Doctor’s Orders: Ultra-Competitive ‘Hot Summer Night’ Special At Penn Can Speedway For $5,240 Payday; Johnson & Andy Bachetti Tied For Short Track Super Series Fueled By VP Point Lead Entering October I-88 Speedway Short Track SuperNationals Finale; Rocky Warner (GRIT Series Sportsman) & Will Eastman (XCel 600 Modified) Also Triumph!
SUSQUEHANNA, PA – ‘The Doctor’ Danny Johnson emerged from a crowd-pleasing, back-and-forth 60-lap Short Track Super Series Fueled By VP event Tuesday night at Penn Can Speedway with a hard-fought victory.
Johnson, of Rochester, N.Y., during the mid-portions of the Pioneer Pole Buildings Inc. ‘Hot Summer Night’ presented by Sharkey’s Fuels and NEP Wireless, appeared out of contention for the checkered. However, late-race speed and circumstances led the Chris Gennarelli-owned No. 86 to Victory Lane at the Susquehanna County three-eighths-mile oval.
Johnson earned $5,240 and enters the Alpine Building Supply Short Track SuperNationals presented by Olum’s Oct. 10-11 at I-88 Speedway in Afton, N.Y., the championship event for the Short Track Super Series Fueled By VP, in a dead tie for the point lead with Andy Bachetti of Sheffield, Mass. Both drivers have accrued 350 points.
“Chris gives me a great hot rod,” smiled Johnson, who teamed up with Gennarelli this season. “It all kind of worked out for us at the end. That was some hard racing tonight!”
Postponed by rain on its originally scheduled August date and rain date, Round No. 5 of the six-race Short Track Super Series Fueled By VP attracted an all-star field of 46 big-block/small-block Modifieds and a respectable crowd on a school night.
Johnson picked the worst of 10 available numbers following the post-qualifying redraw to start outside the fifth row for the main event.
From second starting position, track regular Alan Rudalavage paced the opening five laps. Brett Tonkin, the event’s pole starter, shot into the lead at the line for lap six. Meanwhile, Ryan Watt was on the move.
Boyertown, Pa.’s Watt, driving a brand-new Ron Roberts-owned No. Z14, raced into second at lap seven and claimed the lead one circuit later.
Tonkin capitalized on a lap-13 double-file restart to return the favor on Watt, reclaiming the lead. Watt again pressed into the top spot on the 16th lap.
As Watt led, the second-place battle among Johnson, Anthony Perrego and 17th-starter Matt Sheppard, driving the Norm Hansell-owned No. 357, raged.
Waterloo, N.Y.’s Sheppard took over third at lap 37 and moved into the runner-up position on the 39th tour. Racing into slower traffic, Sheppard rolled the outside past Watt to assume command at the exit of turn two on lap 43.
Then, the race took another twist. A yellow on lap 45 set up a double-file restart. After contact, Watt was back out front with Sheppard relegated to second.
Another caution slowed the pace at lap 47. When starter Steve Kellogg unfurled the green, Sheppard slowed with a flat right-rear tire.
Johnson now moved into second behind Watt. On lap 48, using a turn-four slide job, Johnson took over a lead he would not relinquish, surviving a final double-file restart with five laps remaining.
Penn Can track champion Kevin Hartnett of Barto, Pa., arrived in second spot with three laps remaining and chased Johnson to the finish. Ironically, Johnson and Hartnett had tied in a June midweek show at Penn Can.
Watt, slowing with an apparent engine issue in the final laps, held on for third spot in a three-wide scramble for the position across the line. It was Watt by a nose over Montgomery, N.Y.’s Anthony Perrego, the race’s sixth starter who ran inside the top-five as a contender over the entire distance, and a charging Jeff Strunk of Boyertown, Pa., who started 16th in the Brad Grammes-owned No. 5J.
Finishing sixth through 10th were Erick Rudolph of Ransomville, N.Y., in a Randy Chrysler-owned car; Gary Tomkins of Clifton Springs, N.Y., driving the Tom Coar and Chris Clark No. 119T; a steady Mike Mahaney of King Ferry, N.Y., aboard the Jim Shear-fielded No. 77X; a resurgent Brian Malcolm of Lake Ariel, Pa., recovering from a lap-27 spin; and 15th-starter Shaun Walker of Masonville, N.Y.
Top passing-points earners, receiving $50 each from VP Racing Fuels, in the heat events were Tonkin, Rudalavage, Rudolph, Perrego and Mahaney.
Consolation victors were Strunk, Sheppard and Danny Creeden (Wurtsboro, N.Y.).
Trackside Products sponsored a 3-lap Last Chance Qualifier for drivers missing a transfer spot by one in the consolations. Ryan Jordan of Speedsville, N.Y., won the event to earn a feature starting berth, worth $400.
Capital District standout Rocky Warner of Gloversville, N.Y., rode the outside lane to victory in the accompanying 30-lap Dig Safely New York GRIT Series event. It was Warner’s first victory at Penn Can. Warner powered by Cory Costa on the outside with less than five laps remaining for the $1,000 payday.
Costa, who had taken the top spot from pole starter Pat Jordan earlier in the event, settled for second, followed by Paul Rooney, Connor Cleveland and Nick Guererri.
Will Eastman of Oneonta, N.Y., scored a dominant triumph in the 20-lap XCel 600 Modified series event.
Short Track Super Series Fueled By VP Modified Feature Finish (60 laps): DANNY JOHNSON ($5,240), Kevin Hartnett, Ryan Watt, Anthony Perrego, Jeff Strunk, Erick Rudolph, Gary Tomkins, Mike Mahaney, Brian Malcolm, Shaun Walker, Bob Trapper, Andy Bachetti, Matt Jester, Matt Sheppard, Danny Creeden, Mike Colsten, Brett Tonkin, Bobby Varin, Tommy Meier, Billy Van Inwegen, C.G. Morey, Nick Rochinski, Ryan Jordan, Tyler Dippel, Billy Decker, Alan Rudalavage, Stewart Friesen, Joey Colsten, Danny Tyler, Tyler Siri.
Did Not Qualify: Mike Loney, Randy Chrysler, Darwin Greene, Dale Planck, Dan Hineline, Dan Pompey, Ken Titus, Jerry Higbie Jr., Bobby Trapper, Nick Nye, Dan Humes, Craig Hanson, Jeff Heotzler, Rich Eurich, Bob Henry Jr., Darrell Ford
Dig Safely New York GRIT Series Crate 602 Sportsman Feature Finish (30 laps): ROCKY WARNER ($1,000-plus), Cory Costa, Paul Rooney, Connor Cleveland, Nick Guererri, Pat Jordan, Ryan Olsommer, Brian Krummel, Alec Gennarelli, Johnny Illanovsky, Ivan Joslin, Todd Titus, Rich Powell, Nick Mady, Jim Britt, Chris Stevens, Winter Mead, Randy Gates, Brian Mady, Jake Dgien, Craig Monroe, Ted Mills II, Dillon Groover.
XCel 600 Modified Feature Finish (20 laps): WILL EASTMAN, Scott Adams, Rob Vivona, Kamdin Maby, Paul DeRuyter, Matt Colwell, Mark Howanitz, Jamie Frantz, Dakota Anderson.