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Hafertepe Bounces Back From Grove Disappointment

Sam Hafertepe Jr. and The Zemco Racing Team endured the lowest of lows this past Friday night at Williams Grove Speedway before the team dug in and bounced back with an impressive top 5 run against The All Star Circuit of Champions Saturday night at Port Royal Speedway.

The Zemco Speed Equipment #1 was fast out of the trailer once again at Williams Grove Speedway on Friday night. Sam was able to lay down the 11th fastest lap in time trials against a stellar field that included “The Pennsylvania Posse” and The All Star Circuit of Champions. While the lap looked impressive it soon became apparent that the team was in trouble.

“The motor was very lazy in time trials and blowing water out,” said Sam. “We easily had another 2 or 3 10ths in the car but the motor just wouldn’t pull out of the corners.”

Crew Chief Tommy Carl and the rest of The Zemco crew went to work diagnosing the issue and some changes were made in hopes of curing the problem. At the drop of the green flag in his heat race it became apparent that there were still issues as Sam dropped from 4th to 8th before the flag stand.

Hafertepe limped across the finish in 8th and the team made the decision to change motors.

Following the motor change the Sunnyvale, Texas native lined his Maxim-Rider combination up 3rd in the B Main. As the race began Sam found himself in the 4th position and pressuring Derek Sell hard for the 3rd position. Unfortunately as the race wore on Hafertepe slipped back to 5th as he battled an ill-handling race car and missed the show by 1 position.

“The motor problems made it very hard for us to get a feel for the race track,” explained Sam. “We were kind of guessing there in the B Main and we did not get the car very good at all. I could get to Sell but any time I needed to really drive the car in hard it would just slide out from under me. Tonight’s results are unacceptable to both me and the team and I know we are so much better than this.”

The following evening The Zemco team unloaded fast off the trailer as Sam turned laps in warm-ups below The Port Royal Speedway track record. Sam’s early speed translated into time trials as he turned in the 5th fastest lap.

Lining up 5th for his heat, Sam dropped back on the start and actually fell out of a transfer position. Hafertepe battled back and found the bottom side of the track to his liking while everyone else ran the top. Sam was able to charge back through the field as he disposed of Mark Smith and Jac Haudenshild. A Cap Henry blown motor moved him up to 3rd. Sam crossed the line on Blaine Heimbach’s rear bumper for 2nd and earned his way into the dash.

The Zemco Tool & Die sprinter was a little off in the dash and as a result Sam dropped from 4th to 6th on the opening lap and was unable to battle back.

Carl and the crew went to work trying to find the speed they had found previously that evening and it paid off as Sam quickly moved forward and settled into the 4th position during the early stages of the feature event. Hafertepe was able to reel in David Gravel through the middle stages of the race on the bottom in turns 3 and 4 and appeared to be faster than Gravel and 2nd place running Danny Holtgraver. Unfortunately Gravel found the bottom in the latter stages of the race and was able to slow Sam’s progress. The final laps ended without incident and Sam crossed the line in 4th for his 3rd top 5 finish with The All Stars this season.

“That was a statement race for us,” explained Sam. “It was very important for us to come back and prove that last night was an aberration and that we’re going to be a car to contend with all year long. I’m really proud of all my guys, they never quit after last night and they gave me the kind of car I’m going to need to run up from consistently. I also learned a ton about this place. I haven’t been really good here in the past so it was really good for me to get in some laps and learn how to get around here like I need to.”

The Zemco Racing Team will be back in action once again this weekend as they plan on competing in time trial shows at Williams Grove and Lincoln Speedway.

“The World of Outlaws are coming to town in a couple of weeks,” said Sam. “It’s obviously a very important time for the Pennsylvania area teams as they all want to defend their turf. We will use this weekend to dial in the car at both tracks and when The Outlaws get here we should be on kill.”

Sam and The Zemco Racing Team would like to thank the following supporters: Zemco Speed Equipment, Zemco Headers, Zemco Tool & Die, Recchione Auto Body, Rider Racing Engines, Penske Shocks, Butlerbuilt, BMRS, Maxim Chassis, Moose Blocks, Arts Radiator, DMI, Spectro Oils, All Pro Heads, Kinsler Fuel Injection, Simpson, Smith Precision Products, MPD, Jakes Golf Carts, Raace Foundation, Baps, CMC, Wings Unlimited and Kelly Racing Fuels

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