By Kristi O’Brien

Tucson — Fans cheered on a new victor in the Mini Stock division at Tucson Speedway Saturday.   Matt Vincent led from the pole and dominated the entire race. Tim Blodgett finished second, and Jim Bates third.  Allen Dowty had the pole for the Hornet feature. Ryan Pagano took the lead from his second place starting position but lost it on lap three to Kyle Milburg.  Milburg led the field to the checkered flag followed by his father, George Milburg, in second and Allen Dowty in third.

Bobby Erdman led a field of Southwest Orthopedic Surgery Specialists X-Mods to the green flag Saturday. Jeff Bennett had the lead coming out of lap one. Ned Champine and Bob Cramb took over second and third.  Champine began closing the gap on Bennett by lap seven with Cramb close behind. Cramb took second from Champine on lap nine, and was on Bennett’s tail by lap 12.   Cramb drove to the inside to pass Bennett on lap 13 and again on lap 15 but could not make it stick.  On lap 18, Cramb hoped to use lapped traffic to get the advantage, but Bennett was able to hold onto his top spot and drive to victory lane.  Cramb finished second, Champine third in theSouthwest Orthopedic Surgery Specialists Modifieds .

Two-time winner Dylan Jones made it three in a row Saturday in the Sportsman division. Ken Hunt finished second and Al Peters came in third.

Dylan Jones and Loren Sheffield at Tucson Speedway

Start Stock drivers Alyssa Guevera and Zoram Ruiz battled behind the Sportsman division trading places for the lead.  In the final laps of the race, Guevera took the lead and the checkered flag.

Brandon Schilling had the pole for the 50-lap Super Late Model feature with Rick Butler in second.  On the first lap, Ron Norman drove to the inside line to pass Butler.  Before he could make the pass stick, Jeff Spencer and Mike Foster were involved in an incident bringing out the caution.  Spencer got sideways on the frontstretch making contact with Foster.  According to Spencer, he had been battling the setup on his No. 00 Super Late.  “The car was pushing really bad in the heat race. We made some adjustments for the main and it was too loose.”  Both were able to resume under their own power. Spencer left the track with damage to the right front. Foster was able to continue the race.

Jeff Spencer Super Late Model Qualifying at Tucson Speedway

On lap three, Norman again tried taking second from Butler when J.D. White brought out the caution after spinning coming into turn one. Norman made the pass on Butler on lap four. Matt Levin took third from Butler on lap seven.  Schilling lost the lead to Norman on the eighth lap, Norman couldn’t shake Schilling. Levin took advantage of the battle up front gaining ground on the leaders.  Norman, Schilling and Levin had separated themselves from the rest of the pack until the caution flew for Ned Champine in the wall in turn four.

Schilling took the lead back on the restart with Norman second and Butler reclaiming third. Curtis Lansing had fourth and Levin rounded out the scoreboard.  Norman again took the lead on lap 17 and began to pull away from the field.  On lap 28, Levin and White made contact, causing Levin to spin on the front stretch. He was sent to the back of the field.  Racing resumed with Norman, Schilling and White in the top three spots.  Levin quickly moved through traffic and was back to fourth by lap 33.  He took third from White on lap 38.  With five to go, the No. 10 of Levin went up in smoke in turn four. Levin was able to coast off the track.

On the restart, Schilling took the lead from Norman.  Norman and Schilling raced side by side under the white flag, but it was Norman in the end taking the checkered flag. Mariah McGriff took third.

Mariah McGriff with another Podium Finish at Tucson Speedway

Ron Norman with a Tucson Speedway Win!

Mike Foster and White ended the night with a bang after finishing fourth and fifth. White got sideways in turn one and Foster had nowhere to to. The two collided and hit the wall. Both cars suffered major damage.

Racing resumes May 18 with Military and Border Patrol Night. Admission with government identification will by $5. Family members also will be admitted for $5 each. For information, visit www.tucsonspeedway.com.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RdbPPgbDApM

The moment the car door opens in the parking lot at Tucson Speedway, the Entertainment begins. Fans will be greeted by the unmistakable sounds of the popular Tucson Band, the Tumblin’ Dice, recently performing at the Bashful Bandit. Once the gate opens at 5 pm “Big Red” our friendly fire truck is available for children and parents to take free tours through the pits while the race teams are preparing and tuning their cars the nights racing action.

Super Late Model Qualifying begins at 5:30 with the long time Tucson Race Official, Pete Smith, at the timing board as each driver has 2 laps to set quick time for the night. Following qualifying and at 6pm all the cars, the drivers and team members file on to the track. The next 45 minutes fans are able to visit with and meet the drivers who thrill the fans and who put the Speed in the “Action Track Built for Speed”

Following a very special rendition of the National Anthem, the Racing Entertainment begins. Join us at Tucson Speedway,

Dylan Jones and Loren Sheffield at Tucson Speedway

“The Action Track Built for Speed”, for a great night of affordable family entertainment. Adults $12, Senior& Military $ 10, Young Adults 11-16 $ 6, under 11 years of age free. SPECIAL Family of 2 Adults and 2 Children Only $ 25 . . . a $12 Savings!

Take I-10 Rita Road Exit 273 South. Turn left at Rocket Starve and follow to the track located at 11955 S Harrison.