GUEST STARS SHINE AT LUXEMBURG
They may have been visitors, guests or spoilers – but by the end of the night, you could call them winners, too.
Keeping with the theme of 4th of July road trips, visiting teams nearly dominated victory lane Friday night at the Luxemburg Speedway in Luxemburg.
Ed Anschutz set the bar early with his win in the Street Stocks, a trend that continued through the end of the night with Eric Mahlik’s triumph in the IMCA Modified feature.
Other trophies on the night went to Mitch McGrath in the Late Models, Jeremy Jauquet in the IMCA Stock Cars, Marcus Moede in the IMCA Hobby Stocks and Will Gerrits in the Micro Sprints.
With the Manitowoc Speedway hosting a Sprint Car special, it gave McGrath the opportunity to travel a little further north for the second time this year. Despite it being only his second fulltime year in the Late Models, McGrath already carries a heady resume in the class; winning titles at both Manitowoc and Plymouth, as well as the Wisconsin Dirt Late Model Series, last year. So it was no surprise that he would be a player.
2010 Luxemburg Speedway Modified champ Jared Siefert set the early pace, with McGrath moving into second on the third lap – one lap before another visitor from the south, Jim Schmidt, was sent sliding in the third turn.
McGrath used the inside line on the ensuing restart to fend off Ron Berna, and quickly dispensed with Siefert two laps later. That set the stage for what appeared to be a cakewalk, as McGrath bolted away from the rest of the field.
About the same time that McGrath passed Siefert, point leader Nick Anvelink was moving past Berna into third. Siefert was strong in the runner-up spot as it took Anvelink a full 12 laps to catch and pass him. By that time, McGrath was off on the horizon, seemingly untouchable.
But this is racing, and sure things are never “FOR sure”.
McGrath’s path to the win took a turn in the final laps as he caught the back of the field with three cars racing for position. With both preferred lines occupied, he was forced to settle in and try to pick his way through to no avail.
In the clear, Anvelink was able close at full speed, totally erasing the huge lead by the final lap. Once he got there, however, he was faced with the same situation that McGrath encountered; no place to pass.
Through the final turn, McGrath commanded the low line with a lapper in the middle groove to his right. Anvelink’s only shot at the win – albeit a slim one – was to try the extreme outside edge. Without much bite that far to the top, Anvelink had all he could do to hang on, let alone challenge McGrath. But the two-time winner righted the ship, avoiding a spin or dropping off the bank entirely.
So McGrath took the checker, with Anvelink settling for a crowd-pleasing second.
No late race dramatics were in the cards for Mahlik in the IMCA Modifieds. His point average in limited appearances this year afforded him a front row starting spot. Once the green flag flew, that was pretty much the last the rest of the field saw of him.
Focus shifted to second, with Josh Long grabbing the position from James Tebon at the mid-point. Long did solidify his hold on the spot, but without a caution, had no chance to real in the departed Mahlik.
Tebon held off Brad Theys and Lance Arneson for third.
The night’s closest feature finish came in the IMCA Stock Cars as Jauquet survived a wild final corner scramble to record his first feature win in the division.
He took the lead on lap one, but was literally under pressure every lap. Dicing for position behind him were a veteran group of racers well versed in the “ways of the Stock Car class”. The challengers included Barry Van Straten, Rod Snellenberger, Shawn Havel, Troy Muench and a returning Rob Waechter.
All six ran in a tight pack with positions traded back and forth each lap; except for the lead as Jauquet was able to fend off all comers. In the closing laps, Jauquet, Snellenberger and Van Straten were able to break away slightly from the other three.
The trio would decide it – and it would come down to the final corner.
Jauquet had held the point by protecting the low line, fully aware that Snellenberger was lurking behind him. As they raced through three and four with the checker unfolding in front of them, Jauquet “lost control” of the bottom line. He shifted into the middle on the verge of spinning, with the door now open below to Snellenberger and Van Straten at full speed on the outside.
Jauquet made the save and the trio launched down the front stretch in a three-wide drag race to the line. Separated by a matter of feet, the names appeared on the scoring monitor in line – Jauquet, then Snellenberger, then Van Straten.
