(Photo by Mac McPherson Photo)
Inside Line Promotions – SWEDESBORO, N.J. (Nov. 11, 2021) – Joey Amantea wrapped up his 2021 racing season by competing in the High Banks Classic doubleheader at Bridgeport Motorsports Park last weekend.
Amantea finished 19th on Friday while competing with the Rapid Tire USAC East Coast Sprint Cars before ending in a B Main on Saturday with the United Racing Club 360 Sprint Cars.
"We had a pretty good weekend in terms of experience gained, though it wasn't the way we wanted to end the year," he said. "It's been a rough season for us and I guess it was only fitting to end things that way."
Amantea kicked off the weekend on Friday when he finished fourth in his non-wing heat race to lock directly into the A Main. He lined up 10th on the grid and ran as high as sixth at one point before contact with another driver collapsed his front end and ended his night early. Amantea was credited with a 19th-place result.
"We had a rocket ship of a car in the feature and we were battling for a top five there before the wreck," he said. "The finish won't show it, but it feels good to know we had a car capable of running up front."
That concluded his rookie season behind the wheel of a wingless 360ci sprint car. On the strength of three top-five finishes and nine top 10s, Amantea ended eighth in the USAC East Coast Sprint Cars championship standings.
"It was a fun experience to run with the wingless 360 series for a year and I gained a lot of seat time," he said. "We struggled a lot and there's reasons for that, but overall it was about learning as much as possible and we definitely did that."
Amantea returned to the track on Saturday with wings on the car. He opened the night by finishing where he started – eighth – in a heat race. That forced Amantea into the B Main and he came up one spot short of transferring into the A Main with a fifth-place finish.
"It just wasn't in the cards for us to make that feature as the B Main was stacked with 410 drivers with a lot more experience than me," he said. "I did get to throw some sliders with some really good drivers and that might have been the highlight of my year honestly."
Amantea was happy to gain more experience behind the wheel of a winged sprint car. His current plans have him trying to compete in more winged shows next season.
"We're really looking to step up our game next season and to do that I need to get more comfortable in a winged sprint car," he said. "We've got some pretty lofty goals as a team and I want to be the best I can as a driver. Nights like that will only make me better and I'm really looking forward to the future."
QUICK RESULTS –
Nov. 5 – Bridgeport Motorsports Park in Swedesboro, N.J. – Heat race: 4 (4); Feature: 19 (10).
Nov. 6 – Bridgeport Motorsports Park in Swedesboro, N.J. – Heat race: 8 (8); B Main: 5 (5).
SEASON STATS –
52 races, 1 win, 7 top fives, 21 top 10s, 31 top 15s, 35 top 20s
MEDIA LINKS –
Website: http://www.joeyamantearacing.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/joeyamantearacing/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/joeyamantea88J
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“To achieve your dreams and goals in this sport you need great partners who provide quality products and I believe Stinger Race Fuel is the best out there,” Amantea said. “I’m very grateful for their support and look forward to continued success together.”
Amantea would also like to thank JPA Masonry, 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 Nov 11, 2021
- Article Date: 11/11/2021 by Inside Line Promotions