7/26
Knoxville Raceway
35 410s
37 360s
410s
Ricky Logan (1st car out to time) set the mark in qualifications with a lap of 15.656 seconds on a quickly drying track. It was an advantage to be out early tonight. Johnny Herrera (2nd car out) was second quick, followed by Terry McCarl (10th), Kerry Madsen (17th), Calvin Landis (14th), Lynton Jeffrey (29th), Chris Walraven (28th), Colin Northway (16th), Travis Cram (25th) and Derek Beckman (6th). Brian Brown changed an engine before timing a disappointing 27th. Don Droud Jr. only got one lap in at the end after mechanical woes and timed in 28th. Eric Vanderploeg gave it a shot after a bad accident a week ago. He made it through hot laps but parked a frame borrowed from Johnny Anderson before qualifications.
Heat one (started): 1. Randy Anderson 1s (2) 2. Cram 92 (4) 3. Logan 17G (6) 4. Northway 60 (5) 5. Adam West 20 (9) / 6. Marty Perovich 17 (1) 7. Brent Antill 1 (3) 8. Jaymie Moyle 10 (7) 9. Eddie Leavitt Jr. 1A (8)
A first lap incident saw Antill get over Moyle's right rear. Antill did a series of cartwheels in front of flagman Doug Clark, who ducked for cover with his son, Justin. Leavitt was caught up in the mess and suffered front end damage. The trio was done. Perovich, driving a car recently purchased from Joey Saldana, got a good jump on the first start, but it was Randy Anderson who surged forward on the second start and led the distance. West wrestled the final transfer from Perovich with two to go, and held on to qualify for his first Knoxville A main of the year.
Heat two (started): 1. Herrera 5 (6) 2. Troy Little 20AU (2) 3. Manny Rockhold 02 (1) 4. Jeff Mitrisin 5J (3) 5. Walraven 56 (5) / 6. John Schulz 45 (8) 7. Robert Bell 71 (9) 8. Marty Wilcox 3 (7) DQ - Beckman 50D (4)
Herrera surged forward and took the point from Little on lap three. Great racing ensued for the final transfer between Walraven, Beckman and Schulz. Beckman crossed sixth, but was DQed for losing a muffler. Rockhold was making his first '03 Knoxville start, and Phoenix AZ's Wilcox was making his first appearance ever.
Heat three (started): 1. Jeffrey 4K (5) 2. Skip Jackson 21 (2) 3. Wayne Johnson 12x (3) 4. Brown 6 (7) 5. Jon Agan 4 (4) / 6. Jeff Johnson 11J (6) 7. Mike Moore 69 (1) DNS - McCarl 24, Vanderploeg 57a
McCarl bowed out before the pace lap with mechanical problems. Moore spun before a lap could be completed, giving the pole to W. Johnson. Jeffrey, who lined up behind W. Johnson got the lead early and was a rocket ship, destroying the field. Moore spun on the white flag lap, relegating him to the pits. This set up a showdown between Jackson and W. Johnson who had been battling. Jackson took second on the final circuit.
Heat four (started): 1. Clint Garner 55 (1) 2. Madsen 82 (6) 3. Landis 70 (5) 4. Droud 7x (7) 5. John Sernett 91 (2) / 6. Justin Henderson R19 (3) 7. Ryan Anderson 71R (4) 8. Greg Jones 35 (8)
Garner led flag to flag, despite late pressure from a charging Madsen. Droud, Sernett and Henderson put on a great battle for the final two transfers, with Sernett edging Henderson for the last one. Ryan Anderson was making his first 410 start.
B main (started): 1. Henderson (3) 2. McCarl (1) 3. J. Johnson (9) 4. Wilcox (6) / 5. Ryan Anderson (2) 6. Leavitt (7) 7. Perovich (4) 8. Bell (11) 9. Jones (10) 10. Schulz (8) 11. Beckman (12) 12. Moore (5) DNS - Antill, Moyle, Vanderploeg
Leavitt spun to bring out yellow before a lap could be completed. The restart saw Moore spin. Once underway, McCarl took the lead. At the halfway point, Henderson passed him much to the delight of the Sioux Falls contingent. McCarl's racer did not appear or sound up to par in fairness. A white flag stoppage by Schulz after he completed a 360 set up a duel between Wilcox and his former mechanic and roommate for the month, Ryan Anderson for the final transfer. Wilcox would get by on the low side for the final starting spot in the A.
A main (started): 1. Cram (3) 2. Logan (10) 3. Walraven (5) 4. Madsen (8) 5. Herrera (9) 6. Mitrisin (11) 7. Jackson (14) 8. W. Johnson (1) 9. Northway (4) 10. Sernett (15) 11. McCarl (22) 12. Droud (19) 13. Landis (7) 14. Jeffrey (6) 15. Rockhold (17) 16. Garner (16) 17. Henderson (21) 18. Brown (18) 19. Randy Anderson (12) 20. J. Johnson (23) 21. Agan (2) 22. Wilcox (24) 23. Little (13) 24. West (20)
W. Johnson led the first lap from the pole before Cram took over for good. Running anywhere he wanted, he blistered the field and sliced through traffic. The only stoppage came on lap seven when West tipped his car in turn four, becoming the only casualty of the race. The restart saw Cram leading Madsen, W. Johnson, Walraven and Northway. Cram again pulled away and would never be challenged. Logan made a surge after the restart, as did Walraven who ran second for several laps. Great racing ensued on the dry-slick surface in positions four through nine. McCarl has basically sewed up his fifth straight championship, and was the hard-charger, moving up 11 spots.
