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SCSCS
Title Defense and Continued Improvement Being Readied at Ebeling and
Ashton Racing Shops
Statesville,
North Carolina (April 20, 2022) –
There has been a whole lot taking place approximately 400 miles
apart in Hopwood, Pennsylvania and Newton, North Carolina over
recent months. Many
might think a Super Cup Stock Car Series season like Ben Ebeling had
driving for Ashton Racing, netting nine victories, more than 300
laps led, and 100 percent of laps completed would be enough.
However, there is more in which to strive.
Having
combined forces going into last year with Keystone State racer Bill
Ashton entering his first full-time campaign in what has become a
positive relationship, Ebeling does the maintenance on the No. 44 in
his shop situated nearby Hickory Motor Speedway.
Concluding 2021 on a high note with a pair of trophies at the
fast and grip-filled Dominion Raceway, now bringing his career total
of wins at the 4/10-mile oval to five, beginning 2022 where the team
left off could be a real possibility.
Nevertheless, the venues that follow are what the driver, who
began racing karts and street stocks in northern Ohio before moving south
to attend the Bobby Isaac Motorsports Program at the Catawba Valley
Community College, has circled on his list.
“I
would say Midvale, Clearfield, and Jennerstown,” Ebeling answered
on a recent Lead
Lap Show podcast hosted by Tom Baker
about where his focus on improvement is centered.
“Jennerstown
is one of those tracks where we got a win there (in 2021) but I
still don’t feel like I’ve got it completely figured out.
There’s a bump going into turn three that just messes me up
every time.
People
like Lauren Butler and Kevin (Kromer) and a couple of the other guys
(such as four-time winner last year Brent Nelson and Ebeling’s car
owner Ashton with a win there in the past too) that have raced up
there more than I have, have been able to adapt more.”
Ohio’s
Midvale Speedway falls in a similar scenario as Jennerstown, where
Ebeling has won a race but does not have as much experience at the
bullring 3/10-mile oval as several of his peers.
UMI Motorsports Park in Clearfield, Pennsylvania is one of
the only facilities on the schedule that the defending champion has
yet to win a main event.
“(UMI
Motorsports Park) was a little challenging,” Ebeling continued,
also remarking about the track surface’s abrasiveness.
“We finished third up there this past year, so I’d like
to go back up there and do a little bit better this year.
I don’t want a track to beat me, so I want to go back up
there and see what we can do and outperform what we did last
year.”
North
of the Mason-Dixon, the aforementioned Ashton is switching things up
with the approach for 2022. The
No. 35 that has been seen at almost every SCSCS event since 2014
will be renumbered 57 with
a collective of names in the driver seat.
Friends for a number
of years, Warrington, Pennsylvania’s Mike Senica and Haymarket,
Virginia’s Rob Jones will split the duties behind the wheel across
numerous events, aptly named the RaM (Rob and Mike) Racing leg of
the operation.
Ashton
and crew as well as each driver have been readying for the
season’s commencement, recently taking to Dominion Raceway for a
test session.
“We
turned a bunch of laps, and I started picking up speed, getting more
confidence and feeling more comfortable,” Senica, who only has one
past SCSCS start in 2014 but has most recently previously competed
in ARCA and the NASCAR Truck Series in 2018, described.
“You can drive it a little deeper into turn one and, from
Bill’s advice, play with it into turn three a little more and use
your discretion. I
compare the configuration some to (Florida’s) New Smyrna
Speedway.”
Senica,
a commercial pilot during the week, has rather straightforward goals
going into the first race and as the weeks roll on, “enjoy the
relaxed atmosphere, get faster as we go, and get some good
finishes.”
While
it’s been a couple years since Senica has competed in a stock car,
it has been an even longer layoff for Jones, a worldwide pilot for
UPS and prior to that a fighter pilot for the Air National Guard.
His last start was in an ARCA race in 2011, before Dominion
(which he also related to New Smyrna) was even constructed.
“It
was Mike’s persistence to get me back out there,” Jones, a past
participant in the fledgling SCSCS years, indicated.
“I was pleasantly surprised how quickly it was starting to
come back and getting into the groove.”
During
the 2008 and 2009 seasons, Jones led laps and achieved five top five
finishes, include third twice. That
said, he has a realistic approach when it comes to brushing the dust
off.
