MARNE, Mich. – Jimmy McCune rebounded from a rare engine failure in his most-recent Must See Racing Sprint Car Series start in a big way on Saturday night at Berlin Raceway.
With his focus firmly on getting back in the championship hunt, McCune rolled from seventh to the lead in four laps, then drove away from the competition down the stretch for his 31st career MSR victory.
Saturday’s Engine Pro Fast Car Dash score marked McCune’s second win in three races this season and his second in Must See Racing competition at the unique seven-sixteenths-mile oval.
“There were a few times (in traffic) that I made some guys move out of the way, but we put it all together and got us another one tonight,” said McCune in victory lane. “This is a hometown race for Rev-X Oil, and we did it again tonight, and I just can’t say thanks enough to all the people that make this race car fast and keep us coming back to the race track every time out.
“I figured we’d be alright in clean air, so I just moved the wing back and let it eat,” McCune noted in regards to the final laps. “That was the biggest thing, was just to go as fast as I could over the final four laps, stick to the bottom and make him (Blonde) have to go around the outside. It all worked out.”
After a 10-car inversion for the feature, Kevin Feeney led the field to green for the 30-lap Engine Pro Fast Car Dash main event, escaping to the early lead over Jerry Caryer before a spinning Tom Jewell in turn four brought the caution lights on with one lap in the books.
At that point, McCune had already jumped from seventh up to fourth, but it was his rival Jason Blonde who made the most noise on the ensuing restart.
Blonde, a 2018 inductee into the Michigan Motorsports Hall of Fame, powered his way forward from fifth to second when the green flag dropped again but was powerless to stop McCune when the four-time defending series champion made a two-for-one power play in turn three on the fourth round.
Once McCune swept underneath both Blonde and Feeney, he stretched his legs quickly, running out to a 2.789-second margin at the halfway point and carrying a lead of more than three seconds when a late yellow waved with just four circuits remaining to be run.
The caution, for a spin by Johnny Petrozelle III, was a narrow escape for Blonde – who just avoided the slowing Mike Blake Racing No. 81 in time to escape with no damage and reset for a final charge.
However, Blonde could do nothing with McCune on the final restart, as the Toledo, Ohio, native turned the fastest lap of the entire race – a stunning 13.722-second clip – on lap 28 and never looked back.
McCune took the checkered flag first by a margin of 3.307 seconds, leaving Blonde to settle for second.
“From where we were in the heat race, this is a great result,” said Blonde. “We were out to lunch at that point, but we fought back. We got some setup help that brought the car back to life, and it helped us finish second, but Jimmy was in a class all his own tonight. We weren’t going to catch him at the end.”
Canadian Ryan Litt completed the podium, followed by point leader Anthony McCune and Feeney.
After a last-minute decision to come to Berlin, Brian Gerster set fast time in qualifying at 13.209 seconds (119.237 mpt) and crossed the line sixth. Anthony McCune won the eight-lap Engine Pro Fast Car Dash.
To view complete race results, advance to the next page.
