MERIDIAN, Idaho — A year away from the racing didn’t seem to affect Joe Barton.
"This car’s a rocket ship. I love it."— Jordan Fitch
A little luck didn’t hurt in his pursuit to complete a successful Project Filter Pro-4 comeback Sunday at ASA-sanctioned Meridian Speedway, though.
The Nampa, Idaho driver finished a distant second to red-hot Jordan Fitch from Meridian, Idaho, in the night’s 35-lap Pro-4s feature, but Barton was far enough ahead of Boise, Idaho’s Ken Chandler to wrest the track championship from the 2010 king.
The door to the title opened when Chandler left the track before the first lap was complete because he was leaking fuel on the racetrack. Ultimately, Chandler finished three laps behind the leader and lost the 2011 crown by 19 points.
“I feel bad that Kenny had a fuel cap issue,” Barton said. “I really wanted to race him for the win, but sometimes it’s better to be lucky than good.”
Fitch was better than good, lapping every competitor except third-place Barton and second-place Jim Bailey of Middleton, Idaho. He still won the division’s final feature of the year by half a lap.
“This car’s a rocket ship. I love it,” Fitch said of his No. 10 racer.
Other champions crowned Sunday night included Meridian’s Chris Fenton in the NAPA Late Model Sportsman division; Boise’s Jasen Skyberg in the SPI Sprintcars (formerly the Idaho Sprintcar and Roadster League); and Boise’s Cody Garrett in the Jr. Stingers.
Other main event winners were Tyler Bailey of Middleton, Idaho in the NAPA Late Model Sportsman; Travis Burke of Boise in the SPI Sprintcars; Chance Davis of Emmett, Idaho, in the Jr. Stingers; and IP Freely (Bryan Duvall of Kuna, Idaho) in the Thunder Dogs.
In the SPI Sprintcars season finale, Burke, Nampa’s Kevin Detweiler and Skyberg ran nose-to-tail in their own little pack for the final 14 laps after they all cleared lapped traffic.
Running second, Detweiler bumped Burke’s car a couple times in the waning laps but never could get enough momentum to get around.
“I had no idea where they were. I felt something back there, though,” Burke said of his competitors. “Man, that was a tough race. I am wore out.
“The car was not handling. I was driving on seven-race tires. We had to do a lot of adjustments to make it hook up.”
Skyberg, whose closest competitor for the season title – Rex Reeve of Kuna, Idaho – exited the track early with mechanical problems, wasn’t necessarily content to run behind Burke, but he had no choice.
Skyberg was able to finish close enough to Burke to win the first series championship of his career. Burke entered the night in third place for the season and only 73 points behind Skyberg.
Chris Fenton finished his wild weekend soaking wet at ASA-sanctioned Meridian Speedway.
A year after winning the division’s rookie of the year award, Fenton capped a championship season in the NAPA Late Model Sportsman that could have been just as easily star-crossed.
Driving his fourth different race car of the season, Fenton finished second in the final 40-lap main event of the season, close enough to race winner Tyler Bailey to deny the Middleton, Idaho racer his shot at the title.
“I can’t believe it,” Fenton said. “It doesn’t matter what car I get in, I have a great crew setting it up.”
Fenton spoke from the frontstretch drench in champagne and water after his championship-clinching finish in a car usually driven by Meridian’s Mike Elliott.
Fenton was in the second car in as many nights Sunday after he wrecked his own car during Saturday’s Project Filter 99 segment races. Fenton helicoptered hard into the Turn 4 wall Saturday after contact with Bailey while racing for the lead.
All was forgiven by Sunday night, though.
“Tyler gave me a good run all year,” Fenton said. “You got to take your hat off to that kid. He’s a good racer.”
During his championship year, Fenton drove his own familiar black No. 23 before wrecking it. Then he jumped into a loaner car normally driven by Rich Urrutia of Caldwell, Idaho. He also drove Elliott’s No. 64 car one night after having trouble in qualifying with his own car. By the end of the year, he was racing a white No. 23.
