Pedersen brothers battle for figure eight title

Don't expect much brotherly love at Riverhead Raceway this weekend.

Arne and Scott Pedersen are separated by just eight points in the figure eight standings with two races to go. Saturday night is a 15-lap single-point feature, and the finale next Saturday is a 20-lap double-point feature. So the title is still up for grabs.

For Scott, his first career victory would go a long way toward a title. Though Arne has won four of the eight races this season, he hasn't been able to get breathing room from his brother and Mike Mujsce Jr., who is in third place, 34 behind Arne.

Why? Because Scott has finished all eight races in the top 10, and Arne struggled in two because of car trouble. "We kept our nose clean for the most part," Scott, a 37-year-old Shirley resident, said. "We're looking at the big picture this year. Consistency's going to pay off."

Indeed it will, as Scott said Saturday night will be the first race all season he will start ahead of his brother (positions are based on the average finish of the last three races). Yet both brothers know the title isn't likely to be settled until next week.

"It's gonna be a dogfight," said Arne, 40, a Mastic native. "The two DNFs really hurt us. If we just finished those races, we'd probably have a pretty good lead."

Even though the competition is becoming fierce between the Pedersens, both claim they'll be happy for the other if they come up short. "There's not a lot of tension," said Scott, who finished second last year (eight spots ahead of his brother). "Either way, I'm happy."

Added Arne: "We try to help each other out. I try to race everyone the same, whether it's my brother, or a friend, or an enemy. I think we've got at least one more win under our belt."

His brother may have something to say about that.