(Photo by B Young Photography)
Inside Line Promotions – LEXINGTON, Tenn. (May 30, 2019) – A pair of podium finishes at Riverside International Speedway last Saturday night highlighted a busy weekend of racing for Marshall Skinner.
Skinner charged from third to first on the opening lap of the USCS Series A Main and then battled with eventual winner Jeff Swindell before finishing second – one spot ahead of Swindell’s brother, Sammy.
“Jeff and I had a real good race,” Skinner said. “We swapped the lead a number of times and raced side by side a lot. I thought I had him with four laps to go when I pulled beside him and he was pinned behind a lapped car. But the yellow came out and that gave him an open track the rest of the race.
“Afterwards, when Jeff thanked me for racing him clean, I told him I had the honor of finishing between two of the baddest sprint car drivers to ever come from this area. But I would’ve rather had the honor of beating both of them.”
Earlier in the evening, Skinner led the 305 sprint car feature for 15 of its 20 laps before finishing third.
“John McCord called me on Thursday afternoon and asked me if I’d drive his car,” Skinner said regarding his rare start in a 305. “We had a great three-car race with Dale Howard and Cody Gardner. I was happy with the way it went since I’ve only driven a 305 a few times.”
Skinner followed Saturday’s effort with a pair of top-10 finishes with the USCS Series at Old No. 1 Speedway in Harrisburg, Ark., on Sunday and at Lexington 104 Speedway on Monday.
“I just burned my tires off on Sunday and fell back,” Skinner said in reference to his eighth-place finish at Old No. 1 Speedway after starting fifth.
His fourth night of racing in as many nights caught up with him physically on Monday at Lexington 104 Speedway, where he started on the pole and finished sixth.
“I ain’t gonna lie, I got tired in that race,” said Skinner, who had raced just one other time this year prior to the weekend. “Around Lap 10 I dropped from third to sixth and I was ready for the race to be over.”
Skinner began the weekend on Friday at Greenville Speedway in Greenville, Miss., where he surprisingly had his most disappointing night of the four. Fortunately, it wasn’t indicative of the nights to follow.
“I really struggled there,” he said. “That was surprising since I’ve usually done well there in the past. But this time I was four steps behind in everything. I spun out in my heat race and ended up fifth in the B Main, missing the transfer by one spot.”
Skinner will take this weekend off from driving to help his friend, Derek Hagar, at the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series event in Nashville, Tenn. He plans to return to driving the following weekend with the USCS Series on June 6 at Talladega Short Track in Eastaboga, Ala.; June 7 at Hattiesburg Speedway in Hattiesburg, Miss.; and June 8 at Jackson Motor Speedway in Byram, Miss.
QUICK RESULTS –
May 24 – Greenville Speedway in Greenville, Miss. – Heat race: 5 (3); B Main: 5 (3).
May 25 – Riverside International Speedway in West Memphis, Ark. (305 sprint car) – Heat race: 1 (5); Feature: 3 (1).
May 25 – Riverside International Speedway in West Memphis, Ark. (360 sprint car) – Heat race: 2 (5); Feature: 2 (4).
May 26 – Old No. 1 Speedway in Harrisburg, Ark. – Dash: 2 (1); Heat race: 1 (1); Feature: 8 (5).
May 27 – Lexington 104 Speedway in Lexington, Tenn. – Feature: 6 (1).
SEASON STATS –
6 races, 0 wins, 3 top fives, 5 top 10s, 5 top 15s, 5 top 20s
UP NEXT –
June 6 at Talladega Short Track in Eastaboga, Ala.; June 7 at Hattiesburg Speedway in Hattiesburg, Miss.; and June 8 at Jackson Motor Speedway in Byram, Miss., with the USCS Series
MEDIA LINKS –
Twitter: https://twitter.com/sprint26
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Marshall-Skinner-Motorsports-207879425896412/
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“Jeff and Stacy Casper of B&D Towing are super people,” Skinner said. “I’ve known Stacy since school and I later met Jeff through work. They own one of the major towing companies in the Memphis area. I really appreciate their support.”
Skinner would also like to thank J&J Auto Racing, Stinson’s Industrial, Final Touch Auto Collision Center, Gant Concrete Pumping, Big Earl Farms, DHR Suspensions, Robert Thorne Landscaping, American Outdoor Inc., CnB Chubby, West Tennessee Expediting, West Tennessee Expediting, Xtreme Race Graphics, Water & Wastewater Services, Cooper Racing Enterprises, BB&T Racing, FSR Radiators, Hinchman Racewear, FK Rod Ends, Killer Coatings, Bell Helmets, Engler Machine & Tool, Inc., Schoenfeld Headers, DMI, Huggins Cams, PAC Racing Springs, Brown & Miller Racing Solutions, KDN Promotions, Stealth Recovery, I-55 Towing, Oval Paints, Huntington’s Disease Awareness, OMP America and Deatherage Opticians 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.