Billy Alley won the 2006 track championship by just five markers over Brian Brown (Tim Dahlhauser Photo)
The 2006 Knoxville Showdown for 410 Supremacy!
(Bill W) September 1, 2021, Monroe, IA – It was the most exciting night of racing this year at Knoxville Raceway last Saturday, with track titles in two classes coming down to three drivers. Davey Heskin edged out Brian Brown for 410 honors by a mere 15 points after charging forward from row seven and finishing fourth, while Justin Henderson suffered heartbreak. Ryan Giles was cruising in the 360 class before going up in smoke. Clint Garner entered the night third in points, but emerged victorious for his ninth title, just 17 markers ahead of Jamie Ball.
We don’t have to go back too far to see an even closer battle. Fifteen years ago, Billy Alley and Brian Brown had to wait until October to settle their duel. In the end, the championship was Alley’s, just five points over Brown. The complete story published in FlatOut is below, and may bring back some memories.
Also this past weekend, Jack Dover earned his first ever 410 main event win. That win came at Huset’s. Gio Scelzi leads the Midwest Thunder Sprint Series presented by OpenWheel101.com standings, ahead of Brown, Henderson, Austin McCarl and Kerry Madsen. Ayrton Gennetten, who picked up his third 410 win of the season Friday at Granite City, Parker Price-Miller, Rico Abreu, Carson McCarl and Matt Juhl round out the top ten.
This week’s point races are dominated by the IRA, though Jacksonville Speedway in Illinois will run on Friday as well. The IRA hits Dodge County, Plymouth and 141 Speedway in Wisconsin.
If you haven’t donated to the points’ fund yet, it’s a good time to do so. We’d like to pay down as many spots as we can in the final standings!
If you love 410’s in the Midwest, donate to the point fund today! 100% of contributions go to the drivers, and the more contributions we receive, the more we can pay out.
Sponsors are being sought to grow the point fund for the series fifth season! Whether you are a fan like all of us, or a business that would like advertising through the series and OpenWheel101.com, join us!
Thousands of fans visit OpenWheel101.com each week to get the latest results, stories, video highlights, interviews and more. You can also search there for old results and stories. It’s a great place to advertise, and know that your contributions go straight to the drivers! E-mail Bill Wright at sprntcar@hotmail.com to set up your deal! Any amount is welcome!
Up Next…
Fri, Sept 3 – Jacksonville Speedway (IL)
Fri, Sept 3 – Dodge Co. Fairgrounds (WI) IRA
Sat, Sept 4 – Plymouth Dirt Track (WI) IRA
Sun, Sept 5 – 141 Speedway (WI) IRA
2021 Midwest Thunder Sprint Cars presented by www.OpenWheel101.com Point Standings (Feature Wins)
1. Gio Scelzi, Fresno, CA, 1229 (1)
2. Brian Brown, Grain Valley, MO, 1049 (7)
3. Justin Henderson, Tea, SD, 881 (6)
4. Austin McCarl, Altoona, IA, 803 (6)
5. Kerry Madsen, St. Mary’s, NSW, Aust., 760 (5)
6. Ayrton Gennetten, Gravois Mills, MO, 688 (3)
7. Parker Price-Miller, Kokomo, IN, 588 (1)
8. Rico Abreu, St. Helena, CA, 563 (1)
9. Carson McCarl, Altoona, IA, 536
10. Matt Juhl, Tea, SD, 511
11. Cory Eliason, Visalia, CA, 489
12. Spencer Bayston, Lebanon, IN, 463
13. Jack Dover, Springfield, NE, 439 (1)
14. Tyler Courtney, Indianapolis, IN, 430 (4)
15. Riley Goodno, Knoxville, IA, 397
16. Davey Heskin, St. Michael, MN, 380
17. Brooke Tatnell, Sans Souci, NSW, Aust., 376
18. Bill Balog, Hartland, WI, 371
19. Brent Marks, Myerstown, PA, 366
20. Kyle Larson, Elk Grove, CA, 340 (2)
21. Kasey Kahne, Enumclaw, WA, 304
22. Shane Golobic, Fremont, CA, 297
23. Lynton Jeffrey, Prairie City, IA, 276 (1)
24. Ian Madsen, St. Mary’s, NSW, Aust., 272
25. Mark Dobmeier, Grand Forks, ND, 269 (1)
26. Josh Schneiderman, West Burlington, IA, 261 (1)
27. Terry McCarl, Altoona, IA, 247
28. Tim Kaeding, Campbell, CA, 241
(tie) Noah Gass, Mounds, OK, 241
30. Jody Rosenboom, Rock Rapids, IA, 236
31. Scotty Thiel, Sheboygan, WI, 228 (1)
32. Sawyer Phillips, Pleasantville, IA, 224
33. Jake Neuman, New Berlin, IL, 222 (1)
34. Marcus Dumesny, Sydney, NSW, Aust., 212 (1)
35. Justin Peck, Monrovia, IN, 207
36. Chris Martin, Ankeny, IA, 205
37. Zach Daum, Pocahontas, IL, 197
38. Cap Henry, Republic, OH, 196 (1)
(tie) Sam Hafertepe Jr., Sunnyvale, TX, 196
40. Hunter Schuerenberg, Sikeston, MO, 190
41. Jake Blackhurst, Hanna City, IL, 189 (1)
42. Joe B. Miller, Millerstown, MO, 163
43. Brandon Hanks, Burlison, TN, 161 (1)
