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May News
Senneker, Nylaan, Tillema and Hamm all win on
Memorial Weekend at Berlin Raceway
Johnny Finishes 4th
Marne, MI - The Berlin Raceway celebrated
Memorial Day in style this Saturday night, with
the running of a full 4-in-1 Show. Dollar beer
and hot dogs as well as school bus races brought
the fans out in force for a spectacular night of
entertainment from start to finish.
Complete Story
Happy Memorial Day!
Thank you to those who
have served to protect our country
Saturday, May 29 - Berlin Raceway
Johnny is Scheduled to
Race his Late Model
Berlin Raceway
will be Engine Pro Super Stock Night with a pre
race concert by Off Brand. The racing action
will include Late Models, Super Stocks,
Pro Stocks, and the ever popular School Bus
races. Just announced- a special, non-points
4-Cylinder race!
The night will also feature $1.00 beer and $1.00
hot dogs. Tickets for adults are only $12.00.
Children ages 6-12 are $5.00, while children 5
and under are FREE. Seniors 60+ are $10.00.
Grandstands open at 1:00 p.m., with the racing
action beginning at 7:00 p.m.
Busch wins at Charlotte
On a
restart with just two laps remaining, race
leader #18-Kyle Busch, held off a charge from
#30-Todd Bodine to win the North Carolina
Education Lottery 200 at Charlotte Motor
Speedway. Earlier in the race, Busch got loose
coming off of the fourth turn and bounced off
the wall, sustaining right side damage to the
truck. On the next pit stop, the KBM team made
the necessary repairs, and Busch fought his way
back to the front. A restart with less than ten
laps remaining, saw Busch take back the lead
from then leader, #33-Ron Hornaday and go on to
pick up the win. #30-Todd Bodine passed Hornaday
to finish second.
This is Busch's 3rd series win at Charlotte and
18th overall. A scary moment earlier in the race
for the #85-Brent Raymer as his truck caught
fire and burst into flames, and then backed into
the wall coming off of turn four. Raymer managed
to get out of the truck in a hurry and escaped
injury. Rounding out the top ten were; #33-Ron
Hornaday Jr., #31-James Buescher, #2-Elliott
Sadler, #5-Mike Skinner, #51-Aric Almirola,
#23-Jason White, #981-David Starr, #17-Timothy
Peters. There were 8 lead changes among 5
drivers, with 7 caution flags for 35 laps.
Mystery Surrounding
Loose Lug Nuts at Charlotte:
During the race
broadcast,
SPEEDtv
analyst, Ray Dunlap reported that the #18-Kyle
Busch Motorsports team found eleven lug nuts
loose on three wheels just prior to race start.
On Lap 10, #3-Austin Dillon suddenly broke
loose, veered right and hit the wall. It was
later found that there were loose lug nuts on
the left-rear of the #3-RCR truck.
There was also concern before and early in the
race about at least two trucks -- including
Busch's -- that mysteriously had loose lug nuts.
"They just found that three of the wheels were
loose," Busch crew chief Eric Phillips said
before the green flag. "We've just got to keep a
better eye on our stuff, I guess." Phillips
refused to speculate if he thought someone
intentionally loosened the wheels. But
20-year-old Austin Dillon -- whose car was
parked behind Busch's in the impound area after
qualifying -- claimed his wreck on the 10th lap
was caused by the same problem. "They left the
left-rear lugs loose. We don't know what
happened," said Dillon, grandson of NASCAR team
owner Richard Childress. A NASCAR official said
they were looking into the matter.
Dover Photos
By: Ragphoto
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Waiting for Qualifying
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Johnny and Kevin
Starland - crew chief
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Making Laps |
Start of the race
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Dover Race Comments
Toyota Motorsports
JOHNNY
BENSON, No. 15 Red Top Collector Car Auction
Toyota Tundra, Billy Ballew Motorsports
Finishing Position: 10th
Did you run out of fuel during the restart?
I'm guessing about the same thing. Its a
little odd because myself and Kyle (Busch)
should have never ran out. It didn't figure out
that way. It was one of those racing deals. I
think all of the calculations and everything
were right on. It wasn't even hardly blipping
the fuel gage or anything but that's the only
thing we' can think of.
I've got to thank Billy Ballew for letting me
drive this Red Top Auction Tundra and like I
said its been a pleasure the last couple of
races and hopefully some more down the road.
