HALES CORNERS FULL RESULTS 7-12-03
Specht Runs Wild In Hales
UMP Late Model Main
By John Shea
Franklin, Wis., July 12--When race leader Jimmy Watson dropped out with
12 laps remaining, Scott Specht took the lead and held off Rick Scheffler to
win the UMP late model feature Saturday on Belman Landscaping & Grading -
Waukesha County Night at the historic Hales Corners Speedway.
Don Scheffler was named winner of the championship round of the Borchardt
Speed - Automotive Sportsmen Triple Crown when apparent winner Don Sorce
Jr.'s car failed the post-race weight requirement and was disqualified. Brian
Crapser won the championship round of the Da Boys Pro Graphics Modified Triple
Crown, while Jim Reinhardt and Kevin Kuhnke capped the night with wins in the
Hales Whales and Mud Puppies features, respectively.
The 30-lap UMP late model feature was the most competitive in recent
memory as Watson grabbed the lead at the start with George Scheffler, Specht,
Frank Smith and Rick Scheffler following. George kept the heat on Watson and on
lap two used the outside line down the frontstretch to take the lead.
Scheffler had Watson right on his heels when the duo entered slower
traffic on lap nine, and on lap 14 Watson was able to storm back around Scheffler
in turns three and four and retake command of the event. Specht followed
Watson and demoted Scheffler to third as Dan Sorce took station in fourth place
ahead of Rick Scheffler.
Watson and Specht battled side by side for the next three laps with
Watson high in the cushion and Specht hugging the inside. Then, on lap 17, Watson
suddenly ducked into the pits and out of the race, giving the lead to Specht.
Behind Specht the battle for second through fifth intensified as Sorce
moved to the runner-up spot by lap 20, with George Scheffler, Rick Scheffler,
Jason Widdes and Russ Scheffler in a pack two-deep and two-wide fighting for
third place. Rick found the bite he needed to move around Sorce for second by
the event's lone yellow on lap 25 when Turk Letizia looped his car in turn four.
Specht had the lapped car of Mike Widdes between himself and Rick
Scheffler on the ensuing restart, with Sorce, George Scheffler, Russ Scheffler and
defending track champ Bret Sievert following. Specht made a great getaway at
the drop of the green and stormed to a popular hard-fought win over Rick as Russ
charged to third place at the drop of the checkered flag. Sorce settled for
fourth, with Sievert fifth.
The 35-lap Borchardt Speed - Automotive Sportsmen Triple Crown feature
was led at the start by Mark Lewis, who paced the opening eight laps before
yielding the top spot to Pat Heaney, who charged past along the outside in turns
three and four.
The race behind Heaney was top-shelf as several times the battle for the
runner-up spot went three and four-wide through turns one and two and down the
backstretch. Don Scheffler was finally able to secure the second spot and
closed in on Heaney, taking the lead on lap 12.
Scheffler began to lap the backmarkers on lap 16 as Heaney battled to
keep second from Jeff Tondryk, Roger Lee, defending track champ Sorce Jr. and
Dave Gorny, who were all still tightly knotted together. Jeff Graf spun in turn
four on lap 21 to produce the event's first caution flag, with Joe Altenhofen
spinning on the ensuing restart for the second yellow. Tondryk managed to get
past Heaney for second by the event's third and final yellow on lap 25 when
Mike Borchardt Jr. stopped against the wall in turn two.
When the race restarted, Scheffler was out front with Tondryk in the next
row on the inside and Sorce Jr. on the outside. Sorce got a great run on the
restart and used the outside lane in turns three and four to move from third
to first at lap 26. Scheffler battled back but Sorce was able to hold the
position as the race worked towards a finish.
Gorny departed the race on lap 29 with problems and the smoking car of
Lee moved to second place on lap 30, inching ahead of Scheffler as Tondryk fell
to fourth. Sorce Jr. was up to the task at hand and held on to take the win
while behind him Lee's smoking mount finally failed exiting turn four on the
final lap, allowing Scheffler, Tondryk and Heaney to all shoot past in the final
sprint to the checkered flag.
Lee's problem proved to be a double-bonus for Scheffler when Sorce Jr.'s
car failed to pass the post-race weight inspection. Sorce Jr.'s
disqualification handed the win to Scheffler, with Tondryk, Heaney, Lee and Lewis second
through fifth in the revised finish.
