5/25/2016
Peck Collects Two POWRi Top-Fives, Wing Sprint Debut Up Next
(Photo by Patrick Davis)
MACON, Ill. – The healthy 2016 season continues for Justin Peck, as the young Monrovia, Ind. racer pieced together a pair of top-five runs this weekend in Illinois. In action with the POWRi National Midget Series on Friday at Fayette County Speedway in Brownstown and on Saturday at Macon Speedway, Peck came away with a fifth-place showing before thundering to a runner-up finish at the tight fifth-mile in Macon.
The usual POWRi car count was a bit down for the Friday night show at the Brownstown quarter-mile oval, with 24 midget entries. Starting fourth in the third and final heat, Peck quickly accrued the second position before a late pass for the lead to take the heat race victory.
The strong rally through the heat field put Peck third in points on the evening; thus, the Dura Coat Products No. 5x would start the 30-lap main from inside row two. Peck tried the low line early, but the top of the speedway soon proved to be the preferred path. By the time he could move to the high side, he had fallen back to sixth on lap three. When a top-five running car slowed to a stop, the yellow flag waved and Peck would be restarting in the fifth position. While succumbing a spot on the restart, Peck got into a spirited slidejob battle with Spencer Bayston. The duo traded the fifth spot on several occasions, though Bayston maintained the position as leader Tanner Thorson tangled with a car while trying to put it a lap down. When he spun, Peck again moved forward to fifth for the upcoming restart with 15 laps in the books. The epic fight between Peck and Bayston continued when the green waved once more. When Bayston began to pull away, Peck was left to ride out several laps in the fifth spot. A final caution gave Peck one more shot to take over the fourth position, but the effort proved unsuccessful.
After a 60-mile drive north for Saturday’s event at Macon Speedway, Peck was set to compete amongst a contingent of 32 midget drivers. In heat one, he was able to gain one position on the opening lap from his third starting spot to finish second.
The solid finish didn’t offer much for passing points, however, and Peck was stuck starting in the 12th position for the feature race. He used the bottom line early; meanwhile hard racing inside the top five resulted in three cars slowing to a stop with four laps down. Peck was thus up six positions into sixth with 26 laps still to go. In a handful of laps after the restart, he had driven his Toyota-powered DRC Chassis into fifth and was seeking even more. A subsequent yellow with 11 laps complete bunched the field back up and allowed Peck to size up the competition ahead of him. Fending off a challenge from Thorson, Peck eventually used a caution-riddled second half of the race to move forward. A successful slidejob on third-running Colten Cottle was negated as five cars spun behind the maneuver; with five to go, Peck again made an attempt and took the spot for good. Soon after, he powered forward into second only to have that pass erased by a caution as well. It wasn’t until the final lap that Peck was able to slide past Terry Babb, capturing the second-place finish.
Completing the weekend with two strong finishes, Peck jumped one spot in the season point standings with the POWRi series; his tally of 2120 points puts him 80 points behind third place and 180 behind point leader Zach Daum.
Up next for Peck is his initial foray into the winged sprint car ranks, visiting western Pennsylvania for two nights of action inside a 305ci sprint owned by Russ Grossman. He will compete twice more in that entry later in June, after chasing select USAC Indiana Midget Week events in Kenny Irwin’s No. 7K machine, as well as the entirety of POWRi Illinois SPEED Week in his family’s No. 5X.
Peck would like to thank Dura Coat Products, Stanton Racing Engines, Factory Kahne, DRC Chassis, Simpson Race Products, Lucas Oil, Keizer Wheels, Hoosier Racing Tire, Saldana Racing Products, Thomas Railroad Construction, Pit Stop BBQ & Grill, Kwik Change Products, and Spider Graphix, as well as his parents, crew, and all of his fans for their continued support.
Peck is next scheduled to compete on May 27 at Thunder Mountain Speedway in Brookville, Pa. and on May 28 at Mercer (Pa.) Raceway Park, both in Russ Grossman’s No. 2G 305ci winged sprint entry.
Quick Results
May 20 – Brownstown, IL – Midget – Heat: 1st (4); Feature: 5th (3)
May 21 – Macon, IL – Midget – Heat: 2nd (3); Feature: 2nd (12)
2016 Stats
12 races, 12 features, 0 wins, 2 podiums, 7 top-fives, 7 top-tens, 0 DNFs
Social Media
Website: http://www.justinpeckracing.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/justinpeckracing
Twitter: http://twitter.com/justin_peck5
Instagram: http://instagram.com/justin_peck5
Article Credit: Redbeard Promotions
