Weldon Wins The Wee Willie White Memorial

BY STEVE SKARUPA
AUGUST 15, 2021
Imperial, PA

After heavy rainfall and thunderstorms plagued Dirt’s Monster Half-Mile throughout the week, Mother Nature came through and provided excellent weather on Saturday evening for the PPMS Penn Ohio Pro Stock Wee Willie White Memorial. Pittsburgh’s Pennsylvania Motor Speedway would see six heat races, five feature events, an Australian pursuit style feature, and three first-time winners. Todd Weldon (45), from Monongahela, would win the Wee Willie White Memorial after a spirited battle with Nick Kocuba (10), from Burgettstown. Cole Petrelle (84P), from Follansbee, West Virginia, would pick up his first career win for the Rohrich RUSH Late Model Dirt Series. Kayla McManus (00K), from Elizabeth, would pick up the win, as she won the Australian Pursuit for the Priority Equipment Rental Hobby Stocks. Cody Koteles (1K), from Stockdale, snagged another win in the Priority Equipment Rental Hobby Stock feature. Bill Tennant (2), from Colliers, West Virginia, picked up another win for the Crawford Auto Repair Four-Cylinders, while Travis Clark (05), from Pittsburgh, picked up his first career win for the All Ways Safe Young Guns.

In the PPMS Pro Stock Wee Wille White Memorial 15-lap feature event, Weldon (45) would start on the pole. Kocuba (10) would start to his inside in second place. Jacob Billyk (4) would start in third, Jacob Billyk (4JR) would start in fourth, and Jackson Billyk (5) would round out the five-car field, as Tanya Charlier (21), and Brian Huchko (60H) did not start. When the green flag dropped, Kocuba (10) would pull away with the early lead, but Weldon (45) was right on his doorstep. The pair would race side by side through lap two when Weldon (45) took over the lead. The event’s first caution would come on lap three when Jackson Billyk (5) spun out in turn four. Weldon (45) would take the inside on the restart with Kocuba (10) to his inside. When green replaced yellow, Weldon (45) would keep his lead staying to the low side of the track with Kocuba (10) staying to the high side. The pair would lead the field through lap 10 with Jacob Billyk (4) in third. Another caution would come on lap 10 when Jacob Billyk Jr. (4JR) would stop near the pit entrance in turn four. Weldon (45) would again take the inside on the restart with Kocuba (10) to his outside. When the green light turned on, Kocuba (10) would take over the lead with five laps remaining in the event. Kocuba (10) and Weldon (45) would race side by side with Kocuba (10) sticking to the high side and Weldon (45) sticking to the low side. Weldon (45) would take over the lead again on lap 12 and another caution would come on lap 13. With two laps remaining in the event, Weldon (45) would again choose the inside on the restart with Kocuba (10) to his outside. Kocuba (10) would take over the lead when the green flag waved for the final time in the event, and Kocuba (10) would take the white flag. After the pair took the white flag, Weldon (45) would pass Kocuba (10) coming out of turn two, and go on to win the PPMS Penn Ohio Pro Stock Wee Willie White Memorial with Kocuba (10) coming in a close second. “Me and Nick have been going at it for a long time and he always runs me clean, thank you to Nick for a clean race,” Weldon (45) said in his post-race interview. Jacob Billyk (4) would finish in third, Jackson Billyk (5) in fourth, and Jacob Billyk Jr. (4JR) would round out the five-car field. Kocuba (10) won the heat race.

