Mason Mitchell Motorsports put on a show for the fans at the Iowa Speedway Saturday evening, in the Fans with Benefits 150 earning two top-five finishes with Michael Self (4th) and Kyle Weatherman (5th). Team owner Mason Mitchell finished in the 14th position in his fifth start at the 7/8-mile track located in Newton, Iowa. The 2014 championship team claims Iowa Speedway as their home track.
Michael Self and “Dino” started from the 10th position in the 10th race of the 2017 season. Self quickly moved into the top-five early. Trouble struck the No. 28 car on lap 13 as Self spun and made contact with the wall with the left rear in turns three and four. In the process Self lost one lap. A quick caution allowed Self to receive the “free pass” and get back on the lead lap. After getting back on the lead lap, Self wasted no time and quickly moved inside the top-10 into the sixth spot before the next caution at lap 62.
With four fresh General Tire racing tires Self took the lead on lap 76. The Utah native would continue to lead the next 33 circuits until relinquishing the lead on lap 108 to eventual winner Dalton Sargeant.
A late caution set up a 7 late dash for the checkered flag. Self was able to hold off numerous challengers to secure a fourth place finish in his second start for MMM.
Kyle Weatherman made his 50th career ARCA start Saturday evening at Iowa a track where Weatherman has enjoyed a lot of success during his career and Saturday evening was no different.
Weatherman and the No. 78 team quickly moved into the top-five prior to the first caution of the evening on lap 13. On the ensuing restart, Weatherman made a daring three-wide pass to secure the third position.
Weatherman made his first pit-stop of the evening at lap 40 and rejoined the field in the 12th spot. It only took Weatherman 12 laps to move back into the top-five in the third spot.
Weatherman’s march through the field continued as he took the lead on lap 59. He would lead the next six circuits until lap 64.
A late caution allowed Kyle Weatherman to come down pit-road for some fresh rubber for the finish. The Wentzville, Missouri native came across the finish line in fifth. It marked his third top-five of 2017 and his third top-five at the Iowa Speedway.
2015 Iowa Speedway winner, Mason Mitchell made his return to ARCA competition at the Iowa Speedway. It marked his fifth start at Iowa and his first start of the 2017 season.
Mitchell started from the 17th spot in his return start to ARCA. Using patience and guidance from his No. 88 team Mitchell worked his way just outside of the top-10 early.
Unfortunately, Mitchell’s evening took a turn for the worse on lap 33. Racing another competitor for position Mitchell’s No. 88 Karl Chevrolet was turned around and made contact with the wall resulting in right front damage. Mitchell lost one lap during the repairs.
The 2014 champ was able to utilize the free pass and get back on the lead lap at 45. Mitchell cracked into the top-ten for the first time on lap 65 as he restarted from the seventh spot.
Racing on older tires than everyone in the field, Mitchell fell back to the 14th position. Mitchell lost two laps during the longest green flag run of the evening and finished 14th in front of his hometown crowd in his ARCA return.
Driver Quotes:
Michael Self: “We had a very crazy night tonight at Iowa,” Self stated. “If you would have told me that we would have been able to rebound from the early spin with the damaged we received and to come back from a lap down to finish fourth I wouldn’t have believed it. We led a lot of laps tonight. I can’t thank Sinclair, Mason Mitchell Motorsports enough for this opportunity. I just wish I could have parked it in victory lane, but given our circumstances fourth isn’t too bad,”
Kyle Weatherman: “Really felt like we had a race winning car tonight, so it’s a little disappointing to finish fifth, “Weatherman stated. “The restarts were pretty crazy all evening long. The one restart we went from 12th to 5th in two laps or so. Unfortunately, we didn’t have enough left at the end. We’ve got three more starts in the No. 78 this season. Hopefully we can win a few of them and make several trips to victory lane.”
Mason Mitchell: “It was great to be back racing in ARCA at the Iowa Speedway,” Mitchell said. “Unfortunately, we got turned early and had a lot of damage on the right front. It really hurt the performance of the car overall. I really wanted to give the fans more to cheer about and end the evening in victory lane. Thanks to Karl Chevrolet and my team for their support and believing in me.”
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