Pyle Prevails For Wednesday Legends Pro Win At Atlanta

The first of back-to-back nights of racing in Week 3 of the 2016 Thursday Thunder Legends Racing Series presented by Papa John’s Pizza descended on the quarter-mile Thunder Ring at Atlanta Motor Speedway Wednesday night.

Thursday Thunder alumnus and current NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver David Ragan highlighted the entry list in the Racing Radios Pro Division, but four new division winners stole the show on a rare Wednesday night of Legends and Bandolero racing.

The Racing Radios Pro division saw three different leaders, as Ragan raised the talent standard in the series’ top racing class.

From the pole position, William Martin entered the race with two straight top 3 finishes to begin the season and looked like he was on his way to his first win before disaster struck. Martin ticked off 21 straight laps at the front of the field, cruising comfortably ahead in fast a race that appeared might go caution free. But exiting turn 4 on the 22nd lap of the 25-lap feature, Martin got loose and spun, bringing out the caution flag and sending him to the rear of the field.

Restarting on the inside front row, all William Plemons III had to do was stay out in front for four laps to seal up his second straight victory. But that wouldn’t come to pass either.

Two laps later, Plemons and Mason Massey got together on the second-to-last lap, which again caused the caution flag to fly, sending both to the back.

Connor Pyle, who had been running in fourth behind Massey, suddenly found himself in the lead coming to the green flag with two laps to go.

“We started seventh and made our way up to fourth,” said Pyle. “I had a really consistent car all day, and I was putting some pressure on the third-place car and praying for a caution, and the good lord was looking out for me tonight and let me get it.”

But lining up outside of Pyle in the front of the pack for the green-white-checkered finale was Ragan, who had quietly moved up from his fourth place starting position.

Undeterred, Pyle restarted strong and held off the field for the final two laps, and took the checkered flag for the first time this season. Ragan was shuffled back in the final two lap melee and finished fifth, while Kaden Honeycutt finished in second, with Currie Pierce in third and Corey Heim in fourth.

“Just drive hard, that’s all I could think,” said Pyle in victory lane following his win. “I was just hoping for a top-3 finish, to be honest. I was just hoping to come out here and get a solid finish for the guys on the team and go home with a trophy.”

As for Ragan, he was just glad to have the opportunity to return to his racing roots.

“It’s tough,” he said. “These young kids are really good. They get to race a lot, and I’ve probably only raced my Legends car three or four times in the past five years. It’s just fun for me to come back and get back on a quarter-mile track and race with these guys.

“I’m going to make a few adjustments for my car and see if I can learn something and get a little better tomorrow.”

In other action, the Bandits Division kicked off the seven-feature lineup, as Nathan Jackson led the field to the green flag in the hunt for this first trip to victory lane this season. But no sooner had Jackson accelerated out of the starting box, than Clay Thompson, touting back-to-back wins to open the season, pulled alongside side him to make a move to the inside rounding turn 2 to take the lead.

Despite valiant efforts by both Jackson and Michael Gannon to overtake him, Thompson would lead each of the race’s 20 laps, ringing up his third consecutive victory. Jackson posted his third runner-up finish in as many weeks, while Gannon, Kenneth Henderson and Ryan Younginer rounded the top five.

Jensen Jorgensen used a front-row start and a strong finish to post his first victory of 2016 in the Atlanta Heart Associates Semi-Pro Division. Lining up to the outside of pole-sitter and Week 1 winner Nolan Pope, Jorgensen was patient, running just behind Pope through the first six laps before he saw his opportunity and pounced.

Exiting turn 4 on the seventh lap, Jorgensen made the move to nose ahead of Pope as the pair crossed the finish line, and it was all Jorgensen from there on. He would lead the remaining 13 laps to polish off his first win in 2016, while simultaneously sliding into the points standings lead heading into Thursday night’s race. Pope held on to finish second, while Hudson Halder punctuated the podium with a third place finish, his best of the year.

D.J. Canipe put on another clinic in the Live Oak Plantation Outlaws Division feature for this third win to open the season. Blaise Maddox won the pole and led the first eight laps, but Canipe showed impressive speed in the last half of the race, taking the lead midway through and widening the gap back to the second place car with each lap en route to the victory. Connor Younginer finished in second, with Maddox in third.

In the Plemons Investments Masters Division, McDonough’s Scott Moseley led all 20 laps from the pole for his second win of the season, but it was no walk in the park. The always-competitive division feature was anyone’s race to win, as Mark Swan and Tina Johnson threatened Moseley’s narrow lead nearly every turn of the race. But Moseley used a number of strong restarts down the stretch to hold off the rest of the field for his second trip to victory lane and third straight top 2 finish.

Johnson finished second behind Moseley, her best finish of the season, while Bill Plemons, Jr. finished in third, Swan in fourth and Robbie Woodall in fifth.

Grant Thompson passed pole winner Ashton Whitener on the first lap of the Wallace Electric Rookie Bandolero Division feature and went on to lead the whole way to punch his first ticket to victory lane this year. Whitener held on to finish second and match his best finish of the year, with Keaton Hendrix in third, Stanley Hayes in fourth and Wil Griffis in fifth.

