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FRIESEN SWEEPS THE NIGHT AT FONDA FOR $6,901

By: Ron Szczerba

Fonda, NY – A Total Sweep

On Saturday evening at the “Track of Champions” Fonda Speedway, MR Asphalt Paving and Sealcoating presented the Bill Ag Memorial Modified Elimination Races along with all regular divisions in feature action.

The special racing program called the “Bill Ag Modified Elimination Races” honored the late Bill Anagnostopoulos, a fan and racer favorite, contested at the speedway each year in memory of Bill Agnagnostopulos, the late owner of the Winner’s Circle restaurant in Fonda and a man who lived and breathed racing.

After five rounds of eliminations, Stewart Friesen was the winner of the event, winning all five rounds against Robert Bublak, Matt Stangle, Demetrios Drellos, Will Shields, and Brian Pessolano for prize money totaling $4,501!

“Cool deal, thanks to the whole AG family for doing this,” Friesen said after his Bill Ag Elimination Race win. “Stangle had me licked there and I think he took the left rear tire off the bead at the top of three and four and I was like all right I’m not going to give up the top after that. Bill took good care of Jess over the years, just going and being able to hang out with him at the Winners Circle and spend some time with him really showed the type of guy he was and I got to see that first hand.”

“It goes back to before I even started racing,” Jessica Friesen said regarding her good friend Bill Ag. “I grew up here at Fonda with my dad racing and we’d go over to the Winners Circle afterwards. My favorite candies that Bill always had were the little cinnamon ones so when I came in the door he’d save them for me. He actually helped me get started when I started my racing career with fuel and tires and helped support me when I got started racing. He was very special to all of us; we miss him a lot.”

But Friesen wasn’t done yet. After a hard fought battle for most of the 30-lap Amsterdam Truck Center Modified feature event with invading driver Matt Sheppard, Friesen took the lead in the event with ten laps to go and went on to his 101st career win at Fonda along with another $2,400 in earnings. All total for the evening Friesen’s winnings were $6,901 along with other possible bonus money that was on the line for the feature event.

“He’s fast, he’s the best in the business,” Friesen said to Mimi Lazzaro in FX Caprara Car Companies Victory Lane after the feature win about his race long battle with Matt Sheppard. “Starting him on the pole is challenging, we were just hoping we would get to traffic and have something come in to play.”

Other winners on MR Asphalt Paving and Sealcoating included Tyler Peet (Swagger Factory Apparel Sportsman), Ivan Joslin (Leatherstocking Credit Union Pro Stocks), Brian Nelson (Montgomery County Office for Aging Inc. Limited Sportsman), William Liberatore (SOHC) and Stephen Burka (DOHC) in the Fonda Fair Four Cylinders.

The luck of the draw placed Matt Sheppard on the pole for the 30-lap Amsterdam Truck Center main event and he wasted no time taking the early lead over outside pole starter Pep Corradi. Stewart Friesen started sixth but wasted no time getting to the second position, going three wide in turns three and four to get around both Matt Stangle and Corradi for the position on lap two.

An early caution flag one lap later forced a restart that shuffled the field, but Sheppard was able to maintain his lead on the backstretch restart with Friesen in chase. Eighth place starter Jack Lehner and fourth place starter and defending track champion Alex Yankowski were the new third and fourth place cars after the restart with Sheppard in lap traffic by lap six.

Two more caution flags on laps seven and eight forced a single file restart, but it remained green for the next few laps allowing the top three at the time of Sheppard, Friesen, and Yankowski to encounter lap traffic as they were now all together battling for the lead. Coming around to complete lap 20, Friesen had a great run going down the backstretch into turn three, took the lead away from Sheppard, and pulled away leaving Sheppard and Yankowski battling for the second position.

At Joe Kriss’ checkered flag, it was Friesen winning the 101st of his career at Fonda in the Halmar #44 with Sheppard, Yankowski, Lehner, and ninth place starter Jessica Friesen completing the top five.