The Rohrich RUSH Late Model Dirt Series 20-lap feature would have Philip Bubeck (2), from Colliers, West Virginia, as their pole-sitter. Colton Flinner (5X), from Allison Park, would start to his inside in second place. Cole Petrelle (84P) would start in third, Daryl Charlier (114), from Midway, would start in fourth, Tony White (27T), from Aliquippa, would start in fifth, and Tom Klein (77) would finish off the top three starting rows. When the green flag waved, Flinner (5X) would pull away with the early lead. Lap three had Flinner (5X) still leading with Petrelle (84P) now in second, Charlier (114) now in third, and Bubeck (2) falling to fourth. On lap six, Petrelle (84P) would take over the lead from Flinner (5X) as they came out of turn two. Petrelle (84P) would lead the field through lap 11 where he would enter lapped traffic. The event’s first caution would come on lap 12 for debris in turn three. With eight laps remaining in the event, Petrelle (84P) would choose the inside on the restart with Flinner (5X) to his inside in second place, Charlier (114) was in third, and Bubeck (2) in fourth. When the green flag dropped, track officials called a no-start, so the field would line up and give it another try. This time when green replaced yellow, Petrelle (84P) would keep his lead with Flinner (5X) in tow. Flinner (5X) would fall off of the pace on lap 18 which allowed Charlier (114) to take over second place. But, the night belonged to Petrelle (84P) as he would lead the remaining laps of the event en route to his first career Rohrich RUSH Late Model Dirt Series PPMS win. He was followed to the line by Charlier (114) in second, Bubeck (2) in third, Dan Lepro (2L) in fourth, Klein (77) in fifth, Chris Lander (18) in sixth, Kassidy Kamicker (72B) in seventh, White (27T) in eighth, Flinner (5X) in ninth, and Dave Gobel (20G) would complete the top 10. The heat race winners were Flinner (5X) and Charier (114). Notables: Zach Morrow (48) did not start, and Dan Lepro (2L) was the hard charger starting ninth and finishing fourth.

The Priority Equipment Rental Hobby Stock Australian Pursuit was a last-minute addition to Saturday night’s program. The field would start single-foul and if you were passed, you were out of the race except for the final lap. It was a seven-lap event with C. Koteles (1K) starting on the pole. McManus (00K) would start behind him in second place. Matthew Benard (15), from Oakdale, would start in third, while Danny Rich (221K), from Imperial, would start in fourth, Jonathan Koteles (2K), from Stockdale, would start in fifth, Ben Anton (13) from Jefferson Hills, would start in sixth, John Cain (06), from North Versailles, would start in seventh, and Tom Anton (64), from Jefferson Hills, would complete the eight-car field. The seven-lap event would run caution-free with Benard (15) being passed first by Rich (221K). At the front of the pack, C. Koteles (1K) would lead laps one through six with McManus (00K) right there with him. On the final lap of the event, McManus (00K) was able to pass C. Koteles (00K) to pick up the Priority Equipment Rental Hobby Stock win. “I didn’t think I was going to be able to pass him but it was an exciting last lap, and it was fun running door to door with him most of the way,” said McManus (00K) in a post-race interview. Since the last lap of an Australian Pursuit is a give me, C. Kotles (1K) would finish in second and wasn’t out of the race when he was passed. Rich (221K) would finish in third, B. Anton (13) would finish in fourth, J. Koteles (2K) would finish in fifth, Cain (06) would finish in sixth, T. Anton (64) would finish in seventh, and Benard (15) would complete the eight-car field.

