Sam Hafertepe Jr. won at RPM Speedway with ASCS Gulf South (Ron Skinner Photo)
Bryan Hulbert - CRANDALL, Texas (May 31, 2018) Gaining momentum week after week, Sam Hafertepe, Jr. came away from a weekend double with the Griffith Truck and Equipment ASCS Gulf South Region with his fourth win of the season.
Topping action at RPM Speedway on Friday night, Sam used a late race caution to dash around Tennessee's Terry Gray for the win.
"I tried to run the top to get by him, but under open green flag laps, it was hard to gauge if that was the place to be. A few guys poked their heads up there and tried, but the bottom was so dominate you just wanted to ride," explained Hafertepe.
"I waited all race long for Terry to make a mistake, and he just never did where you could get by him. With the pressure I was feeling, I knew it was time to make something happen, so on the restart, I hit the middle. I figured if there a time it was going to work, that was it, and once I got by him, I dropped to protect the line."
Heading to Devil's Bowl Speedway on Saturday, the Heidbreder Foundation No. 15h rolled to a runner-up finish behind Ray Allen Kulhanek.
"We had a couple runs on Ray. The first time I had him lined up and the caution for Covington saved him then the second time, we got the run with about three to go and got to him, then just got caught in dirty air. As good as the track was, there wasn't really anything coming off the bottom of turn-two and I just timed it wrong when I got there, but all in all, the last few races, we've had some really good cars. I think we're just as fast, if not faster than we were at this time last year with the changes we've been making."
With a streak of top-five finishes now five races long, with fourth podium finishes and three wins included, the Hills Racing Team No. 15h is hitting a stride at just the right time as the team prepares for the 2018 ASCS Sizzlin' Summer Speedweek.
Taking the time to further test and tune, Hafertepe is slated to be on track this weekend with the American Bank of Oklahoma ASCS Red River Region presented by Smiley's Racing Products at Red Dirt Raceway in Meeker, Okla. on Friday, June 1 and Tri-State Speedway in Pocola, Okla. on Saturday, June 2.
For continued updates on Sam Hafertepe, Jr. log onto http://www.sam15.com and make sure to find him on Twitter (@samhafertepejr). For news on Hill's Racing Team, log onto https://www.facebook.com/hillsracing/ and on Twitter (@HillsRacingTeam).
2018 Season to Date:
Events: 21; Wins -4 ; Top 5 - 10; Top 10 - 12; Top 15 -14; Top 20 -16;
Up Next:
June 1, 2018 - Red Dirt Raceway (Meeker, Okla.) with ASCS Red River
June 2, 2018 - Tri-State Raceway (Pocola, Okla.) with ASCS Red River
Sam Hafertepe, Jr. T-Shirts:
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The Sponsors:
Hill's Racing Team, Townline Variety, Heidbreder Foundation Service, Fisher Racing Engines, Super Shox, Cool Chassis, Smiley's Racing Products, Hoosier Tire, Huggins Cams, Champion Oil, The Sparks Family, Lonestar Speedway, Keizer Wheels, XYZ Machining, Simpson Racing Products, CP-Carrillo, KSE Power Steering, FK Rod Ends, BMRS, Allstar Performance, Saldana Racing Products, Vortex Wings, DMI, Wilwood Brakes, Kinsler Fuel Injection, Hwy. 79 Collision.