For the third time in his career John Robbins won the Grant Fritz/Greg Dietzen Memorial race. The 27th edition of the race, to honor two former competitors, is the biggest race of the year for the Legends Division. Robbins is a former racing teammate of Dietzen’s.
During qualifying Saturday at Anderson Speedway on The Herald Bulletin night, Robbins set a new track record by turning a lap at 66.1 miles per hour. Starting from the pole position Robbins led all 30 laps but was challenged over the closing six circuits by Sam Johnson and Tony Paquette. Robbins opened up a comfortable lead at the start of the race that was whipped out by a caution flag on the tenth circuit resulting from a spin by Eddie Fosnight. Johnson stayed glued to Robbins rear bumper and challenged during two restarts with ten laps remaining for debris on the track and a tangle between the cars of Zachary Brady and Mark Murello. On the restart Johnson tried to use the over and under pass move to take the lead and would have one final chance when the race was red-flagged on lap 24 when Fornight barrel rolled through turn two.
At the finish it was Robbins winning by .1-second over Johnson with Paquette, Ashton Murello and Kristen Hammer rounding out the top five. “I thought he was going to get me,” Robbins said of Johnson in the Peterman Brothers Victory Lane. “It was a fast car tonight, but I had to be because Sam (Johnson) was coming.” Robbins said winning the race means a great deal to him. “It’s a big deal,” he said. “Everybody knows that Greg (Dietzen) was my teammate for the longest time. It’s not a big race to a lot of people, but it’s a big race for me.”
