Inside Line Promotions – ATWOOD, Tenn. (May 31, 2017) – Derek Hagar rebounded from a rough start to the USCS Speedweek by winning Round 4 on Monday at Clayhill Motorsports.
The busy week began last Friday at Hattiesburg Speedway in Hattiesburg, Miss., where Hagar won the dash and advanced from fourth to second place in a heat race to start the main event on the pole.
“We had a good start and took the lead,” he said. “We led the first four or five laps. We got to traffic pretty quick. Marshall Skinner was pressuring me. Lapped traffic was crazy and they had a big pileup. We didn’t have anywhere to go and piled into them. I was able to get back out there and finish the race to salvage some Speedweek points.”
Hagar rallied to post an 11th-place result, but the team discovered the frame was damaged prior to Saturday’s event at Jackson Motor Speedway in Byram, Miss. That forced Hagar to pull down his spare car. However, that didn’t slow down the team.
Hagar maneuvered from eighth to win a heat race. A four-car feature inversion lined him up on the outside of the second row for the main event.
“We had a great car all night,” he said. “We had a good battle with Gary Taylor a majority of the race. We finally got by him for second, but I ran out of laps to do anything with Tim Crawley. I’d like to have another caution or another five laps to see what would have happened. We chased him down and threw a slider in turns three and four, but he drove around us.”
Hagar finished second.
The third Speedweek race on Sunday at Greenville Speedway in Greenville, Miss., rained out after Hagar won the dash.
Clayhill Motorsports hosted the midpoint of the Speedweek on Monday. Hagar advanced from fifth to third place in a heat race.
“We were sixth in points after the heats and they drew a six so that put us on the pole for the main event,” he said. “We took the lead on the start. The race went flag to flag without any cautions and we held on for the win. Once we got through good traffic I was able to maneuver really well. It was pretty big to win. We were able to make some money for getting the other car repaired and some spare parts built back up.”
The second half of the USCS Speedweek features races this Thursday at Talledega Short Track in Eastaboga, Ala.; Friday at Magnolia Motor Speedway in Columbus, Miss.; and Saturday at Riverside International Speedway in West Memphis, Ark.
QUICK RESULTS –
May 26 – Hattiesburg Speedway in Hattiesburg, Miss. – Dash: 1 (2); Heat race: 2 (4); Feature: 11 (1).
May 27 – Jackson Motor Speedway in Byram, Miss. – Heat race: 1 (8); Feature: 2 (4).
May 29 – Clayhill Motorsports in Atwood, Tenn. – Heat race: 3 (5); Feature: 1 (1).
SEASON STATS –
15 races, 3 wins, 10 top fives, 10 top 10s, 11 top 15s, 12 top 20s
UP NEXT –
USCS SPEEDWEEK: Thursday at Talledega Short Track in Eastaboga, Ala.; Friday at Magnolia Motor Speedway in Columbus, Miss.; and Saturday at Riverside International Speedway in West Memphis, Ark.
MEDIA LINKS –
Website: http://www.DerekHagarRacing.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/HagarDerek
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – Xtreme Race Graphics
Located in Marion, Ark., Xtreme Race Graphics creates custom graphics, banners and wraps. For more information, visit http://www.XtremeRaceGraphics.com.
“Dustin is a real good artist,” Hagar said. “He has a real good imagination. If you want the car to look the best, I’d recommend Xtreme Race Graphics.”
Hagar would also like to thank Dynotech Performance, DHR Suspension, B&D Towing, J&J Auto Racing, Fragola Performance Systems, ButlerBuilt Professional Seat Systems, Weld Wheels, Hinchman Racewear, Wix Filters, Wings Unlimited, FK Rod Ends, Valvoline and Ti64 for their continued support.
INSIDE LINE PROMOTIONS –
Inside Line Promotions specializes in affordable public relations and media management for motor sports drivers, teams, sponsors, tracks, series, events, organizations and manufacturers. ILP Founder Shawn Miller leverages professional journalism with new media technologies and social networking to improve your exposure and the return on investment for your sponsors.
To meet the media relations needs of your program by joining Team ILP, contact Shawn at 541-510-3663 or Shawn@InsideLinePromotions.com. For more information on Inside Line Promotions, visit http://www.InsideLinePromotions.com.