|
NEWS
September 5, 2009 - quick story
Adams, Tripp, Karkos clinch titles;
Marshall wins Polly's Variety Mini 100
OXFORD, Maine - All three of Oxford Plains Speedway's headline
championships have been clinched with a week to spare, two by
repeat offenders.
With a sixth-place finish Saturday
night, Travis Adams wrapped up his fourth consecutive Late Model
title and his fifth overall at OPS. Only Jeff Taylor (nine) and Mike
Rowe (seven) have won more in any divisions at the 3/8-mile oval.
Skip Tripp won for the fifth time in his last six Strictly Stock
starts and his eighth overall to capture that crown for the second
year in a row.
The only driver unable to close the
deal at first was Justin Karkos, who retired early from the Polly's Variety
100 Mini Stock main event and settled for an apparent 15th-place finish.
Then he gained three spots when Calvin Rose Jr., Larry Melcher and
Jeff Beaule all were disqualified from top-five finishes in the
post-race technical inspection.
Rose was Karkos' closest pursuer in the points. With the rookie
getting a zero for the night and Karkos ascending to 12th overall,
the title chase is complete.
Championship Night is next Saturday at 6:30 p.m.
Reigning champion Ashley Marshall
dominated the four-cylinder finale for his third Mini Stock victory
of the season. He was officially the only car to finish on the lead
lap after the upheaval in tech.
It applied an exclamation point to what has been a frustrating
season for Marshall, whose team has sustained no fewer than five
engine failures in its title defense.
"I just gave it some and it's still ticking," said
Marshall, referring to a series of celebratory tire doughnuts.
"There's no way I would be here without all the time and effort
my dad (Jeff) has put into this car this year."
Jake Burns rallied from a spin to claim second, one lap down. Butch
Keene, Dan Morris and Kevin Bishop completed the revised top five.
Marshall's win was slowed only twice by caution, the final time at
lap 90, By then, he had a buffer zone of five lapped cars between
himself and Rose.
Tim Brackett put on a clinic in the 40-lap Late Model showdown,
charging from the rear of the field in the outside lane to log his
third win of the season.
"Was that awesome or what?
That's the best the car has gone since we've been back here,"
said Brackett, a 2005 OPS champion who returned to the speedway in
midseason of '08. "It's good to be home, and this (victory
lane) is the best place of all."
Scott Luce led most of the event before yielding to Brackett on lap
27 and settling for a season's best second. Shawn Martin used a
last-lap pass of Jeff White to collect third, with Jimmy Childs
fifth.
Tripp steered clear of a tangle between the top two cars of Mike St.
Germain and Matt Williams on lap 10 and dominated a
green-white-checkered restart to seal his title defense.
The father-son tandem of Larry and Zach Emerson was second and
third, respectively, followed by Kim Tripp and a resurgent St.
Germain.
Corey Williams claimed his first OPS checkered flag in more than 10
years of trying, leading wire-to-wire in the 20-lap Sport Truck
feature.
John Lizotte took second and clinched the title in the Acceleration
Series Saturday Showdown, joining his father Jon as an Oxford
champion. Wednesday night point leader Ryan Farrar took third.
Derek Cook and birthday boy John Childs took the checkered flags in
twin, 20-lap Runnin' Rebel features. Kyle Hewins, third in the 'A'
feature in the car normally driven by his nephew, Ryan, held on for
his second Saturday Showdown championship in three years.
MINI STOCK (100 laps): 1. Ashley Marshall, Jay; 2. Jake Burns, Gray;
3.
Butch Keene, Turner; 4. Dan Morris, Auburn; 5. Kevin Bishop, South
Paris; 6. Matt Moore, South Paris; 7. Greg Watkins, Bridgton; 8.
Nathan Guptill, North Turner; 9. Darrell Moore, Mechanic Falls; 10.
Dale Brackett, Oxford; 11. Jimmy Childs, Leeds; 12. Justin Karkos,
Jay; 13. Nik Coates, Lisbon; 14. Jim Robbins, Dixfield; 15. Greg
Aptt, Oxford; 16. Travis Dunbar, Lisbon. DQ: Larry Melcher,
Livermore Falls; Calvin Rose Jr., Turner; Jeff Beaule, Lewiston.
LATE MODEL (40 laps): 1. Tim Brackett, Buckfield; 2. Scott
Luce, Strong; 3. Shawn Martin, Turner; 4. Jeff White, Winthrop; 5.
Jimmy Childs, Leeds; 6. Travis Adams, Canton; 7. Al Hammond, Paris;
8. Corey Morgan, Lewiston; 9. Ben Ashline, Pittston; 10. Gary
Chiasson, Peru; 11. Shawn Knight, South Paris; 12. Kenny Harrison,
Pownal; 13. Gerald Parlin, South Paris; 14. Don Wentworth, Otisfield;
15. Billy Childs Jr., Leeds; 16. Tommy Ricker, Poland; 17. Jason
Larrabee, Raymond; 18. Tyler Knightly, Paris.
STRICTLY STOCK (30 laps): 1. Skip Tripp, Poland; 2. Larry
Emerson, Durham; 3. Zach Emerson, Durham; 4. Kim Tripp, Oxford; 5.
Mike St. Germain, Auburn; 6. Mike Short, Auburn; 7. Sumner Sessions,
Norway; 8. Keith Stuart, Naples; 9. Rick Spaulding, Lisbon; 10. Vern
Hodgkin, Lewiston; 11. Jeremy Wescott, Naples; 12. Derek Farrington,
Freeport; 13. B.J. Chapman, Bridgton; 14. Matt Williams, Brownfield;
15. Nick Hoyt, Mechanic Falls.
RUNNIN' REBEL 'A' (20 laps): 1. John Childs, Leeds; 2. Matt
Dufault, Turner; 3. Kyle Hewins, Leeds; 4. Scott Farrington, Minot;
5. Zach Audet, Wilton; 6. Troy Jordan, Turner; 7. Doug Degroat,
Oxford; 8. Brady Romano, Livemore Falls; 9. Gerard Cote, Oxford; 10.
Corey Beaulieu, Oxford; 11. Craig Farrington, Hebron; 12. Jamie
Heath, Waterford; 13. Roger Bourgoin, Sabattus.
RUNNIN' REBEL 'B' (20 laps): 1. Derek Cook, Livermore Falls;
2. Jeff Hebert, Auburn; 3. Dustin Salley, Auburn; 4. Jason Berry,
Turner; 5. Mark Childs Jr., Mechanic Falls; 6. Craig Bartlett,
Denmark; 7. Derek Cairns, Waterford; 8. Jonah Farrington, Hebron; 9.
Charlie Hall, Oxford; 10. Cody Smith, Oxford; 11. Bob Lucas, Peru;
12. Don Smith, Oxford; 13. Brandon Palmer, Bridgton; 14. Mikel
Tabor, Auburn.
SPORT TRUCK (20 laps): 1. Corey Williams, Sumner; 2. John
Lizotte, Mechanic Falls; 3. Ryan Farrar, Oxford; 4. Jeff Schmidt,
Mechanic Falls; 5. Nathan Merrill, Norway; 6. Ken Varney, South
Paris; 7. Sean Jordan, Auburn; 8. Ryan Varney, South Paris. DQ: Herb
Farrar, Sumner.
|
|
Go to the
JARRacing
Photography
web site for today's complete photo gallery.
JARRacing
(207) 645-4571
Photos from
all OPS divisions!
|
