Volusia Speedway Honors the Military with Five Divisions

BARBERVILLE, FL- The racers and fans at Volusia Speedway Park got a break last Saturday night as a pause in the schedule allowed for a weekend off from racing, and when they returned this Saturday it was with a renewed focus and determination, that led to high quality racing.  Fans saw action from the Daytona Dodge Chrysler Late Models, the Taylor Racing Products Sportsman Division, the Daytona Sportswear Street Stocks, the Amsoil Synthetic Lubricants Thunder Stocks, and VSP’s own 4 Cylinder Challengers, as everyone paid special tribute to our fighting forces on Volusia Speedway Park’s Armed Forces Night.

Belkey, who has suffered through some setbacks as of late, cranked up the determination a few more notches, made his way back to second place, and got alongside Cory Hupp in a battle for the lead.  Belkey won that battle on lap 12 as he overwhelmed Hupp and sprinted out to a sizable lead, as Hupp developed mechanical issues and slowed his pace.  Belkey dominated the rest of the race despite a challenge from Trevor Gamble, and notched his first win of the 2010 racing season. Gamble followed in second place while Mike Tovet claimed the third spot.  Mark Maresca had a good showing in fourth place and “Shady” Grady Christian returned to the field with a fifth place finish.

Many of the racers who normally compete with the Taylor Racing Products Sportsman Division at VSP used their weekend off to venture west to Ocala for a race, and that event left many of them beaten and bruised.  And one of the most damaged of the group was Aaron Barsness, who got tangled in an accident early in that race and left with a mangled race car, which looked greatly healed as it pulled onto the clay at Volusia Speedway Park on Saturday night. But Barsness had to find a way to overcome a hard charging Stanton Mills, who was out of the blocks like a racer possessed, and who hit turn two so hard and fast that the race car actually bicycled.

Aaron Barsness recovered from last weekend’s Ocala disaster with a win at VSP, followed by Stanton Mills in second place. Shaun Daugharty, who also suffered through a miserable experience at Ocala, recovered for a third place finish, followed by Chris Day and Kyle Chappell to round out the top five.

The race was dominated by Tyler Ivey, who jumped to the front and left everyone else to fight over what was left.  David Clegg patiently worked his way up to the second spot just before Conley’s accident stopped things, and held that position despite Lawton Minchew’s efforts to pass him. but in a rare moment for the veteran driver. Clegg simply overdrove the car in turn 3 and nosed into the inside barrier, which damaged the nose enough that it sent him to the pits for the remainder of the race.  Joe Kump also worked his way into the top three, but had nothing for Ivey until late in the race.

But just as it looked like Tyler Ivey was going to win by an embarrassingly large margin, his car began smoking heavily and his pace slowed.  Ivey kept after it, realizing that he might have enough left to make it to the finish, and that he had such a huge lead that Kump might not catch him.  Each lap the car smoked worse and the engine sounded flatter, but Ivey never relented, and although Kump managed to catch him in the final laps, Tyler Ivey scored a victory as the laps ran out on Joe Kump.  Ivey celebrated in Victory Lane while VSP fire crews made sure that the car would not provide any fireworks, and Joe Kump went to the pits in second place.  Lawton Minchew finished in the third spot followed by Donnie Chappell in fourth and Jeff Phipps in fifth place.

The Amsoil Synthetic Lubricants Thunder Stocks seem to always provide a tough and tumble brand of racing, and Saturday night was more of the same.  Randy Strehle was one of the victims as he and three other cars tangled in turn two, Jim Goempel struggled in the race until his engine expired on lap 6, and Robert Donaly suffered a loose wheel in turn 3 that caused him to limp to the pits, following the tire and rim which went there on its own accord.

And while others were trying to survive , Scott Mooers was totally in control as he led the race from flag to flag.  Matt Schell scored a second place finish thanks to his determined moves throughout the race that helped him climb up from the 13th starting position.  But the big mover of the race was Austin Kirkpatrick, who struggled with mechanical issues in his heat race and wound up calling a friend in the grandstands to come and help fix it before the feature event.  Kirkpatrick finished in the third spot while David Whitt and Richard Calmes finished behind him in fourth and fifth places.

The 4 Cylinder Challengers had something to race for as Astor Recycling provided a $100 bonus to the winner, and from the start it looked like it was once again time for things to change at the top.  Mechanical issues delayed Casey Feaster from staging for the race, and he failed to get onto the track before the green flew.  Shawn Kosier, who dominated the Challengers in the early part of the season, suffered a flat tire and limped into the pits, while Nathan Rhoades and Steven Johnson wound up with damaged cars from contact.

Meanwhile, Tony Laporta was back at the track and looked like his past issues were long gone, as he shot to the lead and stayed there for the win. Larry Langston came on strong and worked his way to second place, but could not find a solution for Laporta and had to settle for the runner up position at the checkers, and James Smith fought his way to a third place finish.  Kevin Dugan was fourth, while Denica Hetznecker overcame some close calls and raced hard for the fifth place finish.  And despite the flat tire early on, Shawn Kosier battled back to salvage sixth place, gaining 13 positions from his original 19th starting position.

Teenagers will be the focus this coming Saturday night at Volusia Speedway Park. “Teen Night” will feature giveaways, prizes, contests, plus special events geared for teens, and there will be a special teen section at the track.  Gates open at 5:30PM on Saturday, May 22nd, with racing at 7:30PM.  For more information, visit www.VolusiaSpeedwayPark.net.

Daytona Dodge Chrysler Late Models

1- 47 Tyler Ivey
2- J17 Joe Kump
3- 23 Lawton Minchew
4- 25 Donnie Chappell

Taylor Racing Products Sportsman

Daytona Sportswear Street Stock

1- 119 Joe Belkey II
2- 64 Trevor Gamble
3- 98T Mike Tovet
4- 77M Mark Maresca
5- 36 Grady Christian
6- 54 Tim Hughes
7- 13 Phillip Brown
8- 51 Steve Oldaker
9- 2H Cory Hupp
10- 66V Greg Vandergriff
11- 34 Pat Buckley
12- 61 Mike Tripp
13- 2S Mick Kulak
14- 11S James Smith

1- 10 Scott Mooers
2- 57 Matt Schell

4 Cylinder Challengers

1- 3T Tony Laporta
2- 49 Larry Langston
3- 60 James Smith Sr.
4- 5S Kevin Dugan
5- 16 Denica Hetznecker
6- 97 Shawn Kosier
7- 88 Steven Cox
8- 7 Jamie Farris
9- 20 Casey Feaster
10- 16E Gilbert Espy
11- 18PAC Michael Stein
12- 11 David Ladrie
13- 004 R.J. Glaser
14- X Justin Dean
15- 31 Scott Sullivan
16- 51 Nathan Rhoades
17- 12 Robert Graham
18- 81 Steven Johnson
19- XX Jordan Myers
20- 1X James Clay
21- 101 Wade Lear
22- 37 Steve Danese
23- 6E Gilbert Espy