(Photo by Rick Rarer)
Inside Line Promotions - PORT ROYAL, Pa. (April 7, 2021) – George Hobaugh piloted an X-1 Race Cars winged sprint car to a fourth-place finish last Saturday at Port Royal Speedway.
"I feel like I haven't always given my sponsors and supporters enough for what they give us and to finally have some results to be proud of is just amazing,” he said. "It's been a long road, but it's a road we've traveled together with some faithful supporters and I'm hopeful we can keep moving in this direction."
Hobaugh began the night by winning a heat race from the outside front row starting position. He lined up third for the A Main and fell back to sixth on the opening lap. Running the bottom of the track in turns one and two and the middle in turns three and four, Hobaugh worked his way back up to fourth and was challenging for a podium position when the checkered flag was waved.
The top-five finish was a career-best result at the Juniata County oval for the Chicora, Pa., native. Hobaugh has been a client of X-1 Race Cars for three years and credits fabricating guru Ryan Linder’s attention to detail as a key to their success.
“Our X-1 Race Cars car was getting faster at the end of that race and another couple of laps and we'd have been sitting on the podium,” he said. "I'm extremely happy with the way our car is performing and that's 100 percent a testament to Ryan and the work he puts into each and every chassis he builds. The work he puts in is unmatched."
The strong finish comes on the heels of multiple successful visits to the track to begin the 2021 season for Hobaugh. Three weekends ago he earned a $500 Hard Charger Award after passing 13 cars to finish eighth. Hobaugh backed up that performance the following weekend by passing 13 more cars to go from 24th to 11th.
Heading into last week’s racing event, Hobaugh ranked second in the Eastern region of racing with a plus-minus of plus-35 positions gained to start the season. He also currently sits seventh in the track’s championship standings after four nights of competition.
“That's such a testament to our car and the speed we have and honestly, that's almost more important than the results in itself,” he said. "The format a lot of times dictates where you start and sometimes you don't get the luxury of starting up front. When you are passing that many cars week in and week out, it shows you've got good stuff and that means a lot to me for everyone involved."
For a driver who primarily focuses on racing events in the Western Pennsylvania area, Hobaugh is quick to give props to Linder and X-1 Race Cars for giving him great equipment to succeed in Central Pennsylvania against stout competition week in and week out.
“People don't always see it, but guys like Ryan have been behind us from Day 1 and he works so hard to make us as successful as we can be giving us the best stuff,” he said. "He's the type of guy you want in your corner as a driver and it's just really great to be giving him some results even more than for myself."
Hobaugh’s accolades continues what has been an extremely successful start to the 2021 racing season for X-1 Race Cars clients. Dylan Cisney has already earned a victory in the 410ci sprint car ranks at Port Royal Speedway, where he leads the championship standings. Also, Ryan Smith piloted a 360ci sprint car to a victory at Bridgeport Motorsports Park in Swedesboro, N.J., during the 2021 opener for the United Racing Club.
Additionally, Linder and X-1 Race Cars has been represented well on the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series tour as 2021 Rookie of the Year contender Brock Zearfoss has scored three top-10 finishes and he sits 10th in the championship standings.
Hobaugh believes that it's no coincidence that X-1 Race Cars is finding success and that it was only a matter of time before more people realize the quality of the equipment.
"Ryan Linder and X-1 Race Cars are top notch in every way,” he said. “A few years ago when we ran the All Stars I switched to his product and from the moment we signed on he's gone above and beyond in every way to make sure we could succeed. It's not a coincidence that his stuff is winning and he's finding success. He's the type of guy that will pick up his phone at any minute and help you. I'd put X-1 Race Cars up there with anyone in the country. I'm proud to be a small part of his success and hopefully with our results we can bring him even more business as he deserves it."
MEDIA LINKS –
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ryan_linder9/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/X-1-Race-cars-132228736836684
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Ryan_Linder
X-1 RACE CARS –
X-1 Race Cars is a custom sprint car chassis business that was established in 2010 by sprint car racer and master fabricator Ryan Linder. The company relocated in 2017 to the Northeast to better serve a hotbed of sprint car racing in Central Pennsylvania and New York.
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 Apr 07, 2021
- Article Date: 4/7/2021 by Inside Line Promotions