By Jeff Pederson
Pedal Down Promotions
(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) July 8, 2023 – Going where no 360 Sprint Car racer has gone before at The Plymouth Dirt Track, 2011 Plymouth Dirt Track and 360 Sprint car champion Ben Schmidt of Plymouth stayed flaming hot behind the wheel of his white and orange No. 35 machine by turning in a record fourth straight Akright Auto Plymouth Dirt Track Racing 360 Sprint Car A-main victory and sixth overall Akright Auto Midwest Sprint Car Association A-main triumph of the 2023 campaign at The Plymouth Dirt Track in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, July 8.In the 25-lap Oostburg Auto PDTR Grand National A-main, Will Sorce of Franklin executed a last-lap pass to rack up his third main event win of the 2023 campaign.
Hunter Larson of Oshkosh collected his first career Next Step Insurance B Mod A-main victory in the 25-lap main event.
Adam Zellmer of Horicon used a final-lap pass to notch his first career 106.5 The Buzz Wisconsin Legends Racing Dirt Series 20-lap A-main win.
Outside front row starter Justin Erickson of Plymouth outpowered polesitter Katelyn Krebsbach of Cascade to grab the lead on the drop of the green flag. On lap 2, Schmidt, who started fourth, moved up into second and quickly began to pressure Erickson for the top spot.
After hounding Erickson for four laps, the 24-year racing veteran worked his way past Erickson entering turn three. One lap later, the 2011 MSA 360 Sprint Car champ caught the rear of the field as Shane Wenninger of Kewaskum, who started sixth, charged past Erickson into second.
As Schmidt found himself bottled up in slower traffic, Wenninger closed the gap considerably on lap 17. Four laps later, Wenninger ducked low to pull even with Schmidt in turn four. On the following circuit, Wenninger attempted to wrestle the lead away from Schmidt using the high line.
However, Schmidt fended off Wenninger’s challenge and pulled away over the final three laps while two-time PDTR 360 Sprint Car champion, four-time MSA champ and current point leader Brandon McMullen of Oshkosh, who started fifth, worked his way into second.
Schmidt went on to notch his fifth PDTR, sixth MSA and record fourth straight PDTR 360 Sprint Car A-main victory of the 2023 season in the caution-free race. It was also Schmidt’s 20th career PDTR and 38th career MSA 360 Sprint Car main event triumph.
McMullen placed second, Wenninger wound up third, eighth starter Kevin Karnitz of West Bend took fourth and 2008 PDTR 360 Sprint Car champion and 2005 MSA champ Lance Fassbender of Burnett placed fifth, after starting third.
Outside front row starter Steven Weber of Plymouth led the opening lap of the 25-lap PDTR Grand National main event before 2022 PDTR Grand National champ Luke Scholten of Oostburg, who started on the pole, took the top spot with a low move in turn four on lap 2.
On lap 5, Weber battled back to challenge Scholten for the lead before the lone caution flag of the race appeared on lap 7 when Josh Koslowski of Chilton spun in turn four.
When the race resumed, 2018 PDTR Grand National champion Matt Loehr of Dotyville, who started seventh, moved into third before taking over second on lap 12.
Scholten encountered slower traffic on lap 18, which allowed Loehr to cut into the lead. Four laps later, Will Sorce, who started third, began to flex his muscle as he maneuvered past Loehr, who got boxed in behind a lapped car along the high groove, to take over second.
Sorce quickly tracked down Scholten as the laps wound down before diving low in turn three on the white final lap to pull off the winning move in last-lap fashion en route to his third PDTR Grand National A-main triumph of the 2023 season and seventh career main event win.
Scholten had to settle for second, Loehr placed third, 2010 PDTR Grand National champ Brian Gilles of Plymouth finished fourth, after starting fifth and fifth starter Chad Espen of West Bend rounded out the top five.
Travis Schmidt of Plymouth took the lead at the start of the 25-lap B Mod main event from his outside front row starting spot with fourth starter Hunter Larson moving into second on the opening lap.
Larson worked the high line to pull even with Schmidt on lap 2 as the two drivers dueled side by side on the fast and tricky track surface over the next two laps until Larson surged ahead on lap 4.
The first of two caution flags was displayed on lap 5 when two-time PDTR B Mod champ Tim Warner of Malone and 2018 PDTR B Mod champion Tim Sheppard of Beaver Dam made contact along the backstretch, resulting in Sheppard hitting the backstretch wall before Jim Fischer of Oostburg collided hard with Sheppard’s disabled machine.
When the race resumed, fifth starter Shane Long of Sheboygan Falls moved into second and seventh starter Barry Maas of Cascade took third. Long charged in to briefly challenge Larson for the top spot before the second caution flag came out when Rory Welch of Plymouth and Brandon Knepprath of Kewaskum made contact in turn four.
