Oct 21, 2024 08:11 AM EST
ALEX PAYNE TAKES OUTLAW SPEEDWAY HOAG MEMORIAL $7,777.77 FEATURE WIN
James Friesen makes it two in a row in Crate Sportsman Hoag Memorial action Dylan Cecee masters Street Stock 50, Jerry Lobdell Jr. claims Hobby Stocks and Ray Hyer takes home Mini Stock cash and hardware.
Story by Kenny Shupp Jr.
(Dundee, NY) With over 175 cars representing five classes of competition jammed into the Outlaw Speedway pit and infield area, track owner Tyler Siri put an exclamation point on his ninth season as promoter of the popular Yates County facility.
Alex Payne cut his teeth in Sportsman and Modified competition at Outlaw beginning as a young teenager and now still just nineteen years of age he is realizing his dream of being a full- time racer.
With forty-three Modified drivers checking in all looking for the top prize of $7,777.77 to win the Annual Hoag Memorial it is obvious that most every top driver in the region would be there making qualifying for the forty-lap feature a challenge.
Payne, who was recently crowned the 2024 Friendly Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram Modified Track Champion had his work cut out for him not making in into the re-draw for the A Main event, however that would not deter the third generation Hopewell, NY speedster from making his way into victory lane.
By virtue of their Dash Qualifying wins the previous night, Bossman Tyler Siri and Tommy Collins Jr. would bring the twenty-four- car field to green with Siri immediately flexing his muscle leading the opening dozen circuits before being overhauled by his teammate and two-time 2024 feature winner, Bobby Varin who would then set the pace for the next thirteen laps.
Matt Sheppard who was looking for his third trip to victory lane at Outlaw in “24” drew pill eight and began the event outside row four and had worked his way into the top three when suddenly his potent #9 machine slowed on the front straight away with a flat right rear tire bringing out the events first yellow flag on lap eighteen.
On the restart Varin would continue to set a torrid pace, however any chance of picking up his first Hoag Memorial Trophy would have to wait another year as a flat right rear would end his drive on lap twenty-six giving way to Alex Payne who had methodically worked his way from the lucky thirteenth starting position.
From there on Payne would set a blistering pace, but the battle behind kept fans on the edge of their seats as The Doctor, Danny Johnson, Tyler VanDoren, Rocky Warner and Sheppard who had come from the tail of the field after pitting for a new right rear shoe was back in the picture.
The third and final caution would fly on lap thirty-seven wiping out a commanding Alex Payne lead and it set up a three-lap shootout between some of the real titans in the sport,
However, Payne was able to hold off a late race charge by Danny Johnson who came up just a few car lengths shy with Sheppard disposing of Warner to round the top three podium finishers.
The Flying Squirrel, Warrner would have to settle for fourth in a rare Outlaw Speedway outing after lining up sixth on the opening grid.
Like Warner before him, Bobby Hackel was also making a rare trip to the facility and after struggling in his heat event and just barely making the feature line-up through his consolation event Hackel would put on a masterful performance to complete the top five.
Tanner VanDoren and Brady Fultz, who had both raced well within the top five, the entire distance would take positions six and seven respectively with four-time 2024 feature winner, Ajay Potrzebowski Jr following in tow.
Nick Nye, who picked up a win in the second consolation event, would start in position nineteen and finish ninth with outside front row starter, Tommy Collins Jr. drifting back to round the top ten finishers.
In the $5077.77 to win Sunrise Insulation/Knapp and Schlappi Lumber Crate Sportsman feature event, Front Row Dash Winner’s Blake Parsons and Ben Feldman would bring the twenty-four car starting field to the opening green flag with Parsons leading lap one with Feldman giving chase, however entering turn two on lap two Feldman would get sideways setting off a chain reaction that found the entire field scattering and Dale Welty taking a nasty side over side flip in the same spot he took a header earlier in the season with the same result of a severely damaged #123 machine.
After an extensive cleanup and both Feldman and Welty done for the night, the race went back to green flag action with Parsons of Beaver Dams, NY leading the charge until lap nine when he was overhauled by Ajay Potrzebowski Jr. who was doing double duty on the night.
Potrzebowski then set the pace for the next thirteen laps as 2024 Track Champion, Carter Crooker would chisel into the lead coming from position seven on the opening grid.
As Potrzebowski and Crooker were in heavy, heavy lap traffic racing hard for the lead on lap twenty-two it was at that point the complexity of the entire race would change as Crooker, who had just moved into the lead was tapped by Potrzebowski in turn three bringing out the caution, sending Crooker to the pits and Potrzebowski to the tail of the field.
