Archive for category: Zach Newlin

Following seven highly successful seasons in the 305 sprint car ranks, Zach Newlin moved into the 358 sprint car ranks in 2020.  He found victory lane at Williams Grove Speedway in that rookie season in his family owned Newlin Racing 11z.

The resume Newlin was building turned heads and, over the course of the past two and a half seasons, brought a few opportunities to fill the seat of a few 410 sprint cars.  While the Millerstown, PA resident greatly appreciated those opportunities, none of them blossomed into a long term situation.

Newlin had a few notable highlights in his limited 410 sprint car races, including qualifying for his first World of Outlaws A-main in October of 2021, and back-t0-back hard charger awards at Port Royal Speedway’s Labor Day Classic in 2020 and 2021.

Meanwhile, Newlin also kept one foot in the door of the 358 division, piloting the Mansberger Motorsports 21m in Central Pennsylvania.  He will continue wheeling that car in 2023, primarily at Williams Grove Speedway, however the team will likely look to expand their schedule a little over recent years.

Before the 2022 season had even wrapped up, Newlin had started shaping plans to resurrect his own familiar 11z, but this time with 410 cubic inch power plant under the hood.  Fans will definitely remember the unique ‘Zach Daddy’ green that Newlin made so recognizable in the 305 sprint car division, then in the 358 division as well.  While the final design is not in place yet, the green will make it’s return in 2023.

Newlin got started by purchasing a used engine that was in need of a rebuild.  It wasn’t ideal, but it was within his budget.  Small teams like Newlin’s need to keep costs down and spread their expenses out to keep going.

Invitations to get behind the wheel of someone’s 410 sprint car are not plentiful to say the least, plus having control of one’s own destiny to allow time to hone skills and grow knowledge is a positive of putting together your own deal.

“Ever since we decided we were going down this path, we have been chipping away at trying to get the things we need.  We didn’t have much of anything remaining from the 2020 car that we could use.  We knew it wouldn’t be easy with limited funds and it might even take us a year, but we felt it was our best option…maybe our only option…if we wanted to continue racing 410’s.  I definitely didn’t want to give up on that goal.“, Newlin shared.

Newlin’s goal for the upcoming season is realistic.  He wants to have enough resources to get to the track at least a dozen times, so the team can make laps and learn.  The engine rebuild is progressing slowly but should be ready in time to meet Newlin’s April goal.  When his season does start, he will have one car, one engine and he won’t have a lot of spare parts, so the team will race smart to make sure they can keep racing and improving.

“We’re making some progress, but we still have a long way to go.  I’m hoping to have the bare minimum of what I need to get to the track by the end of April.  Bringing a partner into our team would help move things along a little faster and help us be more prepared.”, Newlin said.

While his new 410 team may not find victory lane right away, Newlin has a lot to offer potential marketing partners.  He has amassed a sizeable and very supportive following over his years behind the wheel, and his future in the sport holds a lot of promising potential.

Zach Newlin returned to the seat of a sprint car Friday night at Williams Grove Speedway for the first time in a month, and the first time in the Mansberger Motorsports No.21m since mid-July thanks to Mother Nature.

The 2022 season for the 358 sprint cars has been interrupted numerous times by weather, making it difficult for Newlin and Mansberger, who only compete at ‘The Grove’, to get into a rhythm.  With two September races remaining, the team came into Friday’s event aiming to close out the season with some positive momentum; something they can build on for 2023.

September 2:  Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA

     [37 cars, Heat 4th (8), A-main 11th (13)]

The Match Race event, which offered an increased purse for the 358 sprint cars, drew a larger than usual field of 37 cars to Williams Grove Speedway Friday night.  The 25-lap main event offered a purse worth over $20,000, with $2,021 going to the winner and last place taking home $696.

Four 8-lap heat races were lined up by pill draw.  The top five finishers from each would transfer to the A-main.  The top two would participate in a redraw to set the top eight starting spots of the finale.

Newlin lined up 8th for the first heat of the night, but the rush hour like traffic at the back of the pack shuffled him to 10th by the end of lap one.  The Millerstown, PA resident collected his ride and made his way to 9th on lap two.

Newlin didn’t stop there.  He continued picking off the competition and capitalized on a late restart to race his way to a 4th place finish, securing his spot in the feature.

Rolling to the green flag in 13th for the 25-lap A-main, Newlin had his eyes set on a solid top ten run.  Forward progress was hard to come by in the early going.  By lap six Newlin had lost a spot and by the halfway point he was riding in 16th.

Over the final seven laps, after a large portion of the fuel load had burned off, Newlin’s car came alive.  He was able to be more aggressive and began to steadily climb through the running order.  With two laps remaining, Newlin moved into 12th and was looking for more.  On the final circuit, he wrestled 11th away from Frankie Herr.

“It was good to get a full night under our belt.  This was only our third race this season, and we haven’t raced together since mid-July.  Getting comfortable is the key and we haven’t had enough consistent laps to accomplish that.  We were able to learn some things tonight, so we’ll build on it and hopefully finish the year out strong in a couple weeks.“, Newlin commented.

Up Next

Newlin and the Mansberger Motorsports team will be back at Williams Grove Speedway on Friday, September 23rd looking to close out the season with a strong finish in the final 358 sprint car race of 2022 at the legendary Pennsylvania track.