Wellsville’s Jeremy Wonderling is “Mr. Dominant,” wins third McKean race
Results from the McKean County Raceway
By Jeremy Perry – Smethport, PA, pictured Zain Harvey in Victory lane by A&S Mobile Photography
A near-perfect weather night was on tap at McKean County Raceway on Saturday. Temperatures were in the low 70’s, and there was no humidity. Heat racing went off without an issue, and track officials were ready to roll features around 8:45 pm. That was until a fuse inside the transformer at the fairgrounds went sour, resulting in the lights on the backstretch not working. The delay lasted slightly over two hours, and the first feature was rolled out shortly before 11:00 p.m.
Kyle Babcock and Ed Carley were scheduled to start on the front row in the Kane Stebbins Construction Rush Pro Mod Class, but Carley did not make the call, so JD Chamberlain lined up on the outside pole for the feature event. All eyes would be locked in on Zain Harvey, who started 6th. Harvey, to this point, has been perfect at MCR, winning every feature race and every heat race during the 2024 season. Early in the feature, after one completed lap, Babcock lost control of his car in turns three and four, collecting Harvey, requiring him to start tail with nineteen laps remaining. Harvey of Eldred, PA, found himself in the top five by lap six, and he began to set his sights on the top three. Harvey worked around Steve Watson and Josh Canfield and got a late caution, stacking the field back up. On the late restart, Harvey seemed to get a questionable jump on the restart, putting himself right behind Chamberlain with three laps left. Chamberlain wasn’t going to give up the bottom without a fight. With a couple of laps remaining, Chamberlain noticed something had gone wrong with the right front and could no longer hold the car on the bottom of the track, allowing Harvey to take control coming to the white flag. Harvey took care of business, and that final lap won the race. After the race, Chamberlain quickly found out the right front upper A-frame gave up, making it impossible to hug the bottom. Harvey’s perfect season will continue into next week as he is the only driver at MCR to win all three heat races and all three feature events he has been in.
The Rush Stock Cars made their second season visit to the fairgrounds, with Raidden Wilson and Kaden Michael starting on the front row. Michael was hooked up on the bottom, not giving Wilson a chance to make a move to the inside. Wilson looked high several times but has yet to get a good run to make that pass. At times, Wilson was the fastest car on the track but never had a chance to make a clean pass. Michael picked up the feature win by 0.273 seconds. It was Michael’s second win of the season at MCR as he won the first Rush Stock Car feature on May 31st.
Bruno Mowery of Hinsdale, NY, got redemption on Friday night as he picked up his third feature win of the season at the fairgrounds. Mowery and Mike Parmenter started on the front row, and right away, Mowery asserted himself as the dominant car. Joe Skinner made the move of the race as he threw a slid job on Parmenter for the second position in turns three and four, wowing the crowd. After that, Mowery dominated the field, winning the feature in Costa’s Super Market Pure Stocks class.
The Sharp Mini Late Models has seen three winners in three events in 2024. On Friday night, Rick Isadore made it four winners in four races. Rick Isadore of Smethport, PA, started on the front row alongside Rob Eaton. Early on, A scary incident happened when Brandon Blauser lost control of his car in turns three and four, leaving nowhere for Oakley Terrill. Terrill, unfortunately, used Blauser’s car as a ramp, causing him to flip upside down and eventually land on his tires. Thankfully, Terrill ended up being okay. After the restart, Chris Whyte closed the gap on Isadore, looking high and low. On the last lap, Whyte bobbled in turns one and two, allowing Isadore to get some distance between himself and Whyte. Isadore won his first feature in the MCR’s Beaver and Excavating Sharp Mini Late Model class in 2024.
Preston Cobb and Curt Rung led the strong field of nineteen Nittany Mini Mart Mini stocks to green. Cobb paced the field early on. With Cobb out front, Rung and Andy Schumaker battled for several laps over the 1/3 mile. Schumaker of Franklinville, NY, had the inside, and Rung had the outside, running side by side when leader Cobb had trouble with two to go. The two would split Cobb coming down the front stretch, bringing the crowd to their feet. Schumaker and Rung went side by side until Schumaker got the advantage on the bottom and picked up his first win of the season at McKean County Raceway in just his first visit there this season.
