MECHANICSBURG, Pa. – Lance Dewease may have won for his legendary crew chief, Davey Brown, in Brown’s tribute night on Friday at Williams Grove Speedway, but Anthony Macri sprung to the de facto points lead through night one of Pennsylvania Sprint Car Speedweek.
Heading to Lincoln Speedway Saturday night, the 22-year-old has a five-point advantage over Danny Dietrich among the racers that plan to make the full 10-race run.
Macri put a solid night together on Friday: qualifying third, winning his heat, and ultimately finishing second, only behind the track’s all-time wins leader.
“We’ll definitely take it,” said Macri, a content look on his face. “I kind of feel good about it. We’ve been getting our car better here and we’ve been more consistent in the top five. I felt like the World of Outlaws [NOS Energy Sprint Car Series] shows in May, or whatever month that was, were a turning point for our program.
“We found some stuff out about the car. It’s been better.”
The stretch Macri alluded to were finishes of third at Lincoln on May 12, fourth at Williams Grove on May 15, and third at Bridgeport Motorsports Park on May 18, all with the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series.
It’s another promising sign for Macri’s development. An 11-time winner last year, Macri’s chunk of time spent on the road, specifically in the Midwest, versus touring regulars at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic strengthened his skill set and mindset. It’s largely why he impressed so many onlookers in 2020.
Now, he seems to be reaping more fruit from lessons learned along the way.
“You learn so much when you’re out on the road,” Macri said. “Not just me as a driver, having to drive harder with all those Outlaw guys, but you see different tracks and different situations, and you learn what to do with the car; how to hook the car up better in slick situations. We definitely keep our notebook close to us.”
Macri has come a long way. Remember, he won just four times his first three years in a 410 from 2017-’19. It’s good for any teenager to win in a 410, supremely advanced race cars to grasp.
However, the Dillsburg, Pa., native has grown exponentially the last 12 months.
Since June 14 of last year, Macri has 15 total wins, primarily at Port Royal Speedway and similar half miles.
Where he’s trying to close the competitive gap is on the short tracks, like Lincoln and Grandview Speedway. Last year Macri failed to qualify at both Pennsylvania Speedweek events at Lincoln and finished a quiet ninth at Grandview.
It buried him in ninth in the series points by the end of the week.
“[That] still burns a hole in my ass,” Macri said.
This time, with an early PA Speedweek lead, Macri senses a different trajectory.
“This is probably the most confident I’ve been going into Lincoln,” Macri said. “We did finish third with the Outlaws. That’s no small feat … especially for me, [short tracks] not being my strong suit. [Crew chief] Jim [Shuttlesworth] and I have definitely been working hard on our small track program.
“I think it’s starting to come around.”