Alumicraft Racers Clean Up At Dirt City Motorplex
Championship Off-Road (COR) hosted Rounds 7 & 8 at everyone's favorite little track. Dirt City Motorplex in Lena, Wisconsin, incorporates many other track features to make one of COR's most exciting circuits of the series. The Pro Buggy open-wheeled short-course action was the most exciting for this last weekend's event. The result was a mixed podium of competitors, but Alumicraft racers cleaned up, taking home five of the six podium trophies.
As the newest track in Midwest short-course off-road racing, Dirt City Motorplex is high on the list as a fan and driver favorite. The racing is tight and technical and always action-packed. This year, a record crowd and entries in the Pro Buggy division showed up for the event. There were 14 racers entered on Saturday, and 13 were able to make the start on Sunday. Friday's practice and qualifying session were canceled due to the heavy rainfall that made the track a mess.
In Round 7, Billy Buth was charging in the lead for the first part of the race, with fellow Alumicraft competitor Mark Steinhardt chasing him to the halfway point. At the competition caution, Buth pulled into the pits to change a flat tire. Lightning Larry, "The Legend," Job was a man of action in his Alumicraft and made a bold challenge against Steinhardt and Mike Kirkham. Unfortunately for Larry, he had a left rear tire go down in the final laps, which left his car struggling. Larry held onto the 3rd place position right up until getting passed just before crossing the finish line by .04 seconds.
Mark Steinhardt's third win of the season narrows the points gap on championship leader Buth, who leads by 13 points. In 2nd place, Mike Kirkham scored this third podium finish of the year in his Alumicraft race car.
Round 7 / Saturday Results
1. Mark Steinhardt
2. Mike Kirkham
For Round 8 on Sunday, Larry Job enjoyed an opportunity of redemption. Job moved into the lead early on, scoring the holeshot on Lap 1 and held the position for the entire race. Leading every lap, start to finish, including the competition caution restart, has to be nerve-racking for any mortal. You can play it cool as ice when you have as many off-road laps as Larry Job.
At the restart after the mandatory caution, Billy Buth presented a continuous effort going wheel to wheel against Job till the race's end. There was very tight competition down through the top five. Buth finished just .231 seconds behind Job for a well-earned 2nd-place podium.
The 3rd place battle was just as close, with Michael Meister nailing down the fastest lap and squeezing his way around Mark Steinhardt during the final lap.
Billy Buth's 2nd place effort to fight off Meister and Steinhardt keeps him in the Pro Buggy Championship points lead.
Round 8 / Sunday Results
1. Larry Job
2. Billy Buth
3. Michael Meister
The Dirt City event inches closer toward the end of the 2023 Championship Off-Road series. The point battle narrows amongst the Pro Buggy competitors, but in the end, it appears there will be another Alumicraft racer claiming the championship. Connect for an expert consultation on what it takes to race and win. Call Alumicraft at 619-596-9841 or go to: drivealumicraft.com to learn more about our race product
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