(Nelson) Piquet (Jr.) is going to drive it at
Charlotte and a couple others so good
opportunity for them because they've got a
pretty good hot rod. We put ourselves in a good
position we just weren't real good at the
beginning. We were just a little too loose.
Worked on it, went to far and came back and
really got it decent. We weren't going to touch
Kyle (Busch) but I believe we could've stayed
right there in second, but it wasn't meant to be
today.¨
Late-Race Problem Sends Benson
Home 10th
DOVER, Del. (May
14, 2010) – Johnny Benson was merely a few
gallons of fuel away from getting a
third-straight top-five finish in this week’s
Dover 200 at Dover International Speedway.
Benson was in position to compete for the win on
the event’s final restart, however, his No. 15
Red Top Auto Auction lost fuel pressure and sent
him to the back of the pack. The Grand Rapids,
Mich., native instead settled for a 10th-place
finish.
Benson started the race from the
fourth position. His Toyota Tundra was too loose
at the start of the race, so “Cowboy” Starland
made a wedge adjustment on the team’s first pit
stop, Lap 20, along with fresh tires and fuel.
Not everyone pitted, which put Benson in 14th-place
for the restart.
Starland’s adjustments were too
severe and Benson began fighting a truck that
was “way too tight” now. He made the most of his
truck until the next pit stop, Lap 52. This
time, Starland called for four new Goodyears and
a wedge adjustment to loosen Benson’s truck up
again. Benson went back on the track in 12th-place.
Green flag action returned on Lap
59. Benson’s Red Top Auto Auction Toyota was
running solid lap times when the caution flag
returned on Lap 85. The team changed tires
without making any adjustments and Benson
rejoined the field in 11th-place.
The race went green on Lap 91.
Benson’s truck began driving “way too loose.”
Starland diagnosed Benson’s handling problems as
a result of incompatible tires, so the team
decided to change his Goodyear Wranglers during
the following caution, Lap 114, without any
adjustments.
Benson took the green flag, Lap
119, in 14th-place. He pedaled into
11th-place before the caution halted
the action on Lap 122. The majority of the
leaders pitted, but Benson stayed on the track
which moved him into second position.
Benson took the lead on the
ensuing restart, Lap 128, and showed the way for
seven laps. He remained in second-place until
Lap 193, when the caution flag waved. The yellow
flag set the stage for a shootout. Benson lined
up on the outside of Row 1 and waited for the
green flag to start the battle. Unfortunately
the No. 15 truck lost fuel pressure on the
restart and didn’t get going. The caution flag
waved on the same lap and allowed him to make a
trip down pit lane for a gas and go. He fell to
16th-place for the final green flag
dash of the day, Lap 203. As good as Benson’s
truck was, he pedaled his way into 10th-place
in two short laps. The finish was Benson’s third
top-10 in as many tries with Billy Ballew
Motorsports.
“We had a really good Red Top
Auto Auction Toyota today,” said Benson. “We
were too loose, then too tight, but it
eventually came around. Cowboy made great calls
in the pits and really put us in a good position
at the end of the race. When we got out front,
one of the trucks with fresh tires got by us,
but we were holding our own. It was looking
like we had another top-five heading our way,
maybe even a win. On that restart, my truck
just didn’t go. I fell back. Fortunately a
caution came out and let us fuel up, but we
didn’t have enough laps left to get back up
front. Still, a top-10, though.”
Benson Aims to Capture First Truck Series
Win at Dover
MOORSEVILLE, N.C. (April 26, 2010) - Johnny
Benson will make his third start with Billy
Ballew Motorsports (BBM) this week at Dover
International Speedway (DIS). His
relationship with BBM has proven to be a
successful one, as the Grand Rapids, Mich.,
native drove the No. 15 Red Top Auto Auction
Toyota to a fifth-place finish in each
previous event.
DIS was the site of
Benson's first Nationwide Series win in
1994. Although he hasn't visited victory
lane at the "Monster Mile" in NASCAR Camping
World Truck Series (NCWTS) competition, he
has finished in the top-10 on three
occasions. Benson hopes his momentum with
BBM will snap his winless streak in this
Friday's Dover 200.
BBM's No. 15 team has one
win at DIS, which came in 2005 with Kyle
Busch behind the wheel.
