From Pete Walton
Thursday night’s rescheduled USCS ‘Rumble at the Ridge’ ended up being a clean sweep for 2013 United Sprint Car Series presented by K&N Filters champion Derek Hagar. Hagar, from nearby Marion, Ark., took the lead of the 30-lap feature event at Crowley’s Ridge Raceway away from Millersville, Missouri hot shoe Joe B. Miller on a lap 14 restart and led the rest of the distance to notch his third United Sprint Car Series presented by K&N Filters win of the 2015 season and claim his second Glen Francis Memorial Cup trophy in the process. The win was Hagar’s 32nd career USCS victory, and his second in three years at the track (2013 and 2015), after the 24-year-old also won the Hoosier Speed Dash and the Engler Machine and Tool First Heat earlier in the night.
“I saw the 42 [of Andy McElhannon] staying with us on the bottom lane on the restart before the last one,” Hagar explained in www.rockauto.com USCS Victory Lane. “I tried it, and it worked surprisingly well for us.”
“I kinda slipped up a little bit at the start that allowed Joe B. to get by me; they moved the tires out just before the start of the race and it messed my line up a bit because I didn’t have anything to get ahold of [on the bottom.] That last restart, we finally got a bit of a run and were able to get by and hold him off from there
Miller, who hung on to finish a USCS career-best of second, said that the mid-race restart – sparked after 2012 series champion Tim Crawley and veteran Justin Webb flipped in turn one – ultimately spoiled his chances of scoring a maiden USCS 360 main event win.
“My game plan just changed [when that last caution came out],” Miller admitted. “I thought I was going to try blocking the slider on Derek, and I think I just lost too much momentum. Hats off to him though, he did a great job. Our car was great, and the track prep was fantastic tonight. I’m really happy with this result and I think it shows a lot of what we’re capable of.”
Brad Bowden, from Hernando, Miss. Who started fourteenth rounded out the podium in third, with Andy McElhannon finished fourth after running as high as second during the 30-lap main. Eleven time and defending series champion Terry Gray, from Bartlett, Tenn., completed the top five at the checkers.
The race was slowed by three cautions in addition to the lap 13 red flag – at lap two for a spin by Dylan DeJournett in turn one; at lap five when Bryant, Arkansas pilot Zach Pringle looped his machine in turn three; and at lap nine when Crawley dove low in turn four to try and take the lead from Miller, but shot up the race track and jumped the cushion in turn four.
Crawley was able to continue after that incident, and had worked his way back from 21st to 14th when he went tumbling end over end. The Benton, Arkansas veteran was scored 21st in the finishing order.
At the final flag, 1998 USCS champion and Olive Branch, Mississippi driver Eddie Gallagher led the second group of drivers with a sixth place effort, with Marshall Skinner, from Marion, Arkansas following in seventh. Hernando, Mississippi’s Jerod Roller finished eighth and Anthony Nicholson, out of Millington, Tennessee ame home in ninth. Little Rock, Arkansas hotshoe Cody Gardner capped off the top ten finishers.
In preliminary action, Hagar won the hoosier Tire Speed Dash for sprint cars then followed that up with a win in the Engler Machine and Tool First Heat. Andy McElhannon rolled to the victory in the Butlerbuilt Second Heat, Miller took the victory in the Schoenfeld Headers Third Heat and Mike Pack triumphed in the JE Pistons Fourth Heat.
Hagar was the provisional pole sitter after scoring the most passing points in heat race action, and after a zero was rolled on the K&N Inversion Die, he also received the K&N Filters Pole Award. Third place finisher Brad Bowden started 14th and passed the most cars in the A-main (11) to grab the Wilwood Disc Brakes Hard Charger Award.
The United Sprint Car Series filtercharged by K&N Filters continues their 2015 schedule Friday night, July 10 with the rescheduled ‘Brawl in Batesville’ at the Batesville Motor Speedway.
For rules and updated schedule information about the United Sprint Car Series Outlaw Thunder Tour, please visit www.uscsracing.com or call the series office at 770-460-7223 or 770-865-6097.
RESULTS: USCS Sprint Car Series “Rumble at the Ridge”; Crowley’s Ridge Raceway; July 9, 2015
Hoosier Tire Speed Dash: Derek Hagar, Tim Crawley, A.G. Raines, Marshall Skinner, Morgan Turpen, Zach Pringle (DNS).
Engler Machine and Tool First Heat: Derek Hagar, Marshall Skinner, Zach Pringle, A.G. Raines, Jerod Roller, Justin Webb, Jan Howard.
Butlerbuilt Second Heat: Andy McElhannon, Eddie Gallagher, Anthony Nicholson, Cody Gardner, Howard Moore, Jeff Willingham, Ronny Howard.
Schoenfeld Headers Third Heat: Joe B. Miller, Morgan Turpen, Tim Crawley, Brad Bowden, Nick Snyder, Kevin Hinkle, Blake Jenkins.
JE Pistons Fourth Heat: Mike Pack, Terry Gray, 7, Robert Richardson, Christopher Wright, Tyler Vaughn, Brandon Hinkle.
Saldana Racing Products B-Main: 12-laps (6 transfer)
1. #3 – A.G. Raines, West Memphis, AR
2. #40 – Howard Moore, Memphis, TN
3. #5 – Jerod Roller, Hernando, MS
4. #32X – Robert Richardson, Searcy, AR
5. #28 – Jeff Willingham, Ripley, MS
6. #88R – Jan Howard, Marion, AR
7. #116 – Nick Snyder, Marco Island, FL
8. #44 – Ronny Howard, Nesbit, MS
9. #31 – Justin Webb, Drummonds, TN
10. #99 – Blake Jenkins, Benton, AR
11. #32 – Brandon Hinkle, Cabot, AR
12. #72 – Christopher Wright, Qulin, MS
13. #21 – Kevin Hinkle, Cabot, AR
14. #18T – Tyler Vaughn, Bono, AR
USCS Sprint Car Series filtercharged by K&N Glen Francis Memorial Cup A-main: 30-laps
1. #9JR – Derek Hagar, Marion, AR
2. #51B – Joe B. Miller, Millersville, MO
3. #39 – Brad Bowden, Hernando, MS
4. #42 – Andy McElhannon, Nesbit, MS
5. #10 – Terry Gray, Bartlett, TN
6. #1 – Eddie Gallagher, Olive Branch, MS
7. #26 – Marshall Skinner, Marion, AR
8. #5 – Jerod Roller, Hernando, MS
9. #16 – Anthony Nicholson, Bartlett, TN
10. #2J – Cody Gardner, Little Rock, AR
11. #17 – Mike Pack, Batesville, AR
12. #40 – Howard Moore, Memphis, TN
13. #88R – Jan Howard,
14. #10M – Morgan Turpen, Cordova, TN
15. #116 – Nick Snyder, Marco Island, FL
16. #3 – A.G. Raines, West Memphis, AR
17. #32X – Robert Richardson, Searcy, AR
18. #7 – Dylan DeJournett, New Madrid, MO
19. #28 – Jeff Willingham, Ripley, MS
20. #31 – Justin Webb, Drummonds, TN
21. #88 – Tim Crawley, Benton, AR
22. #44 – Ronny Howard, Nesbit, MS
23. #8Z – Zach Pringle, Bryant, AR