Waynesfield, Ohio (September 14, 2024)………Zach Wigal rebounded from a tough Friday night outing at Circle City Raceway to lead all 25 laps en route to victory lane with the USAC Midwest Thunder SpeeD2 Midgets on Saturday night at Ohio’s Waynesfield Raceway Park.
Twenty-four hours earlier, Wigal experienced engine issues early on, then got tangled up with a tractor tire in his heat race, which necessitated a front end swap. In the feature, he was the victim of another driver’s spin that ultimately led to a DNF.
It was much smoother sailing on Saturday night for Wigal (Belpre, Ohio), as he fended off the racelong challenges posed by Cale Coons on an extremely smooth, tacky and fast 1/3-mile high-banked dirt oval.
Coons finished second ahead of series point leader Bryce Massingill who edged out Stratton Briggs (Anna, Ohio) for fourth at the finish line after starting eighth. Tate Martz (Rushville, Ind.) finished fifth following an impressive run all night after capturing VMS Fast Qualifying honors and a heat race victory.
Massingill’s performance allowed him to maintain the Performance Electronics, Ltd. USAC Midwest Thunder SpeeD2 Midget championship point lead as Coons moved into second after Jakeb Boxell (Zanesville, Ind.) experienced mechanical issues in his heat race and had to tag the tail after moving to a backup car.
The backup car was supplied by fellow driver Cody Dye (Newton Falls, Ohio) who, himself, flew off turn one and ended up in the infamous cornfield. The car was repairable, and in an act of great sportsmanship, he turned his car over to Boxell whose car had suffered engine issues in his heat. Dye’s willingness to help a fellow competitor earned him the Rosewood Machine and Tool Company Precision Move of the Race.
Boxell, meanwhile, received the Performance Powder Coating Hard Charger award after making the best of a challenging evening. Boxell suffered engine woes in his heat race, which seemingly spelled an abrupt ending to his night and impacted his chances in the series points battle. After jumping into Dye’s car, Boxell tagged the tail of the 22-car field before advancing seven positions from 22nd to 15th. Boxell dropped one spot in the points race but remained within striking distance of leader Massingill and is still only 15 points behind Coons with two points races remaining.
USAC MIDWEST THUNDER SPEED2 MIDGET RACE RESULTS: September 14, 2024 – Waynesfield Raceway Park – Waynesfield, Ohio
FEATURE: (25 laps, starting positions in parentheses) 1. Zach Wigal (#18 Wigal), 2. Cale Coons (#63 Dooling/Curb-Agajanian), 3. Bryce Massingill (#35 Massingill), 4. Stratton Briggs (#71 Briggs), 5. Luke Hall (#74 Heitmeyer), 6. Tate Martz (#34 GMB), 7. Matt Lux (#5 Wells), 8. Chett Gehrke (#21 Fedorczyk), 9. Ryan Moran (#01 Moran), 10. Cole Morgan (#7m Morgan), 11. Michael Magic (#5m Magic), 12. Tyler Kalb (#32 Kalb), 13. Ian Creager (#36 Creager), 14. Alex Watson (#3 Watson), 15. Jakeb Boxell (#4T Dye), 16. Buddy Hollmeyer (#11L Taylor), 17. Brayden Schwartz (#55s Schwartz), 18. Derrick Noffsinger (#14 Noffsinger), 19. Andy Martin (#X Martin), 20. Jim Jones (#97 Jones), 21. Jason Shaffer (#40 Shaffer), 22. Tyler Nelson (#10 Nelson). NT
ALSO AT THE TRACK: Cody Dye (#4T Dye) & Jody Paul (#5J Paul)
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-25 Zach Wigal.
USAC MIDWEST THUNDER SPEED2 MIDGET POINTS: 1-Bryce Massingill-635, 2-Cale Coons-613, 3-Jakeb Boxell-632, 4-Tate Martz-567, 5-Matt Lux-556, 6-Ian Creager-525, 7-Stratton Briggs-478, 8-Zach Wigal-460, 9-Luke Hall-400, 10-Ryan Fleming-425.
NEXT USAC MIDWEST THUNDER SPEED2 MIDGET RACE: September 27, 2024 – Moler Raceway Park – Williamsburg, Ohio
CONTINGENCY AWARD WINNERS:
VMS Motorsports Fast Qualifier: Matt Lux (13.337)
Performance Electronics First Heat Winner: Matt Lux
Stiefel’s Home & Auto Second Heat Winner: Chett Gehrke
Hoosier Auto Racing Fans Third Heat Winner: Michael Magic
Performance Powder Coating Hard Charger: Jakeb Boxell (22nd to 15th)
Rosewood Machine & Tool Precision Move of the Race: Cody Dye
Competition Suspension Inc. Highest Pill: Matt Lux
Impact Lucky 7th Place Feature Finisher: Matt Lux
Saldana Racing Products Gift Certificate: Tyler Kalb
Curtis Motor Sales 10th Place Finisher: Cole Morgan
Lynn Cook – A Racer’s Friend Hard Luck: Tyler Nelson
