Wayne Hammond also had a big night in the Budweiser Modified Division, starting on the pole when Ronnie Schron opted to start in the rear and never looking back.  As the track dried out and slicked off a bit some racers had trouble making the adjustment, and that caused the race to be broken up with several yellow flag interruptions, which never allowed other racers to find a good rhythm.  So as soon as Larry Burkins would challenge Hammond the caution would wave, and as Jamie Carter moved forward to challenge Burkins the same would occur.  It may have kept everyone close together, but it also robbed some racers of the time to complete maneuvers. 

While Wayne Hammond got the win, and Jamie Carter finally overcame the cautions and nabbed second place.  Kent Corbin also had a strong night, managing to pick his way to third place while Jeff Mathews followed in the fourth spot.  And despite being quite strong in the early laps, Larry Burkins faded just a bit late in the race to come home in the fifth spot.

Coming into Saturday’s Taylor Racing Products Sportsman race Aaron Barsness had a tenuous grasp on the top of the points ladder, but a slip on the first lap of the feature race caused him to take a tumble.  A three wide venture in turn four resulted in Barsness and Danny Vogel’s machines bouncing off of the concrete wall and landing in a wad in the middle of the frontstretch, ending the night for both drivers and opening the door for whoever wanted to take a shot at the top of the points heap.

Meanwhile David Clegg took advantage of the situation with skillful but hard driving and made his way to the top three, while Josh Byrd and Stanton Mills carried on a side-by-side, multi lap drag race over the top spot.  Clegg patiently allowed them to fight it out, then took advantage as they used up their cars and made his way to the front.  A couple of late cautions would help keep things close, but Clegg grabbed a trip to Victory Lane despite the best efforts of Stanton Mills.  Mills finished second, followed by Josh Byrd and Steve Shead, while Kyle Chappell came on late to take the fifth spot.

Despite all of the hard driving, no one could touch Tim Hughes who could not help but tell everyone during his victory interview that his tires had over 600 laps on them.  The old tires worked well on the slick track, holding off Mike Tovet who came home in the second spot while Phillip Brown followed in third place.  Bubba Christian wound up finishing fourth, while Joe Belky fought his way to a fifth place finish.

Scott Mooers may be riding high atop the Amsoil Synthetic Lubricants Thunder Stock points standings, but Chad Scranton could not care less.  Scranton is a hard charger regardless, and he proved it again on Saturday night with another trip to Victory Lane.  Mooers finished in the second spot and made it a point to shake Scranton’s hand as he stood on the winner’s stage, but the tension in the air made it obvious that Scranton and Mooers are the new high intensity rivalry to watch at Volusia Speedway Park.

And while that rivalry has grown, Luke Sadler has been struggling through a season of “all-or-nothing syndrome.”  As Sadler pointed out post race, he either breaks and cannot finish, or goes to Victory Lane, so his third place on the night was a triumph of sorts as Sadler managed to complete the race without winning to do it.  David Whitt was strong early on but succumbed to the top three and finished in the fourth spot, while Donnie Nobles climbed as high as second place before finishing in the fifth spot.

Volusia Speedway Park’s 4 Cylinder Challengers have provided plenty of competitive racing all season and Saturday night’s feature race provided even more of the same.  A gaggle of racers found their way to the lead during the early laps of the race, but once the dust cleared James Sullivan was in front and in charge.  But Tony Laporta had Sullivan in his sights, and Sullivan was left to fight off challenge after challenge as the laps wound down.  Meanwhile some other notables were struggling with problems of their own.  RJ Glaser led from the pole but got shuffled back, where he spun from contact in turn 2 and suffered enough damage to wind up in the pits.  And Shawn Kosier has held onto the points lead despite a bad luck streak, but a blown tire from contact put Kosier out of the hunt early, and probably ended his reign at the top.

Tony Laporta made quite a fight out of it, but James Sullivan held off the repeated challenges to grab a win and a trip to Victory Lane, while Laporta said that he would be satisfied with second this time around.  Following Laporta across the line was Casey Feaster, who got into the front pack and held his own for third place.  Harold Lewis ran a strong race and placed fourth, while Nathan Rhoades fought his way to a fifth place showing.

June 19th will be a special night for fathers at Volusia Speedway Park as “This One’s For You, Dad!”  Dads will be eligible for special prizes and contests, and will see action from the Daytona Dodge Chrysler Jeep Late Models, the Budweiser Modifieds, the Taylor Racing Products Sportsman Division, the Daytona Sportswear Street Stocks, and the always competitive 4 Cylinder Challengers.  For more information on upcoming action at the track, please be sure to visit www.VolusiaSpeedwayPark.net.

