9/22/2024
Fremont Speedway
Mintz gets last lap pass for Fremont 410 win; Henry earns track title
By Brian Liskai
Fremont, Ohio – Most racers will tell you it’s better to be running second toward the end of a race. That is exactly what benefitted Craig Mintz Saturday, Sept. 21 at Fremont Speedway Presented by Gill Construction on Fremont Federal Credit Union Night.
Mintz, from Gibsonburg, Ohio, pressured Kalib Henry the last third of the Fort Ball Pizza Palace 410 Sprint feature. Henry switched his line on the last lap, opening the top side of the track for Mintz who drove to the top side and around Henry for his first win of the year at Fremont. Mintz, a former four time Fremont track champion, earned his 18th career win at “The Track That Action Built” over Henry, Chris Andrews, Bryce Lucius and Trey Jacobs. Jacobs lead the first four laps before sixth starter Henry blasted into the lead, setting up the dramatic last lap pass by fifth starter Mintz to steal the win.
“That’s the benefit of running second every now and then. I think he was better on the top in one and two and he switched his line which helped me get a run. That’s the great thing about not running for points…if I would have stuck it in the fence I wouldn’t have cared,” said Mintz beside his Real Geese Decoys, Modern Woodman of America, Seagate Sandblasting, Brown Family Construction, Linder’s Speed Equipment, Bettsville Legion, DMI Racing, Keizer Wheels backed #09.
Henry, who scored five wins at Fremont in 2024, finishing second for the fifth time this year earned him the track’s division championship. Henry becomes the second driver from California to earn a Fremont Speedway track title, joining Michael “Buddy” Kofoid who claimed the title in 2019.
“I just messed up there. I made the wrong decision. I was running the top the whole race and saw him show a nose. Stupid on my part…I let him make me change what I was doing. I should have let him slide me or do something different there. Big picture….we won the championship and I appreciate the fans for coming out….but damn second sucks,” said Henry.
The Fremont Federal Credit Union 305 Sprints also had the fans on their feet. Jimmy McGrath led laps 1-24 but on the last lap his teammate, Dustin Dinan, got a tremendous run on the outside groove. The pair had a drag race coming to the checkers with Dinan squeaking out his ninth career win at Fremont by a mere .008 seconds over McGrath, Dustin Stroup, Brendan Torok and Kasey Ziebold.
“We’ve been working on this thing and making changes the last month and it paid off. It’s been since 2010 since I’ve won here. It’s the last race of the year and just let it all hang out. I can’t thank the McGraths enough for giving me the opportunity to race again. It’s been a lot of fun,” said Dinan beside his McGrath Racing, Rocket Shop, Gill Sawmill, Level Utilities, Level Performance, D2 Excavating backed #5DD.
Fremont, Ohio’s Jamie Miller, despite flipping in the feature, claimed his first ever 305 sprint track title, adding to his 2024 Attica Raceway Park championship and the title of the Attica Fremont Championship Series. He joins his dad, Skip, who won the 305 track championship in 1991. It’s his second overall track title as he claimed the dirt truck championship in 2022.
“We put in a lot of hard work to win all three of these titles this year. I wish we would have had a better championship night but you can’t win them all. We finally figured this place out. As I got older I slowed down a little bit and tried not to wreck and finish the race. We’ve been fast the past couple of years and dad can’t have that championship over me anymore,” said Miller.
In a caution filled 20-lap Burmeister Trophy Dirt Truck feature, Fostoria, Ohio’s Shawn Valenti took the lead from Kent Brewer on lap four and held off several challenges from Brewer and Keith Sorg to score his 7th win of the year at Fremont. The victory puts Valenti in a tied atop the track’s all-time win list with Paul Weaver, both having 81 career feature wins. Steve Miller would charge from 15th to second with Sorg, Brewer and Brad Stuckey rounding out the top five.
“I didn’t think that one was ever going to be over. Once we got this new truck out it’s been one of those years where we aren’t looking forward the season be over. Hats off to Ron Miller Race Cars. This thing has been phenomenal since we brought it out. Thanks to all my guys for all their hard work in the shop and at the track,” said Valenti beside his Craig Miller Trucking, Conrad Transportation, Dave Story Equipment, A Plus Auto Center, Concrete Material Supply, S&S Hauling and Excavating backed #7B.
Sorg claimed his third truck championship to go with his 2016 and 2018 titles.
