ASA ACDelco Challenge Series Wisconsin 300 Report and Results
7 July 1997
KAUKAUNA, WI - Quick pit work by the LaFavre Racing Team put Kevin Cywinski into the lead with just 74 laps left, and he was able to fend off the challenges of both Mike Eddy and Scott Hansen over the closing laps to win his second American Speed Association, ACDelco Challenge Series event of 1997 in the Wisconsin 300 at Wisconsin International Raceway, in Kaukauna, WI on Independence Day.The July 4th fireworks were on the track as the race provided 13 lead changes and six different leaders with plenty of side by side action for the entire 300 laps. It was Cywinski's fifth career ASA win, and his second consecutive win in the Wisconsin 300. He also managed to set a new race record with an average speed of 83.445 mph.
"The car wasn't the greatest," Cywinski commented as he collected the $13,910 winner's check. "But it was good enough to hold off Mike (Eddy). I give Mike a lot of credit, my car was tight and was pushing up in the corners and he could have gotten into me, but he raced me clean. There was a lot of pressure on the team after having won here last year. We made some adjustments on the last stop and the car was right."
Rick Beebe in the St Louis Gear/Royal Machine Pontiac set the fastest time in qualifying of 19.730 seconds for an average speed of 98.530 mph around the 1/2 mile high banked oval. Beebe led the 31 car field to the green and took the lead going into turn one. On lap 5 Scott Hansen moved past Beebe to take the lead in the Ken Schrader Racing Chevrolet, a lead he would hold until Cywinski went to the outside in turn three to take the point on lap 67.
Hansen was able to retake the lead by getting under Cywinki's LaFavre Racing Pontiac on the back straight on lap 84, and completed the pass in turn three. Mike Garvey was running third in the AFCO Racing Products/Truck Country Pontiac, replete with a "Star Spangled" paint job for this race.
On laps 98 and 99 Hansen and Cywinski again swapped the lead and Mike Eddy was able to bring the GM Goodwrench Service/HRE Pontiac into the third spot. Steve Carlson had moved his Clean Burn/Phillips 66/Trop Artic/AFCO Pontiac into fourth with Garvey now fifth as the one-third point in the race passed.
Eddy led the race for the first time on lap 104 when he drove under Cywinski entering the first turn leaving Hansen in the third spot. Eddy had started 11th on the grid and made one of his patented runs to the front in the first 100 laps.
On lap 130 Bob Senneker spun the Lane Automotive/JR Automation/Mr Gasket Ford "Bluebird" into the inside retaining wall in turn four to bring out the second caution of the race, and the leaders all headed for the pits and some much needed attention from their crews. Cywinski won the race out of the pits followed by Carlson, Eddy, Garvey and Tim Sauter.
Cywinski, the 1996 ASA Rookie of the Year, retained the lead until lap 141 when Eddy again moved onto the point. Garvey was involved in a three car tangle with Jack Landis and Bill Baird on lap 147 allowing the field to bunch up and put Gary St. Amant in position to take the point on the restart. St. Amant kept the Wynn's/West Michigan Chevy dealer's Chevrolet in front until Eddy was able to resume the point on lap 168. Carlson also moved past St Amant and took second with Sauter and Cywinski rounding out the top five.
The leaders all pitted again on lap 224 under caution and again it was Cywinski won the race out of the pits chased by Sauter, Eddy, Hansen and Brad Loney.
When the green flew again, Eddy and Hansen quickly attached themselves to the rear bumper of Cywinski and the three cars looked like they were on a rail as they circled the track. Eddy made several attempts to get under Cywinski, and even managed to get his nose inside coming off turn two, but could not complete the pass. Cywinski's margin of Victory was a scant .180 seconds over Eddy with Hansen third and Carlson and Beebe rounding out the top five.
"Kevin (Cywinski) was leaving me a lane," Eddy remarked afterwards. "But I just couldn't maintain enough speed to complete the pass. I was having a good race and decided a second place finish was better than a crash at the end. I don't always look at it that way, but with the luck I've been having I'm happy with a second."
