Ian Madsen in Victory Lane at Knoxville (Danny Howk Photo)
KNOXVILLE RACEWAY, Knoxville, IA, April 19, 2014 – In what many feel is the most competitive weekly field Knoxville Raceway has ever assembled in the 410 class, Ian Madsen struck the first blow by winning the Season Opener at the “Sprint Car Capital of the World” on Saturday night. The win was the third in the Aussie’s career at Knoxville. Joe Beaver took home the win with the 360 class, and veteran Steve Breazeale won in the 305’s.
Brooke Tatnell took the lead from his pole position when the green flag dropped, but the start was called back for a Cole Wood spin. Don Droud Jr. lost an engine at the same time. Madsen used the reprieve to storm into the lead on the restart and set sail with Tatnell in pursuit. While the lead trio of Madsen, Tatnell and Dusty Zomer were maneuvering lapped traffic, a battle featuring slidejobs, near misses and edge of your seat action was behind them.
At the halfway point of the 20-lapper, Justin Henderson, Brian Brown, Terry McCarl, Mark Dobmeier and Davey Heskin were dicing in spots four through eight. The only caution flew with eleven laps in the books, when Craig Dollansky got into the turn two wall. Dobmeier would go up in smoke on lap twelve, ending his bid for a solid finish, but the rest of the event went non-stop.
Tatnell closed late in traffic, but Madsen threaded the needle on a couple of occasions and pulled away. Henderson closed on Zomer and took third on the white flag lap. McCarl was fifth, and Brown, Bronson Maeschen, hard-charger Clint Garner, Josh Schneiderman and Dustin Selvage rounded out the top ten. McCarl posted quick-time on the night, while Dollansky, Henderson and Maeschen won heat races. Larry Ball Jr. took the B main.
“The lapped cars were pretty hairy,” said Madsen in Victory Lane. “I didn’t want to slide across and give someone the opportunity to gain some ground on me. I have to thank Brett Nehring, Matt Barbara and everyone who put this team together. It’s very special everything that everyone’s done everything they have to make this team so great. There was a great crowd tonight, and I thank all the fans for coming out. I hope they come back!”
Beaver led from the start in the 15-lap 360 feature. He had company, however, as Jon Agan and Jonathan Cornell were in pursuit early in the going. Justin Henderson, pulling double duty in the 410’s, shot by Cornell for third on lap six, after starting eighth. On the next circuit, Agan shot by Beaver for the lead, but the move was negated when Ricky Montgomery brought the yellow flag out after stopping on the front straight.
Beaver pulled away from Agan on the restart, while Henderson seized the opportunity to shoot by Agan into the runner-up position. The lead trio remained in that order to the finish, while Cornell and Russ Hall swapped fourth and fifth, with Cornell winning that battle. Billy Alley finished sixth, while Tony Shilling, Dave Hall, Jamie Ball and Lee Grosz rounded out the top ten. Henderson registered quick-time, while Calvin Landis, Dave Hall and Grosz won heats.
“I don’t know who it was, but thanks for the yellow,” said Beaver of Agan’s negated pass for the lead. “Agan had us. I was slowing for the lapped cars and trying not to make a boneheaded move and run over them. We got a restart and made one move through the lapped traffic that I think helped us. (Henderson) will be tough all year, but tonight’s about us and we worked hard for it.”
The 305 main event became a race of attrition. At the start contact between Kevin Hetrick and Sawyer Phillips sent the latter spinning and collecting rookies McKenna Haase, Devin Kline and Christopher Scank. A second try saw Matthew Stelzer gets sideways and Chris Walraven and Kade Higday spinning to avoid him.
Once underway, Breazeale took control from outside row one. J Kinder moved into second on lap five, and Stelzer came back to claim third on lap nine. The final caution flew for Tanner Edwards who suffered a broken front end with ten laps down. The restart saw Kinder lose power, and fourth running Michael Philben break his front end after contact with him. On the next try, Matt Stephenson dropped out of third and went pitside.
Breazeale cruised the final two laps for his fourth 305 win here. Stelzer was second, ahead of hard-charger Stacey Alexander, Hetrick and Keoni Texeira. Walraven, Mitchell Alexander, Bob Hildreth, Jeff Wilke and Higday rounded out the top ten. Walraven set quick time, while Wilke, Kinder and Haase won the heats.
“I looked up on the restart and saw the 88 (Kinder) behind me and said ‘Man, not again.’” said Breazeale in Victory Lane. “He’s a good shoe. We just got lucky starting on the front row. I want to thank Kenny Vrban who owns this car. This race was for him.”
