Malden, MO - 9/13/08 - Tim Crawley from Benton Arkansas drove Mike Ward’s Boatersports/David McCarver powered/Ward Racing #88 to victory lane in the 25-lap O’Reilly United Sprint Car Series Missouri State Championship main event on Saturday night at Malden Speedway. It was Crawley's third win in-a-row. his season winning slate went to double digits in the series as he also captured his tenth O'Reilly USCS Mid South Thunder Tour feature win of the season. The 2000 Missouri State Champion, Marshall Skinner from West Memphis, Arkansas followed in the runner-up spot and 2001 Missouri State Champion, Terry Gray from Bartlett, Tennessee took the other podium spot for the second night in a row.
Crawley started in the K&N Filters Pole position after drawing a zero in the K&N Filters Pole Award drawing on the front stretch in front of the crowd assembled for the Championship. The three veterans, Crawley, Marshall Skinner , Terry Gray and young gun Lee Sowell from Nesbit, Mississippi were locked into the front of the Championship finale after finishing in the top four positions in Friday night’s preliminary feature. Crawley took full advantage of his starting position by jumping into the lead in turn one of the first lap and putting space between himself, Skinner and Gray. Both former Malden Speedway feature winners and past State Champions stayed within striking distance of Crawley most of the race.
Three caution periods pulled the field to Crawley’s rear bumper on the restarts. With Gray and Skinner on harder tires they hoped for a late race advantage, but Crawley conserved his rubber to hold of Skinner’s hard charging finish over the final four laps to reach victory lane for the second night in a row at Malden Speedway. Skinner from chased Crawley home in the runner-up spot followed by the six-time O'Reilly USCS series Champion Terry Gray from Bartlett, Tennessee in third place. Seventeen year-old 2006 O’Reilly USCS Rookie of the Year, Derek Hagar from Marion, Arkansas who won the Engler Machine and Tool First Heat and then finished in the fourth position. Twenty-one year-old young gun, Kent Buckley from Farmington, Missouri who won the Butlerbuilt Third Heat Race, rounded out the top five finishers in the Championship finale.
Twenty year-old Lee Sowell led the balance of the 21-car field from six states to the finish line in sixth place. The 2007 O'Reilly USCS Rookie of the Year, Chris Williams from Memphis, Tennessee followed in seventh place. Eighteen year-old Mark Shirshekan from Farmington, Missouri garnered the Rookie of the Race honors with an eighth place finish. Current USCS Rookie point’s leader, Anthony Nicholson from Bartlett, Tennessee followed in ninth. Veteran sprint car racr, Garry Bell from Memphis, Tennessee rounded out the top ten.
Crawley won the evenings six cars, six laps Lucas Oil Power Dash. Derek Hagar won the 10-lap Engler Machine and Tool First Heat and Kent Buckley won the Butlerbuilt Second Heat Race. Chris Williams started thirteenth and then passed six cars in the main event to garner the Huggins Cams Hard Charger Award. Rookie of the Race honors went to Mark Shirshekan for the second night in a row and Derek Hagar earned the Hoosier Tire Young Gun of the Race.
The O’Reilly USCS Mid South thunder Tour series next competes at Greenville Speedway (www.greenvillespeedway.net) in Greenville, Mississippi on Friday and Saturday October 31st and November 1st in the 2nd Annual Gumbo Nationals. That event also features the Rislone USCS Modified Series open wheel modified cars in a two-day United Speed Contest Sanction double-header. For more info on that and other events please visit www.uscsracing.com or call 770-460-7223 or at 404-886-5913.