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2021
Winner and Champion: Ben
Ebeling in Command of SCSCS Final Night of Festivities at Dominion
Thornburg,
Virginia (October 4, 2021) – All Ben Ebeling needed to do was
finish in the top five to cap off a season of ultimate consistency
and claim the championship. The
accomplishments went a step further with Saturday’s Super Cup
Stock Car Series Championship Night at Dominion Raceway.
The
afternoon started off with the Hickory, North Carolina driver
setting a new track record of 15.768 seconds, a mere 15 thousandths
of a second quicker than the only other remaining title contender
Bob Schacht. In addition
to that, Ebeling’s son Landon drew him the first starting position
as part of the six-car redraw.
Two yellow flags
slowed the competition in the first 60-lap main event, but it was
Ebeling’s No. 44 Startown Carpet & Floor Coverings / Swanny's
Auto Sales / Wrenn’s Lawn Service / L & C Truck Repair /
Battery Specialist of Hickory / RE Suspension Ford that established
itself as the car to beat on the restarts and ensuing green flag
runs.
Time in the shop
was the key to a flag-to-flag victory, Ebeling’s eighth of the
year, and what sealed the deal for the championship before the field
even took the green flag for the second race.
“We unloaded
good,” Ebeling answered. “These
guys and I, we all did our homework back at the shop and made sure
everything was as good as it’s been all year.
We went over everything.
Fixed the brakes from Motor Mile, fixed a spark plug wire,
did a bunch of stuff and just went over every bolt and nut on this
car just to make sure it was as good as it could be.
Without these guys and stuff like that it wouldn’t be
possible to have these successes.”
Twice
a race winner last time out at Motor Mile Speedway, Jason Kitzmiller
was able to advance to the runner-up position shortly after halfway,
while Mooresville, North Carolina’s Schacht held on for third.
Jerod Brougher, making only his third start of 2021, would
overcome from a broken axle during the optional practice the evening
before to capture fourth in the No. 71 Backup Power / Donegal Auto
Body / TNT Embroidery and Screening / Gen-Mark / Builders Unlimited
Chevrolet. Hard
Charger honors went to Dusty Silvers, the Elizabethton, Tennessee
driver claiming his first career top five performance.
The regional titles
were also decided based on the outcome of the first race.
With the win, Ebeling additionally took top accolades in the
South, a division in which he remains undefeated since the
opportunity was introduced in 2017.
Kevin Kromer suffered mechanical issues in practice that kept
the Walnutport, Pennsylvania driver from starting the feature, but
last place points was more than enough to
clinch the North. One of
the cautions occurred when Petersburg, West Virginia’s Brent
Nelson, having a solid third place run going, blew an engine without
warning. Despite being
sidelined, he was able to lock up the Mid-Atlantic title.
For the second main
event it was the latter part of the top five from the initial 60
lapper, Stahlstown, Pennsylvania’s Brougher and Silvers in the No.
99 Boneyard Truck Parts / Silvers Family Racing Chevrolet on the
front row. Silvers
shuffled back a few spots at the wave of the green flag, but
Brougher led his first laps of the season from the get go.
By circuit number
three Brougher had the nose-to-tail Schacht, Kitzmiller, and Ebeling
pressuring behind him. Contact
ensued which sent the leader around.
Some additional activity
under the yellow flag period resulted in both Brougher and Schacht
being parked for the remainder of
the distance.
This opened the
door for Kitzmiller to lead on the restart, but a few laps later
once again it was Ebeling that found a way around.
The race was far from over though as the Maysville, West
Virginia driver chased down the pacesetter on a few occasions.
Nonetheless,
it was a sweep of the night and record ninth win of the 2021 season
for Ebeling.
“Jason definitely
had something for us in that second race,” the now 18-time career
SCSCS winner indicated. “But
I couldn’t have written this.
Bob (Schacht) is a very fast here.
We always want to come to win and expect to win, but I
expected to contend with him as well and he was tough.
I wasn’t thinking of getting the pole and both wins.
Very blessed to have that happen.”
Kitzmiller admitted
having only the second best car in the first race, but recounted the
next race and the pass that occurred shortly after the early
restart.
“The second race
we were tit for tat,” the driver of the No. 97 A.L.L. Construction
/ CR7 Motorsports Garage Chevrolet explained. “I
got in a bad push coming off of four; he got a good run on me and
got under me in one and two. It
was a good move. We got
to him three different times, but I just got impatient is the
absolute truth. The car
got tighter and tighter and had to use the right front up more than
I wanted to getting to him and then when I got to him there would be
a lapped car or something like that.
“It just wasn’t
meant to be, but Ben ran a good race and he ran his car hard.
We both did. We
were sideways jumping off the corners several times, but it was a
good race.”
Coming home with an
even better result from the first race was Silvers.
A best career third also netted him the First-Time Winners
plaque as the highest finishing driver who has not previously won a
SCSCS race. This all
came in a car that they had brought out for the first time, a former
winning ride with Jon Kerley behind the wheel in 2019, and is
something to certainly build the momentum upon entering next year.
“Unexpected
but feels pretty good,” the series rookie remarked.
“It’s our setup and we worked on it all week to get here
and I’m just thrilled with it.
Don’t think I could have done any better tonight.
We’ll be back (in 2022) for sure.”
Uniontown,
Pennsylvania’s Bill Ashton achieved a season best fourth in the
No. 35 Bill’s Wood Stoves - Hopwood, PA / Budget Blinds of Altoona
& State College / Ashton Racing Chevrolet while a late entry for
the weekend, Littlestown, Pennsylvania’s Jason Schue, powered
through to round out the top five in the No. 3 Firehouse Grill / 1st
Choice Computer Solutions / Littlestown Car Wash / Peckie's Auto
Body / Larry's Lawn Mower Repair / Jason Schue Racing Toyota, the
best of his career.
Jeff Thomas from
nearby Gloucester, Virginia earned Hard Charger honors and a best
career sixth place result despite battling intermittent power
steering issues with the No. 15 Charles Parks Photography /
B.A.D.G.E. / Thomas Racing Team Chevrolet.
A future story will
recap the season-ending awards presentation that took place the
morning after at the Dominion Raceway facility.
Multiple of the
2021 races, including both SCSCS Championship Night Twin 60s, were
filmed by the Pit Row TV crew and will premiere in the future
nationally on MAVTV Motorsports Network.
Please visit mavtv.com for
full listings of upcoming televised coverage and stay tuned to the
official series web site at supercupstockcarseries.com
and Facebook, Twitter,
or Instagram
accounts for an announcement regarding the aforementioned as well as
any news and developments over the off-season heading into 2022.
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