Volusia Speedway Park Results for 6/12/10

1-58 Mark Whitener
2- 21 Ivedent Lloyd Jr.
3- 5 Johnny Collins
4- J17 Joe Kump
5- 16 Shane Williams
6- 41K John Kellum
7- 25 Donnie Chappell

Budweiser Modified

Taylor Racing Products Sportsman

Daytona Sportswear Street Stocks

1- 54 Tim Hughes
2- 98 Mike Tovet

Amsoil Synthetic Lubricants Thunder Stock

4 Cylinder Challenger

Next Saturday, June 5th, the Budweiser Modifieds will step into the spotlight as yet another cash carrot gets tied onto the string and dangled in front of the field.  $1200 will go to the winner of Modified Mania at Volusia Speedway Park, plus race fans will see action from the Taylor Racing Products Sportsman Division, the Daytona Sportswear Street Stocks, the Amsoil Synthetic Lubricants Thunder Stocks, and the UMP Challengers.  For more information, visit www.VolusiaSpeedwayPark.net.

Volusia Speedway Park Results for 5/29/10

Daytona Dodge Chrysler Jeep Late Model

1- 11 Matt Hartley
2- 25 Donnie Chappell
3- J17 Joe Kump
4- 07 David Clegg
5- 12 Jack Nosbisch
6- 23 Lawton Minchew
7- 35 Christian Augspurger
8- 32P Jeff Phipps
9- 45 Bobby Richardson
10- 30 Larry Anderson
11- 23S Josh Sanford
12- RP1 Bug Rose
13- 21Q Chris Freeman

Taylor Racing Products Sportsman ($30 laps/$1200 to win)

1- 57S Stanton Mills
2- 11 Aaron Barsness
3- 99 Danny Vogel Jr.
4- 00 Shaun Daugharty
5- P4 David Clegg
6- 95 Matt McGillivray
7- 3 Ken Hall Sr.
8- 38 Joe Kump
9- 66C Kyle Chappell

Daytona Sportswear Street Stock

Trevor Gamble had a consistent and strong run going, and managed to wrestle the lead from Mike Tovet on lap 7 as Phillip Brown and Justin Sirmons moved into the top five behind the leaders.  But Tovet was undaunted by losing the lead, and patiently waited for Gamble to leave an opening for him on lap 11.  Once that door was opened Gamble could not shut it again, and Mike Tovet retook the lead and won the race.  Trevor Gamble settled for second place while Justin Sirmons improved his standing to a third place finish.  Phillip Brown took the fourth spot, while Grady Christian battled his way from the rear to salvage a fifth place finish.

David Whitt had his lucky 13 car on the pole for the Amsoil Synthetic Lubricants Thunder Stock feature race, and he used that position to hold off Luke Sadler and Scott Mooers and lead for two thirds of the race.  But a lack of cautions had the field spread out, and that meant that the leaders were having to negotiate their way around slower traffic, which sometimes can result in mishaps when slow cars do not get out of the way fast enough. 

Whitt was well in front of Sadler when he overtook Delbert Moyers’ slower car on the frontstretch.  Moyer failed to choose a line and got loose, moving across the track in front of Whitt, and that caused the two to collide hard, spinning both out and sending Whitt’s machine careening into the wall.  Both cars left the track on a hook as crews cleaned up the debris, and Luke Sadler assumed the lead.  Meanwhile, this was Moyers’ second major crash where his car came in contact with the race leaders this season.  It was Moyers’ car that was hit by Randy Strehle as he and Scott Mooers raced through the final turn on March 13th, resulting in Strehle’s flip and fire on the front stretch.

Luke Sadler hung on for the win, followed by Scott Mooers and Tom Hughes.  Wally Douglass placed fourth, while Matt Schell battled his way to the fifth spot.

Gilbert Espy led from the pole as the 4 Cylinder Challengers took the green, but handling issues had his car reversing through the top five as Harold Lewis rocketed past him for the lead.  Tony Laporta started in the fourth position and quickly climbed to second place, but never found a way to overtake Lewis who was certainly on his game.  Steven Cox struggled a bit at first, but found his groove and maintained the third position.

