3/26/2022
RacinBoys
Brown Scores First Career World of Outlaws Win at Cherokee
By Mike Warren, WOO Late Model Series (Gaffney, SC) -- March is known for magical upsets, especially in College Basketball. Michael Brown decided to bring that magic to the racetrack Friday night at Cherokee Speedway.
The Lancaster, SC driver seized an opportunity in traffic, muscling under Ryan Gustin and holding on for his first World of Outlaws CASE Construction Late Model Series win.
PHOTO CREDIT: Jacy Norgaard
Brown’s triumph was a moment he dreamed of that finally became a reality, bringing his home state fans to their feet.
“I’ve always dreamed of doing this,” Brown said. “It’s a surreal moment. I got to thank everybody that’s behind me to get me here. It’s awesome and I’m damn sure going to enjoy it.”
“Downtown” celebrated as though a weight came off his shoulders in Victory Lane. He quickly climbed to the roof of his car, checkered flag in hand, fist-pumping the air with authority as confetti blew through the Carolina sky.
Brown’s knowledge of Cherokee’s red clay surface played a role in earning that celebration. After Gustin moved past Max Blair in traffic, Brown saw an opening on the inside where he dove under “The Reaper” to take the lead in Turn 2.
The South Carolinian wasn’t challenged again, adding $10,000 to his bank account.
While the victory is Brown’s first World of Outlaws triumph, it’s his second career Drydene Xtreme DIRTcar Series win, his first coming in December 2020 at Lavonia Speedway.
Brown’s win continues a year of celebration in 2022. It’s his first trip to Victory Lane since adding a new chapter to his life.
“The first race as a dad to get a win, it’s pretty badass,” Brown said.
While Brown celebrated the thrill of victory for the first time, he snatched it away from “The Reaper.”
Ryan Gustin crossed the line second, his first top-five of 2022. Once again, a World of Outlaws Victory Lane trip eluded the Marshalltown, IA driver who led a few laps before Brown snuck underneath him.
Despite letting the win slip away, Gustin is confident in his chances to find Victory Lane before the weekend is over.
“I slipped up a little bit and let him get under me,” Gustin said. “Anytime you can run good on the first night always boosts the confidence up heading into the final night.”
Pole-sitter Max Blair, the rookie of the race, finished third. It’s the Centerville, PA driver’s second consecutive top-five.
Blair also extended his lead in the battle for Rookie of the Year—20 points ahead of Tanner English, who finished eighth. He felt his lack of experience on a red clay surface hurt his chances of finding World of Outlaws Victory Lane for the fourth time.
“This isn’t something I’ve raced on much,” Blair said. “I just didn’t really know what to do with those lap cars and obviously made the wrong choice.”
Dennis Erb Jr. finished fourth, his third top-five of the season. The Carpentersville, IL driver leads the World of Outlaws points standings after seven races—18 points ahead of defending champion Brandon Sheppard, who finished sixth.
Erb stated he was happy to keep his consistency rolling in the early part of the season.
“To move up a couple of spots and finish fourth is a good night for us,” Erb said. “I was hoping we could get a few more spots, but we just fell in line, and that was about all we had.”
Daulton Wilson, from Fayetteville, NC, rounded out the top five.
In one of the oddest Feature finishes of the season for the Drydene Xtreme DIRTcar Series regulars, the chase for the 2021-22 Series crown tightened by a single point.
Points leader Ben Watkins took a 16-point advantage into the Feature, lining up 12th on the starting grid – directly behind the man chasing him down for the title, Ross Bailes. The two held their general positions in the pack through the first half of the race; Bailes riding 8th and Watkins in 9th just after halfway. That’s when things got interesting.
Under caution with 28 laps complete, Bailes suddenly ducked down pit road for what eventually became an extended stop. The crew found a loose axle cap with the rear axle coming out and were forced to repair it, forcing them down a lap to the field once Bailes returned to the track.
