Congratulations are in order this week for some Seneca County area athletes who did themselves proud in the state wrestling tournament. Matt Stacklin, a senior at Seneca East High School, placed third in the state in the 140 pound category. Stacklin’s perfect season and post season ended with a loss in the championship semifinals on Friday night but he wrestled his way back through the consolation bracket for the podium finish.

Another third place finish in the state tournament was won by Mohawk sophomore Chad Sowers at 189 pounds. Sowers also wrestled his way back in the consies and set himself a tall target to aim at for the rest of his high school wrestling career.

Despite an unpleasant start to its inaugural season of broadcasting NASCAR, Fox has done well in the television ratings. Bill King follows the racing ratings game for rpm.espn

According to King, the third installment of the season, the UAW/DaimlerChrysler 400 from Las Vegas had an overnight rating of 6.1 and a share of 13. It was the third straight week Fox Sports collected such numbers for its latest venture. It also was the third straight week that the Winston Cup broadcast was the highest rated sports broadcast of the weekend.

The overnight ratings are taken from the biggest markets. Figures from smaller markets come later, when the manually filled out books are mailed in and tallied. They are expected to push the ratings into the 7.x range, making it the best rated start in Winston Cup history.

One could expect ratings for the second event of the season would either be very good or very bad, given the tragedy of the first weekend. Maintaining that level for another weekend shows validity.

Fox has earned its success. The network has introduced some splendid production elements … some real grabby graphics and music intros to the various segments of its programs. The announcing team is great. The continuity among the various levels is easy to understand and their chemistry works well.

I do miss Benny Parsons, though.

It’s been a rough start for the other of the two most visible racing series in the world … Formula One, as well. F1’s opener, from Melbourne, Australia last weekend also resulted in a race-related death.

A spectator marshal, Graham Beveridge, was killed when he was hit by a wheel assembly which was ripped off the BAR of Jacques Villeneuve as it did a flat spin and struck a barrier.

A highly unlikely tragedy. The double safety cables intended to keep the wheels from coming loose both broke. The wheel went through an 18 by 37 inch gap in the safety fence and struck Mr. Beveridge. The gap, by the way, was there for a reason … to allow safety and fire marshals to get onto the track in case of an emergency.

It was the second time in the last five F1 races that a track worker was killed. Paolo Ghislimberti was fatally injured in a first lap crash at the Italian Grand Prix last September.

Fans of the International Hot Rod Association can expect some growth in the near future. An organization which bills itself as the world’s largest producer and marketer of live entertainment, SFX, has acquired a majority interest in the IHRA.

The purchase adds the drag racing organization based in nearby Norwalk to a stable which includes the USHRA Monster Jam Tour, the AMA-sanctioned EA Sports Supercross Series, the IFMA Freestyle Motocross Tour and the National Arenacross Series. Not household names in these parts, but growing endeavors, nonetheless.

Bill Bader, president of the IHRA and the man responsible for its success up to this point, said that he thinks the partnership will accelerate the growth and marketing opportunities for IHRA tracks, teams, spectators, sponsors and TV viewer.

The chairman of SFX Motor Sports Group, Jeff Lewis, said that the promotional resources of his firm should bring the IHRA to new markets in North America and possibly other continents.

Promotional resources is right. SFX is a subsidiary of Clear Channel Communications, a global leader of outdoor advertising and radio and television, which has outlets in about 1400 radio markets around the U.S. and overseas, as well as 17 U.S. television stations.

It very well could make the rest of the drag racing world aware that there is something other than the NHRA.