Erick Rudolph Grabs Genesee Glory in the Gladiator
Rich Vleck, BATAVIA, NY, (July 25, 2019)- The last time Erick Rudolph ran at Genesee Speedway was in 2008 in a micro sprint. Rudolph won that night and even though the car and his career are extremely different in 2019, his end result was the same.
Rudolph, of Ransomville, brought the “Wow Factor” to the fans at Genesee Speedway in “The Gladiator” out dueling Hall of Famer Alan Johnson to win the 40-lap event. Rudolph, who was given the 8th starting spot by Ray Bliss in a wacky redraw format, fought hard to get up to the front after hounding “AJ Slideways” for a half-dozen laps before finally putting his potent No. 25 in front of a stout field for good.
“Early in the race we just weren’t very good,” admitted Rudolph after the only modified feature at Genesee Speedway in 2019. “I just kept searching around and finally the car started to come in.
Rudolph had gotten up to the third spot by lap 16 but then appeared to be stuck in that position behind leader Ryan Susice and Johnson. On lap 26, however, Susice, the defending Gladiator Champion who appeared to be destined to repeat, came to a stop on the top of turn four with an apparent mechanical issue, setting up a wild duel to the finish.
From the moment Johnny Veach’s Green Flag reappeared on the lap 27 restart, Rudolph hounded Johnson’s No. 14J. The veteran was up to the challenge though, working hard to score a long-awaited win this season. With seven laps, Rudolph finally got the momentum off of turn four he needed to drive underneath Johnson and duck underneath him in the first set of corners.
“Alan is a legend,” declared Rudolph after the race. “He did a good job staying in front and made me really work for it.”
Once taking the lead Rudolph checked out to cruise to the win. Johnson would settle for second, ahead of Canadian Tyler Willard who scored an impressive third on the night. Billy VanPelt was fourth, which was a positive after nearly spinning out on the opening lap. Donnie Lawson was the hard-charger on the night driving up from 12th to round out the top five.
Early in the night, the BEI Lightning Sportsman completed the “Tim Downs 50”, a race that was halted by rain on lap 17 back on July 4th. A strong field of 21 cars returned for the finish and most of them made it to the end with the race running caution-free but certainly not excitement-free.
Kyle Inman loves to win any feature at the Genesee Speedway, but when he can do it by chasing down the leader late in the race it gets him turned up even more. Inman, of Darien, chased down leaders Brett Senek and Brad Rouse with 10 laps remaining and drove around the outside of them to take the lead and rise away to the $1,200 top prize in the “Tim Downs 50”.
Inman restarted the race on lap 18 in third and held that spot until the leaders caught the back of the field. Brad Rouse started to apply pressure on Senek for the lead but as they encountered a lapped car, Inman saw his opportunity on lap 40 to pull even with Rouse and after two laps of side-by-side racing with the No. 18R set his sights on the leader. Two laps later, the No. 20k was in the lead and running away to the win.
“Everybody we race with is awesome,” stated the 3-time Genesee Track Champion in Victory Lane. “We followed them around for a little bit and then our car came in on the top as we got into lapped traffic and was able to get on by.”
As Inman drove away to his fourth win at Genesee in 2019 and second in a row, Senek had to fight hard to hold off rouse for second and was able to do so at the line. James Friesen was able to close on the lead trio in the closing laps but would settle for fourth while Chad Chevalier rounded out the top five.
The second sportsman feature of the night was even crazier than the first. The “Genesee County Clash” for the GRIT Sportsman Series saw Ray Bliss jump out in front of the field until lap 12 when Kyle Inman moved by him on a restart. On the lap 21 restart though, Bliss drove back around the Genesee point leader with a power move. The two would duke it out again on lap 22 when they stayed even heading in to turns three and four. Bliss went up the track searching for bite to stay in front but his 27z spun around, piling up five cars in the process. The ensuing restart saw James Friesen look to get by Inman. After Inman blocked the advancement of the No. 72 going down the backstretch Friesen took issue with the maneuver and spun around the No. 20k, putting both to the back. This would hand over the lead to Brad Rouse who made quick work of the field on the final restart and walked away to his second GRIT Series win of the year.
“I just sat back and watched as everyone took themselves out. I had a great seat for it” joked Rouse in Victory Lane when asked about how he won the 30-lap event. “We had a good car and it just kept getting better late in the run so once I got out in front I knew we would be good.”
