Schmidt soars to sixth 2023 PDTR 360 Sprint Car triumph
Wilson nips Crouch to claim Road America Challenge
IRA 410 Sprint Car win
(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) July 28, 2023 – Former Plymouth Dirt Track Racing 360 Sprint Car champion Ben Schmidt of Plymouth continued his season-long stranglehold over the competition by notching his sixth Akright Auto Plymouth Dirt Track Racing 360 Sprint Car main event victory of the 2023 campaign during the third annual 25-lap Road America Challenge A-main at The Plymouth Dirt Track in Plymouth, Wis. on Friday, July 28.
In the 30-lap Road America Challenge Bumper to Bumper Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Car main event, two-time All Star Circuit of Champions titlist Greg Wilson of Benton Ridge, Ohio held off points leader Brenham Crouch of Lubbock, Texas in photo-finish fashion to claim his second career Bumper to Bumper Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Car Series A-main victory by 26 one thousands of a second.
In the Akright Auto PDTR-Midwest Sprint Car Association 25-lap Road America Challenge main event, polesitter Kevin Karnitz of West jumped into the lead on the drop of the green flag with rookie T.J. Haddy of Waupun, who started second, and 2011 PDTR and MSA champ Ben Schmidt, who started fourth, following in second and third, respectively.
On lap 3, Schmidt worked his way past Haddy to assume the runner-up spot before Karnitz caught the back of the field on lap 6. Schmidt hounded Karnitz through thick lapped traffic over the next two laps before surging ahead exiting turn four on lap 8.
As Schmidt skillfully sliced his way through lapped traffic on the lightning fast track surface, two-time PDTR and four-time MSA champion Brandon McMullen of Oshkosh maneuvered his way into third before working past Karnitz to assume second on lap 20.
Two laps later, Devan Myers of Bringhurst, Ind. spun in turn four to bring out the lone caution flag of the race on lap 22. Following the single-file restart, Schmidt pulled away while McMullen moved up to the high line in an attempt to wrestle the lead away from the 24-year racing veteran, who captured the 2011 PDTR and MSA championships.
McMullen’s late bid for the top spot fell short as Schmidt claimed his sixth PDTR 360 Sprint Car A-main victory of the 2023 season, fifth main event victory in the last six main PDTR 360 Sprint Car events, 21st career PDTR 360 Sprint Car A-main victory, seventh MSA A-main win of 2023 and 39th career MSA main event win.
McMullen had to settle for second, Karnitz was third, fifth starter Chris Clayton of Waldo finished fourth and 10th starter Alex Pokorski of West Bend rounded out the top five.
In his debut appearance at The Plymouth Dirt Track, Joel Myers Jr. of Santa Rosa, Calif. bolted into the lead on the opening lap of the 30-lap Road America Challenge IRA A-main with Brenham Crouch, who started third, sliding into second.
On lap 6, Myers began to work his way through lapped traffic, which allowed Crouch to pull to within striking distance over the next three laps before the rookie IRA driver wrestled the lead away from Myers Jr. with a low move in turn four on lap 9.
Meanwhile, 10-time IRA champion Bill Balog of Hartland disposed of Crouch lap 12 to seize second. Balog, who won the previous two additions of the Road America Challenge event in 2021 and 2022, stalked Crouch for the ensuing 16 laps as the leaders wound their way through slower traffic.
On lap 28, Balog made his move as he dove low in turn three to rip off a well-executed slide job and assume the lead. However, Crouch battled back to regain the lead with a slide job in turn four on lap 29 before the caution flag flew when Scotty Thiel of Sheboygan spun in turn two.
The ensuing restart saw former World of Outlaws Series regular competitor Greg Wilson, who started sixth, flex his muscle by diving low in turn two to move from fourth on the restart to take over the top spot on lap 29. Crouch battled back to pull even with Wilson heading to the checkered flag. However, the veteran Wilson edged out the young up-and-coming racer in a drag race to the finish line by just 26 thousands of a second to collect the $5,000 first-place check.
It was Wilson’s second career IRA A-main victory to go along with 25 career All Star Circuit of Champions main event triumphs and two World of Outlaws Series A-main wins.
