By Spence Smithback
Four Heat Races on Friday set the first eight rows of Saturday’s Feature for the Summit Racing Equipment DIRTcar UMP Modifieds at the World Short Track Championship.
Heat 1
Three-time event winner Kyle Strickler led the field to green and jumped out to an early advantage, leading the rest of the way to win by more than two seconds.
Carder Miller rode in second for all eight laps, while Jordan Koehler moved up from fifth to third on the start and held off Charlie Mefford, who settled for the fourth and final transfer spot.
Heat 2
Will Krup started on the outside of the front row and left the field in his dust, beating polesitter Evan Taylor to the checkered flag by nearly a second.
Behind them, the No. 12 of Ace Claborn and the No. 12R of Ty Rhoades battled hard throughout the race, with Claborn emerging on top in third ahead of Rhoades in fourth.
Heat 3
Stephen Pedulla started on the pole on the inside of two-time World Short Track Championship winner Taylor Cook, but contact between the leaders exiting Turn 2 on the opening lap caused Cook to lose several spots early. His night went from bad to worse a few laps later when contact with Ty Norder punctured his left-rear tire and brought an early end to his race.
That incident brought out the caution and eliminated the one-second lead that Pedulla had built at the front. He wasted no time rebuilding that margin though and led the rest of the race to punch his ticket into Saturday’s main event. Thursday night’s Championship Feature winner Kyle Hammer came home second, with Austin Holcombe in third and Cole Falloway claiming the final transfer spot.
Heat 4
Jonathan Taylor and Drake Troutman shared the front row, with Troutman ripping the top to the early lead.
Slade Parsons and Colby Paris got together in Turn 4 on the first lap to rerack the field, but Troutman once again used a strong jump to take control of the top spot.
Troutman and Taylor went unchallenged the rest of the way in the top two spots, but behind them, Dave Hess Jr. and Cole Hilton put on an entertaining battle for third. Hess held onto the spot with Hilton behind him at the checkers in fourth.
Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 8-Kyle Strickler[1]; 2. 35-Carder Miller[3]; 3. 114-Jordan Koehler[5]; 4. 18-Charlie Mefford[2]; 5. 00-Michael Leach[4]; 6. 6-Ryan Ayers[9]; 7. 82-Gary Dillon[8]; 8. 23Z-Austin Self[6]; 9. 814-Samuel Lamborgini[10]; 10. (DNS) 12A-Austin Seets
Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. K9-Will Krup[2]; 2. 7-Evan Taylor[1]; 3. 12-Ace Claborn[4]; 4. 12R-Ty Rhoades[3]; 5. 89-Corey Gordon[5]; 6. 84-Ryan Toole[6]; 7. 9T-Mason Canter[8]; 8. 16-Daniel Allen[7]; 9. F5-Richard Clew[9]
Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 31G-Stephen Pedulla[1]; 2. 45-Kyle Hammer[4]; 3. 8A-Austin Holcombe[3]; 4. 66-Cole Falloway[5]; 5. 25-Greg Belyea[8]; 6. 2N-Ty Norder[6]; 7. 07-Curtis King[9]; 8. 72-Patrick Field[10]; 9. 11D-Shawn Donahue[7]; 10. 21-Taylor Cook[2]
Heat 4 (8 Laps): 1. 5T-Drake Troutman[2]; 2. 5-Jonathan Taylor[1]; 3. 44-Dave Hess Jr[3]; 4. 99-Cole Hilton[7]; 5. 51P-Joey Polevoy[8]; 6. 11-Troy Loomis[5]; 7. 2-Colby Paris[9]; 8. 96S-Slade Parsons[4]; 9. (DNS) 88-Matt Crafton
