MADERA, California --With two scheduled 25-lap main event races, it was chance for Modified Stock Toyota drivers to earn double the points in one night. One unlikely driver stole some points from the rest of the class Saturday at the Madera Speedway.
Donnie Large Jr., the 2005 MST track champion, made a cameo appearance and finished with the most points on the night. Large finished in third place in the first main race of the night and won the second main event. It was his first race in the MST division since last season when he claimed the championship on Sep. 17. “I had to comeback and mark my territory one more time,” Large said. “It felt great coming back and racing with these guys. They’re all good racers but I told them I was going to get them at the end of the night.”
Large’s statement held true after his third place finish in which 15-year-old rookie driver Tanner Swanson won, while points leader Doug Bridger finished second.
It was Swanson first main event win of the season and second overall in Large’s former car. After Large won the championship, Swanson purchased his MST, drove it in the final race of the 2005 season on Oct. 10 and finished with a first place finish. Though Large had lost out against his old machine in the first race, he knew he’d be celebrating in the winner’s circle. “I let them have their little glory in that first one,” Large said. “We adjusted and adjusted, the car was so tight I was making adjustments all day long and it finally came together.” Large also showed a race car is only as good as the person driving it. Large proved he could win no matter what car he was driving in. “I didn’t come in to upset the points race but I did want to show that it’s not just the car I won in last year,” Large said. “It’s the driver.” Some drivers, though, weren’t expecting a show from “Mr. Excitement” as Large is known on the track by. To the surprise of other drivers, Large’s appearance on the track was sudden and caught other drivers off guard, including himself.
“I didn¹t know until today that I was going to drive,” Large said. “I got here today and just got in the car.” This was only a brief stay in the MST division for Large as he is committed to the 360 Supermodified class. But drivers shouldn’t be laxed by knowing he can race at any moment in a brand new car. “It’s a good car,” Large said. “We made this car just like the other car. If I had this car more often I beat them in every race.” In the race Large won, Jeff Duran took second place, while Shon Woods made his first trip of the season to the winners circle by finishing third. While Large somewhat scrambled the points race in the MST division, Toyota Sedans driver Jason Kerns is making a climb to the top. Kerns won his second consecutive race of the season to the dismay of Randy Fleming Jr. “I disappointed a lot of my fans tonight,” Fleming said. The defending Toyota Sedan track champion started off the season winning three in row, but now has found himself coming in second in the last two races. Kerns, meanwhile, is starting to develop Flemings ability to take the lead and not be caught. Now the pendulum has swung in Kerns favor. After lap nine, Kerns got out to the front when he passed Ronnie Roberts and Stan Hankins.
On that lap, Fleming also went past Roberts and Hankins but couldn’t track down Kerns.
From there Kerns won the 30-lap race, with Fleming coming in second and John McCollum Sr. finishing in third. Fleming went into the race as the point’s leader but his lead is shrinking with the emergence of Kerns. Former Toyota Sedans driver Rick Minor was leading in points and picked up some more after he won his 15-lap Hornets races. “I had to work for these laps tonight and I had to work for this win too,” Minor said. “These guys are getting a feel for the track and the thing about is all these cars are all equal.” In the win, Minor held off Paul Spencer, who finished second and Kathy Evans, who ended in third place. In the Selsor Construction & Demolition Company street stocks race, Roger Selsor was the first driver besides Tony Schmitz and Chuck Aguirre to win this season. Jerry Selsor finished second and Aaron Reeves came in third. The 50-lap race for the Late Model Sportsmen went to Rodney Funston, who narrowly beat out Clovis’ Rick Thompson. Ernie Coppo Jr. was third in the race. The finished was later changed after final tech inspection led to disqualification.
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