“It’s been a hell of a few weeks,” Wilson said. “I have my wife and my two girls here helping me tonight with no other crew. It feels great to come to one of my favorite tracks in the county and get a win on the last lap.
“I knew when that caution came out that the middle would be good, especially if the leaders got to sliding each other and messing around, especially if one one blocked me,” he said. “This is unbelievable. I’m a blessed dude to be able to race cars across the country with my own team at 47 years old.”
Crouch wound up second, Myers Jr. placed third, Balog ended up fourth and two-time PDTR and MSA 360 Sprint Car champion Travis Arenz of Sheboygan Falls charged up from the 12th starting spot to finish fifth.
Jack Vanderboom of Dousman won the 10-lap IRA B main.
Tylar Rankin of Coldwater, Mich. earned IRA 410 Sprint Car Series fast qualifier honors with a lap of 13.289 seconds.
Bill Taylor of Boltonville registered top qualifying honors in the PDTR-MSA 360 Sprint Car division in 13.567 seconds.
The 11th event of the 2023 PDTR campaign, which was sponsored by Road America, drew a total of 52 Sprint Cars, including 25 PDTR-MSA 360 Sprint Cars and 27 Bumper to Bumper IRA Sprints 410 Sprint Cars.
The next Plymouth Dirt Track Racing program on Saturday, Aug. 5 will feature a special appearance from the IRA Lightning Sprints, along with the PDTR-MSA 360 Sprint Cars, Grand Nationals and B Mods.
The event will also feature a kids coin and candy drop provided courtesy of PDTR and VanDerVart Concrete Products.
Grandstand gates open at 4:30 p.m. with qualifying at 5:30 p.m. and racing at 6 p.m.
The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds is located at 229 Fairview Drive in Plymouth, Wis. For more information, visit www.plymouthdtr.com or check out Plymouth Dirt Track Racing on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
BUMPER TO BUMPER INTERSTATE RACING ASSOCIATION 410 SPRINT CARS
A Main (30 Laps): 1. W20-Greg Wilson [6]; 2. 1-Brenham Crouch [3]; 3. 46-Joel Myers Jr. [2]; 4. 17B-Bill Balog [7]; 5. 25T-Travis Arenz [12]; 6. 2W-Scotty Neitzel [1]; 7. 65-Jordan Goldesberry [14]; 8. 47-Todd King [4]; 9. 3N-Jake Neuman [11]; 10. 16C-Tylar Rankin [8]; 11. 73-Scotty Thiel [5]; 12. 68-Dave Uttech [10]; 13. 4K-Kris Spitz [9]; 14. 9K-Kyle Schuett [16]; 15. 99-Tyler Brabant [24]; 16. 23-Russel Borland [13]; 17. 79-Blake Nimee [15]; 18. 25-Danny Schlafer [20]; 19. 21-Will Gerrits [18]; 20. 49-Josh Schneiderman [17]; 21. U2-Jack Vanderboom [19]; 22. 87A-Austin Hartmann [22]; 23. 26-Tyler Tischendorf [21]; 24. 19CW-Ion Stear [23]
B Main (10 Laps): 1. U2-Jack Vanderboom [3]; 2. 25-Danny Schlafer [1]; 3. 26-Tyler Tischendorf [2]; 4. 87A-Austin Hartmann [4]; 5. 19CW-Ion Stear [6]; 6. 99-Tyler Brabant [5]; 7. 43-Jereme Schroeder [7]; 8. 24-Scott Conger [8]; 9. 6X-Jake Reif [9]