Memorial Day Weekend brings the Annual Sportsman Spectacular to Volusia Speedway Park next Saturday, May 29th.  The Taylor Racing Products Sportsman Division will be racing for $1200 first place payout, plus fans can see action from the Daytona Dodge Chrysler Late Models, Daytona Sportswear Street Stocks, Amsoil Thunder  Stocks, and the 4 Cylinder Challengers.  For more information, please visit www.VolusiaSpeedwayPark.net!

Volusia Speedway Park Results for 5/22/10

Budweiser Modified

1- 5B Kyle Bronson
2- 15 Jamie Carter
3- 54 Larry Burkins
4- 33 Jeff Mathews
5- 66H Wayne Hammond
6- 67 Garrett Stewart
7- 75 Jimmy Carter
8- 66 Dale Murray
9- 7 Kent Corbin
10- Z06 Larry Mott

Taylor Racing Products Sportsman

1- 11 Aaron Barsness
2- 99 Danny Vogel Jr.
3- 10 Steve Shead
4- 57S Stanton Mills
5- 8 Chris Day
6- 66C Kyle Chappell
7- 38 Collin Wright
8- 05 Dan Lane Sr.
9- 00 Shaun Daugharty
10- 95 Matt McGillivray
11- 8 Bruce Birkett
12- 77 Wayne Allen Jr.
13- 57 Heinz Hass
14- 18S David Showers Jr.
15- 17H Blaise Hetznecker
16- 45 Bobby Richardson
17- 56 Tony Sansom
18- 17K Marc Kinley
19- 29S Drew Smith
20- 65 Shane Nichols
DNS- 20 Mitchell Wise

Daytona Sportswear Street Stocks

1- 98T Mike Tovet
2- 64 Trevor Gamble
3- 94 Justin Sirmons
4- 13 Phillip Brown
5- 36 Grady Christian
6- 54 Tim Hughes
7- 21 Chris Manucy
8- 77M Mark Maresca
9- 17 D. J. Nobles
10- 18 John Rolling
11- 119 John Belkey
DNS- 11S James Smith
DNS- 2H Cory Hupp

Amsoil Synthetic Lubricants Thunder Stocks

1- 15 Luke Sadler
2- 10 Scott Mooers
3- 29 Tom Hughes
4- 6 Wally Douglass
5- 57 Matt Schell
6- 23 Jim Nichols
7- 07 Richard Calmes Jr.
8- 9 Jim Goempel
9- 14 Brian Cox
10- 81 Courtney Eubanks
11- 9R Robert Donaly
12- 22 Kelly Snyder

4 Cylinder Challenger

1- 48X Harold Lewis
2- 3T Tony Laporta

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

As exciting as the finish was, Larry Burkins was not pleased.  As Jeff Mathews stood on the Victory Lane stage, Burkins charged up and accosted the race winner in the middle of his winner’s interview.  That incident was very quickly defused by Volusia Speedway Park officials, and the resulting disqualification for bad conduct sent Burkins from a second place finish to the dog house.  Kent Corbin moved into the second spot, followed by Rob Underwood in third place.  Jamie Carter struggled but salvaged a fourth place finish, while Don Rollison Jr. capped off the top five.

As is often the case with Jeff Mathews, he raced again later on, this time challenging the Daytona Dodge Chrysler Late Model Division.  And as had been the case with the Budweiser Modifieds, Mathews found himself starting in the 7th spot on the grid and having to deal with some traffic to get to the front.  But the early part of the race was no picnic as repeated mishaps took some cars out of contention and required three restarts before lap 2.  Mathews avoided the mayhem and used the opportunity to make his way forward, as Jason Kimball led the early laps.

Kimball managed to outrun Mathews for a bit, but the Tampa “Repo Man” was coming fast and was all over Kimball’s car by lap 6.  Joe Kump and David Clegg were also making moves behind Mathews and Kimball, and had a race of their own developing for the third spot.  The earlier confrontation in Victory Lane must have lit a raging fire inside of Jeff Mathews, because he blew past Kimball on lap 7 and opened up an insurmountable lead on his way to his second double divisional win night of 2010 at VSP.  David Clegg managed to get past Kimball as well, grabbing second place and forcing Kimball to third, while Joe Kump and Bobby Richardson rounded out the top five.

The Taylor Racing Products Sportsman Division came into Saturday night with Shaun Daugharty and Aaron Barsness tied at the top of the points standings, and fans knew that the tie would somehow be broken before the race was over.  Complicating matters for both drivers were their starting positions, as Daugharty wound up in the 5th spot on the grid, while Barsness was 7th, and the fact that no one had accounted for the unsponsored car of Chris Day, which shot out to the early lead and became the one to beat.

