MOHAWK MADNESS: Billy Dunn capitalizes on late-rate chaos for DIRTcar 358 Modified Series win
Mohawk International Raceway Shines in 358 Series stunner, DIRTcar Sportsman Modified Series North Region goes to Robert Delormier
AKWESASNE, NY – Billy Dunn, in his rocket red #49, found a way through the chaotic final laps of the $4,000-to-win, 75-lap DIRTcar 358 Modified Series thriller to win at Mohawk International Raceway. The Watertown, NY driver made a last-lap pass on fellow Watertown native and rival Tim Fuller after the leader Mike Mahaney broke and pulled off with just two laps to go.
Erick Rudolph drove up from his unlucky redraw spot in position number twelve to capture the final step on the podium. After suffering damage to his motor in Hoosier Racing Tire Weekly Championship racing at Ransomville Speedway last Friday, Rudolph hooked up with the Junior Welling operation to field a Troyer chassis for the event.
Preston Forbes pulled the number one spot during the top 12 redraw. Forbes looked strong and lead the way until lap 22 when Billy Dunn winged around the top groove and into the lead. From there Dunn was determined to leave the rest of the field behind. At one point the #49 split a pair of lapped cars down the backstretch.
“I’ve always found it’s best to be aggressive with lapped traffic,” said Dunn. “I’ve lost a couple of big races here being too easy on lapped cars.”
Dunn lead until lap 40 when the field restarted and Tim Fuller got the advantage.
“I thought right after the Heat Race that I had a really good car,” Dunn noted. “I knew I had a good car to stay up front with but I wasn’t good on restarts. It took me until halfway down the straightaway to get it cleared out. I fired before him [Fuller] and he just plain beat me to the front. Clean air here is everything.”
While Dunn and Fuller battled it out, Mike Mahaney was reeling them in using the bottom groove of the racetrack. On lap 51 Mahaney made the pass for the lead in Turns Three and Four.
With five laps to go, Mahaney began to show smoke from the right rear. Meanwhile, Tim Fuller and Billy Dunn were cutting in and out of lapped traffic battling each other just like they do every week at Can-Am Speedway.
“Mahaney could run the bottom better than anyone,” said Dunn. “He might have found some speed down there before anyone else. I tried to follow his line on the bottom and I thought I was faster than Fuller. I saw Mahaney get the hole with four or five laps to go. I assume that’s what broke him. He slowed drastically and I had to avoid him to keep from slowing down and giving up time to Fuller.”
Mahaney maintained the lead but on lap 73, the entire right rear of the car seemed to collapse with tire smoke billowing out. The #35 Adirondack Auto Big Block limped off the backstretch and into the pits while Dunn and Fuller raced side-by-side for the lead.
It was then that Dunn pulled the trigger and dove to the bottom under Fuller to take the top spot for the $4,000 win in the first points-paying DIRTcar 358 Modified Series race since 2019.
An understandably disappointed Tim Fuller finished second. The black and orange St. Lawrence Radiology #19 started in the second row and battled with Dunn, polesitter Forbes, and Mahaney for all 75 laps. He had his 358 slinging around the top side but unfortunately, he couldn’t get the car to the bottom when he needed to.
“I couldn’t run the bottom,” Fuller said.”I tried it and I felt slow so I kept running the middle and top. With 2 laps to go I was leading but there was so much going on that I wasn’t sure what was happening behind me. Dunn found a lane on the bottom and that was it.”
“I was a second-place car because I ran second,” noted Fuller. “Mahaney had a pretty good car. I think I was equal to him in the middle but I was missing the bottom where everyone was running through it. It was set up tight. I like to run the middle to the top here but it was just too snug to run the bottom.”
Erick Rudolph, from Ransomville, NY, finished third. This was his first outing in Junior Welling’s Troyer chassis, a chassis Rudolph had not raced in 4-5 years by his recollection.
“The car came with a baseline setup and we made some fine tunings for the Feature,” said Rudolph. “ I am really happy with how the car performed. Overall it was really good.”
The #25 had a lot of strong cars to get around before finding the podium including Rocky Warner, Dave Marcuccilli, and Ronnie Davis III.
“It seemed like on the restarts I was able to pick up a spot or two,” Rudolph said. “We were working the bottom really good but if we had to we could use the top. We had a really maneuverable car. I am not sure when but I am looking forward to getting back in it.”
Driver Cameron Black suffered a mechanical issue in the race but his finishing position of 22nd was randomly chosen for one free Hoosier Racing Tire.
The next DIRTcar 358 Modified Series race is on Friday, September 10 at Can-Am Speedway.