The Troups Creek Heating Kids Mini Stock class featured Khloe Griffin and Jake Skinner. The two battled for ten laps, with close, hard racing. Skinner prevailed and picked up back-to-back wins for the first time this season at the Fairgrounds.
Mr. Excitement Jeremy Wonderling was more like Mr. Dominant again in the McKean Trucking and PV Paving Rush Late Models class. Wonderling of Wellsville, NY, and Bill Holmes led the field to green. Wonderling led from green to checkered in another excellent performance, as he has now picked up three feature wins in 2024 at MCR.
Next week, July 5th, the McKean County Raceway welcomes the United Late Model Series into town, which is expected to bring in a great car count and crowd. Matt Tifft, former NASCAR driver, has confirmed with ULMS that he will be in attendance for the show. The Winner of next week’s ULMS race will take home a cool $4,000; the event will also pay $500 to start. Also on the card next week, the first visit of the season from the NY6A Hoosier 600 Sprints will also be on the card. It’s a night you won’t want to miss. For up-to-date information, always look for our Facebook page and McKeanCounty-Raceway.com.
Rush Stock Cars feature (15 laps) – KADEN MICHAEL, Raiddan Wilson, Camron Kramer, Cody Rickard, Cole Strickland, Alex Bush
Heat Race winner – Kaden Michael
Costa’s Super Market Pure Stocks feature (15 laps) – BRUNO MOWERY, Joe Skinner, Mike Parmenter, Barry Burritt, Glen Layfield – DNS
Heat Race winner – Bruno Mowery
Beaver Trucking & Excavating Sharp Mini Late Models Feature (15 laps) – RICK ISADORE, Chris Whyte, Terry Mealy, Josh Outman, Jesse Isadore, Rob Eaton, CJ Sherwood, Donovan Servey, Carson Wonderling, Brandon Blauser, Oakley Terrill, Beaver Ayers – DNS, Travel Asel – DNS
Heat Race winners – Jesse Isadore & Rick Isadore
McKean Trucking & PV Paving Rush Late Models feature (25 laps) – JEREMY WONDERLING, Andy Michael, Bill Holmes, Jacob Wilber, Clayton Tarabori, Paul Grigsby, Ian Travis, Jacob Tubbs, Chuck LaFleur, Steve Lebarron, Justin Yohe, Rickie Loucks, Ed Carley – DNS, Kassandra Norman – DNS,
Heat Race winners – Bill Holmes & Jeremy Wonderling
Troups Creek Heating Kids Mini Stock feature (10 laps) – JAKE SKINNER, Khloe Griffin
Heat race winner – Khloe Griffin
Nittany Mini Mart Mini Stocks feature (15 laps) – ANDY SCHUMAKER, Curt Rung, Ridge Cobb, Holden Heineman, Bill Weatherley, Trever Putt, Shaine Putt, Blaze Harrison, Matt Mowery, Raiddan Wilson, Kody Babcock, Preston Cobb, Sherman Gage, Brayden Williams, Kurt Babcock, John Michael, Shawn Burgess – DNS, Brayden Babcock – DNS, Phil Vaughn – DNS, Steve Baker – DNS
Heat Race winners – Andy Schumaker, Shaine Putt, and John Michael
Kane Stebbins Construction Rush Pro Mods feature (20 laps) – ZAIN HARVEY, JD Chamberlain, Tyler Oakes, Josh Canfield, Steve Watson, Derek Austin, Al Brewer, Bryson Hill, Kevin Doud, Kyle Babcock, Kaleb Heitzenrater – DNS, Josh Wilcox – DNS, Jake Sirline – DNS, Larry Mitchell – DNS, Ed Carley – DNS, Jeremy Wonderling – DNS
Heat Race winners – JD Chamberlain, Tyler Oakes, and Zain
