By Bryan Hulbert
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (July 23, 2022) Still on the mend from a massive crash at the start of the month in WaKeeney, Kan., Wayne Johnson proved why he is called “The Iron Man” on Saturday night by leading start to finish on a very tricky I-30 Speedway surface with the Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series presented by the MAVTV Motorsports Network.
The fourth time Wayne has topped the Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series at “Hammer Hill,” Saturday’s triumph is his 58th with the tour, his fourth National win this year, and his sixth in overall competition. The finish also ties Wayne with Gary Wright for overall career top-ten finishes at 397.
“I’m going to tell you right now, guys, the best car didn’t win this race. Cody’s car was way better than mine, pretty much anywhere we wanted to go,” commented Wayne, giving credit to the job done by Cody Gardner.
Continuing, Wayne pointed out the extent of his injuries and gave a nod to the track crew.
“Hats off to the I-30 crew for giving us a smooth race track. I had that crash at WaKeeney and believe it or not, I have 14 bulging disks in my back, so I’m probably stupid for being out here, so really, thank you to the track crew for making it easier on my back.”
Officially leading all 25 laps, Johnson actually lost the point on two occasions, only to have the caution bring the field back to the last fully complete lap. Stalked into traffic as the field worked Lap 7, the following trip put 12th starting Cody Gardner at Johnson’s side with inches the advantage for the No. 2c. Falling to second working Lap 9, the caution lights came on as just over half the field made it to the line.
Advancing Wayne back to the lead, a couple of attempts at the restart all saw Wayne holding the point as Cody Gardner and Dale Howard went to work.
Top to bottom still at both ends of the I-30 Speedway, the Litte Rock regulars were there as the field began Lap 17. Relegating Wayne to third in a single shot, the top six were the only ones who crossed before the yellow flag flew again.
Still utilizing the top of the track in hopes of getting the run on Wayne, the final laps went the way of the No. 2c, as the field was forced to the bottom with Johnson holding off Cody by 0.465-seconds. Dale Howard crossed third with Tim Crawley fourth. Blake Hahn completed the top five.
Up from 11th, Derek Hagar crossed sixth, followed by Howard Moore in seventh. Eighteenth to eighth for Brandon Anderson, he was pursued by Matt Covington and Brad Bowden to wrap up the top ten.
Saturday’s field consisted of 32 drivers with four SCE Gaskets Heat Races topped by Howard Moore, Kyler Johnson, and Marshall Skinner. The night’s BMRS B-Feature went to Jason Martin. The Driver’s Project quick qualifier was Blake Hahn at 12.539-seconds. Provisional starts were used by Dylan Postier and Landon Britt.
The next outing for the Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series presented by the MAVTV Motorsports Network is Tuesday, July 26, for Round 3 of the Sizzlin Summer Speedweek at Tulsa Speedway in Tulsa, Okla. The event was rescheduled from last Thursday’s cancelation. Tickets and Pit Passes from the lost date will be honored.
The 2022 season will mark the 31st year of competition for the American Sprint Car Series. Spearheaded by the Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series presented by the MAVTV Motorsports Network, the ASCS Nation includes Regional Tours that encompass both wing and non-wing competition.
For fans not able to attend, the series can be seen live on two platforms, with RaceOnTexas.com on FloRacing.com featuring National Tour events in tandem. Both are subscription-based sites. FloRacing.com is $20 per month, billed annually at $150 per year. RaceOnTexas.com All Access is $39.99 per month.
For other news, notes, and information on any of the tours under the ASCS banner, log onto http://www.ascsracing.com, follow on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter (@LucasOilASCS).
Race Results:
Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour
I-30 Speedway (Little Rock, Ark.)
