oey Amantea returns to Rapid Tire USAC East Coast Sprint Cars competition this Friday at Delaware International Speedway in Delmar, Del.
Amantea posted a career-best third-place outing at the track last season.
“We got a podium there last year during the first race,” he said. “We’ve been pretty good whenever we’ve gone to both tracks in Delaware. With us getting a podium to start the year at Georgetown it was a boost. I know they’re different tracks, but they race similar. We’re hoping to get our first win of the season this weekend.”
Amantea is coming off a pair of strong nights with the USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Cars during Eastern Storm. The spectacle showcased five races in six nights with a rainout in the middle.
The first couple of nights ended in the B Main at Grandview Speedway in Bechtelsville, Pa., on June 13 and two nights later at Big Diamond Speedway in Pottsville, Pa. Things clicked on June 16 at Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, Pa., where Amantea hustled from 22 nd to 14 th in the A Main.
“It turns out we had a bad mag all week so the motor wouldn’t turn over 8,200 rpm so we were fighting that and also a faulty part in the engine,” he said. “It was certainly frustrating, especially at Grandview because we had speed before getting wrecked out. At Big Diamond we had speed, but not enough speed and I think that was due to our mag issue.
“At Williams Grove we had speed when the track cleaned off so much in the feature. Those guys were spinning tires and I could keep momentum up top. That was pretty good to end up 14 th from pretty much last.”
Amantea ended ninth in the B Main the following night at Port Royal Speedway in Port Royal, Pa., before advancing from 19 th to 13 th on June 18 at Action Track USA.
“We decided to bring out our backup car at Action Track to see and we were fast,” he said. “I had no confidence in myself because of the bad week we had and I think that put us back a little in time trials, but in the feature we were rolling. We started 19 th and passed up to 13 th and missed hard charger by one. I think we needed just one more lap to be in the top 10.
“Overall, there’s a lot to complain about, but at the same time not really because it happens in racing. You can only control so much. Things didn’t necessarily work out in our favor, but we were able to salvage a couple of good runs against the top non-wing drivers.”
QUICK RESULTS –
June 13 – Grandview Speedway in Bechteslville, Pa. – Qualifying: 24; Heat race: 7 (-); B Main: 8 (-).
June 15 – Big Diamond Speedway in Pottsville, Pa. – Qualifying: 24; Heat race: 7 (-); B Main: 10 (-).
June 16 – Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, Pa. – Qualifying: 29; Heat race: 5 (-); B Main: 6 (-); Feature: 14 (22).
June 17 – Port Royal Speedway in Port Royal, Pa. – Qualifying: 26; Heat race: 8 (-); B Main: 9 (-).
June 18 – Action Track USA in Kutztown, Pa. – Qualifying: 19; Heat race: 7 (7); Feature: 13 (19).
SEASON STATS –
17 races, 0 wins, 5 top fives, 7 top 10s, 10 top 15s, 14 top 20s
UP NEXT –
Friday at Delaware International Speedway in Delmar, Del., with the Rapid Tire USAC East Coast Sprint Cars
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