What looked like it was going to be a classic battle for the win—and the $10,000 first-place prize—between Eddie Strada and Jeff Strunk during Saturday night’s Forrest Rogers Memorial at Grandview Speedway turned into bitter disappointment for both drivers. The two collided on lap 43 of the 50-lap feature, spinning out and sending Strunk’s No. 357 hard into the outside boilerplate wall. While Strada was able to continue, Strunk’s car suffered too much damage to go on.
As often seems to happen in these situations, the two teams were parked right next to each other in the pits. Security was called to their trailers, expecting possible fireworks—but it wasn’t necessary. Both drivers opted to talk things out privately, away from the commotion.
I had the opportunity to speak with both drivers Sunday night to get their perspectives.
Strada: “It was just a racing deal.”
For Eddie Strada, it marked the second time he thought he had the Forrest Rogers race won, only to have disaster strike late. A few years ago, the team was leading when the engine let go in the closing laps. This time, it was contact while battling for the lead with just seven laps to go.
“We’re upset, but at least we know we have a fast car and can run up front with these guys,” said Strada from his home in Lake Erial, PA. “It sucks, but it was just a racing deal. I seen him looking underneath the lap before everything happened, and I knew I had to start going a little lower on the track to block him or at least try and break his momentum. I don’t think he knew I was coming down, or maybe I came down too fast in front of him. Hindsight is 20/20 on both ends, and obviously, it sucks it had to happen with me and him.”
“It was funny because they had security come over afterwards to our trailer. Jeff and I were inside the trailer, and I guess they thought me and him were going to be rolling around on the ground, but we ended up shaking hands and hugging it out. Jeff (Strunk) is a class act, and it sucks it happened, but he understood that we were both going for the win and the 10 grand.”
Strada has since had time to review the incident.
“I have probably looked at the video 185 times today, and obviously I wish there is a lot I could change now,” Strada said. “I guess to know that him and I were checked out and that far ahead—if I knew that and obviously a lot of other things—I probably would have tried something different and maybe let him go and try to get back around later. But I didn’t know, and I figured last night was my night. Whether that was too aggressive of a move I did, I don’t know. I didn’t think at the time that it was, and when we were sitting sideways and I saw him turned around up against the wall, I wished it was just me and he would’ve kept going—or we both could’ve kept going.”
“Jeff wasn’t mad at me, and obviously I’m not mad at him. I have the utmost respect for Jeff and all his guys. Some of his crew guys even came over to talk to me. Jeff even went to my dad and put his arm around him and told him that he was sorry for what happened. I know how hard both crews work on these cars, and I told his crew guys how sorry I was that this happened.”
“It’s tough to be in the spotlight.”
The incident sparked a wave of online commentary from fans and critics alike, something Strada admits he’s not used to.
“It’s tough to be in the spotlight, and I don’t usually get involved in the social media aspect of things like I am right now,” said Strada. “Obviously, it’s a good thing that it’s being talked about and maybe it will put some more people in the stands next week and pay attention to what’s going on and help to keep the sport alive.”
Strada believes his first Grandview Modified win is just around the corner.
“This place (Grandview) is tough, and I don’t think I ever struggled as much as I do here to get a win,” he said. “It helps to be parked in between two drivers like Jeff and Doug (Manmiller), who help me when I need it. Those guys have been at it for 20/30 years, and it’s nice that they show me the respect they do.”
“One of my crew guys texted me last night and said he just feels numb, and that is about right on. I don’t think there is a better word than numb to describe how it felt. Now, we have to put that race behind us and try to get the next one. I have to thank my owner Bob Yeager, who stands behind me 100%. If it wasn’t for him, I wouldn’t be able to do this. We have been building up this program for a while now. Hopefully, we can get the first win and then start clicking off some more.”
Strunk: “It just sucked for both of us.”
To get the other side, I also caught up with Jeff Strunk, who echoed many of Strada’s thoughts.
“It just sucked for both of us,” said Strunk, still sounding disappointed nearly 24 hours later. “We park next to each other and have become good friends with them, so that makes it hurt even more. It was just one of those deals where I was not expecting him to change his line, basically. I was looking ahead, and we were coming up on a lapper on the bottom, and I knew that was going to play a part. If I wasn’t as committed as I was—my right front was by his door—I would’ve checked up and let him go, but it ended up as one of those racing deals where two drivers were trying for the same real estate.”
Strunk said he was caught completely off guard when Strada suddenly switched lanes.
“I was just trying to hit my marks that got me to that point,” he explained. “I figured he was going to stay up top, and he ended up lifting early and coming straight down the track. By that time, I picked his left rear with my right front, and it took off after that. I smacked the wall hard and tore the car up. It’s a bummer and sucks for everyone involved. I wish I wasn’t that far alongside him—if I hit him behind the rear tire instead of in front of it, it might have turned out a lot differently. Like I said, I was just trying to hit my marks like I had done the previous 8 laps, and it made it even more surprising that he came down so fast with the lapped car there.”
“We both basically apologized to each other. Obviously, it was the last thing we ever wanted to happen. I’ve relived it a thousand times since it happened, and I don’t think there was anything I could’ve done to change what happened—and I think he kind of felt the same way.”
“They are all great people. We’ve parked next to each other for the past three years, and they have all become good friends. I looked out and there was security everywhere, and we are just in here talking about it and hugged each other, so that was pretty funny.”
Strunk Was a Contender Before the Incident
Early in the 50-lap feature, Strunk didn’t look like a factor for the win—but as the laps clicked off, the veteran driver and his crew found their rhythm.
“We needed a caution, and if you would have asked me on lap 12 or so if we had a shot at winning, I would’ve said no,” Strunk admitted. “I knew we had the right tire on for the race, which made the car super tight early, but it worked out being really good at the end—and that’s what we were shooting for. I thought we were going to win the race there, but what happened at the end just sucked.”
Comments or questions? Reach out to me by email at dirtracefan25@hotmail.com or on Twitter (X) @dirtracefan25.
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