(Photo by Don Holbrook)
Inside Line Promotions – BELLEVILLE, Kan. (Aug. 14, 2018) – Zach Blurton overcame engine problems and scored a sixth-place finish during the recent 305 Belleville Sprint Nationals.
The race week began Aug. 2 at Thayer County Speedway in Deshler, Kan., with the United Rebel Sprint Series.
“I started fourth in my heat and split the first two cars and was leading when the motor grenaded,” he said. “We thrashed and got it changed in like 15 minutes.”
He came back to charge from 11th to third in the B Main, putting him in the 17th starting spot in the main event.
“I was worried about getting the fueling in the motor right and didn’t do a whole lot of setup changes,” he said. “I should have been more aggressive with the setup and we ended up 11th.”
Belleville High Banks drew more than 50 cars for the 305 Belleville Sprint Nationals. The opening round was Aug. 3. Blurton scored a heat race win and moved from sixth to fifth in the qualifier race, putting him 10th in the A Main starting grid.
“In the heat we were pretty good and heck, I was the only car to beat Jake Bubak all weekend,” he joked. “I struggled big time with the setup in the qualifier. I should have lowered the car. We started the feature okay because we had a full fuel load and drove up to sixth or seventh, but once they went away I had the same issues I had in the qualifier. I had no bite and we backed up to 11th. Honestly, it’s the first time all year we went backwards.”
Blurton took advantage of a high pill draw and moved from ninth to fifth in his heat race the following night. He blasted from third to win his qualifier. That placed him in the sixth starting position in the A Main.
“We changed the left rear bar after the heat and after that the car was the best it had been all weekend,” he said. “In the A Main I got up to fifth and ran around there the whole race. After the engine situation and how bad the car was Friday, I’ll take a sixth-place finish and be happy.”
Blurton continues to lead the URSS championship standings as he will head to three series events – Friday at Stockton Speedway in Stockton, Kan., and Saturday and Sunday at Oberlin Speedway in Oberlin, Kan.
“There’s only five races left and basically I only have to show up and qualify for the A Main in like two of them to wrap up the title,” he said. “I’m looking forward to going to Stockton. We won there last year and at Oberlin I did very well.”
QUICK RESULTS –
Aug. 2 – Thayer County Speedway in Deshler, Kan. – Heat race: 7 (4); B Main: 3 (11); Feature: 11 (17).
Aug. 3 – Belleville High Banks in Belleville, Kan. – Heat race: 1 (3); Qualifier: 5 (6); Feature: 11 (10).
Aug. 4 – Belleville High Banks in Belleville, Kan. – Heat race: 6 (6); Qualifier: 1 (3); Feature: 6 (6).
SEASON STATS –
24 races, 3 wins, 12 top fives, 19 top 10s, 22 top 15s, 22 top 20s
UP NEXT –
Friday at Stockton Speedway in Stockton, Kan., and Saturday and Sunday at Oberlin Speedway in Oberlin, Kan., with the URSS Series
MEDIA LINKS –
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ZachBlurton
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ZachBlurtonRacing
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/zachblurton/
APPAREL –
Visit Blurton’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/ZachBlurtonRacing for more information.
RACING OPPORTUNITIES –
Blurton is seeking additional racing opportunities and is willing to travel. To learn more information, contact Blurton at 620-393-5249 or ZachBlurton@gmail.com.
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – Tornado Racing Engines
Tornado Racing Engines is an engine business in Utica, Kan., owned by Jon Johnson.
“I’ve been running Tornado engines since 2010,” Blurton said. “We had a cam break in 2010, an oil pump drive shaft break in 2017 and then this past weekend I think we spun a bearing. I normally compete in 40 or more races every year. So in eight years that’s nearly 300 races and only three engine issues and they were parts failures. Jon does a hell of a job for us. His engines are strong and reliable.”
Blurton would also like to thank Midwest Ag Professionals Inc., Wheat State Roofing, King Racing Products, Phillips Chiropractic & Physical Therapy Center, Brian Younker Farms, Jet-Hot Coatings, Randy Patterson Welding, Outlaw Wings, Billinger Repair Shop, Rob’s Fun Center, Bad Habit Sports Bar & Grill and Rod End Supply for their continued support.
INSIDE LINE PROMOTIONS –
Inside Line Promotions specializes in affordable public relations and media management for motor sports drivers, teams, sponsors, tracks, series, events, organizations and manufacturers. ILP Founder Shawn Miller leverages professional journalism with new media technologies and social networking to improve your exposure and the return on investment for your sponsors.
To meet the media relations needs of your program by joining Team ILP, contact Shawn at 541-510-3663 or Shawn@InsideLinePromotions.com. For more information on Inside Line Promotions, visit http://www.InsideLinePromotions.com.
- Shawn Miller on Aug 14, 2018
- Article Date: 8/14/2018 by Inside Line Promotions