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John Brooks, Chad Lyle, David Turner, and Jack Dover Celebrate Mother’s Day Weekend with Victories at Missouri State Fair Speedway!
Missouri State Fair Speedway

SEDALIA, MO (May 8, 2010) - The Historic Half Mile at Missouri State Fair Speedway roared back to life Friday night with an unseasonably cool night of action-packed racing and the only thing to fend off the cool temps was the racing engines in the Street Stocks, W-K Chevrolet Modifieds, Subway Late Models, and Rick Ball Ford 360 Sprint Cars.  The speedway was finally able to hold its second program of the young season after two consecutive rained out events.  When all was said and done, three veterans and one newcomer visited the Specialty Sportswear Winners Circle as the final checkered flag flew on the night.   

Street Stock drivers made their first special appearance of the year with nineteen drivers on hand for the $1,000 to win and $100 to start main event.  Three qualifying heat races determined the feature race lineup under the passing-points system.  California, MO resident Tom Volkart captured heat number one over Bob Gustin and Jerry Schmidt.  Kansas City driver Bobby Ruff was victorious in heat two over Michael Mullins and Tim Cressley, while Brooks bagged the victory in heat three over Brad Whitney and Chad Eickleberry.  Brooks earned the pole position after coming from the back in his heat race to earn the most passing points.  From the onset, it was clear the veteran racer had one thing in mind, to bring home the win in his Brooks Automotive machine.  After a complete re-start at the onset of the race, Brooks led the field with Volkart and Ruff close behind.  With each passing lap, Brooks distanced himself from the rest of the field with Jerry Schmidt being the driver on the move from his eighth starting position.  Herb Dannar, David Anderson, Kyle Jeffries, and Marc Carter suffered mechanical issues and fell out of the race by the midway point as the best battle on the speedway was being waged for second through fourth between Schmidt, Volkart and Brad Whitney.  Troy Reasoner’s night ended early after running in the top ten the entire race.  Caution flew on lap fourteen for Nate Barnes, who wound up rebounding to finish tenth.  In the end, Brooks was too strong for the field and captured another victory at the speedway.  Jerry Schmidt came away with the runner-up spot; Volkart was originally scored third but was disqualified after a post-race inspection.  Whitney was scored third, Ruff fourth, and Cressley fifth with Herb Dannar sixth.  Ray Smith walked away uninjured from a rollover during heat race action and was later able to compete in the main event, where he finished fifteenth. 

Fourteen W-K Chevrolet Modifieds checked in for two qualifying heat races with Odessa driver Jim Moody picking up heat race one ahead of Chad Lyle and Jason Thompson.  Dustin Boney cruised to an easy win in heat two in front of Austin Siebert and Joe Bradshaw.  Boney and Lyle started on the front row as a result of the passing points finishes with Lyle grabbing the lead from the green flag.  Boney never let Lyle too far out of sight as Moody, Thompson, and Siebert waged a fierce battle within the top five.  Just as the race was heating up at the front, Boney experienced mechanical issues that relegated him to the Midland Sports Cards Pit area for repairs on lap thirteen.  On the ensuing restart after a short caution period, Boney looked like he would rejoin the field but ultimately did not come back out, ending his night in frustration.  Meanwhile, back up front Lyle began to pull away from Moody and Thompson as they battled for second and third position.  On this night, it was all Lyle as he came away with the hard-earned victory and remembered his Mother, “Betty Lou” in victory lane by dedicating the win to her on Mother’s Day weekend.  Moody settled for second with Thompson third.  Austin Siebert had a very strong run to finish an impressive fourth with Dennis Walrath moving up from eighth to finish fifth, Aaron Poe rounded out the top six. 

