RINGGOLD, Ga. - Chris Madden dominated the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series event at Boyd’s Speedway in Ringgold, Ga. on Friday Night.
Madden led all 50 laps to take his first series win of the season and the eighth of his career.
Randy Weaver edged-out Jared Landers at the finish line for second place. Series points leader Jonathan Davenport came home in fourth, followed by pole-sitter Scott Bloomquist.
“I just can’t thank Matt, Kevin, and Dave at Longhorn Chassis enough. They build one great racecar,” said Madden. “Today didn’t start off very well for us. Our trailer caught on fire on the way here, so this win couldn’t come at a better time.
“Since the end of last year, we have had some ups and downs, but we have had more ups than downs, and are glad to be in victory lane tonight. Dale (McDowell) and his crew have this place really racy. I knew Randy (Weaver) would be pretty strong, he’s tough at this place, but we just got it done tonight.”
In a race that was slowed by only one caution, Madden was able to lap cars at will with little difficulty.
“I want to thank all the fans for coming out tonight,” Madden said. “This is what it’s all about, racing in front of a crowd like this. Fans were lined up for blocks trying to get in here.”
Weaver nearly gave up second place on the final lap to Landers.
“I thought I was going to run second and here came Jared by me down the backstretch,” Weaver said. “He should have gotten by me. I was so bad down the straight-aways. I had my big motor in due to all the rain. I was fighting traction down the straight-aways. It was a good night to race. I didn’t think we would get to race. I’d like to also say a big thanks to all of the fans for coming out to support us.”
Landers came from fifth to third, rekindling his early season strong performances.
“I tried to give him (Weaver) room,” Landers said. “I found a good line in the last five laps. Congrats to Chris on the win. I like racing these slick race tracks. A lot of the regulars struggled. These tracks are hard to drive and a lot of them had never been here before.”
Dale McDowell, Casey Roberts, Jimmy Owens, Darrell Lanigan and Dennis Erb, Jr. rounded out the top ten.
In preliminary action, Bloomquist set the overall Miller Welders Fast Time (Group A) amongst the 34 entrants, with a lap of 13.830 seconds. Madden set the fastest time in Group B with a time of 13.933 seconds. Bloomquist, Weaver, Madden and McDowell won their respective heat races.
For more information on Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, visit LucasDirt.com.
Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
Boyd’s Speedway – Ringgold, GA
Race Results – April 1, 2016
| FINISH | START | CAR # | DRIVER NAME | HOMETOWN |
| 1 | 2 | 44 | Chris Madden | Gaffney, SC |
| 2 | 3 | 116 | Randy Weaver | Crossville, TN |
| 3 | 7 | 777 | Jared Landers | Batesville, AR |
| 4 | 9 | 6 | Jonathan Davenport | Blairsville, GA |
| 5 | 1 | 0 | Scott Bloomquist | Mooresburg, TN |
| 6 | 4 | 17m | Dale McDowell | Chickamauga, GA |
| 7 | 6 | 101 | Casey Roberts | Toccoa, GA |
| 8 | 11 | 20 | Jimmy Owens | Newport, TN |
| 9 | 15 | 15L | Darrell Lanigan | Union, KY |
| 10 | 22 | 28e | Dennis Erb, Jr. | Carpentersville, IL |
| 11 | 10 | 1 | Earl Pearson, Jr. | Jacksonville, FL |
| 12 | 16 | 81 | Aaron Ridley | Chatsworth, GA |
| 13 | 13 | 7 | Donald McIntosh | Dawsonville, GA |
| 14 | 5 | 31T | Tyler Millwood | Kingston, GA |
| 15 | 20 | B5 | Brandon Sheppard | New Berlin, IL |
| 16 | 8 | 99m | Devin Moran | Dresden, OH |
| 17 | 14 | 5 | Don O’Neal | Martinsville, IN |
| 18 | 17 | 9J | Jason Croft | Woodstock, GA |
| 19 | 23 | 15F | Steve Francis | Bowling Green, KY |
| 20 | 18 | 39 | Tim McCreadie | Watertown, NY |
| 21 | 19 | 77A | Dylan Ames | Harvest, AL |
| 22 | 24 | 75 | Colton Flinner | Allison Park, PA |
| 23 | 21 | R1 | Riley Hickman | Cleveland, TN |
| 24 | 12 | 1J | Jason Hiett | Oxford, AL |
Race Statistics
Entrants: 34
Lap Leaders: Chris Madden (Laps 1 – 50)
Cautions: Jason Hiett (Lap 6)
Fastest Lap of the Race: Chris Madden (Lap #8 – 14.8742 seconds)
Time of Race: 16 minutes 53 seconds
