MOBERLY, Mo.-Terry Phillips and Rodney Sanders continued their battle that began the previous night in Kansas City, but Saturday night at the Randolph County Raceway it was a fight for second as Jesse Sobbing landed a blow to the two heavyweights en route to claiming his first-ever USMTS victory.
Starting next to Phillips on the outside of the front row, Sobbing took charge on the first lap and then fended off several challenges from Friday night’s winner until Sanders entered the picture on lap 8.
After a lap-10 caution, Sanders disposed of Phillips and began to apply pressure to Sobbing, who currently leads the USMTS Rookie of the Year standings.
Sanders was able to pull alongside Sobbing on three occasions, but each time Sobbing had the strength to power back around the outside to maintain the top spot.
Phillips got back around Sanders with nine laps to go, but Sobbing left the pair behind as he pulled away over the final eight laps to take the checkered flag with a nearly three-second cushion.
“Obviously with Terry Phillips and Rodney Sanders right there, to hold those guys off is huge,” a smiling Sobbing said in victory lane. “I don’t give a crap where they started. I’ve seen those guys come from the back and pass guys who start of front lots of time, so it’s awesome.”
Sobbing, a multi-time champion in crate modifieds, dabbled in a handful of USMTS races over the last couple of seasons, but this year the 33-year-old from Malvern, Iowa, got some help and is able to fulfill a dream and take on the series full time in 2015.
“I appreciate Luke Cochran and Home Pride for giving us the opportunity to do this. I was on the gas a lot harder than I wanted to be for our equipment, but when you’re leading… I guess I was pretty hungry for it.”
While Sobbing took home the $3,000 winner’s share of the prize money, Phillips bested Sanders for the runner-up position with Keith Foss and Matt Dotson rounding out the top five.
Cade Dillard, Grant Junghans, Kelly Shryock. Robbie Reed and Danny Crane completed the top-10 finishers.
Four days from now, the USMTS Casey’s Cup Series powered by S&S Fishing & Rental embark on a four-day trek through Oklahoma, Texas and Louisiana.
Action kicks off Wednesday, May 6, at the Southern Oklahoma Speedway in Ardmore, Okla., and then moves to the RPM Speedway in Crandall, Texas, on Thursday, May 7. From there, the series travels to the Ark-La-Tex Speedway in Vivian, La., on Friday, May 8, before wrapping up the quadrupleheader on Saturday, May 9, at the Boothill Speedway in Greenwood, La.
All four events will pay $3,000 to win and award points in the Double H Bands Southern Region presented by Day Motor Sports.
To learn more about the United States Modified Touring Series, visit www.usmts.com online or call 515-832-7944. You can also like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/usmts, follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/usmts or subscribe to our YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/usmtstv.
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OFFICIAL RESULTS
United States Modified Touring Series
USMTS Casey’s Cup Series powered by S&S Fishing & Rental – MSD Central Region presented by Day Motor Sports
Randolph County Raceway, Moberly, Mo.
Saturday, May 2, 2015
Showing finishing position, starting position in parentheses, car number, driver, hometown, chassis/engine builder, laps completed and money won. The top 12 drivers in passing points accumulated in the heat races were locked into the “A” Main, with the top 8 re-drawing for starting positions 1-8.
MSD HEAT RACE #1 (8 laps):
1. (1) 95 Keith Foss, Winona, Minn.
2. (6) 75 Terry Phillips, Springfield, Mo.
3. (2) 5 Robbie Reed, Mexico, Mo.
4. (9) 19r Ryan Gustin, Marshalltown, Iowa.
5. (4) 85s Tyler Shaw, Mexico, Mo.
6. (7) 20 Rodney Sanders, Happy, Texas.
7. (5) 4r Dereck Ramirez, Woodward, Okla.
8. (8) 78 Danny Crane, Columbia, Mo.
9. (3) 17k Kyle Westerhold, Blue Springs, Mo.
DAY MOTOR SPORTS HEAT RACE #2 (8 laps):
1. (2) 2 Casey Arneson (R), Fargo, N.D.
2. (6) 88d Matt Dotson, Hallsville, Mo.
3. (1) 53 Ronnie Woods, Mexico, Mo.
4. (9) 67 Tim Dotson, Sturgeon, Mo.
5. (5) 86 Buddy Benedict, Independence, Mo.
6. (7) 91 Joe Duvall, Claremore, Okla.
7. (4) 10 Patrick Mahnken, Fulton, Mo.
8. (3) 23b Mark Botts, Meadville, Mo.
9. (8) 1st Johnny Scott, Las Cruces, N.M.
EDELBROCK HEAT RACE #3 (8 laps):
1. (1) 97 Cade Dillard, Robeline, La.
2. (2) 3 Kelly Shryock, Fertile, Iowa.
3. (9) 33z Zack VanderBeek, New Sharon, Iowa.
4. (8) 2 Grant Junghans, Manhattan, Kan.
5. (6) 9 Charles Baker, La Belle, Mo.
