by BJ Cavin- Ocala Speedway Media

OCALA, FL-  After a well deserved rest and a few weeks to allow Mother Nature to rain herself out, action returns to Ocala Speedway this Friday night as the Colortyme Modifieds hit the clay in pursuit of a $1000 first place payout.  In addition to thrilling modified competition, fans will also see tough racing from the Amsoil V8 Thunder Stocks, the Mini Stocks, and the Gladiator Divisions, as they compete for double points toward their respective season championships.

As Ocala race fans should know, “Repo Man” Jeff Mathews has all but run the table on the rest of the Colortyme Modifieds this season at Ocala, winning all but one race.  But as the racers go after the $1000 to win prize this Friday night, they will have an extra incentive to take Mathews down a notch as a $500 cash bounty has been placed on the “Repo Man” for this race.  Ocala Speedway owner Mike Peters will personally pay the racer who beats Mathews a $500 bonus, which could potentially make this a $1500 night for all but one top mod driver.

One might expect Mathews to control the 2010 points race and he does, but not to the extent that one might guess.  Wayne Hammond and Kyle Bronson are a mere 45 and 46 points shy of knocking Matthews out of first place, and both are more than capable of beating him on any given race night.  Add the bounty plus the oversized first place payout, and Matthews’ points lead could erode a little this weekend.

The Amsoil V8 Thunder Stocks have been a rough and tumble bunch this season, with some races looking more like an enduro than Friday night divisional competition.  Michael Stalnaker tops the survivors’ list at present as he has overcome multiple problems on his way to regaining the points lead.  Jerrid Bennett may not be in Victory Lane every Friday night, but pure persistence and determination have him just 31 points shy of Stalnaker, and no doubt salivating over the double points night to come.  Stalnaker hopes that he has eliminated the gremlins that have burdened the 8 car through the meat of the season, but if one or two are still lurking, Bennett will be poised to take advantage of it.

Defending 2009 Mini Stock Champion Paul Combast holds the points lead as the last Mini Stock Division on dirt hits the clay this Friday night, but Combast is by no means safe from the two pronged attack of Dan and Nick Kerr as they chase him up the points ladder.  With double points on the line, Dan Kerr is 21 points out of first place, while Nick follows at 30 points behind Dan, or 51 points out of first.  But the last outing for the Mini Stocks saw “Hot Shot” Keith Briggs sporting the swagger and skills that earned him the 2008 Mini Stock Championship, and so far Combast and the Kerr’s have not found the solution to staying in front of the 19T X-Treme Racing machine.

If there has ever been a tight points race in any division at Florida’s oldest speedway, Ocala’s Gladiator Division has had it in 2010.  The current points leader is none other than Devin Walker, who assumed the top spot after off the track problems bumped Casey Feaster out of first place.  Walker’s lead is barely a toe hold on the top shelf, as EBD Racing’s Matt Shea is just 4 points behind, and Steve Johnson, who led the points race for weeks before falling victim to all sorts of calamities, is 33 out of the top spot.  Throw double points in front of these racers and it becomes a nessesity for all of them to win this week, although only one can.  That means tough competition, exciting racing, and who knows who coming out on top.

Ocala Speedway will throw open the pit gate at 2PM this Friday, with the grandstands open to the fans at 5PM.  Hot laps are scheduled for 7PM with the first heat race taking the green flag at 8PM.  For more info on America’s Dirt Track, and to see the remainder of the 2010 racing schedule, please visit www.OcalaSpeedway.com.