DEFENDING CHAMP JOHN WATERS WINS THE 1ST EVER SWEENEY
RUSH LATE MODEL TOURING SERIES EVENT AT GENESEE TO BECOME SEASON’S 4TH
DIFFERENT WINNER IN 4 RACES
By Mike Leone
June 3, 2017
FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE
(Batavia, NY)...The Sweeney Chevrolet Buick GMC RUSH Dirt Late Model
Touring Series powered by Pace Performance wrapped up its early four-race swing
through New York and Canada on Saturday night in the first ever appearance at
Genesee Speedway. Race #4 of the
2017 season attracted 27 cars- an all-time record car count at the Batavia, New
York facility, which is in its second full season as a Sweeney Weekly Series
track under the promotion of Jim Johnson.
Defending Series champion, John Waters, survived
several late race restarts and challenges by Jason Genco throughout the 30-lap
MHL Performance feature to capture his season’s first victory, worth $2,000.
It was much-needed morale boast for Waters, who had failed to finish in
the top five after the first three Series race.
Waters, who became the season’s fourth different winner in four races,
was also selected as the Maxima Racing Oil “Maximum Performance” award winner.
“It’s been a lot of highs and lows, but we’re here to
win and that’s what we did,” stated the soon-to-be 36-year-old Whitesville, NY
driver. “Congrats to Jason Genco and
Jason Badgley (car owner)- that was one heck of a run.
I’d see him down there and my tires would
spin up there. The last three laps I
got scared. I don’t usually change
my line because it will mess me up, but I had to do something because he was
pushing it hard and I think he was going to get me.
We changed it up there (chose the bottom).
He’s a good racer; I knew I couldn’t slack and had to be up on the wheel.
That was a hard one! I’ll
tell you what, this track was awesome. Jimmy (Johnson- the track owner) and the
guys here did a heck of a job. I’m
impressed. The bottom, top, middle-
it didn’t matter where you were it was a great racing surface.”
Via his third K&N Dash victory of the season, Waters
took off in the lead from the pole position over Genco, Jason Knowles, J.J.
Mazur, and Bryce Davis. Seventh
starting Brad Mesler quickly gained three positions to take over fourth after
lap two. Then two laps later cracked
the top three by passing Knowles.
Waters had nearly a half-straightaway lead when he caught lapped traffic on lap
six as Mesler closed in on Genco in the race for second.
A spin by Doug Ricotta brought out the event’s first caution with six
laps scored.
When racing resumed, Davis, who won Friday’s night
Tour race at Outlaw, took over fourth from Knowles.
Genco began pressuring Waters for the first time on lap 10, but one lap
later a spin by Bill DuBois brought action to a halt once again.
Back under green, Mesler and Davis put on a great side-by-side battle for
third from laps 12-16 until Davis finally made the pass on the 16th
circuit.
All eyes had shifted to Jeremy Wonderling.
The opening night Stateline winner and Friday’s runner-up finisher had to
start 25th after battery issues in the heat races forced him to the
pits. Wonderling passed Jimmy
Johnson on lap 15 to move into the top five.
Three cautions on lap 19 slowed action and was a break for Wonderling as
on the restart he moved by Mesler for fourth.
Meanwhile back up front, Genco kept the pressure on
Waters as he pulled alongside the leader on laps 22 and 23 as Davis and
Wonderling went at it racing side-by-side for third.
As the top four distanced themselves a bit from the field battling for
the lead, Davis got too high and hit the frontstretch wall cutting down a tire
on lap 28. This would line-up 25th
starting Wonderling now in third; however, the caution proved costly as on the
restart Wonderling ran out of room entering turn one and spun as Carl Shetler
and Nick Snayczuk were also involved.
It was a heartbreaking end for Wonderling, who was chosen as the TBM
Brakes “Tough Break of the Night” recipient.
The final three laps would go caution-free as Waters
held off Genco to the finish as Waters collected his sixth career Tour victory
moving him into a tie for fourth on the all-time win list with Mike Pegher, Jr.
The win for Waters came in the Dale LeBarron-owned, Troups Creek
Heating/Bernie's Place/Accu-Force/Close Racing Supply/Insinger
Performance/Sunoco Race Fuel/Fox Shocks/Otis Division/Fastline
Performance/Troups Creek Heating/Regenerage, Forestry Management/Atkins
Appraisal/TCAP/Stan's Transmissions-sponsored #11L.
Genco’s runner-up was his career best Sweeney Touring
Series finish and was worth $1,000.
‘It was fun,” said the 33-year-old Frewsburg, NY racer.
“He was clean; I was clean; it was a good
time. The yellows killed me.
I think if it would have stayed green and not had that last one, I might
have had him. I figured he’d choose
the inside at the end and it worked for him.
The longer we went on a green flag run the better I got, and the worse he
got. He kept slipping up the race
track and I gained some grip on the bottom, but the cautions fell the way they
did. If it wasn’t for Jimmy Craig
and Jason Badgley I wouldn’t even be here right now.
Those guys gave everything to put me in this thing.
This XR1 by Rocket has been an awesome race car!”
Mesler edged out 11th starting Andy
Michael in a near photo-finish for third to match his best career Sweeney Tour
finish since a third back on September 20, 2013 at McKean County Raceway.
Andy Boozel raced from 15th to fifth.
T.J. Downs earned the $100 Precise Racing Products
“Pedal Down” Hard Charger gift card by going from 23rd to sixth.
Seventh through 10th were Jason Knowles, Zack Carley, Davis,
and Brian Knowles. Davis was able to
make his way from the tail in the final three laps to finish ninth for his
fourth top 10 in as many races to maintain the Sweeney Tour point lead.
