Pokorski Motorsports powers to fast start
By Jeff Pederson
(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) May 10, 2016 – After months of careful planning and meticulous preparation, Paul Pokorski put his Pokorski Motorsports team’s new 2016 Maxim to the test last Friday and Saturday night with an Interstate Racing Association (IRA) and Midwest Sprint Car Association (MSA) weekend doubleheader to open the 2016 racing season.
The new car proved to be fast right out of the box, which yielded some impressive results in the Plymouth Dirt Track Racing opener on Saturday, May 7.
“We didn’t really know what to expect with the new car, but overall I’m really pleased with how things turned out over the weekend,” Pokorski said. “The car handled really well. I couldn’t really have asked for much more from the car for our first few nights out this year.”
Pokorski wasted little time putting the car in victory lane in the PDTR opener.
After starting on the outside of the front row in the fourth sprint car heat race, Paul outpowered polesitter Brandon McMullen to take the lead in the first corner. He was never seriously challenged the rest of the way en route to the heat race victory and a spot in the A main field.
Pokorski rolled out for the 25-lap sprint car A main from the fourth starting spot. In the opening laps, Pokorski settled into the fourth position in the running order. A spin by Kevin Karnitz bunched the field on lap 5. On the restart, Pokorski fell back to sixth. However, that was short-lived, as he motored past Danny Schlafer and Tim Haddy along the inside groove to regain the fourth position by lap 7.
At the mid-way point of the race, Pokorski worked his way up to battle with polesitter Jim Melis and fifth-started Kurt Davis for second place.
However, lapped traffic started to become more of a factor as the laps wound down. With most of the field stuck to the inside lane, passing was difficult for everyone, especially for the leaders, who were looking to negotiate lapped cars in the closing laps.
Haddy battled back to pass Pokorski for fourth place with three laps to go. Pokorski held on in the closing laps to secure a strong fifth-place A main finish behind race winner Donny Goeden, Kurt Davis (second), Jim Melis (third) and Tim Haddy (fourth).
“The track took rubber, so I had to stick with running the inside lane,” Pokorski said. “It became kind of follow the leader. I don’t really like to run the bottom the whole race, but that’s how it turned out.
“Overall, I was really happy with how the car ran in the heat and the feature,” Pokorski said. “For our first time out at Plymouth this year, it was really a great night. I’m not saying it was perfect by any means, but I think we are ahead of the game right now. There are some adjustments we can make for next week, which will hopefully make the car a bit better.”
The team opened the 2016 campaign on Friday, May 6, joining up with the Interstate Racing Association for the Manitowoc Mayhem event at the Manitowoc Speedway.
Running a 360 MSA car against the high-powered 410 IRA machines on the sweeping Manitowoc Speedway third-mile track proved to be an uphill battle for the team.
After laying down the 22nd fastest qualifying lap in the 30 car IRA field, Pokorski started eighth in the first IRA heat race. He spent the early part of the race battling for position with Mike Decker, before Decker dropped out with mechanical trouble.
Pokorski’s 8th place finish in the heat race, put the car in the B main. After starting fifth in the B main, he dropped back a few positions in the opening laps to eventually post a 9th place finish, which was three spots out a transfer position for the A main.
“Because it wasn’t a points race for us, we tried some things for the IRA race at Manitowoc that we normally wouldn’t do,” Pokorski Motorsports Crew Chief Dave Schultz said. “I think it is safe to say that we won’t be making a few of those changes again. The race allowed us to get some extra laps in and at the same time we were able to learn some things not to do.”
The Pokorski Motorsports team will return to action this Saturday, May 14 in Plymouth Dirt Track Racing action at the Plymouth Dirt Track.
Pokorski Motorsports would like to direct special recognition to R&H Enterprises, Goeden’s Auto Body, Christel Sign and Goodwin Racing Engines for helping to get the team’s new 2016 Maxim on the track this season.
The Pokorski Motorsports sponsors for the 2016 season include: Allied Bearing Corporation, Behling Racing Products, The Cawley Company, Goeden’s Auto Body, Goodwin Racing Engines, Hagar’s Half-Pound Cookies, Jens, Reinbold & Pfeffer Family Funeral Services & Crematory, Kettle Moraine Landscaping, Novak’s Service Center, Pedal Down Promotions and Tisler Salvage Inc.
For more information on Pokorski Motorsports, check out Pokorski Motorsports on Facebook or visit www.pedaldownpromotions.com
PDTR racing action, which features MSA Sprint Cars, WDLMA Late Models, Grand Nationals, B Mods and Micro Sprints, starts at 6 p.m. this Saturday, May 14. Sheboygan County Fair Park is location at 229 Fairview Drive in Plymouth. For more information, visit www.plymouthdtr.com or check out Plymouth Dirt Track Racing on Facebook.
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For more information on Pedal Down Promotions, email pedaldownpromotions@gmail.com, visit www.pedaldownpromotions.com or call 920-323-7970.
2016 Pokorski Motorsports Upcoming Schedule
Saturday, May 14- Plymouth Dirt Track (MSA)
Saturday, May 21 – Plymouth Dirt Track (MSA)
Saturday, May 28 – Plymouth Dirt Track (MSA)
Sunday, May 29 – 141 Speedway in Francis Creek (IRA)
2016 Pokorski Motorsports By The Numbers
Events – 2
A Main Victories – 0
Top Five A Main Finishes – 1
Top 10 A Main Finishes – 1
Heat Race Victories – 1