Tina Johnson made history last week at Atlanta Motor Speedway, as she became the first female driver to win the Legends Masters division championship in Thursday Thunder history. Photo courtesy Atlanta Motor Speedway
Championship night did not disappoint at Atlanta Motor Speedway in the final week of the 2015 Thursday Thunder season last week.
Tina Johnson of Senoia, GA overcame some late race adversity to earn her first career Masters Division points championship at the “Thunder Ring”.
When asked what winning the championship felt like following the race, a choked up Johnson said, “Oh gosh, you just don’t know. I prayed all week for this moment and I knew I was going to break if I ended up here (in victory lane).”
The emotionally charged Masters field brought out numerous caution flags throughout the feature race. With three laps remaining, Johnson and Scott Moseley made contact in turn two and collected Bill Plemons III – which forced the trio to the rear of the field.
With just three laps remaining, it looked like Johnson’s championship hopes were dashed as she was forced off the track with damage. Plemons III took the worst of the collision as his car had to be towed off. The delay gave Johnson the time needed to get her car back into shape and onto the race track without losing a lap.
Although she did not go a lap down, Johnson faced an uphill battle as she started from the rear of the field on the ensuing restart. After a half a lap at the back, she was then the beneficiary of a trio of cautions, two on subsequent restarts and a third with two laps remaining.
Johnson followed Moseley as the pair moved their way to the front of the field while Bill Plemons, Jr. got shuffled back from the race lead to the rear of the pack as he was part of one of the late cautions.
Johnson and Moseley restarted on the outside while Robbie Woodall had the inside line on the final restart. Moseley was able to slip past Woodall for the feature race win while Johnson finished behind Woodall in third.
Johnson edged out Moseley by three points for the championship trophy.
“This is amazing,” said Johnson. “I’ve worked on this for 14 years and I finally made it. Yes, it was a tough race, but that’s okay because it was worth it.”
In addition to the championship being the first claimed by Johnson at Thursday Thunder, it was also the first by a female driver in the Masters Division in the 18 year history of the program.
In other action, Connor Younginer earned his first feature win of the year in the final race of the season in the Xtreme Fun on Wheels Outlaw division, as he pulled away from Joshua Hicks following the final caution of the race. Younginer then outraced Hicks over the final three laps to earn the win.
A handful of cautions slowed the pace of the race, which included a caution with three laps left in the race, which knocked division champion Ashton Higgins out of the race. Higgins entered Week 8 action with an 80 point lead and finished with a 72-point lead over second place Hayden Swank, who finished third in the feature.
William Martin notched his third win of the season and captured the Allred Family Dentistry Semi-Pro/Young Lion division championship. Martin raced patiently over the first dozen laps to stay within striking distance of the lead. He made his more with two laps remaining when he slipped underneath Jensen Jorgensen exiting turn four to take the lead. Martin was then able to hold off Jorgensen over the final lap to earn the win.
After a trio of cautions over the first four laps in the Bandits division feature, D.J. Canipe settled into a rhythm and cruised to his sixth win of the season, capturing his first Thursday Thunder points championship. Canipe started from the point and held off Clay Thompson and Blaise Maddox for the win.
Ryan Younginer followed his brother to victory lane with his second Beginner Bandit feature race win of the season. Samuel Oliver finished second, with River Allen in third.
For more information on Atlanta Motor Speedway’s Legends program, visit AtlantaMotorSpeedway.com.
Atlanta Motor Speedway – Hampton, GA
Thursday Thunder Week Eight – July 23, 2015
Masters
1. Scott Moseley
2. Robbie Woodall
3. Tina Johnson
4. Bill Plemons, Jr.
5. Mark Swan
6. Phillip Young
7. Mike Kennedy
8. Willie Gray
9. Wes Potter
10. Randy Shubert
11. Dennis Hecht
12. R.S. Senter
13. William Plemons III
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2015 Champion: Tina Johnson
Bandits
1. D.J. Canipe
2. Clay Thompson
3. Blaise Maddox
4. Will Robusto
5. Ryan Howell
6. Isabella Robusto
7. Nathan Jackson
8. Noah Dominy
2015 Champion: D.J. Canipe
Semi-Pro/Young Lions
1. William Martin
2. Jensen Jorgensen
3. Dylan Murry
4. Jordan Coker
5. Brandon Brock
6. Russell Fleeman
7. Sebastian Arias
8. Amber Fleeman
9. Hannah Bell
10. Nicolas Waters
11. Christopher Clanton
DNS: Taylor Jorgense
2015 Champion: William Martin
Beginner Bandolero
1. Ryan Younginer
2. Samuel Oliver
3. River Allen
4. Dawson O’Connor
5. Cameron Potter
DQ: Keaton Hendrix
Outlaws
1. Connor Younginer
2. Joshua Hicks
3. Hayden Swank
4. Gauntt Hudgins
5. Trey Tadrzak
6. Ashton Higgins
7. Ricky Springer
2015 Champion: Ashton Higgins
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