Tim Shaffer Scores One For The Independents With Williams Grove WoO Win Friday
Story By: SHAWN BROUSE / WILLIAMS GROVE SPEEDWAY – MECHANICSBURG, PA – Tim Shaffer of Aliquippa won round one of the 2019 World of Outlaws Summer Nationals at Williams Grove Speedway on Friday night, beating back a furious charge by David Gravel in the closing laps to pick up the $8,000 payday.
The victory was just the second of the veteran’s career at the oval, both having come during outlaws action at the track.
Shaffer would lead every tour of the 25-lap main event from the pole with Freddie Rahmer giving chase early followed by Donny Schatz and Gravel.
Shaffer entered the backmarkers on the eighth tour.
Shortly thereafter, the trio of of Rahmer, Schatz and Gravel got into a torrid battle for second with Schatz using the low line in turns three and four to finally snare the runner-up spot on the 12th tour.
The first caution flag of the race unfurled with 11 laps to go for a slowing Daryn Pittman, wiping out a very comfortable margin that Shaffer had built of 3.870 seconds.
Shaffer chose the inside line for the doublefile restart with Schatz to his outside and Gravel lining up third.
And Gravel pounced when action resumed, blasting to the inside of Schatz as the frontrunners hit the first corner moments after taking the new green flag.
The final caution period of the race took place on lap 16, this time for a stopped Ian Madsen.
With a single file restart called for, Gravel stuck to the bottom as Shaffer blasted the top on the restart to maintain control onto the backchute.
Shaffer then raced ahead of Gravel to the finish, taking the win by .731 seconds however Gravel all but had the lead with just over a lap to go as the pair sped toward the white flag in the fourth corner.
Going down the backstretch with under two laps to go, Gravel built up a head of steam after shooting up off of the second turn.
Having closed dramatically and rather suddenly on the leader, the Connecticut driver burst underneath Shaffer as the pair went into the third turn and then used up all of the racetrack coming off of the fourth corner in an attempt to slip by.
However Shaffer absolutely refused to lift or be scared out of the throttle and a last second twitch left by Gravel saved both drivers’s from disaster and allowed the race to finish one lap later.
“It was a close one but we made it through,” Shaffer said.
“I had my eyes closed.”
Shaffer’s prior win at Williams Grove was in 2000.
The victory marked just the third time in 208 World of Outlaws contests at Williams Grove Speedway that an independent driver scored an outlaws win at the track since the series began racing there in the late 1970s.
All other winners with the exception of Jason Solwold in 2006 and Giovanni Scelzi in 2018 were either local drivers or a touring outlaws circuit pilot.
Schatz finished third on Friday night followed by Rahmer and Danny Dietrich.
Sixth through 10th went to Lance Dewease, Brad Sweet, Brian Montieth, Brent Marks and Logan Schuchart.
Heats went to Gravel, Schatz, Montieth and Sweet with Shaffer earning the feature pole by winning the dash.
Shane Stewart scored the B Main.
Gravel set fast time over the 32 car field with a lap of 16.784 seconds.
Feature finishes:
7/26/19
410 sprints, 25 laps: 1. Tim Shaffer, 2. David Gravel, 3. Donny Schatz, 4. Freddie Rahmer, 5. Danny Dietrich, 6. Lance Dewease, 7. Brad Sweet, 8. Brian Montieth, 9. Brent Marks, 10. Logan Schuchart. 11. Cory Haas, 12. Sheldon Haudenschild, 13. Carson Macedo, 14. Anthony Macri, 15. Chad Trout, 16. Daryn Pittman, 17. TJ Stutts, 18. Shane Stewart, 19. Jacob Allen, 20. Ian Madsen, 21. Kraig Kinser, 22. Kyle Moody, 23. Jeff Halligan, 24. Landon Myers, 25. Troy Fraker
DNQ: Jason Sides, Dylan Cisney, Adrian Shaffer, Kody Lehman, Kyle Reinhardt, Jesse Attard, Chris Arnold
