This message was edited on
August 05, 2012 at
06:54:35 AM by OKCFan12
An I-44 Riverside Speedway Special Release/Cody Morris
Faced with a devastating and oppressive heat wave that has forced several Sooner State ovals into recent postponements, I-44 Riverside Speedway went the extra mile to showcase mini sprint racing at its' finest with the 11th Annual Mini Sprint Nationals (featured photo courtesy Michael Jackson / Thriller Photography).
One of the most highly anticipated events on the annual mini sprint calendar, over 150 teams checked into I-44 Riverside confines to battle it out in front of a packed house. A day of 110 degree heat was just a prelude to the red hot action awaiting race fans as the sun began to set behind the lightning fast 1/6th mile red clay oval.
The 2012 Mini Sprint Nationals had a suprise in store as for the first time in the 11 year history of the Mini Sprint Nationals, all six divisions were swept by Tulsa area drivers. Tulsa area talents Tyler Thomas, Jason McDougal, Cannon MacIntosh, and Caleb Edwards each earned their first Mini Sprint Nationals victories,while Chris Andrews repeated his sensational sweep of the Non Wing and A Class divisions for the second year in a row.
Outlaw
Collinsville, Oklahoma's Tyler Thomas led the field to the start of the 40 lap main event in the headlining Outlaw contest with Longview, Texas ace Tyson Hall alongside. The pair dueled relentlessly from the drop of the green, exchanging the lead in nearly every turn before Thomas emerged with a proper lead by the eighth lap.
Reaching lapped traffic by the 18th round, Thomas held a tight lead over two time ASCS2 Outlaw champ and Tulsa Shootout standout Blake Hahn with Hall clutching the third position. A pair of cautions on laps 24 and 25 bunched the field back up, but Thomas' pace proved true in clean air as well as traffic.
The final caution flew on the 38th lap as El Reno, Oklahoma's Kyle Keeler spun to a stop in turn two, negating a sensational run from the dead last 24th starting spot to fifth. The green-white-checkered opportunity for the challengers proved hopeless as Tyler Thomas nabbed his first Mini Sprint Nationals Outlaw victory aboard the Momo's powered and BT Powdercoat sponsored no. 91T Factor One.
A Mini Sprint Nationals Outlaw winner in 2010, Hahn settled for runner up honors with Pryor, Oklahoma's Frank Flud advancing five spots to claim show position honors. Tyson Hall dropped two spots in crossing the line fourth with Billy Lawhead completing the top five finishing order. David MacIntosh earned Hard Charger status with a drive from 19th to sixth.
A Class
Oklahoma City's hometown favorite Trey Marcham paced the pole position with Tulsa's reigning 2011 MSN sweeper Chris Andrews alongside in the 40 lap A Class main event. Three seperate stoppages prevented the field from putting a lap in the books, with the third stoppage waving red as Tyler Gordon flipped wildly down the backstraightaway , collecting Devin Gerrios into a short tumble as well. Easily done for the remainder of the event, Gordon emerged safely to the relief of onlookers.
Marcham took of to an early lead with Chris Cochran in tow. The leaders set a blistering pace along the high side of the 1/6th mile red clay oval, reaching lapped traffic by the 15th round.
A lap 21 caution for Kennedale, Texas native Taylor Smitherman's stalled mount bunched the field back up with Lindsay, Oklahoma's Harli White continuing her charge from a B Feature transfer into the top ten by the midway point.
Upon restart, Cochran's steady challenge to the leader evaporated as he slowed with a mechanical failure, moving Tulsa's Chris Andrews into the runner up spot. Andrews immediately seized the opportunity, passing Marcham just a few laps later. The final yellow flew on lap 30, but it had little effect as Andrews worked the bottom line to perfection, taking Mini Sprint Nationals A Class honors for the second year in a row aboard the Metric Cycles powered Cherokee Barber Shop, Falcon Wings, Andrews Irrigation, and Highway 69 Designs no. 77.
Marcham settled for runner up honors with Jim Woods claiming show position honors. Josh Marcham climbed three spots to cross the finish line fourth with Tyson Hall completing the top five finishing order. Devon Amos earned Hard Charger status with a drive from 20th to ninth.
Non Wing
Far from done praising Chris Andrews. A Tulsa native, the 27 year old mini sprint phenom that swept the stock 600 portions (Non Wing/A Class) of the 2011 Mini Sprint Nationals was in prime position to do it again, starting on the pole of the Mini Sprint Nationals Non Wing main event. Only two cautions slowed the 40 lap affair, and while outside front row starter Chris Cochran often shadowed the leader, Andrews flawless navigation of lapped traffic marked the exclamation point of his third consecutive Mini Sprint Nationals Non Wing triumph aboard theMetric Cycles powered Cherokee Barber Shop, Falcon Wings, Andrews Irrigation, and Highway 69 Designs no. 77.
Cochran settled for runner up honors with hometown favorite Trey Marcham moving up three spots to claim the show position. Pauls Valley, Oklahoma's Steven Shebester improved six spots to finish fourth with Tyler Thomas completing the top five finishing order. Jim Woods earned Hard Charger status, advancing 7 spots before finishing sixth.