6. (4) 86d Dagan Heim (R), Rosemount, Minn.
7. (3) 75 Eddie Whitney, Sturgeon, Mo.
8. (7) 5* Adam Penn, Shreveport, La.
9. (5) 99 Dylan Hoover (R), Vandalia, Mo.
PBM PERFORMANCE PRODUCTS HEAT RACE #4 (8 laps):
1. (1) 2s Stormy Scott, Las Cruces, N.M.
2. (4) 99 Jesse Sobbing (R), Malvern, Iowa.
3. (6) 12 Jason Hughes, Watts, Okla.
4. (5) 22g Steve Grotz (R), Quincy, Ill.
5. (2) 17 Justin Allen, Ashland, Mo.
6. (7) 99k Richard Kimberling, Slater, Mo.
7. (8) 38 Ronnie Gould III (R), Seminole, Okla.
8. (9) 12b Chase Breid, Madison, Mo.
9. (2) 25 Scotty Roberts, Columbia, Mo.
DNS – 40 Brian Green (R), Pierce City, Mo.
REAL RACING WHEELS “B” MAIN #1 (12 laps, top 5 advance):
1. (5) 20 Rodney Sanders, Happy, Texas.
2. (1) 2 Grant Junghans, Manhattan, Kan.
3. (12) 99 Dylan Hoover (R), Vandalia, Mo.
4. (4) 86 Buddy Benedict, Independence, Mo.
5. (10) 17k Kyle Westerhold, Blue Springs, Mo.
6. (2) 53 Ronnie Woods, Mexico, Mo., BMS/Creason, $75.
7. (7) 10 Patrick Mahnken, Fulton, Mo., Pierce/Craft, $75.
8. (3) 9 Charles Baker, La Belle, Mo., /, $75.
9. (6) 38 Ronnie Gould III (R), Seminole, Okla.
10. (9) 23b Mark Botts, Meadville, Mo., GRT/Ruble, $75.
11. (8) 12b Chase Breid, Madison, Mo., Hughes/Martin, $75.
DNS – 99k Richard Kimberling, Slater, Mo., /, $75.
DNS – 40 Brian Green (R), Pierce City, Mo., MBR/Marti, $90.
REAL RACING WHEELS “B” MAIN #2 (9 laps, top 5 advance):
1. (1) 5 Robbie Reed, Mexico, Mo.
2. (3) 85s Tyler Shaw, Mexico, Mo.
3. (4) 17 Justin Allen, Ashland, Mo.
4. (9) 78 Danny Crane, Columbia, Mo.
5. (10) 1st Johnny Scott, Las Cruces, N.M.
6. (5) 91 Joe Duvall, Claremore, Okla., MBCustom/Mullins, $90.
7. (2) 22g Steve Grotz (R), Quincy, Ill., /, $90.
8. (6) 86d Dagan Heim (R), Rosemount, Minn., Shaw/Murgic, $90.
9. (7) 4r Dereck Ramirez, Woodward, Okla.
10. (8) 75 Eddie Whitney, Sturgeon, Mo., GRT/Hatfield, $75.
DNS – 5* Adam Penn, Shreveport, La., Hughes/Mullins, $90.
DNS – 25 Scotty Roberts, Columbia, Mo., Allen/, $75.
CASEY’S GENERAL STORES “A” MAIN (30 laps):
1. (2) 99 Jesse Sobbing (R), Malvern, Iowa, MBCustom/Sput’s, 30, $3000.
2. (1) 75 Terry Phillips, Springfield, Mo., GRT/Durham, 30, $1700.
3. (13) 20 Rodney Sanders, Happy, Texas, MBCustom/Geddes, 30, $1200.
4. (3) 95 Keith Foss, Winona, Minn., Hughes/Grove, 30, $1000.
5. (5) 88d Matt Dotson, Hallsville, Mo., Hughes/BMS, 30, $800.
6. (7) 97 Cade Dillard, Robeline, La., LG2/Geddes, 30, $800.
7. (15) 2 Grant Junghans, Manhattan, Kan., MBCustom/Sput’s, 30, $700.
8. (10) 3 Kelly Shryock, Fertile, Iowa, Skyrocket/ASI, 30, $650.
9. (14) 5 Robbie Reed, Mexico, Mo., GRT/Mullins, 30, $500.
10. (20) 78 Danny Crane, Columbia, Mo., Hughes/JD, 30, $550.
11. (23) 38 Ronnie Gould III (R), Seminole, Okla., Hughes/Mullins, 30, $500.
12. (19) 86 Buddy Benedict, Independence, Mo., Goober/Mullins, 25, $375.
13. (12) 67 Tim Dotson, Sturgeon, Mo., GRT/BMS, 19, $350.
14. (11) 19r Ryan Gustin, Marshalltown, Iowa, Hughes/Mullins, 18, $400.
15. (16) 85s Tyler Shaw, Mexico, Mo., BMS/Creason, 18, $300.
16. (6) 33z Zack VanderBeek, New Sharon, Iowa, LG2/Sput’s, 18, $350.
