OSWEGO, NY (June 23, 2019) - Defending track champion Otto Sitterly became the first repeat Supermodified winner of 2019 when he passed race long leader Aric Iosue with eight to go and captured his 44th career victory on Helena-Agri Enterprises Night at Oswego Speedway.
Making up the front row for the 50-lap main event were Lou LeVea Jr. and Iosue. Despite LeVea Jr. taking the lead at the green flag, it took Iosue less than a lap to go under the No. 83 and thus begin to build a humongous advantage over the field.
One of the earliest cars on the move was the Brandon Bellinger No. 02. Bellinger started sixth, but had gone around both Dan Connors Jr. and Dave Danzer with two laps in the books, moving him into the fourth spot.
Second generation Canadian driver Logan Rayvals was the next to make an early bid inside the top five. The fourth starter put his No. 94 to the inside of LeVea and took over second place with five laps in, but Iosue was already way out in front.
For the next eight laps, Bellinger and Danzer worked LeVea over for third. On lap 13, the door opened as Bellinger got to the inside going into turn three with Danzer following through. It was now Iosue, Rayvals, Bellinger, Danzer, and LeVea making up the top five.
On lap 15, the driver of the No. 7 car decided it was “time to go.” Using the extreme outside lane of the speedway, Sitterly made an unbelievable move to go by four cars in one lap including Joe Gosek, Dave Shullick Jr, Dan Connors Jr, and LeVea Jr. to get up to sixth.
Meanwhile, Dave Gruel had gone by the LeVea No. 83, moving his No. 50 into fifth place. With twenty laps in the books, Iosue had built nearly a half track lead over Rayvals, Bellinger, Danzer, Gruel, and Sitterly.
At halfway, the second and third place cars began to close in on the Iosue No. 11, as he was now maneuvering through heavy lapped traffic. That is also when Sitterly went around both Gruel and Danzer to grab fourth.
With Sitterly on the charge, Iosue continued his march through lapped traffic without hesitation. The fourth year driver gave no ground to second and third place running Rayvals and Bellinger, who had begun to battle for position.
When Rayvals and Bellinger got hung up in lapped traffic in the midst of their duel for second, this allowed Sitterly to close almost instantly. On lap 30, both Bellinger and Sitterly worked by the Rayvals No. 94, dropping him back to fourth.
On lap 37, Sitterly drew to Bellinger’s back bumper as the No. 02 had difficulties getting by a lapped car. When Bellinger hesitated going into turn three, Sitterly went underneath both of them to inherit the runner-up spot.
At this point, it appeared as if Sitterly was the fastest car on the race track, but he only had a mere thirteen laps to catch Iosue who was at least a half track ahead. That was only until the yellow flag flew with seven to go for a jam up just outside the top five.
On lap 43, Shullick and Rayvals got together in turns one and two, sending the No. 94 around. This also collected the Connors No. 01 and the Gosek No. 00, both of which ended up out for the night. Rayvals was able to continue on, but the spin threw out a sure top five finish.
The caution flag also proved to be very costly for Iosue, as his gigantic lead was thrown away as well, bringing Sitterly right to his back bumper. On the restart, Iosue got sideways coming off of turn two, allowing Otto to capitalize and drive right on by up high.
With three laps to go, Iosue was able to close back in on the Sitterly No. 7, but the yellow flag came out twice on lap 47. First, Keith Shampine spun in turn two. One lap later, Gruel’s strong run ended in the foam in between turns three and four.
Iosue had one last shot at Sitterly on the final restart, but this time around it was ‘Ottomattic’ as Sitterly picked up the race win over Iosue in second and Bellinger in third. Shullick finished in fourth and Danzer in fifth.
Completing the top ten were Alison Sload, Michael Barnes, Rayvals, Shampine, and Jeff Abold. Snyder, LeVea Jr, rookie Jack Patrick, and Gosek rounded out the top fifteen.
Sitterly was the D&S Landscaping Hard Charger for yet another week, coming from row six to pick up the win. Rayvals picked up his second Lighthouse Lanes Up & Comer Award of the year as he recovered for an eighth place run.