Benson Comments
on the Dover 200:
"Dover (International Speedway) is a track I
love. I really enjoy racing there. It's a
track that we've had some success at. I won
my first Nationwide race there. I haven't
won in the Truck Series there yet. I've run
in the top-five there a lot, but had a few
issues that have kept us from probably
winning. I had an incident on pit road one
time that took us out of contention, but I
think we still finished in the top-10. One
other time, I went a lap down for pitting
under green and the caution came out. We
thought we were done because there were only
50 laps left in the race. We were able to
come all the way around and finished fourth
without the help of a caution. I think that
was one of those races that got away from
us. Those things will happen. It's a really
cool track, but when the 'monster' bites, he
bites hard. Hopefully we can go down there
and finally get a win."
To Watch Video -
DOWNLOAD .wmv
Scheid,
Norder, Bursley, and Campbell All Victorious
with the CRA Super Series in Town
Johnny Finishes 3rd
It was a cold spring night in
Marne, but not even that would stop the
dedicated Berlin Raceway fans. The rain showers
finally subsided and Berlin Raceway was able to
enjoy a full night of racing. The CRA Super
Series was in town featuring Johnny Benson Jr.
in Kyle Busch’s #51 car. The night was filled
with thrilling racing with wins by the #100 of
Jason Scheid, #29 John Norder, #97 Mike Bursley,
and #20 Brian Campbell.
The first race of the night was
Burnips Equipment 4 Cylinder Feature A-Race.
Frank Bisacky in the #8 and #76 Mike Speet were
on front row for the 4 Cylinders. The first
caution of the night was out before a lap was
even completed. A complete start was necessary;
this was the first of many cautions throughout
the night. After just the second lap, the # 111
of Josh Bisacky flipped numerous times near turn
4, but he walked away from the crash. Both the
Frank Bisacky and Josh Bisacky were done for the
night after their collision. Another caution
came out before lap 4 was completed; debris from
the previous wreck needed to be cleared from the
track. Once the remaining pieces were cleared,
another accident occurred. The #28 and #77 both
spun out, bringing out the yellow flag once
again. That would be the last caution of the
night for the 4 Cylinders, with a comfortable
lead the remainder of the race, #100 Jason
Scheid took the checkered flag for the 4
Cylinders A Feature Race; #17 Kyle Hamm, #7 Ryan
Hamm, #14 Jason DeVos, #01 Rob Shoemaker, #47
Don McNabb, #51 Brad Hastings, #28 Phil Speet,
and #10 Dave Duyst took the remaining top ten
spots.
Directly following was the 4
Cylinder Feature B-Race. This 20 lap feature
race followed the same pattern with numerous
cautions. The front row featured the #26 of Cal
Phillips and #32 Jim Woltanski. After just 2
laps the first caution was out; the #15 of Mel
Parsons spun out, and would not return. With 6
laps in #29 John Norder, #T11 Jim Rhodes, and
#44 Nicole Randolph would be the top three until
lap 9 when #65a Andy Church spun out. After the
13 laps the race for the top spot was tight;
Norder and Rhodes were fighting for position
until the #44 hit the wall in lap 19. The
checker flag came out Norder, #63 Paul Ritcie,
and Rhodes would take the top three spots.
Model Coverall Modifieds were up
next in the feature races. Starting at the
start/finish line was #8 Billy Eppink and
#78Travis Eddy. This race would also see its
share of cautions, a complete restart was
necessary for the Modifieds. There was a three
car collision with the #8 of Eppink, #12 Brian
Bergakker, and #14 Billy Shotko. Shotko would
not return, but Eppink and Bergakker would. By
lap 8 Eddy would enjoy a comfortable lead.
During lap 21 #97 Mike Bursley would make his
move into 3rd, Eddy and # 2 Kyle
Jones were the top two. Bursley would take the
lead with 2 laps to go. Bursley, Eddy, and Jones
would finish top 3.
The last feature race of the
night was the CRA Super Series. Like the
previous three feature races, the CRA would also
see an immense number of cautions. The top two
starters were Johnny Benson Jr. in the #51 and
#155 Chris Anthony. The first of 11 cautions
came out in lap 8 when both the #18 and #14 spun
out. Brian Campbell (#20) would move into 2nd
during lap 27, placing Anthony into 3rd.
The first lead change of the night came during
lap 34 when Campbell would move into 1s.
