Three Double at AKRA/Unilli Tires Round 4-Callahan

By Bruce C. Walls

AKRA Media

         CALLAHAN, FL- As entry numbers continue climbing so does the competition for cash in the Million Dollar Big Eight AKRA/Unilli Tires National Dirt Series. Last Saturday, (June 13-14, 2015) only three racers were double winners during the sixth of the 8-race series hosted by Callahan Speedway in Callahan, FL. Andrew Chandler, Colby Briggs and Tyler Fimstahl took home most of the cash offered.

Chandler cashed in on Clone Super Heavy and Pro Clone Super Heavy. They weren’t easy wins as Chandler struggled in qualifying coming from starts of seventh and last to victory lane. Willd Bill Daughtry dialed in Clone Super Heavy’s fast time rounding the 1/5-mile dirt oval in 17.842 seconds, 9.556 seconds faster then outside pole winner Johnny Allen. Ben Blalock and Robert Ledford filled row two.

 When racers took the green flag Daughtry lead the field during the early going as Chandler climbed through it.   With Jordan Richards glued to his tailpipe Chandler swept by the competition for the front. Richards was just 0.360 seconds late. Daughtry fell back to fifth behind Ledford who finished fourth trailing Allen in third.

Chandler showed up lite at the scale after turning a 16.159 seconds lap in Pro Clone Super Heavy qualifying forcing him to start at the rear of the field. Jordan Richards spun the pole-winning lap in 15.683 seconds. Ledford earned the outside time with a 15.728 seconds rounding. Wayne Powell and Cody Allen started in row two.

Once again Chandler had to climb past his competition to get back to the front. And once again Richards was glued to his tailpipe. This time Richards trailed by just 0.317 seconds. Powell posted a third place finish followed in the top five by Johnny and Cody Allen.

 Koleton Mitchell captured Junior 3’s pole with a fast time lap of 16.647 seconds. Briggs started next to him. They reversed positions in the feature with Briggs beating Mitchell to the stripe with a whooping 10.4552 seconds advantage.

 Briggs second win was another blowout over Mitchell. This time Briggs was a comfortable 12.285 seconds ahead of Mitchell.

Fimstahl finished first in both Predator Heavy Classes. Each time the same three racers followed him. Jarred Carter captured second, Aaron Bell third and Cecil Troville rounding out the top four. Three guaranteed purse races competed with $2,000.00 going to the winners and $1,000.00 for the second place finishers. Finishing third earned three racers $500.00. Fourth place got $250.00 and 5^th place finishers pocketed $125.00. Sixth through 10^th place racers got a set of Unilli Tires. Each of the three guaranteed purses ran 50-laps and cost entrants $85.00.

 Bluffton, S.C. based Chad ‘Houdini’ Hathcock was one of the three $2,000 race winners. Houdini clawed his way from a 10^th place start to first across Clone Heavy’s finish line. Michael Crosby captured the pole turning a 15.843 seconds lap that was 2.634 seconds faster than outside pole winner Sterlin Singleton’s 15.467 seconds spin. Calab Bryant and Jimmy ‘The Rooster’ Flynn occupied row 2. 

When the green flag flew Houdini headed for the front with Thomas Tatum, Mark Fleischer and Josh Robinson in tow. As Crosby, Singleton, Bryant and Flynn slipped into the field, Houdini engineered the freight train into the lead. Bryant battled his way back to fifth as Houdini cruised across the stripe with a comfortable 1.155 seconds advantage over Tatum.

 Crosby struggled in Non Pro Clone Heavy qualifying. His fast time lap of 16.748 seconds forced him to start from 23^rd. Deeper in the starting field were Tatum and Robinson at 24^th and 25th. At the front of the field Lee Ragan earn the first of two poles he set, this one with a top fast time of 15.521 seconds. Singleton started next to him earning the outside pole with a 17.619 seconds lap. Aaron Hardgrove and Tim Taylor were behind them in row two.

While Ragan and Singleton battled for the lead, Crosby, Drew Hammonds, Tatum and Dustin McGraw fought their way through the field for the front. When they got there Charlie Gaskins was in fifth when they crossed the stripe separated by less than a second.

Just like Houdini and Crosby, McGraw had to work for his $2,000.00 payday. McGraw turned a 14.492 seconds fast time lap that was 2.013 seconds slower than Ragan’s lap. Allen brothers, Johnny and Cody captured the third and fifth starting spots. This time is was Hammonds holding onto second place when the checkers waved. McGraw was 2.252 seconds ahead of Hammonds. Brandon Hughes battled his way from an 18^th place start to a third place finish. Nick Kirkus and Houdini were fourth and fifth.

 Crosby captured Clone Medium’s pole with a fast time of 16.593 seconds. Brandon Hughes started next to him and eventual winner Michael Smith made it to the front with fifth fastest qualifier Austin Yarbrough just 0.883 seconds behind him across the stripe. Houdini, who qualified third held that position with Hughes and Crosby filling in fourth and fifth.

 Katie Green showed the boys how to do it in Junior 1. She started on the outside pole and was 5.316 seconds ahead of pole winner Zach Williams when the checkered flag flew. Kason DeGrande and Joe Johns were third and fourth.

 Williams turned the tables on her in Pro Junior 1. Williams turned the pole lap time of 17.028 seconds. DeGrande was second fastest qualifier for the outside pole and Green started behind them with a fast time of 17.055 seconds. Williams rocketed off the pole and never looked back taking the win with a comfortable 17.266 seconds advantage over DeGrande. Green followed in third.

 Colby Briggs spun a 17.381 seconds fast time lap for Pro Junior 3’s pole.   He shared front row with Koleton Mitchell and beat him to the stripe with a comfortable 12.285 seconds advantage.

 AKRA Big 8 Series racers start will head to Brunswick Speedway in Lawrenceville, VA for the fifth race of the 8-race series.