A consistent race for Connor Younginer paid off, as he bounced back from a Week 2 disqualification to post his first win of 2016 in the Plemons Investments Young Lions Division feature. Starting on the pole, Younginer led the field for the first three laps while Week 1 winner Brody Pope clung to his rear bumper looking for any opening Younginer offered.

Pope got his opportunity on the fourth lap, overtaking Younginer exiting turn 2, but Younginer matched the pace behind him, never running more than a couple of car lengths behind. His persistence paid off six laps later when engine trouble forced Pope from the race, allowing Younginer to restore his place ahead of the pack. Younginer held on for the final half of the race, driving away in the closing laps to lock up the victory. Canon Cochran and Sammy Smith rounded out the podium.

For more information, visit AtlantaMotorSpeedway.com.

Atlanta Motor Speedway – Hampton, GA
Thursday Thunder – June 15, 2016

Pro
1. Connor Pyle – Concord, NC
2. Kaden Honeycutt – Bridge City, TX
3. Currie Pierce – Griffin, GA
4. Corey Heim – Marietta, GA
5. David Ragan – Unadilla, GA
6. Jeff Holden – Gainesville, GA
7. Matthew Barnard – Fort Worth, TX
8. Taylor Jorgensen – Stockbridge, GA
9. William Plemons III – Acworth, GA
10. Dawson Fletcher – Canton, GA
11. William Martin – Douglasville, GA
12. Mason Massey – Douglasville, GA
13. Mike Weed – Franklin, GA
14. Joshua Hicks – Senoia, GA

Bandits
1. Clay Thompson – Bowersville, GA
You are also advised to massage the male organ using herbal oils levitra shop buy such as Mast Mood oil daily two times. Featured is off-stage footage of the four tests, results stated that Vinpocetine is more cheap cipla tadalafil effectual as compared to previous days, ED is a treatable condition today and the best medication is all you will need. A standout devensec.com levitra online australia amongst the most critical parts of a healthy life. This can cause the individual to walk with short tadalafil 5mg tablets strides and with the knees slightly bent. 2. Nathan Jackson – McDonough, GA
3. Michael Gannon – Canton, GA
4. Kenneth Henderson – Alto, GA
5. Ryan Younginer – Stockbridge, GA
6. Logan Nalley – Canton, GA
7. Holt Halder – Cumming, GA
8. Max Hennebaul – Monroe, GA

Semi-Pro
1. Jensen Jorgensen – Stockbridge, GA
2. Nolan Pope – Harrisonville, MO
3. Hudson Halder – Cumming, GA
4. Jason Treschl – LaGrange, GA
5. Brandon Brock – Hampton, GA
6. Amber Fleeman – Dacula, GA
7. Robert Norfleet – Somerset, KY
8. David Lawrence – Senoia, GA
9. Jonathan Timms – Calhoun, GA
10. Miranda Meredith – Locust Grove, GA

Outlaws
1. D.J. Canipe – Fallston, NC
2. Connor Younginer – Stockbridge, GA
3. Blaise Maddox – Locust Grove, GA
4. Ricky Springer – McDonough, GA
5. Audrie Ruark – Suwanee, GA
6. Gage Roberts – Milledgeville, GA
7. Trey Tadrzak – Stockbridge, GA
8. Annabelle Mohwish – Cumming, GA
9. Max Brady – Marietta, GA
10. Kenny Brady – Marietta, GA
11. Gauntt Hudgins – Savannah, GA

Masters
1. Scott Moseley – McDonough, GA
2. Tina Johnson – Senoia, GA
3. Bill Plemons, Jr. – Locust Grove, GA
4. Mark Swan – Atlanta, GA
5. Robbie Woodall – McDonough, GA
6. Tony Armbruster – Covington, GA
7. Dennis Hecht – Hoschton, GA
8. Barry Bowen – Jackson Lake, GA
9. Robert Cheney – Stockbridge, GA
10. Randy Shubert – Conyers, GA

Rookie Bandolero
1. Grant Thompson – Mobile, AL
2. Ashton Whitener – Monticello, GA
3. Keaton Hendrix – Homerville, GA
4. Stanley Hayes – Concord, NC
5. Wil Griffis – Homerville, GA
6. Carson Ruark – Suwanee, GA
7. Ethan Norfleet – Somerset, KY
8. Wilder Etheredge – Atlanta, GA
9. Shelby Ruark – Suwanee, GA
10. Mikie Mohwish – Cumming, GA

Young Lions
1. Connor Younginer – Stockbridge, GA
2. Canon Cochran – Ringgold, GA
3. Sammy Smith – DeMoines, IA
4. Harrison Halder – Cumming, GA
5. Cale Hall – Griffin, GA
6. Hunter Johnson – Hampton, GA
7. Rafe Slate – Eatonton, GA
8. Lawson Ingold – Social Circle, GA
9. Carden Cochran – Ringgold, GA
10. Cody Hall – Griffin, GA
11. Brody Pope – Harrisonville, MO
12. Roy Hayes – Concord, NC
13. Davis Rochester – Lebanon, TN