RPW Column: Matt Sheppard Battles Track Conditions & Short Track Super Series Field To Win Accord’s Battle Of The Bullring

Column By: BOBBY CHALMERS / RPW – ACCORD, NY – Battle of the Bullring? Indeed. It was truly a battle at the Accord Speedway.

Short Track Super Series drivers & teams waged war Tuesday evening at the Ulster County speedplant for their 10th running of the Battle of the Bullring.

In the end, a familiar car on tour was sitting in victory lane.

For the 33rd time in Series history, Matt Sheppard was victorious. However, it was his first career win at Accord.

To do so, Sheppard he had to fend off pole sitter and defending race winner, Mat Williamson which has proven in the past to be no easy task.

Williamson took off from the drop of the green with the field in tow, but the car on the move was fourth place starter Sheppard as he was able to get to second on the opening circuit.

Then, he began to apply pressure to the leader.

As the race moved to the one-quarter mark of the 50-lap affair, the color most seen by racers and fans in attendance was yellow due to multiple accidents, spins and the like.

Restart after restart, though, the leader Williamson took the bottom while Sheppard was relegated to the top.

That ended up being extremely beneficial to the Savannah, NY driver as Sheppard was able to grab the top spot on a lap 13 restart, coming off the second corner.

The rest, as they say, is history.

“I’m thankful to be here in victory lane for the first time here at Accord,” Sheppard said. “Now, we can check this one off the list. They weren’t kidding when they said Battle of the Bullring. This was definitely a battle tonight.”

Did Sheppard have any idea that the top would work for him, especially with Williamson basically glued to the low lane?

“I really think Mat wanted to be on the bottom,” he said. “I just got so choppy down there that he wasn’t getting a good launch and I was able to get one around the outside of him.”

Once out front, was Sheppard confident on how he wanted to tackle the new Accord surface and configuration?

“After I got around Mat, I didn’t know where I wanted to run or where I wanted to be,” he said. “I tried to pick a decent line, tried to keep my nose clean and get through traffic.”

Was there any concern once Sheppard got the lead that the rest of the field might close in?

“I was honestly concerned about that the entire race,” he said. “Things just worked out for us. I could maneuver well enough and this Wegner engine ran good.”

Was he surprised at how well the Short Track Super Series engine ran on the tight quarter-mile?

“This thing seems to like these slippery little places,” he said. “We get a little bit of a weight break, maybe bounce through the holes a little bit better but it definitely did its job tonight.”

Ultimately, Sheppard was extremely happy to be able to grab his first career win at the speedway.

“Everything was hitting on all cylinders tonight,” he said. “We got a heat race win, a decent draw for the feature and once we got the lead, we were able to fend everybody off. To come to Accord and get out of here with a W, finally, we’re definitely happy with that.”

For Williamson, it was a battle from the drop of the green flag but at the end of the race, he came up just one spot short in second.

“It was just about surviving,” Williamson said. “The track had to deal with what they had going on with putting clay on. It’s a tough position for everyone to be in. They worked hard on it all night. Can’t take anything away from them.”

What did Williamson think of the new design to Accord?

“I think the new layout’s going to race really well when they get it smoothed out,” he said. “The officials did everything they could to give us the best surface possible tonight.”

Back to the race, however.

One thing that changed due to the large number of caution flags was series officials making the switch from double-file to single file restarts with about 20 laps remaining.

While this seemed to be just fine with the leader, Williamson had a varying opinion.

“To come home second tonight is good,” he said. “If they had gone double-file until the end like the rulebook says, who knows what would have happened. I don’t know who’s decision that was (to go single-file). However, Matt had a good car and hats off to those guys.”

Third place for a majority of the event was Billy Pauch Jr. However, close wheel-to-wheel racing between he and Williamson for the runner-up position in the closing stages of the event flattened his right front American-Racer tire as the field took the white flag.

That relegated the Milford, NJ driver to fifth at the checkers and allowed 21st place starter Anthony Perrego to make his way to the podium in third (See column to be posted Wednesday written by RPW’s Dylan Friebel for more).

“We had a really good car tonight,” Perrego said. “Once in a while, those pill draws for the heat race will catch up with you. We didn’t have much to work with in the heat and it started our night off behind.”

The former Accord Speedway track champion worked his way through the field and was able to salvage the best possible finish he could in fine fashion on the night.

“This place got pretty wild for the feature,” he said. “That allowed us to race and charge through.”

Perrego has turned many laps around the Ulster County track in several different divisions. What were his impressions of the new layout in its maiden event?

“It’s pretty tight right now in turns one and two but three and four kind of widened out,” he said. “We were running up against the wall down there and coming back across (the groove).”

The driver from Middletown, NY and his team, owned by Brian Smith, are being assisted by another so they can compete in Short Track Super Series events right now.

“All-in-all, a good night tonight for the Superior Remodeling 44,” he said. “I have to Butch Getz for loaning us the motor that’s in this car right now so we can continue for Brett’s (Deyo) races.”

Rusty Smith and Pauch Jr. completed the top five at the end of the 50 lap distance.

Finish (50 laps): MATT SHEPPARD, Mat Williamson, Anthony Perrego, Rusty Smith, Billy Pauch, Jr., Danny Johnson, Dillon Steuer, Corey Cormier, J.R. Hurlburt, Justin Holland, Tyler Dippel, Andy Bachetti, Marc Johnson, Francois Bernier, Richard Smith, Mike Mahaney, Danny Creeden, Bobby Hackel, Tanner Van Doren, Ron Holmes, Billy Van Inwegen, Ajay Potrzebowski, Michael Trautschold, Tyler Siri, Randy Green, Scott Ferrier, Craig Mitchell

Did Not Qualify: Cale Ross, Steve Bernier, Shawn McPhee, Danny Tyler, Joey Coppola, Joe Judge, Jake Dgien, Danny Bouc, Dylan Scribner, Allison Ricci, Nick Plumstead, Jackie Brown, Shane Jablonka, Chris Curtis, Mike Ricci, Jerry Higbie, Brett Tonkin, Rich Ricci, Jr., Jeremy Markle, Jeremy Hamilton, Daniel Morgiewicz, David Schilling

American Racer/Lias Tire Bonuses (FREE Tire Certificate): Corey Cormier (8th) & Tyler Dippel (11th)
BDR Speed Bonus ($50 Gift Card): Ron Holmes (20th)
Behrent’s Performance Warehouse Bonuses ($50 Gift Cards): Rusty Smith (fourth) & J.R. Hurlburt (ninth)
Beyea Custom Headers Redraw Bonus ($50): Tyler Siri (Redrew 10th)
EIBACH Springs Bonus ($100 Certificate): Danny Johnson (sixth)
“Hard Clay Observer” Hard Luck Award ($250): Dylan Scribner
Henry’s Exhaust Power Position ($50 Certificate): Tyler Dippel (11th)
Penske Racing Shocks Bonuses: Matt Sheppard (first – $150 certificate); Mat Williamson (second – $75 certificate); Anthony Perrego (third – $50 certificate); Justin Holland (10th – $25 certificate)
Steve’s Toy Box/Edna’s Sweet Creations Hard Charger ($250): Anthony Perrego (21st to 3rd) Superior Remodeling Halfway Leader ($200): Matt Sheppard
Wilwood Brakes ‘Lucky 7’ Bonus ($100 Certificate): Dillon Steuer (seventh)