The Grand National Super Series stormed back to Dominion Raceway on September 30 to
honor the late Jeff Henriksen.
The 50 lap twins kicked off with Lance Corporal David LaRose waving the green flag and #30
Jason McDowell leading the pack to turn 1. Mike Kirk would pass for the lead and pace multiple
laps until a pesky JJ Pack would take his white #3 to the outside of Kirk and linger there for
several circuits. It eventually wore the leader down and Pack was pulling ahead with 40 to go.
#71 Jake Christman would utilize the same strategy to get to second before a yellow flag flew
for a caution in turns 1 and 2 for an accident including Kirk, McDowell, and the #21 of Jeremy
Mayfield.
Henriksen, and Brent Nelson behind. Christman would get a run and make the pass for the
lead, and just like he did back on April 29th, he would ride that lead to a checkered flag and a
trip to Alcova Mortgage Victory Lane.
“It was a little hairy there at the start trying to figure out what lane to go in [against Pack], but we settled in and got to victory lane,” said Christman.
In race #2 it was Brent Nelson and AJ Henriksen starting on the front row with a hard dive into
turn 1 by Nelson. Ultimately it was the #75 of Henriksen pulling ahead and pacing the field.
Kitzmiller, Pack and Kevin Kromer rounded out the top-5 early. Kitzmiller would take the
pass for P2, but a caution came out with 30 to-go and set up the end of the race.
Henriksen was side by side with Kitzmiller, who also won back in April. Henriksen was trying to prevent deja vu and win in his late brother's memorial race. It must have served as motivation, because he jumped out to a sizable lead and navigated lap cars effectively. Kitzmiller would
recover and close the gap to make it competitive, but not in enough time, as the defending
GNSS champion would take the checkered flag in his red #75. Kitzmiller finished second while
Kromer, subbing in for Christman, would come home third.
“It was a great race; the adjustment we made made the car much better,” said an emotional
Henriksen. “This race was for my brother and he was with me today.”
Kitzmiller shared the frustration of two runner-up finishes at his favorite track.
“Dang! Second place... If you can be happy with second place, I am not the driver for you.”
Also running twins last night were the Tru by Hilton Inex Legends. Conner Weddell entered the
evening with 5 straight victories and tied for the championship lead with Alec Andrecs. Weddell started the race from the top spot next to #17 Mason Lastra, who was racing at DR from Tampa Bay, Florida.
A long caution came out for Miles Murray on the backstretch, but when the green flag signaled
the restart, it was again Weddell, Lastra and Andrecs in the top spots. Lastra would catch
CWeed and take the lead as he crossed the stripe with 4-to go. It looked like Lastra would come
in and steal the win on Weddell’s home turf, but a single car caution came out for Dave Polenz.
The late restart saw Lastra out front until Weddell would pull a crossover move and when Lastra drifted up the track to block, the #8c dove underneath to regain the lead. It was game over for Lastra, as he got passed by the train on the inside.
Weddell would win his fifth in a row while the rest of the top-5 included, #8m Mason Magee,
“I told dad halfway through the year that I’m just gonna start going for wins, and here we are
getting five in a row,” said Weddell from victory lane.
The legends were not done however, and Weddell had to defend his streak. He drew a 1 to
ensure his starting from the lead; it made for the best case scenario for the young driver.
Weddell would have less challenges this time around despite the fact that Andrecs would
challenge for the lead seven laps in. When it was all said and done, Weddell ended his night
with a second checkered flag, and he climbed the fence to celebrate his season.
Weddell, who will not be in attendance during the October 14th finale due to a prior
arrangement, will finish his Dominion Raceway season with seven wins in total. With the
Weddell’s out of the picture, the division's championship should come down to Andrecs.
A championship battle commenced and a champion was named for the MN Upholstery Mini
Stocks. Kris Kurtz entered with a six point lead over Keith Reilly. Kurtz would need to finish 4th
or higher to be crowned.
Early Kurtz passed the #09 of Ryan Pritt and Reilly worked his way through traffic to get to
second. While Kurtz looked to have the championship wrapped up, his race win could have
been in jeopardy due to pressure from Reilly. Luckily for Kurtz he was able to capture both by
holding off the Lightning McQueen inspired ride. He took the checkered flag and received his
championship champagne from victory lane.
Other exciting racing action came from the Junkman Joey AnyCars as both the 4/6cyl and 8cyl
divisions saw late passes for the win. To start the night in the 8 cylinders, Pete Sullivan battled
past Richard Storm for the win, while Kyle Terczak got his first win against the #K9 of John
Andrews.
Also winning was the #88 of Brian Rundstrom Jr in the Dinger Depot Carlisle III Home
Inspections Bandoleros division.
The AnyCars, Legends, and Bandos are back to close out the season on October 14 with the Ucars and Virginia Racers also crowning a champion in the Fall finale with 50 Laps for UCARs and 118 for the Virginia Racers and First time winners LMSC its set to be an exciting finish to a great season! Gates for this race are 3pm, Track or Treat and Spectator Drags will also be on tap. You don't want to miss this last race of the season. https://drevents.ticketstobuy.com/event/167
