|
Traditional Sprint Car FanSite |
See You At The Races!!! |
| Press Release |
|
|
|
REUTIMANN CLAIMS FIRST USAC SILVER CROWN WIN AT MILWAUKEE |
|
July 24, 2006...WEST ALLIS, Wis. - Wayne Reutimann Jr. earned his first
USAC Silver Crown Series presented by K&N Engineering victory Sunday in the
"Milwaukee 100" at The Milwaukee Mile, taking the event after leading
only the final lap. Reutimann claimed the victory after Aaron Pierce - who originally led Lap 100 - was assessed a one-lap penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct, per USAC rule 10.48. Pierce, who was running second on the final lap, made contact with leader Brian Tyler in Turn 3. Pierce led Reutimann and Tyler cross the finish line, but Reutimann - who was second across the line - was awarded the victory after the penalty. Pierce finished fifth, one lap down. "If you work hard and are in the right position, sometimes the ball falls your way," said the Zephyrhills, Fla. native, who averaged 99.502 mph. "It just did for us today." Tyler led the race into the final lap, and gained a spark when Pierce's car wiggled coming off of Turn 2. But Pierce gathered it back up and drove it in too deep into Turn 3, hitting the rear of Tyler's car with the front left side of his attenuator. The yellow flag came out, putting Pierce and Reutimann in first and second and setting up a one-lap sprint to the finish. Reutimann dived underneath Pierce at the entrance of Turn 1, but - with less than two gallons of fuel left - started suffering fuel starvation and Pierce retook the lead back in Turn 3. He held it to the stripe and appeared to have his second straight victory in the bag before the penalty was assessed. Tyler, who earned the lead on Lap 87 when leader and teammate Dave Steele blew on engine on the main straightaway, was repositioned fifth on the restart, but passed Bud Kaeding and Dave Darland before the cars ever got into the first turn and finished second. Darland and Kaeding finished third and fourth. Reutimann, Steele and Tyler were only half of the six leaders in the 100-mile event - tying the mark for the second most in series history (seven, July 11, 1987). Josh Wise led at the start and held the point until Kaeding passed him on Lap 14. Kaeding led until Lap 34, when ignition problems forced him to fall back in the pack. Steele led until Lap 87, when his engine blew, setting up four lead changes in the final 13 laps. Reutimann was elated with the victory, specifically because of those who have stood behind him. "If it weren't for my sponsors, I'd be your local parts distributor," Reutimann said. "By the grace of God, they gave me the support and helped me be a racecar driver. "We were absolutely horrible when we unloaded. It was loose; it was tight, so we put the exact same setup we put on it on the one-and-a-half mile tracks, and by God, if it didn't work. A little bit of luck, but sometimes you just need that. We've had our share of bad luck before, but someone had to be running second, and it was us." Tyler tied Kaeding's series leading point total - now with 369 points - but Kaeding, who two victories, owns the tiebreaker heading into the "J.D. Byrider 100" on Aug. 3 at O'Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis. |