44. Jeremy Schultz, Beaver Dam, WI, 160
45. Tim Estenson, Fargo, ND, 158
46. Paul McMahan, Nashville, TN, 152
47. Jordan Goldesberry, Springfield, IL, 148
48. Dusty Zomer, Sioux Falls, SD, 147
49. Russel Borland, Kewaskum, WI, 139
50. Brendan Mullen, Grand Forks, ND, 134
51. Shane Stewart, Bixby, OK, 129
52. Ryan Timms, Oklahoma City, OK, 120
53. Chris Urish, Elkhart, IL, 117
(tie) Kyle Bellm, Nixa, MO, 117
55. Skylar Prochaska, Lakefield, MN, 116
(tie) Scott Neitzel, Beaver Dam, WI, 116
57. Zeb Wise, Angola, IN, 115
58. Andy Bishop, Harrisburg, IL, 113
59. Anthony Macri, Dillsburg, PA, 112
60. Jacob Patton, Bethalto, IL, 109
(tie) Tasker Phillips, Pleasantville, IA, 109
62. Paul Nienhiser, Chapin, IL, 106 (1)
63. Tucker Klaasmeyer, Paola, KS, 104
(tie) Jade Hastings, Grand Forks, ND, 104
65. Cale Thomas, Fairland, IN, 103
66. Tyler Drueke, Eagle, NE, 101
67. Zach Hampton, Mooresville, IN, 100
(tie) Mitchell Davis, Auburn, IL, 100
(tie) Wade Nygaard, Grand Forks, ND, 100
70. Korey Weyant, Springfield, IL, 97
71. Carson Short, Marion, IL, 93
72. Brant O’Banion, Parker, SD, 92
73. Clinton Boyles, Greenwood, MO, 90
74. Chris Windom, Canton, IL, 88
75. Christopher Bell, Norman, OK, 85 (1)
76. Jeremy Standridge, Springfield, IL, 81
(tie) Cody Ledger, Omaha, NE, 81
78. Dominic Scelzi, Fresno, CA, 80
79. Brayton Lynch, Springfield, IL, 76
80. Danny Dietrich, Gettysburg, PA, 75
(tie) Joey Moughan, Sprngfield, IL, 75
82. Kyle Reinhardt, Neptune City, NJ, 72
83. Sean Rayhall, Woodstock, GA, 68
(tie) Don Droud Jr., Lincoln, NE 68
85. Robert Ballou, Rocklin, CA, 66
86. DJ Netto, Hanford, CA, 65
87. Austin Pierce, Grand Forks, ND, 64 (1)
88. Mike Reinke, Howards Grove, WI, 63
89. Jake Bubak, Arvada, CO, 60
(tie) Skylar Gee, Leduc, ALB, Can., 60
(tie) Cory Bruns, Lincoln, IL, 60
92. Paige Polyak, Tiffin, OH, 58
93. Austin O’Dell, Rochester, IL, 57
94. Gregg Bakker, Sioux Falls, SD, 56
(tie) Scott Bogucki, McLaren Vale, SA, Aust., 56
(tie) Rob Pribnow, Lomira, WI, 56
97. Jordan Adams, Reynolds, ND, 54
98. Logan Faucon, Elkhart, IL, 52
99. Cody Hansen, Nunda, SD, 50
(tie) AJ Moeller, Rockwell City, IA, 50
(tie) Jack Croaker, East Grand Forks, MN, 50
102. Kris Spitz, Salem, WI, 46
(tie) Colin Smith, Sheldon, IA, 46
104. Garet Williamson, Columbia, MO, 42
(tie) Roger Crockett, Broken Arrow, OK, 42
106. Reed Allex, St. Cloud, MN, 41
107. Nick Ranten, East Grand Forks, ND, 40
108. Alan Gilbertson, Kasson, MN, 38
(tie) Jack Berger, Lake Elmo, MN, 38
(tie) Bret Tripplett, Lincoln, IL, 38
(tie) Chuck McGillivray, Madison, SD, 38
112. Kyle Schuett, Philo, IL, 37
113. Josh Walter, Plymouth, WI, 34
(tie) Lucas Wolfe, Mechanicsburg, PA, 34
(tie) Hunter Custer, Chippewa Falls, WI, 34
(tie) Zach Omdahl, East Grand Forks, MN, 34
117. Daryn Pittman, Owasso, OK, 33
118. Bobby Mincer, Burlington, IA, 30
119. Greg Nikitenko, Minot, ND, 28
120. Eric Lutz, Sioux Falls, SD, 26
(tie) Caden Englehart, Terre Haute, IN, 26
(tie) Luke Verardi, Taylorville, IL, 26
(tie) Corbin Gurley, Hebron, IN, 26
(tie) Elliot Amdahl, Flandreau, SD, 26
125. Jac Haudenschild, Wooster, OH, 25
126. Austin Archdale, Brimfield, IL, 24
127. Alex Schriever, Sioux Falls, SD, 22
(tie) Sye Lynch, Apollo, PA, 22
(tie) Jereme Schroeder, Lake Villa, IL, 22
(tie) Kevin Ingle, Huron, SD, 22
131. Ben Brown, Marshall, MO, 20
(tie) Clyde Knipp, California, MO, 20
(tie) Brinton Marvel, Pittsboro, IN, 20
(tie) Tanner Holmes, Jacksonville, OR, 20
(tie) Josh Baughman, Odessa, TX, 20
(tie) Nick Omdahl, East Grand Forks, MN, 20
137. Zach Patterson, Yukon, OK, 18
(tie) McKenna Haase, Des Moines, IA, 18
(tie) Jordan Paulsen, Trevor, WI, 18
(tie) Ryan Bowers, Nowthen, MN, 18
(tie) John Carney II, El Paso, TX, 18
(tie) Jessie Attard, Landilo, NSW, Aust., 18
143. Dustin Barks, Farmington, MO, 16
(tie) Jordan Graham, Grand Forks, ND, 16
(tie) Wayne Modjeski, Oak Creek, WI, 16
(tie) Ryan Bunton, Morton, IL, 16
(tie) Blake Nimee, Oswego, IL, 16
148. Cole Duncan, Lockbourne, OH, 14
(tie) Colton Fisher, Mediapolis, IA, 14
(tie) Lachlan McHugh, Gold Coast, QLD, Aust., 14
(tie) Dylan Tuxhorn, Pawnee, IL, 14
(tie) Paul Haley, Springfield, IL, 14
(tie) Sammy Swindell, Lakeland, TN, 14
(tie) Dylan Westbrook, Scotland, ONT, Can., 14
155. Blake Egeland, Climax, MN, 12
(tie) Ryan Bickett, Ramona, SD, 12
(tie) Kaleb Johnson, Sioux Falls, SD, 12
(tie) Dave Uttech, Kenosha, WI, 12
(tie) Clint Garner, Sioux Falls, SD, 12
(tie) Jason Keith, Fredericktown, MO, 12
(tie) Will Armitage, Athens, IL, 12
