8/10/02
Knoxville Raceway
42nd Knoxville Nationals
E Feature (started): 1. Scotty Neitzel 2wx (2) 2. Tim Monson 1wm (3) 3. Mike Moore 69 (4) 4. Terry Pletch 29T (6) 5. Brian Carlson 18 (10) / 6. Dr. Robert Altmeyer 14A (11) 7. David Murcott (15) 8. Shane Hunter 8s (7) 9. Scott Fokken 1FX (9) 10. Robert Bell 71x (14) 11. Doug Strong 43 (12) 12. Bob Hildreth 55KC (13) 13. Kris Spitz 4KS (16) 14. Wayne Modjeski 77m (1) 15. Johnny Anderson 7a (5) 16. Ryan Jamison 51J (8) 17. Bruce Robenalt 98 (18) 18. Steve Cushman 30 (17) DNS - Derek Beckman 50D, Steve King 88, Curt Trainer 36, Tommy Tarlton 21T, Destiny Hays 20D
Neitzel set sail and was never challenged. Altmeyer was closing in on Carlson for the final transfer to the D, but fell just short. The track was its usually narrow self for this feature. Cushman exited on lap four, and Robenalt on lap eight. Modjeski lost a muffler on lap eight and dropped out while running second. J. Anderson was running fifth when he went pitside on the same circuit. Jamison brought out a caution when he stopped on the frontstretch. He would also retire.
D Feature (started): 1. Randy Martin 14m (5) 2. Lynton Jeffrey 4K (6) 3. Leonard Lee 16L (7) / 4. Peter Murphy 0 (13) 5. Larry Pinegar II 11L (4) 6. Bob Bennett 3 (9) 7. Kevin Frey 2K (3) 8. Bobby Mincer 15m (10) 9. Manny Rockhold 02 (18) 10. M. Moore (20) 11. Troy Meyer 11m (15) 12. Neitzel (17) 13. Jeff Johnson 11J (16) 14. Doug Wilson 33w (12) 15. Carlson (22) 16. Chris Walraven 56 (2) 17. Monson (19) 18. John Lambertz 12L (8) 19. Jerrod Hull 50 (1) 20. Jim Cameron 96c (11) 21. Pletch (21) 22. Ty Bartz 75 (14) DNS - John Sernett 91, Tim Kaeding 35w, Gary Wright 9
Bartz flipped wickedly into the frontstretch fencing after the drop of the green. He was uninjured. Frey was black-flagged on the restart while starting on the pole in place of Hull who fell out. Monson replaced a flat right front before the next restart. Martin was now on the pole and took to the cushion, leading the twelve laps to victory. Lambertz elected to start at the rear and dropped out on lap seven. Lap 11 saw Pletch stall bringing out yellow. Walraven, who was running second exited when the green fell again, giving that spot to Jeffrey who was moving up nicely on the low side of the track.
C Feature (started): 1. Jeff Swindell 6s (1) 2. PJ Chesson 76 (11) 3. Brent Antill 1 (2) / 4. Don Droud Jr. 55 (12) 5. Chad Meyer 1w (6) 6. Josh Higday 24H (3) 7. Jaymie Moyle 10 (9) 8. Craig Agan 4 (5) 9. Chad Kemenah (16) 10. Tony Norem 47 (13) 11. Michael Dupuy 4m (14) 12. Kraig Kinser 11K (15) 13. Danny Smith 51 (17) 14. Larry Ball Jr. 1s (10) 15. Brooke Tatnell 66 (19) 16. Lee (22) 17. Martin (20) 18. Jeffrey (21) 19. Colin Northway 12 (18) 20. Todd Hepfner 28H (8) 21. Justin Henderson R19 (4) 22. Randy Anderson 02x (7) DNS - Travis Cram 92T
R. Anderson got into the turn one wall at the outset, breaking his front end. Lap one saw K. Kinser bobble above the cushion, losing several spots. Hepfner spun his machine on lap two and restarted at the tail. Ball brought out a caution when he stalled on lap seven. During the caution, Henderson steered his second place machine into his pit stall. J. Swindell was in command throughout, though Chesson came hard at the end of the 15 lapper, and got under Antill on the final lap after a good battle.
B Feature (started): 1. Brad Furr 2 (4) 2. Ricky Logan 3s (1) 3. Kasey Kahne 51K (2) 4. Jeff Shepard 92 (3) / 5. Kenny Jacobs 6K (6) 6. Jason Meyers 14 (11) 7. Randy Hannagan 1x (9) 8. Terry McCarl 24 (13) 9. J. Swindell (19) 10. Dennis Moore Jr. 71 (15) 11. Skip Jackson 21x (16) 12. Fred Rahmer 88H (5) 13. Jason Johnson 41 (12) 14. Kim Mock 1m (17) 15. Brian Paulus 28 (7) 16. Toni Lutar 4x (20) 17. Chesson (21) 18. Mike Reinke 17R (14) 19. Antill (22) 20. Calvin Landis 70 (18) 21. Danny Wood 6 (8) 22. Jeff Mitrisin 5J (10) DNS - Blake Feese 1F
Mitrisin fell out on lap four after a tough week. Kahne led early, but soon it was evident that Furr was the man to beat in the 22 lapper. Logan followed him on the low side, while Shepard and K. Jacobs wrestled away at the fourth spot in the middle stages. Lap 18 saw a spin by Paulus which negated a K. Jacobs pass of Shepard for fourth. J. Swindell earned hard-charger honors as he moved forward ten spots.
A Feature (started): 1. Steve Kinser 11 (2) 2. Donny Schatz 15 (7) 3. Craig Dollansky 7 (6) 4. Danny Lasoski 20 (1) 5. Tyler Walker 35 (5) 6. Greg Hodnett 12A (12) 7. Tim Shaffer 83 (4) 8. Jac Haudenschild 5 (9) 9. Johnny Herrera 2w (8) 10. Joey Saldana 17 (3) 11. Sammy Swindell 83JR (18) 12. Daryn Pittman 21 (10) 13. Stevie Smith 11h (14) 14. Lance Dewease 77 (11) 15. Furr (21) 16. Kahne (23) 17. Jason Sides 7s (17) 18. Paul McMahan U2 (15) 19. Shane Stewart 8h (20) 20. Mark Kinser 5m (13) 21. Shepard (24) 22. Logan (22) 23. Ed Lynch Jr. 2L (16) 24. Kerry Madsen 82 (19)
S. Kinser and Lasoski began their duel from the beginning, with Lasoski in his familiar route along the low side and S. Kinser up high. Back and forth they went as Schatz moved nicely up to third. The lone caution in the 30 lapper came on lap twelve, when M. Kinser spun. The restart saw Lasoski and S. Kinser put some mind-blowing maneuvers on one another until several laps later the "King" proved why he has that nickname when he took command for good. Schatz came on hard and passed Lasoski, but fell a few car lengths short of the victory at the line. Dollansky got Lasoski with two to go to claim the last transfer spot. Hodnett moved up to sixth from his twelfth place starting position, following Walker on the high side. Haudenschild finished eighth on Hoosier tires.
Higday was named Rookie of the Year for the Nationals, while Guy Forbrook's crew was best appearing. The best appearing car was the Denny Ashworth 92 driven by Jeff Shepard. Logan won Mr. Sprintcar for the week and earned $1500.