(Photo by J.G. Photography)
Inside Line Promotions – PORT ROYAL, Pa. (Aug. 25, 2021) – Joey Amantea highlighted two nights of Rapid Tire USAC East Coast Sprint Cars action with a fifth-place finish Friday night at Bedford Speedway.
Amantea also looked to be in line for a solid outing on Saturday at Port Royal Speedway, but a mechanical problem while staging for the feature forced him to the pits.
"Bedford was great and I honestly couldn't believe we ended up in the top five," he said. "The rest of the week was kind of a lost cause, but overall at least we got something to be happy about."
Amantea kicked off the weekend on Friday at the big oval in Bedford, Pa., where he finished where he started – sixth – in a heat race. As a result Amantea lined up for the feature in the 11th position. He was able to avoid a multiple-car wreck on the opening lap before coming home with a fifth-place finish.
The top-five outing was his third of the season with the series and earned him the Hard Charger Award. The result was even more rewarding considering it was behind the wheel of his black No. 88j that he typically uses for winged 360 sprint car competition.
"We were not really great in the heat race and managed to avoid the big one there during the A Main start," he said. "We hung around fourth for most the race and the tires kind of went away there late, but to get a top five in the black car was a relief as up to this point it's been a tough season."
Amantea headed to Port Royal Speedway on Saturday and opened the night with his American Flag flame themed sprint car on display during an autograph session as part of the track’s Military Appreciation Night. He then advanced three positions in a heat race to finish fifth to earn the 13th starting position in the A Main.
Amantea was looking forward to an opportunity to finish off the night with a rewarding effort, but track officials discovered a brake fluid leak on the car during feature pre-staging. Upon a closer look, it was discovered that the left-side rear brake chamber had snapped off the car and as a result he failed to start the A Main.
While the result was disappointing and frustrating for Amantea, he was extremely thankful that the problem was discovered prior to taking the green flag for the feature as he likely avoided a possible wreck or injury as a result of a lack of brakes.
"It was really cool to be part of the early festivities and to get to meet some fans and pay tribute to the men and woman of the military," he said. "I guess in the grand scheme of things I had someone looking out for me. If I'd have taken the green and it would have broke off heading into turn one we might not be talking about anything positive right now at all."
Next up for Amantea will be a Friday night event in winged and wingless micro sprint competition at Linda's Speedway in Jonestown, Pa. This will only be Amantea's second winged micro sprint start of the season and the first behind the wheel of his family owned car.
"This whole deal is about having fun and when you're struggling it gets easy to forget that," he said. "We're going to try some things with the micro to try and get back to being a consistent contender each night and just have some fun."
QUICK RESULTS –
Aug. 20 – Bedford Speedway in Bedford, Pa. – Heat race: 6 (6); Feature: 5 (11).
Aug. 21 – Port Royal Speedway in Port Royal, Pa. – Heat race: 5 (8); Feature: DNS (13).
SEASON STATS –
42 races, 1 win, 7 top fives, 16 top 10s, 25 top 15s, 27 top 20s
UP NEXT –
Friday at Linda's Speedway in Jonestown, Pa.
MEDIA LINKS –
Website: http://www.joeyamantearacing.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/joeyamantearacing/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/joeyamantea88J
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – JPA Masonry
JPA Masonry, which is located in Mt. Pocono, Pa., is a trusted and experienced masonry leader in the Poconos. Although established in 2001, contractor and owner, Joseph P. Amantea (JPA), has almost 20 years of experience in the masonry field, including custom stone and design. For more information, visit http://www.JPAMasonry.com.
“JPA Masonry drives our race team,” Amantea said. “Without their support I wouldn’t be able to race. I’m very appreciative of all they do for me.”
Amantea would also like to thank Stinger Race Fuel Products, Amantea Real Estate, Hyper Racing, Jet Signs, Radical Race Gear, Pensyl Enterprises and Gilroy Northeast Inc. Excavating and Construction 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 25, 2021
- Article Date: 8/25/2021 by Inside Line Promotions