Don Martin Memorial Silver Cup Preview
Ahh it’s that time of year again. The World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series is about to kick off their “Month of Money” this weekend at Eldora. After the Outlaws wrap up their Kings Royal weekend at the Big E, they’ll begin the roughly 5-hour trek to Sarvertown for the 24th running of the Don Martin Memorial Silver Cup Twin 30’s.
The Silver Cup was an instant fan-favorite at its inception in 1992. Drivers have come and gone since then, as well as a fantastic promoter in Don Martin, but the race has stood the test of time. And if you need any extra incentive to pack the stands next week, keep in mind that the Outlaws will not be returning in September for the Commonwealth Clash. Let’s go ahead and dive on into what you can expect from the 2015 edition of the Silver Cup, shall we?
The reason so many fans and drivers love Lernerville Speedway begins with the varying track conditions. Anyone who has attended in the past has experienced the range of track surfaces that the red clay presents. If you’re in attendance next Tuesday (which you should be), expect a tacky track heading into Turn 1 and a “slick-as-snot” surface as drivers search for grip off of Turn 2.
The Silver Cup also marks the only time that you can see The Greatest Show on Dirt run two Main Events within one program. The illustrious format will see all A-Main starters run a 2nd 30-lap non-points race with all lead-lap cars from the first feature being inverted. What does this mean for fans? Most likely that they’ll get to see Donny Schatz run through the field in the 2nd feature after winning the 1st A-Main (I’m only slightly kidding).What drivers can you expect to show next Tuesday evening? I’ve compiled a list of for-sures and possibilities. Don’t hold me to this list, as I know that not everyone will show up. But if the weather is good, I do expect a strong field of 40 or so of the best 410 Sprint Cars in the region. With that said, here’s a possible list of drivers:
WoO: Donny Schatz, Shane Stewart, Joey Saldana, Daryn Pittman, Kraig Kinser, Jason Sides, David Gravel, Jacob Allen, Logan Schuchart, Brad Sweet, Kerry Madsen, Paul McMahan, Jason Johnson
PA Posse: Danny Dietrich, Aaron Ott, Greg Hodnett, Lucas Wolfe, Brent Marks, Brad Howard, Wayne Dadetto
Western PA: Carl Bowser, Ed Lynch Jr., A.J. Flick, Jack Sodeman Jr., Brandon Matus, Brent Matus, Rod George, Eric Williams, Rod George, Brandon Spithaler, Sye Lynch, Adam Kekich, Dan Kuriger, Scott Priester, Dan Shetler, Jimmy Morris, Jared Zimbardi, Zach Morrow, Bill Kiley, Davey Jones, Gale Ruth, Bobby Siegel
ASCoC/Ohio: Dale Blaney, Tim Shaffer, Chad Kemenah, Danny Holtgraver, Ryan Smith, Sheldon Haudenschild, Greg Wilson, Lee Jacobs, Cody Darrah, Parker Price-Miller, Danny Smith, Paige Polyak, Andrew Palker, Travis Philo
Take a minute to soak all that in if you need to. What you see written above is a stout list of drivers, and a forecast of good weather means that most of these drivers should be there.
So now it’s time to discuss the favorites. We could talk about the obvious choices: Donny Schatz, Shane Stewart, Dale Blaney, Joey Saldana. Why would I do that? I’ll skip the boring section of regurgitating information that everyone already knows and give you a list of dark horses that could very well finish at the front, or make it interesting at the very least.
Darkhorse Picks
Danny Holtgraver: 2010 Lernerville track champion. Multi-time ASCoC feature winner. Lest I forget his 19th to 2nd run in the 2011 Silver Cup
Sheldon Haudenschild: Coming off a series of break-out runs during Ohio Speedweek as well as a $10,000 Lou Blaney Memorial victory. Finished 3rd in May’s ASCoC race @ Lernerville
David Gravel: The ASCoC graduate nearly won last year’s Commonwealth Clash last fall, finishing 2nd to Joey Saldana
Carl Bowser: 3 Lernerville wins during an up-and-down season. When he’s on, he appears almost unstoppable
Ed Lynch, Jr: Remember him winning the 2002 Don Martin Memorial Silver Cup? And he always times in near the front for these shows.
Where: Lernerville Speedway. 313 N. Pike Road, Sarver, PA 16055
Who: The Greatest Show on Dirt
Why: To see the Outlaws compete in not one, but TWO main events in a single evening
Ticket prices: Adults ($35), Students ($24), 10 and under (FREE)
Who to follow: @WorldofOutlaws, @Lernerville, @TheDirtNetwork
Timing/Scoring: Will be available via Race-Monitor
Categories
The Dirt Network 