Hansen was unhappy with his third place finish because he twice had to back out of his pit stall after being blocked in by another car.
"We had a good race car tonight, one capable of winning," Hansen said later. "I just got blocked in the pits and had to fight back through the field."
NOTES: Butch Miller, 4 time ASA Champion, made his first ASA since 1995 and finished eighth and won the WYNN'S WYNNING MOVE Award.... Dave Sensiba Will undergo Orthoscopic Surgery on his right knee on Tuesday after injuring it at I-70 Speedway last week. He drove from 19th starting spot to finish seventh......Cywinski extended his points lead over St Amant when the latter fell out with engine problems on lap 221 and was classified 25th......The next event for the ASA ACDelco Challenge Series will be Friday, July 11 at Hawkeye Downs Speedway in Cedar Rapids, IA.
John Kaiser -- The Auto Channel
Wisconsin International Raceway - Provisional results for the ASA ACDelco Challenge Series, Wisconsin 300: Ps.Ql.No. Driver , Car Laps -- -- ---- ----------------------------------------------------- ----- 1 14 1 Kevin Cywinski Coleman Racing Products PONT 300 2 11 88 Mike Eddy GM Goodwrench Service/HRE PONT 300 3 3 52 Scott Hansen AFCO Racing Products PONT 300 4 4 87 Steve Carlson(R)Baker Enterprises/Clean Burn PONT 300 5 1 23 Rick Beebe St Louis Gear/Royal Machine PONT 300 6 12 33 Brad Loney Bunsaver/Hunter's Spec/Flexsteel PONT 300 7 19 6 Dave Sensiba Engineered Polymer/W MI Auto AuctPONT 300 8 31 2 Butch Miller Gillund Enterprises/Justice Bros PONT 300 9 8 51 Brandon Sperling Sperling Motorsports CHEV 300 10 13 32 Ted Smokstad Corp. Auto/SMS Parts PONT 300 11 20 48 Joe Nott Valvoline/Allan Nott Toyota/RaabeFORD 300 12 6 18 Mike Miller South East Air Service PONT 299 13 7 55 Tim Sauter (R) Leo M/S/Wehr/Racing Adventures PONT 299 14 18 72 Junior Hanley Skillman Motorsports PONT 298 15 2 8 Mike Garvey AFCO Racing Products PONT 297 16 21 81 Harold Fair Car Quest/ACDelco/Victor Reinz PONT 296 17 25 21 Kevin Nuttleman Citgo/Midwest Fuels/Dutch Mill PONT 294 18 22 07 Jack Landis Adirondak/Lyndaker/Maisto/N.YoderFORD 294 19 28 58 Billy Turner Sanifill/Central Fiber PONT 294 20 5 26 Bill Baird Spee-Dee Pop Popcorn/Saturn Mach CHEV 294 21 10 5 Steve Holzhausen Structural Transport FORD 292 22 27 11 Doug Mayr(R) No Touch Car Care/Aqua Splash CHEV 291 23 30 93 Alec Pinsonneault Build-A-Mold/Trimplas/Moldplas PONT 286 24 24 79 Mike Cofer (R) Black & Decker Versa Pack PONT 285 25 9 7 Gary St Amant Wynn's/W Michigan Chevy Dealers CHEV 221 26 23 0 Tom Jones Jones Motorsports PONT 200 27 17 84 Bob Senneker Lane Auto/JR Automation/Mr GasketFORD 129 28 16 56 Brett Bell Wunder-Bar/Red Line Oil FORD 58 29 15 01 Rod Wheeler Leo Motorsports/Utschig Chev CHEV 54 30 26 99 Joe Shear Rander Car/Menards/Wegner FORD 53 31 29 86 Aaron Hough Lee's Inn and Suites PONT 51 (R)= Pat Schauer Memorial Rookie Candidate Time of Race : 1 hr 56 min 29 sec Average Speed : 83.445 mph Margin of Victory : .180 secs Lap Leaders : Beebe, Hansen, Cywinski, Eddy, St Amant, M Miller Cautions : 5 for 30 laps Track Length : 0.5000 Miles