Story By: A2DPR / ZACH NEWLIN RACING – MECHANICSBURG, PA – Zach Newlin returned to the seat of the Mansberger Motorsports No.21m 358 sprint car Friday night at Williams Grove Speedway for the annual Match Race, which offers an increased purse throughout the field.
The team was not only looking to claim some of the cash that was on the line, they were hoping to start a new streak of top ten finishes after losing their previous streak of five with a tough outing on September 1st.
Heat race lineups for the 28 358 sprint cars on hand were set using a handicapping format, which put Newlin 8th on the grid for the first heat of the night. The top six finishers would transfer directly to the night’s main event, but the heavy, narrow track wasn’t very conducive for passing. The Millerstown, PA driver finished where he started, 8th, and moved on to the B-main for another shot.
In the 10-lap B-main, Newlin started 4th and went on the charge from the drop of the green. By lap two, he snagged the runner-up spot. On lap five, he took the lead away from Nat Tuckey. He never looked back and took the win by over four seconds.
The 25-lap Match Race A-main kicked off with Newlin in the 19th starting spot. Once again, he started his forward progress from the outset.
Six laps in, Newlin was up to 15th. On lap eleven, he moved into 14th. The progress stalled there and Newlin finished 14th.
“We weren’t horrible but the car was a little too tight. We need to figure that out.“, Newlin said.
Newlin was alluding to a setup issue that the team has been battling the last few races. Something has changed on the car since their hot streak over the summer and it has been a bit tricky to zero in on exactly what is causing the handling issues.
“We’re hoping to be back here next Friday night and give it another shot.“, Newlin concluded.
Newlin will tentatively return to Williams Grove Speedway Friday, September 22nd for the final 358 sprint car race of the 2023 season.