Waldron Back in Victory Lane with Golden State Classic Win

Second Career Win at Buckley Speedway is Gary Waldron’s First in SUPRS Competition Since 2013

April 23, 2022 – Roseville, CA…You have to go back to December 17, 2013 to find Gary Waldron’s name etched into the record book as a Supermodified Ultimate Pavement Racing Series, (SUPRS), feature winner. On that night he took his number 10 Michigan Hill Gang machine to the victory in the Christmas Special at Bracket Hill Raceway. While it took nearly as many years as his racing number, (10), to find himself in the winner’s circle again, Waldron left no doubt he’s still capable of getting there after leading all 75 laps of the SUPRS Golden State Classic Tuesday night at Buckley Speedway.

Waldron’s win in the NASCAR Heat supermodified sim racing feature was his second at Buckley where he is listed as the first driver to win a race in SUPRS competition in 2006 at the Mike Jackson designed 3/8ths mile bullring.

After a race-long battle with Ryan Cloonan, Anthony Corsoniti came home in second place. Cloonan continued his podium finishing run for the third straight week a little under a second behind Corsoniti.

Ecstatic Winner

Waldron, who hails from Wyoming, MI, isn’t always the most out-spoken supermodified sim racer, but on the occasion of his first win since 2013, it wasn’t his usual soft-spoken demeanor that found him stymied for words, it was his amazement at pulling off the win. “Wow, this,” he started to say, then paused. “I’m really almost speechless, it’s been a long time and it’s hard to get a win against these guys now. This is pretty cool to win here. I knew I had one that 38 lap race a while back, but I wanted to win this 75 lapper because I don’t generally do well on the longer races. This is just cool. I’m really happy.”

“It was cool to see the Michigan Hill Gang running up front again, and I’m not sure what happened to Carl but he was behind me for a while and had a good run. Thanks to all the SUPRS sponsors, I think I’m going to take a nap before bed now because that wore me out!”

Strategy Pays Off

The veteran SUPRS racer knew he had a good shot at the win at the Golden State Classic, but knew he had to have a great start. He lined up in the front row on the outside of his teammate Carl Becker and at the drop of the green took off like a rocket. “I knew I had to get a good start,” he explained. “I knew that if I didn’t get the jump on Carl and get to the bottom, I was going to get freight trained, but Carl had a good start, we were side by side when Kevin called the green. I just had to get down to turn one before Bonzai, (Becker), and my strategy paid off.”

His jump on the start made life a little easier for Waldron as he wove his way through lapped traffic, but he did have one moment that caught his attention. “Bobby Hayduk came off the wall, maybe half-way through the race,” said Waldron. “I thought, ‘Oh no, this is it, don’t come down too far,’ so I went to the guardrail as low as I could go and got by so it was all good. Really lapped traffic wasn’t bad at all.”

Looking Forward to Summit Classic

“Now I’ve got a little breathing room and can relax a little,” Waldron stated. “I’m looking forward to the Summit Classic. I hope to bring it home clean and in one piece. It’s been a while since I’ve done really well there, but now maybe we’ve got some momentum headed into that race. We’ll see how it goes and just try to finish out the season in a good way.”

Becker Misfortune Helps Corsoniti and Cloonan

Carl Becker has a pretty good record at Buckley and counts it as one of his favorite tracks along with Dasera in North Carolina. His night started out well enough, qualifying in the top five then taking the win in the final BMK Logistics Fast Car Dash of the season. That win put him in the coveted pole position for the start of the 75 lap main event.

As noted above, the 79 year old racer didn’t get quite as good of a start as his Michigan Hill Gang team mate, but had a solid second place run going for a good portion of the race. His podium run came to an end when he encountered the lapped car of Danny Ray. “I wasn’t sure which way Danny was going to go, I guess I shuffled when I should have jived,” said the jovial Lansing, MI racer about his friend Danny Ray. “I got stuck there and saw Anthony and Ryan go by, but I’ll tell you what, I had a good time and Gary had a good race and I got to hang out with some friends so really I can’t complain.”

Third place finisher Ryan Cloonan stated that he wasn’t sure he or Anthony Corsoniti could have gotten by Becker had he not had his issues. “Carl had a good race going,” Cloonan said. “He just got hung up behind Danny and I think he got some damage so when Anthony went through I just followed, but I don’t think we could have gotten him because we had our own battle going on.”