Restricted
Tristian Oakes held the pole position start of the 20 lap Mini Sprint Nationals Restricted main event with I-44 Riverside regular Ryan Padgett alongisde. Oakes maintained the point in a hotly contested battle over the first leg before current I-44 Riverside Restricted point leader Alison Slaton spun to a stop on lap six. The event would suffer slow downs on the following two attempts to restart the race as Tulsa area invader Wes Little lost power while running fourth - resulting in Aaron Dromgoole and Steven Smith tangling to avoid the fracas. The following restart was nullifed when Slaton's front end let loose for good, sending the young competitor into the turn three wall and abruptly ending her first Mini Sprint Nationals in Restricted 600 competition.
Two more laps were put into the books before contact between Lyndon Harvey and Ryan Padgett left the latter stranded on the berm of turns 3 and 4. Oakes led throughout the stoppages, but with Broken Arrow, Oklahoma's Jason McDougal in hot pursuit exiting the lap 8 restart.
McDougal battled into the lead as the halfway signal was displayed and began to steadily stretch that advantage as he reached lapped traffic with five rounds remaining. However, a late caution for Logan Davis set up a three lap shootout with Oakes and Grady Chadler in immediate pursuit of McDougal.
But McDougal disposed the challengers' late opportunity and crossed the finish line with comfortable margin to earn his first Mini Sprint Nationals Restricted 600 victory aboard the Factor One Racing, Performance Plus, Lightning Wings, Butlerbuilt, and CSI Shocks sponsored no. 73. An eearly birthday gift for the young Broken Arrow driver set to 15 years old on Monday. Oakes held on to the runner up spot with Piedmont, Oklahoma's Grady Chandler claiming show position honors. Atoka, Oklahoma's Austin Shores advances two spots to finish fourth with Padgett overcoming his early race misfortune, battling back from the tail of the field (16th) to complete the top five finishing order. Jason McDougal's winning drive from the seventh starting spot earned Hard Charger status.
Turf Tire
2010 Mini Sprint Nationals Turf Tire winner and Enid, Oklahoma native Nick Rummel led the 20 lap Turf Tire
main event to the opening green with Shorty Burks alongside. Burks was off to the early lead before an exiciting four way battle for the point developed by the fifth round. The group diced for position until El Reno, Oklahoma's Tony Penick stood out as the leader by lap 8. Penick added to the advantage each lap and with just a few laps remaining seemed the certain victor, but a lap 18 caution for a spinning Nick Rummel nullified Penick's lead and brought first challenger Caleb Edwards up to the leader's back bumper.
A South Coffeyville, Oklahoma native, Edwards took full advantage of the opportunity, battling past Penick in sight of the white flag and cruising to his first Mini Sprint Nationals Turf Tire win aboard the CNG Racing and CNP Race Supply sponsored no. 99. It was Edwards' second Turf Tire win at I-44 Riverside in as many weeks as the upstart also made the 3.5 hour hauk from South Coffeyville t the southwestern reaches of Oklahoma City last week as well in preparation for Mini Sprint Nationals action.
A dejected Penick settled for runner up honors with Burks claiming show position honors. Kyle Slader advanced three spots to finish fourth with Patrick Prescott finishing as he started to complete the top five finishing order.
Junior Sprints
Current I-44 Riverside Speedway Jr. Sprint point leader Nathan Rainey started pole position of the 20 lap Junior Sprint main event with Grady Mercer alongside. A stranger and peculiar incident nearly derailed the entire race when the field bunched into one massive wreck during the pre-race pace laps, but order was eventually restored with Blake Battles bursting up from his outside seond row starting spot into the early lead.
Battles lead was shortlived, however, as Broken Arrow, Oklahoma's Cannon MacIntosh battled by Battles on the sixth circuit. MacIntosh reached a small patch of lapped traffic around the midway point, but zoomed past and was comfortably leading a caution free affair until a yellow was dropped on the 18th lap when Blake Kirkes spun to a stop.
Bunching the field back up was of no consequence as MacIntosh sped away from the field over the final three laps and in the nine year old's first ever visit to I-44 Riverside Speedway, placed the Intruder Chassis, Shamrock, Best Graphics, and Coalition sponsored no. 08 into Mini Sprint Nationals victory lane.
Complete Saturday night results will be posted in short order.
Special Thanks!
I-44 Riverside Speedway staff sincerely thanks each race team and race fan for their participation in the 11th running of the Mini Sprint Nationals.
I-44 Riverside Speedway will be taking a week off on Saturday, August 11th, before resuming the final leg in the race to the 2012 Championships. Continuing an extremely prestigious legacy of dirt track racing in the Oklahoma City area, I-44 Riverside Speedway races every Saturday at 730pm.
We hope to see the fine patrons of this exciting tradition as often as possible in the closing weeks of the 2012 season. Please check back to www.i44riversidespeedway.com or friend us on Facebook for weekly updates, as well as exicting details of the highly anticipated Non Wing Showdown on October 12th and 13th.
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