162. Presley Truedson, Kennedy, MN, 10
(tie) Brayden Gaylord, Wever, IA, 10
(tie) Terry Babb, Lincoln, IL, 10
(tie) Paul May, Terre Haute, IN, 10
(tie) Bryce Schmitt, Plymouth, WI, 10
(tie) Derek Hagar, Marion, AR, 10
(tie) Greg Wilson, Benton Ridge, OH, 10
(tie) Tim Haddy, Waupun, WI, 10
(tie) John Fahl, Brown Deer, WI, 10
(tie) Aaron Rixmann, Coulterville, IL, 10
(tie) Dustin Selvage, Indianola, IA, 10
173. Travis Philo, Waterville, OH, 8
(tie) Noah Samuel, Burlington, IA, 8
(tie) Matt Rechek, Beaver Dam, WI, 8
(tie) Steve Short, Farmington, MO, 8
177. Shane Roemeling, Grand Forks, ND, 6
(tie) Danny Schlafer, Gibson, WI, 6
(tie) TJ Stutts, Liverpool, PA, 6
(tie) Brady Parmeley, Cadet, MO, 6
181. James Broty, Lonsdale, MN, 4
(tie) Ryan Roberts, Aurora, NE, 4
(tie) Mike Wagner, Liverpool, PA, 4
(tie) Robbie Standridge, Springfield, IL, 4
(tie) Ty Hanten, West Fargo, ND, 4
(tie) Lincoln Drewis, Tripoli, IA, 4
187. Austin Miller, Lacona, IA, 2
(tie) Ben Schmidt, Howards Grove, WI, 2
(tie) Devin Kline, Knoxville, IA, 2
(tie) Harli White, Lindsay, OK, 2
Platinum WoO Member Wins
11, Brad Sweet, Grass Valley, CA
6, David Gravel, Watertown, CT
4, Sheldon Haudenschild, Wooster, OH
3, Donny Schatz, Fargo, ND
2, Carson Macedo, Lemoore, CA
1, Logan Schuchart, Hanover, PA
1, Aaron Reutzel, Clute, TX
Tentative 2021 Races that will be counted for points with the Midwest Thunder Sprint Cars presented by OpenWheel101.com
Sat, March 27 – Lake Ozark Speedway (MO) WoO (Brad Sweet, Grass Valley, CA)
Fri, April 2 – I-55 Raceway (MO) WoO (Brad Sweet, Grass Valley, CA)
Sat, April 3 – I-55 Raceway (MO) WoO (Brad Sweet, Grass Valley, CA)
Fri, April 16 – Tri-City Speedway (IL) MOWA (Ayrton Gennetten, Gravois Mills, MO)
Sat, April 17 – Knoxville Raceway (IA) (Sheldon Haudenschild, Wooster, OH)
Sat, April 24 – Knoxville Raceway (IA) (Austin McCarl, Altoona, IA)
Thur, April 29 – Jacksonville Speedway (IL) WoO (Brad Sweet, Grass Valley, CA)
Fri, April 30 – I-70 Speedway (MO) WoO (Brad Sweet, Grass Valley, CA)
Sat, May 1 – Knoxville Raceway (IA) (Lynton Jeffrey, Prairie City, IA)
Sat, May 1 – I-70 Speedway (MO) WoO (Brad Sweet, Grass Valley, CA)
Sun, May 9 – Huset’s Speedway (SD) (Austin McCarl, Altoona, IA)
Fri, May 14 – Jackson Motorplex (MN) NOSA (Brian Brown, Grain Valley, MO)
Fri, May 14 – Jacksonville Speedway (IL) (Josh Schneiderman, West Burlington, IA)
Sat, May 15 – I-90 Speedway (SD) NOSA (Austin Pierce, Grand Forks, ND)
Sun, May 16 – Huset’s Speedway (SD) (Justin Henderson, Tea, SD)
Sat, May 22 – Knoxville Raceway (IA) x2 (Brian Brown, Grain Valley, MO x2)
Sun, May 23 – Huset’s Speedway (SD) (Justin Henderson, Tea, SD)
Sat, May 29 – Knoxville Raceway (IA) (Brad Sweet, Grass Valley, CA)
Sun, May 30 – Huset’s Speedway (SD) NOSA (Austin McCarl, Altoona, IA)
Mon, May 31 – Huset’s Speedway (SD) NOSA (Parker Price-Miller, Kokomo, IN)
Thur, June 3 – Fairbury American Legion Speedway (IL) All Stars/IRA (Tyler Courtney, Indianapolis, IN)
Fri, June 4 – Lee County Speedway (IA) MOWA (Ayrton Gennetten, Gravois Mills, MO)
Fri, June 4 – Wilmot Raceway (WI) All Stars/IRA (Tyler Courtney, Indianapolis, IN)
Sat, June 5 – Knoxville Raceway (IA) (Gio Scelzi, Fresno, CA)
Sat, June 5 – Granite City Speedway (MN) WoO (David Gravel, Watertown, CT)
Sat, June 5 – Plymouth Dirt Track (WI) All Stars/IRA (Bill Balog, Hartland, WI)
Sun, June 6 – Huset’s Speedway (SD) (David Gravel, Watertown, CT)
Sun, June 6 – Angell Park Speedway (WI) All Stars/IRA (Bill Balog, Hartland, WI)
Sun, June 6 – Jacksonville Speedway (IL) MOWA (Paul Nienhiser, Chapin, IL)
Fri, June 11 – Knoxville Raceway (IA) WoO (Carson Macedo, Lemoore, CA)
Fri, June 11 – Jacksonville Speedway (IL) (Ryan Timms, Oklahoma City, OK)
Sat, June 12 – Knoxville Raceway (IA) WoO (Carson Macedo, Lemoore, CA)
Sun, June 13 – Huset’s Speedway (SD) NOSA (Austin McCarl, Altoona, IA)
Thur, June 17 – 34 Raceway (IA) WoO (Brad Sweet, Grass Valley, CA)
Fri, June 18 – Dubuque Speedway (IA) WoO (Donny Schatz, Fargo, ND)
Sat, June 19 – Knoxville Raceway (IA) (Kerry Madsen, St. Mary’s, NSW, Aust.)
Sat, June 19 – Beaver Dam Raceway (WI) WoO (Sheldon Haudenschild, Wooster, OH)
Sun, June 20 – Huset’s Speedway (SD) (Austin McCarl, Altoona, IA)
Mon, June 21 – Huset’s Speedway (SD) WoO (David Gravel, Watertown, CT)
Tue, June 22 – Huset’s Speedway (SD) WoO (Aaron Reutzel, Clute, TX)
Thur, June 24 – Jackson Motorplex (MN) WoO (Kerry Madsen, St. Mary’s, NSW, Aust.)
Fri, June 25 – Jackson Motorplex (MN) WoO (Kerry Madsen, St. Mary’s, NSW, Aust.)
