Fairgrounds Speedway Wrap: Rowdy Night in Music City!
By contributing writers Paul Jensen, Rob Spires & Tammy Brewington
It was a wild night of racing at Fairgrounds Speedway Saturday that saw Andy Johnson, the reigning track champion, and former track champion Mark Day both losing their poise and later receiving harsh penalties for their actions. NASCAR driver and two-time Daytona 500 winner Sterling Marlin was also penalized for working on his car under a red flag. Where have we seen that before?
The occasion for the gathering was the Full Throttle 200 presented by Nossi College of Art. Top Late Model drivers from throughout the area converged on the grand old track for an evening of banging and bumping, and that's exactly what happened.
The rivalry between reigning champion Andy Johnson and former champ Mark Day goes back several years. Saturday night it boiled over.
The race was to run in three segments, the first for 100 laps, then 50 laps, and then a final 50 laps for the cash. A bonus was on the table for anyone who could win all three segments from the inverted fields.
The fun started after qualifying when it was determined Michael House's car had illegal tires, so he was sent to the back of the starting grid.
Chevy White jumped out into the lead at the start of the race, but he eventually fell back, was lapped, and then had to pit under green to change a flat tire, putting him several laps down.
Daniel Pope passed White and took the lead on lap 18. Baker Curb Racing developmental driver Tommy Joe Martins and Marlin also passed White to take second and third.
The first caution came out on lap 39 when Chuck Tuckspun on the frontstretch. Pope held the lead to the next caution at lap 73 when Martins and Day made contact with each other, sending Martins hard into the frontstretch wall, ending the night for him.
Paul Connelly got loose and spun in turn 2 on lap 80. When the race restarted on lap 87, Joseph Meyer and Dean McIntyre got together near the entrance to turn 1, causing a red flag to come out as debris was strewn across the track.
In the short shootout to the end of the first segment, Day passed Pope on the final lap to grab the lead going into the break. Pope, Sterling Marlin, Steadman Marlin, and Andy Johnson rounded out the top 5.
An inversion of 6 was drawn for the second segment, putting Daniel Boldenin the lead, followed by Johnson, Steadman Marlin, Sterling Marlin, Pope and Day.
On lap 106 the large crowd came to its feet as Sterling Marlin passed Pope for the lead in a move Nashville fans have witnessed for decades. Marlins' lead would be short-lived as four laps later, Day, who was simply running in a zone apart from everyone else, breezed by to retake the lead.
By lap 132 the caution flew for a light mist that began falling over the backstretch and then enveloped the entire track. On lap 144 the track went to green-yellow, allowing the cars to go faster to help dry the track, but still no passing.
After surveying crew chiefs and getting a mixed response, track officials were set to restart the race, but they had gotten to lap 150, the scheduled end of the second segment. Day won the second segment followed by Sterling Marlin, Pope, Bolden, and Johnson.
If he could win the final segment, Day would score the $500 bonus. The third segment was to pay $1,400-to-win, so everyone was getting dialed in during the brief break between segments.
An inversion of 6 was again drawn for the third segment. That put Steadman Marlin first, followed by Johnson, Bolden, Pope, Sterling Marlin, and Day.
As the third segment began, all hell broke loose. Johnson passed Steadman for the lead and then Johnson and Day collided with each other in turn 1. The entire field was collected in the mess except Pope.
After the cars untangled themselves and came around the track under the caution, Johnson and Day were playing bumper tag with each other. Day tagged Johnson at least twice between the backstretch and turn 4. When the cars came down pit road, Day stopped at his pit as Johnson pulled up next to him. Johnson then intentionally plowed his car into Day's stopped race car, pushing Day's car up against the pit wall as crew members and officials scurried behind the wall to avoid being injured.
As the drivers got out of their cars, a large brawl ensued. As the ruckus grew, Steadman Marlin could be seen running from the south pit area to join the fracas. His father Sterling stayed in his pit box, watching the spectacle several stalls in front of him.
Sterling eventually moved his car to the south pits, apparently ready to start loading up to leave, as at first race officials said they were going to call the race at that time. The red flag was out, thus Marlin was penalized for working on his car during the red flag, reminding fans of the famous incident in the 2002 Daytona 500 when Marlin, leading the race with six laps to go, hopped out of his car and began pulling on a fender during a red flag. He would finish 8th that day.