Both Daugharty and Barsness would be the beneficiaries of six cautions that were fairly evenly dispersed through the race, which kept things close among the leaders and never allowed anyone to run away from the others.  And it was just after one of those cautions when Shaun Daugherty discovered the high line and began using it to his advantage, making four passes in one lap to move to the second spot.  And on lucky lap 13 Daugharty again went high to pass Chris Day and take the lead.

The Daytona Sportswear Street Stocks saw a new face in Victory Lane on Saturday night after a hard fought and exciting race.  Phillip Brown was the early leader, but Mike Tovet was not about to allow a 7th starting position to ruin his night and was rapidly moving forward during the first half of the race.  Tovet would grab the lead after a restart halfway through, but only held it briefly before Tim Hughes cranked up the heat on him and snatched the lead away on lap 12.

Another top racer was having difficulties as the Challenger Division hit the track on Saturday. This time it was Casey Feaster, who has been virtually unbeatable, as his primary racecar developed mechanical issues that forced him into his backup ride.  That looked like a golden opportunity for Shawn Kosier to reclaim his winning ways, but no one accounted for Allen Espy, who climbed into the race car he had prepared for his daughter and showed that he still had a trick or two at his disposal.

At the restart from a late race caution, R.J. Glaser pounced on Espy at the green to steal the lead away, but a spinout in turn 2 forced yet another restart, and Glaser had shown his hand to the veteran racer.  So the second time that the field approached the green, Espy slowed to an absolute crawl, then fired off suddenly which totally snookered Glaser and gave the veteran a lead too big to erase.  Allen Espy got the win as James Sullivan moved ahead of Glaser for second place.  R.J. Glaser finished in the third spot followed by Casey Feaster and Shawn Kosier.

Volusia Speedway Park will take the next week off, but returns to action on May 15th with Fastlane 5 Racing on Military Appreciation Night.  All emebers of our armed forces past and present will be admitted free of charge with their military identification, and will see racing from VSP’s Daytona Dodge Chrysler Late Models, the Taylor Racing Products Sportsman, the Daytona Sportswear Street Stocks. the Amsoil Synthetic Lubricants Thunder Stocks, and the 4 Cylinder Challengers.

Volusia Speedway Park Results for 5/1/10

1- 33 Jeff Mathews
2- 7 Kent Corbin
3- 09 Rob Underwood
4- 15 Jamie Carter
5- 88 Don Rollison
6- 41D Darron Smith
7- 75 Jimmie Carter
8- 40 James Smith
9- 91 Trevor Boettcher
10- 11P Michael Phillips
DQ (conduct)- 54 Larry Burkins

Daytona Dodge Chrysler Late Models

1- 33 Jeff Mathews
2- 07 David Clegg
3- 79 Jason Kimball
4- J17 Joe Kump
5- 45 Bobby Richardson
6- 23 Lawton Minchew
7- 32P Jeff Phipps
8- 11 Howard Stalls
9- 46 Hamp Conlay
10- RP1 Bug Rose
11- 21Q Chris Freeman
12- 3 Billy Boyd Sr.
13- 41 Barry Sheffield
14- 25 Donnie Chappell

1- 00 Shaun Daugharty
2- 8 Chris Day
3- 57S Stanton Mills
4- 95 Matt McGillivray
5- 11 Aaron Barsness
6- 29S Drew Smith
7- 66C Kyle Chappell
8- 17K Marc Kinley
9- 22 Mike Haney
10- 88 Samuel Ashley
11- 05 Dan Lane Sr.
12- 17H Blaise Hetznecker
13-80 Paul Shead
14- 56 Tony Sansom
15- 18M Justin Merry
16- 2 Jimmie Norman
17-57 Carl Heinz Haas
18- 10 Steve Shead
19- 26 George Lane
DNS- 18S David Showers Jr.

1- 16E Allen Espy
2- 31.5 James Sullivan
3- 004 R.J. Glaser

The Florida Wrestling Association got things going early as things got a little out of control.  The American Freedom Fighter defeated The Russian Assassin in a “mask for mask” bout, but managed to allow the hated Russian to escape without removing his mask.  J.C. Clark had two bouts, as he first defeated Barney Rumble in a scheduled bout, then lost to The Genius Lanny Poffo in a challenge match.  And two sworn enemies, Wildman Brody and Rick the Reaper, teamed up in a “Bunkhouse Rules” tag team match against The Mulkey Brothers.  The ensuing free-for-all resulted in everything that a wrestling fan could ask for with continuous action both in and out of the ring.  In the end The Mulkey Brothers won the match, but escaped without compensating the host facility for multiple chairs that were broken over their opponents’ heads.