On the restart, Schmidt moved in to challenge Long for second before seizing the runner-up spot on lap 18. Meanwhile, Larson built up a comfortable full straightaway lead en route to his first career PDTR B Mod A-main triumph.
Schmidt placed second, Long was third, Maas finished fourth and Warner placed fifth, after restarting 12th following the caution on lap 5.
Hunter Cardinal of Richfield, who started on the pole, grabbed the lead on the opening lap of the 20-lap Wisconsin Legends Racing Dirt Series A main before Matt Gritt of Plymouth, who started fourth, took over the top spot.
On lap 4, sixth starter Dallas Ross of Sussex charged in to take over second along the high groove before moving in to challenge Gritt for the lead on lap 5.
The first of three caution flags was displayed on lap 5 when Ethan Ross of Waupun stopped in turn two. Following the restart, Ross swept into the lead along the high line in turn one on lap 7 before the second caution flag appeared on lap 8 for the smoking car of Carl Swenson of Hortonville.
When the race resumed ninth starter Adam Zellmer charged in to pressure Gritt for second. Two laps later, the third and final caution period came when Hayden Schmuhl of Beaver Dam stopped in turn one.
Zellmer kicked it into overdrive following the final restart to take control of second on lap 13 and challenge high-riding Ross for the lead along the low line on lap 14.
Zellmer and Ross dueled side by side over the final six laps until Zellmer finally surged into the lead for good in turn one of the final lap and held on to post his first career Wisconsin Legends Racing Dirt Series A-main victory at The Plymouth Dirt Track.
Ross placed second, 13th starter Austin Winkel of Sheboygan Falls moved up to finish third, Ryan Sullivan of Waupun placed fourth after starting 10th and Gritt rounded out the top five.
Alex Pokorski of West Bend earned his first-career fast qualifier award in the PDTR-MSA 360 Sprint Car division with a top lap of 12.368 seconds.
The ninth event of the 2023 PDTR campaign, which was sponsored by Pedal Down Promotions, drew a total of 62 cars, including 19 PDTR-MSA 360 Sprint Cars, 15 Grand Nationals, 14 B Mods and 14 Legends.
The next race program at The Plymouth Dirt Track on Saturday, July 8 will feature the second appearance of the 2023 season from the Wisconsin Legends Racing Dirt Series, along with the PDTR-MSA 360 Sprint Cars, Grand Nationals and B Mods.
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.
AKRIGHT AUTO PLYMOUTH DIRT TRACK RACING 360 SPRINT CARS
A Main (25 Laps): 1. 35-Ben Schmidt [4]; 2. 98-Brandon McMullen [5]; 3. 53-Shane Wenninger [6]; 4. 63K-Kevin Karnitz [8]; 5. 7-Lance Fassbender [3]; 6. 3-Justin Erickson [2]; 7. 22B-Brandon Berth [12]; 8. 4-Alex Pokorski [9]; 9. 85J-Logan Julien [14]; 10. 69S-TJ Smith [18]; 11. 11-Tony Wondra [10]; 12. 08-Katelyn Krebsbach [1]; 13. 21H-TJ Haddy [7]; 14. 69-Bill Taylor [13]; 15. 51-Chris Larson [19]; 16. 54-Randy Post [16]; 17. 12P-JJ Pagel [11]; 18. 53A-Spyder Akright [15]; 19. (DNF) 30-Doug Wondra [17]
Heat 1 (10 Laps): 1. 11-Tony Wondra [2]; 2. 53-Shane Wenninger [3]; 3. 7-Lance Fassbender [4]; 4. 30-Doug Wondra [1]; 5. 12P-JJ Pagel [6]; 6. 69-Bill Taylor [7]; 7. (DNF) 51-Chris Larson [5]
Heat 2 (10 Laps): 1. 21H-TJ Haddy [1]; 2. 4-Alex Pokorski [4]; 3. 08-Katelyn Krebsbach [2]; 4. 3-Justin Erickson [5]; 5. 69S-TJ Smith [3]; 6. 53A-Spyder Akright [6]