Officials decided they had to let what cars remained race so a winner could be determined. Johnson was tossed out of the race, but Day was allowed to continue, although he too was penalized for working on his car during the red flag. It was determined by officials to run the race to 165 laps, as weather was threatening, and even though the normal 11:00 curfew was not in affect for the special race, it was well past 11:00 and track promoter Danny Denson made the call to end the race early.
When the race resumed the leaders were Pope, Riverview Speedway lead foot Jimmy Victory, TW Fisher, and Bolden. Sterling Marlin ran a couple of laps, then took his ailing car to the hauler and called it a night. Pope ran the short distance to the win with Victory taking second.
"Man, the fans got their money's worth tonight. It was wild out there with all the on-track and off-track craziness. I have to thank my whole racing operation for this win and also my parents and the fans for supporting my racing efforts," said an excited Pope.
As hard as it is to believe, this was not the only race Saturday night at the Fairgrounds.
The evening began on the 1/4 mile with the Legends Semi Pro/ Young Guns. A.J. Carlisi took the lead from the pole. The caution flew on lap 6 when C.J. Tuck broke a left front wheel and pulled off the track in turn 3. Another yellow flag flew on lap 14 when Ross Rollings, Tanner Derryberry, and Jake Dunsmorecrashed in turn 1. Dunsmore was done for the evening.
Carlisi held off a strong rush from Cody Fernett on the final lap to take the win.
In the Legends Pro/ Masters feature, Kenny Summers and Kevin Riggscrashed on the frontstretch going into turn 1 on the first lap. Both cars were too heavily damaged to continue.
Tyler Slayden passed Chris Wilson for the lead coming out of turn 4 on the first lap. Wilson then pulled his car off the track. On lap 6 Josh Berrypassed Slayden for the lead, then held off a hard-charging Tyler Cordell for the win.
Mitchell Vickers grabbed the lead from Art Choateat the end of the first lap of the Thunderstox feature. The caution flew on lap 19 when Stephanie Barnes spun by herself in turn 4.
Travis Ryman spun by himself in turn 4 of lap 22, bringing out the yellow again. Mitchell Vickers then won the race while Charles Goddard prevailed in a 3-wide photo finish for 2nd.
Robert Forsythe muscled his way past Clint Iveyto take the lead on the opening lap of the Super Stock feature. The caution flew on lap when 23 when Forsythe, still leading the race, spun by himself in turn 2. Charles Goddard took the lead and won the race pulling away from the field.
Racing then moved to the 5/8-mile track, where Blake Carter spun Stacey Crain going into the first turn of the first lap, causing a complete restart for the Super Truck feature. Blake Williams jumped out to an early lead when the caution flew on lap 14 after Jason Adamsgot loose and hit the wall hard on the frontstretch. The red flag came out while the track was cleaned up.
Williams held off hard charges from Clint Crowell and Bobby Buttrey to capture his first career victory.
"This is my first win here at the Fairgrounds Speedway. My team and I have been digging for four long years and it finally paid off. I feel almost speechless. I have to dedicate this win to my father and the fans that support us. I had to hang on the last 5 laps because I was easing in the corners on very slick tires. I'm grateful for this win," stated Williams.
Second-place finisher Crowell said, "I drove my butt off tonight. I have to give props to my crew tonight because even with my right rear burned up we still brought home the runner-up spot. This was a good night for this race team."
Truck Series points leader Bobby Buttrey hung on to the points lead with a 3rd place finish.
Buttrey said, "We had to do a motor change and start at the back so I knew I had my work cut out for me, but I have full faith in this phenomenal team to give me equipment to move to the front in any race. We're still on pace towards the Truck championship."
In the Sportsman feature, Michael House pulled out to the lead after battling Jeff Belt through turns 1 and 2 on the opening lap. House held off spirited charges from Belt and Lee Goddard to win the lightning fast, caution-free race.
House said, "It's really good to be back racing at the Fairgrounds Speedway and it was even nicer grabbing the win tonight. We had a strong car and I definitely want to thank my crew and all the fans who came out to support us."
The evening was then topped off by what would be a 165-lap Late Model feature.
Please stay tuned for an updated official results & points standings from Saturday, May 23.
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