Joe McGrath spun twice in the first two laps of the 35-lap Da Boys Pro
Graphics Modified Triple Crown feature, producing one yellow and hampering his
efforts to have a good finish. At the front of the pack, however, Jim Zdroik
grabbed the lead and began blowing through slower traffic on lap five, opening
a healthy advantage.
Fast qualifier Jeff Bodendorfer Jr. looped his car on lap 19 to bring out
the event's second yellow, with Mike Watson performing a similar maneuver a
lap later for the event's third caution flag. Crapser was up to second at this
point and kept the heat on Zdroik until Zdroik slid wide and tagged the turn
four wall on lap 23, handing over the lead.
Zdroik kept his foot in it and chased Crapser until Spencer Frost moved
past and into the runner-up spot on lap 28. A lap later Eddie Lemay Jr.
coasted to a stop in turn one to produce the event's final caution flag.
When the race resumed Crapser was able to go on to victory ahead of
Frost, with Jimmy Muth Jr. bouncing off the fence several times as he worked his
way past Zdroik for a solid third place result. Zdroik and Mark Brunner rounded
out the top five.
Reinhardt was followed at the finish of the 20-lap Hales Whales headliner
by runner-up Barry Cates, with Ken Fleury Jr., Jeff Graf and J.J. Weickowski
third through fifth, respectively.
Kuhnke was victorious in the Mud Puppies nightcapper over Chris Baur.
Racing continues at the historic third-mile Hales Corners Speedway oval
on Saturday night, July 19th with a full program of UMP late model and
sportsmen racing, plus a special appearance by the Interstate Racing Association's 410
outlaw sprint cars. Time trials are at 6:15 p.m., with racing immediately
following qualifying. Hales Corners Speedway is located on Hwy. 100, one
half-mile south of Forest Home Avenue in Franklin, next to Hiller Ford. For more
information, call (414) 778-4710 during regular business hours, or (414)
425-4700 on race day. You can also visit Hales Corners Speedway on the world wide
web at www.halescornersspeedway.com.
SUMMARY
UMP LATE MODEL
30-lap Feature--1. Scott Specht, Sheboygan Falls; 2. Rick Scheffler,
Waukesha; 3. Russ Scheffler, Waukesha; 4. Dan Sorce, Franklin, Bret Sievert,
Franklin.
8-lap Heats--First: 1. Jimmy Watson, Big Bend; 2. George Scheffler,
Waukesha. Second: 1. Sievert; 2. Rick Scheffler.
6-lap Dash--Russ Scheffler.
Fastest Qualifier--Jim Letizia, Milwaukee.
SPORTSMEN
35-lap Feature--1. Don Scheffler, Wauwatosa; 2. Jeff Tondryk, Milwaukee;
3. Pat Heaney, Wauwatosa; 4. Roger Lee, Wind Lake; 5. Mark Lewis, Colgate.
8-lap Heats--First: 1. Lewis; 2. Tondryk. Second: 1. Scheffler; 2. Don
Sorce Jr., West Allis.
Fastest Qualifier--Scheffler.
MODIFIED
35-lap Feature--1. Brian Crapser, Milwaukee; 2. Spencer Frost, Waterford;
3. Jimmy Muth Jr., Greenfield; 4. Jim Zdroik, Big Bend; 5. Mark Brunner, West
Allis.
8-lap Heats--First: 1. Eddie Lemay Jr., Wauwatosa; 2. Dan Mech,
Greenfield. Second: 1. Zdroik; 2. Brunner. Third: 1. Jeff Bodendorfer Jr., Waterford;
2. Crapser.
Fastest Qualifier--Bodendorfer Jr.
HALES WHALES
20-lap Feature--1. Jim Reinhardt, Milwaukee; 2. Barry Cates, Greenfield;
3. Ken Fleury Jr., Franklin; 4. Jeff Graf, Milwaukee; 5. J.J. Weickowski,
Waukesha.
8-lap Heats--First: 1. Cates; 2. Weickowski. Second: 1. Graf; 2. Jim
Shambeau, Milwaukee.
4-CYLINDER MUD PUPPIES
Feature--1. Kevin Kuhnke, South Milwaukee; 2. Chris Baur, Greenfield; 3.
Pat Krimmer, Milwaukee; 4. Johnny Knoxville, Milwaukee; 5. Josh Ferris,
Waukesha.
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