Join us next Saturday night, April 26 for Knoxville Championship Cup Series Night #2 here at the Knoxville Raceway! For more information, log on to www.KnoxvilleRaceway.com!
410 Results
Time Trials (Qualifying Order), 2 laps: 1. 24, Terry McCarl, Altoona, IA (10), 15.085; 2. 1, Justin Henderson, Tea, SD (25), 15.107; 3. 13, Mark Dobmeier, Grand Forks, ND (14), 15.114; 4. 21, Brian Brown, Grain Valley, MO (11), 15.239; 5. 56, Davey Heskin, St. Michael, MN (19), 15.253; 6. 91, Dusty Zomer, Sioux Falls, SD (17), 15.345; 7. 18, Ian Madsen, St. Marys, NSW, Aust. (5), 15.361; 8. 55, Brooke Tatnell, Sans Souci, NSW, Aust. (28), 15.459; 9. 96, Bronson Maeschen, Pleasantville, IA (9), 15.503; 10. 7, Craig Dollansky, Elk River, MN (29), 15.556; 11. 5J, Larry Ball Jr., Knoxville, IA (31), 15.562; 12. 49, Josh Schneiderman, West Burlington, IA (21), 15.574; 13. 12, Lynton Jeffrey, Prairie City, IA (24), 15.601; 14. 7K, Dustin Selvage, Indianola, IA (26), 15.644; 15. 7TAZ, Tasker Phillips, Pleasantville, IA (2), 15.659; 16. 6R, Ryan Bunton, Morton, IL (1), 15.688; 17. 47, Don Droud Jr., Lincoln, NE (4), 15.773; 18. 71A, RJ Johnson, Tampa, FL (22), 15.774; 19. 81, Austin Johnson, Pleasant Hill, IA (15), 15.785; 20. 40, Clint Garner, Sioux Falls, SD (6), 15.883; 21. 17W, Cole Wood, Auburn, CA (27), 15.885; 22. 10, Garrett Dollansky, Elk River, MN (23), 15.943; 23. 23K, Rob Kubli, Milo, IA (3), 16.095; 24. 44, Chris Martin, Ankeny, IA (20), 16.138; 25. 4, Dakota Hendrickson, Omaha, NE (30), 16.155; 26. 35, Skylar Prochaska, Lakefield, MN (12), 16.173; 27. 69, Mike Moore, Des Moines, IA (16), 16.314; 28. 19, Bob Weuve, Newton, IA (13), 16.336; 29. 23, Jimmy Light, West Springfield, PA (7), 16.570; 30. 71, Robert Bell, Colfax, IA (32), 16.920; 31. 20, AJ Moeller, Rockwell City, IA (8), NT; 32. 12P, TJ Peterson, Des Moines, IA (18), NT.
Heat one (started), 8 Laps, NT: 1. Craig Dollansky (3); 2. Brian Brown (5); 3. Ian Madsen (4); 4. Terry McCarl (6); 5. Lynton Jeffrey (2); 6. Austin Johnson (7) / 7. Garrett Dollansky (8); 8. Ryan Bunton (1); 9. Bob Weuve (10); 10. Dakota Hendrickson (9) DNS – AJ Moeller
Heat two (started), 8 Laps, 2:10.3: 1. Justin Henderson (6); 2. Don Droud Jr. (1); 3. Brooke Tatnell (4); 4. Clint Garner (7); 5. Davey Heskin (5); 6. Dustin Selvage (2) / 7. Larry Ball Jr. (3); 8. Skylar Prochaska (9); 9. Rob Kubli (8); 10. Jimmy Light (10) DNS – TJ Peterson
Heat three (started), 8 Laps, NT: 1. Bronson Maeschen (4); 2. Dusty Zomer (5); 3. Mark Dobmeier (6); 4. Cole Wood (7); 5. Josh Schneiderman (3); 6. RJ Johnson (1) / 7. Mike Moore (9); 8. Chris Martin (8); 9. Robert Bell (10); 10. Tasker Phillips (2)
B main (started), 12 Laps, NT: 1. Larry Ball Jr. (1); 2. Ryan Bunton (3); 3. Garrett Dollansky (4); 4. Skylar Prochaska (8); 5. Rob Kubli (5); 6. Chris Martin (6) / 7. Dakota Hendrickson (7); 8. Mike Moore (9); 9. Jimmy Light (11); 10. Robert Bell (12); 11. Tasker Phillips (2); 12. Bob Weuve (10) DNS – AJ Moeller, TJ Peterson
A main (started), 20 Laps, NT: 1. Ian Madsen (2); 2. Brooke Tatnell (1); 3. Justin Henderson (7); 4. Dusty Zomer (3); 5. Terry McCarl (8); 6. Brian Brown (5); 7. Bronson Maeschen (9); 8. Clint Garner (17); 9. Josh Schneiderman (11); 10. Dustin Selvage (13); 11. Davey Heskin (4); 12. Lynton Jeffrey (12); 13. Cole Wood (18); 14. RJ Johnson (15); 15. Skylar Prochaska (22); 16. Rob Kubli (23); 17. Austin Johnson (16); 18. Garrett Dollansky (21); 19. Chris Martin (24); 20. Mark Dobmeier (6); 21. Craig Dollansky (10); 22. Larry Ball Jr. (19); 23. Ryan Bunton (20); 24. Don Droud Jr. (14). Lap Leader: Madsen 1-20. Hard-charger: Garner.