“The top of the track was really fast tonight, and we were able to find a little bit above the cushion in one and two, Friesen said in victory lane. “We got to traffic, threw a slider there in three and four, and it was hammer down from there on out. It was a little dirty up there to start and Matt just fired off really good on the restarts. The restart zone on the backstretch is challenging to say the least so there’s a lot going on there, I just tried to fire the best I could and just keep pacing him. It was fast.”

After an early caution flag in the 25-lap Swagger Factory Apparel Sportsman feature with no laps completed, pole position starter Josh Coonradt took the lead and by lap 12 was already in lap traffic with Mason Gray in the second position. Fifth place starter Tyler Peet got by the third place car of Chase Moran one lap later with tenth place starter and defending track champion Chad Edwards following Peet by Moran for the fourth spot.

Peet and Edwards both got by Gray for the second and third positions on lap 19 with the yellow flag coming out two laps later slowing the field. Peet took the lead away on the single file restart and went on to the win, his seventh career win at Fonda in the New Edge Diamond Services LLC #9G. Coonradt, Edwards, Gray, and seventh place starter Garrett Chillot completed the top five.

“I feel sorry for Josh (Coonradt),” Peet said in victory lane. “He got his right rear in the mud and slipped up on the restart. I had a really good car, been struggling here with this car a little bit, we threw some changes at it for tonight and it worked really good. Shout out to my parents who are watching at home, this one is for you mom.”

“Dakota built me a good piece, everything he does to it seems to work,” Peet continued to say. “Felt kind of rough on the top there but I could still make it work when I had to. That’s what is really important about winning these races, you halve to go where it’s not comfortable and be able to pass cars.”

The Leatherstocking Credit Union Pro Stock feature didn’t start out as pole position starter Nick Stone would like it to as he was forced pit side before the green flag ever came out with mechanical issues placing Kenny Gates and Andy Graves on the front row for the original restart.

Graves led lap one before fourth place starter Ivan Joslin took control of the event, taking the lead on lap two and pulling away after getting the lead. Gates fell back to fifth on the restart but steadily worked his way back to the front, battling just before halfway with the second place car of Jason Morrison for the second position.

A restart after a lap 14 caution shuffled the top five with Luke Horning who originally started seventh getting by both Gates and Morrison for the second position. As Joslin pulled away yet again, Gates was able to get back by Horning for the second position with Joslin going on to his 21st career win at Fonda in the One Zee Tees #49. Gates, Horning, Morrison, and Rick Duzlak completed the top five.

“We definitely needed this,” Joslin said after the win. “We’ve had a fast car but no good luck. It was great to finally get here; the car was really good. I could turn it and put it anywhere, my uncle Dennis is the brains of this outfit and sets it all up. We just do simple stuff, and it works.”

Brian Nelson started on the pole in the 15-lap Montgomery County Office for Aging Inc. feature event and led every lap for his first career win in the CC Photography & Media #647 with Lance Hill, Steve Wagoner, Owen Mormile, and Kirsten Swartz completing the top five.

Stephen Burka (DOHC) took over the lead on lap seven of the 12-lap Fonda Fair Four Cylinder event and was the overall winner with Tomek Kowalczyk and Nichole Decker second and third overall. William Liberatore finished in the fourth position but was the first single overhead cam car across the line as he scored his first career win in the division. Wayne Russell Jr. completed the overall top five.

Next Saturday, May 9 Cobleskill Collision Night will present racing at Fonda in all divisions plus an Enduro! All divisions will be in action along with a Kids Club Event, Junior Flagging with Joe Kriss. Grandstand Admission is $15 (Adults) - $13 (Seniors ages 65 and over) - Kids 11 and under FREE! Infield Parking: $65 (includes four passes) with Pit Admission: $40 (Non-Members) - $35 (Members) - $10 (Kids 11 and under). The pits will open at 4:00 p.m. with hot laps at 6:00 p.m. and racing at 7:00 p.m.

If you are a race fan that gets to the track early, be sure to check out the history of the Fonda Speedway at the Fonda Speedway Museum & Hall of Fame which is located on the Fonda Fairgrounds at the rear of the parking area going down towards turn four. The museum is open from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. on race days and admission is free!