Heat 3 (10 Laps): 1. 63K-Kevin Karnitz [1]; 2. 98-Brandon McMullen [3]; 3. 35-Ben Schmidt [4]; 4. 85J-Logan Julien [2]; 5. 22B-Brandon Berth [5]; 6. 54-Randy Post [6]
Qualifying 1: 1. 7-Lance Fassbender, 12.524 [4]; 2. 53-Shane Wenninger, 12.829 [3]; 3. 11-Tony Wondra, 12.998 [1]; 4. 30-Doug Wondra, 13.154 [7]; 5. 51-Chris Larson, 13.198 [2]; 6. 12P-JJ Pagel, 13.316 [6]; 7. (DNS) 69-Bill Taylor, 13.316
Qualifying 2: 1. 4-Alex Pokorski, 12.368 [2]; 2. 69S-TJ Smith, 12.485 [4]; 3. 08-Katelyn Krebsbach, 12.641 [6]; 4. 21H-TJ Haddy, 12.782 [5]; 5. 3-Justin Erickson, 12.801 [3]; 6. 53A-Spyder Akright, 12.837 [1]
Qualifying 3: 1. 35-Ben Schmidt, 12.397 [3]; 2. 98-Brandon McMullen, 12.557 [4]; 3. 85J-Logan Julien, 12.611 [5]; 4. 63K-Kevin Karnitz, 12.696 [2]; 5. 22B-Brandon Berth, 12.696 [1]; 6. 54-Randy Post, 12.870 [6]
OOSTBURG AUTOMOTIVE GRAND NATIONALS
A Main: 1. 14X-Will Sorce [3]; 2. 80-Luke Scholten [1]; 3. 23-Matt Loehr [7]; 4. 89-Brian Gilles [5]; 5. 72E-Chad Espen [6]; 6. 6-Dick Hed [10]; 7. 95-Donny Kulow [9]; 8. 7A-Todd Ascherien [11]; 9. 53W-Dustin Weiss [4]; 10. 24K-Tyler Kulow [14]; 11. 6B-Vince Bartolotta [13]; 12. 9-Josh Koslowski [8]; 13. 5C-Collin Skindzeleski [12]; 14. 03-Timothy Warner [15]; 15. 34-Steven Weber [2]
Heat 1 (10 Laps): 1. 89-Brian Gilles [1]; 2. 34-Steven Weber [2]; 3. 14X-Will Sorce [5]; 4. 95-Donny Kulow [4]; 5. 7A-Todd Ascherien [3]; 6. 6-Dick Hed [8]; 7. 6B-Vince Bartolotta [6]; 8. 03-Timothy Warner [7]
Heat 2 (10 Laps): 1. 72E-Chad Espen [2]; 2. 80-Luke Scholten [1]; 3. 53W-Dustin Weiss [5]; 4. 23-Matt Loehr [6]; 5. 9-Josh Koslowski [7]; 6. 5C-Collin Skindzeleski [4]; 7. (DNF) 24K-Tyler Kulow [3]
NEXT STEP INSURANCE B MODS
A Main: 1. 9L-Hunter Larson [4]; 2. 3-Travis Schmidt [2]; 3. 17S-Shane Long [5]; 4. 22M-Barry Maas [7]; 5. 03W-Tim Warner [6]; 6. 32Z-Andy Welter [8]; 7. 66-Steve Lorier [11]; 8. 84-Mark Hoeppner [9]; 9. 73-Rory Welch [1]; 10. 19-Parker Glander [10]; 11. 17-Brandon Knepprath [13]; 12. 29S-Tim Sheppard [3]; 13. 25-Jim Fischer [12]; 14. 54-Michael Strean [14]
Heat 1 (10 Laps): 1. 32Z-Andy Welter [3]; 2. 22M-Barry Maas [5]; 3. 73-Rory Welch [1]; 4. 29S-Tim Sheppard [7]; 5. 84-Mark Hoeppner [6]; 6. 25-Jim Fischer [4]; 7. (DNF) 54-Michael Strean [2]
Heat 2 (10 Laps): 1. 03W-Tim Warner [1]; 2. 17S-Shane Long [3]; 3. 9L-Hunter Larson [5]; 4. 3-Travis Schmidt [7]; 5. 66-Steve Lorier [2]; 6. 19-Parker Glander [6]; 7. (DNF) 17-Brandon Knepprath [4]
106.5 THE BUZZ WISCONSIN LEGENDS RACING DIRT SERIES
A Main (20 Laps): 1. 117-Adam Zellmer [9]; 2. 87-Dallas Ross [6]; 3. 88-Austin Winkel [13]; 4. 43S-Ryan Sullivan [10]; 5. 5G-Matt Gritt [4]; 6. 45C-Hunter Cardinal [1]; 7. 7F-Lilly Fassbender [2]; 8. 33S-Mike Swenson [12]; 9. 51-Tim Franz [14]; 10. 59S-Hayden Schmuhl [3]; 11. 7A-Brady Ascherien [11]; 12. 95M-Mike Mueller [5]; 13. 19X-Cal Swenson [7]; 14. 54R-Ethan Ross [8]
Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 43S-Ryan Sullivan [7]; 2. 59S-Hayden Schmuhl [3]; 3. 95M-Mike Mueller [4]; 4. 19X-Cal Swenson [5]; 5. 7F-Lilly Fassbender [2]; 6. 7A-Brady Ascherien [1]; 7. (DNF) 88-Austin Winkel [6]
Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 45C-Hunter Cardinal [1]; 2. 5G-Matt Gritt [3]; 3. 54R-Ethan Ross [5]; 4. 117-Adam Zellmer [6]; 5. 87-Dallas Ross [4]; 6. 33S-Mike Swenson [7]; 7. (DNF) 51-Tim Franz [2]
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