HARTFORD, OH – By Mike Leone – After a rainout last week, Sharon Speedway was blessed with a beautiful Saturday evening for “Steel Valley Thunder” racing as the 95th anniversary season rolled on. Celebrating in the Hovis Auto & Truck Supply victory lane with wins were Erick Rudolph (Hovis Auto & Truck Supply Big-Block Modifieds), Dennis Lunger, Jr. (Hovis Auto & Truck Supply UMP Modifieds presented by A&MP Electric), John Mollick (Billy’s Garage RUSH Sprint Cars), and Ayden Cipriano (HTMA/Precise Racing Products RUSH Sportsman Modifieds). It was Hovis Auto & Truck Supply, A&MP Electric, and Twin-State Auto Racing Club Night.
Making his second appearance of the season, Erick Rudolph remained undefeated in the Big-Block Modifieds. Rudolph passed Garrett Krummert on lap nine and fended him off throughout the remainder of the 25-lap Hovis Auto & Truck Supply feature presented by Autism Awareness, King Bros. Ready Mix Concrete, King’s Sanitary Services, Russ King Racing, and Thermo Supply. It’s been quite a week for Rudolph, who won $5,500 on Wednesday at Woodhull Raceway, $4,000 on Thursday at Genesee Speedway and added another $2,000 to his bank account on Saturday night!
“He (Krummert) had us covered early and it seemed like he really wanted to be on the top,” explained the 32-year-old Ransomville, NY racer. “I think they touched the top right before we went out so the top was really fast tonight. Then at the end I saw him peeking his nose here and there on the bottom so it got me thinking, but I just stuck to my guns and kept running the top. He was right there and I was getting nervous at the end, but I’m really proud of my guys for giving me a car that’s capable of winning. We’ve gotten two wins in a row here at Sharon and both have been really close. Hopefully we have something for next week as we’d really like to win another ‘Lou Blaney Memorial’. I think this is one of the nicest tracks in all of America. It’s certainly one of my favorite tracks. You know what to expect; it’s never rough and it’s driver friendly.”
In the final tune-up before next Saturday’s BRP Tour event, Rudolph crossed the finish line first ahead of Krummert by 0.598 seconds in the Briggs Motorsports-owned, Stirling Lubricants/Highmark/Nationals Maintenance Contracting/Snyder Industries/United Steelworkers-sponsored #25 for his sixth career Sharon win.
Krummert, who has yet to win this year at Sharon, has finished on the podium in all three events. Friday night Lernerville Speedway winner, Rex King, Jr., was third over Will Thomas III. Canadian invader Dalton Slack was fifth in his first ever Sharon appearance. Brad Rapp was sixth. Dave Murdick finished seventh in his first Sharon visit of 2024. Ayden Cipriano, who was doing double duty on Saturday night also racing in the RUSH Sportsman Modifieds, came home eighth over Rick Regalski, Jr. and Jordan Ehrenberg. Heat winners over the 20-car field were Krummert and Rudolph.
Up next is the “Lou Blaney Memorial” next Saturday (August 17) featuring the Hovis Auto & Truck Supply “410” Sprint Cars battling for $12,000 to-win/$1,200 to-start! The BRP Tour for the Big-Block Modifieds will also be in action for $2,500 to-win. NASCAR star Ryan Blaney will also be making an appearance. For reserved seats, advance general admission, and camping permits visit https://sharonspeedway.simpletix.com/
Hovis Auto & Truck Supply Big-Block Modifieds (25 laps, $2,000 to-win): 1. 25-ERICK RUDOLPH[2]; 2. 29-Garrett Krummert[1]; 3. 165-Rex King Jr[6]; 4. 9-Will Thomas[3]; 5. 3RS-Dalton Slack[9]; 6. 11R-Brad Rapp[7]; 7. 61-Dave Murdick[5]; 8. 5C-Ayden Cipriano[8]; 9. 13-Rick Regalski Jr[10]; 10. JD57-Jordan Ehrenberg[13]; 11. C3-Chas Wolbert[19]; 12. 18JR-Mike Dougherty Jr[12]; 13. 18-Colton Walters[14]; 14. 71-Steve Barr[11]; 15. 27H-Hayden Holden[16]; 16. 60-Tom Holden[18]; 17. 35-Steve Slater[20]; 18. 8M-Macey Adamik[17]; 19. 64-Rodney Beltz[15]; 20. 20P-Mike Kinney[4].
Sharon Speedway is owned by the Blaney, Weller, and Kirila Families and is a 3/8-mile dirt track located on Custer-Orangeville Road in Hartford, Ohio near the intersection of Routes 7 & 305. For more information, check out the website at www.sharonspeedway.com or call 330-772-5481. Become a fan of Sharon Speedway on Facebook at www.facebook.com/sharonspeedway and follow us on X (formerly known as Twitter) at www.twitter.com/sharonspdwy.