Planck wins torrid battle in Fulton Speedway opener
FULTON, NY (May 1, 1999) - The first event at Fulton Speedway under the DIRT Motorsports banner promised to be exciting and the DIRT 358 Modified feature did not disappoint as Dale Planck held off all comers to score the win Saturday night. Timmy Sears dominated to win the DIRT Sportsman feature, John Pietrowicz scored the win in the DIRT Pro Stocks, and Frank Hood made his return to racing a happy one as he took the checkers in the Pure Stock feature.
Pat O'Brien drew the pole position for the 40-lap DIRT Modified feature event and took the lead at the drop of the green. Tommy Sears and J.J. Michaels battled for second spot while Planck, Alan Johnson, and Todd Burley were moving up from mid-pack to battle for position. Jimmy Phelps and Roger Phelps waged a war for the fourth spot until Roger dropped out on a caution. Mitch Gibbs also pitted, and would be in and out of the pits all night long.
Sears tangled with Alan Johnson just before the halfway point and spun in front of the field, sustaining some damage. Sears was able to continue, and when the green flew again, Burley slipped past O'Brien to take the lead. Planck moved by O'Brien a few laps later and waged a great fight for the lead with Burley. Alan Johnson moved up to the third position and set his sights on Burley as the laps began to wind down.
With a few laps to go, lapped traffic became the story, as Planck had to carefully thread his way through while holding off Burley and Johnson. At the checkers, Planck carried a two car length margin across the line for the win. Burley, splitting a lapped car with Johnson, held the second spot by a foot as the two crossed the line. Michaels held on for fourth with O'Brien fading to fifth at the checkers. Modified heats were won by Michaels, Ty Hunt, and Gibbs, with the Modified consi won by Tim Burnett.
The 20-lap Sportsman feature event saw Timmy Sears jump into the lead at the start and build up an advantage over the field as Ron Davis battled with Ron Richardson and Greg Carner behind him. Defending track champion Tony Buffa was also on the move, coming through the field and into the top ten by the halfway point.
In the closing laps, Sears continued to hold the lead while Richardson made his way into the second spot. A couple of late race restarts kept things close, but Sears held the lead right to the flag over Richardson. Davis and Carner battled to the line, with Davis holding on to third spot. Willy Decker came across the line in fifth. Sportsman heat wins went to Sears, Greg Doust, and Davis.
The 15-lap Pro Stock feature event was led start to finish by John Pietrowicz, but it was by no means an easy victory. Defending track champ Ricky Breed stayed step for step with Pietrowicz for several laps, and was soon joined in battle by Mike Watkins and John Cooper. Cooper's night unfortunately ended with a flat left rear tire.
Watkins and Breed began to battle for the second spot as Pietrowicz pulled away while Rich Murtaugh worked his way into the lead battle. At the checkers, Pietrowicz brought his car home for the win followed by Watkins, Breed, Murtaugh, and Bill Scirabba. Pro Stock heats were won by Pietrowicz and Breed.
The 15-lap Pure Stock feature was a wild affair, with Darren Kelso and Dave Mannise battling for the lead in the early going with Frank Hood. Mannise and Kelso were involved in a tangle, which moved Paul Mercier past Hood and into the lead, with Lou Levea in the hunt as well.
A red flag flew on lap 7 as Jeff Pastorella got caught in a tangle and flipped wildly on the backstretch. Pastorella was OK, but his car was heavily damaged. On the restart Hood slipped into the lead as Levea spun down into the infield. Hood held off some more challenges from Mercier to take down the win. Dave Mannise made a charge through the field with Kelso in tow, and they finished in third and fourth, with Kevin Raymond rounding out the top five.
With Alan Johnson not winning the 358 Modified feature, the Z'lektra Sport Back to Back Blast bonus was not claimed, and will goup to $600 for a driver who can win back to back races at Brewerton and Fulton in the Modifieds this coming weekend.
RESULTS
DIRT 358 MODIFIED FEATURE - DALE PLANCK, Todd Burley, Alan Johnson, JJ Michaels, Pat O'Brien, Tom Kinsella, Ty Hunt, Jim Phelps, Jim Rothwell, Jason Barney, Dave House, Gus Schmidt, Tom Sears, Jeff Rudalavage, Ryan Baye, John Ventura, Jeremy Baye, Jay Hopkins, Pete Taylor, Steve Way, John Barker, Mitch Gibbs, Dave Reilly, Roger Phelps, Tim Burnett.
DIRT SPORTSMAN FEATURE - TIM SEARS, Ron Richardson, Ron Davis, Greg Carner, Willy Decker, Greg Doust, Jamie Christian, Tony Buffa, John Cunningham, Bill Shantel Sr, Howie Albrecht, Tim Johnson, Paul Benz, Mike LaVarnway, Jeremy Pitcher, Dave Bargabus, Walt McCardell, Cliff West, Mark Yorker, JJ Courcy, Jim LaRock, Russ Hefti, Steve Nasholts.
DIRT PRO STOCK FEATURE - JOHN PIETROWICZ, Mike Watkins, Rick Breed, Rich Murtaugh, Bill Scirabba, Randy Skiff, Ron Root, Bill Shantel Jr., Paul Stoneburg, John Cooper, Leroy Fabin, JB Dockstader, Chuck Thomas, Tom Cook.
PURE STOCK FEATURE - FRANK HOOD, Paul Mercier, Dave Mannise, Darren Kelso, Kevin Raymond, Bill Trexler Sr., Lou Levea, Herm Staats, Tim Hettis, Dan Butterfield, Brian Skiff, Joe Bozaske, Ken Wentworth, Joe Buske, Dan Hatch, Jeff Pastorella, Ricky DeGroff, Charlie Lacey.