“For
me, seeing as how I had no plans even a year ago, I have to be big
picture and can’t expect to pick up on it all right away,” Jones
added. “I’m looking
forward to reintroducing myself to the Super Cup Stock Car Series,
having a reputation of being a clean driver like before, and gaining
the same level of respect. With
that and getting comfortable, continuing to get faster and becoming
more and more competitive, then I can strive toward running in the
top five again.”
For
Ashton, it will be an unusual endeavor seeing the driver who current
holds the longest active streak of consecutive starts not taking the
green flag himself. The
emphasis though for 2022 is getting his drivers acclimated, but
whenever they are not present it will be Bill himself taking the
wheel.
“The
test went extremely well,” Ashton echoed.
“Things have been coming along very well with new spindles,
brakes, nose, and fenders. Looking
forward to an exciting season.”
Another
connection between the two states is a team that operates on their
own, but as of late works on their cars on the Williams Ebeling
Enterprises property and as a result comes to the champion driver
and team for various setup expertise.
The Brothers Brothers Racing Team, comprised of teenage but
now seasoned SCSCS drivers Landon and Hayden Brothers, makes the
trip down from their York, Pennsylvania home nearly every weekend.
“(Ebeling)
helps us with any advice, fabrication, and everything,” Landon
Brothers, driver of the No. 29, commented.
“He’s just there for whatever we need.”
Both
Landon and Hayden Brothers sat out the middle portion of the 2021
season to get their cars back toward tip-top shape.
The time off proved to be pivotal, as career best
performances ensued for both drivers.
Hayden qualified fifth during the championship finale weekend
at Dominion and consistently ran around that position, ultimately
finishing sixth. Unfortunately,
the second race on that night was cut short due to mechanical
issues, much of which they have been zeroing in on getting fixed for
good over the offseason.
“We
tore a lot of things apart and put them back together,” Hayden
Brothers, driver of the No. 27, specified.
“New nose, new fender, and had to replace some brake
components, new windshields – a lot of new stuff.”
“We pretty much
tore down the whole car,” Landon added regarding his ride which
accomplished five top 10 finishes.
“We were working on putting a new body on.
The panels aren’t ready so we’re going to have to
improvise a little bit.”
The late 2021
success has both drivers optimistic heading into 2022 and ready to
take the next step on their list of goals.
“I’m very
excited for 2022,” Hayden said.
“First, we want to run all the races.
I really want to run up front in the races and get top fives
and top threes, and just do well throughout the whole season.”
“We’re really
excited and we gained a lot of confidence last year, so we just want
to do better,” Landon mentioned.
“Couple top fives and just run up front.”
Tying it back to
Ebeling’s title defense, what has him coming back for 2022?
There are a few reasons, including the series format which
places execution in the driver’s hands, being a smart driver and
managing equipment.
“Having the
ability to feel, through the car and through your foot and whatnot,
and really know what you’re doing and being aware of what you’re
doing to the tires through the corner and when you get on of the
gas,” Ebeling pointed out as key and what he feels are his
strengths. “I’ve
felt like our program and where our racecar and race team is,
we’ve gotten lucky and gotten some poles and stuff like that, but
I really feel like our success has come from long run speed.
We may not be able to fire off like some of the other guys
are, but we’re consistent.
“It’s the most
fun I’ve had racing in a long time.
The cars, the people, the atmosphere – I bring my family,
my wife and my three kids and we all have a good time together.
A little bit more the traditional racing that we grew up
with. I’ve really
enjoyed being involved with it and getting to go to different
tracks.”
More of Ebeling’s
thoughts will be featured on MAVTV
Motorsports Network and associated viewing platforms as part of
a special season-in-review show, which premieres in May and will
additionally look at the 2022 season ahead.
Check local listings for air times of shows from 2021,
presented by Trick Shot®
Sustainable Products and STAAR
Trucking.
A
complete Race Day Schedule as well as forthcoming updates will be
shared on the Super Cup Stock Car Series official web site supercupstockcarseries.com,
Facebook (search Super Cup Stock Car Series), Twitter (@SCSCSRacing),
and Instagram (SCSCS_Racing) leading into and including the season
opening twin 60-lap races at Dominion Raceway.
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