Sammy Swindell topped a list of 71 drivers in the Mid-South region of the American Sprint Car Series in a star-studded field that included most of the National Tour drivers.
Sam Hafertepe Jr. Led flag to flag, but he had to withstand an early race challenge from outside pole sitter Aaron Reutzel.
You know what they say.
Haters gonna Hate.
Sammy’s gonna Slam.
“Slamin’” Sammy Swindell made history Saturday when he wheeled his way to a record-breaking fifth Short Track Nationals win at I-30 Speedway in Little Rock, AR--breaking his tie with the legendary Gary Wright. Swindell started fourth but quickly split the front line to take the lead on the backstretch of the first lap. While the rest of the race wasn't easy street for Swindell he managed to stay out front for the duration.
Two Lone Star State racers sandwiched the veteran on the podium with Sam Hafertepe Jr. finishing second and Aaron Reutzel third.
Reutzel captured the pole by winning the Dash for Cash in front of hometown hero Tim Crawley.
In Swindell’s early surge to the front, Crawley fell back leaving Reutzel and Hafertepe to fight for second. Just before the first caution came out for Wayne Johnson rolling to a stop, Reutzel had lost the position to Hafertepe.
After the caution, the field saw a long stretch of green flag racing, giving Swindell a chance to stretch out his lead. The 61-year-old took advantage--slicing through traffic and leaving half a straightaway between him and his closest competitor.
The second and final caution came with 12 laps remaining to place Reutzel, Hafertepe, and Bill Balog back on Swindell’s tail. The leader chose the high side and rode the cushion 12 more times to victory.
Second-place was still up for grabs until the bitter end with Reutzel momentarily reclaiming it on the final lap. He shuffled Hafertepe back to fourth behind Balog before regaining speed and reclaiming second. Balog barely missed the podium finishing fourth in front of Tony Bruce Jr., who rounded out the top five.
Morgan Turpen's ninth-place finish makes her the first female racer in history to record a top-10 finish in the weekend's main event.
Short Track Nationals Night 1; ASCS Mid-South
Finish | Start | Driver | Heat | B-Main |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | Sammy Swindell | 1 | |
2 | 3 | Bill Balog | 4 | |
3 | 4 | Tony Bruce Jr | 2 | |
4 | 7 | Aaron Reutzel | 1 | |
5 | 13 | Sam Hafertepe Jr | 2 | |
6 | 1 | Tim Crawley | 6 | |
7 | 10 | Ernie Ainsworth | 7 | |
8 | 8 | Jonathan Cornell | 2 | |
9 | 9 | Seth Bergman | 4 | |
10 | 19 | Howard Moore | 4 | 3 |
11 | 14 | Derek Hagar | 3 | |
12 | 5 | Marshall Skinner | 3 | |
13 | 18 | Morgan Turpen | 1 | 2 |
14 | 17 | Skylar Gee | 1 | 2 |
15 | 16 | Steven Tiner | 7 | 1 |
16 | 15 | Alex Sewell | 2 | 1 |
17 | 12 | Cody Gardner | 1 | |
18 | 20 | Channin Tankersley | 2 | 3 |
19 | 6 | Andy McElhannon | 3 | |
20 | 11 | Josh Baughman | 3 | |
Eric Lutz | 4 | |||
Willie Croft | 4 | |||
Brandon Hanks | 5 | |||
Ray Allen Kulhanek | 5 | |||
John Carney Jr | 6 | |||
Danny Smith | 6 | |||
Brian Bell | 7 | |||
Chance Morton | 7 | |||
Jeremy Middleton | 8 | |||
Kyle Bellm | 8 | |||
Dakota Gaines | 9 | |||
Chris Martin | 9 | |||
Matthew Bauldwin | 10 | |||
Blake Hahn | 10 | |||
Dustin Gates | 11 | |||
Brad Bowden | 11 | |||
Adam Miller | 12 | |||
Dale Wester | 12 | |||
Rick Pringle | 13 | |||
Dale Howard | 13 | |||
Harli White | 14 | |||
Wayne Johnson | 14 | |||
Michael Day | 15 | |||
Matt Covington | 16 | |||
Paul McMahan | 16 | |||
Sean McClelland | 16 |