The race was filled with wild moments, many including drivers having large swings in emotions. Brett Senek, who had to come through the consi just to make the feature, was able to drive up to finish in second. Ricky Newton ran a steady race to finish in third. AJ Custodi and Robbie Johnston each battled back from a crash on lap 21 to round out the top five.
The Mini Stocks also ran a special feature with the “Gene Dewitt Memorial” running 16 laps in honor of the long-time champion car owner. Defending Track Champion Dante Mancuso drove out in front and appeared to capture his first win in his hometown of the year but was unable to pass post-race technical inspection, handing the trophy over to Brad Whiteside. For Whiteside, of Caledonia, it was his second win in a row after finally breaking through on Saturday Night. Whiteside inherited second place when Cole Susice was forced to pit with a flat right front tire while running in second. Deanna Jackson would inherit second place after the disqualification, along with Eric Weis’ car losing power off the final corner. Weis would place in third. Ashley Blech drove up from the tail of the field to finish in fourth, as well as Rich Conte who rounded out the top five after starting deep in the pack.
Genesee goes green in just two short days with all five regular divisions in competition, including the late models running double features plus the 600 Micro Sprints in action. For more information, visit www.Genesee-Speedway.com.
Genesee Speedway Results: 7/25/2019-
Wraptile Graphics and Professional Drainage Systems Night
“The Gladiator” Big Block/Small Block Modified Feature (40 Laps)- ERICK RUDOLPH, Alan Johnson, Tyler Willard, Billy VanPelt, Donnie Lawson, Ray Bliss, Dave Conant, Tom Neale, Ron Cartwright Jr., Phil Vigneri III, Chris Ostrowsky, John Venuto, Brandon Machaud, Ryan Susice, James Sweeting, Dan Machaud (DNS).
Lap Leaders- Bliss 1-2, Susice 3-25, Johnson 26-33, Rudolph 34-40.
Lias Tire Heat Winners- Rudolph, Bliss.
Quick Time- Rudolph 16.583 Seconds
MHL Performance Halfway Award- Susice
Gavenda Engines Hard Charger- Lawson (+7)
Precision Optical Transceivers Hard Luck Award- Susice
Professional Drainage Systems 4th Place Award- VanPelt
“Tim Downs 50” BEI Lightning Series Sportsman Feature (Completed from July 4th) (50 Laps)- KYLE INMAN, Brett Senek, Brad Rouse, James Friesen, Chad Chevalier, Rich Vinson, Adam Leslie, Ricky Newton, James Henry, Zack Sam, Anthony Muscato, Jim Harbison, Cody Wolfe, Zach George, Dalton Martin, Darrell Borkenhagen, Garrison Krentz, Cameron Tuttle, Ray Bliss, AJ Custodi, Dave Conant, Jonathan Reid, Derrick Borkenghagen, Dan Ferguson.
Lap Leaders- Senek 1-42, Inman 43-50.
GRIT Sportsman “Genesee County Clash” Feature (30 Laps)- BRAD ROUSE, Brett Senek, Ricky Newton, AJ Custodi, Robbie Johnston, Sarah Johnson, Kyle Inman, James Friesen, Adam Leslie, Anthony Muscato, Darrell Borkenhagen, Garrison Krentz, Dave Conant, Ray Bliss, James Henry, Jim Harbison, Chad Chevalier, Cody Wolfe, Dalton Martin, Tony Pangrazio, Zach George, Rich Vinson, Zack Sam, Austin Susice.
Did Not Qualify- Jim Zimmerman, Jordan Moden, Byron Dewitt, Larry Vick, Chuck Mogavero, Tiffany Rumsey, Cameron Tuttle.
Lap Leader- Bliss 1-6, Inman 7-11, Bliss 12-21, Inman 22, Rouse 23-30.
Heat Winners- Newton, Harbison, Friesen, Inman.
Consolation Winner- Senek.
“Gene Dewitt Memorial” Pellegrino Auto Sales Mini Stock Feature (16 Laps)- BRAD WHITESIDE, Deanna Jackson, Eric Weis, Ashley Blech, Rich Conte, Steven Krawczyk, Cole Susice, Gary Hopkins, Bailey Logsdon, James Gayton, Olivia Coniber, Thomas Knapp, Eric Brumsted, Cody Wise, Larry Wise, Dante Mancuso (DQ).
Lap Leaders- Krawczyk 1, Mancuso 2-16.
Heat Winners- Susice, Weis.