Jerick Johnson picked up a hard fought victory at Gresham Motorsports Park Wednesday night. Photo by Justin Poole
Race fans around Georgia have seen lots of great racing in shows held in the middle of the week over the years, including at tracks like the famed Peach Bowl in Atlanta, Toccoa Speedway, Athens Speedway and Banks County Speedway.
You can add Gresham Motorsports Park to that list, as the fans who came out for the first of two Midweek Mayhem races in Jefferson, Georgia saw a nip and tuck battle to the wire, with Jerick Johnson holding off a hard charging Michael Lance to pick up his first victory on the GMP high banks.
“I did know he was coming,” Johnson, a Minnesota native, said in victory lane. “He got those practice laps and was faster than all of us. He was going to have to go around the bottom side to get by. I haven’t raced here much, so I wanted to give him enough room.”
Johnson started out the night by winning the eight lap trophy dash with a last lap pass over former track champion Russell Fleeman of Dacula, Georgia. That put him on the pole for the 40-lap feature.
On the drop of the green flag, Fleeman got the jump, moving out to a slim lead.
Jerick Johnson (76) had to hold off a hard charging Michael Lance (04) to get the win. Photo by Justin Poole
The scariest incident of the night occurred just three laps in, when Scott Saunders made hard contact on the inside “Bubba Barrier” jersey barrier just past the start-finish line while running in the top five. Saunders was okay, but his race was finished.
Fleeman would again jump out front on the restart, but on the seventh lap, Johnson slipped past to take the lead.
While Johnson moved out to a sizeable lead, Michael Lance charged his way through the pack after starting last. Lance passed Fleeman for third on the ninth lap, and then set sail to catch Johnson.
As the race approached halfway, Lance closed on Johnson, and with ten to go, Lance started looking for daylight around the leader.
Try as he might, Lance could not find a lane. Despite a strong run on the last lap, Lance could not get alongside Johnson, who took the checkered flag and the victory.
Lance was second, with Gus Dean, Russell Fleeman and Shawn Simpson rounding out the top five.
Hoyt Stephens scored a popular victory in the Outlaw Late Model feature Wedesday night. Photo by Justin Poole
Hometown hero Hoyt Stephens is always tough to beat at Gresham, and he showed why by taking the Outlaw Late Model victory.
Matthew Wragg took an early lead, but found himself in a side by side restart with Stephens after veteran racer David Murphy brought out the caution with an issue in the fourth turn.
On the restart, it appeared that Wragg jumped early. Officials threw the yellow, sending Wragg to the back of the pack.
That handed Stephens the lead, and he took full advantage, pulling out to a sizeable distance over second place Jason Bates.
As the laps wound down, Bates began to close on the leader, but ran out of time as Stephens flashed under the checkered flag.
“We’ve about got everything fixed,” Stephens said in victory lane. “We’re going to come to race now and have some fun. We want to thank all the fans for coming out and hollering for us tonight.”
Cody Haskins celebrates his Truck division win in GMP's victory lane. Photo by Justin Poole
In the Truck feature, Brandon Jones led early, but Cody Haskins breezed by just a few laps in and would lead the rest of the 35 lap feature to take the win.
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The Truck drivers saw only two cautions during their event. The first flew on lap 16 for debris. The second came on lap 25 when Ashley Harvey and Kevin Vasser tangled in turn two. Vasser was able to continue, but Harvey’s night was over.
All race results are unofficial until certified by race officials.
Up next at Gresham Motorsports Park is the second Midweek Mayhem event, slated for Wednesday, Aug. 3, featuring another 40-lap Pro Late Model event along with racing in the Trucks, Mini-Stocks and Renegades.
For more info, visit www.greshammotorsportspark.com
Gresham Motorsports Park – Jefferson, GA
Midweek Mayhem #1 – July 20, 2011
Unofficial Race Results
Pro Late Models
1. Jerick Johnson
2. Michael Lance
3. Gus Dean
4. Russell Fleeman
5. Shawn Simpson
6. Tyler Edwards
7. Dalton Grindle
8. Rodney Benefield
9. Shane Sawyer
10. Scott Saunders
Outlaw Late Models
1. Hoyt Stephens
2. Jason Bates
3. Matthew Wragg
4. Terry Martin
5. David Murphy
Trucks
1. Cody Haskins
2. Spencer Davis
3. William Hoose
4. Brandon Jones
5. Mark Caudell
6. Kevin Vasser
7. Ashley Harvey
8. Donald Franklin
9. Aaron Calvert