FEATURE (75 Laps)
1. 49D-Billy Dunn [4][$7,500]; 2. 19-Tim Fuller [3][$4,000]; 3. 25R-Erick Rudolph [12][$2,500]; 4. 66X-Carey Terrance [9][$1,800]; 5. 98W-Rocky Warner [10][$1,600]; 6. 32R-Ron Davis [11][$1,400]; 7. 45R-Preston Forbes [1][$1,300]; 8. 111D-Demitrios Drellos [15][$1,200]; 9. 28M-Jordan McCreadie [24][$1,100]; 10. 1M-Dave Marcuccilli [8][$1,000]; 11. 60G-Jackson Gill [2][$800]; 12. 83J-Danny Johnson [30][$700]; 13. 31W-Lance Willix [16][$600]; 14. 9M-Tyler Meeks [20][$575]; 15. 55W-Matt Woodruff [7][$550]; 16. 35M-Mike Mahaney [6][$525]; 17. 24M-Derrick McGrew [21][$500]; 18. 74F-Lucas Fuller [23][$500]; 19. 9S-Kristan Smoke [28][$500]; 20. 87M-Darryl Mitchel [17][$500]; 21. 11S-Steven Lewis [27][$]; 22. 23L-Cameron Black [26][$]; 23. 66W-Derek Webb [22][$500]; 24. 15T-Todd Root [19][$500]; 25. 18J-Louie Jackson [5][$500]; 26. 29J-Jeff Sykes [18][$500]; 27. 7mm-Michael Maresca [13][$500]; 28. 36B-Daniel Beachard [29][$500]; 29. 24A-Zach Aubertine [14][$]; 30. 31J-Tom Jock [25][$]
Hard Charger Award: 83J-Danny Johnson[+18]
DIRTcar Sportsman Modified Series North Region
Robert Delormier took the DIRTcar Sportsman Modified Series North Region victory in the 40-lap, $1,000-to-win Feature on a late-restart pass on Justin Stone who had lead the entire race up until that point.
“It took a few races to get this thing figured out but we did it,” Delormier said. “This is a brand new DKM chassis too. I am glad we ran well tonight but it’s a work in progress.”
“I was good on the bottom in Turns One and Two,” he said of his racing lines. “I just stayed on the high side of Turns Three and Four. I am worn out that was a good race to end the night.
The podium steps were rounded out by Ryan Shannahan and Daryl Nutting. Shannahan was in the hunt for the win throughout the race after rushing up from the ninth-place starting position.
Albany-Saratoga Speedway standout Daryl Nutting made the tow and it was worth it as he crossed the finish line in third.
Taylor Doxtator finished 11th and picked up a free Hoosier Racing Tire from the random drawing.
FEATURE (40 Laps)
1. 1D-Robert Delormier [5][]; 2. 32RS-Ryan Shannahan [9][]; 3. 42-Daryl Nutting [8][]; 4. 14A-Zach Arquiett [10][]; 5. 1X-Justin Stone [1][]; 6. 29H-Nick Heywood [11][]; 7. 6XX-Travis Back [4][]; 8. 04G-DJ Gonyo [2][]; 9. 71X-Delbert Legrow [3][]; 10. 83D-Dustin Bradley [12][]; 11. 2D-Taylor Doxtator [16][]; 12. 19B-Jamy Begor [15][]; 13. 357J-Chris Jackubiak [17][]; 14. 84P-Joshua Pete [7][]; 15. 10X-Corey Castell [14][]; 16. 71D-Delbert Legrow [25][]; 17. 18C-Chris Cayea [18][]; 18. 18x-Blayden Arquiette [26][]; 19. 11W-Ben Wheeler [13][]; 20. 15H-Greg Henry [27][]; 21. 48E-Derrick Ellsworth [24][]; 22. 0-Cameron Reif [23][]; 23. 88S-Fire Swamp [19][]; 24. 9S-Bentley Gray [22][]; 25. 1R-Ricky Thompson [21][]; 26. 44S-Casey Swamp [6][]; 27. 7D-Eugene Tarbell [28][]; 28. 22D-Micheal Delmorier [20][]
Hard Charger Award: 71D-Delbert Legrow[+9]
DIRTcar Racing is brought to fans by many important sponsors and partners, including: DIRTVision (Official Live Broadcast Partner), Hoosier Racing Tire (Official Tire), SIS Insurance (Official Insurance Provider), VP Racing Fuels (Official Racing Fuel), Chevy Performance Parts, iRacing (Official Online Racing Game), Arizona Sport Shirts/Gotta Race, and NAPA Auto Parts (SDS). Contingency sponsors include: ARP (Automotive Racing Products), ASI Race Wear (SDS), Bassett, Bicknell Racing Products, Billy Whittaker Cars & Trux (SDS), Cometic Gasket (SDS), COMP Cams, Drydene, Fast Shafts, Fox Factory (SDS), Arizona Sport Shirts/Gotta Race, Jerovetz Motorsports Shock Service, KSE Racing Products, MSD, Quarter Master, Schoenfeld Headers, Summit Racing Equipment, and Wrisco (Exclusive Racing Aluminum) (SDS); along with manufacturer sponsors, including: Beyea Headers, FireAde, Intercomp, K1 Race Gear, Racing Electronics and Velocita USA.
Sources: Joe Grabianowski, DIRTcar Racing PR
PHOTO: Quentin Young