MMS photo credits Philip Odom
April 26th
Montgomery, AL
Fans were treated to the excitement of Motorcycle racing at the Historic half mile this past Saturday night. The 2 wheel warriors brought a wide selection of machines and topped speeds over 105 mph. Sparks were flying as pegs scraped the asphalt thru the turns making fans and racers smile ear to ear.
The starting grid was lined up from the finish of the 10 lap heat race. The action started like a tornado as the bikes took off from a standing start with long time flagman John Midkiff joining the races on the track for the traditional motorcycle take off. Robert “Robby Bobby” McLendon jumped out to an early lead with Davo Majzun nipping at his heels. The 2 battled for the top spot for the entire 15 lap feature. Jeremy Dean ran a strong 3rd with Nicholas Nguyn finishing 4th.
Motorcycles weren’t the only thing on the track as Montgomery Motor Speedway fans were treated to quality racing in three other stock car divisions. The first feature of the night highlighted the Mini Modifieds. Lance Campbell piloting the #5 car set fast time at a 23.022. Campbell from Hartselle, Alabama roll a 2 for the inversion and jumped out to an early lead. The “Wild Child” held the point till lap 5 when 2013 track champion Joel Collier gained control and never looked back. The #9 of Chris Landers struggled the entire event with mechanical gremlins and failed to finish the feature. Heath Williams #82 was having a great run as he closed in on the #5 but the Birmingham driver got loose in turn 3 and was not able to make the pass on the track but still secured the the second position as the #5 failed post race inspection.
1st Joel Collier #71
2nd Heath Williams #82
3rd Chris Landers #9
DQ Lance Campbell #5
Fans were treated to an on track autograph session giving them the opportunity to meet the drivers up close and personal. T-shirts, hero cards, candy and other goodies were collected by the MMS faithful while some lucky fans were able to sit on the high performance motorcycles.
MMS Officials cleared the track and the excitement continued with the Uncle Bob’s Self Storage Street Stocks rolling on to the grid. Dwayne Wesenburg winner of the heat race earlier in the evening had rolled a 6 in opening ceremonies and started the feature with only Perry “P2” Patino behind him. On the drop of the green the #17 of Chance Atkins muscled his way to the lead and held the position till lap 7. Lap 7 also saw the #33 of Joe Bethea Jr. pulling his camo colored machine on pit road with mechanical issues. Lap 8 saw the #51 of Patino leading the field and setting the pace for the street stocks as the young driver hit his marks around the speedway. Lap 21 had everyone holding their breath as the #31 of Wesenberg broke a left front spindle and muscled his way on to pit road narrowly missing the Open Sportsman cars sitting on pit road getting ready for their upcoming race. Running caution free put some heat in the hoosier tires of Patino and the car started getting loose in the corners for the young driver. Atkins #17 capitalized on this condition and moved his car under the #51 to challenge for the lead. The ensuing battle brought the grandstand to their feet as the two battled door to door in the closing laps. The two drivers swapped the lead with Atkins taking the point on lap 27,28 and 29. Patino was able to push to the win on the final lap securing his second win of the 2014 season.
1st Perry Patino #51
2nd Chance Atkins #17
3rd Adam Freeman #35
4th Dwayne Wesenberg #31
5th Joe Bethea Jr. #33
Open Sportsman hit the track for their 35 lap feature as the final stock car division of the night. Earlier the division qualified in a new format with 5 cars hitting the track for a 5 lap session. Bethea Jr. scored the fastest lap in a new racecar with its first visit to Montgomery Motor Speedway. The start of the race saw the #59 of Shelby Reuse electing to drop to the rear as her machine had made hard contact earlier in the day and the team felt it would be best to start at the tail of the field. That move put the #91 of Larry Speakman on the pole and the #21 Jason Furrow outside. Furrow of Thomasville, Alabama jumped out to the lead and held that position till the the caution flew on lap 5 for the #91 car. Caution came out again for the #21 that spun on the backstretch. The restart on lap 6 had the #79 car of Gary Sanford Jr. at the front of the field and held that spot moving through the meat of the race. The race was slowed again on lap 18 as the #21 spun again on the front stretch but was able to drive away with no damage. The #49 of Bethea Jr. tagged the turn 2 wall on lap 19 bringing out the yellow and providing an opportunity for the #21 and #59 to return to the pits for further attention from their crews. Sanford’s #79 held the lead till lap 33 and had held off the charges of #7 Justin Caton. Lap 34 saw the Jemison, Alabama driver push his way to the lead, the checkered flag and his second win of the 2014 season.
1st Justin Caton #7
2nd Gary Sanford Jr. #79
3rd Jason Furrow #21
4th Larry Speakman #91
5th Shelby Reuse #59
6th Joe Bethea Jr. #49
The action continues May 10th as the Southern Super Series rolls into Montgomery Motor Speedway for the “Rumble by the River 125” presented by Budweiser. This will be the 5th stop for the Super Late Model series as some of the best drivers in the southeast show their talent on Montgomery’s historic half mile. Local talent Hunter Robbins, Bobby Knox Jr. new Alabama gang drivers Augie Grill, John Tyler Bolen, Dennis “Tink” Reno Jr., Bubba Pollard, Nashville winner Donnie Wilson and many others are expected. There will be 125 green flag laps of Super Late Model racing plus Open Sportsman and Uncle Bob’s Self Storage Street Stocks Saturday May 10th.
Montgomery Motor Speedway first opened its doors in 1953 and is the Deep South’s Oldest Asphalt Speedway. The Half mile track is the home of the Alabama 200 featuring the Southern Super Series bringing some of the most talented super late model drivers to compete at the gem of the south. Sponsorship opportunities are available to fit any budget. Our Private air conditioned VIP suite can accommodate a company outing or private party in our “state of the art” control tower.
Montgomery Motor Speedway bringing you quality racing and family entertainment at an affordable price.