17. (18) 17 Justin Allen, Ashland, Mo., GRT/Mullens, 17, $250.
18. (8) 2s Stormy Scott, Las Cruces, N.M., LG2/ProPower, 10, $400.
19. (4) 2 Casey Arneson (R), Fargo, N.D., GRT/Durham, 9, $400.
20. (17) 99 Dylan Hoover (R), Vandalia, Mo., GRT/Craig Martin, 7, $300.
21. (9) 12 Jason Hughes, Watts, Okla., Hughes/Mullins, 4, $300.
22. (22) 1st Johnny Scott, Las Cruces, N.M., MBCustom/Mullins, 1, $300.
23. (21) 17k Kyle Westerhold, Blue Springs, Mo., DirtWorks/Straightline, 1, $250.
DNS – 4r Dereck Ramirez, Woodward, Okla., LG2/Cornett, 0, $400.
(R) = Rookie of the Year contender.
Lap Leader: Sobbing 1-30.
Total Laps Led: Sobbing 30.
Margin of Victory: 2.898 seconds.
Provisional Starters: Ramirez, Gould.
Sybesma Graphics Pole Award: Phillips.
Hard Charger: Sanders (started 13th, finished 3rd).
Entries: 37.
Next Race: Wednesday, May 6, Southern Oklahoma Speedway, Ardmore, Okla.
MSD Central Region Points: Gustin 345, Sanders 340, Dillard 320, S. Scott 318, Foss 300, Junghans 290, Sobbing 287, Ramirez 283, Shryock 282, Phillips 279.
Rookie of the Year Points: Sobbing 1218, Austin Arneson 1073, C. Arneson 981, Ben Kates 914, Gould 721.
COMP Cams Engine Builder of the Year Points: Mullins 123, Durham 112, Geddes 107, Sput’s 103, Cornett 93
Manufacturers Championship Points: LG2 137, GRT 133, MBCustom 133, Hughes 124, Hilsabeck 56.
Contingency Awards:
AERO Race Wheels – Westerhold.
Allstar Performance – Shryock.
American Racer – Westerhold.
Beyea Custom Headers – M. Dotson.
BSB Manufacturing – Hughes.
Chix Gear Racewear – Sanders.
Deatherage Opticians – Gould.
Edelbrock – Dillard.
Eibach Springs – Benedict.
FK Rod Ends – Shaw.
Forty9Designs.com – Gustin, Arneson.
Fuel Safe – Dillard.
GRT Race Cars – Hoover.
Hooker Harness – T. Dotson.
KEVKO Oil Pans & Components – Reed.
Keyser Manufacturing – Crane.
KSE Racing Products – S. Scott.
Marsh Racing Wheels – J. Scott.
Midwest Sheet Metal – Westerhold.
MSD Ignition – Foss, Sobbing.
PBM Performance Products – S. Scott, Sobbing.
QA1 – Sobbing.
R2C Performance Products – Phillips.
Real Racing Wheels – all non-qualifiers.
Sybesma Graphics – Phillips.
Tilton Engineering – Foss.
VP Racing Fuels – Sobbing.
Wehrs Machine & Racing Products – Gould.
Wilwood Disc Brakes – Junghans.
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USMTS OFFICIAL SPONSORS: American Racer Racing Tires, Casey’s General Stores, Chix Gear Racewear, COMP Cams, Day Motor Sports, Deatherage Opticians, Farm Boy BBQ Sauce, Fast Shafts, Intercomp, KEVKO Oil Pans & Components, Malvern Trust & Savings Bank, MSD, Nitroquest Media Group, RACEceiver, RacinDirt.com, S&S Fishing & Rental, VP Racing Fuels.
USMTS PARTICIPATING SPONSORS: Arizona Sport Shirts, ASi Racewear, BRODIX Cylinder Heads, Double H Bands, Duvall Electric, ElbowsUp.com, Integra Racing Shocks & Springs, Mesilla Valley Transportation, Olympic Fire Protection, Rivers Edge Scrap Management, Schwab’s Tinker Shop, UMotors Motorsports & Marine, Velocita-USA.
USMTS CONTINGENCY SPONSORS: AERO Race Wheels, AFCO Racing Products, Allstar Performance, Bell Racing Helmets, Beyea Custom Headers, BSB Manufacturing, CPD Racing Tools, Crane Cams, Driven Racing Oil, Edelbrock, Eibach Springs, FK Rod Ends, Forty9 Designs, Fuel Safe, Genesis Racing Shocks, GRT Race Cars, Holley Performance, Hooker Custom Harness, JRi Shocks, Keyser Manufacturing, KSE Racing Products, Marsh Racing Wheels, Midwest Sheet Metal, PBM Performance Products, QA1 Precision Products, Quarter Master, R2C Performance, Real Racing Wheels, Simpson Performance Products, Sybesma Graphics, Tilton Engineering, Wehrs Machine & Racing Products, Wilwood Disc Brakes.