QUALIFYING: Brunnhoelzl Nabs Pole
Second Straight For 3-Time Champ; 20th In Career
ASHEBORO, N.C. – George Brunnhoelzl III won the Coors Light Pole Award on Saturday in NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour qualifying for the Spring Fling 150 at Caraway Speedway.
Brunnhoelzl, the three-time tour champion out of West Babylon, N.Y., navigated the .455-mile oval in 15.792 seconds for an average speed of 103.723 mph. It will be his second consecutive start on the pole having accomplished the feat in his last time out on April 13 at South Boston (Va.) Speedway, a race he eventually won in dominating fashion by leading wire-to-wire.
The driver of the No. 28 Epox-Z/Oval Speed Chevrolet is seeking an unprecedented ninth Caraway win. He and Brian Loftin currently share the all-time tour lead with eight victories at the track. It is also his 10th pole win at Caraway. Only Burt Myers with 12 has more in Southern Modified Tour completion which is in its ninth season. With 20 career poles, Brunnhoelzl also inched closer to Myers’ top all-time tour total of 24.
Tim Brown, who started from the pole in the season opener at Caraway on March 16, will start alongside Brunnhoelzl on the front row after posting a 15.899-second lap (103.025 mph). Kyle Ebersole followed with a time of 15.920 seconds (102.889 mph) while last year’s Sunoco Rookie of the Year Danny Bohn scored the fourth-quickest lap at 15.964 seconds (102.606 mph).
John Smith, Andy Seuss, Loftin, Brandon Ward, rookie Luke Fleming and Myers rounded out the top-10 qualifiers.
The Spring Fling 150 is expected to get underway at approximately 8 p.m. ET.
QUALIFYING RESULTS
NWSMT Caraway 4/20/13 Qualifying
POS CAR DRIVER TEAM TIME SPEED
1 28 George Brunnhoelzl, III, West Babylon, N.Y. Epox-Z/Oval Speed Chevrolet 15.792 103.723
2 02 Tim Brown, Rural Hall, N.C. Hayes Jewelers/T&C Motorsports Chevrolet 15.899 103.025
3 5 Kyle Ebersole, Hummelstown, Pa. Ebersole Excavating Ford 15.920 102.889
4 65 Danny Bohn, Freehold, N.J. Cedar Peaks/Rustoleum Chevrolet 15.964 102.606
5 25 John Smith, Mount Airy, N.C. G-Oil/Shady Grady Racing Chevrolet 15.972 102.554
6 11 Andy Seuss, Hampstead, N.H. Doug Strickland Recovery Chevrolet 15.973 102.548
7 23 Brian Loftin, Lexington, N.C. L&R Trans./QMF Metal & Electronics Chevrolet 15.984 102.477
8 44 Brandon Ward, Winston-Salem, N.C. Crane & Rigging Chevrolet 15.985 102.471
9 40 Luke Fleming, Mount Airy, N.C. * Koma Unwind/AutosByNelson.com Ford 16.005 102.343
10 1 Burt Myers, Walnut Cove, N.C. Citrusafe/Adam’s Towing & Recovery Ford 16.026 102.209
11 4 Jason Myers, Walnut Cove, N.C. Wendell Edwards Performance Ford 16.034 102.158
12 97 Bryan Dauzat, Alexandria, La. O.B. Builders Chevrolet 16.122 101.600
13 04 David Calabrese, Toms River, N.J. * Diamond Back Towing Chevrolet 16.153 101.405
14 2 JR Bertuccio, Centerrach, N.Y. Gershow Recycling/Hagerman Systems Chevrolet 16.193 101.155
15 77 Gary Putnam, Concord, N.C. Stock Car Steel Chevrolet 16.294 100.528
16 70 Jeremy Gerstner, Wesley Chapel, Fla. * GMR Complete Lawn/Fountain Mtspts. Chevrolet 16.412 99.805
17 12 Mike Norman, Lewisville, N.C. Auto Sols. Mag./Lewisville Motors Chevrolet No Time
* Sunoco Rookie of the Year contender
Sources: Shon Sbarra/NASCAR WSMT PR