“We built this truck two years ago and we did it for half the money…home built and built by us,” said Sorg.
Fremont Speedway will wrap up the 2024 racing season on Friday, Oct. 11 with the super late models and the dirt trucks/stock cars.
Keep up to date with Fremont Speedway by going to www.fremontohspeedway.com or on Facebook at www.facebook/FremontSpeedway or on Twitter at https://twitter.com/FremontSpeedway or follow on My Race Pass at www.myracepass.com
About Gill Construction – https://kgcpc.com
Owned and operated by Ray Brooks, and headquartered in nearby Port Clinton, Ohio, Gill Construction specializes in an array of land and water services, utilizing over five decades of experience to build an extensive repertoire which includes site excavation, site utilities, demolition, trenching, and marina service. Gill Construction boasts a dynamic, diverse, and experienced workforce, guaranteed to perform and complete any task with the utmost customer satisfaction.
About Fremont Federal Credit Union – www.fremontfcu.com
The Fremont Federal Credit Union is not just another financial institution, it is a financial cooperative made up of members sharing a common bond. Membership is open to anyone who lives, works, worships, or attends school in all of Sandusky and Ottawa Counties and parts of Seneca and Wood Counties. With four Fremont locations and one in each town of Clyde, Woodville and Port Clinton, Fremont Federal Credit Union provides a full line of financial products and service as well as convenient online and mobile banking, and unequivocal membership service. The Fremont Federal Credit Union has been around since 1946 and is not owned by one person or organization, it's governed by its members. The board of directors are volunteer members elected for a three-year term. There are no outside shareholders and profits to worry about. Earnings are returned right back to members in the form of lower rates and fees. This means, you receive higher returns on savings and lower than market rates on loans. To become a member, check out their website for more information on their full services and rates, today at www.fremontfcu.com.
Fremont Speedway
Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024
410 Sprints – Fort Ball Pizza Palace
A Feature 1 (30 Laps): 1. 09-Craig Mintz[5]; 2. 101-Kalib Henry[6]; 3. 15C-Chris Andrews[9]; 4. 32-Bryce Lucius[7]; 5. 9-Trey Jacobs[2]; 6. 19-TJ Michael[12]; 7. 16-DJ Foos[11]; 8. 01-Bryan Sebetto[4]; 9. 2+-Brian Smith[13]; 10. 29-Zeth Sabo[8]; 11. 5-Kody Brewer[18]; 12. 97-Jamie Miller[17]; 13. 21-Larry Kingseed Jr[10]; 14. 75-Jerry Dahms[20]; 15. X-Mike Keegan[15]; 16. 88JR-Jimmy McCune[16]; 17. 98-Robert Robenalt[19]; 18. 17S-Tylar Rankin[14]; 19. 14-Sean Rayhall[1]; 20. 35-Stuart Brubaker[3]
Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 32-Bryce Lucius[2]; 2. 14-Sean Rayhall[4]; 3. 9-Trey Jacobs[3]; 4. 21-Larry Kingseed Jr[5]; 5. 2+-Brian Smith[1]; 6. 88JR-Jimmy McCune[6]; 7. 98-Robert Robenalt[7]
Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 01-Bryan Sebetto[2]; 2. 29-Zeth Sabo[4]; 3. 35-Stuart Brubaker[3]; 4. 16-DJ Foos[1]; 5. 17S-Tylar Rankin[6]; 6. 97-Jamie Miller[5]; 7. 75-Jerry Dahms[7]
Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 101-Kalib Henry[2]; 2. 09-Craig Mintz[1]; 3. 15C-Chris Andrews[4]; 4. 19-TJ Michael[3]; 5. X-Mike Keegan[5]; 6. 5-Kody Brewer[6]
Qualifying 1: 1. 14-Sean Rayhall, 00:12.569[20]; 2. 29-Zeth Sabo, 00:12.799[17]; 3. 15C-Chris Andrews, 00:12.813[2]; 4. 9-Trey Jacobs, 00:12.821[19]; 5. 35-Stuart Brubaker, 00:12.872[18]; 6. 19-TJ Michael, 00:12.928[14]; 7. 32-Bryce Lucius, 00:13.023[7]; 8. 01-Bryan Sebetto, 00:13.031[12]; 9. 101-Kalib Henry, 00:13.063[3]; 10. 2+-Brian Smith, 00:13.120[16]; 11. 16-DJ Foos, 00:13.176[9]; 12. 09-Craig Mintz, 00:13.209[1]; 13. 21-Larry Kingseed Jr, 00:13.317[5]; 14. 97-Jamie Miller, 00:13.329[8]; 15. X-Mike Keegan, 00:13.425[13]; 16. 88JR-Jimmy McCune, 00:13.531[11]; 17. 17S-Tylar Rankin, 00:13.561[4]; 18. 5-Kody Brewer, 00:13.644[6]; 19. 98-Robert Robenalt, 00:14.201[15]; 20. 75-Jerry Dahms, 00:15.055[10]
305 Sprints – Fremont Federal Credit Union
A Feature 1 (25 Laps): 1. 5DD-Dustin Dinan[3]; 2. 5JR-Jimmy McGrath[2]; 3. 12X-Dustin Stroup[6]; 4. 2-Brendan Torok[13]; 5. X15-Kasey Ziebold[9]; 6. 49I-John Ivy[12]; 7. 19R-Steve Rando[8]; 8. 9R-Logan Riehl[11]; 9. 63-Randy Ruble[10]; 10. 26S-Lee Sommers[20]; 11. 12-Dylan Watson[14]; 12. 0-Bradley Bateson[18]; 13. 09-Daniel Hoffman[19]; 14. 8K-Zack Kramer[7]; 15. 8-Jim Leaser[16]; 16. 26-Jamie Miller[5]; 17. 3M-Logan Mongeau[15]; 18. 61-Tyler Shullick[4]; 19. 10TS-Tyler Schiets[17]; 20. 38-Butch Latte[21]; 21. (DNS) 3X-Blayne Keckler
B Feature 1 (10 Laps): 1. 8-Jim Leaser[1]; 2. 10TS-Tyler Schiets[3]; 3. 0-Bradley Bateson[4]; 4. 09-Daniel Hoffman[10]; 5. 26S-Lee Sommers[6]; 6. 38-Butch Latte[8]; 7. 88-Jimmy McCune Jr[9]; 8. 11-Brayden Harrison[2]; 9. 25-Chuck Roelle[7]; 10. 98-Dave Hoppes[5]; 11. 36-Jackson Lilje[11]; 12. 1X-Xaine Crispen[13]; 13. 2T-Tony Alvarez[12]
Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 61-Tyler Shullick[1]; 2. 19R-Steve Rando[2]; 3. X15-Kasey Ziebold[3]; 4. 63-Randy Ruble[5]; 5. 2-Brendan Torok[4]; 6. 10TS-Tyler Schiets[7]; 7. 98-Dave Hoppes[8]; 8. 38-Butch Latte[9]; 9. 11-Brayden Harrison[6]; 10. 1X-Xaine Crispen[10]
Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 3X-Blayne Keckler[2]; 2. 5DD-Dustin Dinan[1]; 3. 12X-Dustin Stroup[4]; 4. 9R-Logan Riehl[3]; 5. 12-Dylan Watson[5]; 6. 0-Bradley Bateson[6]; 7. 26S-Lee Sommers[7]; 8. 88-Jimmy McCune Jr[8]; 9. 36-Jackson Lilje[9]
Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 8K-Zack Kramer[2]; 2. 5JR-Jimmy McGrath[4]; 3. 26-Jamie Miller[3]; 4. 49I-John Ivy[6]; 5. 3M-Logan Mongeau[1]; 6. 8-Jim Leaser[5]; 7. 25-Chuck Roelle[8]; 8. 09-Daniel Hoffman[7]; 9. 2T-Tony Alvarez[9]