Sat, June 26 – Jackson Motorplex (MN) WoO Jackson Nationals (Logan Schuchart, Hanover, PA)
Sun, June 27 – Angell Park Speedway (WI) IRA (Bill Balog, Hartland, WI)
Thur, July 1 – Plymouth Dirt Track (WI) IRA (Bill Balog, Hartland, WI)
Fri, July 2 – Cedar Lake Speedway (WI) WoO (Brad Sweet, Grass Valley, CA)
Sat, July 3 – Knoxville Raceway (IA) (Justin Henderson, Tea, SD)
Sat, July 3 – Cedar Lake Speedway (WI) WoO (Brad Sweet, Grass Valley, CA)
Sun, July 11 – Huset’s Speedway (SD) (Justin Henderson, Tea, SD)
Sat, July 17 – Knoxville Raceway (IA) (Justin Henderson, Tea, SD)
Sun, July 18 – Huset’s Speedway (SD) (Justin Henderson, Tea, SD)
Fri, July 23 – Lake Ozark Speedway (MO) All Stars (Cap Henry, Republic, OH)
Fri, July 23 – Jacksonville Speedway (IL) (Riley Goodno, Knoxville, IA)
Sat, July 24 – Knoxville Raceway (IA) (Brian Brown, Grain Valley, MO)
Sat, July 24 – Lake Ozark Speedway (MO) All Stars (Christopher Bell, Norman, OK)
Sun, July 25 – Huset’s Speedway (SD) (Austin McCarl, Altoona, IA)
Sun, July 25 – Humboldt Speedway (KS) All Stars (Tyler Courtney, Indianapolis, IN)
Tue, July 27 – I-70 Speedway (MO) All Stars (Brian Brown, Grain Valley, MO)
Thur, July 29 – Missouri State Fair Speedway All Stars (Tyler Courtney, Indianapolis, IN)
Fri, July 30 – 34 Raceway (IA) All Stars (Kerry Madsen, St. Mary’s, NSW, Aust.)
Fri, July 30 – Jacksonville Speedway (IL) MOWA (Brandon Hanks, Burlison, TN)
Sat, July 31 – Knoxville Raceway (IA) All Stars (Kerry Madsen, St. Mary’s, NSW, Aust.)
Sun, Aug 1 – Huset’s Speedway (SD) Bull Haulers Brawl (Mark Dobmeier, Grand Forks, ND)
Fri, Aug 6 – I-55 Raceway (MO) WoO (Sheldon Haudenschild, Wooster, OH)
Sat, Aug 7 – I-55 Raceway (MO) WoO (Sheldon Haudenschild, Wooster, OH)
Sun, Aug 8 – Knoxville Raceway (IA) Capitani Classic (David Gravel, Watertown, CT)
Mon, Aug 9 – Southern Iowa Speedway Front Row Challenge (Kyle Larson, Elk Grove, CA)
Wed, Aug 11 – Knoxville Raceway (IA) Nationals (David Gravel, Watertown, CT)
Thur, Aug 12 – Knoxville Raceway (IA) Nationals (Brian Brown, Grain Valley, MO)
Fri, Aug 13 – Knoxville Raceway (IA) Nationals (Rico Abreu, St. Helena, CA)
Sat, Aug 14 – Knoxville Raceway (IA) Nationals (Kyle Larson, Elk Grove, CA)
Sun, Aug 15 – Jacksonville Speedway (IL) (Marcus Dumesny, Sidney, NSW, Aust.)
Fri, Aug 20 – Lincoln Speedway (IL) MOWA (Jake Neuman, New Berlin, IL)
Sat, Aug 21 – Wilmot Raceway (WI) IRA (Jake Blackhurst, Hanna City, IL)
Sat, Aug 21 – Red River Valley Speedway (ND) WoO (Donny Schatz, Fargo, ND)
Sun, Aug 22 – Huset’s Speedway (SD) WoO (David Gravel, Watertown, CT)
Sun, Aug 22 – Angell Park Speedway (WI) IRA (Scotty Thiel, Sheboygan, WI)
Wed, Aug 25 – River Cities Speedway (ND) WoO (Brad Sweet, Grass Valley, CA)
Fri, Aug 27 – I-80 Speedway (NE) WoO (Donny Schatz, Fargo, ND)
Fri, Aug 27 – Tri-City Speedway (IL) MOWA (Ayrton Gennetten, Gravois Mills, MO)
Sat, Aug 28 – Knoxville Raceway (IA) (Brian Brown, Grain Valley, MO)
Sun, Aug 29 – Huset’s Speedway (SD) NOSA (Jack Dover, Springfield, NE)
Fri, Sept 3 – Jacksonville Speedway (IL)
Fri, Sept 3 – Dodge Co. Fairgrounds (WI) IRA
Sat, Sept 4 – Plymouth Dirt Track (WI) IRA
Sun, Sept 5 – 141 Speedway (WI) IRA
Fri, Sept 10 – Jacksonville Speedway (IL) MOWA
Fri, Sept 10 – Outagamie Speedway (WI) IRA
Sat, Sept 11 – Spoon River Speedway (IL) MOWA Tom Knowles Memorial
Sat, Sept 11 – Cedar Lake Speedway (WI) IRA Jerry Richert Memorial
Fri, Sept 17 – Jacksonville Speedway (IL)
Sat, Sept 18 – Beaver Dam Raceway (WI) IRA
Fri, Sept 24 – Dodge Co. Fairgrounds (WI) IRA
Sat, Sept 25 – Huset’s Speedway (SD)
Sat, Sept 25 – Plymouth Dirt Track (WI) IRA
Sun, Sept 26 – Huset’s Speedway (SD)
Fri, Oct 8 – Jacksonville Speedway (IL) MOWA
Fri, Oct 22 – Lakeside Speedway (KS) WoO
2020 Midwest Thunder Sprint Cars presented by www.OpenWheel101.com Point Standings (Feature Wins)
1. Kerry Madsen, St. Mary’s, NSW, Aust., 766
2. Bill Balog, Hartland, WI, 667 (9)
3. Kyle Larson, Elk Grove, CA, 660 (11)
4. Brian Brown, Grain Valley, MO, 587 (3)
5. Rico Abreu, St. Helena, CA, 479 (3)
6. Dominic Scelzi, Fresno, CA, 440
7. Austin McCarl, Altoona, IA, 419
8. Ian Madsen, St. Mary’s, NSW, Aust., 413
9. Tim Kaeding, Campbell, CA, 402
10. Shane Stewart, Bixby, OK, 385 (1)
2019 Midwest Thunder Sprint Cars presented by www.OpenWheel101.com Final Point Standings (Feature Wins)
1. Kerry Madsen, St. Mary’s, NSW, Aust., 954 (2)
2. Bill Balog, Hartland, WI, 947 (7)
3. Brian Brown, Grain Valley, MO, 731 (5)
4. Terry McCarl, Altoona, IA, 713 (2)
5. James McFadden, Warrnambool, VIC, Aust., 592 (2)
6. Austin McCarl, Altoona, IA, 505 (1)
7. Parker Price-Miller, Kokomo, IN, 484 (1)
8. Jeremy Schultz, Beaver Dam, WI, 471 (3)
9. Paul Nienhiser, Chapin, IL, 427 (5)
10. Rico Abreu, St. Helena, CA, 400 (2)
2018 Midwest Thunder Sprint Cars presented by www.OpenWheel101.com Point Standings (Feature Wins)
1. Kerry Madsen, St. Mary’s, NSW, Aust., 866 (7)
2. Brian Brown, Grain Valley, MO, 686 (7)
3. Austin McCarl, Altoona, IA, 602 (5)
4. Terry McCarl, Altoona, IA, 565
5. Brooke Tatnell, Sans Souci, NSW, Aust., 420 (1)
6. Scotty Thiel, Sheboygan, WI, 398 (4)
(tie) Davey Heskin, St. Michael, MN, 398
8. Bill Balog, Hartland, WI, 390 (2)
9. Cory Eliason, Selma, CA, 386 (1)
10. Matt Juhl, Tea, SD, 365 (1)