That would put Parsons back into the lead on the lap twenty-three restart as he would hold court for the next four circuits before giving way to Jamie Friesen who was looking to back up last year’s Hoag Memorial victory.
From that point on Friesen would need to fight off relentless pressure from Dundee’s Brent Ayers who had driven from fourteenth to run second as Josh Nobriga had moved into third after beginning the event in the eighth starting position.
With only a handful of laps remaining, Friesen continued to set the pace pushed hard by Ayers and Nobriga as 2022/2023 Track Champion, Chris Fisher had joined the party after coming from twentieth starting position after a poor qualifying heat and a consolation run that found the former champion barely making the field.
As the double checkered flags waved it was James Friesen picking up his second consecutive Outlaw Speedway Hoag Memorial Crate Sportsman victory holding off Brent Ayers who continues to turn heads throughout the entire 2024 season. Like Friesen, Josh Nobriga is not a weekly competitor at Outlaw, but he used his years of both Modified and Sportsman experience to complete the top three with Chris Fisher and Joe Judge rounding the top five after starting in position sixteen on the opening grid.
Six through ten went to Carter Crooker who recovered nicely from the lap twenty-two incident as he was chased across the line by Land of Legends regular, Frank Guererri Jr. who nailed down seventh.
Eighth went to Wellsboro, Pa’s Doug Kline who picked up the win in consolation event number one with Brett Buono and Justin Liechti completing the top ten.
A new Hoag Memorial format this year found the traditional 100 lap Swarthout Recycling Street Stock feature event being shortened to 50 laps, but still for a hefty $2,777.77 to win.
Former weekly competitor and Bath, NY native, Dylan Cecce who now resides near Jersey Shore, Pa. turned to his roots and would bring the loaded twenty-four car field to green along with 2024 Track Champion, Gene Sharpsteen who like Cecce picked up a Front Row Dash win the previous night.
Right from the get-go, Cecce was dominant in his performance aboard the Russ Clark Motorsports #18 leading all fifty laps and in doing so picked up his fourth Hoag Memorial Trophy and with that took the huge winner’s paycheck back to the Keystone State of Pennsylvania.
Like Cecce, Jimmy Grant also cut his teeth as a youngster at Outlaw Speedway and although not a weekly competitor still knows his way around the Fast 4/10 of a mile oval as he was able to claim the runner-up position at the completion of the fifty-lap grind.
Former Outlaw Speedway Street Stock Champion, CJ Guererri has had an up and down 2024 at Outlaw, however he was able to put the pieces together in rounding out the podium claiming third.
Gene Sharpsteen would drift from his front row starting spot to finish fourth, but none the less a great way to wrap up the 2024 season as he held off Mike Wonderling Jr. of Scio who was piloting the Schuyler owned 57j machine which he had had a great deal off success in previous seasons prior to full time commitment in the RUSH Crate Late Model Series in his own machine.
In the Addison, Corning, Hornell and Wellsville NAPA Auto Parts Stores Hobby Stock Division a huge field of some thirty-nine machines made their way to the track all looking for the $1777.77 Hoag Memorial winner’s check.
After all qualifying heat and consolation events were into the books and the twenty-four car field set it was time to do battle in their twenty-lap feature and with a field littered with invaders it would be tough for any Outlaw Speedway regular to take home the winners trophy and check and that was the case of Thunder Mountain Track Champion, Jerry Lobdell Jr. would come away with the victory after doing double duty and finishing deep in the field in the earlier run Street Stock feature event.
However, Lobdell was not going to be denied a trip to victory lane in the Hobby Stock feature as he was able to hold off Brian Rhodes and Tommy Grooves who would go on to complete the top three as the lead trio was chased across the line by Cole Burgess and multi time Outlaw Speedway Hobby Stock Track Champion, Mr. Smooth Marc Minutolo who was the first track regular across the line.
Like Lobdell, Minutolo was also competing in two full fender classes having finished tenth in the Street Stock 50 lapper.
The Winner’s Circle Deli 4 Cylinder Mini Stocks were back in action after a full night of racing the night before on Hoag Memorial Weekend.
With a solid field of nineteen checking in representing both front and rear wheel driven creations, however only sixteen would take the opening green after a horrifying qualifying heat crash took out a pair of 2024 Track Champions in Willy Easling who claimed the Mini Title along with Zach Daugherty who picked up the regular season Youth Warrior Championship.
During the heat event high speed crash, Easling had gotten sideways and bounded off the front straight away wall and as his disabled nine-time 2024 winning machine set cross ways he was pile driven by Daugherty who had absolutely no place to go.
