RACE REPORTS
February 25th (SAT) - King William 200 to benefit King William Co. Schools
ARENA RACING USA
at Richmond (Va.) Coliseum
King William 200 to benefit King William Co. Schools
Race Report
Saturday, February 25, 2017
RICHMOND, Va. (Feb. 25) -- Garrett Manes of Powhatan, Va., grabbed the lead on a restart at lap 33 and led the rest of the way for his sixth win of the season in the 50-lap Pro Series Top Dog race as Arena Racing USA kicked off the second half of its 2016-17 campaign with Saturday evening's King William 200, to benefit King William County Schools, at the Richmond Coliseum. The victory was Manes' third in Top Dog competition, to go along with three A Main wins.
Chase Butler was the pole-sitter for the evening's finale, flanked on the front row by Camden Testerman. Tyler Warriner and Manes made up Row 2, while Johnny Shonk and Scott Prillaman occupied Row 3. Due to start ninth in the 13-car lineup, Nate Thomas was felled by mechanical problems on the warmup laps.
As the race got going, Butler and Testerman battled door-to-door with Testerman gaining the clear-cut advantage as they passed the flagstand to complete the first lap.
The first yellow flag flew on lap 2 when Warriner rolled over off Turn 4 and slid the length of the frontstretch on his roof. Officials were quickly on the scene, righting Warriner's machine and returning him to the fray.
On the ensuing double-file restart, Testerman chose the outside lane and bolted ahead of Butler as they exited Turn 4 and headed toward the green flag. Prillaman tagged along with Testerman and took over second, while Butler slipped back to third.
Working lap 6, Testerman maintained a two-length advantage over Prillaman. Behind them, Manes was on the move, scooting past Butler off the fourth corner to take over third.
On lap 9, slower traffic came into play, much to the chagrin of the leader. Navigating through Turn 4, Testerman scuffled briefly with a lapped machine and his car almost overturned. He made the save, but gave up to the lead to Prillaman. Manes and Butler also slipped by, relegating Testerman to fourth in the running order.
The second yellow flag appeared on lap 12 when Branden Sanders and Shonk locked horns in Turn 2. The incident chased both drivers to the sidelines for the night.
Back under green, Prillaman pulled ahead of Manes as they reached Turn 1 and left an opening for Butler, who raced to Manes' inside. Manes regained command of the second spot, while Testerman moved up to challenge Butler for third, taking the position on lap 14.
Prillaman was up by a little more than two lengths when the leaders steered into traffic again on lap 24. Prillaman made short work of the slower machines and rocketed away to a half-straightaway lead at the crossed flags.
The last of the race's three caution flags was unfurled on lap 27 for debris in the middle of Turns 1 and 2, setting up the turning point of the event.
As the green flag went back in the air, to begin lap 33, Prillaman got an awful jump from the inside of Row 1 and Manes shot into the lead. Testerman also slipped past Prillaman, who fell from first to third. Behind the top three, the two Chases -- Butler and Burrow -- jousted side-by-side for fourth. Butler took the spot on lap 38 when Burrow skittered loose in Turn 4.
By lap 41, Manes had opened a half-straightaway lead over Testerman. One more bout with slower traffic awaited the leader, though.
Manes waded into traffic on lap 43, giving Testerman a chance to close ground. Manes quickly dispensed with the slower machines, but his margin had been trimmed to three lengths as the laps wound down.
Over the remaining circuits, Manes held firm and even added a bit to his advantage. At the finish, he was the winner by four lengths over Testerman. Prillaman was third, while Butler and Burrow rounded out the top five. Shane Zupo was sixth to the line, followed by Savannah Nickens, Jim Grady, Warriner and Todd Meredith. Shonk, Sanders and Thomas completed the rundown. Blaine Schumann also qualified for the race, but was unable to compete.
After taking next weekend off, Arena Racing USA returns to action at the Richmond Coliseum on Saturday, Mar. 11, with the RVA Sports 200. Doors open at 6 p.m. for the driver meet-and-greet and racing begins at 7.
