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WEST MEMPHIS, Ark. (Sept. 13, 2023) – 
B Young Photo
Hagar ran double duty at Riverside International Speedway, where the highlight came in the 360ci winged sprint car division as he drove to a new personal record for number of wins in a single season.
“Right now we’re just treating it as a number,” he said. “It’s our best season, but my goal is to get to 20 wins or more. That’s probably asking a lot with only a few races remaining. But with our consistently I don’t see why we can’t do it.”
Hagar finished second in his heat race in both divisions last Saturday to garner the third starting spot in each A Main.
“The race track was really greasy all night so it was top dominant until the end of the 360 feature,” he said. “In the 305 feature we started third in the grease so I settled into fourth for the first half of the race. I drove around (Eddie) Gallagher on the outside and then I got to second with two laps to go. The leader was gone. In the two laps I did get to run in second I closed, but it was too late and we settled for second.
“By the time the 360s went out there the track had moved down a little bit and I was able to get a good start to run third on the get-go. I ran behind (Ayden) Gatewood for two or three laps. I got underneath him in turns three and four. I started charging the corner really hard. I was able to get the lead right before the halfway point. The car was phenomenal. I could run the top in turns one and two and the middle in turns three and four about wide open and we were able to hang on for the win.”
It marked his sixth victory of the season at the track.
The famed Jesse Hockett/Daniel McMillin Memorial is up next for Hagar, who ventures to Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland, Mo., for the ASCS National Tour event. His preliminary night is Thursday with the finale set for Saturday.
“We’re having the best season we’ve ever had,” he said. “We were able to build some momentum last weekend to carry into this weekend. We’re prepared and ready to go. Hopefully the pill draw and qualifying works out in our favor and we can set ourselves up for Saturday with a strong night on Thursday.”
QUICK RESULTS –
Sept. 9 – Riverside International Speedway in West Memphis, Ark. (360 sprint car) – Heat race: 2 (2); Feature: 1 (3).
Sept. 9 – Riverside International Speedway in West Memphis, Ark. (305 sprint car) – Heat race: 2 (4); Feature: 2 (3).
SEASON STATS –
22 races, 17 wins, 20 top fives, 20 top 10s, 21 top 15s, 22 top 20s
UP NEXT –
Thursday and Saturday at Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland, Mo., for the Jesse Hockett/Daniel McMillin Memorial with the ASCS National Tour
MEDIA LINKS –
Website: http://www.DerekHagarRacing.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/HagarDerek
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – B & D Towing and Recovery
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“B & D Towing supports racing,” Hagar said. “They can help anyone in the Memphis area. For anyone who needs a hand, B & D is recommended to save the day.”
Hagar would like to thank Ameri-Panel, J&J Auto Racing, B & D Towing and Recovery, FK Rod Ends, Dynotech Performance Race Engines, A.M.P., Fragola Performance Systems, Administrative Consulting Services, Killer Coatings, Beazt Composites, Xtreme Race Graphics, Southern Collision Centre, AR Dyno Specialty, Jeff’s Heating and Cooling, ButlerBuilt Professional Seat Systems, Weld Wheels, DHR Suspension, Hinchman Racewear, Wix Filters, Valvoline, Ti64 and Builtwiser Wings for their continued support.