Night number three of the IMCA.TV Winternationals at the Cocopah Speedway on Friday, January 7th would see four new winners emerge in victory lane while Ethan Dotson would show great speed again as he won for the second straight night in the Modified division. Once again the field was a big one with over two hundred race cars signing in to race while over two dozen new drivers would make their first appearance as the series approached its halfway point.
As the week works on, the program has gotten smoother and smoother each night as the drivers figure out the race track, management does an even better job of preparing the track and the whole program flows better. Friday night, would see the show conclude at its earliest finishing time of the week while still providing just as much racing for the fans while giving the drivers the same opportunities to make the main event.
Things haven't changed in that regard although the number of B Features in each class was increased on Friday night. The smaller races seemed to go much smoother with not nearly as many yellow flags as the bigger ones did and this was one case where more was actually quicker in the long run. Hobby Stocks and Sport Compacts would again not need a B Feature(s) although the number in both of those classes continues to edge upward.
The tech area got a little bit busier on Friday night and that generally is not a good thing. There would be disqualifications of several drivers over the course of the night but for those annoying, not speed producing, infractions. Drivers got DQ'd Friday for everything from not racing with safety shoes on to not having their approved stickers on their wheels. This is the kind of stuff that just drives me wild but certainly common sense should prevail here. The reason some of these safety rules are in place is because drivers don't think enough to take care of themselves and someone needs to make sure that they are driving safe.
The running order for the feature races was changed up just a bit on Friday night with the Stock Cars taking to the track for their feature race first. Twenty four cars would take the green for the Stock Car main and it was Josh Most taking the early lead as he looks to finally get to victory lane in the Stock Car after having been close so far this week. He would lead the first ten laps of the race while fighting through two yellow flag slowdowns and fighting off the likes of Bo Partain, Zach Madrid and Shelby Williams.
With most of the field running the high side, it would be Partain who would break through using the low side and his strong drive would see him slip under Most and take over the lead. He was really quick in that low groove and with the last sixteen laps of the race going nonstop, Partain would pull away for an impressive win. Chase Berkeley would also start to make the low side work and with a late charge, edge past Most to take the second spot at the finish. Only four cars would fail to finish the race and not a single car would be lapped.
Modifieds would take to the track next and this would be the Ethan Dotson show as it took him only two laps to pass early leader Josh Cain and once into the lead, he would pull away from the field. extending his advantage to nearly a full straightaway and that is a hard thing to do on this big and fast track. With previous winner Kollin Hibdon on the pole, a two car shootout was expected but Hibdon shocked everyone by spinning on his own early in the race, triggering the first yellow.
As Dotson led, Cain tried to fight back but he spun in heavy traffic in turn three, triggering a big wreck that eliminated Justin McCreadie, Mike McKinney, Trip Gaylord and himself. After that the race was smooth sailing with Dotson pulling away from the field for an easy win. Tim Ward got to second after starting tenth but he couldn't touch Dotson and would settle for the runner up honors with Zach Madrid having a good run for third.
Some different drivers started toward the front of the Sport Mod feature on Friday night and this would produce some different faces in victory lane on the podium. Minnesota driver Tim Bergerson would grab the early lead and pull away from Chris Toth. Braden Richards would drive up to second as the first yellow waved for fluid on the track. With the surface showing a lot of rubber following the Modified feature, the inside line was the way to go but to slip out of that narrow groove would be a very bad thing so the front of the field lined up single file as the green came back out.
Bergerson continued to lead but it was clear he was having trouble holding the bottom off the corners and finally, on lap fourteen, he slipped high enough down the back chute to let Richards slip under him for the lead. And once in front, Richards quickly opening up several car lengths over the pack as he pulled away.
Under green the rest of the way, Richards would continue to expand his lead and would drive home for the win. Bergerson continued to struggle and would give up finishing positions two and three to Ryan Peery and Joe Feyen. There was much excitement in victory lane for the Iowa driver who got his first Sport Mod feature win after just having moved up from the Hobby Stocks.
The Hobby Stock feature, as they have been this week, was a wild one with the drivers running multiple grooves with much slicing and dicing as the rubbered up track didn't seem to hinder them. Chandler Dodge led the first five laps before he was overtaken by Bobby Horton and it was looking like he might pull off a three peat for the week.
However, another local competitor in Brian Brown, of which they apparently have many struggles with each other during the season, broke out again with Brown taking over the top spot at the halfway point and despite repeated efforts by Horton to regain the lead, Brown would drive on for the win with Horton a close second and Nick Posey third.
Kaytee Devries started on the pole for the Sport Compact feature as she looked for a second feature win here this week and she would lead the first six laps over a tight swarm of cars. Then Billy Foultz, making his first run of the week, would storm up from the fourth row to pass Devries and take over the lead.
But last night's winner Kevin Reuter, after starting on the front row but then slumping back in the field, would reenergize and come driving to the front. At the halfway point of the race, he drove past Foultz and would take over the lead, a lead he would maintain the rest of the way to claim his second straight feature win. A late yellow would bunch the field and Devries picked up the pace on the final restart as she would drive past Foultz to take second over him at the finish.
A new term was coined here this racing week in the racing lexicon and that would be the official "Sunbreak." With the early starting time and the lack of cloudy days here on the desert, at a certain point in the proceedings, a break must be taken as the sun shines directly into the eyes of the drivers as they race down the back stretch and for each night, at a certain time this pause must be taken for safety reasons. This gives a nice chance for any necessary track work, a restroom break for those so inclined or a chance for those drivers still wearing their flip-flops to slip on those driving boots.
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