***
Defending champion Camden Testerman of Sandston, Va., took the lead on lap 27 and rolled to his third victory of the season in the 50-lap Pro Series A Main.
After an inversion of the top six, Branden Sanders was the pole-sitter for the event. When the green flag dropped, though, outside pole starter Chase Burrow nosed out front, clearing Sanders in Turn 1 on the second circuit. Garrett Manes moved up to second place. Testerman took over third, while Sanders slipped to fourth, followed by Savannah Nickens.
On lap 5, fast qualifier Scott Prillaman scooted past Nickens for fifth. Meanwhile, at the head of the field, Burrow held a one-length edge over Manes with Testerman lurking just behind. The top three were up by nearly a full straightaway over fourth-place Sanders.
On lap 14, Manes made his way around Burrow in Turns 3 and 4 to take the lead. Testerman tagged along with Manes and snagged the runner-up spot on lap 15. Behind them, Prillaman had grabbed fourth from Sanders and was closing in on third-place Burrow.
Just past the halfway mark, in traffic, Testerman went after Manes for the lead, ducking to the inside along the backstretch. The two were door-to-door as they returned to the flagstand. On lap 27, Testerman surged out front. Two laps later, Prillaman grabbed third from Burrow and set off after the two leaders, who were about half a straightaway ahead of him.
By lap 36, Testerman had fashioned a three-length advantage over Manes. Three laps later, Manes lost more ground when he skated loose off Turn 2. The slip allowed third-place Prillaman to close in on Manes' rear bumper.
At the end of the caution-free run, Testerman was the winner by half a straightaway. Manes was second, securing the spot when Prillaman slipped in Turn 4 on lap 49. Prillaman was third, followed by Burrow and Sanders. Savannah Nickens, Jim Grady and Shane Zupo completed the rundown. All eight starters advanced to the Top Dog feature.
***
Chase Butler of Mechanicsville, Va., moved out front for good on lap 42 and sailed to his first win of the season in the 50-lap Pro Series B Main.
Tyler Warriner started on the pole and grabbed the lead as the field motored into Turn 1 for the first time. Outside pole-sitter Todd Meredith slipped into second, followed by Johnny Shonk and Butler.
The first caution flag waved on lap 3 when Meredith overturned off the fourth corner and slid all the way down the frontstretch, coming to rest in Turn 1. For the ensuing restart, Shonk and former Pro Series champ Adam Florian chose the outside lane.
Back under green, Warriner gained the clear-cut edge over Shonk off Turn 2, leaving the door open for Butler, who moved up to second. On lap 6, Butler drove underneath Warriner in Turn 4. Warriner maintained a slight edge at the stripe, but he couldn't hold Butler back on lap 7. Shonk followed in Butler's tire tracks and took over second. Florian slowed suddenly and exited the event on lap 14, falling from contention for a Top Dog starting spot.
By the midway mark, Butler's margin had swelled to a full straightaway over Shonk. Slower traffic loomed just half a straightaway ahead of the leader.
Butler endured an anxious moment on lap 38 when Nate Thomas skittered loose in front of him off Turn 2. On the next lap, with Butler in the clear, Thomas and Meredith tangled in Turn 2 to bring out the second caution flag.
Lining up for the restart, Butler was the leader, while second-place Shonk opted for the outside lane. Warriner was third and fourth-place Blaine Schumann followed Shonk's cue and pulled to the high side.
As the race resumed, Butler and Shonk battled side-by-side with Butler eking out a slight advantage at the flagstand at the end of laps 39 and 40. On lap 41, Butler bobbled in Turn 4 and Shonk raced ahead to take the lead.
Shonk's turn atop the leaderboard was short-lived, however. On lap 42, he spun in Turn 2 and collected Schumann, prompting the last of the race's three yellow flags.
For the final restart, Butler and Warriner lined up 1-2. Thomas was due to restart in third, but pulled to the infield as the field circulated under the caution flag. Meredith was third in line, followed by Shonk.
Under green for a five-lap dash, Butler quickly opened a two-length edge on Warriner and began to ease away. By the finish, his winning margin had grown to half a straightaway. Warriner was second, followed by Shonk and Meredith. Thomas was credited with fifth, while Schumann and Florian were sixth and seventh, in that order.