Fans were excited to see if young Amanda Ferguson was a fluke or a find as the Top Gun Sprint Car Series hit the Barberville clay, but Ferguson ran into early mechanical issues during her heat race and was forced to retire for the night.  That opened the door for the always exciting Gene Lasker to take control, and he put his 02 machine on the pole for the 25 lap feature race.  Lasker never slows down, and failure to do so under caution early on proved costly as Lasker had to swerve to avoid a wrecked car in turn four, lost control, and backed hard into the turn four exit barrier.  Lasker drove away from that incident but was penalized to the rear for failure to heed the caution flag and lights, then made huge progress toward rejoining the frontrunners, but was disqualified by top Gun Series officials after the race ended.

The idea of watching miniature sprint cars powered by motorcycle engines may send some less seasoned fans toward the exits, but those who have the knowledge to stay and watch the Florida Mini Sprints in action know that the little cars can scream around VSP’s fast half mile at around 130 miles per hour, and that their races are almost always competitive and exciting.  2009 Mini Sprint Champion Tim O’Donnell held the pole and led the 21 car field to the green flag, but not far behind him lurked his son, Brett O’Donnell, who has been aggressively building on last year’s Rookie of the Year honor, and who did not care if it is his dad that he had to beat in order to get it done.  Steve Crabtree held the second spot early on as Eddie Moss Jr. and Jessie Teed joined the O’Donnells in a virtual lock on the top five positions.  And right outside the top five was Rae Lynn Moss, who showed about the same amount of love for her dad, Eddie Moss Jr, as Brett O’Donnell was showing for his.

One of the casualties in a mid race mishap was Sheldon Kinser Jr, who ended up on his side in turn two but righted the car and drove away, then began sorting his way forward toward the top ten, eventually climbing to a seventh place finish.  The caution flag got quite a bit of work during the race as various spins and contact slowed things down, but the periodic restarts also kept everyone within striking distance of each other, resulting in numerous position changes all through the field during the entire feature race, and keeping the excitement level high.

Budweiser Modified

1- 15 Jamie Carter
2- 54 Larry Burkins
3- 145 Jason Davis
4- 67 Garrett Stewart

1- 24 Danny Martin
2- 14 Ryan Partin
3- 52 Shane Kreidler
4- 38 Tony Agin
5- 6 Mike Schroeder
6- 1 Tim George
7- 13 Coty Smith
8- 22 Shawn Murray
9- 27 Troy Knowles
10- 83R Christine Auld
11- 13H Howard Harris
12- 9 Tim Grubaugh
13- 6X Brandon Grubaugh
14- 21M Darren Miller
15- 50 Rick Byerly
16- 71 Steve Stone
17- 8 Rich Alexander
18- 30 John Crowder
19- 21Z Harley Zimmerman
20- 21D Amanda Ferguson
21- 99 Dan Jones
DQ- X Tommy Denton
DQ- 02 Gene Lasker

Florida Mini Sprint Association

A strong field of Daytona Dodge Chrysler Late Models cruised to the green flag behind the bright yellow machine of JO Nobles, but Brandon Dewitt leapt forward and grabbed the lead on the first lap as Nobles was overwhelmed by the top five cars.  A caution for a spin by Larry Anderson set up a restart and Dewitt interestingly chose the inside position versus a very quick Dillon Wood, who had the 7 machine absolutely hooked up on the outside.  Dewitt’s choice worked at first, but Wood was coming fast and creating awesome momentum using every inch of the track near the walls.

Dillon Wood kept working the high line and swung past the leader on lap nine in turns 3 and 4, leaving Dewitt to deal with David Clegg who was trailing in the third spot.  And also making moves was the 35 of 14 year old Christian Augspurger, who was at VSP in order to get some seat time on the half mile in preparation for the United Dirt Late Model Challenge Series.  Augspurger had been very conservative in his heat race and early in the feature, but now had taken a liking to the big half mile track, blowing past the competition, and setting his sights on Clegg.

Things got off to a rather rocky start for the Taylor Racing Products Sportsman Division, as an early race incident in turn 4 ruined the plans of Blaise Hetznecker, Marc Kinley,and others.  But once clean up was completed the Shaun Daugharty show began, as he jumped out front and grabbed the lead.  But waiting to spoil the show was a host of contenders, including Aaron Barsness and Drew Smith.  Smith had the first shot at Daugharty but could not make the pass, and later got tangled up with a hard charging Steve Shead who had begun challenging him for second place.  Their contact in turn one brought out a caution and sent both racers to the rear of the field for the restart.