Nick Snayczuk was the final car on the lead lap in 16th and
received a $25 gift certificate from CrateInsider.com.
Wonderling started off the night setting fast time in
$100 FK Rod Ends “Shock the Clock” Qualifying with a lap of 17.407, which was
nearly four tenths faster than Jimmy Johnson, who was second fastest.
Genco, Davis, and Waters received $25 for winning FK Rod Ends heat races.
Waters’ victory in the K&N “Cold Air Induction” Dash earned him another
$100 K&N certificate. Genco received
a $50 K&N certificate for finishing second, while Jason Knowles and Mazur added
$25 cash for finishing third and fourth.
The Sweeney Tour will be off until Sunday night (June 18)
at Tri-City Raceway Park in Franklin, Pa. for the $2,000 to-win “Bill Emig
Memorial” Marquee Event. It’ll be a
RUSH doubleheader as the Sportsman Modifieds will compete in a Bicknell Racing
Products Touring Series event.
Sweeney Chevrolet
Buick GMC RUSH Late Model Touring Series Race #4 (30 laps, $2,000 to-win):
1. JOHN WATERS (LeBarron 11) 2.
Jason Genco (Craig/Badgley 29J) 3.
Brad Mesler (24B) 4. Andy Michael
(17x) 5. Andy Boozel (12B)
6. T.J. Downs (1) 7. Jason
Knowles (4) 8. Zack Carley (Ricotta
31) 9. Bryce Davis (94)
10. Brian Knowles (7) 11.
Greg Mrzywka (04) 12. Kyle Murray
(21) 13. J.J. Mazur (13)
14. Jon Rivers (85) 15. Carl
Shetler (78) 16. Nick Snayczuk (12)
17. Bill DuBois (21B) 18.
Jeremy Wonderling (3J) 19. D.J. Krug
(83) 20. Jimmy Johnson (39J)
21. Brian Swank (12s) 22.
Bill Holmes III (65) 23. Val
Stephens (57V) 24. Mark Sundt (94B)
25. Doug Ricotta (01). DSQ
for improper seals: Brady Raynor (33R), David Pangrazio (136)
Car Count:
27
Feature Lap Leaders: John Waters (1-30)
Maxima Oil “Maximum Performance”: John
Waters
Precise Racing Products “Pedal Down Hard Charger”:
T.J. Downs (+17)
TBM Brakes “Tough Brake of the Night":
Jeremy Wonderling
CrateInsider.com "Last Car on Lead Lap":
Nick Snayczuk
FK Rod Ends “Shock
the Clock” Qualifying ($100 for fast time): 1. Jeremy Wonderling 17.407
2. Jimmy Johnson 17.792 3.
Zack Carley 17.826 4. Bill Holmes
III 17.859 5. Bryce Davis 17.985
6. J.J. Mazur 17.990 7. Jason
Genco 18.017 8. Doug Ricotta 18.081
9. John Waters 18.179 10.
Brian Knowles 18.181 11. Andy
Michael 18.229 12. Andy Boozel
18.235 13. Jason Knowles 18.271
14. T.J. Downs 18.295 15.
Greg Mrzywka 18.370 16. Brad Mesler
18.382 17. Brian Swank 18.452
18. Jon Rivers 18.502 19.
Carl Shetler 18.555 20. Nick
Snayczuk 18.645 21. Mark Sundt
18.648 22. Kyle Murray 18.764
23. D.J. Krug 18.854 24. Bill
DuBois 19.229 25. Val Stephens
19.924 26. Brady Raynor-DSQ
27. David Pangrazio-DSQ.
FK Rod Ends Heat 1
(8 laps, $25 to-win) 1. Genco 2.
J. Knowles 3. Mesler
4. B. Knowles 5. Holmes
6. Shetler 7. Murray
8. Stephens 9. Wonderling.
FK Rod Ends Heat 2
(8 laps, $25 to-win): 1. Davis
2. Johnson 3. Ricotta
4. Michael 5. Swank
6. Snayczuk 7. Krug
8. Downs 9. Raynor-DSQ.
FK Rod Ends Heat 3
(8 laps, $25 to-win): 1. Waters
2. Mazur 3. Carley
4. Rivers 5. Boozel
6. Mrzywka 7. Sundt
8. DuBois 9. Pangrazio-DSQ.
K&N "Cold Air
Induction" RUSH Late Model Dash (6 laps, $100 K&N certificate to-win): 1.
Waters 2. Genco
3. J. Knowles 4. Mazur
5. Davis 6. Johnson.
RUSH Late Model marketing partners include Sweeney
Chevrolet Buick GMC, Pace Performance, Hoosier Tire, Bilstein Shocks, Sunoco
Race Fuels, Bazell Race Fuels, Insinger Performance, MSD Performance, Holley
Performance Products, Earl's Performance Plumbing, Quick Fuel Technology, FK Rod
Ends, Maxima Racing Oil, Schoenfeld Headers, Jones Racing Products, Alternative
Power Sources, Precise Racing Products, ARbodies, TBM Brakes, K&N Filters,
Lincoln Electric, Velocita-USA, Classic Ink USA, Rocket Chassis, Landrum
Performance Spring, CrateInsider.com, RockAuto.com, and Valley Fashions.
E-mail can be sent to the RUSH Racing
Series at [email protected] and snail mail to 4368 Route 422, Pulaski,
PA 16143. Office phone is 724-964-9300 and fax is 724-964-0604. The RUSH Racing
Series website is www.rushracingseries.com. Like our Facebook page at
www.facebook.com/rushlatemodels and follow us on Twitter @RUSHLM.
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