360s
Heat one (started, *qualified for A): 1. Johnny Anderson 7a (2*) 2. Tom Lenz 8L (4*) 3. Rodney Turner 69 (8*) 4. Ed Ergenbright 11 (3) 5. Dave Middleswart 40 (1) 6. Doug Wilson 33w (5) 7. Steve Breazeale 57 (7) 8. Nate Mosher 45 (6) 9. Danny Hutchins F4 (10) DNS - Alan Zoutte 33 (9)
Anderson led the distance, while Turner impressed from eighth to third. Mosher took out some advertising on the frontstretch infield wall after the checkered flag and took a nasty flip. He was uninjured.
Heat two (started, *qualified for A): 1. Matt Moro 2 (2*) 2. Dave Hesmer 1 (4*) 3. Rob Edwards 22 (1*) 4. Ryan York (6*) 5. Joey Beaver (8*) 6. Michael Jones 12 (5) 7. Curtis Thorson 91 (3) 8. DJ Heskin 56 (7) 9. Tyson Hart 5H (9)
Hart, a Sprint Invaders regular and first time Knoxville starter, almost met the turn one wall after the green dropped, but recovered. Moro led the field flag to flag. York, who was last week's winner, couldn't quite get by Edwards at the line. Jones secured sixth from Thorson on the last lap after a good battle.
Heat three (started, *qualified for A): 1. Eric Mason B29 (2*) 2. Jesse Giannetto D1 (7*) 3. Brett Golik 5G (3*) 4. Bruce Williams 8s (6*) 5. Frankie Heimbaugh 6x (4) 6. Brandon Hainline 4J (9) 7. Mitchell Alexander 6 (8) 8. Dave Hall 51 (5) 9. Rod Foster 40F (1)
Hall brought out the only caution in this one with a lap two spin. Hainline did a masterful job of avoiding him. Mason led throughout, but a show of power was being put on by a charging Giannetto.
Heat four (started, *qualified for A): 1. Billy Alley 22A (7*) 2. Josh Higday 24 (4*) 3. Mike Houseman 83 (1*) 4. John VanDenBerg V10 (5) 5. Larry Ball Jr. 5J (9*) 6. Brett Mather 54 (6) 7. Stacey Alexander 126 (3) 8. Bobby Mincer 15 (8) 9. Chris Martinez 7m (2)
Higday grabbed the point on lap three from early leader Houseman in a stacked non-stop heat. Alley was coming hard and took the lead from Higday on the final circuit. Ball came on late as well to grab fifth and enough points to get him into the A main.
B main (started): 1. VanDenBerg (1) 2. Ergenbright (2) 3. Wilson (7) 4. Mincer (16) / 5. Heimbaugh (6) 6. Breazeale (10) 7. Mather (4) 8. M. Alexander (9) 9. Hall (13) 10. Hainline (3) 11. Heskin (14) 12. Middleswart (5) 13. Hart (18) 14. Martinez (17) 15. Hutchins (15) 16. Jones (8) 17. Thorson (11) 18. S. Alexander (12) DNS - Mosher, Foster, Zoutte
The two spin rule eliminated Jones who did donuts on laps one and seven. S. Alexander went pitside on lap four, while Thorson did the same on lap six. While VanDenBerg had Hesmer in tow for the entirety, nice runs were put on by Wilson, and especially Mincer who came forward a dozen spots. Mincer passed Heimbaugh and Mather, who had been fighting tooth and nail for five laps, in the final corner for the last spot in the A main.
A main (started): 1. Higday (2) 2. Alley (10) 3. Giannetto (9) 4. Hesmer (3) 5. J. Anderson (8) 6. Edwards (1) 7. Lenz (4) 8. VanDenBerg (17) 9. Houseman (14) 10. Ball (15) 11. Mincer (20) 12. Beaver (16) 13. Mason (5) 14. Ergenbright (18) 15. York (11) 16. Williams (12) 17. Golik (13) 18. Wilson (19) 19. Turner (7) 20. Moro (6)
Higday set sail in this non-stop affair and no one could get close until a lap 13 caution for a stopped Moro, who went pitside. The restart for the dash to finish saw Higday leading Hesmer, Alley, Giannetto and J. Anderson. Alley and Giannetto worked under Hesmer in the final two laps. Edwards turned in a career best finish with a sixth. VanDenBerg came from 17th to 8th to earn hard-charger honors. Alley and Giannetto followed each other through the pack to earn podium finishes.