(Image Credit: Bill McIntyre and Central PA Racing Scene)
Bryan Hulbert –MECHANICSBURG, Penn. (May 8, 2018) Racing in Pennsylvania for the first time in 15-years, Johnny Herrera took on Williams Grove Speedway on Friday, followed by Selinsgrove Speedway with the Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series presented by Sawblade.com with a weekend high ninth-place finish.
“We had good speed. We drew good, but it was an up and down weekend. For the most part, we held our own,” commented Herrera who sits second to Seth Bergman in tour standings following the two-race swing.
Winning the opening Heat Race at Williams Grove Speedway, Herrera followed that with a fourth-place finish in the Qualifier to position the Mesilla Valley Transportation No. 45x tenth in the A-Feature lineup.
“We drew decent and won the Heat so that put us in a good position for the Qualifier. We ended up starting 10th and just kind of rode around. It was hard to pass once we got to the feature. The track wasn’t locked down, but it started getting abrasive more so than anything. There was spotty rubber, so you definitely didn’t want to miss the bottom.”
Racing to beat the rain more than anything the following night at Selinsgrove Speedway, Johnny struggled to find speed all night, resulting in a 19th place finish.
“The car just wasn’t happy all night. I don’t know what we missed if we should have gone with a different bar combination, but we just weren’t good with the racecar. That’s a wing speed track, and the car has to be balanced.”
From eighth to sixth in the second Heat, followed by a ninth-place finish in the opening Qualifier, Johnny was forced to race his way into the show through the second B-Feature. Lining up fifth, Herrera raced through to a second-place finish.
“We really thought we found something in the B-Main. Chris [Stivers] made quite a few changes to the car before we went out and we actually fell back on the start, but the longer that race went the faster we got and I felt like we had found something, but with the rain coming and rushing around, we just didn’t get to make all the changes we wanted for the feature and got behind.”
Back in the Midwest this week, Johnny will be in action at Humboldt Speedway in Humboldt, Kan. on Wednesday, May 9, followed by Lakeside Speedway in Kansas City, Kan. on Thursday, May 10, then finally I-30 Speedway in Little Rock, Ark. on Saturday, May 12.
“I’m looking forward to this week. We ran Humboldt last year and really enjoyed it. Going to Lakeside, you know it’s still a bigger track but we’ve typically run decent there then going down to Little Rock; we just want to improve over last weekend.”
The 2018 season marks the 34th year of racing for Johnny Herrera which includes over 140 victories in various forms of Sprint Car competition. For more information, and to keep in touch with the man called “Hollywood”, log onto to http://www.johnnyherreraracing.com.
2018 Season To Date:
Races: 9; Wins: 0; Top 5’s: 3; Top 10’s: 6; Top 15’s: 8; Top 20’s: 9
Recent Results:
May 4, 2018 – Williams Grove Speedway (Mechanicsburg, Penn.)
Heat: 1st [2nd]
Qualifier: 4th [4th]
A-Feature: 9th [10th]
May 5, 2018 – Selinsgrove Speedway (Selinsgrove, Penn.)
Heat: 6th [8th]
Qualifier: 9th [9th]
B-Feature: 2nd [5th]
A-Feature: 19th [20th]
Coming Up:
May 9, 2018 – Humboldt Speedway (Humboldt, Kan.) with Lucas Oil ASCS
May 10, 2018 – Lakeside Speedway (Kansas City, Kan.) with Lucas Oil ASCS
May 12, 2018 – I-30 Speedway (Little Rock, Ark.) with Lucas Oil ASCS
Johnny Herrera Racing Online:
Website: http://www.JohnnyHerreraRacing.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JohnnyHerrera2
Apparel:
Online soon at http://www.johnnyherreraracing.com/shopping and in the Pits at the team’s trailer.
Sponsor Highlight: Mesilla Valley Transportation
Founded in 1982 by Royal Jones and Jimmy Ray, Mesilla Valley Transportation began as a small independent fleet in the Southwest. In the late 1980’s MVT grew to encompass the 48 connected states and Canada. Today, Mesilla Valley Transportation is one of the largest locally-owned Truck Load carriers in the U.S., specializing in time sensitive service between major manufacturing areas in the U.S., Canada and Mexico borders.
Johnny Herrera would also like to thank Morton Excavating, Mesilla Valley Transportation, Champion Brands, ButlerBuilt Professional Seat Systems, Ostrich Racing Engines, FK Rod Ends, Hoosier Racing Tire, Schoenfeld Headers, Maxim Chassis, Schroeder Torsion Bars, Simpson Race Products, Outlaw Wings, Weld Wheels, Finish Line Coatings, Semi-Crazy Truck Wash, Smiley’s Racing Products, CSR Garage, Heidbreder Foundation Services and Rocket Designs for their continued support.