360 Results
Time Trials (Group Qualifying): 1. 1, Justin Henderson, Sioux Falls, SD (19), 15.731; 2. 3A, Billy Alley, Bennet, NE (4), 15.963; 3. 28, Jonathan Cornell, Sedalia, MO (15), 15.964; 4. 29, Russ Hall, Pleasant Hill, IA (10), 16.091; 5. 5J, Jamie Ball, Knoxville, IA (13), 16.211; 6. 25, Dylan Peterson, Hartford, SD (18), 16.218; 7. 4, Jon Agan, Knoxville, IA (20), 16.223; 8. 3, Nate Van Haaften, Otley, IA (7), 16.281; 9. 53, Joe Beaver, Knoxville, IA (5), 16.294; 10. 10V, Calvin Landis, Knoxville, IA (12), 16.398; 11. 1B, Jordan Boston, Crete, NE (17), 16.494; 12. 22, Tony Shilling, Knoxville, IA (14), 16.512; 13. 2M, Matt Moro, Polk City, IA (16), 16.522; 14. 51, David Hall, Des Moines, IA (23), 16.558; 15. 4J, Lee Grosz, Harwood, ND (1), 16.579; 16. 27, Carson McCarl, Altoona, IA (2), 16.583; 17. 8L, Tom Lenz, Marion, IA (9), 16.670; 18. 9M, Ricky Montgomery, Lakewood, CO (8), 16.725; 19. 14S, Jarrod Schneiderman, West Burlington, IA (21), 16.769; 20. 33V, Mike Van Haaften, Otley, IA (24), 16.927; 21. 68, Mike Houseman Jr., Des Moines, IA (22), 17.068; 22. 17, Tyler Groenendyk, Oskaloosa, IA (25), 17.218; 23. 20T, Corey Timmerman, Carmen, IL (26), 17.642; 24. 09, Matt Juhl, Estherville, IA (3), NT; 25. 10, Alan Ambers, Knoxville, IA (6), NT; DQ (Tire) - 7H, John Hall, Marion, IA (11).
Heat one (started), 7 Laps, 1:58.7: 1. Calvin Landis (3); 2. Jon Agan (4); 3. Justin Henderson (6); 4. Carson McCarl (1); 5. Russ Hall (5); 6. Matt Moro (2); 7. Jarrod Schneiderman (7); 8. Tyler Groenendyk (8) DNS – John Hall
Heat two (started), 7 Laps, 2:00.8: 1. David Hall (2); 2. Tom Lenz (1); 3. Jordan Boston (3); 4. Jamie Ball (5); 5. Billy Alley (6); 6. Mike Van Haaften (7); 7. Corey Timmerman (8); 8. Nate Van Haaften (4) DNS – Alan Ambers
Heat three (started), 7 Laps, 2:00.1: 1. Lee Grosz (2); 2. Joe Beaver (4); 3. Jonathan Cornell (6); 4. Ricky Montgomery (1); 5. Tony Shilling (3); 6. Mike Houseman Jr. (7); 7. Dylan Peterson (5); 8. Matt Juhl (8)
A main (started), 15 Laps, NT: 1. Joe Beaver (2); 2. Justin Henderson (8); 3. Jon Agan (3); 4. Jonathan Cornell (6); 5. Russ Hall (5); 6. Billy Alley (7); 7. Tony Shilling (10); 8. David Hall (12); 9. Jamie Ball (4); 10. Lee Grosz (13); 11. Jordan Boston (9); 12. Mike Houseman Jr. (18); 13. Tom Lenz (15); 14. Matt Moro (11); 15. Carson McCarl (14); 16. Nate Van Haaften (20); 17. Jarrod Schneiderman (21); 18. Calvin Landis (1); 19. Mike Van Haaften (17); 20. Dylan Peterson (19); 21. Matt Juhl (24); 22. Corey Timmerman (23); 23. Ricky Montgomery (16); 24. Tyler Groenendyk (22) DNS – John Hall, Alan Ambers. Lap Leader: Beaver 1-15. Hard-charger: Henderson.