Dash 1 (4 Laps): 1. 2W-Scott Neitzel [1]; 2. 1-Brenham Crouch [2]; 3. 73-Scotty Thiel (3]; 4. 17B-Bill Balog [5]; 5. 4K-Kris Spitz [4]
Dash 2 (4 Laps): 1. 46-Joel Myers Jr. [1]; 2. 47-Todd King [2]; 3. W20-Greg Wilson [4]; 4. 16C-Tylar Rankin [5]; 5. 68-Dave Uttech [3]
Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 1-Brenham Crouch [2]; 2. 16C-Tylar Rankin [4]; 3. 68-Dave Uttech [1]; 4. 47-Todd King [3]; 5. 79-Blake Nimee [7]; 6. 9K-Kyle Schuett [5]; 7. 87A-Austin Hartmann [8]; 8. 26-Tyler Tischendorf [6]; 9. 24-Scott Conger [9]
Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 73-Scotty Thiel [1]; 2. 3N-Jake Neuman [6]; 3. 4K-Kris Spitz [2]; 4. 65-Jordan Goldesberry [5]; 5. W20-Greg Wilson [3]; 6. 21-Will Gerrits [7]; 7. 99-Tyler Brabant [8]; 8. 43-Jereme Schroeder [9]; 9. (DNF) 25-Danny Schlafer [4]
Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 17B-Bill Balog [4]; 2. 46-Joel Myers Jr. [2]; 3. 25T-Travis Arenz [6]; 4. 23-Russel Borland [1]; 5. 2W-Scotty Neitzel [3]; 6. 49-Josh Schneiderman [5]; 7. U2-Jack Vanderboom [7]; 8. 19CW-Ion Stear [8]; 9. 6X-Jake Reif [9]
Qualifying : 1. 16C-Tylar Rankin, 13.289 [1]; 2. 25-Danny Schlafer, 13.435 [7]; 3. 17B-Bill Balog, 13.474 [4]; 4. 47-Todd King, 13.663 [6]; 5. W20-Greg Wilson, 13.733 [8]; 6. 2W-Scotty Neitzel, 13.773 [12]; 7. 1-Brenham Crouch, 13.912 [23]; 8. 4K-Kris Spitz, 13.986 [17]; 9. 46-Joel Myers Jr, 13.999 [20]; 10. 68-Dave Uttech, 14.070 [2]; 11. 73-Scotty Thiel, 14.085 [25]; 12. 23-Russel Borland, 14.089 [3]; 13. 9K-Kyle Schuett, 14.134 [19]; 14. 65-Jordan Goldesberry, 14.151 [14]; 15. 49-Josh Schneiderman, 14.183 [16]; 16. 26-Tyler Tischendorf, 14.233 [5]; 17. 3N-Jake Neuman, 14.245 [21]; 18. 25T-Travis Arenz, 14.265 [9]; 19. 79-Blake Nimee, 14.279 [18]; 20. 21-Will Gerrits, 14.329 [13]; 21. U2-Jack Vanderboom, 14.458 [10]; 22. 87A-Austin Hartmann, 14.477 [11]; 23. 99-Tyler Brabant, 14.639 [22]; 24. 19CW-Ion Stear, 14.649 [24]; 25. 24-Scott Conger, 14.741 [15]; 26. 43-Jereme Schroeder, 15.253 [27]; 27. 6X-Jake Reif, 15.259 [26]
Hot Laps: 1. 65-Jordan Goldesberry, 13.380 [14]; 2. 2W-Scotty Neitzel, 13.409 [12]; 3. 49-Josh Schneiderman, 13.431 [16]; 4. 9K-Kyle Schuett, 13.593 [19]; 5. 4K-Kris Spitz, 13.670 [17]; 6. 21-Will Gerrits, 13.796 [13]; 7. 79-Blake Nimee, 13.845 [18]; 8. 25-Danny Schlafer, 13.850 [7]; 9. 46-Joel Myers Jr, 13.902 [20]; 10. 17B-Bill Balog, 13.923 [4]; 11. 1-Brenham Crouch, 13.928 [23]; 12. 47-Todd King, 13.937 [6]; 13. 25T-Travis Arenz, 14.146 [9]; 14. W20-Greg Wilson, 14.203 [8]; 15. 16C-Tylar Rankin, 14.215 [1]; 16. 68-Dave Uttech, 14.229 [2]; 17. 3N-Jake Neuman, 14.306 [21]; 18. 19CW-Ion Stear, 14.360 [24]; 19. 99-Tyler Brabant, 14.486 [22]; 20. U2-Jack Vanderboom, 14.580 [10]; 21. 43-Jereme Schroeder, 14.661 [27]; 22. 26-Tyler Tischendorf, 14.669 [5]; 23. 23-Russel Borland, 14.974 [3]; 24. 6X-Jake Reif, 15.048 [26]; 25. 24-Scott Conger, 15.346 [15]; 26. (DNS) 87A-Austin Hartmann, 15.346; 27. 73-Scotty Thiel, 15.346
