Story By: BIG DIAMOND SPEEDWAY – MINERSVILLE, PA – With a highly successful Eastern Storm week in the rear-view mirror, it is time to get back to our regularly scheduled program of Friday night racing at Big Diamond Speedway.
This Friday night June 23rd, it will be Tony’s Meat Market night featuring the Quandel Concrete Modifieds, the USS Achey Crate 602 Sportsman and the Red White and Blue Autos Roadrunners. Friday night will also include the Quandel Concrete Modifieds competing in match races.
Tony’s Meat Market is located at 17 E. North Street in Minersville, PA is a fine provider of choice Beef and Grade A Poultry and has a full Italian Take-Out-Menu. Tony’s has been a provider of food for Big Diamond Speedway for many years and their signature Cheesesteak at the speedway has been a staple for years. You can reach Tony’s by calling (570) 544-4800 or through their Facebook Page.
Tim Fitzpatrick surprised the field last week leading wire to wire to win the nonstop Quandel Concrete 25-lap feature race, will this Friday night give us yet another surprise winner? That will be hard to do with the big dogs chomping at the bit to get back to the Red White and Blue Autos victory lane. Brett Kressley and Duane Howard lead the way with two victories each, Craig Von Dohren, Mike Gular, Louden Reimert and Tim Fitzpatrick have one win apiece. Jeff Strunk may be the hungriest driver as he has been super-fast every week but still hasn’t been able to close the deal with a win. Kressley is the current leader in the race for the season championship over Strunk, Howard, Gular and Rick Laubach. The Quandel Concrete Modifieds will also compete in a series of match races on Friday night.
The USS Achey Crate 602 Sportsman will also be itching to get back on the track after four weeks of inactivity due to rainouts and not being on the schedule. Logan Watt leads in the chase for the 2023 championship by a mere 17 points over Jordan Henn. Watt, who won the first two weeks of the year has been shut out of victory lane since but has been a model of consistency to maintain the points lead. You can argue that the Crate 602 division has been the most competitive of the 2023 season.
The new and exciting Big Creek Concrete Crate 602 Rookies will also be back on track after a long absence. Jax Yohn has been the cream of the crop so far in 2023 but there are many rookie drivers that are getting better each week to provide a challenge.
Alex Schoffstall tied the record for career wins last Thursday in the Red White and Blue Autos Roadrunner and will be looking to make the record all his own this Friday night. Schoffstall has been nearly unbeatable the past few races and has closed the gap between himself and current points leader Chuck Fayash in the battle for the 2023 title.
The racing action will get underway on Friday night at 7:45 PM with hot laps starting at 7:15 PM
Pit gates will open Friday night at 5:00 PM with the Grandstand gate opening at 5:30 PM
Pit admission is $35 for those with a Big Diamond License. Non-licensed Pit admission is $45.
General admission is $20, Kids under 16 are free. Active military are admitted free with a valid ID.