In the Jr. Stingers, Cody Garrett needed only to keep his cool and finish the race for a championship.
But, even though he’s a young gun, he’s a race car driver so he shouldn’t be satisfied with just finishing.
The 14-year-old Boise, Idaho driver made a fantastic move near the end of the final Jr. Stingers race of the season to grab second place and cement his series championship.
“It feels really great to win the championship,” Garrett said.
His daring move around Nampa, Idaho 12-year-old Kendra Occhipinti put him as runner-up in the 25-lap main event to Chance Davis of Emmett, Idaho. Davis won the feature, but couldn’t get enough points to catch Garrett, whom he had been chasing in the points standings all year long.
The daughter of College of Western Idaho Professional Truck Driving Street Stocks reigning champion Melissa Weaver, Occhipinti ran out front in the main event, leading a three-car breakaway with Davis and Garrett in tow.
After Kuna, Idaho’s Ali Norton spun to trigger a yellow flag with nine laps left, Davis flashed past Occhipinti on the restart and rolled to a 5½-second lead.
In a wet and wacky Thunder Dogs main event that started as a 20-lapper but was changed to 30-lap contest at the boisterous request of the fans, IP Freely won with Bryan Duvall of Kuna, Idaho, on board. Points leader Catfish, piloted by Meridian’s John Pinkston, finished the race in the infield after suffering left front tire damage after getting T-boned with four laps to go.
The 2011 season wraps up Friday and Saturday with more championship action and the second visit of the year by the ASA Northwest Sprintcar Racing Association.
The annual Tom Elliott Sportsman Classic presented by Cricket kicks off the two-day finale with the first NSRA feature and the first main event of the championship doubleheader for the College of Western Idaho Professional Truck Driving Street Stocks. The Edmark Mini Stocks and Tates Rents Hornets series titles will be decided, too.
Saturday night’s Pepsi Championship Finale will be capped with fireworks, but not before explosive action on the track from the ASA NSRA sprintcars and the championship race for the Street Stocks. The Thunder Dogs return for their second-to-last race of the season, and a 75-lap Modified Open will be contested.
The $2,000 bounty for the first 10-second lap by a winged sprintcar at Meridian Speedway is still in the offing, too.
The gates open both nights at 4 p.m. with racing at 6:30 p.m.
Tickets each night are $15 for adults, $12.50 for senior citizens and military personnel with ID, $11 for ages 7-11 and children 6-and-under free. Buy tickets for Friday night online at www.meridianspeedway.com and save $5.
A family pass good for two adults and up to four children ages 7-11 each night is available for $46.
Fans can buy tickets online at www.meridianspeedway.com, print them off at home and avoid the long lines on race night.
For more information, visit www.meridianspeedway.com or call (208) 888-2813.