The Subway Late Models did not disappoint the hardy fans in the Pepsi Grandstands as the full-bodied cars and drivers gave them a race for the times to remember.  A pair of youngsters started the night off right with J.D. Hubert of Cross Timbers and Zachary Goulden finishing one-two ahead of David Barker in heat race number one.  Veteran Kansas City driver Larry Clawson, in the familiar number L88, grabbed the win in heat two over a pair of former late model track champions at the speedway, Chris Smyser and Dave Meyer.  In heat three, Jon Binning nearly pulled off an upset victory in his ULMA car but had to settle for second behind David Turner, who went on to win over Binning and Bryon Allison.  The twenty-one car field set sail for the main event with Turner and J.D. Hubert leading the way.  Turner led the opening laps but Hubert stayed right with him with Smyser and Clawson in the mix as well.  The man on the move was Oak Grove driver Shad Badder, who started the race tenth but made his way to near the top by lap five.  Badder kept picking off cars over the ensuing laps and by lap eleven, when the caution flag flew for Meyer, was battling with Turner and Hubert for the lead.  Meyer’s troubles didn’t end there as he and Bryon Allison tangled on lap thirteen, ending both drivers’ nights early.  Badder passed Turner by lap thirteen for the lead and held the spot until lap seventeen with Turner virtually glued to his back bumper.  Hubert, Smyser, Clawson, and Randy McGraw were waiting in the wings close behind.  On lap eighteen, Turner powered his way back around Badder for the lead and was able to hold him off for his first taste of victory this season.   In victory lane, the elated Turner thanked his crew, wished all the Mom’s a happy Mother’s Day, and told the fans he “thought they got their money’s worth.”  He also thanked promoters Reid Millard and Jason Bodenhamer for reopening the speedway and giving late model racers a place to compete each week.  Badder held strong for second with J.D. Hubert third, Smyser fourth, Clawson fifth, and McGraw sixth.

The Rick Ball Ford 360 Sprints had the final feature event of the night with $2,000 on the line for the winner as ten cars took the green flag.  Former track champion, Mike Trent of Rocheport nabbed the opening heat race victory ahead of Brian Brown and another track champion, Terry Hink, in third.  The second heat race victory went to Jack Dover, who came all the way from Springfield, Nebraska to compete.  Rusty Potter ran strong in the second spot with Jonathan Cornell rounding out the top three.  Trent and Dover brought the field to the Miller Lite Start/Finish line for the initial green flag with Dover gaining the edge heading out of turn two and powering his way to the lead.  Brian Brown quickly moved up to the second spot with Cornell calmly making his way to the front in third position.  The race appeared it would go caution free as the field set a blistering pace early on with the leaders battling through lapped traffic by lap eleven.  Potter and Trent ran hard for third and fourth position with Brad Graham and Terry Hink battling close behind.  On lap thirteen, it appeared that Brown had powered his way to the front in between turns one and two but Dover fought back on the high side as the lead duo took their battle to turn three.  Brown again tried to dive down on the low side of Dover and nearly looked to have the winning pass made but unfortunately he clipped the inner turn guardrail as his night ended on the hook.  When the field rolled through the final seven laps no one had anything for Dover and he picked up his first-ever speedway victory.  Cornell ran strong in second position up from his sixth starting spot.  Rusty Potter also had a great run to third with Trent fourth, Brad Graham, and Terry Hink rounding out the top six.  Dover is the current ASCS Midwest point leader, in victory lane he stated that he “knew Brown would be tough to beat but added that he “loved the speedway” and was glad to win.

Week three of the season takes place next Friday night with gates opening at 5 p.m., hot laps at 7:00, and racing at 7:30.  Regular general admission prices return next week for another fast Friday of action in the 360 Sprint Cars, Late Models, and Modified divisions.  Visit www.missouristatefairspeedway.com for complete race details, race information, and complete results.  You can join the speedway e-mail group by sending a request to PRatSFS@live.com or you can become a fan of the speedway on FaceBook by sending a friend request to Missouri State Fair Speedway. 

Official Missouri State Fair Speedway Corporate and Business Partners:  Aflac, Ditzfield Transfer, W-K Chevrolet, Rick Ball Ford, Subway, Don’s Towing, Greg Smith Ford, Show Me Asphalt, Kiowa Line Builders, Diamond Pet Foods, Mid MO Auto Sales, i-land Internet Service, Pepsi, Midland Sports Cards, Budweiser, Specialty Sports Wear, Advanced Image Systems, Miller Lite, Impact Sign and Lighting, All Star Bail Bonds, Hunt’s Communication w/Dish Network, Missouri Army National Guard, Michael Ross Foundation, Hoosier Tires, Sunoco, KRCG TV 13, Millard Family Chapels, Bodee’s Race Bodies, Bill Sharp’s BBQ, Goody’s Steak Burgers, and South 65 Sonic.

May 7, 2010 Feature Race Results