Sights Set on Summit

The SUPRS racers now sights on the final race of the season at “The West Coast Home of the Supermodifieds,” Madera Speedway, and the 19^th running of the Summit Classic 125. The final grind begins Thursday April 20 with a special session of testing where all members are invited to take part. Then on April 23, Sunday Night Test-N-Tune will feature a full 125 lap simulated run to help the racers get tuned up for the Summit Classic. Sunday is also the cut-off date for eligible drivers to register for the Cherry Breaker 63.

Scheduled for Monday, the invitation only Cherry Breaker 63 is a race for drivers that have never won a SUPRS feature event of 25 laps or more. This NASCAR Heat race currently has nine drivers that are eligible to race, and at least four of them will have to affirm their intent to run or the race will be canceled. The night is tentatively scheduled to begin with Hot Laps at 8pm. The drivers will also draw for their practice groups and Time Trial order for the week on Monday.

On Tuesday the drivers will search for all the speed they can find as they try to set one of the top two fastest laps on Pole Night for the 19^th Annual SUPRS Summit Classic 125. Only the top two drivers are locked into the feature through Time Trials which start at 8:35pm. Qualifying Heats and B-Main if needed will follow. The race has been won from the Pole Position 11 times and from no worse than third starting place, so starting up front is key.

Then, on Wednesday, April 26, the 2022-23 Gold Crest Wing Supermodified season draws to a close with the 19^th Annual Summit Classic 125.  Race two of the SUPRS Triple Crown of Supermodified Sim Racing presented by Icings on Top has been won by just eight different drivers in the previous 18 versions of the race. Practice is scheduled to begin at 7:10pm with the green flag dropping on the Summit Classic 125 starting field at 8:40pm.

Next Race

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Broadcasting All Week

After a two-week break from broadcasting the SUPRS Broadcasting Network will end the season strong by carrying all the action of the 19^th Summit Classic Week beginning with the Sunday Night Test-N-Tune on April 24. Other than Sunday, which has no set time, all broadcasts on SUPRS LIVE! and Twitch will begin at 8:30pm ET.

RACE RESULTS

• Golden State Classic
• Race 37 of 38
• April 18, 2023
• Buckley Speedway
• Buckley, CA
• 75 Laps
• SUPRS NASCAR Heat W v6 mod

Supermodified (wing) Time Trials (showing car number, driver name, hometown, sponsors, lap 1, lap 2-best lap highlighted, SUPRS 6 eligible for BMK Logistics Fast Car Dash)

1. 25-Bob Gangwer; Goshen, IN; Belfab Racing Products, RW Woodworking: 12.017, 12.056
2. 12-Anthony Corsoniti; N. Syracuse, NY; TsForecast.com: 12.019, 12.155
3. 13-Ryan Cloonan; Oswego, NY; Simability: 12.072, 12.063
4. 10-Gary Waldron; Wyoming, MI; Kenowa Auto Supply, Michigan Hill Gang: 12.091, 12.155
5. 42-Carl Becker; Lansing, MI; Wholesale Diamond Exchange, Michigan Hill Gang: 12.350, 12.095
6. 168-Daniel Nans^(R); Baldwinsville, NY; Haun Welding Supply, Nans Brothers Racing: 12.162, 12.194
7. 08-Danny Ray; Goshen, IN; Smokie Bone’s Downhome Kitchen, White Lightening Transportation: 12.465, 12.494
8. 14-Bobby Hayduk; Brook Park, OH; Gannon Auto Sales, Bronx Country: 12.600, 12.614

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Supermodified Heat Races Scratched (Car Count)

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BMK Logistics Fast Car Dash – 8 Laps (showing car number, driver name)

1. 42-Carl Becker
2. 10-Gary Waldron
3. 25-Bob Gangwer
4. 12-Anthony Corsoniti
5. 168-Daniel Nans^(R)
6. 13-Ryan Cloonan

Time of Race: 2:50.134

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Supermodified (wing) Feature 75 Laps (showing car number, driver name, bonus, starting place, fastest lap, distance behind winner)

1. 10-Gary Waldron: ! | * | ** | P2 | 11.915
2. 12-Anthony Corsoniti: P3 | 11.929 | +1.723
3. 13-Ryan Cloonan:  P5 | 11.926 | +2.153
4. 42-Carl Becker: P1 | 11.988 | +7.666
5. 168-Daniel Nans^(R): P4 | 12.009 | +8.528
6. 25-Bob Gangwer: P6 | 11.946 | +8.650
7. 08-Danny Ray: P8 | 12.097 | +1 Lap
8. 14-Bobby Hayduk: P7 | 12.299 | +3 Laps

Time of Race:  16:20.688

• * Denotes Lap Led
• ** Denotes Most Laps Led
• ! Denotes Fastest Lap of Race