KINGSPORT — The “Concrete Jungle†came to life under the full moon Friday night with a pair of first-time Late Model winners and a brawl after the Super Street race.
Bruce Crumbley was “King of the Jungle†for the first 40-lap Late Model feature at Kingsport Speedway. In a race that featured five lead changes and multiple cautions, Crumbley in the white No. 33 Chevrolet made the winning pass of Derek Lane with five laps to go.
Lane, in the Davey Allison themed No. 28 Chevrolet, had passed Crumbley for the lead seven laps earlier.
“Derek and I have raced hard for years. We’ve run side-by-side without touching,†Crumbley said. “He got away on a restart, but we ran him down. He slid up the track which gave us the opportunity to get by. I have two Pure 4 championships here, but this is my first Late Model victory. I’m grateful to have this success against the caliber of drivers we’ve got.â€
Points leader Zeke Shell had hard contact when Ross Dalton’s car shut off in front of him. Later he had a spin, but overcame the obstacles to finish third. Alex Miller was fourth and 76-year-old local legend Brad Teague from ºÚÁÏÊÓƵ was fifth.
Dalton, a North Carolina racer in the No. 50 Chevrolet, took the early lead in the second Late Model feature and never looked back.
It was his first time racing at Kingsport Speedway in a car prepared by multi-time track champion Kres VanDyke. It the second week in a row the No. 50 car found its way to victory lane. Teenager Mason Walters drove the car to a win the previous Friday.
“I came here last week with Mason Walters on one my rental development cars. I said if I could get a free weekend where I could come up here and race myself I would do it,†Dalton said. “Luckily, it worked out back-to-back weekends. My good friend, Kres VanDyke, was willing to help me work on my race cars and get my program in better shape.â€
Dalton had an ignition coil burn up in the first race, but had no problems at all in the nightcap. Lane put together another strong run to finish second ahead of Brad Housewright, Miller and Lexi Arnold.
FEUDING AND FIGHTING
The action got heated in a hurry in the Super Street feature when contact between Tristen Barnes and Joey Owens resulted in a multi-car wreck. Owens showed his displeasure with yelling and hand signals at Barnes.
Barnes passed Josh Gobble for the race lead on lap 20. HIs brother, Kyle Barnes in the No. 00, made contact with Greg Bohanon’s No. 24 car 12 laps later which sent both for a spin in a battle for second.
Tristen Barnes scored the win in the No. 15 Chevrolet followed by Gobble and Austin Walters. Marty Tunnell and Marty Robinson rounded out the top five.
The action wasn’t over as Bohanon ran down the track towards Kyle Barnes’ car which was parked near Tristen’s in victory lane. A brawl between members of both crews ensued on the frontstretch before it was finally broken up.
OTHER CLASSES
Daniel McMurray crossed the finish line first in his white No. 0? Monte Carlo in the Street Stock class. Excited about his first victory, McMurray jumped on the top of his car reminiscence of Rusty Wallace’s 1989 NASCAR championship celebration.
It had been a hard-earned victory for the Fall Branch driver with the race shortened to just 13 laps. Multiple wrecks, including one at the start with front-runners Owens, Rusty Clendenin and Rob Austin, caused lengthy caution periods and the race to end under a time limit.
McMurray’s celebration was short-lived following a disqualification in post-race inspection. Clendenin was awarded the win with Austin, Luke Fox and Tony Dockery behind him.
Steven Watts continued his domination of the Pure 4 ranks with his eighth win of the season at his hometown track. Chad Jeffers held off David Trent in a spirited battle for second with Dallas Morelock and Frank Womack right in the mix.
Nasty Jones took a nasty hit at the turn 2 wall, but the driver didn’t suffer any major injuries.
Kevin Canter from Abingdon was the Mod 4 winner with Chris Amburgey runner-up. Rocky Yates, Nathan Amburgey and John Fox rounded out the top five. It was the seventh win of the season for Canter in the Dale Earnhardt inspired black No. 3 Ford.
Mount Carmel racer Jordan Ensor won the opening race of the night for the Crown Vic class. Keith McMurray finished second with Tyler Conway, Joseph McGill and Ben Shelton taking the next three spots. Dakota Collins capped off the night by winning the Stock FWD feature.
