ATI STEERS CLEAR OF THE WALLS IN BERLIN
July 15, 2001 – Marne, MI

Round 12 of the AC DELCO ASA Series was held at Berlin Raceway, with Johnny Sauter leading the points race and and looking to extend his winning streak to 6 in a row. Coming off a string of Top-20 finishes, J.C. Beattie Jr and the ATI Performance Racing Team were feeling confident about the race in Michigan.

With a qualifying time of 17.120 seconds, J.C. ended up in the 19th spot on the starting grid. Crew chief, Jack Smith, was pleased with the set-up of the car and was hopeful for a good result. Jack shared some thoughts on having 2 types of chassis in the team, "When you have 2 different chassis, it becomes a little more difficult to set them up. They respond a little differently to the same changes, and it can become a game of trial and error before you're happy with the balance."

J.C. had clawed his way up to 16th by the halfway point, falling a lap down to the leaders. "The car was fast tonight, but Butch [Miller] and Gary St. Amant were having their own race up front, so I did my best to stay out of their way." The race ended with the GM Vortec powered #09 ATI Performance Racing Chevy Monte Carlo of J.C. Beattie in 15th place.

"I'm happy with the development of the team. It's only our second season in ASA and were proving to be much more consistent than last year," remarked young J.C. "It's just a matter of time now and I'm sure we'll be running in the Top-10."

A late race pit stop that caused controversy among two of ASA’s best proved to be a defining moment for both eventual winner Butch Miller and runner-up Gary St. Amant. A close call by ASA pit officials determined that Miller was first to the line at the pit exit during a caution period on lap 258. Miller then held off St. Amant through the final 40-plus laps to secure his first win of the 2001 season.

“Whoever got to the line first was going to win,” said Miller, whose win came from the pole. “The crew did a great job on that one stop, probably the best all year long. I don’t blame Gary [St. Amant] at all, I would have done the same thing.

“The crew made a lot of adjustments all night. In the end, it was an awesome car. We really needed this win. This was the one race all year that we as a team really wanted.”

St. Amant and Miller swapped the lead several times under caution while ASA officials were sorting the results of the pit stops. In the end, Miller had the lead and held off St. Amant until the finish. It was St. Amant’s fourth podium of the season. St. Amant didn’t agree with the call made on the track.

Kevin Cywinski and Clanton rounded out the top five finishes. The tires.com 300 saw six different leaders swap the lead 11 different times, with Sauter, Miller, Clanton, Mike Eddy, Tim Taylor and Todd Rosebrugh all holding the point at one time. Eight cautions slowed the field for 53 laps.

Mike Miller, Mike Garvey, Tim Taylor, Robbie Pyle and Ricky Bryant, who scored his first career top-10 finish, rounded out the top 10 places.

Sauter retains both his National Championship and Rookie of the Year points lead heading into ASA’s next event, the Tecumseh 300 at Salem Speedway on July 21. The Tecumseh 300 is set to begin at 9 PM (Eastern) and will be telecast live on TNN Sports.

Race Statistics:
Time of Race: 1 hours, 48 minutes, 37.525 seconds
Average Speed: 72.580 mph
Margin of Victory: .277-seconds
Lead Changes: 11 among 6 drivers
Lap Leaders; B. Miller, 1; Clanton, 2-27; Eddy, 28-61; Clanton, 62-89; Rosebrugh, 90-105; Clanton, 106; Sauter, 107-152; Clanton, 153-173; Sauter, 174-207; Taylor, 208-213; Sauter, 214-258; B. Miller, 259-300
Cautions: 8 for 53 laps

Fans in the Baltimore area can listen for J.C. Beattie, Jr. on The Checkered Flag, a radio program covering NASCAR, CART, IRL, and Maryland racing. The Checkered Flag can be heard on WNST 1570 AM, Saturdays between 9 and 11 AM. Be sure to check www.jcbeattie.com or www.asaracing.com often for the latest information on J.C. Beattie, Jr. and the ATI Performance Racing team.

BACK