Fonda Speedway weekly feature winners, their race teams, and sponsors are invited the following week to display their cars at the museum and watch their feature win on Flo before the races. The victorious car display can begin as early as 3:00, and you are welcome to arrive and stay as late as your schedule allows.

Please message the Fonda Speedway Hall of Fame and Museum Facebook page to RSVP or with any questions!

All Fonda Speedway events are broadcast LIVE on FloRacing (www.floracing.tv).

The “Track of Champions” Fonda Speedway has hosted the best in stock car racing for 75 years. The speedway operates weekly on Saturday nights from April through August plus several special events. Fonda Speedway is located on the Montgomery County Fairgrounds off New York State Thruway Exit No. 28 at 21 S. Bridge Street Fonda, NY 12068.

Fonda Speedway is on the web at www.thefondaspeedway.com. To learn more, call the office at 518.915.4395, like Fonda Speedway on Facebook or follow the speedway on Twitter: @thefondaspdwy or Instagram: @fondaspeedway.

Amsterdam Truck Center Modifieds
28 entries
A Feature 1 (30 Laps): 1. 44-Stewart Friesen[6]; 2. 9S-Matt Sheppard[1]; 3. 84Y-Alex Yankowski[4]; 4. 85-Jack Lehner[8]; 5. 1Z-Jessica Friesen[9]; 6. 6-Matt Stangle[3]; 7. 1-Rocky Warner[19]; 8. 06-Jackson Gill[18]; 9. 111-Demetrios Drellos[5]; 10. 97-Bobby Hackel IV[10]; 11. ONE-Felix Roy[23]; 12. 2RJ-Ronnie Johnson[12]; 13. 24-Dylan Madsen[16]; 14. 7M-Paul Mancini[11]; 15. 82S-Will Shields[17]; 16. 76-Jamike Sowle[13]; 17. 4-Cody Clark[14]; 18. 6B-Robert Bublak[21]; 19. 20C-Craig Hanson[7]; 20. 93-Danny Varin[20]; 21. B24-Brendan Gibbons[24]; 22. 21P-Luciano (Pep) Corradi[2]; 23. 63-Chip Constantino[15]; 24. 27-Jason Reome[28]; 25. 1G-Darwin Greene[22]; 26. 24P-Brian Pessolano[26]; 27. 8M-Tim Mayne[25]; 28. 7-Eric Mack[27]

BILL AG ELIMINATION RACES
Round 1 - Stewart Friesen defeated Robert Bublak
Round 2 - Stewart Friesen defeated Matt Stangle
Round 3 - Stewart Friesen defeated Demetrios Drellos
Round 4 - Stewart Friese defeated Will Shields
Round 5 - Stewart Friesen defeated Brian Pessolano

MODIFIED BONUSES

PALMER’S SERVICE CENTER POWER POSITION – $100 Gift Certificate to Online Performance/Stone Motorsports – Bobby Hackel

LEXIE & DONNIE DELUREY/JACK LEHNER JLR TECHNOLOGIES 10TH PLACE WEEKLY BONUS – $75 – Bobby Hackel

33 entries
Swagger Factory Apparel Crate 602 Sportsman
A Feature 1 (25 Laps): 1. 9G-Tyler Peet[5]; 2. 70X-Josh Coonradt[1]; 3. 10%-Chad Edwards[10]; 4. 26-Mason Gray[2]; 5. 349-Garrett Chillot[7]; 6. 1M-Mark Mortensen[4]; 7. 7-Dave Constantino[8]; 8. 314-Clayton Dumond[9]; 9. 25-Stephen Gray[17]; 10. 12AJ-AJ Greco[11]; 11. 12B-Tyler Bobar[20]; 12. 98-Cameron Hotaling[23]; 13. 13J-Jim Mallia[6]; 14. 28-Dylan Eldred[13]; 15. 74-Matt Perry[25]; 16. 4P-Chase Moran[3]; 17. 78-Tanner Warner[12]; 18. 33M-Bodie Marks[14]; 19. 84-Ricky Quick[15]; 20. 2K-Mike Kalkbrenner[18]; 21. 44-Rocco Constantino[22]; 22. 1B-Brett Mortensen[16]; 23. 5C-Randy Cosselman[24]; 24. 66-Don Bellen[19]; 25. 621-Seth Martin[21]

