From Brian Walker / worldofoutlaws.com
The Fabulous Lincoln Speedway has been hosting Sprint Car races for 60 seasons in the heart of Pennsylvania’s Pigeon Hills, and the Allen family has been winning at the track for more than five decades.
On Wednesday night, that synonymous relationship of Shark Racing stars at the Abbottstown, PA 1/3-mile took the next step with the next generation.
Leading the final 12 laps thanks to brilliant craftsmanship in lap traffic, Jacob Allen of nearby Hanover, PA earned his first-ever victory at his home track, located a whopping six minutes from the Shark Racing shop. To make it even sweeter, he did it against arguably the toughest field of the year with 55 World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Cars in action.
Allen’s win in the Dura MAX Oil / Drydene Performance Products Gettysburg Clash is already his second of the 2022 season, and the third of his storybook career with The Greatest Show on Dirt. He’s the fourth member of his legendary family to win at Lincoln Speedway with his dad Bobby Allen (75 wins), nephew Logan Schuchart (2 wins), and uncle Joey Allen (1 win) previously tasting victory at the local land.
In the 50th Series race at Lincoln, Bobby & Jacob Allen also became the third father/son duo to win with the World of Outlaws at the track, joining another pair of iconic Pennsylvania racing families in Steve & Stevie Smith and Fred & Freddie Rahmer.
“I feel like the moral of my entire racing career is never give up,” Allen told an ecstatic crowd at Lincoln Speedway. “If anyone has followed me, you know I could have easily called it quits through all the struggles, all the bad times, all the poor finishes, but I never did. This shows that with a great family, a great team, and a great attitude you can make it happen one day.
“This is just so amazing. I can’t tell you how surreal it feels to look around and see all of these people cheering for me. I’m so damn happy. It makes me feel even better knowing I can share this with all of you.”
Before Allen sent the hometown fans into a frenzy, the Pells Tire Service #1A was forced to maneuver from fifth to first with Outlaws, Posse, All Stars & Invaders blocking his path. The 27-year-old pilot rode around in fourth for the first 10 laps, but it was a Lap 12 restart that changed everything.
After leading laps 1-8, Anthony Macri of Dillsburg, PA succumb to Justin Peck of Monrovia, IN amid lap traffic just prior to the first restart of the race. It was that launch back to the green where Macri struggled on the high side and allowed Allen to soar into contention with Peck thanks to a big move. It was a clash of three fairytale stories with Macri & Peck both eyeing their first-career World of Outlaws win, but Allen going for his first-career Lincoln Speedway win.
The breaking point was Lap 24 as traffic ramped up and Allen closed on Peck for the top spot. He set him up through turns one and two as Peck rode high and then Allen aced the bottom of turns three and four to slide up and take it away with 11 to go. He had to survive a final restart with five laps left, but there were no issues at all as Allen cruised to a 1.336-second margin of victory.
“I knew it would be a tough call on where to go at the end,” Allen noted on the mounting pressure. “I passed Justin [Peck] on the bottom in traffic, but I knew he was super good up top. I’m glad I made the decisions that I did and we got this done. This is such a huge win.”
Although that first-career win will have to wait, it was still a phenomenal night for Justin Peck and the Buch Motorsports #13. The Monrovia, IN native set a new career-best World of Outlaws finish with his runner-up result, worth $6,000 to the All Star Circuit of Champions full-timer.
“We put a whole night together against the Outlaws, that’s big for us,” Peck added afterward. “I told Sean [Strausbaugh] that were three-to-four laps prior to getting passed that I had terrible exit and no straightaway speed, so I think that’s what hurt us the most. I knew starting up on the front row you’re kind of playing victim to be that sitting duck. It’s tough when you can’t search around, but this is a step in the right direction for us.
Rounding out the podium at Lincoln Speedway was Carson Macedo in the Jason Johnson Racing #41. The Lemoore, CA native used another consistent night to cut Brad Sweet’s championship lead down to only eight points entering Williams Grove.
“Phil [Dietz], Clyde [Knipp], and Nate [Repetz] just keep delivering some incredible race cars for me,” Macedo mentioned. I think we might’ve had a car capable of winning if some things played out better. I had to go into defense mode on that last restart and got caught up battling Spencer [Bayston]. I’m excited to get to Williams Grove and hopefully keep this momentum rolling.”
Closing out the top-10 finishers in the Gettysburg Clash was Spencer Bayston, Anthony Macri, Rico Abreu, David Gravel, Danny Dietrich, Brad Sweet & Lance Dewease.
Up Next (Fri-Sat):
The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series will move the battle against the Pennsylvania Posse down the road to Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, PA this Friday & Saturday, May 13-14 for the annual Morgan Cup.
NOS Energy Drink Feature Results (35 Laps):
1. 1A-Jacob Allen [5][$10,000]; 2. 13-Justin Peck [2][$6,000]; 3. 41-Carson Macedo [6][$3,500]; 4. 5-Spencer Bayston [3][$2,800]; 5. 39M-Anthony Macri [1][$2,500]; 6. 24-Rico Abreu [4][$2,300]; 7. 2-David Gravel [7][$2,200]; 8. 48-Danny Dietrich [18][$2,100]; 9. 49-Brad Sweet [8][$2,050]; 10. 69K-Lance Dewease [13][$2,000]; 11. 1S-Logan Schuchart [11][$1,600]; 12. 83-James McFadden [20][$1,400]; 13. 15-Donny Schatz [21][$1,200]; 14. 87-Alan Krimes [28][$100]; 15. 27-Devon Borden [22][$1,050]; 16. 44-Dylan Norris [26][$]; 17. 16-Gerard McIntyre [19][$1,000]; 18. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss [15][$1,000]; 19. 18-Giovanni Scelzi [16][$1,000]; 20. 71-Buddy Kofoid [10][$1,000]; 21. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [9][$1,000]; 22. 9-Kasey Kahne [23][$1,000]; 23. 11K-Kraig Kinser [25][$]; 24. 6-Bill Rose [27][$]; 25. 8-Freddie Rahmer [14][$1,000]; 26. 55K-Robbie Kendall [12][$1,000]; 27. 39D-Chase Dietz [24][$1,000]; 28. 19-Brent Marks [17][$1,000]. Lap Leaders: Anthony Macri 1-8, Justin Peck 9-23, Jacob Allen 24-35.
Championship Standings (After 18/79 Races):
1. Brad Sweet (2,502); 2. Carson Macedo (-8); 3. David Gravel (-26); 4. Sheldon Haudenschild (-92); 5. Logan Schuchart (-106); 6. Spencer Bayston (-130); 7. Donny Schatz (-150); 8. James McFadden (-158); 9. Jacob Allen (-206); 10. Brock Zearfoss (-310).
See the full story and results:
Photos: Trent Gower / worldofoutlaws.com