(Inverness, Fl. 5/3/03) Thirty-Two of Florida’s finest Mini Stock drivers brought their racers to the Citrus County Speedway Mini Stock Challenge, which has now become a traveling series. Twenty-eight qualified in time trials for their 50 lap main event. Four cars broke in warm-ups early in the afternoon. The Max’s Tractor Service machine saw home track favorite and Challenge point leader Robbie Yoakam turn fast time at 14.922 seconds on the 3/8ths mile oval and picking up the Jeremy Bowser/Richard Kelley $100 Fast Qualifier Award. He was the only driver to break the 15-second mark in qualifying with Richard Kelley turning a 15.014 for runner-up honors.
A pill draw determined starting positions for the top ten qualifiers with Chris Hooker taking the pole position and Kevin Macy on the outside of the front row. Yoakam drew the 8 pill while Kelley pulled the six. All twenty-eight cars took the green for the fifty-lap event with Hooker taking the point from the get go setting up a fast pace for the first 20 laps. Meanwhile Robbie Yoakam worked his way through traffic and made the pass on Hooker on the inside groove when Chris slipped and opened the door to Yoakam and Kelley. Then it was a match race to the checkers with Kelley finding some extra horsepower in the final five laps to take his first win in the series for 2003. Yoakam settled for a solid second ahead of Robbie Storer, Chris Hooker, Darren Jackson, Brian Dorer, Tom Zimmerman, Jimmy Ware and Justin Edwards. The series moves to Bronson Motor Speedway next 5 Saturday.
In other action Dale Sanders and Billy Bechtelheimer made a drag race out of the box for turn one with Bechtelheimer taking the point and setting the pace for the first 25 laps of the Late Model 30 lap main. Smith popped out of his 5th starting spot using the outside groove to make all his passes except the move for the lead, taking to the inside when Bechtelheimer went wide. Dale Sanders was able to salvage a third after sliding to the sixth spot at one point in the race. Danny Johnson and Wayne Anderson battled for fourth for ten laps with Johnson winning the slot at the checkers. Richie Smith and Sanders took the heat wins over the 16-car field.
After going through three motors in the past two weeks James Green Jr. and his dad put together a junk motor from blocks, heads and other motor parts they had at their shop and the combination worked well. Green won the pole and when the green flew the only thing he saw in his rear view mirror was Daniel Webster for the entire twenty laps. Robbie Aaron was driving for last week’s winner, son Dustin and took the checkered flag for third but had too much left side weight in tech and that moved Melvin Farmer (driving for Danny Cretty’s points) to third. Owen Leigh and Mickey Burns outran the balance of the sixteen-car field for fourth and fifth respectively. Heat winners were Green and Travis Nichols.
Twenty cars took the green in the Hobby Stock 20-lap feature with Glen Colyer taking a short lived lead before the first of four caution flags came out. On the restart, young gun Curtis Neumann shot through the traffic and took over the point away from point leader Richie Smith and set the pace right to the checkered flag for his first ever win in a racecar. Three generations of the Neumann family were in Victory Lane to greet him. Sport Wilson came for his 18th starting spot to finish second ahead of Dean Lawyer, Wes Wilson and Richie Smith. Heat winners were Lawyer and Sport Wilson.
A seventeen-car Thunder Stock field saw point leader Pat Quick come from the back of the pack and go on to her third win of the season. Point runner up Roy Blotz gave up the lead to Quick in the final five laps and then it was all over except the trip to Victory Lane. Blotz held out for second over a closing Lee Keller. Louie Cioe held out for fourth after leading at mid-race. Wayne Heater had his best finish of the year in fifth. Heat wins went to Jerry Hoover and Roy Blotz.
Next Saturday night the FAST Trucks return for their second attack on the Citrus County Speedway. Late Models will take a week off and the Sportsman return plus the Street Stocks, Mini Stocks, Hobby Stocks and Thunder Stocks in heat and feature action for the 2003-point championship.
Citrus County Speedway Results for 5/3/03
Florida Mini Stock Challenge – 50 Laps – 28 Cars
1. #61 Richard Kelley Jr. Gulfport
2. # 8 Robbie Yoakam Hernando
3, # 9 Robbie Storer Zephyrhills
4. #1x Chris Hooker Inverness
5. #7d Darren Jackson Lakeland
6. #97 Brian Dorer Winter Haven
7. #55z Tom Zimmerman Pinellas Park
8. #113 Jimmy Ware Ocala
9. #112 Justin Edwards Fort Valley, Ga.
Fast Qualifier: #8 Robbie Yoakam – 14.922 Sec.
Second Fast Qualifier: #61 Richard Kelley Jr. 15.014 Sec.
