The last Friday night of racing at Ocala Speedway before a week off drew a great car count, throngs of eager fans, and created thrills and excitement. All divisions with the exception of the open wheel modifieds were running and none disappointed the crowd. The FAST Mini Cups were visiting Ocala for the second time this season put on quite a show as well.
The V8 Pure Stocks lost one car before racing could begin as Bill Thomas' engine grenaded during hot laps. Jessie Corbett started on the pole but Matt Schell quickly demonstrated that he had the car to beat. Schell raced to the front and passed Brent Cooper on lap 13 to take the win, while Brent Cooper settled for second place and James Erickson finished third.
Shawn Evans earned a win from the pole in the 4 Cylinder Stocks in his secondary car after a problem with his main car forced him to use the backup. Evans won the pole and from there won the race, while Joey Durbin placed second and Karl Born finished third.
Chris Oliveri totaled a race car last week with a huge crash into the turn 4 wall, but he showed up this week with a new car and a need for revenge. Oliveri took his new car to the front during heat races and earned the pole, and from there he raced to a win. Josh Brown raced to a second place finish while Jason Henrey got a well deserved third place finish.
The Late Models returned after a week off and put on quite a show for the gathered fans. Patrick Williams climbed into James Powell's race car and drove it to an impressive win, followed closely by Scott Grosenbacher for second and a hard charging Scott Milar for third place. A notable entry in this week's race was the Brock Oglesby who managed a eighth place finish after a long absence from Ocala Speedway. Brock is a fan favorite at Ocala and the crowd was delighted to see him back and racing.
The Fast Mini Cups impressed the crowd with several lead changes throughout their feature race. In the end it was Jason Schroader who got the win, but not until after switching places more than once with second place finisher, Brandon Beach. Youngster Zach Hoyt raced hard and took the third place spot.
Pete Close and Dan Tremblay have been the drivers to beat in the Street Stocks this season, and with Close relegated to the rear after his win last week, it was Tremblay's turn to dominate the race from flag to flag while Close made a huge charge from the rear to fiish second to Tremblay. Jeff Stalnaker was awarded the third place trophy to round out the top three.
The Sportsman cars were the last regular division to run on Friday with Tim Shull earning the pole position. William Edwards made sure that nothing was easy for Shull by riding his back bumper the entire race, but in the end Shull prevailed for the win while Edwards earned second place. Shelton Bowers was forced to start in the rear after his win the previous week, and after charging through the field Rick Bass managed to fight Bowers off and take third place.
The night ended with a wild Flag Pole race where the competitors had to lap the track, then duck into the infield and do a lap around the flag pole. And as usual some drivers got confused and forgo to do their flag pole lap, while others simply got spun out. As the Checkers waved Brent Cooper and Justin Durbin were neck and neck, with Durbin originally credited with the win. However, after looking at the finish again the officials decided that Cooper had won and he was awarded the first place trophy. Justin Durbin settled for second place while Don Welter raced his way to third place.
There will be no regular racing at Ocala Speedway on Friday, May 4th, as the Monster Truck Extravaganza takes over the speedway for the weekend. Racing will return on Friday, May 11th as the Florida Mini Stock Challenge Series and the Southern Sportsman Series come to visit.
