BOTTCHER CRUISES TO FIRST MODIFIED WIN OF SEASON ON CARQUEST NIGHT

Bridgeport, NJ – Lehighton, PA’s Steve Bottcher finally got his first victory of the season Saturday night, winning the CARQUEST Night twenty-five lap Big Block Modified feature at South Jersey’s Bridgeport Speedway. Bottcher, driving the Zellers Mobil #31, dominated the race, leading twenty-one laps of the event after starting in seventh position. The Bridgeport Sportsman twenty lap main was won by Brandon Visser, who picked up his second win of the season in the WXCY #103.7. The traveling United Racing Club sprint cars made their second appearance of the season at the wide 5/8th mile oval, with Mt. Laurel NJ’s Danny Massey coming home victorious over forty-three other winged sprinters in their twenty-five lap A-Main. The street stock fifteen lap feature race, which had to postponed due to curfew, will be run this Saturday as part of the regular four division show.

2001 newcomer Jared Schultz, who makes the weekly tow to the track from Fredericksburg, PA, started on the pole and jumped out to the early lead in the feature race. Schultz, in the #66, controlled the front for the first four laps, until Bottcher used the high groove in turn four to grab the lead. For the next ten laps, Bottcher had to hold off seven-time champ Jimmy Horton, in the Olsen #901, until mechanical problems caused Horton to fall off the pace. Two-time winner and current point leader Jamie Mills took over the runner-up spot on lap sixteen, and started to try to chase down the hard charging Bottcher. Mills, steering the I.G. Burton Chevrolet #30, was able to cut into Bottcher’s lead, but was never able to close the gap enough to challenge for the lead, and the 1995 modified point champ had to settle for second place at the finish. In his victory lane interview, Bottcher spoke of some of his team’s early season woes which had kept him out of victory lane until now, ”We were good in the beginning of the year here, but we just didn’t win any races so we tried to fool around with some different setups. Tonight we went back to a setup we used five weeks ago and it worked! We’re just really happy and I’m happy for Pat (car owner Patty Zellers) and everybody and dedicate the win to Paul (the late Paul Zellers) as always.” 1999 champion Doug Hoffman and Ricky Ellliott finished third and fourth, while Horton faded to fifth at the end. Brian Truppi, Bottcher, and Schultz won the qualifying races, while Scott Kania won the consolation race.

The Bridgeport Sportsman twenty-lap feature saw Wilmington, DE’s Bill Klingmeyer charge from his third starting spot to take the lead from the outset of the race. With Klingmeyer out front, Brandon Visser, who started ninth, was on the move, pushing his WXCY #103.7 through the pack to hold down third place at the end of the first lap. Two laps later, Visser was in second and set his sights on Klingmeyer and the lead. Lap seven saw the Havre-de-Grace, MD driver get right up on Klingmeyer’s bumper, and on the next lap Visser charged by for the lead. With Visser building a comfortable lead, New Castle DE’s Steve Lindale was making moves of his own in the G & E Welding Supply #54. Lindale started the race in tenth place, and was in the runner-up spot at the halfway mark. Lindale tried to reel in Visser, and gained ground on the leader a couple of times, but Visser was too strong and went the rest of the way for his second win of the season, with Lindale getting his best finish of the year, coming home second. Ron Roberts grabbed third place in the #Z14, while point leader Richie Pratt Jr. finished fourth. Klingmeyer followed Pratt across the line for fifth, but was disqualified after failing the post race tech inspection, giving the official fifth place finish to Kevin Collins in the #126. Klingmeyer, Mark Forte, and Tom Miller won the qualifying races, with Sam Wescott taking the consolation event.

NOTES: With 44 URC sprints signed into the pits along with the Bridgeport regulars, the pit were almost overflowing with over 125 racers in attendance….Fritz Epright made his first appearance of the season, driving the Lincoln Auto Body #5. Epright, out of Whitehouse Station, NJ, started the main event in 23rd place after qualifying out of the consi, and was up in seventh place before a lap fifteen spin in turns three and four ended his night after making contact with the guardrail….For the second week in a row, a sprinter flipped out over the fence, with URC’s Jason Hagenbuch flying out over the turn three guardrail in warm-ups. Luckily, Hagenbuch walked away shaken up, but uninjured after the scary ride out over the banked turn….Coming up this week at New Jersey’s fastest dirt track will be the regular four division show of Big Block Modifieds, Bridgeport Sportsman, Bridgeport Winged Sprints, and Street Stocks, with the postponed Street Stock feature from this week starting off the nights action at 6:00pm.

BRIDGEPORT SPEEDWAY RESULTS – SATURDAY JULY 14, 2001

MODIFIEDS

HEAT 1 – Truppi, Adams, Horton, Hendrickson, Elliott, Stonebraker

HEAT 2 - Bottcher, Hoffman, Hirthler, Chester, Franz, Weaver

HEAT 3 – Schultz, Mills, Pompei, Lineman, Laubach, Kell

CONSI – Kania, Polenz, Durand, Davis, Epright, Hatt

MODIFIED FEATURE – 25 LAPS

Steve Bottcher, Jamie Mills, Doug Hoffman, Ricky Elliott, Jimmy Horton, Jimmy Chester, Wade Hendrickson, Jared Schultz, Paul Weaver, Dave Stonebraker, Scott Kania, Dave Adams, Kevin Hirthler, Ben Hatt, Mike Franz, Scott Davis, Fritz Epright, Bill Miller, Bob Lineman Sr, Rick Laubach, Stephan Durand, Bucky Kell, Brian Truppi, Tom Pompei

BRIDGEPORT SPORTSMAN

HEAT 1 – Klingmeyer, Lindale, Roberts, Barone, Burkhart, Kormann

HEAT 2 – Forte, P.Collins, Visser, Lineman Jr, Smith, Pratt

HEAT 3 – Miller, McDonnell, Harris, Ratoskey, Horton, K.Collins

CONSI – Stinson, Wescott, J.Czachorowski, D.Czachorowski, Cook, Clark, Dekutoski, Hulmes

BRIDGEPORT SPORTSMAN FEATURE – 20 LAPS

Brandon Visser, Steve Lindale, Ron Roberts, Richie Pratt, Kevin Collins, GR Smith, Don Barone, Sam Wescott, Walt Clark, Joe Czachorowski, Frank McDonnell, Dave Czachorowski, Bob Lineman Jr, Joe Dekutoski, Rob Ratoskey, Mark Forte, Billy Harris, Jay Horton, Rich Stinson, Eric Kormann, Bob Cook, Andy Burkhart, Paul Collins, Scott Hulmes, Tom Miller, Bill Klingmeyer

UNITED RACING CLUB SPRINT FEATURE – 25 LAPS

Danny Massey, Becca Anderson, Chris Coyle, Jeremy Trout, Mike Haggenbottom, Scott Pursell, Brian Seidel, Midge Miller, Bill Brian Jr., Greg Coverdale, Doug Emery, Kevin Welsh, Jon Eldreth, Matt Gerber, Dave McGough, Jason Clauss, Pete Green,

Jeff Busby, Jimmy Martin, George Suprick, Fran Hogue, Tim Hogue, Trevor Lewis, Sean Michael. DNQ- -Adam Gorden, Ian Borden, Chip Brown, Brett Romano, Neil Esposito, Ray Staats, Ashley Parlett, Deric Parker, Sam Ross, Doug Borger, Mike Kostic, Joe Zuczek, Ian Borden, Brian Brittingham, Todd Rittenhouse, Bill Case, Donnie Smith, Jason Hagenbuch, Gary Thayer, Scott Baker