RGeeProductions
06-01-2016, 08:51 PM
NASCAR crew members Mike Bugarewicz, Brent Wentz and Anthony Hirschman III to be honored at Mahoning Valley Speedway Fan Appreciation Night this Saturday
As part of Baltimore Life Insurance Fan Appreciation Night this coming Saturday, June 4 at Lehighton’s Mahoning Valley Speedway, not only will fans be toasted as every driver will take part in a huge on track meet and greet during intermission, but some special visiting guests will also be honored.
With the NASCAR Sprint Cup and XFINITY Series’ running that same weekend at nearby Pocono Raceway, as it turns out there are three individuals with team affiliations who have strong ties to Mahoning Valley Speedway and track management felt this would be a perfect opportunity to honor them for reaching the highest level in motorsports after humble beginnings at the paved ¼-mile oval.
Mike “Buga” Bugarewicz, a Lehighton native and now the crew chief for three-time Sprint Cup champion Tony Stewart and the No. 14 Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats team for Stewart-Haas Racing. Brent Wentz, also from Lehighton, is the car chief on the Penske Racing No. 22 Ford Mustang in the NASCAR XFINITY Series. And, Northampton’s Anthony “Tony” Hirschman III, who serves as spotter for reigning Sprint Cup Series champion Kyle Busch and the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 18 M & M’s 75th Anniversary Toyota Camry.
Prior to studying mechanical engineering and performed research for the U.S. Navy through Applied Research Laboratories in graduate school at Penn State University and then heading to North Carolina to embark on a NASCAR career, Bugarewicz was a former racer at Mahoning Valley Speedway and also a crew member for track champion Earl Paules.
Wentz was on the 2014 XFINITY championship team with Chase Elliot in his rookie year at JR Motorsports and again in 2015 for Team Penske with four different drivers, Joey Logano, Brad Keselowski, Ryan Blaney and Alex Tagliani. Logano is slated to drive the Shell Pennzoil car this Saturday at Pocono.
Wentz is not only a past Mahoning racer but has intentions to run a Modified that same night for the Wentz Auto Body team.
Hirschman first started spotting on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour for his champion dad, Tony Hirschman. That landed him a chance to spot for several Indy Car teams and eventually onto NASCAR. He grew up attending races at Mahoning, a track that his dad has won at and his younger brother Matt, still wins at, including as recently as May 7.
“It is such an honor to see how these guys have reached the highest pinnacle in NASCAR racing after starting their path in racing with us at Mahoning Valley Speedway,” said track race director Tim Santee.
“We think this is a great way to show our appreciation to them. We’re proud of them and they haven’t forgotten their roots with us either. Our Fan Appreciation Night is a perfect way for us to honor them for their achievements.”
All three will be presented with special plaques during intermission.
Saturday’s grandstand admission is just $8 per person. The race line-up will included Modifieds, Late Models, Street Stocks, Dirt Mods, Pro 4s, Hobby Stocks and the visiting Micro Stocks.
Start time is 5:00 pm with grandstands opening at 3:00 pm. Warmups are from 3:30 - 4:30.
Mahoning Valley Speedway is located on Pa. route 443 just a few miles west of Lehighton. For additional information please log onto www.mahoningvalley-speedway.com or on Facebook at Mahoning Valley Speedway.
Dino Oberto
As part of Baltimore Life Insurance Fan Appreciation Night this coming Saturday, June 4 at Lehighton’s Mahoning Valley Speedway, not only will fans be toasted as every driver will take part in a huge on track meet and greet during intermission, but some special visiting guests will also be honored.
With the NASCAR Sprint Cup and XFINITY Series’ running that same weekend at nearby Pocono Raceway, as it turns out there are three individuals with team affiliations who have strong ties to Mahoning Valley Speedway and track management felt this would be a perfect opportunity to honor them for reaching the highest level in motorsports after humble beginnings at the paved ¼-mile oval.
Mike “Buga” Bugarewicz, a Lehighton native and now the crew chief for three-time Sprint Cup champion Tony Stewart and the No. 14 Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats team for Stewart-Haas Racing. Brent Wentz, also from Lehighton, is the car chief on the Penske Racing No. 22 Ford Mustang in the NASCAR XFINITY Series. And, Northampton’s Anthony “Tony” Hirschman III, who serves as spotter for reigning Sprint Cup Series champion Kyle Busch and the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 18 M & M’s 75th Anniversary Toyota Camry.
Prior to studying mechanical engineering and performed research for the U.S. Navy through Applied Research Laboratories in graduate school at Penn State University and then heading to North Carolina to embark on a NASCAR career, Bugarewicz was a former racer at Mahoning Valley Speedway and also a crew member for track champion Earl Paules.
Wentz was on the 2014 XFINITY championship team with Chase Elliot in his rookie year at JR Motorsports and again in 2015 for Team Penske with four different drivers, Joey Logano, Brad Keselowski, Ryan Blaney and Alex Tagliani. Logano is slated to drive the Shell Pennzoil car this Saturday at Pocono.
Wentz is not only a past Mahoning racer but has intentions to run a Modified that same night for the Wentz Auto Body team.
Hirschman first started spotting on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour for his champion dad, Tony Hirschman. That landed him a chance to spot for several Indy Car teams and eventually onto NASCAR. He grew up attending races at Mahoning, a track that his dad has won at and his younger brother Matt, still wins at, including as recently as May 7.
“It is such an honor to see how these guys have reached the highest pinnacle in NASCAR racing after starting their path in racing with us at Mahoning Valley Speedway,” said track race director Tim Santee.
“We think this is a great way to show our appreciation to them. We’re proud of them and they haven’t forgotten their roots with us either. Our Fan Appreciation Night is a perfect way for us to honor them for their achievements.”
All three will be presented with special plaques during intermission.
Saturday’s grandstand admission is just $8 per person. The race line-up will included Modifieds, Late Models, Street Stocks, Dirt Mods, Pro 4s, Hobby Stocks and the visiting Micro Stocks.
Start time is 5:00 pm with grandstands opening at 3:00 pm. Warmups are from 3:30 - 4:30.
Mahoning Valley Speedway is located on Pa. route 443 just a few miles west of Lehighton. For additional information please log onto www.mahoningvalley-speedway.com or on Facebook at Mahoning Valley Speedway.
Dino Oberto