Eskew Claims Victory, Taylor Takes Championship
Terry Reed got some assistance from lapped traffic to take the lead from Nick Macklin in the Street Stock feature.
(Macon, IL) As the 2018 season prepares for its final bow, the Decatur Building Trades Pro Late Models wrapped up their season as Guy Taylor came into the evening already with a big enough lead to win the title without having to complete a lap. But that’s not the Taylor racing way. Instead, Taylor put on a show, nearly came from fourth place to win the race and finished second. Brandon Eskew took the checkered flag, his first at Macon Speedway and fourth in 2018, and had to battle all night long.
Dakota Ewing looked to have a strong hold on the lead until a slip up and led to Eskew capitalizing on the situation and then took control. Ewing tried to recapture the lead in the bottom of the first turn but got tangled with Eskew and it led to Ewing stalling out and bringing out the caution. During that scenario, Guy Taylor made his move from fourth to second and on the restart looked to blast away from Eskew with the lead. He had the top spot coming through the white flag lap but spun his tires in the second turn to yield the lead back to Eskew. Taylor rallied but it was too little, too late.
Eskew enjoyed his moment but Taylor was all smiles with a runner-up spot in the feature since he had the big glory, a points championship.
Dave Crawley, Jr. returned to racing this weekend and took the win in the BillingsleyRewards.com Modifieds feature event. Challenged byy Tommy Sheppard, Jr. and McKay Wenger, Crawley looked just as smooth as usual on the top of the track and sped away with a 20-lap win.
Terry Reed got some assistance from lapped traffic to take the lead from Nick Macklin in the Street Stock feature. It helped him get to victory lane after Macklin was in the lead and Reed was second. The lapped traffic slowed Macklin and Reed threaded the needle to take over five laps into the main event.
Jerry Thompson raced away with the B-Modifieds feature win, his third of the 2018 season. The struggle has been real for Thompson in 2018 with strong finishes and disappointing stumbles through the season.
Trevin Littleton took this third-straight Micro Sprint feature, presented by Bailey Chasis. Littleton looked like a second place finisher until he caught a strong burst on the bottom groove to bypass Garrett Duff for the win.
Mike Eskew had the Hornet feature in hand but it was not without stiff competition from Jeremy Reed and Matt Reed. Jeremy Reed’s car, however, was not up to the challenge as it was popping badly all night and he eventually pulled out of the race. Matt Reed stayed side-by-side for the lead through the remaining laps but Eskew was just too fast and would not be able to be stopped.
Macon Speedway hosted the second Spectator Drags of 2018. Jim Eads came away with the win in the tournament style bracket up against four other spectators in their own vehicles.
Also on the program for Saturday night was the Hall of Fame driver reunion featuring a dozen of the former Macon Speedway drivers which many fans from yesteryear remember turning laps in sprint cars and stock cars during the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s and 1990s.
Next week, Macon Speedway wraps up the season with the BillingsleyRewards.com Modifieds, Sportsman, Street Stocks, B-Modifieds, Micro Sprints and Hornets and their points championships. It will be a give back to the fans night with special giveaways throughout the course of the evening.
Decatur Building Trades Pro Late Models–1. Brandon Eskew (Ashland), 2. Guy Taylor (Springfield), 3. Cody Maguire (Carlinville), 4. Patrick Younger (Decatur), 5. Braden Johnson (Taylorville)
BillingsleyRewards.com Modifieds–1. Dave Crawley, Jr. (Decatur), 2. McKay Wenger (Fairbury), 3. Tommy Sheppard, Jr. (New Berlin), 4. Guy Taylor (Springfield), 5. Mark Enk (St. Ann, MO)
Street Stocks–1. Terry Reed (Decatur), 2. Nick Macklin (Argenta), 3. Jeff Reed, Jr. (Blue Mound), 4. Andy Zahnd (White Heath), 5. Brian Dasenbrock (Decatur)
B-Modifieds–1. Jerry Thompson (Troy), 2. Jimmy Cummins (Highland), 3. Rob Timmons (Centralia), 4. Kevin Crowder (Argenta), 5. Cody Stillwell (Godfrey)
Micro Sprints Presented by Bailey Chasis–1. Trevin Littleton (Jacksonville), 2. Garrett Duff (Weldon), 3. Molly Day (Atwood), 4. Tyler Day (Atwood), 5. Chad Baldwin (Lincoln)
Hornets–1. Mike Eskew (Springfield), 2. Matt Reed (Decatur), 3. Jared Cochran (Bethalto), 4. Jeff Reed, Jr. (Blue Mound), 5. John Lewis (Cerro Gordo)
Category: Illinois