2017 Midwest Thunder Sprint Cars presented by www.OpenWheel101.com Final Point Standings (Feature Wins)
1. Kerry Madsen, St. Mary’s, NSW, Aust., 1086 (5)
2. Ian Madsen, St. Mary’s, NSW, Aust., 1031 (7)
3. Donny Schatz, Fargo, ND, 800 (6)
4. Brian Brown, Grain Valley, MO, 760 (6)
5. Brad Sweet, Grass Valley, CA, 760 (2)
6. Brooke Tatnell, Sans Souci, NSW, Aust., 533 (1)
7. Shane Stewart, Bixby, OK, 529 (2)
8. David Gravel, Watertown, CT, 481 (3)
9. Terry McCarl, Altoona, IA, 437 (1)
10. Tim Kaeding, San Jose, CA, 425 (2)
The 2006 Knoxville Showdown for 410 Supremacy
by Bill Wright
2006 was a year to remember at Knoxville. Momentum was gaining at the end of 2005 in the form of two young, exciting and talented drivers who had followed similar paths, Billy Alley and Brian Brown. The two had one goal in mind, the track championship, and each had the other in their crosshairs. They had both started with family teams, but were now hired guns. This is the tale of their season-long showdown and the closest season finish in Knoxville 410 history…
The Players
Billy Alley
“Rock and Roll” Billy Alley’s trademark motto “WFO” (Wide *&!$# Open) says it all. Alley has never seen a gas pedal he doesn’t like. The magnetic 23 year old wears his emotions on his sleeve, is not afraid to let fly what is on his mind, and slams the nearest cushion with the same abandon. Working concrete during the week with the family business, Alley dreams of someday doing this for a living. Support comes from wife Aislynne, parents Stewart and Susette, as well as sister Bobbi Jo.
At age 19, Alley exploded on the sprint car scene, winning the Eagle Raceway (NE) 360 track championship and National 360 Rookie of the Year honors in 2002, his first full year in a sprint car. The next year, Knoxville awaited, and another title was won in the 360 ranks, led by a sweep on Twin Features night. The year saw steady improvement for the Lincoln, Nebraska native, and helped to add to his reputation as a hard-charger, with a youthful exuberance welcomed in the sport.
Racing in New Zealand that off-season, Alley registered his first 410 win, finding himself paired with Indy car and sometimes sprint car wildcard, PJ Chesson. What a pair! It was an experience that Alley said, “aged me about five years.” “When I grew up in Nebraska, I wasn’t raised a sheltered kid, but it seemed that way when I met up with PJ Chesson!”
The whirlwind tour also found him on a boat with AC/DC drummer and sprint car fan, Phil Rudd, who took Billy deep-sea fishing in the South Pacific. “Me and PJ were signing autographs…a lot of people had come and gone, and this long haired, hippie guy walks up and tells us he’d like to take us fishin’ in his boat. We looked at each other, and tried to talk our way out of it. And he says, by the way, my name is Phil Rudd, drummer for AC/DC, and our jaws dropped. The next day, he had a cooler of beer, good food and we fished all day on his yacht. We caught all kinds of weird lookin’ fish. Too much beer made me seasick, and it was no fun from there on out! I was lookin’ for land.”
In 2004, the jump to 410 racing was made, with impressive results. Though he finished 7th in the standings, failing to come home with a feature win in that class and landing on his lid on more than one occasion, he was named the National 410 Rookie of the Year, and is joined on the list by Kevin Swindell as the only drivers to garner that honor in both the 360 and 410 ranks. That year also marked the first of two consecutive Knoxville 360 Nationals wins, a feat matched only one other time, by Garry Lee Maier.
Veteran car owner, Court Grandstaff, tabbed the young driver as the pilot of his famous Trop Artic 66 for the 2005 campaign. The marriage was short-lived, and Alley was back in the familiar #22 of parents, Stewart and Susette Alley. “I wish I could do that all over again. Everything was new to me, the tracks we went to, everything was new. It got my confidence down, but it was a great learning experience.”
Although missing a handful of shows at Knoxville, Alley was able to finish 6th in the final point standings and registered his first Knoxville 410 win on Season Championship night. A 360 ASCS Midwest championship was also attained after teaming with Nebraska car owner, Mark Burch. Mixing in 360 shows has kept Alley sharp in his young career.
After another successful season in New Zealand, Alley was primed for a 2006 Knoxville championship, and had hooked up with a new team.
Brian Brown
Grain Valley, Missouri’s, “Blackjack” Brian Brown, has been around racing his entire life and has always dreamed of a Knoxville title. At the age of 27, Brown has made a name for himself, emerging from the shadow of his uncle, seven-time Knoxville track champion, Danny Lasoski. Brown oozes charisma, and wins fans over with his determination on the racetrack and off. Contrary to many opinions of him, nothing has been handed to him, though the advice and help he has received, and all the time he has spent with his grandfather, George Lasoski, whom Brian calls “the only ‘one constant’ figure in his racing life”, has prepared him well. He has tremendous support from his father, and especially his mother and girlfriend Heather, who are there every race, cheering him on.