SPORTSMAN BONUSES

PALMER’S SERVICE CENTER POWER POSITION – $100 Gift Certificate to Online Performance/Stone Motorsports – Josh Coonradt

GRECO’S AUTO & TRUCK CENTER HARD CHARGER AWARD – $100 Gift Certificate to Greco’s Auto & Truck Center – Camron Hotaling +11

16 entries
Leatherstocking Credit Union Pro Stocks
A Feature 1 (20 Laps): 1. 49-Ivan Joslin[4]; 2. 35-Ken Gates[3]; 3. 2H-Luke Horning[7]; 4. 715-Jason Morrison[6]; 5. 29-Rick Duzlak[5]; 6. 96-Andy Graves[2]; 7. 15-Beau Ballard[8]; 8. 13-George Cushman[15]; 9. 39-Hayleigh Gates[10]; 10. 1D-Nick Santuccione[9]; 11. 62-Nick Danna[12]; 12. 24V-Jason Samrov[11]; 13. 24N-Josh Samrov[14]; 14. 12-Dylan Quintero[16]; 15. 909-Kailey Jaycox[13]; 16. (DNS) 8N-Nick Stone
PRO STOCK BONUS

SWAGGER FACTORY APPAREL HARD CHARGE BONUS – $50 Gift Certificate to Swagger Factory Apparel – Different Division Weekly – George Cushman +7

19 entries
Montgomery County Office for Aging Limited Sportsman
A Feature 1 (15 Laps): 1. 647-Brian Nelson[1]; 2. 22L-Lance Hill[2]; 3. 7A-Steve Wagoner[6]; 4. 32-Owen Mormile[3]; 5. 24-Kirsten Swartz[4]; 6. 48-Chayton Young[7]; 7. 23-Nick Ryder[12]; 8. 22M-Mike Hill[16]; 9. 18-John West[9]; 10. 16-Andrew Millard[10]; 11. 5S-Cameron Snell[13]; 12. 11-Josh Persse[14]; 13. 29-Dustin Bowen[15]; 14. 4B-Kyle Burl[18]; 15. 96B-Jimmy Beach[17]; 16. 4C-Cole Conrad[5]; 17. 27R-Rusty Baumes[8]; 18. 4-Zach McSpirit[19]; 19. 16H-Dylan Hutson[11]

LIMITED SPORTSMAN BONUSES

PALMER’S SERVICE CENTER POWER POSITION – $50 Gift Certificate to Online Performance/Stone Motorsports – Chayton Young

GRECO’S AUTO & TRUCK CENTER HARD CHARGER AWARD – $50 Gift Certificate to Greco’s Auto & Truck Center – Mike Hill +8

22 entries
Fonda Fair Four Cylinders
A Feature 1 (12 Laps): 1. 8D-Stephen Burka[6]; 2. 11D-Tomek Kowalczyk[8]; 3. 126D-Nichole Decker[7]; 4. K1S-William Liberatore[17]; 5. 54S-Wayne Russell Jr[18]; 6. 16JD-Jason Samrov Jr[10]; 7. 29JD-John Ray[13]; 8. 777S-Chris Hemstreet[21]; 9. 212S-TJ Marlitt[20]; 10. 420S-Tim Warner[16]; 11. 12D-Kendra St Andrews[15]; 12. 244S-Dave Reedy[22]; 13. 97JD-Jay Ingersoll[2]; 14. 9D-David Frame[1]; 15. 129D-Josh Reome[5]; 16. I75D-Bubba Cook[11]; 17. 6D-Joshua Leonard[3]; 18. 47S-Bruce Liddle[19]; 19. 80D-Dawson Thompson[14]; 20. 78D-Blake Smart[4]; 21. 666D-Rudy King Jr[12]; 22. (DNS) 26D-Len St Andrews

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