***
In a 30-lapper for the Future Stars Series, Jay Seward of King William, Va., started out front and led flag-to-flag for his first win of the season, snapping Layton Harrison's winning streak at five.
Seward started at the head of the five-car field, followed by Fred Daniels, Rachel Ingram, Connor Garlitz and Harrison, who was looking to maintain his unbeaten record.
As the race got under way, Seward bolted from the pack. By lap 2, he was already up by nearly half a straightaway over Daniels. The first caution flag came out on lap 3 when Garlitz slowed to a crawl with mechanical issues on the backstretch.
On the restart, Seward opened a three-length gap over Daniels, who had his hands full with a challenge from Harrison. Harrison snagged the second spot from Daniels on lap 5, then set off after Seward, who had pulled away by a straightaway.
Little by little, Harrison closed in on the leader. He appeared poised to pounce on lap 14 as Seward dealt with slower traffic. On lap 15, though, Harrison two-wheeled his way through Turn 4 and nearly overturned. He was saved when contact with Ingram's lapped machine knocked him back down on all fours.
By lap 24, Harrison was parked on Seward's rear bumper and looking for an opening. He thought he'd spotted one on lap 25 as he ducked low in Turn 4. In the middle of the corner, though, his car reared up on its right-side tires and, this time, there was no buffer to prevent a rollover. The incident brought Harrison's night to a premature conclusion and wiped out his chance for a sixth straight win.
With Harrison and Garlitz on the sidelines, three drivers were left in contention -- Seward, Daniels and Ingram.
On the final restart, with six to go, Seward quickly gained a two-length edge over Daniels, then began to pull away. By the finish, his winning margin had grown to a full straightaway. Daniels was second, followed by Ingram, Harrison and Garlitz.
***
Scott Prillaman of Suffolk, Va., notched his second pole of the season in Pro Series qualifying. He circled the tenth-mile oval in 7.777 seconds to nip Camden Testerman by 21-thousandths of a second and halt Testerman's pole streak at four. Savannah Nickens, Garrett Manes and Chase Burrow rounded out the top five.
In Future Stars time trials, Layton Harrison of Dinwiddie, Va., bagged his sixth pole in as many tries, clocking in at 8.172 seconds -- his quickest pole-winning lap of the season. Jay Seward, Fred Daniels and Rachel Ingram completed the rundown.
***
FEBRUARY 25 RACE RESULTS from Richmond Coliseum:
PRO SERIES TOP DOG (50 laps): 1. Garrett Manes; 2. Camden Testerman; 3. Scott Prillaman; 4. Chase Butler; 5. Chase Burrow; 6. Shane Zupo; 7. Savannah Nickens; 8. Jim Grady; 9. Tyler Warriner; 10. Todd Meredith; 11. Johnny Shonk; 12. Branden Sanders; 13. Nate Thomas. Pole: Butler.
PRO SERIES A MAIN (50 laps): 1. Camden Testerman; 2. Garrett Manes; 3. Scott Prillaman; 4. Chase Burrow; 5. Branden Sanders; 6. Savannah Nickens; 7. Jim Grady; 8. Shane Zupo. Pole: Sanders (Top 6 inverted).
PRO SERIES B MAIN (50 laps): 1. Chase Butler; 2. Tyler Warriner; 3. Johnny Shonk; 4. Todd Meredith; 5. Nate Thomas; 6. Blaine Schumann; 7. Adam Florian. Pole: Warriner (Top 4 inverted).
FUTURE STARS SERIES (30 laps): 1. Jay Seward; 2. Fred Daniels; 3. Rachel Ingram; 4. Layton Harrison; 5. Connor Garlitz. Pole: Seward.
NEXT EVENT: RVA Sports 200. Saturday, Mar. 11, at the Richmond (Va.) Coliseum. Doors open at 6 PM and racing starts at 7 PM.
MEDIA CONTACT: Ricky Dennis
Phone: (804) 835-5211
E-mail: ContactUs@ArenaRacingUSA.com