Back inside the top-10, Watkins had moved up to seventh and looked promising to bag the solid finish and vital championship points. But with three laps remaining, the rear-end gave out on his Sandwood Racing #16W as he slowed down the backstretch and pulled off the track in Turn 4.
Watkins was scored as a DNF in 22nd position, Bailes one lap down in 21st. That one spot in the finishing order equates to a single-point difference in the standings, putting Bailes only 15 points back of Watkins with one race left to decide the champion.
The World of Outlaws CASE Late Models and Drydene Xtreme DIRTcar Series return to Cherokee Speedway on Saturday, March 26, for night two of the Rock Gault Memorial. For Tickets: CLICK HERE.
If you can’t make it to the track, watch all the action live on DIRTVision – either online on with the DIRTVision App.
RESULTS
Case Construction Feature (40 Laps): 1. 24D-Michael Brown[3]; 2. 19R-Ryan Gustin[2]; 3. 111V-Max Blair[1]; 4. 28-Dennis Erb Jr[6]; 5. 18D-Daulton Wilson[8]; 6. 1-Brandon Sheppard[4]; 7. 88-Trent Ivey[9]; 8. 81E-Tanner English[11]; 9. 1R-Josh Richards[18]; 10. 20H-Bryson Harper[14]; 11. 11H-Spencer Hughes[15]; 12. 99B-Boom Briggs[17]; 13. B1-Brent Larson[23]; 14. 71-Hudson O'Neal[21]; 15. 45-Kyle Hammer[19]; 16. 421-Anthony Sanders[25]; 17. 1D-Brent Dixon[16]; 18. 16-Tyler Bruening[7]; 19. 11-Gordy Gundaker[22]; 20. 18E-Ethan Wilson[26]; 21. 79-Ross Bailes[10]; 22. 16W-Ben Watkins[12]; 23. 42-Cla Knight[20]; 24. 57-Zack Mitchell[5]; 25. 121-Pearson Williams[13]; 26. 93-Carson Ferguson[24]
Last Chance Showdown 1 (10 Laps): 1. 99B-Boom Briggs[1]; 2. 45-Kyle Hammer[3]; 3. 71-Hudson O'Neal[6]; 4. 421-Anthony Sanders[9]; 5. 118-Matt Henderson[4]; 6. 97C-Cody Overton[5]; 7. 2F-Dennis Franklin[8]; 8. 5-Corey Gordon[7]; 9. 42S-Doug Sanders[11]; 10. 07-Brian Ledbetter[12]; 11. 10-Earl Shirey Jr[10]; 12. 93-Carson Ferguson[2]
Last Chance Showdown 2 (10 Laps): 1. 1R-Josh Richards[1]; 2. 42-Cla Knight[2]; 3. 11-Gordy Gundaker[5]; 4. B1-Brent Larson[6]; 5. 11D-David Duke[3]; 6. 2X-John Henderson[8]; 7. 93L-Cory Lawler[10]; 8. 18E-Ethan Wilson[4]; 9. 03-David Yandle[12]; 10. (DNS) 69*-Carder Miller; 11. (DNS) F1-Payton Freeman; 12. (DNS) 54-David Breazeale
Heat 1 (10 Laps): 1. 1-Brandon Sheppard[1]; 2. 28-Dennis Erb Jr[3]; 3. 88-Trent Ivey[2]; 4. 121-Pearson Williams[4]; 5. 99B-Boom Briggs[7]; 6. 45-Kyle Hammer[5]; 7. 97C-Cody Overton[8]; 8. 5-Corey Gordon[6]; 9. 421-Anthony Sanders[9]; 10. 42S-Doug Sanders[10]
