Canipe Jr. / Hudspeth Split the Pair at Hickory Motor Speedway

(Newton, NC - July 16^th, 2018)    After an exciting week of Monster Truck Madness, Hickory Motor Speedway welcomed back the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series for a full slate of thrilling racing action on Dale Earnhardt Chevrolet Birthday Night at the Races presented by Coca-Cola.

The NASCAR Whelen All American Series Late Models would be the first to roll off for the 40 lap feature of two on the schedule for the premiere division. Dexter Canipe Jr. in the #5 would top the charts in qualifying and start from the pole with Mike Darne in the #21 to his outside. NHRA Pro Stock driver Tanner Gray in the #2 would take a circle track excursion and start from the third spot with 2-time Hickory Motor Speedway track champion Austin McDaniel in the #12 starting to his outside. Canipe and Darne would run the first handful of laps side by side in a spirited battle for the top spot. Canipe would eventually nose out to the lead with Darne close behind. The pack would race for positions throughout the field with everyone working to catch the front pair. Canipe would drive on to the win with Darne making a late charge, but having to settle for 2nd. McDaniel would finish 3rd, Gray would grab 4th, and Chris Hudspeth in the #28 would finish out the top 5 in 5th.

Hitting the track next would be the Renegades for 20 laps of side by side action. Justin Austin in the #1 would lead the field to the green flag with the #8 of Kenneth Roberts to his outside. Austin would take the early lead as David Hasson in the #83 would drive hard to reel in the front pair. Austin would prove too strong on the night and grab another win as he stays perfect on the year as he now has 6 wins in 6 starts. Hasson would hold on for 2nd with Roberts finishing 3rd. Brian Larkin in the #7 would come home in 4th with the #4 of Matt Fox rounding out the top 5.

The One Design Super Trucks would be the next division to see action as they would hit the track for 35 laps of battle. Charlie Neill in the #26 would set the fast lap in qualifying and would start from the point with the #13 of Dakota Slagle to his outside. Neill and Slagle would put on a fierce battle for the lead as would Allen Huffman in the #51 and Sheflon Clay in the #15 for the third position. Neill would pull to the lead with Slagle closing from behind. Multiple cautions would slow the event with the top 5 changing positions nearly every lap. Neill would survive a spin and a black flag for loose bodywork to drive on to another win at the Birthplace of the NASCAR Stars. Clay would move up to finish 2nd with Huffman finishing 3rd. Slagle would finish 4th and Sawyer Frady in the #99 would round out the top 5 in 5th.

Round #7 of the Paramount Kia ‘Big 10’ Chace for the Championship would be in store next as the Paramount Auto Group Limited Late Models would the to the track. Taylor Gray in the #15 would set the fast time in qualifying and start from the point with the #14 of Vince Midas to his outside. The second row would be made up of Gage Painter in the #12P in third and Mason Ludwig in the #12L would start fourth. Gray would jump to the early lead with Midas giving way to Painter as he would move inside for second. Gray would set a torrid pace with the field jockeying for positions throughout. After several mid-race restarts lap 35 would see a huge crash with half the field collected after contact from Midas would send Gray spinning in front of the field. Brandon Lemke in the #22 and Pat Rachels in the #34 would make up the front row and set the field for a thrilling finish. Lemke would take the lead while Rachels would settle in close behind. Rachels would bide his time and make his move with three laps to go and take the lead. Lemke settled in close behind and appeared to be ready to settle for second. However, as Rachels dove into turn 1 on the final lap his car would wash up the track and Lemke would drive under him coming off of turn 2 to assume the lead. Rachels would make one last run in turn three, but would come up short as Lemke would beat him back to the checkered flag and take the win. Rachels would finish 2nd with Midas coming back to finish 3rd. Carter Davison in the #57 would overcome starting deep in the field and finish 4th as Todd Midas in the #50 would move up to finish 5th.

Rolling onto the grid next would see the Cosmo Motors Street Stocks hit the track for their 30 lap feature. Jeff Sparks in the #7 would pace qualifying and start from the pole position while Troy DeMarmels in the #18 would start to his outside. The start would see Mark Whitten in the #77 and the #18 of Troy DeMarmels spin on the backstretch. Whitten would sustain damage that would end his night, however DeMarmels would continue. The restart would see Sparks at the front and Jonathon Smith in the #16 to his outside. Smith would move to the inside of Sparks getting into turn 1 with 8 laps to go but could not hold the spot and would spin down the backstretch. The restart would see Sparks and Drew Cox in the #21 battling on the front row. The pair would battle side by side for several laps until Sparks would nose ahead and Cox would battle with Marshall Sutton in the #64 and Jared Broadbent in the #74 for second. Sparks would hold on for the win while Sutton would grab the 2nd spot. DeMarmels would bounce back from the early spin and finish 3rd. Cox would finish 4th and Broadbent would round out the top 5.