Being a crewmember on his uncle’s team prepared him both mentally and mechanically for what would come. His career would start in George’s 360 machine, where he garnered both the championship and Rookie of the Year honors in the Winged Outlaw Warriors (WOW) series in 2000. A foreshadowing of things to come came in his first career Knoxville appearance that year. With the best in the 360 business (and some from the 410 ranks as well), Brown came home 4th in the finale.
In 2001, hope sprung eternal, and the 410 class at Knoxville seemed to be a natural transition for the team. Those hopes were shattered on the very first lap of warm-ups on opening night, when the only motor the team had blew sky high. Things were pieced together, and a handful of starts were made with little success. Brown came back in 360 action, winning three times with WOW and garnering a 13th place finish in the 360 Nationals.
The 360 successes, and lack of 410 finances saw Brown tackle Knoxville’s minor class with reckless abandon in 2002. Scoring six wins, including five in a row, he dominated the 360 title at Knoxville in his grandfather’s mount.
2002 successes turned into a call from Lonny Parsons, owner of the Casey’s #6 machine based in Des Moines. Parsons was returning from the road and racing weekly at Knoxville in 2003, and it seemed like a good fit for Brown. The season was an up and down one, but Brown tasted 410 victory at Knoxville for the first time. Despite the tough competition, they were seventh in the Knoxville standings and hit several World of Outlaw stops, including a fourth place finish at Hollywood Hills (NM). The decision was made to hit the road with the WoO in 2004.
A significant shoulder injury early in the season affected him, and despite improving finishes, Brown hit rock bottom when Parsons pulled the plug on him after the Eldora show in June, tabbing Tim Shaffer as his replacement. Brian calls it the best thing that ever happened to him. A couple of days later, he talked to his grandfather George, “He told me I had a couple options, A. I could sit around and feel sorry for myself. B. I could get a real job, or C. I could stick with it and prove that I’m a racer. I chose C. It perked my ears up that everything isn’t ‘for sure’. If anything it made me work harder, and then, I got a second chance.”
In May, Brown had teamed up with Terry, Tim and Gina Doogs in their #21 machine for a WOW show at Sedalia. The team won, and the two entities hit it off. They hooked up again in July for a Sedalia win. After one Knoxville start in the Carnahan #R19 (a 4th place finish), Brian made the trip north with the Doogs team in August. Brown had qualified Bobby Mincer’s car for the 360 Nationals B main, but opted to switch to the Doogs machine, and he won. A charge to 8th in the main event was a sign of things to come. A 410 motor was leased for the Knoxville Nationals, with Brown missing the Championship race by one spot after starting in the seventh row. The team was established.
The 2005 season saw Brown run a strong fourth in the final 410 standings at Knoxville, grabbing two wins along the way. Nine wins were added in regional 360 action, cementing the team as a contender wherever they went.
Brown raced in Australia last off-season for the first time with a legitimate race team, owned by Robin Dawkins. “We won a few, and we were really consistent. It got me prepared mentally and physically for 2006. Coming into the season I felt the best with my sharpness and mental-wise that I ever have coming in, and I think our results have shown that.”
Brown has worked hard, paid his dues and going into 2006 was entering his second full season with a solid team that he gives all the credit for his current successes to. “If not for Tim, Gina and Terry Doogs, I don’t know if I’d be racing right now.”
2006
The Teams
Entering the new season, Alley was hired by Ed and Theresa Gifford, proprietors of Minuteman Copy Center in Marshalltown, Iowa. Also joining up was talented crew chief, Jeff Woodruff, one of the most respected in the business. Having “Woody” aboard was not lost on Alley. It was a ride that Alley had lobbied for, and needed in light of his family trying to fund a race team on their own. In past years, Gifford’s #17G had experienced shoes such as Don Droud Jr., Jeff Mitrisin, Ricky Logan, Randy Anderson, Larry Ball Jr. and Mike Reinke behind the wheel. Despite the talent level assembled and some IRA successes, the car had never visited victory lane at Knoxville.
The Doogs family (Wise Guys Racing) would enter their second full season with Brown in 2006. Terry, Tim and Gina are co-owners of the car, and all work full-time, saving vacation for racing. Tim had raced for over 28 years before hiring Brown, accumulating over 50 sprint wins and over 200 wins in the late models. Brother Terry raced super stocks and served as crew chief for Tim, the role he also fills now. Gina, Tim’s wife is employed as a paralegal. Brown adds, “We make the most of what we have, and if we could get one major sponsor, I think we could do some serious damage. Teaming up with the Doogs has made me a better person and racer.”
A Record Breaking Night
May 6 – A rubber-down track saw Brown and Alley finish 11th and 13th respectively, in the Season Opener on April 22. The April WoO show was a wash, and with the split into two traveling organizations, plenty of outsiders were around. The Knoxville record-books would be rewritten on May 6. Eighteen travelers were in the house, and Aussie Brooke Tatnell destroyed Terry McCarl’s 9 month old one-lap record by a half a second, stopping the clocks at 14.409 seconds. Twenty-six drivers were under the old standard including Alley (14.634) and Brown (14.808). Brown recalls, “I remember going out early with a 14.8 and thinking, we’re really hauling the mail tonight! And then I realized we were 17th quick!”
With Alley’s good time, his heat invert was a bit too much to transfer, relegating him to the B, and ultimately, a 16th place finish. “It was one of those weeks that really killed us early,” says Alley, “It’s not that we weren’t fast, we just had to start towards the back in the races, and it was like a World of Outlaw show on a regular point night!”
A strong run by Brown saw him pass Shane Stewart late to finish where he started, third. Brown adds, “It was a good point night for us. Anytime you can run third when Lasoski, (Craig) Dollansky and Shane Stewart are there, it’s a good night.”
Brown’s lead: 125
Black Flags, Spin Outs and Victory Lane
May 13 – With a heavy contingent of IRA cars in attendance, both drivers timed in the top five. However, Alley’s night took a twist after he drew the wrath of flagman Doug Clark. “It seemed like it was one of those nights where Clark just wanted to let everyone know that he was still the boss. I didn’t jump, but I was out of line for sure. I’ve seen a lot worse starts since then. He sends me to the back behind a guy whose motor wouldn’t start, and that was it.” After another black flag, to the pits he went.
Alley saved himself by winning the B and passing fifteen cars in the A to finish sixth. Brown was consistent all night long, and drove from row five to finish third. “That was a night we could have won, but that’s hindsight. That’s what could make the difference in the points,” Alley says.