Heat 2 (10 Laps): 1. 24D-Michael Brown[1]; 2. 57-Zack Mitchell[2]; 3. 79-Ross Bailes[3]; 4. 20H-Bryson Harper[5]; 5. 93-Carson Ferguson[7]; 6. 118-Matt Henderson[4]; 7. 71-Hudson O'Neal[6]; 8. 2F-Dennis Franklin[9]; 9. 10-Earl Shirey Jr[10]; 10. 07-Brian Ledbetter[8]
Heat 3 (10 Laps): 1. 111V-Max Blair[1]; 2. 16-Tyler Bruening[3]; 3. 81E-Tanner English[5]; 4. 11H-Spencer Hughes[2]; 5. 1R-Josh Richards[9]; 6. 11D-David Duke[4]; 7. 11-Gordy Gundaker[8]; 8. 54-David Breazeale[10]; 9. F1-Payton Freeman[6]; 10. (DNS) 69*-Carder Miller
Heat 4 (10 Laps): 1. 19R-Ryan Gustin[1]; 2. 18D-Daulton Wilson[2]; 3. 16W-Ben Watkins[3]; 4. 1D-Brent Dixon[4]; 5. 42-Cla Knight[5]; 6. 18E-Ethan Wilson[6]; 7. B1-Brent Larson[8]; 8. 2X-John Henderson[9]; 9. 93L-Cory Lawler[7]; 10. 03-David Yandle[10]
Qualifying Group A (2 Laps): 1. 1-Brandon Sheppard, 00:14.877[3]; 2. 24D-Michael Brown, 00:14.899[6]; 3. 88-Trent Ivey, 00:14.944[14]; 4. 57-Zack Mitchell, 00:15.029[20]; 5. 28-Dennis Erb Jr, 00:15.031[5]; 6. 79-Ross Bailes, 00:15.097[7]; 7. 121-Pearson Williams, 00:15.099[12]; 8. 118-Matt Henderson, 00:15.139[9]; 9. 45-Kyle Hammer, 00:15.143[13]; 10. 20H-Bryson Harper, 00:15.231[15]; 11. 5-Corey Gordon, 00:15.273[17]; 12. 71-Hudson O'Neal, 00:15.282[18]; 13. 99B-Boom Briggs, 00:15.294[4]; 14. 93-Carson Ferguson, 00:15.346[11]; 15. 97C-Cody Overton, 00:15.406[10]; 16. 07-Brian Ledbetter, 00:15.424[2]; 17. 421-Anthony Sanders, 00:15.483[19]; 18. 2F-Dennis Franklin, 00:15.529[8]; 19. 42S-Doug Sanders, 00:15.637[16]; 20. 10-Earl Shirey Jr, 00:15.835[1]
Qualifying Group B (2 Laps): 1. 111V-Max Blair, 00:14.940[1]; 2. 19R-Ryan Gustin, 00:14.950[18]; 3. 11H-Spencer Hughes, 00:15.078[6]; 4. 18D-Daulton Wilson, 00:15.091[15]; 5. 16-Tyler Bruening, 00:15.104[8]; 6. 16W-Ben Watkins, 00:15.128[7]; 7. 11D-David Duke, 00:15.175[10]; 8. 1D-Brent Dixon, 00:15.181[9]; 9. 81E-Tanner English, 00:15.255[13]; 10. 42-Cla Knight, 00:15.312[17]; 11. F1-Payton Freeman, 00:15.361[14]; 12. 18E-Ethan Wilson, 00:15.419[4]; 13. 69*-Carder Miller, 00:15.433[16]; 14. 93L-Cory Lawler, 00:15.530[3]; 15. 11-Gordy Gundaker, 00:15.546[12]; 16. B1-Brent Larson, 00:15.567[20]; 17. 1R-Josh Richards, 00:15.695[5]; 18. 2X-John Henderson, 00:15.757[19]; 19. 54-David Breazeale, 00:15.850[11]; 20. 03-David Yandle, 00:16.167[2]
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602 CRATE LATE MODELS