As Daugharty continued to lead, Aaron Barsness inherited second place and began working on the leader, while Paul Shead filled the void in third place. But Daugharty was too strong for either, and once again ” The Destroyer” Shaun Daugharty got to celebrate in Victory Lane.  Aaron Barsness settled for second place while Paul Shead claimed the third spot.  Matt McGillivray finished fourth as Steve Shead fought his way back to salvage a top 5 finish.

Early on the 13 of Phillip Brown got the lead but could not hold it as Trevor Gamble blasted to the front.  Right behind Gamble was Bubba Christian, who also had his sights on the clear track ahead, and Mike Tovet who was battling his way forward from a ninth position start.  Trevor Gamble had an absolute lock on the top spot, so everyone else battled for position behind him.  Three wide racing was common, and as the dust settled in the end Trevor Gamble had outrun the rest yet again.  Mike Tovet won the battle for second place and Tim Hughes went home with a third place finish.  After getting as high as second place, Bubba Christian settled for fourth and Phillip Brown finished fifth.

The Amsoil Synthetic Lubricants Thunder Stock Division has had a good share of drama over technical issues as of late, but on Saturday night it appeared that all of that was washed away and a new attitude had prevailed.  Randy Strehle led the field to the green flag but could not hold it as racers went three wide on the backstretch, and as it sorted itself out in turn 3 Luke Sadler had made some leaps forward along with Matt Schell.  Sadler challenged Strehle again in turn 2 and wrestled the lead away, and Schell also muscled his way around Strehle a lap later.

Luke Sadler, who had gone through four engines in a month of racing before Saturday night, got an interview with Joe Dirt in Victory Lane as the winner of the race while Matt Schell scored the second place finish.  Randy Strehle crossed the line behind them to claim third place, followed by Scott Mooers for fourth.  Tom Hughes rounded out the top five finishers.

Casey Feaster had finished first at Ocala Speedway on Friday night but was later disqualified in tech for an illegal part.  With that in mind, his car was watched carefully by VSP officials, who verified that the race car was as it should be.  That made Feaster, who was very worried that his reputation might be tarnished by the Ocala incident, very happy to be in Victory Lane and have the win stand.   RJ Glaser raced hard but settled for second place, as Kevin Dugan grabbed the third spot.  Shawn Kosier vibrated his way to fourth place, bent wheel and all, as Denica Hetznecker claimed the fifth spot.

“Rasslin and Racin” returns to Volusia Speedway Park this Saturday, April 24th, as the Florida Wrestling Association will battle it out behind the turn one grandstands at 6PM.  Then at 7:30PM the racing action begins with 16 year old Amanda Ferguson trying to build on her earlier win at Ocala Speedway with the Top Gun Sprint Car Series.  The exciting Florida Mini Sprints will also be back, as will the DAARA Vintage Race Cars.  And topping off the program will be VSP’s own Budweiser Modifieds, returning after a week off to blister the fastest half mile in the south.  For more information, visit www.VolusiaSpeedwayPark.net or call the track at 386-985-4402.

1- 00 Shaun Daugharty
2- 11 Aaron Barsness
3- 80 Paul Shead
4- 95 Matt McGillivray
5- 10 Steve Shead
6- 26 George Lane
7- 05 Dan Lane Sr.
8- 57P Ronnie Ponce
9- 29S Drew Smith
10- 77 Wayne Allen Jr.
11- 2 Jimmy Norman
12- 38 Colin Wright
13- 57 Karl Heinz Haas
14- 56 Tony Sansom
DNS- 17H Blaise Hetznecker
DNS- 17K Marc Kinley
DNS- 5 Alan Peacock
DNS- 18M Justin Merry
DNS- 96 Lonnie Wagner Jr.

1- 64 Trevor Gamble
2- 98T Mike Tovet
3- 54 Tim Hughes
4- 04 Bubba Christian
5- 13 Phillip Brown
6- 66V Greg Vandergriff
7- 12 Travis Gamble
8- 77M Mark Maresca
9- 94 Robert Simmons
10- 2S Mick Kulak
11- 2H Cory Hupp
12- 18E Mike Eubanks

4 Cylinder Challengers

1- 20 Casey Feaster
2- 004 RJ Glaser