PETERSEN
MEDIA: Rico Abreu continued to impress his new Australian fans, as the
youngster closed his Australian stint with a 5th place finish at the
Australian Open against the World Series Sprint Car Series.
Action got started off on Friday night, and with 37 cars in the pit
area, including Donny Schatz, Jason Johnson, Shane Stewart among many
others, Abreu set quick time on the night putting him in great position
for the weekend.
With three heat races on tap, Abreu went on to pick up heat finishes
of fifth, eighth and third all from starting 10th in each of his three
heats.
As he entered to feature as the high point earner on the night, Abreu
then lined his Abreu Vineyards/Kaeding Performance/Maxim up in the
third position.
Once the feature got underway, Rico worked the high, scary side of the speedway as he looked to grab the early lead.
The St. Helena youngster grabbed the point, as he had American stars,
Jason Johnson, and Donny Schatz hounding him as he set the pace.
A caution slowed the pace with just six laps to go, and Rico fell
back to the second spot. With time running out, Abreu got up over the
cushion trying to get the lead back, and ended up falling back to the
fifth spot as he chased Jason Johnson, Donny Schatz, James McFadden and
Brooke Tatnell across the stripe.
Though he finished in the fifth spot, Abreu still was the top point earner of the night heading into the final night.
To set the first four rows of the 50-lap feature, the format called
for a shoot out, putting four cars on the track at a time to match race,
with the fastest two advancing to the next round, starting with the
bottom four kicking off the event, with the fastest two remaining taking
on the top two point earners.
Rico ultimately finished fourth in the shoot out and lined his
Stadlehofer Construction/Swift Metal Finishing/Santomauro Racing
Products entry in the fourth spot.
The abrasive track was narrow from the start of the night, and was not very passes friendly.
By the 20th lap, the race was completely single file and Abreu found himself in the fifth spot.
As the checkered fell on the 50th lap, Abreu was in the fifth spot
behind Donny Schatz, Robbie Farr, James McFadden, and Dave Murcott.
“I had a great time down here, and can’t wait to get back,” said
Abreu. “I have to thank Brent Kaeding and Skippy for coming down with
me, the Kelly family for housing us, Steve and Pete Thorley for all
their help, and Todd Wanless for letting us work out of his shop.”
Abreu would like to thank Abreu Vineyards, Kaeding Performance,
Stadlehofer Construction, Factory Kahne Shocks, Sprint Car Innovations,
Santomauro Racing Products, ButerBuilt, Swift Metal Finishing, and 7
Industries for their continued support.
ON TAP: Rico will now head to Tulsa, OK to compete in the Chili Bowl
out of the Keith Kunz stable. Abreu will qualify on Thursday, January
12th.
STAY CONNECTED: Stay updated with Rico by visiting his website at
www.ricoabreuracing.com, ‘liking’ him on facebook at
www.facebook.com/ricoabreuracing or following him on twitter
@RicoAbreu24.
VIDEO: Be sure to check out http://www.youtube.com/ricoabreuracing for video of Rico, as content is constantly being uploaded!
MERCH: Rico will be selling special edition Chili Bowl shirts at the
Chili Bowl featuring his Keith Kunz team of Kyle Larson, Jason Leffler,
Bud Kaeding and himself. Stop by the trailer to pick one up.
PETERSEN MEDIA: Petersen Media specializes in motorsports media
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constructing email lists to keep sponsors, and fans up to date. Petersen
Media also utilizes today's Social Media networks to provide trackside
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