One driver that didn’t follow the night’s script was Moede in the Hobby Stocks. He took the lead from Dean Anhalt early en route to his first Luxemburg win of the season. In the process, he was able to chip a few points away from division leader Dan VanPay’s advantage on him in the title chase.
VanPay placed fourth with a late pass on Dave Schmidt, finishing behind Cory Cotter and Cody Junio. Cotter, not running fulltime in 2015, recorded his best finish of the year in the runner-up position.
Anschutz has transitioned from fulltime racer to fulltime track announcer. Now the announcer at neighboring Thunderhill in Sturgeon Bay, he races only on a part time basis, but is always a threat to win when he drives in the gate.
His first lead was erased early as Jared Spaulding’s rollover crash in the first turn halted proceedings on the second lap. Spaulding was unhurt, but done for the night.
Under green again, Anschutz led with pressure coming from division leader Scott Boulanger and Gary Kasperek. Kasperek was forced to exit early in a cloud of smoke, and while Boulanger could keep Anschutz in his sites, the four-time winner was never quite able to pull even.
Anschutz recorded his first Luxemburg win of the season with Boulanger second, allowing him to gain another point on third place finishing Scott Karbon in the season standings.
A visiting winner was guaranteed in the Micro Sprints, an entire visiting class.
Besting a solid field of competitors was Will Gerrits who scored a clean sweep in dominating fashion. With most coming from out of town, local favorite Gabe Zellner was in the spotlight, posting a sixth place finish despite being the only 500cc competitor in a field of 600cc sprinters.
Along with fireworks, the night was capped off by the second round of trailer races. Blaise Reed was declared the winner as the event was checkered after 3rd place finishing Camen Dejardin’s rollover. Tim Wanner took home 2nd.
This Friday night, Showcase Kitchens will host the show, featuring a special for the Street Stock class. All regular classes will be in action, with the first green flag falling at 7:00pm.
The Luxemburg Speedway is located at the Kewaunee County Fairgrounds in Luxemburg, WI. Visit the track’s website at www.luxemburgspeedway.com for updates and more information.
Luxemburg Speedway results 7/3/2015
Late Model 25 Lap Feature: Mitch McGrath, Waukesha – Nick Anvelink, Bonduel – Jared Siefert, Luxemburg – Ron Berna, Abrams = Bret Swedberg, Shawano – Kyle Odekirk, Plymouth
Heat 1: McGrath – Anvelink
Heat 2: Mark Rose, Dorchester – Berna
IMCA Modified 20 Lap Feature: Eric Mahlik, Green Bay – Josh Long, Little Suamico – James Tebon, Algoma – Brad Theys, Kewaunee – Lance Arneson, Krakow – R.M. VanPay, Green Bay
Heat 1: Theys – Arneson
Heat 2: Mahlik – Brandon Long, Little Suamico
IMCA Stock Car 20 Lap Feature: Jeremy Jauquet, Green Bay – Rod Snellenberger, Pulaski – Barry Van Straten, Shiocton – Rob Waechter, Ellisville – Shawn Havel, Algoma – Troy Muench, Namur
Heat 1: Jauquet – Snellenberger
Heat 2: Waechter – Tony Bouche, Algoma
Street Stock 15 Lap Feature: Edward Anschutz, Kewaunee – Scott Boulanger, Luxemburg – Scott Karbon, Luxemburg – Tony Everard, Green Bay – Jason Kostichka, Green Bay – Tony Gabriel, Two Rivers
Heat: Boulanger – Gary Kasperek, Tigerton
IMCA Hobby Stock 15 Lap Feature: Marcus Moede, Algoma – Cory Cotter, Little Suamico – Cody Junio, Casco – Dan VanPay, Green Bay – Dave Schmidt, Casco – Amber Weidner, East Maplewood
Heat: Schmidt – Moede
Micro Sprint 15 Lap Feature: Will Gerrits, Waupun – Jake Gerrits, Waupun – Christian Grolueau, Gladstone, MI – Jake Reif, Deerbrook – Jerry Reif, Deerbrook – Gabe Zellner, New Franken
Heat 1 – Denver Larsen, Shiocton – Jake Reif
Heat 2 – Will Gerrits- Dylan Larsen, Shiocton
Trailer Race: Blaise Reed, Denmark – Tim Wanner, Green Bay – Camen Dejardin, Luxemburg
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