Oswego Speedway is off this Saturday, June 29. The track’s 69th Season will continue with the Holiday Inn Express & Suites Grand Prix Special on July 6 featuring the Novelis Supermodifieds, Pathfinder Bank SBS, and 350 Supermodifieds.
For more information on Oswego Speedway, you can visit the track’s website online at OswegoSpeedway.com. Fans can also FOLLOW on Twitter @OswegoSpeedway or LIKE on Facebook at Facebook.com/OswegoSpeedway.
About Oswego Speedway: Oswego Speedway is a 5/8 mile semi-banked pavement racing oval located off the shores of Lake Ontario in scenic Oswego, NY. The speedway has been a continuously run weekly racing venue since August 1951. The premier open-wheel pavement short track cars in the world, Supermodifieds, run weekly at the Oswego Speedway making it the only weekly Supermodified racing venue in the world. The Small Block Supermodifieds and 350 Supermodifieds accompany the full blown Supers on a weekly Saturday night schedule which runs from May through September. Oswego Speedway is mentioned in racing circles as the “Indy of the East,” as no fewer than a dozen past and present competitors have competed at the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway including Mario Andretti, two-time Indy 500 champion Gordon Johncock, and former International Classic Champions Bentley Warren, Joe Gosek, and Davey Hamilton.
BOX SCORE
Helena Agri-Enterprises Night
Oswego Speedway
Oswego, NY
Saturday, June 22, 2019
Novelis Supermodifieds
Feature (50-laps): 1. 7 OTTO SITTERLY, 2. 11 Aric Iosue, 3. 02 Brandon Bellinger, 4. 95 Dave Shullick Jr, 5. 52 Dave Danzer, 6. 39 ® Alison Sload, 7. 68 Michael Barnes, 8. 94 Logan Rayvals, 9. 55 Keith Shampine, 10. 05 Jeff Abold, 11. 0 Tim Snyder, 12. 83 Lou LeVea Jr, 13. 90 ® Jack Patrick, 14. 50 Dave Gruel, 15. 00 Joe Gosek, 16. 01 Dan Connors Jr, 17. 54 ® Camden Proud, 18. 56 Hal LaTulip
Heat 1 (12-laps): 1. 01 Dan Connors Jr, 2. 83 Lou LeVea Jr, 3. 94 Logan Rayvals, 4. 11 Aric Iosue, 5. 39 ® Alson Sload, 6. 90 ® Jack Patrick
Heat 2 (12-laps): 1. 0 Tim Snyder, 2. 02 Brandon Bellinger, 3. 95 Dave Shullick Jr, 4. 55 Keith Shampine, 5. 00 Joe Gosek, 6. 56 Hal LaTulip
Heat 3 (12-laps): 1. 52 Dave Danzer, 2. 50 Dave Gruel, 3. 7 Otto Sitterly, 4. 05 Jeff Abold, 5. 68 Michael Barnes, 6. 54 ® Camden Proud
Group Time Trials: 1. 00 Joe Gosek - 15.918, 2. 39 ® Alison Sload - 16.016, 3. 50 Dave Gruel - 16.029, 4. 95 Dave Shullick Jr. - 16.046, 5. 11 Aric Iosue - 16.112, 6. 7 Otto Sitterly - 16.164, 7. 55 Keith Shampine - 16.189, 8. 94 Logan Rayvals - 16.225, 9. 52 Dave Danzer - 16.303, 10. 0 Tim Snyder - 16.328, 11. 01 Dan Connors Jr. - 16.349, 12. 68 Michael Barnes - 16.369, 13. 02 Brandon Bellinger - 16.528, 14. 54 ® Camden Proud - 16.670, 15. 90 ® Jack Patrick - 16.768, 16. 83 Lou LeVea Jr. - 16.849, 17. 56 Hal LaTulip - 17.734, 18. 05 Jeff Abold - 18.378
D&S Landscaping Hard Charger: #7 Otto Sitterly
Lighthouse Lanes Up and Comer: #94 Logan Rayvals
- CAMDEN PROUD on Jun 26, 2019
- Article Date: 6/26/2019