–by T.J. Ingerson (@TJIngerson)
VMM Editor
NORTH WOODSTOCK, N.H. – No longer will Joey Polewarczyk Jr. have to answer the question when he will win a Super Late Model racing.
After coming close many times, Polewarczyk sealed the deal on Sunday afternoon as he claimed the win in the PASS North Super Late Model Foley Oil Co. Summer Showdown 150 at White Mountain Motorsports Park.
“We’ve been after this a long time,” Polewarczyk said. “People know we’ve been here and we’ve been close. We’ve had good runs, but we’ve never put it all together.
“This is actually my first win at White Mountain, too, and I’ve been coming here for a long time.
“This car was unbelievable tonight. There is no other way to describe it. Because we’ve been so close so many times, it’s just a weight off my shoulders. Everyone has always been ‘you’ve never gotten a PASS win, yet’ and we were able to do that tonight. I’m super psyched about that.”
Polewarczyk started the 150-lap PASS North event in the sixth spot and had worked his way into the second spot by lap 25. From there, he then followed six-time PASS North champion Johnny Clark and stayed glued to his tire tracks.
The Hudson, N.H. driver would first take the lead following a lap 100 restart, but surrendered it back to Clark on lap 107. A lap 111 caution flag would put Polewarczyk back to Clark’s outside, but Clark powered away on the restart.
However, Polewarczyk would dive to Clark’s inside on lap 116 and made it work – something he has been unable to do multiple times prior. Polewarczyk then held on through a series of late race caution flags to earn the win.
“I was worried about (getting back by Clark),” Polewarczyk said. “He had awesome restarts. I thought I got him on one restart, but I guess I must have jumped him a little bit.
“I knew we were better than him. It was just a matter when to make our move because I didn’t want to do it too early. I wanted to time it because I knew there would probably be some yellows to where I could do it on a restart.
“Finally, I said ‘I’m going to give it all I’ve got this time’ and thank god it worked. And then we had a caution, but luckily I learned from Johnny (Clark) on the restarts and I was kind of able to do that with Glen (Luce).”
The Polewarczyk’s spent the offseason building a new Super Late Model and have put a lot of effort into their Super Late Model program. Their effort had nearly paid off as the teams had a podium finish a week and a half ago at Beech Ridge Motor Speedway and nearly won $10,000 at Seekonk Speedway the next day before a wiring issue ended their night.
“It’s huge. It’s a huge weight off of our shoulders,” Polewarczyk said. “We spent a lot of money on this program and Distance Racing has built an unbelievable car. Every time it’s been out this year it’s been fast.
“I’m just really relieved to get that win.”
Luce of Turner, Maine raced from a 13th place starting spot to finish second. Clark, of Hallowell, Maine, held on for third. Derek Ramstrom of Worcester, Mass., bounced back from a midrace spin to finish fourth while Tracy Gordon of Strong, Maine rebounded from his own spin to complete the top-five finishers.
Former series champion Travis Benjamin finished sixth while second place point driver Mike Hopkins came home seventh. Derek Griffith, point leader D.J. Shaw, and Dany Poulin finished eighth, ninth, and tenth, respectively.
The PASS North Super Late Models will run in an Oxford 250 tune-up on Sunday, July 31 at Oxford Plains Speedway.
VMM will have more from the Foley Oil Co. Summer Showdown in the Mountains soon.
UNOFFICIAL RESULTS – Foley Oil Co. Summer Showdown 150
PASS North Super Late Models
White Mountain Motorsports Park, North Woodstock, N.H.
Sunday, July 24, 2016
Pos.-(Start)-Driver-Hometown
1. (6) Joey Polewarczyk Jr., Hudson, N.H.
2. (13) Glen Luce, Turner, Maine
3. (1) Johnny Clark, Hallowell, Maine
4. (5) Derek Ramstrom, Worcester, Mass.
5. (7) Tracy Gordon, Strong, Maine
6. (15) Travis Benjamin, Morrill, Maine
7. (19) Mike Hopkins, Hermon, Maine
8. (3) Derek Griffith, Hudson, N.H.
9. (11) D.J. Shaw, Center Conway, N.H.
10. (16) Dany Poulin, Vallee-Jonction, Que.
11. (17) Sam Gooden, Whitefield, N.H.
12. (2) Mike Rowe, Turner, Maine
13. (12) Ben Rowe, Turner, Maine
14. (4) Jeremy Davis, Tamworth, N.H.
15. (14) Joe Sequeglia Jr., Derry, N.H.
16. (10) Bryan Kruczek, Newmarket, N.H.
17. (9) Nick Jenkins, Brownville, Maine
18. (8) Brent Dragon, Milton, Vt.
19. (18) Greg Nanigian, Braintree, Mass.
PHOTOS:
1 – Joey Polewarczyk Jr. celebrates his first career PASS North Super Late Model win on Sunday afternoon at White Mountain Motorsports Park. (T.J. Ingerson/VMM photo)
2 – Joey Polewarczyk Jr. celebrates his PASS North win with his crew on Sunday afternoon at White Mountain Motorsports Park. (T.J. Ingerson/VMM photo)