In the Priority Equipment Rental Hobby Stock regular 15-lap feature, McManus (00K) would start on the pole. J. Koteles (2K) would start to her inside in second place. B. Anton (13) would start in third, Cain (06) would start in fourth, Rich (221K) would start in fifth, and C. Koteles (1K) would start in sixth completing the top three starting rows. When the green light turned on, McManus (00K) would keep the early lead with Cain (06) in second, a C. Koteles (1K) already up to third. The event’s first caution would come on lap two when J. Koteles (2K) would make contact with the outside wall on the front-straight and would stop in turn one after a fuel pump issue. McManus (00K) would choose the outside on the restart with Cain (06) to her inside, but before the green was dropped, Cain (06) would retire to the pits with an unknown issue. With Cain (06) retiring to the pits, McManus (00k) and C. Kotles (1K) would now lead the restart. When the field returned to green-flag conditions, McManus (00K) would keep her lead. McManus (00k) and C. Koteles (1K) would again battle door to door for the lead on laps four through seven with C. Koteles (1K) taking over the lead on lap seven but McManus (00K) would stay right beside him. They would enter lapped traffic on lap nine which would allow C. Koteles (1K) to pull away from McManus (00K) and the rest of the field. C. Koteles (1K) would lead the remaining laps of the event to pick up another PPMS Hobby Stock win. He was followed to the line by McManus (00K) in second, Stephen Shelpman (17S) in third, Frank Magill (05) in fourth, B. Anton (13) in fifth, Tony Magill (5) in sixth, Robert Betz (22) in seventh, Cody Behanna (25) in eighth, Cody Tokarski (26T) in ninth, and T. Anton (64) would complete the top 10. The heat race winners were C. Koteles (1K) and McManus (00K). Notables: Frank Magill (05) would be the hard charger after starting sixteenth and finishing fourth.

The Crawford Auto Repair Four-Cylinder 10-lap feature would have Lucas Weaver (11W), from California, Pennsylvania, as the pole-sitter. B. Tennant (2) would start to his outside in second place. April Tennant (2B), from Colliers, West Virginia, would start in third, Derek Quigley (65Q), from Roscoe, would start in fourth, and Craig Rudolph (5R), from Steubenville, Ohio, would complete the five-car field, as Kyle Janas (81), Travis Corbin (42), and John Gill (19G) did not start. When the green flag dropped, Weaver (11W) would pull away with the early lead but it was short-lived as B. Tennant (2) had the lead at the line on lap one. The event’s only caution would come on lap five for debris on the track. B. Tennant (2) would take the outside on the restart with Weaver (11W) to his inside in second, and Quigley (65Q) in third. B. Tennant (2) would lead all laps of the event, picking up another Crawford Auto Repair Four-Cylinder win. Weaver (11W) would finish in second, Quigley (65Q) in third, A. Tennant (2B) in fourth, and Rudolph (5R) in fifth. The heat race winner was B. Tennant (2).

In the All Ways Safe Young Guns eight-lap feature, Cameron Hollister (44), from McDonald, would start on the pole. Travis Clark (05) would start to his inside in second place. Cameron Lambert (223), from Mars, would start in third, while Gavin Kokolis (91), from Oakdale, would start in fourth, Sadie Snatchko (56), from Oakdale, would start in fifth, Emmerson Laboon (14), from Elizabeth, would start in sixth, and Logan Koteles (5K), from Stockdale, would complete the seven-car field. When the green flag dropped, Hollister (44) would pull away with the early lead but he would soon be in a battle for the top spot with Clark (05), and Clark (05) would take over the lead on lap two. The event’s first caution would come on lap four when Hollister (44) spun out after Laboon (14) made contact with him. Since the Young Guns are a no-contact division, Laboon (14) was unfortunately sent to the pits by track officials. Clark (05) and L. Koteles (5K) would lead the restart with Clark (05) keeping his lead. Lap seven saw another caution when the 223 of Lambert lost a wheel coming out of turn two. With one lap remaining, Clark (05) would lead the restart and he would keep his lead when green replaced yellow picking up his first career All Ways Safe Young Guns win. He was followed to the line by Hollister (44) in second, L. Koteles (5K) in third, Snatchko (56) in fourth, Kokolis (91) in fifth, Lambert (223) in sixth, and Laboon (14) in seventh. The Young Guns did not run a heat race.

