ATTICA, Ohio – Justin Peck continued his impressive early-season success Saturday by earning his first Attica Raceway Park victory and his second career FloRacing All Star Circuit of Champions presented by Mobil 1 win during the Core & Main Spring Nationals.
Peck, from Monrovia, Ind., came into the first All Star point race having won two races against the Pennsylvania Posse already this season aboard the Buch Motorsports No. 13.
He took the lead from Zeb Wise utilizing the extreme high line exiting turn two on lap 28 and drove his Coastal Race Parts.com/DMI/RPM Chassis/HP Engines-backed machine to a convincing win.
“If you would have told me this last year I would have told you you are crazy because I didn’t win a race all year last year. To win the All Star opener going into an entire 58-race long point schedule is freaking awesome,” said Peck. “I just can’t say enough about this Tom Buch Motorsports team and Sean and Kurt give me an outstanding race car every time I hit the race track. Really when we started off the night we were just okay I felt like.
“We were more or less a fifth-place race car, in my opinion, and I just kept talking to my guys and they kept giving me what I wanted and here we are standing on the frontstretch.”
Peck was one of the very few cars to utilize the high line in turns one and two, and he felt that was the winning recipe.
“It kind of curbed up there, and as long as you could feather it off of two and have your motor detuned, you could really kind of move it up through there,” he said. “I just stuck to what I knew and that’s pound the boards. I told my guys before the feature if we get to lapped traffic we had the best shot because my car worked up there.”
Wise, who led laps six through 27, scored a solid runner-up finish.
“Can’t say enough about Wayne (Priddy, crew chief) and my dad and everyone on this team. It’s only our second race and we are up here on the podium tying my best finish with the All Stars,” said Wise. “Me and Wayne are still learning each other and I’m pretty happy with how things are going.”
Attica season opener winner Hunter Schuerenberg drove his TK Concrete/Maxim Trucking/Logan Contractors/Eddie Gilstrap Motors No. 55 to a third-place finish.
“I think we maybe could have gotten there a little bit sooner. I was convinced it was going to take rubber and it kind of did and I might have saved a little bit too long. It got us there at the end but I probably could have pushed it a bit more early. All and all happy…we’re close. I couldn’t be more happy with the opportunity I’ve been blessed with in this Vermeer Motorsports team,” said Schuerenberg.
At the drop of the green for the 40 lap All Star feature, polesitter Cory Eliason jumped into the lead with Wise, Ian Madsen, Peck, Schuerenberg, Cale Conley, Craig Mintz and Caleb Griffith in tow.
Wise began pressuring Eliason by lap three just before a caution flew two circuits later. On the restart, another caution flew and when the green reappeared, Wise drove under Eliason for the lead. Peck took third on lap seven as Wise pulled away from the field.
Wise built a two-second lead by lap 10 over Eliason, Peck, Madsen, Schuerenberg, Griffith and Mintz. Just as Wise entered heavy lapped traffic on lap 15, the race’s final caution flew as Peck drove into second.
On the restart, Wise pulled away from Peck with Eliason, Madsen, Schuerenberg, Mintz and Brent Marks in pursuit. By lap 21, Wise had found lapped traffic again and Peck began to close.
Racing through traffic, Peck blasted the thin cushion in turn two and drove into the lead on lap 28 and quickly pulled away.
With six laps to go, Peck had put two lapped cars between himself and Wise while Eliason battled with Schuerenberg and Marks for third. Schuerenberg took third on lap 38, bringing marks into fourth.
From there, Peck drove to the win over Wise, Schuerenberg, Marks and Eliason.
The finish:
1. 13-Justin Peck [3]; 2. 10-Zeb Wise [2]; 3. 55-Hunter Schuerenberg [5]; 4. 5-Brent Marks [9]; 5. 26-Cory Eliason [1]; 6. O9-Craig Mintz [7]; 7. 7BC-Tyler Courtney [12]; 8. 11-Ian Madsen [4]; 9. 23-Chris Andrews [11]; 10. 16-DJ Foos [19]; 11. 33W-Caleb Griffith [10]; 12. 3J-Trey Jacobs [13]; 13. 5T-Travis Philo [14]; 14. 3C-Cale Conley [6]; 15. 17B-Bill Balog [22]; 16. 5R-Byron Reed [21]; 17. 22-Brandon Spithaler [18]; 18. 4-Cap Henry [15]; 19. 27S-John Ivy [20]; 20. 29-Stuart Brubaker [17]; 21. 8M-TJ Michael [24]; 22. O7-Lucas Wolfe [8]; 23. 2-Ricky Peterson [23]; 24. 18-Cole Macedo [16].