott going tail after spinning. Ramos, Mudra, Bobby Lippa Jr. now inherited first through third although Scott began a charge back up through the field. By lap 35, Scott had moved his way back up to second although Ramos had decent lead over him. Scott was unable to move up to challenge Ramos and Ramos went on to win his second feature event of the day.
The open wheeled Sportsman ran a slightly shortened 91 out of 100 laps as they were later on in the day’s program and the track was approaching their time curfew. At the beginning of the race, it was a pair of 65’s on the front row with George Skora III and Andy Lewis leading the rest of the 25 car field to the green flag. Skora took control of the race as the field settled in single file for the first 32 laps. A yellow on lap 32 led to Skora, Kirk Totten, Andy Jankowiak, Tony Hanbury, TJ Potrzebowski, and Jimmy Zacharias up front on the double file restart. The rest of the race was plagued by yellow fever as multiple yellow flags were displayed throughout the remaining laps. Throughout the cautions, Totten was able to grab the lead from Skora on lap 40, taking Potrzebowski and Jankowiak with him as Skora faded back. By lap 65, it was a two car battle for the lead, with Potrzebowski finally getting by Totten on lap 74 for the lead. Behind them Jankowiak followed closely in third while Hanbury and Tom Macleod ran fourth and fifth respectively. On lap 80, Totten spun in turn 4 and parked his car for the rest of the race, leaving Potrzebowski, Jankowiak, Hanbury, MacLeod, Andy Lewis, and Skora up front. With ten to go, the battle for the lead was heating up as Jankowiak was looking for anyway around Potrzebowski for the lead. However, with the next caution, with nine laps to go, the race was called due to time constraints. Potrzebowski won on the track, but following post race technical inspection, was disqualified, giving the US Open Sportsman win to Jankowiak.
The Race of Champions Modified Tour saw 22 Modifieds take the green flag with Andy Jankowiak, Austin Kochenash, Billy Putney, and Mike Leaty up front. Jankowiak took the lead and held it through a few early race cautions although he soon had company up front in the form of Bobby Holmes, who had started fifth. Holmes was all over Jankowiak for the lead, eventually claiming it on lap 17 after a double file restart. Jankowiak had headed to the pits during the yellow, leaving Holmes with Erick Rudolph, Rick Kluth, Matt Hirschman, and Chuck Hossfeld immediately behind him. Holmes managed to hold onto the lead and as the laps clicked off, Hossfeld moved into second and Hirschman into third. A yellow flag on lap 47 resulted in many cars heading pit side for a new tire, mixing up the running order a bit. On the ensuing restart Holmes led Jankowiak, Rudolph, Daren Scherer, Nick Pecko, Hirschman, and Hossfeld. Hirschman was on the move, however, and was in third just a few laps later, and eventually taking over the lead on lap 59. A yellow flag on lap 88 saw yet another round of pit stops and a number of cars, including Holmes, ducked pitside. The single file restart saw Hirschman up front, followed by Rudolph, Hossfeld, Scherer, and Leaty. While Hossfeld battled Rudolph for second, Hirschman was able to build some breathing room up front. Soon the field began to spread out and Hirschman extended his lead up front. As the checkered flag flew, Hirschman crossed the finish line first and took home another US Open feature win.
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