305 Results
Time Trials (Group Qualifying): 1. 28, Chris Walraven, Knoxville, IA (1), 17.211; 2. 88, J Kinder, Holts Summit, MO (2), 17.273; 3. 99, Matthew Stelzer, Omaha, NE (19), 17.363; 4. 59KB, Mike Philben, Grimes, IA (5), 17.379; 5. 57, Steve Breazeale, Trenton, MO (4), 17.390; 6. 7, Tanner Edwards, Van Meter, IA (18), 17.463; 7. 55, Matt Stephenson, Altoona, IA (17), 17.481; 8. 3, Sawyer Phillips, Pleasantville, IA (14), 17.570; 9. 50, Keoni Texeira, Honolulu, HI (6), 17.595; 10. 55KC, Bob Hildreth, Iowa Falls, IA (24), 17.650; 11. 35, Kevin Hetrick, Gladstone, IL (3), 17.660; 12. 6, Mitchell Alexander, Knoxville, IA (8), 17.753; 13. 41, Jeff Wilke, Genoa, IL (9), 17.847; 14. 24, Kade Higday, Pleasant Hill, IA (11), 17.942; 15. 55M, McKenna Haase, Des Moines, IA (25), 18.010; 16. 5J, Devin Kline, Knoxville, IA (23), 18.013; 17. 92C, Cody Ambers, Knoxville, IA (13), 18.345; 18. 71C, Stacey Alexander, Lacona, IA (20), 18.392; 19. 1K, Andee Beierle, Bismarck, ND (12), 18.755; 20. 36W, Christopher Scank, Cedar Rapids, IA (22), 18.797; 21. 82, Lee Patterson, Des Moines, IA (15), 19.037; 22. 51, Corey Kautz, Urbandale, IA (16), 19.238; 23. 19K, Sarena Paul, Monroe, IA (21), 20.209; 24. 50K, Kevin Hiemstra, Knoxville, IA (10), 22.394; 25. 0, Mike Mayberry, Fremont, IA (7), NT.
Heat one (started), 6 Laps, 1:47.7: 1. Jeff Wilke (2); 2. Chris Walraven (6); 3. Devin Kline (1); 4. Matt Stephenson (4); 5. Bob Hildreth (3); 6. Mike Philben (5); 7. Mike Mayberry (9); 8. Andee Beierle (7); 9. Corey Kautz (8)
Heat two (started), 6 Laps, NT: 1. J Kinder (6); 2. Steve Breazeale (5); 3. Kevin Hetrick (3); 4. Kade Higday (2); 5. Sawyer Phillips (4); 6. Christopher Scank (7); 7. Sarena Paul (8) DNS – Cody Ambers
Heat three (started), 6 Laps, NT: 1. McKenna Haase (2); 2. Matthew Stelzer (6); 3. Stacey Alexander (1); 4. Mitchell Alexander (3); 5. Keoni Texeira (4); 6. Tanner Edwards (5); 7. Lee Patterson (7); 8. Kevin Hiemstra (8)
A main (started), 12 Laps, NT: 1. Steve Breazeale (2); 2. Matthew Stelzer (6); 3. Stacey Alexander (17); 4. Kevin Hetrick (11); 5. Keoni Texeira (4); 6. Chris Walraven (5); 7. Mitchell Alexander (12); 8. Bob Hildreth (10); 9. Jeff Wilke (13); 10. Kade Higday (14); 11. Mike Mayberry (21); 12. Andee Beierle (20); 13. Lee Patterson (19); 14. Corey Kautz (22); 15. Kevin Hiemstra (23); 16. Matt Stephenson (8); 17. J Kinder (7); 18. Mike Philben (1); 19. Tanner Edwards (3); 20. Sawyer Phillips (9); 21. McKenna Haase (15); 22. Devin Kline (16); 23. Christopher Scank (18) DNS – Cody Ambers, Serena Paul. Lap Leader: Breazeale 1-12. Hard-charger: S. Alexander.