May 20 – Brown streaked to a flag to flag win, his first of the season. Alley was running third when he spun, collecting Lynton Jeffrey.
Brown’s win was briefly in doubt when Wayne Johnson pulled a brief slider for the lead after the restart for the Alley spin, but Brown shot by back him down the backstretch and never looked back.
May 27 – Alley repeated Brown’s feat of a week prior leading the duration of the feature event, and providing his owners with their first trip to the front stretch. “That was huge. It was like the first win ‘on my own’. It was cool to be the person that got Ed his first 410 win at Knoxville. It showed that I don’t have to be in family stuff to win races.” The team was coming together and confidence was building.
Brown would finish fourth, and with three strong weeks, was seemingly in the driver’s seat on the young season. Brown says, “Our main goal was to be consistent, consistent, consistent. A lot of nights we may have had a fifth place car, but we would finish third.”
Both drivers were smooth in June weekly action, failing to finish outside of the top five.
Brown’s lead: 325
The WoO Visit
June 23 - The point structure at Knoxville has not changed much since the first Des Moines River gumbo was put on the famous half-mile. To entice attendance of WoO shows, all Knoxville regulars are given 100 points for competing. That is, unless they earn more. In those cases, they keep those extra points. The rule helped out Alley, and when he registered tenth quick and transferred through his heat, he started on the front row of the dash. He dominated, much to the approval of the Knoxville masses. A steady main event saw him lead the first nine laps, but fade to fourth. He gained valuable points on Brown, who finished a respectable 12th after running the B. Brown’s lead was cut to 255. “There was a point in that race where I said, ‘We can win this’! It just shows that if you slip a bit, the Outlaws will blow by you like you’re tied to a fence post! I was thinkin’ too much,” Alley recalls.
July 1 – Alley parlayed the confidence he showed against the travelers by making a late race pass of Jeffrey to garner his second win of the season. “It showed that our first win wasn’t luck. We passed some cars and showed that we were still getting faster,” he said.
Brown’s qualifying struggles (27th quick) would set him back, but he would bounce back well, coming out of the invert to transfer in his heat and then charging from 18th to 3rd in the main. “We’d just got a motor back from our engine builder, and a couple of the linkages were loose. With the throttle down, it would only run half-throttle. We didn’t figure it out until after qualifying. Nights like that are what championship teams are made of…we didn’t give up.”
Brown’s lead: 180
Twin Features
July 8 - Twin Features night has long been a “make or break” night for season championships. In Brown’s words, “That week you don’t get much sleep.” If you don’t make the show, you might as well hang it up. With two features paying full points, the second one is inverted according to the finish of the first. Double the work for the crews, double the tires, etc. await.
After Brown won the first feature with Alley behind him, both would start in rows eight and nine. Alley stormed back for another runner-up finish, held off by Brent Antill, while Brown would surge to fifth. Brown remembers, “Just to pass that many cars at Knoxville is hard…to tell me to start the night we would finish with two top fives, I would have been happy.”
“We got a good start and were really fast. We about got it done, but I was a little too cautious there,” says Alley.
Brown’s lead: 150
The Blown Tire
July 15 – Consistency had been the key for both all season, but it was about to take a cruel twist for Brown. With Skip Jackson leading Alley, Brown was running fifth and coming for the checkers when his right rear tire blew, relegating him to 17th. Brown says, “It was rubber-down before the feature, and we got into the top five pretty quick. Then we broke a rocker arm, so we were running on six cylinders. We were just kind of limping around in line and coming for the white flag…we were just hoping to finish. We took a major, major hit in our points. It was a turning point, everything was going so good, we said ‘maybe we aren’t going to win this deal’. When you’re coasting along and something like that happens, it takes the wind out of your sails.”
Alley maintained second and took the points lead.
Alley’s lead: 20
Summer Classic
July 22 - The Summer Classic brings a rare high dollar event for the locals. Fifty-one competitors, including the IRA contingent raced in the first year it has been a one-night stand. After registering quick time and with a rare draw for starting position, Brown drew a 15 and stormed to the front. He staged a classic duel with Jeffrey, who, after Brian got by briefly in heavy traffic with two to go, won his first career feature event. “The week before I had pulled the guys together and said, let’s forget about this point thing and try to race every race we’re in, and the points will take care of themselves. To start 15th and have a run like that was great!”
Alley who drew a 14 would come home seventh. Brown’s finish gave him the lead again in the see-saw standings.
Brown’s lead: 95
Up in Smoke!
August 5 - After Brown and Alley finished 6th and 7th, respectively on July 29, it was time for the prelude to the Knoxville Nationals. Both would do rare double-duty as the finale of the 360 Nationals would also be run. Both were qualified for the “Big Cahuna” in the 360s. Alley was trying for an unprecedented three-peat in the event, this time behind the wheel of Mark Burch’s #1m. He would have to work for it, starting inside row five. Brown had put himself outside of row four.
Brown recalls, “Entering the night, it was the best situation I’ve probably ever been in, motor-wise, with a good fresh one and one we had just bought from Danny (Lasoski).” His problems began with 410 time trials. A blown engine sent the team outside of the track for another without a qualifying time. With so many cars in the pits, it was necessary to unload the trailers, adding more stress to the situation. Enter 360 driver, John Kearney, who was taking the night off in the suites. “John jumped up as soon as he saw we blew our motor. We didn’t have the tools to change motors, so John jumped in Tony Bokhoven’s golf kart and headed to the North Campground where his trailer and tools were and brought them back for us. If it wasn’t for him, we probably wouldn’t have gotten that motor changed. We put our motor in that were going to use for the Nationals and we didn’t transfer through our heat. We were probably going to transfer through the B from the back, but lost a camshaft in that one. It was just heartbreaking.”
Enter Brown’s cousin, Jon Corbin. A regular in the 360 class, the likeable youth is the grandson of Midwest sprint legend, Tom Corbin. A rare night allowing double-duty saw Corbin preparing for his first 410 Nationals. As luck would have it, he had qualified for the show, and orders were to turn over the wheel to cousin, Brian.
Knoxville rules state that if a qualified car has a substitute driver, that driver will get points afforded him. If Brown were an alternate out of the B, no such points would be awarded. Drivers have taken advantage of this rule for decades, but conspiracy theorists came out of the woodwork. Brown struggled to a 16th place finish, far behind Alley, whose third place run gave him the points lead for the second time.
When the dust settled on the 360 Nationals event, Brown rebounded for a solid podium run in third after a long night, while Alley mustered seventh. Says Brown, “There were times that night when I asked if I was in the right car. What a chaotic mess!”
