After a quick passing shower early in the afternoon, the clouds parted, and the sun came out over Weedsport Speedway for the Hall of Fame 100 with the Super DIRTcar Series.

A total of 27 big block modifieds competed for the coveted victory, paying out a total of $10,000, in front of a packed house Saturday evening.

It was all Erick Rudolph as soon as the green flag fell for the Hall of Fame 100. Rudolph jumped out to an early lead right from the start. With only three cautions during the main event, allowing the field to bunch back up and give a run at Rudolph, Rudolph was able to pull his no.25r machine away every time.

Rudolph has been consistent all season, patiently waiting for his time to shine.

“We were lucky to draw the pole,” Rudolph noted. “We led every single lap and from my understanding we pretty well had them covered. I caught lapped traffic really quick and tried passing as many cars as I could so, you pass them, and you figure second and third has to pass them too.”

The last time Rudolph visited victory lane with the Super DIRTcar Series came back in 2016.

“We’ve been really close this year so far,” he said. “With the way we’ve been running I knew eventually the stars would align and we’d be able to finally pull it off.”

Not only did Rudolph’s victory clinch him a $10,000 payday but also locked him into NAPA Super DIRT Week. The Hall of Fame 100 was one of the few Super DIRT Week qualifiers, guaranteeing the victor a starting spot for the 200-lapper in October at Oswego Speedway.

.@WeedsportSpdwy is pulsing with excitement! pic.twitter.com/h3s72f75yi

— Super DIRTcar Series (@SuperDIRTcar) July 29, 2018

Danny Johnson Jumps in a New Ride

A terrible wreck at the Battle on The Midway at Orange County Fair Speedway a week prier totaled Danny Johnson’s no.27j machine, left Johnson without a ride. Ray Graham, owner of Peter Britten’s car, stepped in and offered Johnson a ride in their second car for the Hall of Fame 100. Johnson had a rocky start to the evening, being his first time behind the wheel of the no.21G but was able to get everything figured out come feature time. Johnson had all eyes on him while he climbed his way through the field from his 22^ndstarting spot to drive by his teammate, Britten, and cap off the evening with a strong sixth-place finish. Johnson was a man on a mission. Maybe, just maybe, if a caution flew, Johnson would have been able to get in the mix for the top five.

Notable Outsiders

A few notable outsiders decided to come out and play Saturday evening with the Super DIRTcar Series regulars.

Billy Dunn in the no.3r machine started on the inside of the sixth row and capped off an eighth-place finish. 

Gary Tomkins, the driver of the no.84 modified had the spot to be early on during the main event. Tomkins started on the outside pole for the 100-lapper. Tomkins had a great battle going for the runner-up spot until halfway and fell back to 12^th.

T-Mac, Tim McCreadie, made a rare appearance mid-season to come out and play with the modifieds. McCreadie rolled off tenth for the main event and closed out the evening with a 13^th-place finish.

The driver out of Frenchtown, NJ, Billy Pauch Jr, made his first ever appearance at Weedsport Saturday night. With little track experience, Pauch Jr. started 17^thand was able to hold on for a 16^th-place finish.

Decker’s Roller Coaster Season

The Franklin Flyer, Billy Decker, has been battling a roller coaster season this year with the no.91 team. With eight starts on the series this year, Decker’s best outing thus far came in early June with a second-place finish at Brewerton Speedway. Saturday night Decker clinched a solid top-five finish in the no.91 machine, his first top five finish in seven races. Hopefully the no.91 team will be able to keep up their momentum.

Points Breakdown

Not too long ago Rudolph was sitting on the edge of fifth-place in the points chase. Heading into the Hall of Fame 100, Rudolph was sitting second, with a 121-point difference from the current points leader, Matt Sheppard.

“I knew if we kept hanging in there it would all work out like it did today,” Rudolph said.

‘Super’ Matt Sheppard closed out Saturday evening with a third-place finish, allowing a little bit of an adjustment on the points scale to lean in Rudolph’s favor. Rudolph is now 113-points out of the lead.

‘Mad’ Max McLaughlin, who is still in the hunt for his first Super DIRTcar Series victory, has been consistent all season with his no.6h team. McLaughlin currently sits third in points, a close 29-points behind Rudolph.

2018 STAT ATTACK

There have been 11 Super DIRTcar Series features this season.        

SEASON WINNERS:

Stewart Friesen - 4 (Weedsport Speedway on May 29, Albany-Saratoga Speedway on June 26, Orange County Fair Speedway on July 19, Autodrome Granby on July 23); Matt Sheppard – 3 (Brewerton Speedway on June 15, Cornwall Motor Speedway on July 1, Autodrome Drummond on July 24); Danny Johnson – 1 (Land of Legends Raceway on July 5); Jimmy Phelps – 1 (Utica-Rome Speedway on July 8); Brett Hearn – 1 (Outlaw Speedway on July 10); Erick Rudolph – 1 (Weedsport Speedway on July 28)

2018 Super DIRTcar Championship Standings as of July 29, 2018:

Winners (6 Drivers)
Rank, Driver - Wins                                                                                                         

1. STEWART FRIESEN - 4
2. MATT SHEPPARD – 3
3. DANNY JOHNSON, JIMMY PHELPS, BRETT HEARN, ERICK RUDOLPH – 1

Pole Positions (8 Drivers)                                                                                                           

Rank, Driver - Poles                                                                                                        

1. MATT SHEPPARD – 3
2. ERICK RUDOLPH – 2
3. STEWART FRIESEN, CHRIS RAABE, DANNY JOHNSON, JIMMY PHELPS, TIM FULLER, STEVE BERNARD - 1

Time Trial leaders (8 Drivers)                                                                                                     

