9/20/2015
United Sprint League
From the Archives 2015: 2015 Year in Review
2015 Wingless Oklahoma Warriors Season Review!
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma – September 20, 2015 - The Wingless Oklahoma Warriors have completed their second full season and as he did in the inaugural season for the series it was Norman, Oklahoma’s Koby Barksdale taking home the series championship in what turned out to be a very successful 2015 race season for the tour.
For the second year in a row the series kicked off their 2015 campaign at 81 Speedway in Park City, Kansas as a support division for the 5th annual “Air Capital Shootout,” which featured the National Championship Racing Association 360-ci sprint car series. The feature finale saw Blanchard, Oklahoma resident Gil White picking up the first victory of the new season with nine cars pit side for the March 28th event.
One week later it was off to the first of six events at the little, red-clay oval of Lawton Speedway in Lawton, Oklahoma where it was Bristow’s Tim Kent getting the best of a fifteen car field to take home his only series feature win of the season.
Outlaw Motor Speedway in Oktaha, Oklahoma held the next WOW event one week later and it was Collinsville resident Craig Carroll claiming his first career series victory as fifteen drivers came to compete atop the new-look track, now being run by last year’s series official Chris Smith.
A bit of a break seemed to be a time to regroup for Shelby Byrd as the young Oklahoma City driver would win the first of his three events, this coming in a return visit to Lawton Speedway where a season high seventeen drivers were pit side.
Barksdale, the reigning series champion, waited until June 6th before he claimed his first of two feature wins on the season as the tour visited Lawton Speedway once again.
The first of two feature victories in a row for Byrd came on June 20 at Lawton Speedway and once again, six days later in the series only 2015 appearance at Creek County Speedway in Kellyville.
A well-deserved, one month break for the series before their next to last appearance of the season at Lawton Speedway where, on July 25, it was Cyril, Oklahoma resident Cord Dodson claiming his first career series victory over a seventeen car field.
The birth place of the WOW (then called “e-sprints”), Brill Motor Speedway in Meeker, hosted the tour where a strong field of sixteen cars signed in and Barksdale claiming victory atop the quarter mile oval.
Lawton Speedway would host the final WOW point show for 2015 on August 15th and it was Dillion Burks turn to score his first career series victory and Barksdale would clinch the championship.
The final 2015 WOW top ten point standings looks like this: 1) Koby Barksdale 2110, 2) Ryan Dean 2) 1590, 3) Lee Wade 1330, 4) Gil White 1280, 5) Shelby Byrd 1250, 6) Chris Gordon 1210, 7) Dillion Burks 1140, 8) Ricky Crawford 1090, 9) James Fabian 1060, 10) Craig Carroll 950.
Thirty-five different drivers from three states (Oklahoma, Texas and California) competed in at least one of the ten events that were held. Byrd won a series-leading three events and Barksdale won two while Gil White, Tim Kent, Craig Carroll, Cord Dodson and Dillion Burks all earning one feature a piece.
The career feature winners for the two year, WOW series looks like this:
Koby Barksdale (11)
Shelby Byrd (4)
Kyle Cobb (3)
Gil White (2)
Tim Kent, Craig Carroll, Cord Dodson, Dillion Burks, David McDuffie (1)
The Wingless Oklahoma Warriors would like to thank the following series partners for their involved with the series during the 2015 race season: Harryman’s Insurance of Newcastle, Jeff Sleeper, Joey Buntin and O’Reilly Auto Parts, Steve Ochs and Showtime. A huge “thank you” to Marcy Edwards and Lawton Speedway as the “home track” for the WOW in 2015 as well as special thanks to 81 Speedway, Brill Motor Speedway, Outlaw Motor Speedway and Creek County Speedway for hosting at least one WOW event this season.
The WOW series could not be possible without the hard work and dedication from the following: James, Fabian, Gil White, Annette Leesekamp, Jim and Ernie Messmer, Annie Nestell, Jackie Jones, Kevin Barksdale and Michelle Walden.
Drivers will be honored Libby’s Café in Norman on December 5, 2015 at 8:00 PM. If you are interested in attending R.S.V.P. is required and you can find any and all information on the WOW 2015 banquet on their official facebook page for this event, 2015 Wingless Oklahoma Warrior Celebration Banquet.
David Smith, Jr.
OKTidbits/PR
(405) 740-4769
oklahomatidbits@aol.com
Article Credit: David Smith Jr.