Saturday, July 23, 2022
Speedweek – Night 2
Car Count: 32
The Driver’s Project Group Qualifying
The Drivers Project Qualifying 1 (3 Laps): 1. 52-Blake Hahn, 12.539[7]; 2. 47-Dale Howard, 12.668[3]; 3. 14-Jordon Mallett, 12.722[4]; 4. 3-Howard Moore, 12.724[2]; 5. 36-Jason Martin, 12.898[6]; 6. 10P-Dylan Postier, 12.993[5]; 7. 91X-Michael Day, 13.274[8]; 8. 938-Bradley Fezard, 13.524[1]
The Drivers Project Qualifying 2 (3 Laps): 1. 95-Matt Covington, 12.655[7]; 2. 1X-Tim Crawley, 12.752[2]; 3. 9JR-Derek Hagar, 12.790[6]; 4. 44R-Ronny Howard, 12.902[1]; 5. 55B-Brandon Anderson, 12.939[4]; 6. 47X-Sean McClelland, 12.963[5]; 7. 21K-Kevin Hinkle, 13.479[8]; 8. 2-Dylan Opdahl, 13.701[3]
The Drivers Project Qualifying 3 (3 Laps): 1. G6-Cody Gardner, 12.803[1]; 2. 187-Landon Crawley, 12.861[6]; 3. 45X-Kyler Johnson, 12.882[2]; 4. 10-Landon Britt, 13.018[4]; 5. 17B-Ryan Bickett, 13.048[3]; 6. 21-Spencer Meredith, 13.266[8]; 7. 48-Wade Buttrey, 13.346[7]; 8. 22J-Jax Redline, 13.396[5]
The Drivers Project Qualifying 4 (3 Laps): 1. 2C-Wayne Johnson, 12.605[7]; 2. 24-Garet Williamson, 12.999[4]; 3. 8-Brad Bowden, 13.185[8]; 4. 26-Marshall Skinner, 13.255[6]; 5. 30-Joseph Miller, 13.310[5]; 6. 13C-Chase Howard, 13.311[2]; 7. 99-Blake Jenkins, 13.334[3]; 8. (DNS) 19-Jason Long, 13.334
SCE Gaskets Heat Races (Top 16 in Qualifying/Passing Points advancing to the A-Feature)
SCE Gaskets Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 3-Howard Moore[1]; 2. 47-Dale Howard[3]; 3. 52-Blake Hahn[4]; 4. 14-Jordon Mallett[2]; 5. 36-Jason Martin[5]; 6. 91X-Michael Day[7]; 7. 10P-Dylan Postier[6]; 8. 938-Bradley Fezard[8]
SCE Gaskets Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 1X-Tim Crawley[1]; 2. 9JR-Derek Hagar[2]; 3. 95-Matt Covington[4]; 4. 47X-Sean McClelland[6]; 5. 55B-Brandon Anderson[3]; 6. 21K-Kevin Hinkle[5]; 7. 2-Dylan Opdahl[8]; 8. 44R-Ronny Howard[7]
SCE Gaskets Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 45X-Kyler Johnson[2]; 2. 17B-Ryan Bickett[5]; 3. 22J-Jax Redline[8]; 4. G6-Cody Gardner[4]; 5. 187-Landon Crawley[3]; 6. 21-Spencer Meredith[6]; 7. 10-Landon Britt[1]; 8. 48-Wade Buttrey[7]
SCE Gaskets Heat 4 (8 Laps): 1. 26-Marshall Skinner[1]; 2. 2C-Wayne Johnson[4]; 3. 24-Garet Williamson[3]; 4. 8-Brad Bowden[2]; 5. 13C-Chase Howard[6]; 6. 30-Joseph Miller[5]; 7. 99-Blake Jenkins[7]; 8. 19-Jason Long[8]
BMRS B-Feature (Top 6 advance to the A-Feature)
BMRS B-Main 1 (12 Laps): 1. 36-Jason Martin[3]; 2. 55B-Brandon Anderson[4]; 3. 13C-Chase Howard[2]; 4. 30-Joseph Miller[7]; 5. 91X-Michael Day[5]; 6. 187-Landon Crawley[1]; 7. 10P-Dylan Postier[11]; 8. 48-Wade Buttrey[15]; 9. 21K-Kevin Hinkle[8]; 10. 2-Dylan Opdahl[9]; 11. 99-Blake Jenkins[10]; 12. 938-Bradley Fezard[14]; 13. 19-Jason Long[16]; 14. 21-Spencer Meredith[6]; 15. 10-Landon Britt[13]; 16. 44R-Ronny Howard[12]
A-Feature
Lucas Oil A-Main (25 Laps): 1. 2C-Wayne Johnson[1]; 2. G6-Cody Gardner[12]; 3. 47-Dale Howard[6]; 4. 1X-Tim Crawley[5]; 5. 52-Blake Hahn[7]; 6. 9JR-Derek Hagar[11]; 7. 3-Howard Moore[9]; 8. 55B-Brandon Anderson[18]; 9. 95-Matt Covington[8]; 10. 8-Brad Bowden[15]; 11. 187-Landon Crawley[22]; 12. 24-Garet Williamson[16]; 13. 47X-Sean McClelland[13]; 14. 14-Jordon Mallett[14]; 15. 17B-Ryan Bickett[3]; 16. 91X-Michael Day[21]; 17. 13C-Chase Howard[19]; 18. 36-Jason Martin[17]; 19. 10P-Dylan Postier[24]; 20. 22J-Jax Redline[4]; 21. 26-Marshall Skinner[10]; 22. 45X-Kyler Johnson[2]; 23. 30-Joseph Miller[20]; 24. 10-Landon Britt[23]
Lap Leader(s): Wayne Johnson 1-25
Hard Charger: Landon Crawley +11
Quick Time: Blake Hahn -12.539 seconds
High Point Driver: Wayne Johnson
Provisional(s): Dylan Postier (Points) / Landon Britt (Points)