50 Greatest Modified Drivers – Greg Sacks
“They Called Him Superman”
Greg Sacks was the 1982 Stafford Speedway Modified Track Champion. In only 3 years Sacks recorded 16 wins on the tough half-mile oval. A native of Mattituck, Long Island, Sacks spent his formative years learning his trade at the 1/5 mile Islip Speedway and the 1/4 mile Riverhead Raceway. Sacks won a 50-lap Spring Sizzler® non-qualifiers race before scoring his first modified victory on August 28, 1981. Many thought he was a just a flash in the pan. But over the winter months, he formed an all new Long Island based team with Ernie Wilsburg as car owner, and Jamie Wilsburg as crew chief.
They started 1982 at New Smyrna where they cleaned house, winning six of the eight events run and garnering the track title. Commuting by ferry boat across Long Island Sound every week, Sacks won 12 of the 21 events run in 1982 including the Spring Sizzler®, The Winston 100, Modified Madness, and the Labor Day 200. In addition to his Stafford wins in 1982, Sacks also won the Spring Dogwood 250 at Martinsville, Virginia, The Oswego 200, The Thompson 300, and The Pocono Race of Champions. Sacks started off 1983 where he left off. Again, he won the Spring Sizzler®, but storm clouds were brewing. After winning a 30-lapper on May 6th, and his second Modified Madness on July 19th, the team fell apart. Sacks quit the car that he had won so many races in on August 5th. For the next two years, he would drive for Lee Allard, Cal Smalles, and Art Barry, but would never see another Stafford victory.
Sacks set his sights on NASCAR Cup racing in 1984, but after a few events, his family owned race team ran out of money and he was forced to park the car. At the Pepsi 400 on July 4th, 1985, Sacks teamed up with Gary Nelson and won the event in a Digard R&D car. It was Sacks’ only win in 263 NASCAR Cup Series starts and he also scored 1 career Xfinity Series win at Talladega in 1996.
By: Phil Smith