As the capacity crowd held their breath and after a few anxious minutes, both drivers were able to exit their heavily damaged machines with the pair both gingerly walking away from the crash scene.
In the twenty-lap Hoag Memorial Mini Stock feature a pair of Stones (no pun intended) found former champion, The Nature Boy Mike Stone along with Ryan Stone bringing the field to green.
However, it was inside row two starter, Ray Hyer taking control and cruising to the $1777.77 victory after not seeing victory lane all season as he saved his best performance for last.
Chasing Hyer across the line was the former class Track Champion, Jason Smart, who put on a brilliant drive coming from eleventh on the opening grid.
Invaders Collin Mills and Cole Susice would give chase but to no avail as the pair would claim third and fourth with yet another Track Champion in Scott Lehman completing the top five.
Congratulations to all our competitors!
After completing without question his most successful season as the 9th year owner/promoter of the Outlaw Speedway, Tyler Siri will recognize all his 2024 Champions and other top point finishers at the recently announced Annual Awards Banquet which will again be held at the Harbor Hotel in downtown Watkins Glen on Saturday, February 22, 2025.
More information on the banquet will be released within the coming months and for more information simply go to www.Facebook.com/OutlawSpeedwayLLC/.
HOAG MEMORIAL OUTLAW SPEEDWAY. OCTOBER 19, 2024. NIGHT 2. RESULTS.
FRIENDLY CHRYSLER DODGE, JEEP, RAM MODIFIEDS. (43 cars) 40 lap feature.
ALEX PAYNE, Danny Johnson, Matt Sheppard, Rocky Warner, Bobby Hackel, Tanner VanDoren, Brady Fultz, Ajay Potrzebowski Jr., Nick Nye, Tommy Collins Jr., Steve Paine, Ron Cartwright Jr., Jeff Daugherty, Jim LaRock, Bobby Varin, Dennis Clapperton, Shannon Whaley, Billy Paine, Tyler Yeagle, Stacy Jackson, Tyler Siri, Willy Decker, Tommy Paine, Cory Costa.
SUNRISE INSULATION/KNAPP AND SCHLAPPI LUMBER CRATE SPORTSMAN. (43 cars) 35 lap feature.
JAMES FRIESEN, Brent Ayers, Josh Nobriga, Chris Fisher, Joe Judge, Carter Crooker, Frank Guererri Jr., Doug Kline, Brett Buono, Justin Liechti, Collin Brown, Dylan Nichols, Dakota Kohler, Daryl Krebs, Blake Parsons, Behr Grover, George Schweigart, Nick Cooper, Ajay Potrzebowski Jr., Rich Murtaugh, Greg Crooker, Ben Feldman, Dale Welty. DQ, David Hackett Jr.
SWARTHOUT RECYCLING STREET STOCKS. (32 cars) 50 lap feature.
DYLAN CECCE, Jimmy Grant, CJ Guererri, Gene Sharpsteen, Mike Wonderling, Joe Giardina, Carl Cleveland, Scott Bennett, Charlie Towner, Marc Minutolo, Jared Hill, Trent Chamberlain, Mike Wilbur Jr., Shane Wolf, Luke Boom, Mick Seeley, Brett Crawford, Rich Crego, Byron Dewitt, Jerry Lobdell Jr., Nick Robinson, Ted Morseman, John Carpenter. DNS, Willy Easling.
ADDISON, CORNING, HORNELL WELLSVILLE NAPA STORES HOBBY STOCKS. (39 cars) 20 lap feature.
JERRY LOBDELL JR., Brian Rhodes, Tommy Grooves, Cole Burgess, Marc Minutolo, Josh Towner, Buck Mills Jr., Daniel Kerrick, Rich Sharpsteen Sr., Jordan Thomas, Mahlon Shoemaker, Ryan Jordan, Jared Hill, Darren Davies, Luke Mills, Jason Rhodes, Bryant Beach, Nick Robinson, Kevin MacDonald, Denny Rhodes, Justn Slezak, Kyle Spoor, Nate Peckham, Eric Beach.
WINNER’S CIRCLE DELI MINI STOCKS. (19 cars) 20 lap feature.
RAY HYER, Jason Smart, Collin Mills, Cole Susice, Scott Lehman, Mike Stone, Danielle Morseman, Ryan Stone, Parker Cunningham, Brandon Smith, Andrew Thomas, Mike Ayers, Tony Dickerson, Kenneth Zimmerman, Charlie Matthews, Bradly Morseman. DNS, Willy Easling, Zach Daugherty, Jeff Wynes.
