LAST LAP DRAMA! DREVICKI, HIRTHLER, & ALLEN HEADLINE BRIDGEPORT THRILLERS.
Four-time USAC East Coast champion Steven Drevicki reminded everyone exactly why he owns four titles, racing to his first USAC East Coast victory of the season after a hard-fought battle that came down to a dramatic green-white-checkered finish.
Current Demers Heating & Cooling Sportsman point leader Jesse Hirthler continued his impressive season, racing to his second victory of the year, while Chris Bergstrom went flag-to-flag to capture the Sportsman second feature event.
Past Four Cylinder champion Lee Allen stayed red-hot, charging to his third victory of the season and second consecutive win, while Jim Hawkes and Nick Marco were victorious in Vintage Modified action.
Jonathan Swanson and Drevicki brought the full field of wingless sprint cars to the green, and Drevicki immediately jumped to the point, leading the opening circuit.
Behind him, Swanson, Kenny Miller III, Joe Kata and Christian Bruno filled out the top five as Drevicki began stretching his advantage.
Miller was on the move, taking second from Swanson on lap seven. Kata and Bruno followed their way past Swanson by lap 12, and one lap later Swanson’s night came to an end as he pulled from the event, moving Danner into the top five.
After the halfway point, Danner began his charge toward the front.
Danner moved Bruno back to fifth on lap 15 before taking fourth from Kata on lap 18. Out front, Drevicki and Miller had built a sizeable advantage, but Miller began reeling in the leader as Drevicki worked his way through slower traffic, and Danner was coming with him.
With the laps winding down, the battle for the win was tightening quickly. The race’s only caution flew on lap 23 when Joe Crilly’s car erupted in flames entering turns one and two. Once Crilly was attended to and the track cleared, it set the stage for a green-white-checkered dash to the finish.
Drevicki nailed the restart. Miller spun the tires, allowing Drevicki to pull away while Danner immediately attacked for second. Drevicki took the white flag out front as Danner closed on Miller.
One lap. Everything on the line. Drevicki powered off the final corner and raced under the checkered flag to secure his first USAC East Coast victory of the season. Behind him, Danner and Miller came to the stripe together in a thrilling drag race for second, with Danner grabbing the runner-up position and Miller settling for third.
Christian Bruno finished fourth with Joe Kata fifth. Christopher Allen Jr., Ed Aikin, Ronald Helmick, Bruce Buckwalter Jr. and Blaine Emery completed the top ten.
The Demers Heating & Cooling Sportsman feature provided plenty of action of its own.
Tom Carpenter and Aiden Spencer led the field to green, with Carpenter leading the opening lap before Spencer took command on lap two. Trouble quickly struck, however, eliminating both front-row starters from contention at the front of the field.
Brad Roberts inherited the lead for the lap-two restart with P.J. Bozowski second, followed by Ryan Simmons, Jesse Hirthler and Billy Chester.
When Roberts dropped off the pace, Bozowski took command. Hirthler (started 14th) quickly went to work. The current Sportsman point leader chased down Bozowski and powered into the lead on a lap-seven restart.
But Bozowski wasn’t finished. He battled his way back to the front to lead lap 18, only to have Hirthler answer immediately. One lap later, Hirthler reclaimed the top spot and never gave it back. Hirthler raced to the checkered flag for his second victory of the season, further strengthening his championship campaign.
Bozowski finished second, followed by Matt Ellery (started 11th), Ethan Bill (started 10th) and Jim Wyers in the top five. Ryan Simmons, Brayden Morrison, Johnny Bangs, Kris Lilick and Matt Peck completed the top ten.
The Four Cylinder A-Main produced another late-race thriller. John Parker grabbed the early advantage over Dale Mull and appeared to have the field under control, leading through lap 13 when the final caution changed everything.
The field lined up single-file for the restart, but Lee Allen had other plans. By the time the field took the white flag, Allen had charged his way to the front.
The former Four Cylinder champion finished the job on the final circuit, racing to his third victory of the season and second win in a row. Dale Mull grabbed second from Parker on the final lap, with Parker finishing third. Patrick McKnight crossed the line fourth with Logan Mull completing the top five.
There was no catching Chris Bergstrom in the 15-lap second Sportsman feature event.
Bergstrom grabbed the lead and never surrendered it, leading all 15 circuits on his way to the victory.
Walter MacIntyre finished second, followed by Tim Borror, John Norcia and Sara Lynn to complete the top five.
The Vintage Modified’s were also on hand for competition, with Jim Hawkes and Nick Marco picking up the victories.
It was another action-packed night of racing highlighted by a four-time champion returning to Victory Lane, a Sportsman point leader adding another win to his championship campaign, and a former Four Cylinder champion continuing a red-hot summer with back-to-back victories.
RACE RESULTS
USAC EAST COAST WINGLESS SPRINT CAR A-MAIN (25 LAPS)
1. Steven Drevicki, 2. Briggs Danner, 3. Kenny Miller, III, 4. Christian Bruno, 5. Joe Kata, 6. Chris Allen, Jr., 7. Ed Aikin, 8. Ronald Helmick, 9. Bruce Buckwalter, Jr., 10. Blaine Emery, 11. J.R. Fulper, 12. Rick Lafferty, 13. Stan Ploski, III, 14. Steve Downs,
15. Joey Crilly, 16. Jacob Stitzel, 17. Olivia Thayer, 18. David Swanson, 19. Jonathan Swanson, 20. Matthew Swift, DNQ – Jared Kreider, Shane Braxton, Jason Cherry, Greg Shepsis, Gary Huston, Heidi Hedin, Dirk Rimrott, Andrew Hunt
DEMERS HEATING & COOLING SPORTSMAN A-MAIN (25 LAPS)
1. Jesse Hirthler, 2. P.J. Bozowski, 3. Matt Ellery, 4. Ethan Bill, 5. Jimmy Wyers, 6. Ryan Simmons, 7. Brayden Morrison, 8. Johnny Bangs, 9. Kris Lilick, 10. Matt Peck, 11. Charley Cossaboone, 12. Billy Chester, 13. Mike Hughes, Jr., 14. Randy Rommell, 15. Lexi Wilson, 16. Pete Serra, 17. Drew Ziegler, 18. Dave Damiano, 19. John Scarpati, 20. Aiden Spencer, 21. Brad Roberts, 22. Steve Kemery, 23. Tom Carpenter, 24. Wayne Weaver, 25. Christopher Buffalino
DEMERS HEATING & COOLING SPORTSMAN 2nd FEATURE (15 LAPS)
1. Chris Bergstrom, 2. Walter MacIntyre, 3. Tim Borror, 4. John Norcia, 5. Sarah Lynn, 6. Matt Blakeslee, 7. JD Darling, 8. Brian Rogers, DNS – Corey Andersen, 10. Melissa Scarpati, 11. Ethan Young, 12. Dylan Morris, 13. Tyler Lilick
FOUR CYLINDER A-MAIN (15 LAPS)
1. Lee Allen, 2. Dale Mull, 3. Jon Parker, 4. Patrick McNight, 5. Logan Mull, 6. Joe Garey, Sr., 7. Joe Garey, Jr., 8. Robbie Steinmetz, 9. Jimmy Avery
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