| Meridian Speedway Tates Rents Fan Night |
|---|
| Main events NAPA Late Model Sportsman championship (40 laps) – 1. Tyler Bailey, Middleton, Idaho; 2. Chris Fenton, Meridian, Idaho; 3. Dennis Wurtz II, Kuna, Idaho; 4. Scott Walker, Boise, Idaho; 5. Travis Anderson, Boise NAPA Late Model Sportsman season champion -- Fenton Jr. Stingers championship (25 laps) – 1. Chance Davis, Emmett, Idaho; 2. Cody Garrett, Boise; 3. Kendra Occhipinti, Nampa, Idaho; 4. Tyson Fuss, Kuna, Idaho; 5. Ali Norton, Kuna Jr. Stingers season champion -- Garrett SPI Transportation Sprintcars (40 laps) – 1. Travis Burke, Boise; 2. Kevin Detweiler, Nampa; 3. Jasen Skyberg, Boise; 4. Bruce Giglogily, Nampa; 5. Dean Waltman, Boise SPI Transportation Sprintcars season champion -- Skyberg Project Filter Pro-4s championship (35 laps) – 1. Jordan Fitch, Meridian; 2. Joe Barton, Nampa; 3. Jim Bailey, Middleton; 4. Dayne Amyx, Boise; 5. Melissa Weaver, Nampa Project Filter Pro-4s season champion -- Barton Thunder Dogs (20 laps) – Winner: IP Freely (Bryan Duvall, Kuna) Trophy dashes (Four laps each) SPI sprintcars – 1. Dan Lyons, Boise; 2. Andy Graybeal, Boise; 3. Mike Ortiz, Salt Lake City, Utah; 4. Burke NAPA Late Model Sportsman – 1. Wurtz; 2. Fenton; 3. Tyler Bailey; 4. Walker Project Filter Pro-4s – 1. Fitch; 2. Barton; 3. Ken Chandler, Boise; 4. Casey Tillman, Kuna Thunder Dogs – 1. Screamin’ Keegan (Kory Keegan, Boise); 2. Catfish (John Pinkston, Meridian); 3. Big Tuna (Stan Irons, Boise); 4. The Sledgehammer (Dave Jolley, Nampa) Jr. Stingers – 1. Jordan Kirkland, Boise; 2. Davis; 3. Garrett; 4. Hunter Gates, Nampa Heat races (Eight laps each) SPI sprintcars A Heat – 1. Burke; 2. Rex Reeve, Kuna; 3. Jasen Skyberg; 4. Detweiler; 5. Waltman B Heat – 1. Dan Lyons; 2. Kevin Chipman, Eagle, Idaho; 3. Graybeal; 4. Chet Dunn, Nampa; 5. Dave Skyberg, Boise NAPA Late Model Sportsman A Heat – 1. Wurtz; 2. Fenton; 3. Tyler Bailey; 4. Dan Lowther, Boise; 5. Walker B Heat – 1. Kim Bradford, Eagle, Idaho; 2. Travis Anderson, Boise; 3. Tyler Monroe, Star, Idaho; 4. Kane Thomasson, Kuna; 5. Bill Hale, Boise Project Filter Pro-4s A Heat – 1. Fitch; 2. Barton; 3. Jim Bailey; 4. Chandler; 5. DJ Lyons, Nampa B Heat – 1. Dayne Amyx, Boise; 2. Melissa Weaver, Nampa; 3. Terry Sherman, Boise; 4. Rob Taylor, Meridian; 5. Ron Peters, Meridian (Six laps each) Thunder Dogs A Heat – 1. Screamin’ Keegan; 2. Catfish; 3. The Sledgehammer; 4. Big Tuna; 5. Buzz Kill (Jimmie Miller, Meridian) B Heat – 1. IP Freely Too (Nic Forsea, Kuna); 2. Bucket List (Rob Bean, Kuna); 3. IP Freely; 4. Twisted Metal (Richard Scott, Meridian) C Heat – 1. Pink Thunder (Ron Johnson, Weiser, Idaho); 2. Furyus (Ben Frisbee, Meridian); 3. Overkill; 4. Joe Joe’s Grocery Getter (Joe Volm, Meridian); 5. Work Force (James DeMello, Boise) Jr. Stingers A Heat – 1. Norton; 2. Occhipinti; 3. Davis; 4. Garrett; 5. Jordan Kirkland, Boise B Heat – 1. Tyson Fuss, Kuna; 2. James Pahl, Caldwell, Idaho; 3. Jordan Harris, Nampa; 4. Alex Low, La Grande, Ore.; 5. Erin Huddleston, Meridian Fast times NAPA Late Model Sportsman – Walker, 13.908 seconds SPI Transportation Sprintcars –Detweiler, 13.698 Project Filter Pro-4s championship –Garrett, 17.002 (Track record; previous – Garrett, 17.349 on Aug. 6, 2011) |
