Jimmy Owens (left, seen here from an earlier race weekend) and Dale McDowell (right) were winners in the first two Schaeffer’s Oil Southern Nationals Series races of the 2023 season. Photos: Kyler Hayes (left), Jacob West (right)
Jimmy Owens and Dale McDowell opened the 2023 Schaeffer’s Oil Southern Nationals Series season with victories over the weekend.
Owens was the winner on Friday night at July 14 at Beckley Motor Speedway in Mount Hope, West Virginia, with McDowell grabbing the victory on Sunday at Wythe Raceway in Rural Retreat, Virginia.
On Friday, Owens swept the season opener by leading hot laps, turning the fastest lap in qualifying, and taking the victory at Beckley Motor Speedway.
Owens, who hails from Newport, Tennessee, repelled eighth starting Henry Hornsby III to the checkered flag by 0.201 of a second to bag the $10,053 first place prize money.
“I want to thank all of these fans for sticking it out through all this rain and stuff,” Owens said after the feature, which was delayed by rain earlier in the night. “It is such a late night and it’s great to see such a big crowd here. It is a tough field of cars – a bunch of great guys out there and they raced us clean. I was afraid that the bottom was going to come in there towards the end because the middle and the top just kept getting a little blacker. The 39 car was right there at the end of the race and I was expecting a big slider, but he ran me clean and I thank him for that.”
Kyle Hardy finished in third, with Tyler Carpenter in fourth, and Chris Ferguson in fifth.
On Sunday, Dale McDowell led each lap en route to the victory at Wythe Raceway.
The Chickamauga, Georgia speedster was second fastest in qualifying and won his heat race leading up to the 53-lap feature. McDowell pocketed a $10,053 payday for his efforts.
“Yeah the car was good – Shane and Landon got everything working, so it makes my job easier,” said McDowell. “And it needs to be because I’m out of breath. I’ve actually had good luck here (at Wythe), so you’ve got high expectations when you come, but it doesn’t make it any easier. The competition level is unbelievable and I’m just glad to be a part of it.”
Carson Ferguson, Chris Ferguson, Ross Bailes, and Dawsonville, Georgia’s Donald McIntosh rounded out the top five.
The series was next slated to compete on Tuesday night at I-75 Raceway in Sweetwater, Tennessee, only to see the event washed out by rain.
Up next for the Schaeffer’s Oil Southern Nationals Series is a trip to Georgia’s Senoia Raceway on Thursday night. For more information, visit SouthernNationalsSeries.com.
Schaeffer’s Oil Southern Nationals Series
Beckley Motor Speedway – Mount Hope, WV
Race Results – July 14, 2023
1. (2) Jimmy Owens
2. (8) Henry Hornsby III
3. (3) Kyle Hardy
4. (12) Tyler Carpenter
5. (4) Chris Ferguson
6. (13) Kenny Collins
7. (7) Logan Roberson
8. (5) Ricky Weiss
9. (22) Will Roland
10. (16) Cory Hedgecock
11. (1) Carson Ferguson
12. (9) Cody Overton
13. (18) Donald McIntosh
14. (10) Mike Benedum
15. (6) Jordan Koehler
16. (15) Brenden Smith
17. (19) John Llewellyn
18. (23) Haiden Cowan
19. (14) Payton Freeman
20. (21) David McCoy
21. (20) Chris Meadows
22. (11) Kaede Loudy
23. (17) Jeff Smith
Schaeffer’s Oil Southern Nationals Series
Wythe Raceway – Rural Retreat, VA
Race Results – July 16, 2023
1. (2) Dale McDowell
2. (3) Carson Ferguson
3. (5) Chris Ferguson
4. (1) Ross Bailes
5. (9) Donald McIntosh
6. (11) Logan Roberson
7. (10) Ricky Weiss
8. (4) Jensen Ford
9. (6) Jimmy Owens
10. (16) Mike Benedum
11. (12) Tyler Clem
12. (14) Will Roland
13. (18) Jordan Koehler
14. (15) Haiden Cowan
15. (8) Cory Hedgecock
16. (13) Cody Overton
17. (7) David McCoy
18. (17) Austin Neely
19. (20) Brenden Smith
20. (21) Kevin Wilson
21. (22) Chris Chandler
22. (19) John Llewellyn
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