AKRIGHT AUTO PLYMOUTH DIRT TRACK RACING 360 SPRINT CARS
A Main (25 Laps): 1. 35-Ben Schmidt [4]; 2. 98-Brandon McMullen [6]; 3. 63K-Kevin Karnitz [1]; 4. 2-Chris Clayton [5]; 5. 4-Alex Pokorski [10]; 6. 21H-TJ Haddy [2]; 7. 7-Lance Fassbender [3]; 8. 08-Katelyn Krebsbach [9]; 9. 3-Justin Erickson [7]; 10. 22B-Brandon Berth [12]; 11. 69S-TJ Smith [8]; 12. 6K-Kurt Davis [22]; 13. 53-Shane Wenninger [15]; 14. 51-Chris Larson [11]; 15. 38-Josh Bilicki [16]; 16. 11-Tony Wondra [14]; 17. 69-Bill Taylor [24]; 18. 53A-Spyder Akright [17]; 19. 66T-Tristan Koenings [13]; 20. 88-Chris Flick [20]; 21. 85J-Logan Julien [21]; 22. 39-Michael Decker [19]; 23. 66-Nick Daywalt [23]; 24. 12P-JJ Pagel [18]; 25. 7R-Devan Myers [25]
Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 7-Lance Fassbender [2]; 2. 08-Katelyn Krebsbach [1]; 3. 4-Alex Pokorski [3]; 4. 69S-TJ Smith [6]; 5. 53-Shane Wenninger [5]; 6. 38-Josh Bilicki [7]; 7. 53A-Spyder Akright[ 9]; 8. 12P-JJ Pagel [8]; 9. (DNF) 69-Bill Taylor [4]
Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 35-Ben Schmidt [3]; 2. 63K-Kevin Karnitz [2]; 3. 3-Justin Erickson [4]; 4. 22B-Brandon Berth [5]; 5. 11-Tony Wondra [6]; 6. 6K-Kurt Davis [1]; 7. 7R-Devan Myers [8]; 8. 88-Chris Flick [7]
Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 98-Brandon McMullen [4]; 2. 2-Chris Clayton [6]; 3. 51-Chris Larson [3]; 4. 21H-TJ Haddy [8]; 5. 66T-Tristan Koenings [7]; 6. 85J-Logan Julien [1]; 7. 39-Michael Decker [5]; 8. (DNF) 66-Nick Daywalt [2]
Qualifying 1: 1. 69-Bill Taylor, 13.567 [7]; 2. 4-Alex Pokorski, 13.612 [6]; 3. 7-Lance Fassbender, 13.738 [1]; 4. 08-Katelyn Krebsbach, 13.747 [4]; 5. 53-Shane Wenninger, 13.760 [2]; 6. 69S-TJ Smith, 14.077 [3]; 7. 38-Josh Bilicki, 14.140 [8]; 8. 12P-JJ Pagel, 14.210 [5]; 9. 53A-Spyder Akright, 14.392 [9]
Qualifying 2: 1. 3-Justin Erickson, 13.979 [1]; 2. 35-Ben Schmidt, 13.985 [6]; 3. 63K-Kevin Karnitz, 13.991 [2]; 4. 6K-Kurt Davis, 13.999 [8]; 5. 22B-Brandon Berth, 14.075 [4]; 6. 11-Tony Wondra, 14.082 [3]; 7. 7R-Devan Myers, 14.353 [5]; 8. 88-Chris Flick, 14.452 [7]
Qualifying 3: 1. 98-Brandon McMullen, 14.276 [3]; 2. 51-Chris Larson, 14.561 [8]; 3. 66-Nick Daywalt, 14.584 [7]; 4. 85J-Logan Julien, 14.737 [2]; 5. 39-Michael Decker, 14.858 [1]; 6. 2-Chris Clayton, 14.966 [4]; 7. 66T-Tristan Koenings, 15.032 [5]; 8. 21H-TJ Haddy, 15.032 [6]