Racing resumes at Pittsburgh’s Pennsylvania Motor Speedway next Saturday, August 21, 2021, when the fastest cars on dirt invade the Monster Half-Mile. Falconi’s Automotive 410 Outlaw Winged Sprint Car Series often reach speeds of 150 MPH at Dirt’s Monster Half-Mile. PPMS will also be featuring the RUSH Sportsman Modified Series, Rohrich RUSH Late Model Dirt Series, the ADMAR Penn Ohio Pro Stock Series, the Priority Equipment Rental Hobby Stocks, the Crawford Auto Repair Four Cylinders, and the All Ways Safe Young Guns. Gates open at 5 p.m., hot laps begin at 6 p.m., and the racing action will commence at 7 p.m. Visit our schedule section for pricing and tickets. PPMS has a GPS address of 170 Kelso Road, Imperial, PA 15126. Happy Racing!

RESULTS

PPMS Penn Ohio Pro Stock Wee Willie White Memorial (15) – Laps

Finishing Spot – Starting Spot – Driver Name (Car Number) – Hometown

1 – 1 – Todd Weldon (45) – Monongahela

2 – 2 – Nick Kocuba (10) – Burgettstown

3 – 3 – Jacob Billyk (4) – New Castle

4 – 4 – Jackson Billyk (5) – New Castle

5 – 5 – Jacob Billyk Jr. (4JR) – New Castle

Pro Stock Heat 1 (8) – Laps

Finishing Spot – Driver Name – Car Number – [Starting Spot];

Nick Kocuba – 10 – [3]; 2. Todd Weldon – 45 – [8]; 3. Jacob Billyk – 4 – [1]; 4. Jackson Billyk – 5 – [5]; 5. Jacob Billyk Jr. – 4JR – [6]; 6. Tanya Charlier – 21 – [4]; DNS – Brian Huchko – 60H –

Rohrich RUSH Late Model Dirt Seris Feature (20) – Laps

Finishing Spot – Starting Spot – Driver Name (Car Number) – Hometown

1 – 3 – Cole Petrelle (84P) – Follansbee, WV

2 – 4 – Daryl Charlier (114) – Midway

3 – 1 – Philip Bubeck (2) – Colliers, WV

4 – 9 – Dan Lepro (2L) – Midway

5 – 6 – Tom Klein (77) – Rochester

6 – 7 – Chris Lander (18) – Burgettstown

7 – 10 – Kassidy Kamicker (72B) – Aliquippa

8 – 5 – Tony White (27T) – Aliquippa

9 – 2 – Colton Flinner (5X) – Allison Park

10 – 8 – Dave Gobel (20G) – Aliquippa

DNS – Zach Morrow (48) – Gibsonia

RUSH Late Model Heat 1 (8) – Laps

Finishing Spot – Driver Name – Car Number – [Starting Spot];

Colton Flinner – 5X – [6]; 2. Philip Bubeck – 2 – [1]; 3. Tony White – 27T – [5]; 4. Chris Lander – 18 – [3]; 5. Dan Lepro – 2L – [4]; 6. Zach Morrow – 48 – [2];

RUSH Late Model Heat 2 (8) – Laps

Finishing Spot – Driver Name – Car Number – [Starting Spot];

Daryl Charlier – 114 – [3]; 2. Cole Petrelle – 84P – [4]; 3. Tom Klein – 77 – [2]; 4. Dave Gobel – 20G – [1]; 5. Kassidy Kamicker – 72B – [5];

Priority Equipment Rental Hobby Stock Feature (15) – Laps

Finishing Spot – Starting Spot – Driver Name (Car Number) – Hometown

1 – 6 – Cody Koteles (1K) – Stockdale

2 – 1 – Kayla McManus (00K) – Elizabeth

3 – 8 – Stephen Shelpman (17S) – Pleasant Hills

4 – 16 – Frank Magill (05) – Jefferson Hills

5 – 3 – Ben Anton (13) – Jefferson Hills

6 – 10 – Tony Magill (5) – Jefferson Hills

7 – 11 – Robert Betz (22) – South Heights

8 – 15 – Cody Behanna (25) – Finleyville

9 – 12 – Cody Tokarski (25T) – Hickory

10 – 9 – Tom Anton (64) – Jefferson Hills

11 – 13 – Jack Grimm (47T)