The NASCAR Whelen All American Series Late Models would put an end to their night with the running of their second 40 lap feature. With the invert from race one Monty Cox in the #21 would start from the pole with Mitch Walker in the #29 to his outside. Chris Hudspeth in the #28 and Tanner Gray in the #2 would make up row two. Cox would grab the early lead with Walker battling for second with Hudspeth. Hudspeth would nose ahead and set sail for the leader. First race winner, Dexter Canipe Jr in the #5 would have to start from the rear but he didn’t plan to stay there. Canipe methodically worked his way towards the front with the #95 of Jacob Heafner close in tow. Hudspeth would catch Cox and work his way around him and try to distance himself from the hard charging Canipe and company. Canipe would work his way all the way up to second with around 15 laps remaining in the race. Hudspeth however had built a substantial lead and nothing short of a caution would bridge that gap. Hudspeth would drive on to the checkers and score his first NASCAR Whelen All American Series Hickory Motor Speedway Late Model victory. Canipe would hold on for 2nd with Heafner finishing 3rd. Cox would bring home a 4th with Austin McDaniel in the #12 finishing 5th.

Finishing off the night’s events would see the mayhem and madness of the Smash & Crash Series on the track for a 10 lap skirmish. The tractor tire would make another appearance and would offer an added obstacle for the always exciting feature. Matt Fox in the #3 would grab another victory with Kendra Ham in the #44 finishing 2nd and Angie Cook in the #53 coming home in 3rd.

Next week at America’s Most Famous Short Track will see the NASCAR Whelen All American Series back in action with Hamilton and Herring Orthodontics Night at the Races. In two weeks we will have the NASCAR Whelen All American Series back in action on Sam’s Club Night at the Races.