Rank, Driver - Quick Times                                                                                                           

1. MATT SHEPPARD – 4
2. BILLY DECKER, TIM FULLER, STEWART FRIESEN, DANNY JOHNSON, ANTHONY PERREGO, BRETT HEARN, JIMMY PHELPS - 1

Podium Finishes (11 Different Drivers)                                                                                                     

Rank, Driver - Finishes in the Top-Three                                                                                                     

1. MATT SHEPPARD – 8
2. JIMMY PHELPS, STEWART FRIESEN – 5
3. ERICK RUDOLPH - 4
4. DANNY JOHNSON, MAX MCLAUGHLIN – 3
5. BILLY DECKER, CHRIS RAABE, KYLE DINGWALL, MAT WILLIAMSON, BRETT HEARN – 1

Heat Race Winners (19 Different Drivers)                                                                                                  

Rank, Driver - Win                                                                                                           

1. MATT SHEPPARD – 7
2. STEWART FRIESEN, BRETT HEARN – 5
3. PETER BRITTEN – 4
4. PAT WARD, JIMMY PHELPS – 3
5. DANNY JOHNSON, ERICK RUDOLPH – 2
6. MAX MCLAUGHLIN, LARRY WIGHT, TIM SEARS JR., TIM FULLER, WILLY DECKER, JESSEY MUELLER, MICHAEL PARENT, BILLY DUNN, MAT WILLIAMSON, BILLY DECKER, PIERRE HEBERT, MATHIEU DESJARDINS - 1

Last Chance Showdown Winners (8 Different Drivers)        

Rank Driver, Hometown - Wins                                                                                                      

1. ADAM ROBERTS – 3
2. ROB BELLINGER – 2
3. MATT WILLIAMSON, ANDREW FERGUSON, TIM MCCREADIE, ERICK RUDOLPH, TOMMY MEIER, DANY BILODEAU - 1

2018 Super DIRTcar Series Schedule & Winners
No. / Day, Date / Track / Location / Winner (Number of Wins in 2018)


1. Sat. April 28 / High Bank Holdup / Fulton Speedway / Fulton, N.Y. / RAIN                                
2. Wed. May 16 / Battle at the Bridge / Bridgeport Speedway / Bridgeport, N.J. / RAIN                              
3. Mon. May 28 / Memorial Day 100 / Weedsport Speedway / Weedsport, N.Y. / Stewart Friesen (1)                        
4. Fri. June 15 / Brewerton Speedway / Brewerton, N.Y. / Matt Sheppard (1)                                                        
5. Tues. June 26 / The BIG Show 10 / Albany-Saratoga Speedway / Malta, N.Y. /Stewart Friesen (2)          
6. Sun. July 1 / Cornwall Motor Speedway / Cornwall, Ont. / Matt Sheppard (2)                                                    
7. Thurs. July 5 / Land of Legends Raceway / Canandaigua, N.Y. / Danny Johnson (1)                                        
8. Sun. July 8 / Freedom Fighter 100 / Utica-Rome Speedway / Vernon, N.Y. / Jimmy Phelps (1)                
9. Tues. July 10 / Outlaw Speedway / Dundee, N.Y. /   Brett Hearn (1)                                                                
10. Thurs. July 19 / Orange County fair Speedway / Middletown, N.Y. / Stewart Friesen (3)                                    
11. Mon. July 23 / Autodrome Granby / Granby, Que. / Stewart Friesen (4)                                                          
12. Tues. July 24 / Racing Stock 100 / Autodrome Drummond / Drummondville, Que. / Matt Sheppard (3)      
13. Sat. July 28 / Hall of Fame 100 / Weedsport Speedway / Weedsport, N.Y./ Erick Rudolph (1)                
14. Tues. July 31 / Battle of Plattsburgh 100 / Airborne Park Speedway / Plattsburgh, N.Y./                                    
15. Wed. Aug. 1 / Jack Johnson Tribute / Fonda Speedway / Fonda, N.Y. /                                              
16. Mon. Aug. 6 / Bob St. Amand Sr Memorial / Merrittville Speedway / Thorold, Ont. /                                
17. Tues. Aug. 7 / Summer Nationals / Ransomville Speedway / Ransomville, N.Y.                        
18. Sat. Sept. 1 / Mr. DIRT Track USA / Lebanon Valley Speedway / West Lebanon, N.Y. /                        
19. Mon. Sept. 3 / Labor Day Double Play 100 / Weedsport Speedway / Weedsport, N.Y. /                          
20. Fri. Sept. 7 / Le RPM Speedway / Saint-Marcel-de-Richelieu, Que. /                                                    
21. Sat. Sept. 8 / Blackout Race / Autodrome Drummond / Drummondville, Que. /                                      
22. Fri. Sept. 14 / Duel at the Demon / Brewerton Speedway / Brewerton, N.Y.                                          
23. Sat. Sept. 15 / Mohawk 100 / Mohawk International Raceway / Akwesasne, N.Y. /                                
24. Sat. Sept. 22 / Thunder Along the Mohawk / Fonda Speedway / Fonda, N.Y. /                                      
25. Sun. Oct. 7 / NAPA Auto Parts Super DIRT Week XLVII / Oswego Speedway / Oswego, N.Y. /              
26. Fri. Oct. 12 / The Loud & Dirty Northeast Fall Nationals / Brockville Ontario Speedway / Brockville, Ont. /            
27. Fri. Nov. 2 / Textron Off Road World of Outlaws World Finals / The Dirt Track at Charlotte / Concord, N.C. /
28. Sat. Nov. 3 / Textron Off Road World of Outlaws World Finals / The Dirt Track at Charlotte / Concord, N.C. /