{"id":3901,"date":"2009-06-30T09:39:57","date_gmt":"2009-06-30T14:39:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/100.24.212.105\/?p=3901"},"modified":"2010-11-12T09:42:09","modified_gmt":"2010-11-12T15:42:09","slug":"panunte-back-on-track-in-quest-of-coveted-mr-dirtcar-sportsman-title","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dirtcar.com\/dirtcar-ne\/sportsman-modifieds\/panunte-back-on-track-in-quest-of-coveted-mr-dirtcar-sportsman-title\/","title":{"rendered":"Panunte Back On Track In Quest Of Coveted Mr. DIRTcar Sportsman Title"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Greg Panunte - Alex Bruce Photo<\/p><\/div>\n
Weedsport, NY<\/strong> \u2014 June 30, 2009 \u2013 By Tom Skibinski, DIRTcar Racing Northeast PR Director \n*Alex Bruce Photo<\/strong><\/p>\n
The Mr. DIRTcar Sportsman Championship Series returns to action after a two-month layoff with teams wasting little time getting back in the groove competing over four straight nights in New York State and Canada.<\/p>\n
Canadian driver Greg Panunte will be crossing the border on more than one occasion as he heads back out on the road for a third straight season chasing the elusive points crown. The Pt. Colborne, Ontario veteran is ready to dial in his trusty GM Crate-powered Bicknell mount in the quest to improve upon his runner-up finish tallied in the 2008 overall title hunt.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was nice to finally run a couple full seasons on tour after 20 years of racing, maybe this year we can put it all together,\u201d remarked Panunte, 37, who finished behind only teenage sensation Chris Raabe in Mr. DIRTcar points last season and currently ranks tied for eighth after two events. Round two winner Raabe is back on top of the standings while Panunte settled for seventh in the April opener at Black Rock Speedway and placed 15th at Can-Am Motorsports Park where Raabe took the checkered flag.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve always set my goals high, but I\u2019m a lot more patient nowadays so they\u2019re probably more realistic. I know most of the tracks better now and can get around pretty well, hopefully I\u2019ll continue to have some good luck. We\u2019ll know a lot more after these races are done and I can keep going if the car stays in one piece,\u201d Panunte figured.<\/p>\n
Panunte has full intentions of being part of history July 2-5 when the first-ever four-race series swing for Sportsman runs on consecutive nights at Rolling Wheels Raceway Park and Brewerton Speedway in the states, followed north of the border by successive shows at Brockville Ontario Speedway and Cornwall Motor Speedway to wrap up the \u2018Fourth of July\u2019 holiday weekend.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is certainly a whole new experience for me, we\u2019ve just got one car this year so we\u2019ll take it one race at a time,\u201d said Panunte, who will return aboard his black no. 99P BRP entry backed by Gaston\u2019s Auto Supply, Montgomery Gas, Heating & Cooling, Brian\u2019s Tire Repair and Jimmy D\u2019s Automotive, looking for a second career win at Rolling Wheels and just his second ever starts at Brewerton and Brockville. The July 5 date will mark his tour debut at Cornwall as its only other Sportsman Series show was staged in 1996.<\/p>\n
\u201cI really enjoy following the series and getting away from the same old routine every week at home. I like running against the top competition, and I think you get a lot of respect going up against the best drivers out on the road. I\u2019ll just try to get through these first six (July) events and then set my sights on September when the series picks back up,\u201d noted Panunte, who currently leads the point standings closer to home at Humberstone Speedway and sits second at Merrittville Speedway, with two feature wins already scored at both Ontario ovals in 2009.<\/p>\n
Residing just 10 minutes from Humberstone —where he ran only a pair of \u2018Gumball\u2019 races in 1989 before launching his Sportsman career that includes two All-Canadian Championships— Panunte is among a handful of racers from north of the border preparing for the full four-day assault this week, with plans still intact to follow the entire 20-race tour that comes to a close in October.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve always been an advocate of running open motors, especially with the experience I have now being able to get all the power down on the slippery tracks compared to some of the new guys,\u201d Panunte pointed out. \u201cBut at the same time if it wasn\u2019t for these crate motors I wouldn\u2019t be racing in this series. I never had the funds to follow the tour much before, so this situation is as good for me as everybody else. The crates have certainly proved to be quite good and reliable, as long as they can be policed I\u2019m all for it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Since joining the DIRTcar circuit and registering his first Sportsman feature victory in 1995, Panunte has parked in the winner\u2019s circle 36 more times and garnered a trio of track titles at Merrittville (1999, 2003) and Ohsweken (2000) speedways. He posted his first career Mr. DIRTcar Sportsman Series win last September at Humberstone —where he owns 21 first-place trophies— and followed with a second tour triumph the next weekend at Rolling Wheels.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re not like the Big-Block guys so I don\u2019t really know how many of the others up north will be able to make all four shows this week,\u201d Panunte added. \u201cBut I do like following the same type of program this season with group time trials at all the series tracks. It\u2019s a tough deal traveling so far and getting caught up early in a wreck because of a bad draw. Running under the clocks is a fair deal for everybody, rewarding the faster cars at the end is really what racing is all about.\u201d<\/p>\n
Panunte will take four more shots at getting up to speed beginning with his haul to Rolling Wheels on Thursday, July 2 for the Mr. DIRTcar Sportsman Series \u2018Bailout 25,\u201d which is accompanied by a complete show for BRP Can-Am Series Late Models. Pit gates swing open at 4 p.m. and grandstand seating begins at 5 o\u2019clock with practice scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Sportsman Series Time Trials are slated to start promptly at 7 o\u2019clock with the first heat rolling off the line at 7:30 p.m.<\/p>\n
Joining Panunte in the Sportsman points chase will be reigning Mr. DIRTcar Champion Raabe along with early season leaders Justin Wright, Matt Billings, Black Rock winner Sammy Reakes IV and Dave Marcuccilli.<\/p>\n