LAVONIA, Ga. - Zack Mitchell powered to the victory on Sunday afternoon for the Drydene Xtreme DIRTcar Series at Georgia’s Lavonia Speedway.
The 23-year-old from Enoree, South Carolina held off all challenges around the 3/8-mile clay raceway to score his first career series win and a $5,000 Christmas present.
“It means a lot, going into the, quote-unquote, offseason,” Mitchell said. “We’re going to regroup, enjoy the holidays, spend some time with family and all. We really appreciate DIRTcar and Drydene putting this deal on and giving us something to do this winter, that way we wouldn’t be at the house twiddling our thumbs.”
Sunday’s preliminary events went smoothly for Mitchell, as he set fast time in qualifying, won his heat race and redrew the pole, making it a perfect clean sweep of the afternoon with his 40 laps led in the feature. But it didn’t come easy, even with the front-row starting spot.
“It all started off with drawing the one in the redraw, that really had a lot a lot to do with it,” Mitchell said. “I’m not saying we wouldn’t have won had we drawn a three or a four; we had a good car.”
The competition Mitchell held off was fierce and included the likes of Chris Madden, Logan Roberson, Kyle Strickler, Trent Ivey and G.R. Smith. On the very first lap, Roberson pulled up beside Mitchell to challenge for the lead, but was unsuccessful as Mitchell shut the door in between turns three and four. This remained the only serious challenge made for the lead, but Mitchell dealt with the pressure of several restarts over 40 laps, which made him work for it.
“I knew those guys were behind me, and I knew if I slipped the wheel too much, they were going to get (under) me,” Mitchell said. “I felt like a gazelle being chased by a pack of lions. You can’t slip a wheel against any of those guys. Lady Luck was on our side tonight and we capitalized on it.”
Trent Ivey finished in second, with Madden in third, Roberson in fourth and Smith in fifth.
Ross Bailes, Kyle Strickler, Chris Ferguson, John Henderson and Pearson Williams rounded out the top ten.
In other action, Ty Lowe scored the win in the 602 Crate Late Model feature, with Jeff Robinson in second, Seth Wimpey in third, Shun Thomas in fourth and Kole Hardy in fifth.
Baron McDowell took top honors in the 602 Chargers feature, followed by Colton Berrong in second, Jonathan Montgomery in third, Nick Colman in fourth and Ben Dunson in fifth.
Ronnie Poole topped the Stock 8 field to score the victory. Jack Hill, Stephen House, Shannon Duck and Terry Calhoun rounded out the top five.
J.B. Moser scored the win in the Front Wheel Drive feature, with Hunter Anthony in second, Wayne Chapman in third, Eddie Segars in fourth and Casey Burkett in fifth.
The Drydene Xtreme DIRTcar Series returns to action on January 18, as the speedway visits Cherokee Speedway in Gaffney, South Carolina. Visit Xtremedirtcar.com for more information.
Lavonia Speedway will open its 2020 season on March 7 and 8. Visit LavoniaSpeedway.net for more information.
Drydene Xtreme DIRTcar Series
Lavonia Speedway – Lavonia, GA
Race Results – December 15, 2019
DIRTcar Late Models
1. Zack Mitchell
2. Trent Ivey
3. Chris Madden
4. Logan Roberson
5. G.R. Smith
6. Ross Bailes
7. Kyle Strickler
8. Chris Ferguson
9. John Henderson
10. Pearson Williams
11. Payton Freeman
12. Brian Connor
13. Ethan Wilson
14. Jeff Smith
15. Cla Knight
16. Tim Vance
17. Avery Breedlove
18. Blake Craft
19. Kenny Collins
20. Bubba Russell
21. James Oliver
602 Crate Late Model
1. Ty Lowe
2. Jeff Robinson
3. Seth Wimpey
4. Shun Thomas
5. Kole Hardy
6. John Price
7. Micheal Barnett
8. David McCoy
9. Mike Davidson
10. Nick Berry
11. Kris Norwood
12. David Connor
13. Brad Racheals
14. John Howard
15. Brandon Stroud
16. Matt Ferguson
17. Seth Speed
18. Drew Benfield
19. Jason Berrong
602 Chargers
1. Baron McDowell
2. Colton Berrong
3. Jonathan Montgomery
4. Nick Colman
5. Ben Dunson
6. Jay Merck
7. Michael Harper
8. Steven Grube
9. Conner Pilgram
Stock 8
1. Ronnie Poole
2. Jack Hill
3. Stephen House
4. Shannon Duck
5. Terry Calhoun
6. Kevin Kelly
7. David Stone
8. Christian Porter
9. Rocky Jones
10. Justin Hart
11. Joe Anders
12. Thomas Stewart
13. Jake Jordan
FWD
1. J.B. Moser
2. Hunter Anthony
3. Wayne Chapman
4. Eddie Segars
5. Casey Burkett
6. Sean Rice
7. Chris Whitfield
8. Tony Stephens
9. Steven Collins
10. Roger Jenning
11. William Estep
12. Wayne Cowart
13. James Robinson
