Phoenix, AZ, October 15, 2006. The first stop of the American Stockcar Challenge (ASC) at PIR in nearly three years proved to be very successful for Team Ghaster Painting MGR Racing. After achieving two consistent second place finishes on Saturday and Sunday races, the Team’s lead driver Manuel Gil del Real moves up to third place in the overall ASC standings.
The Ghaster Painting #27 Ford Taurus was consistently on top of the timesheets throughout the weekend. On Saturday’s qualifying session, California driver Kevin O’Connell won the pole, followed by Belinda Endress, Manuel Gil del Real and current ASC points leader, Ken Stinnett.
At the start of the race, the top four drivers kept their positions throughout the first 11 turn lap around PIR’s infield road course. On lap two, Manuel Gil del Real took advantage of Belinda Endress’ wide entry into turn two to move into second place. Behind him, Ken Stinnett tried the same move but by then, Endress got back on track and closed the gap keeping Stinnett behind her. While O’Connell and Gil del Real raced away, Stinnett finally found his way past the #99 car.
Stinnett caught up with Gil del Real’s car a lap later, and from that moment on, everyone watching the race from the stands was able to witness one of the best displays of closed and hard fought road racing that ASC has had all season. For nearly 25 laps Stinnett and Gil del Real were literally bumper to bumper and side by side fighting for the coveted second place spot. At one point, Stinnett was able to get inside the #27 Ford into turn two, continued side by side around turn three, into turn four, still drove side by side into turn five until he had no choice but to tuck in behind Gil del Real at the entry of turn six. The most amazing part of all is that as close as both racecars were from each other, they never did touch throughout the entire time they were sliding and fighting traction side by side.
Lap after lap it became a strategy fight between two drivers trying to force each other into a mistake that never happened. In the end, the Ghaster Painting #27 Ford was able to maintain second place until the end of the race crossing the checkered flag just 1.5 seconds behind O’Connell and seven tenths of a second ahead of the Sundance Racing #43 driven by Ken Stinnett. Belinda Endress took fourth place almost five seconds behind Stinnett’s car and Ed Ochylski, who was back in the series for the first time this year, completed the top five albeit, 30 seconds behind the leader.
Sunday’s qualifying session was interrupted when O’Connell suffered engine failure and his car had to be towed away from the track. At the end of the shortened session, Stinnett won the pole, followed by Belinda Endress and the Ghaster Painting #27 Ford in third place.
At the start of Sunday’s race, Manuel Gil del Real barely made it through the first corner after Michael Speakman pinched him pretty hard into turn one. By turn two, Stinnett was leading, followed by Endress, Gil del Real and Speakman. The top three cars started to separate themselves from the rest of the pack, with the Ghaster Painting Ford desperately trying to find a way to pass Endress in the #99 Chevrolet for second place. His opportunity came later on lap two when he dove inside Endress into turn nine taking second place away from her.
At that point, it seemed like we would have a replay of the close race that Stinnett and Gil del Real had the day before. “I tried to catch up with Stinnett but I soon realized that my tires would not hold up the entire race if I drove the car 100%... I was almost more concerned with keeping Endress behind me from that point on…” said Gil del Real.
However, a full course yellow caused by a crash by Speakman’s Ford Fusion, bunched up the field again. After three laps behind the pace car, Gil del Real knew that he would only have one chance to get by Stinnett, and that would be at the re-start. “I tried to hang back a bit to get a run on him by the start-finish line, and I did, but not enough to get my car side-by-side by turn one,” said Gil del Real. After that, Stinnett opened a comfortable five second lead over Gil del Real, while the Ghaster Painting Ford also opened a similar lead over the #99 of Belinda Endress.
Stinnett went on to win the race, followed by Gil del Real and Endress in second and third place respectively. All in all, a great weekend for Team Ghaster Painting MGR Racing in their first appearance at Phoenix International Raceway. Brad Ghaster, owner of Ghaster Painting & Coatings, and his wife Kirsten watched the race from the infield bridge and joined the race team for the post race celebration.
The next ASC race will take place at Firebird Raceway in Phoenix, AZ on November 11-12, 2006. For more information, please visit www.MGRRacing.net.