During lap 38 #84 Jay Niewiek would hit
the wall near turn 3; between laps 34 and 63, 8
cautions would come out. Kelsey Steele in the
#16 spun out many times in the front stretch,
also spinning out was #11 Nick Bonstell during
lap 63. At the half way mark Campbell was still
in the lead, following him was Anthony and
Benson. The final results for the night were
Campbell, Anthony, and Benson in the top three
sports; with #61 John VanDoorn, #151 Alec Carll,
#23 Chris Koslek, #8 Eddie Hoffman, #48 Seth
Moody, #25 Ross Kenseth, and #72 Scott Hantz
rounding out the top ten.
Up next for Berlin Raceway will
be The Late Model Spring Classic with Late
Models, Super Stocks, Pro-Stocks, and VROA.
Tickets are $12.00 for adults, $5 for children
6-12 and five and under are free. Gates for the
grandstand will open at 1pm with races starting
at 7pm.
NASCAR Hall
of Fame Grand Opening
Johnny is scheduled to Attend
NASCAR Hall of
Fame officials released the names of NASCAR
drivers, owners and executives planning to
participate in the Tuesday, May 11 grand
opening of the 150,000-square-foot facility in
uptown Charlotte, N.C.
As part of the historic day, 15 lucky customers
will get a once-in-a-lifetime chance to enter
the NASCAR Hall of Fame with a NASCAR celebrity.
Fifteen winners will be randomly selected from
the names of everyone who has purchased an
annual membership or ticket to visit the NASCAR
Hall of Fame on May 11. Tickets must be
purchased before 11:59pm/et on May 4. The first
five names drawn will get the unique honor of
being the first to walk into the new NASCAR Hall
of Fame at 10 a.m.
Those five lucky fans will be accompanied by
Inaugural Inductees Richard Petty and Junior
Johnson, three-time NASCAR Winston Cup Series
Champion Darrell Waltrip, 5-time NASCAR Grand
National Champion Jack Ingram and reigning
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver Ron
Hornaday. The remaining 10 names drawn will get
to enter the venue with a well-known NASCAR
competitor at their respective entry time. The
NASCAR Hall of Fame is a timed-entry facility,
meaning customers enter by appointment at the
top of every hour. The 10 lucky fans will enter
with NASCAR superstars Kasey Kahne, Kevin
Harvick, Kurt Busch and others.
NASCAR Champions and special guests confirmed to
participate in grand opening activities
throughout the day include Bobby Allison,
Johnny Benson, Greg Biffle, Todd Bodine,
Chuck Bown, Busch, Richard Childress, Brian
France, Steve Grissom, Harvick, Mike Helton,
Rick Hendrick, Hornaday, Ingram, Dale Jarrett,
Ned Jarrett, Johnson, Kahne, Travis Kvapil,
Bobby Labonte, Terry Labonte, Bud Moore, Joe
Nemechek, Petty, Mike Skinner, Martin Truex Jr.,
Rusty Wallace, Waltrip and Rex White. More names
may be announced at a later date.
The one-hour Opening Ceremony will begin
promptly at 9:00am/et and culminate with Petty,
Johnson, Waltrip, Ingram, Hornaday and five
lucky fans officially opening the interactive
venue. The opening ceremony will be followed by
a free community celebration outside the NASCAR
Hall of Fame 10:00am-8:00pm/et. In addition to
Bomshel, Lee Brice and Love and Theft concerts,
other free outdoor activities will include
driver appearances, question-and-answer
sessions, autograph sessions, strolling
entertainment and food vendors.
The star of the show that day will be the NASCAR
Hall of Fame. Tickets to enter the high-tech,
interactive attraction are on sale now and can
be purchased at www.NASCARHall.com or by calling
877-231-2010. Tickets are $19.95 for adults,
$17.95 for seniors and military, $12.95 for
children 5-12 and free for children younger than
5. Memberships provide unlimited entry for one
year and start at $25 for children and $50 for
adults. Group discounts, facility rentals and
sponsorships also are available by calling
704-654-4400. For schedule of events for the
grand opening, see
nascarhall.com
The Gangs All Here!
Michael, Kenny and JB
at Kansas Speedway
May 2010
Michael
Waltrip put this photo out on his Twitter
account. Brings back memories!
Now - where is Allen??
Keyser's Port City Racing 125 up Next for
the CRA Super Series at Berlin Raceway
Salem, IN (May 4, 2010) - The CRA Super
Series next event will be this Saturday's
Keyser's Port City Racing 125 at Berlin
Raceway in Marne, Michigan. Saturday's
event will be the tenth series event at
the famed .438-mile oval. 10-time Berlin
Raceway Champion Fred Campbell is the
all-time CRA Super Series winner at Berlin
with three victories. His son Brian
Campbell is second with two victories,
including last seasons Rowdy Busch 125.
