WRT Speedwerx photoMechanicsburg –You might call Brent Marks an independent driver this season or you might even call him a member of the Pennylvania Posse. But for certain you can call him $20,000 richer after claiming the Champion Racing Oil Summer Nationals for World of Outlaws Sprint Cars at Williams Grove Speedway on Saturday night.
Marks trounced the competition for the 20K payday after starting fourth in the field but his win was far from easy to get.
First he had to overtake Donny Schatz for the lead. And then he had to beat back Friday night winner Sheldon Haudenschild repeatedly after watching him get by for control.
Schatz blasted from the second spot out to a large lead when the green flag fell in the 30-lap main, leaving the field in his dust as he drove away.
And by lap six when he hit lapped traffic, he had a full straightaway over Marks who had throttled into second on the opening lap.
By lap eight, traffic was holding up Schatz, allowing pursuers Marks, Haudenschild and Carson Macedo to close right in.
On lap nine with traffic in play Marks nearly gave the entire race away when a mix up between he, Haudenschild and Macedo saw him drop from second to fourth in the turns only to see him dramatically recover and blast back around both drivers into second on the same circuit.
As Schatz struggled to put cars a lap down, Marks was dogged in his pursuit for control before finally getting by on lap 21 as the backmarker of Freddie Rahmer came into play just ahead.
With Marks the new leader, the storm of Haudenschild and Macedo bore down on a faltering Schatz and Marks when Haudenschild took a shot for the lead in the first corner.
Haudenschild’s blast underneath Marks saw him slide up the track into Rahmer, who was just in front of Marks on the cushion and Haudenschild ended up putting a right rear into Rahmer’s car as it bucked sideways and spit fire from the engine compartment.
The contact forced Haudenschild to turn partially sideways as well and Marks was able to bolt back around, again as the leader only to see the pace slowed for a stopped Rahmer.
The restart saw Haudenschild pull a masterful flyer for the lead as the pair shot into the first turn but Marks equally skillfully turned the car down off of the cushion and drove back by and into command, using the inside lane off of the second corner.
The next time around, Haudenschild did exactly the same thing and so did Marks, who again regained the top spot by allowing Haudenschild to drift up in front before turning his car back underneath to get back out in front.
This time however Marks was able to put enough daylight between himself and Haudenschild to prevent a third attempt at the slider before pulling away to the victory.
It was the Myerstown driver’s 11th career oval win after also claiming the Williams Grove National Open fall classic in 2019.
“It was pretty intense,†Marks said of his battles with Schatz and Haudenschild.
“There were a lot of close calls there. It was a lot of fun. It was fun racing Sheldon and Donny, a lot of fun for sure.â€
Haudenschild ended up .903 seconds behind at the finish.
“He did a great job tonight,†Haudenschild said of Marks.
“We have nothin’ to hang our heads about.â€
Schatz rode home third, saying, “Every lap I kept struggling and struggling to get straight.â€
Macedo and Lance Dewease completed the top five.
Sixth through 10th went to Anthony Macri, James McFadden, David Gravel, Aaron Reutzel and Lucas Wolfe.
Heats went to Haudenschild, Marks, Macri and Macedo with Logan Schuchart scoring the B Main.
Haudenschild earned the pole for the feature by winning the dash and he set fast time over the field early in the night with a lap of 17.262 seconds.
Feature Finishes
410 sprint cars, 25 laps: 1. Brent Marks, 2. Sheldon Haudenschild, 3. Donny Schatz, 4. Carson Macedo, 5. Lance Dewease, 6. Anthony Macri, 7. James McFadden, 8. David Gravel, 9. Aaron Reutzel, 10. Lucas Wolfe, 11. Brad Sweet, 12. Logan Schuchart, 13. Kraig Kinser, 14. Danny Dietrich, 15. Devon Borden, 16. Troy Wagaman Jr., 17. Dylan Cisney, 18. TJ Stutts, 19. Justin Whittall, 20. Freddie Rahmer, 21. Wayne Johnson, 22. Aaron Bollinger, 23. Alan Krimes, 24. Tyler Ross, 25. Dylan Norris
DNQ: Jacob Allen, Chad Trout, Matt Campbell, Chris Arnold, Brock Zearfoss, Jason Sides, Kyle Moody, Troy Fraker