Qualifying 1: 1. 2-Brendan Torok, 00:13.596[1]; 2. 12X-Dustin Stroup, 00:13.628[18]; 3. 5JR-Jimmy McGrath, 00:13.638[23]; 4. X15-Kasey Ziebold, 00:13.703[5]; 5. 9R-Logan Riehl, 00:13.725[15]; 6. 26-Jamie Miller, 00:13.745[28]; 7. 19R-Steve Rando, 00:13.803[13]; 8. 3X-Blayne Keckler, 00:13.886[3]; 9. 8K-Zack Kramer, 00:13.890[25]; 10. 61-Tyler Shullick, 00:13.893[11]; 11. 5DD-Dustin Dinan, 00:13.917[24]; 12. 3M-Logan Mongeau, 00:14.053[16]; 13. 63-Randy Ruble, 00:14.103[14]; 14. 12-Dylan Watson, 00:14.143[4]; 15. 8-Jim Leaser, 00:14.146[26]; 16. 11-Brayden Harrison, 00:14.167[2]; 17. 0-Bradley Bateson, 00:14.210[9]; 18. 49I-John Ivy, 00:14.210[10]; 19. 10TS-Tyler Schiets, 00:14.233[12]; 20. 26S-Lee Sommers, 00:14.241[19]; 21. 09-Daniel Hoffman, 00:14.422[21]; 22. 98-Dave Hoppes, 00:14.566[17]; 23. 88-Jimmy McCune Jr, 00:14.642[20]; 24. 25-Chuck Roelle, 00:14.678[27]; 25. 38-Butch Latte, 00:15.077[7]; 26. 36-Jackson Lilje, 00:15.206[6]; 27. 2T-Tony Alvarez, 00:15.456[8]; 28. 1X-Xaine Crispen, 00:15.861[22]
Dirt Trucks – Burmeister Trophy
A Feature 1 (20 Laps): 1. 7B-Shawn Valenti[6]; 2. 95-Steve Miller[15]; 3. 8-Keith Sorg[5]; 4. 8KB-Kent Brewer[3]; 5. 5S-Bradley Stuckey[7]; 6. 28-Cody Laird[9]; 7. P51-Dave Golembiewski[2]; 8. 34-Todd Warnick[1]; 9. 35-Ron Miller[19]; 10. 1M-Scott Milligan[8]; 11. 7XP-Cyle Poole[10]; 12. 20-Caleb Shearn[16]; 13. 99-Eric Potridge[18]; 14. 19H-Adam Heminger[21]; 15. 4M-Jamie Miller[4]; 16. 18S-Randy Swiecicki[11]; 17. 33-Brian Arnold[12]; 18. 11-Brandon Goad[17]; 19. 9-Curt Inks[20]; 20. 9S-Tony Parker[13]; 21. 51-Dave Bankey[14]
Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 34-Todd Warnick[2]; 2. 8-Keith Sorg[3]; 3. 8KB-Kent Brewer[4]; 4. 7XP-Cyle Poole[7]; 5. 9S-Tony Parker[1]; 6. 20-Caleb Shearn[6]; 7. (DNS) 19H-Adam Heminger
Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 7B-Shawn Valenti[4]; 2. 5S-Bradley Stuckey[2]; 3. 1M-Scott Milligan[3]; 4. 18S-Randy Swiecicki[6]; 5. 51-Dave Bankey[5]; 6. 11-Brandon Goad[7]; 7. 35-Ron Miller[1]
Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 4M-Jamie Miller[4]; 2. P51-Dave Golembiewski[3]; 3. 28-Cody Laird[5]; 4. 33-Brian Arnold[2]; 5. 95-Steve Miller[7]; 6. 99-Eric Potridge[6]; 7. 9-Curt Inks[1]
Qualifying 1: 1. 8KB-Kent Brewer, 00:17.744[16]; 2. 7B-Shawn Valenti, 00:17.832[6]; 3. 4M-Jamie Miller, 00:17.903[20]; 4. 8-Keith Sorg, 00:18.264[5]; 5. 1M-Scott Milligan, 00:18.568[14]; 6. P51-Dave Golembiewski, 00:18.596[19]; 7. 34-Todd Warnick, 00:18.625[18]; 8. 5S-Bradley Stuckey, 00:18.703[7]; 9. 33-Brian Arnold, 00:18.855[10]; 10. 9S-Tony Parker, 00:18.885[8]; 11. 35-Ron Miller, 00:18.989[3]; 12. 9-Curt Inks, 00:19.000[2]; 13. 19H-Adam Heminger, 00:19.069[13]; 14. 51-Dave Bankey, 00:19.149[9]; 15. 28-Cody Laird, 00:19.219[4]; 16. 20-Caleb Shearn, 00:19.284[1]; 17. 18S-Randy Swiecicki, 00:19.429[15]; 18. 99-Eric Potridge, 00:19.548[17]; 19. 7XP-Cyle Poole, 00:19.960[11]; 20. 11-Brandon Goad, 00:22.110[21]; 21. (DNS) 95-Steve Miller
Article Credit: Brian Liskai
