Ken Quartuccio has secured trophies in numerous different classes, including PDRA Pro 632 and Outlaw 10.5, but he wasn’t able to add a Pro Boost win to that tally until Saturday night at Maryland during the series’ North vs. South Shootout at Maryland International Raceway. The Connecticut-based outlaw racing veteran outlasted an all-3.60-second field to line up against defending event champion Kurt Steding in the final round. Quartuccio’s holeshot advantage made a difference at the finish line, as he won with a 3.613 at 208.52 in his Jamie Miller-tuned, ProCharger-boosted ’69 Camaro over Steding’s 3.612 at 209.39.
“I hate to say it – and I’ve probably won 100 races over my career in different classes – but this win is at the top,” Quartuccio said. “PDRA to me was the pinnacle. These guys are the best. Every round is the hardest you ever have to race. I had to dig deep all day today because I was so afraid to let my guys down. We put a new motor in it and we worked for the last 48 hours nonstop – Johnny [Miller], Denny [Godbout], and me in the shop, just to get everything ready and get it loaded. I had a good feeling about it. I just had a good feeling this week.”
Quartuccio made the third-quickest pass of the opening round, a 3.675 at 206.73, to beat Johnny Camp, who made his return after a crash earlier this season. Even with a strong .011 reaction time, he was second off the line against Chuck Ulsch in the second round, but Quartuccio’s 3.642 at 207.69 was enough to get around Ulsch and his 3.804. The margin of victory was just .002 when Quartuccio and his 3.641 beat Randy Weatherford and his 3.644 in the semis.
In a rematch of the World Series of Pro Mod final round, Steding set low E.T. of the first round with a 3.661 at 208.71 in his screw-blown P2 Contracting ’20 Camaro to beat WSOPM winner Spencer Hyde and his 3.814. Steding had a bye run when opponent Tommy Gray couldn’t make the call in the second round, but Steding still ran low E.T. of the round, a 3.626 at 209.14. He went even quicker in the semis, leaving first and running a 3.616 at 209.20 to finish ahead of Travis “The Carolina Kid” Harvey and his 3.622.