A Feature 1 (25 Laps): 1. 44-John Ruggiero Jr[1]; 2. 18M-Austin Mintz[4]; 3. 67-Bryan Mullis[3]; 4. 11-Cole Apple[5]; 5. 107Z-Chaz Haskins[2]; 6. 95-Alex Vance[7]; 7. 22-Caleb Simmons[12]; 8. 8-Zac Brown[10]; 9. 57-Luke Cooper[6]; 10. 302-Chuck Melton[13]; 11. 99-Matt Duggins[8]; 12. 300-Bill Tesh[9]; 13. 22T-Steven Thompkins II[11]; 14. 18D-Derek Dent[14]
Qualifying 1: 1. 44-John Ruggiero Jr, 00:16.546[14]; 2. 107Z-Chaz Haskins, 00:16.549[10]; 3. 67-Bryan Mullis, 00:16.610[6]; 4. 18M-Austin Mintz, 00:16.766[1]; 5. 11-Cole Apple, 00:16.995[12]; 6. 57-Luke Cooper, 00:17.057[3]; 7. 95-Alex Vance, 00:17.118[2]; 8. 99-Matt Duggins, 00:17.395[5]; 9. 300-Bill Tesh, 00:17.521[13]; 10. 8-Zac Brown, 00:17.564[8]; 11. 22T-Steven Thompkins II, 00:17.568[9]; 12. 22-Caleb Simmons, 00:17.575[7]; 13. 302-Chuck Melton, 00:17.818[11]; 14. 18D-Derek Dent, 00:18.274[4]
STREET STOCKS
A Feature 1 (20 Laps): 1. 18-MItchell Duvall[1]; 2. 78-Blake Pryor[3]; 3. 9-Dalton Peavy[2]; 4. B5-Andrew Blackwood[4]; 5. 11-Kade Langley[7]; 6. 39-Steve Greene[8]; 7. 118-Cameron Holloway[6]; 8. 208-Bubba Kolb[12]; 9. 70-Everette Dunlap[10]; 10. 15-Donovan Long[13]; 11. 96-Dalton Pannell[11]; 12. 98-Shawn Brooks[14]; 13. 1-Kelly Fegter[9]; 14. 83-Calob McLaughlin[5]; 15. 1S-Chad Sellers[15]; 16. 13-David Clark[16]; 17. (DNS) 38-Brandon Chandler
Heat 1 (6 Laps): 1. 18-MItchell Duvall[1]; 2. 78-Blake Pryor[2]; 3. 83-Calob McLaughlin[3]; 4. 11-Kade Langley[5]; 5. 1-Kelly Fegter[6]; 6. 96-Dalton Pannell[4]; 7. 15-Donovan Long[7]; 8. 1S-Chad Sellers[8]; 9. (DNS) 38-Brandon Chandler
Heat 2 (6 Laps): 1. 9-Dalton Peavy[1]; 2. B5-Andrew Blackwood[3]; 3. 118-Cameron Holloway[2]; 4. 39-Steve Greene[4]; 5. 70-Everette Dunlap[6]; 6. 208-Bubba Kolb[5]; 7. 98-Shawn Brooks[8]; 8. 13-David Clark[7]
Qualifying 1: 1. 18-MItchell Duvall, 00:18.144[4]; 2. 9-Dalton Peavy, 00:18.327[11]; 3. 78-Blake Pryor, 00:18.390[13]; 4. 118-Cameron Holloway, 00:18.650[12]; 5. 83-Calob McLaughlin, 00:18.667[10]; 6. B5-Andrew Blackwood, 00:18.667[14]; 7. 96-Dalton Pannell, 00:18.740[3]; 8. 39-Steve Greene, 00:18.797[2]; 9. 11-Kade Langley, 00:18.850[6]; 10. 208-Bubba Kolb, 00:19.067[5]; 11. 1-Kelly Fegter, 00:19.160[16]; 12. 70-Everette Dunlap, 00:19.185[1]; 13. 15-Donovan Long, 00:19.253[8]; 14. 13-David Clark, 00:19.661[7]; 15. 1S-Chad Sellers, 00:19.750[17]; 16. 98-Shawn Brooks, 00:21.306[15]; 17. 38-Brandon Chandler, 00:21.306[9]
Submitted By: Kirk Elliott