Other CRA winners at Berlin include Scott
Hantz, former Berlin Champions Ross
Meeuwsen and Tom Thomas, who won last
year's series event held in October after
it was rained out in August. Tim Curry
also has a series win at Berlin.
Saturday's race will be a chance for teams
to get laps prior to the Tuesday, June
15th Rowdy's Revenge 251 presented by
Keyser's Port City Racing at Berlin. That
huge event will be sanctioned by the CRA
Super Series and could pay the winner
$25,000. NASCAR Superstar Kyle Busch will
be competing in that event trying to
better his fifth place finish in last
years Rowdy Busch 125.
NASCAR competitor Johnny Benson Jr.
will return to his former home track to
compete in Saturday's race, driving
the Kyle Busch Motorsports entry to help
get the car dialed in for Busch's June
15th return. Benson Jr. finished fifth in
this past Sunday's NASCAR Camping World
Truck Series event. This will be his first
ever start in a CRA Super Series event.
Complete Story
Up Next: Kansas Speedway
Kansas
Speedway — like Nashville — is celebrating its
10th season in 2010. But unlike Nashville, there
have been nine different winners at the 1.5-mile
Kansas City, Kan., track which hosts the
O'Reilly 250 on May 2.
The race, won a year ago by Mike Skinner, will
be held on a Sunday afternoon for the first time
in its history. Previous winners expected to
compete in this year's race include Skinner,
Todd Bodine and Ron Hornaday Jr. Only one
driver — Hornaday in 2008 — has won from the
Keystone Light Pole.
Benson Not Asking For Much, Just to Improve Last Year's
Finish by One Spot
MOORSEVILLE, N.C. (April 26, 2010) - Johnny Benson will
take the wheel of the No. 15 Red Top Auto Auction Tundra
in Sunday's O'Reilly Auto Parts 250 at Kansas Speedway.
The event will be Benson's second in a Billy Ballew
Motorsports-fielded entry this season. In his first race
with BBM, Benson rallied to a fifth-place finish at
Martinsville Speedway.
Although Benson has never visited victory
lane at Kansas, he finished second there last season.
Benson feels his team's abilities, along with his Kansas
Speedway know-how, will allow him to improve on his 2009
performance.
Benson Comments on O'Reilly
Auto Parts 250:
"Billy
Ballew gave me a great opportunity to go run
Martinsville with "Cowboy" (Kevin Starland). Working
with him and Richie (Wauters) was really cool. It's
funny, I used to always race against them, now we're
working together. I'm excited to be running Kansas and
Dover with them and going out and seeing what we can
do. We got things off to a good start at Martinsville,
finished fifth. Me and the guys on the 15 team worked
really well together. They seem to know how to fit the
truck to my driving style. When you run as well as we
did off the bat, it's usually a good sign of things to
come. I finished second at Kansas last season, so
hopefully I can finish one spot better this year.
That's all I'm asking for.
"Kansas (Speedway) is fun. It's a
mile-and-a-half-style race track, but it can be a tough
place to get around. Your truck has to be pretty good.
The track is so fast. If you're a little bit off, it's
easy to fall behind pretty quickly.
"Thanks to Red Top Auto Auction for
coming back and supporting us. I love working with
Billy and his crew and we'll have a lot of fun this
weekend."
To View Video - Click Here -
DOWNLOAD .wmv
Benson to Return to
Berlin Raceway to Compete
Berlin Raceway is proud
to announce that former NASCAR Champion Johnny
Benson, Jr. will compete at the track on
Saturday, May 8. Benson will drive the #51 NOS
Energy Drink Toyota Camry for NASCAR star Kyle
Busch, in preparation for the June 15 special.
The Grand Rapids native
driver will again return home to compete in the
CRA Super Series sanctioned event, which is
presented by Keyser's Port City Racing. The last
time Benson saw racing action at Berlin was when
he was severely injured in his own ISMA
SuperModified.
Benson will be looking
to help dial in the setup for 2009 NASCAR
Nationwide Series Champion Kyle Busch. Busch
will return to the driver’s seat of his Camry in
an attempt to capture the checkered flag in his
second attempt at the track in his template car,
in a race named Rowdy’s Revenge [June 15th].
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