LJ Grimm wins Southern Sprint Car Series race at Citrus County Speedway

The best way to cap a gorgeous March day is with a fantastic night at the races. The weather cooperated with mid 80’s, sunshine, and a cool breeze.

It was great to see some new faces at the sign in table for the BG Products Southern Sprint Car Series along with those that have already put their footprints on the Season Points Board. Veteran Winged Sprint drivers Stan Butler and Sonny Hartley donned their fire suits to join the elite group of drivers already familiar with the series fan favorites.

Garrett Green was back in action and the much anticipated return of Dude Teate was quickly bringing energy to the pits as the regulars lined up to take in some practice laps. Teate was the first casualty of the day when his motor laid oil around the popular asphalt oval making for a lengthy clean up. Sport Allen also discovered during practice that the 88A wasn’t running up to par and would sit out the night.

Rapidly gaining popularity inside the series fan base, Davey Hamilton Jr and Bruce Brantley (last year’s rookie) would start on the front row of the Signfast Superstore heat 1. Nestled behind them were Aaron Pierce, Garrett Green, Gary Wiggins, and Bo Hartley. The second Butler Speed & Supply heat 2 saw series regulars Tommy Nichols and Stephen Hollinger capitalizing on front row honors followed by LJ Grimm, the first week’s winner Daniel Miller, Sonny Hartley, and Stan Butler. Butler was piloting the hauntingly familiar black 33 as Mac Steele had painstakingly made the museum show piece ready to race again.

Both Hamilton Jr and Nichols made good on their front row spots by claiming their respective Heat Wins.

The Feature Line Up brought controversy as there were many newly registered drivers for the 2022 season along with those that had already pocketed points at 4-17 Speedway 2 weeks earlier. After grinding out the specifics, Hamilton Jr and Stephen Hollinger sat in the catbird seats for the A Main.

A caution was thrown on lap 4, regrouping the cars. LJ Grimm took advantage of the restart and joined Hamilton Jr for a front row run. It wasn’t long and Grimm had claimed the coveted front spot and didn’t relinquish it. Hamilton Jr left the track in second place followed by Daniel Miller, Aaron Pierce, and Bruce Bentley. The finish was quickly readjusted when Hamilton Jr, Pierce, and Bentley forgot to make their stops in tech, refreshing the finish by placing them to the end of the lead lap. This reconfigured the final payoff sheet to reflect the new finishing order.

Congratulations to LJ Grimm for parking the beautiful 88, owned by Taylor Andrews and sponsored by Dayton Andrews Dodge & BG Products, in Victory Lane. The remainder of the final finish was Daniel Miller, Tommy Nichols, Davey Hamilton Jr, Aaron Pierce, Bruce Bentley, Sonny Hartley, Gary Wiggins, Bo Hartley, Stephen Hollinger, Garrett Green, Stan Butler. Dude Teat and Sport Allen did not start the A-Main.

The Butler Speed & Supply award rolls over to the next event at 4-17 on March 19th. Anyone who can win both their Heat and the A Main in one night claims the pot. The pot now sits at $200.

A huge shout out to Camron Ray and the Support Staff at Citrus County Speedway for making the BG Sprint Series feel at home.