Dave Watson
By Gary Vercauteren
Kaukauna, Wis. (August 12, 1973) – Dave Watson grabbed the lead on the 15th lap and steered his 1973 Camaro to a $1,000 victory in the final race of the “Red, White, and Blue” State Championship Series at Wisconsin International Raceway on Sunday afternoon before a crowd of 7,726.
Watson, who has been racing for only three years, held off challenges from Marv Marzofka of Nekoosa for the final 47 laps of the 100-lap race. The Beloit driver won by one car length over Marzofka.
The win also enabled Watson to collect the state title as he totaled 1,735 points. Marzofka chalked up 1,535 points for the three-race series.
The race was yellow flagged on lap 70 after a spectacular crash eliminated early race leader Bob Jusola of Burnsville, Minn. The left front tire on Jusola’s 1973 Camaro exploded as his racer sped down the front chute at full throttle.
The disabled racer continued down the front straightaway at nearly full speed and crashed into the first turn wall head on. The machine was tossed back from the track from the force of the impact and rammed into the inside guardrail in the second turn.
When the race continued, it was a wheel-to-wheel duel the remaining 30 laps as Marzofka tried every trick in the book but could not overtake Watson.
Finishing third was Tom Reffner of Rudolph in a 1970 Mustang. Joe shear of South Beloit, Ill., was the point leader going into the final contest but arrived at the track late after having mechanical issues the night before at Wisconsin Dells. He was forced to start at the rear of the 25-car field but managed to finish fifth. Dick Trickle, the 1972 “Red, White, and Blue” point champion, was unable to repair his racer in time for the event after experiencing mechanical problems Saturday night in a race in Georgia.
The feature event was also yellow flagged on lap 15 when Boyce Sparkman of Loves Park, Ill., spun his 1973 Camaro in the third turn and was rammed by Larry Detjen’s 1972 dodge challenger. The two drivers were battling for the fourth spot at the time of the accident. Sparkman returned to the race after a short pit stop to repair damage to the rear end of his car. Detjens, the Wausau native, was less fortunate as his racer was parked for the remainder of the afternoon.
John Rank of Milwaukee was the fastest qualifier of the afternoon with a time of 21.35 seconds on the high-banked half-mile paved oval in his 1972 Nova. Rank bested a field of 43 cars with an average speed of 84.30 miles per hour.
Results –
1. Dave Watson, Beloit
2. Marv Marzofka, Nekoosa
3. Tom Reffner, Rudolph
4. Jim Back, Vesper
5. Joe Shear, South Beloit, Ill.
6. Jim Sauter, Necedah
7. Jim Pierson, Janesville
8. Axel Dahlberg, Mount Horeb
9. Bill Oas, Bloomington, Minn.
10.Jerry Smith, Medina
No comments:
Post a Comment