For more info check us out at www.hickorymotorspeedway.com, on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Hickory Motor Speedway
Race Results for 7/14/2018
Late Model - Qualifying
Finish	Car No	Driver	Hometown	DQ/DNS/DNF
1	5C	Dexter Canipe, Jr.	Conover, NC
2	21M	Mike Darne	Mooresville, NC
3	2G	Tanner Gray	,
4	12	Austin McDaniel	Harrisburg, NC
5	95H	Jacob Heafner	Dallas, NC
6	29M	Mitch Walker	Newton, NC
7	21	Monty Cox	Granite Falls, NC
8	28H	Chris Hudspeth	Ronda, NC
Late Model - Twin I
Finish	Car No	Driver	Hometown	DQ/DNS/DNF
1	5C	Dexter Canipe, Jr.	Conover, NC
2	21M	Mike Darne	Mooresville, NC
3	12	Austin McDaniel	Harrisburg, NC
4	2G	Tanner Gray	,
5	28H	Chris Hudspeth	Ronda, NC
6	29M	Mitch Walker	Newton, NC
7	21	Monty Cox	Granite Falls, NC
8	95H	Jacob Heafner	Dallas, NC
Late Model - Twin II
Finish	Car No	Driver	Hometown	DQ/DNS/DNF
1	28H	Chris Hudspeth	Ronda, NC
2	5C	Dexter Canipe, Jr.	Conover, NC
3	95H	Jacob Heafner	Dallas, NC
4	21	Monty Cox	Granite Falls, NC
5	12	Austin McDaniel	Harrisburg, NC
6	2G	Tanner Gray	,
7	21M	Mike Darne	Mooresville, NC
8	29M	Mitch Walker	Newton, NC
Limited Late Model - Paramount Race
Finish	Car No	Driver	Hometown	DQ/DNS/DNF
1	22L	Brandon Lemke	Eagle, WI
2	34	Pat Rachels	China Grove, NC
3	14	Vince Midas	Catawba, NC
4	57	Carter Davison	Elizabethton, TN
5	50M	Todd Midas	Catawba, NC
6	15G	Taylor Gray	Mooresville, NC
7	71	Joel Lineback	,
8	5B	Hannah Bell	Raleigh, NC
9	00H	Andy Holt	Greensboro, NC
10	12L	Mason Ludwig	N. Branch, MI
11	1G	Andrew Grady	Raleigh, NC
12	44	Josh Kossek	Tobaccoville, NC
13	95G	Eric Green	Fairview, NC
14	13	Chase Ratliff	Bristol, VA
15	12P	Gage Painter	Statesville, NC
16	47J	Chase Janes	Harrisburg, NC
17	23D	Brendan Doyle	Harrisburg, NC
Limited Late Model - Qualifying
Finish	Car No	Driver	Hometown	DQ/DNS/DNF
1	15G	Taylor Gray	Mooresville, NC
2	14	Vince Midas	Catawba, NC
3	12P	Gage Painter	Statesville, NC
4	12L	Mason Ludwig	N. Branch, MI
5	44	Josh Kossek	Tobaccoville, NC
6	22L	Brandon Lemke	Eagle, WI
7	50M	Todd Midas	Catawba, NC
8	23D	Brendan Doyle	Harrisburg, NC
9	1G	Andrew Grady	Raleigh, NC
10	13	Chase Ratliff	Bristol, VA
11	34	Pat Rachels	China Grove, NC
12	47J	Chase Janes	Harrisburg, NC
13	5B	Hannah Bell	Raleigh, NC
14	57	Carter Davison	Elizabethton, TN
15	95G	Eric Green	Fairview, NC
16	00H	Andy Holt	Greensboro, NC
17	71	Joel Lineback	,
Renegades - Feature
Finish	Car No	Driver	Hometown	DQ/DNS/DNF
1	1	Justin Austin	Granite Falls, NC
2	83	David Hasson	Newton, NC
3	8	Kenneth Roberts	Hickory, NC
4	7	Brian Larkin	Icard, NC
5	4F	Matt Fox	,
6	51	Robbie Hollifield	Morganton, NC
7	21	RJ Williams	Conover, NC
Renegades - Qualifying
Finish	Car No	Driver	Hometown	DQ/DNS/DNF
1	1	Justin Austin	Granite Falls, NC
2	7	Brian Larkin	Icard, NC
3	83	David Hasson	Newton, NC
4	51	Robbie Hollifield	Morganton, NC
5	21	RJ Williams	Conover, NC
6	8	Kenneth Roberts	Hickory, NC	DQ
7	4F	Matt Fox	,	DQ
Smash & Crash - Feature
Finish	Car No	Driver	Hometown	DQ/DNS/DNF
1	3	Matt Fox	,
2	44	Kendra Hamm	,
3	53	Angie Cook	,
4	13	Justin Austin	Granite Falls, NC
5	95	Adam Caldwell	,
6	33	Harlan Pruitt	,
7	1	Ryan Austin	,
8	21	Cowboy Weaver	,
Street Stocks - Feature
Finish	Car No	Driver	Hometown	DQ/DNS/DNF
1	7S	Jeff Sparks	Acworth, GA
2	64	Marshall Sutton	Burnsville, NC
3	18	Troy DeMarmels	Newton, NC
4	21C	Drew Cox	Granite Falls, NC
5	74B	Jared Broadbent	Spruce Pine, NC
6	3	Kevin Eby	Lenior, NC
7	69	Trey Buff	Hickory, NC
8	16S	Jonathon Smith	Hudson, NC
9	1B	Rusty  Blackford	Kannapolis, NC
10	77P	Mark Whitten	Hogtown, VA
Street Stocks - Qualifying
Finish	Car No	Driver	Hometown	DQ/DNS/DNF
1	7S	Jeff Sparks	Acworth, GA
2	18	Troy DeMarmels	Newton, NC
3	77P	Mark Whitten	Hogtown, VA
4	16S	Jonathon Smith	Hudson, NC
5	21C	Drew Cox	Granite Falls, NC
6	74B	Jared Broadbent	Spruce Pine, NC
7	64	Marshall Sutton	Burnsville, NC
8	3	Kevin Eby	Lenior, NC
9	69	Trey Buff	Hickory, NC
10	1B	Rusty  Blackford	Kannapolis, NC
Super Trucks - Feature
Finish	Car No	Driver	Hometown	DQ/DNS/DNF
1	26	Charlie Neill	Hickory, NC
2	15C	Sheflon Clay	Asheville, NC
3	51	Allen Huffman	Hickory, NC
4	13	Dakota Slagle	Asheville, NC
5	99F	Sawyer Frady	Mills River, NC
6	39	Josh Stark	Troutman, NC
7	33G	Kosma Guznyakov	Big Sandy , NC
8	91	Keith Norville	Forest City, NC
9	30	Joey Shuryan	Dearborn, MI
Super Trucks - Qualifying
Finish	Car No	Driver	Hometown	DQ/DNS/DNF
1	26	Charlie Neill	Hickory, NC
2	13	Dakota Slagle	Asheville, NC
3	51	Allen Huffman	Hickory, NC
4	15C	Sheflon Clay	Asheville, NC
5	30	Joey Shuryan	Dearborn, MI
6	99F	Sawyer Frady	Mills River, NC
7	39	Josh Stark	Troutman, NC
8	91	Keith Norville	Forest City, NC
9	33G	Kosma Guznyakov	Big Sandy , NC	DNS