Zane DeVault grabs SOD MAHLE/Clevite BLC win at Crystal
ERIE, MI (April 29, 2018) – If last night’s Engine Pro Sprints On Dirt presented by ARP season opening MAHLE/Clevite Beyond Limits Challenge Race #1 was any indication of what lies ahead, SOD fans will be treated to an exciting, action packed season.
Johnny B photo
Zane DeVault, Plymouth, Indiana, drove to his first SOD victory by just 0.03 seconds over hard-charging Chad Blonde (Litchfield, MI) and Matt Foos (Fremont, OH). Not only was the racing exciting, but SOD’s “Beyond Limits” format once again proved itself with DeVault winning with a 360 engine over Blonde’s 410 and 305 of Foos.
The temperature may have been frigid, but the action couldn’t have been hotter! A huge crowd braved the cold and were rewarded with a “caution-free zone” at Crystal Motor Speedway as the Engine Pro Sprints On Dirt drivers put on a spectacular show that saw the SOD races go without a single caution.
Adam Cruea led the field to the start of the feature but was penalized two rows for jumping the start. Matt Foos and Jay Steinebach then led the field to the start with Steinebach taking the early lead. As the leaders quickly encountered traffic, Steinebach slipped high in turn two and Zane DeVault took the lead. Chad Blonde methodically moved from his sixth starting position into third, then made a late race pass of Foos to take second. Heavy traffic was a challenge and Blonde closed in on DeVault. On the last lap, Blonde took the lead in the high line by a couple feet down the back straight, but DeVault was able to squeeze below a lapped car to retake the lead in turns three and four to take the win over Blonde.
Gregg Dalman grabbed overall fast time in his 360 and Ryan Ruhl and Shawn Valenti scored Lane Automotive/MSD Ignition Fast Master fast time for their heats. 2017 SOD Sprint Car Rookie of the Year Andrew Scheid won the Allstar Performance Better Luck Next Time award after fighting gremlins all night, not being able to start his heat, then finishing nineteenth in the feature.
Qualifying – Lane Automotive/MSD Ignition Fast Masters (fast qualifiers) $50 each
| Group | Time | # | Driver |
| Engler Machine & Tool Heat | 13.337 | 49T | Gregg Dalman |
| COMP Cams Heat | 13.484 | 71H | Ryan Ruhl |
| RockAuto.com Heat | 14.147 | 7 | Shawn Valenti |
Heat Races
| Engler Machine & Tool Heat #1 | |||
| # | Driver | Contingency | |
| 1 | 83 | Adam Cruea | |
| 2 | 10s | Jay Steinebach | |
| 3 | 49T | Gregg Dalman | Benic Enterprises |
| 4 | 41 | Thomas Schinderle | Racing Optics |
| 5 | 4T | Josh Turner | |
| 6 | 21T | Troy Chehowski | |
| 7 | 24 | Eric Smith | |
| 8 | 8W | Josh Ward | |
| COMP Cams Heat #2 | |||
| # | Driver | Contingency | |
| 1 | 5B | Chad Blonde | |
| 2 | 71H | Ryan Ruhl | |
| 3 | 5 | Andy Teunessen | Benic Enterprises |
| 4 | 7J | Joe Swanson | Racing Optics |
| 5 | 5QB | Quentin Blonde | |
| 6 | 8 | Justin Ward | |
| 7 | 91L | Alexis Adgate | |
| RockAuto.com Heat #3 | |||
| # | Driver | Contingency | |
| 1 | 2F | Matt Foos | |
| 2 | 77Z | Zane DeVault | |
| 3 | 27B | Boston Mead | Benic Enterprises |
| 4 | 7 | Shawn Valenti | Racing Optics |
| 5 | 1a | Mark Aldrich | |
| 6 | 0 | Ricky Ferkel | |
| 7 | 77 | Andrew Scheid | |
Feature
| # | Driver | Awards | Contingencies | |
| 1 | 77Z | Zane DeVault | Rod End Supply | |
| 2 | 5B | Chad Blonde | Jim Coffey & Son | Rod End Supply |
| 3 | 2F | Matt Foos | Rod End Supply | |
| 4 | 71H | Ryan Ruhl | Schoenfeld Headers | |
| 5 | 49T | Gregg Dalman | ATL Racing Fuel Cells | |
| 6 | 10s | Jay Steinebach | Allstar Performance | |
| 7 | 27B | Boston Mead | ||
| 8 | 83 | Adam Cruea | ||
| 9 | 7J | Joe Swanson | King Racing Products | |
| 10 | 7 | Shawn Valenti | ||
| 11 | 4T | Josh Turner | Keizer Aluminum Wheels | |
| 12 | 41 | Thomas Schinderle | ||
| 13 | 5QB | Quentin Blonde | ||
| 14 | 5 | Andy Teunessen | ||
| 15 | 21T | Troy Chehowski | ||
| 16 | 1a | Mark Aldrich | ||
| 17 | 24 | Eric Smith | ||
| 18 | 8 | Justin Ward | ||
| 19 | 77 | Andrew Scheid | ||
| 20 | 0 | Ricky Ferkel | ||
| 21 | 91L | Alexis Adgate | ||
| 22 | 8W | Josh Ward |
KSE Racing Products Hard Charger – Chad Blonde
BR Motorsports Contingency (feature top 10 draw) – Gregg Dalman
ARP Lucky Dog – Shawn Valenti
Allstar Performance Better Luck Next Time – Andrew Scheid
For more information about Engine Pro go to www.enginepro.com. For more information about ARP, go to www.arp-bolts.com. The full 2018 Sprints on Dirt schedule, rules, current news, and other information are available at www.sprintsondirt.com.
