St. Amant’s Hard Work Pays Off at Greased Lightning 250

MANSFIELD, OH (June 14) – Three races into his 25th year of racing, Gary St. Amant gets the finish that had been eluding him so far this season.

After having a solid practice session with the sixth fastest time, Gary St. Amant and his team went back to work to put the final touches on his Monte Carlo before qualifying. It paid off. The JEGS.com/HT&S Mulch Chevrolet qualified 3rd with a time of 16.891.

Early in the caution-filled race, St. Amant and his father/Crew Chief, Bud, decided not to pit even though most of the field did. This decision helped Gary lead some laps and receive five bonus points for his efforts. On lap 158 during another caution, the JEGS.com Team decided to come in for four tires and, on the next caution, they took fuel to put them solidly in 13th position.

Near the race’s halfway point (lap 164), Gary was up to 11th, making his way through the pack with four new tires and determination. By lap 177, Gary managed to maneuver his way through traffic to 7th; he reached 6th place on lap 200.

In the next fifty laps, Gary pulled his harness tight and got to work, driving like the racing veteran he was but with the excitement of an 18-year-old rookie. He still had a lot of driving to do with plenty of other win-hungry drivers knocking on his door to get around him. Yet, in the end, Gary held off the competition to advance to 4th. On the final lap, race leader Jeff Agnew sputtered out of gas, enabling Gary to take home a strong 3rd place finish.

St. Amant said: “It’s rewarding when you work so hard all day and have a finish like this. We had a tough first two races of the season, and we deserved this finish. The JEGS.com Team did a great job, and we’re happy with the way things turned out for us today.”

This finish moves St. Amant, the defending Northern Division champion, up to 5th in the USAR Hooters Pro Cup Series points standings of his division.

The next race will be at Salem Speedway in Salem, IN on June 28th.