12 – 14 – Rick Ours (70) – East Liverpool, OH

13 – 7 – Matt Benard (15) – Oakdale

14 – 5 – Danny Rich (221K) – Imperial

15 – 4 – John Cain (06) – North Versailles

16 – 2 – Jonathan Koteles (2K) – Stockdale

DNS – John Hollister (121) – McDonald

DNS – Marc Corio (14) – South Fayette

Hobby Stock Heat 1 (8) – Laps

Finishing Spot – Driver Name – Car Number – [Starting Spot];

Cody Koteles – 1K – [3]; 2. Matt Benard – 15 – [2]; 3. Jonathan Koteles – 2K – [8]; 4. Ben Anton – 13 – [1]; 5. Tom Anton – 64 – [4]; 6. John Hollister – 121 – [6]; 7. Marc Corio – 14 – [5]; 8. Jack Grimm – 47T – [9]; 9. Cody Behanna – 25 – [7];

Hobby Stock Heat 2 (8) – Laps

Finishing Spot – Driver Name – Car Number – [Starting Spot];

Kayla McManus – 00K – [4]; 2. Danny Rich – 221K – [2]; 3. Stephen Shelpman – 17S – [5]; 4. John Cain – 06 – [3]; 5. Tony Magill – 5 – [6]; 6. Robert Betz – 22 – [1]; 7. Cody Tokarski – 26T – [7]; 8. Rick Ours – 70 – [8]; DNS – Frank Magill – 05 –

Priority Equipment Rental Hobby Stock Australian Pursuit (7) – Laps

Finishing Spot – Starting Spot – Driver Name (Car Number) – Hometown

1 – 2 – Kayla McManus (00K) – Elizabeth

2 – 1 – Cody Koteles (1K) – Stockdale

3 – 4 – Danny Rich (221K) – Imperial

4 – 6 – Ben Anton (13) – Jefferson Hills

5 – 5 – Jonathan Koteles (2K) – Stockdale

6 – 7 – John Cain (06) – North Versailles

7 – 8 – Tom Anton (64) – Jefferson Hills

8 – 3 – Matt Benard (15) – Oakdale

DNS – John Hollister (121) – McDonald

Crawford Auto Repair Four-Cylinder Feature (10) – Laps

Finishing Spot – Starting Spot – Driver Name (Car Number) – Hometown

1 – 2 – Bill Tennant (2) – Colliers, WV

2 – 1 – Lucas Weaver (11W) – California, PA

3 – 4 – Derek Quigley (65Q) – Roscoe

4 – 3 – April Tennant (2B) – Colliers, WV

5 – 5 – Craig Rudolph (5R) – Steubenville, OH

DNS – Kyle Janas (81) – Coraopolis

DNS – Travis Corbin (42) – Colliers, WV

DNS – John Gill (19G) – Burgettstown

Four-Cylinder Heat 1 (6) – Laps

Finishing Spot – Driver Name – Car Number – [Starting Spot];

Bill Tennant – 2 – [4]; 2. Lucas Weaver – 11W – [1]; 3. April Tennant – 2B – [5]; 4. Derek Quigley – 65Q – [3]; 5. Craig Rudolph – 5R – [2]; 6. John Gill – 19G – [6]; DNS – Kyle Janas – 81 – ; DNS – Travis Corbin – 42 –

All Ways Safe Young Guns Feature (8) – Laps

Finishing Spot – Starting Spot – Driver Name (Car Number) – Hometown

1 – 2 – Travis Clark (05) – Pittsburgh

2 – 1 – Cameron Hollister (44) – McDonald

3 – 7 – Logan Koteles (5K) – Stockdale

4 – 5 – Sadie Snatchko (56) – Oakdale

5 – 4 – Gavin Kokolis (91) – Oakdale

6 – 3 – Cameron Lambert (223) – Mars

7 – 6 – Emmerson Laboon (14) – Elizabeth

The Young Guns DID NOT Run A Heat Race

About The Author