Alley’s lead: 40
The Nationals
August 9-12 - Though the Nationals carry no track points, both Alley and Brown came in with high expectations. In 2005, Alley came out of qualifying night in the top two in points. A rubber-down day surface when the A Scramble came around, foiled his shot at the front row, but he was in and finished 17th.
Despite coming out 40th in the qualifying order, Alley nailed down quick time on his qualifying night this time. A lightning fast track saw him finish eighth in his heat, sending him to the B, which he won. A nice charge to 13th saw Alley lock himself in Saturday’s Championship for the second year in a row. He would finish 20th, which disappointed him. “I had a lot higher expectations. We would have liked to run on Friday, then we would have found the problem (injection) we had on Saturday. It was a disadvantage for us not to run Friday, and if the points were a little different for us, we could have.” Alley shows his desire to stand atop the sport’s biggest stage. “It changed my attitude on the whole season, and really bummed me out.”
Brown was searching for his first Nationals A main appearance. His qualifying night started well, as he timed in 10th after coming out 63rd in the order. A nice charge from 9th to 5th was great, but it sent him straight to the B. He was able to transfer through the B, and finished 16th in the A. His point total was two tallies behind Sammy Swindell, who was the last to lock himself in to the “Biggie” on Saturday night. Undeterred, Brown stormed from the back of the B Scramble on Friday, going from 10th to 4th and solidifying his pole position starting spot in the B on Saturday.
The Brown/Lasoski B main incident has been played and replayed, but the class shown by Brown on both audio and TV broadcasts were impressive. “My grandpa George is 70 years old, but he has the passion of a 30 year old. I guess people saw that at the Nationals.” What the incident did do was remove all doubt that Brown marches to his own beat on the racetrack, and showed a maturity that had been developed over the last few years. “I wanted to make that race more than anything in the whole wide world. I knew that eventually something would probably happen between us, but the last thing I wanted was it to happen on national TV. It happened, and we’ve moved past it.”
The Postponement
September 2 - After following Clint Garner to the stripe on August 26, Alley and Brown were set for Season Championship night at Knoxville within 30 points. “All we could do was our best, and maybe that wouldn’t be good enough,” says Brown of his views going into the night.
Alley states, “I wasn’t nervous until I got there, but I’m not gonna lie to ya, when we were racing that night, I was.”
They were told the week before that a rainout would mean a cancellation of the finale, but no one mentioned a plan of action if the night’s activities were rained out after everything was run but the main event. Alley says, “Right after time trials, I thought it was gonna rain.” Someone with the team, erroneously told Alley he had dropped to second in points. “That got me all fired up, because they had said, ‘If it rains out, we’re done’! We were second in the heat and ‘back’ in the lead as far as I knew, and when it started rainin’, I said, ‘Let it Rain!’ The week before, Justin Zoch (track announcer) said, if it rains out, it won’t be made up. I don’t remember anyone saying, ‘If we run time trials and heat races and rains out, we’re still gonna do it’!”
A rescheduled WoO date on October 7 supplied an unprecedented opportunity. The feature event would be made up in addition to the night’s activities. Brown added, “I was looking forward to them getting it in that night (Sept. 2), because I thought the track would be narrow (Brown was slated to start 4th and Alley 9th).”
Officially, Brown held a slight advantage in time trial points, but a strong run in his heat (2nd) allowed Alley to increase his lead a bit before five weeks of waiting. “I’ve been doing a lot of (deer) hunting. If we win the thing, that’s great. If we lose it, I’m going to be devastated, because we are so close. I don’t think about it, because I don’t want to think about how cool it would be. It’s going to be tough, but it is big, because if you win it, you know you’ve won races and had a good year.”
Going into the finale Brown seemed calm, “We’ll give it our best shot. If we fall short, we may try again next year.”
Alley’s lead: 45
The Finale
October 7 – Fans and competitors welcomed mild October temperatures on a sunny Autumn evening. The feature would be run after 360 and WoO heats. Both had put themselves in the WoO main event before hitting the track for the race they had waited over a month for. Brown had won his WoO heat in dominating fashion, raising eyebrows, as Alley struggled to the fifth and final transfer in the same event after starting immediately behind the #21.
A pair of scratches saw Alley move up a row, and he now sat inside row four for the 25 lapper. Brown would be tough to beat outside of row two. The math had been made simple. Brown looked dominant earlier. If he would win, Alley would have to charge to at least third. What followed, could not be scripted.
Brown tucked in behind Dusty Zomer, the early leader. Brown dove low and slid up the dry-slick surface to take a lead he would not relinquish on lap 10. Alley had managed sixth and was finding the going difficult. On lap 11, his luck would change. Brent Antill, running fifth, contacted another car and went end over end eight times down the backstretch in a harrowing accident. Fortunately, he was uninjured. Two more laps were in the books, when Zomer, still running second, jumped the cushion in turn one and got upside down. That incident saw Alley assume fourth with Lynton Jeffrey between he and a championship. Alley could make no real move to pass Jeffrey, but he got what he needed on lap 18. Jeffrey’s left rear tire exploded, and Alley had third. A piece of Jeffrey’s tire had lodged in Alley’s mount, causing some serious smoke signals from his mount the last four laps. It was almost too much for everyone to bear, but he brought it home, along with a five-point championship, the closest margin in Knoxville Raceway history.
Brown had indeed given it ‘his best shot’. “He deserves it,” he would say after a warm hug of Alley. “Congratulations to Ed, Jeff Woodruff and the whole team. Five points, wow! I’m just proud of our team and our accomplishments this year.”
Alley called the night a “crazy deal”. “Brian Brown is a bad-ass race car driver, but we got it done baby!” Alley was “WFO” all season long.
Alley wins by 5
Mutual Respect
In the end, there is respect between these two young drivers. Brown says of Alley, “He’s probably one of my better friends in the racing community. He’s a heck of a racer. We’ve had a lot of good races together and I can only remember one instance where we were close to crashing each other. It’s nice to race someone ‘clean and close’ like him.”
Alley says, “He and I both have a good fan base, have had success and have a desire to win. That’s what drives us to be better than a lot of the other guys. It’s not to the level of Danny Lasoski vs. Steve Kinser, but Brian Alley vs. Brian Brown is something that I hope people someday talk about, and it’s just starting right now.”
Wherever their paths take them, Alley and Brown are building a strong foundation in the sport with their rivalry. The 2006 Knoxville Showdown for 410 supremacy was only the beginning.