After a 2019 season filled with bad luck, having led several events without winning, Matt Sponaugle scored big at Bedford Friday night with the 25 lap Late model win It was his sixth career Late Model win at the track but the first of the 2019 season and came in the most chaotic Late Model event of the season.
In other action, Brian Weyandt Jr eeked out a Semi Late win and Drake Troutman hung on for the EMod win before Josh Frankenberry closed the evening with the Pure Stock win.
Nathan Lasalle took the Late Model lead at the start, but Matt Sponaugle took up a position in hot pursuit. Lap after lap Sponaugle chased Lasalle as the event went all green, but all eyes were on third row starters Jeff Rine and Andy Haus. While they battled themselves, they both got by DJ Troutman for third on lap 7 and started closing on the lead battle.
By the time Sponaugle got by Lasalle for the lead, Haus and Rine were in the mix, also getting by Lasalle on lap 17. With everyone expecting an exciting climax to the finish, it happened much sooner.
Sponaugle caught and lapped Wayne Johnson a lap later, but when Haus and Rine caught Johnson a half lap later they all tangled in a violent crash in turn one. The mayhem also grabbed Lasalle and sixth place runner Drake Troutman.
After the extensive red flag period, Sponaugle lined up ahead of the only two cars in the field who had navigated through the mayhem, DJ Troutman and Chuck Clise. Drake Troutman, the first car to pull away from the accident scene lined up fourth and they ran in that order the last five laps to the finish. Johnson, with a car battered in the crash, finished fifth in the decimated field. Haus and Sponaugle won the heats.
Again the Semi Late event was the best race of the evening from start to finish. Jarrod Brown was the early leader but in his wake the attacking mob grew. Trent Clark chased Brown for 8 laps before he gave way to Brian Weyandt Jr, Bob Jay and Bill Replogle, who were trading spots on every lap.
Finally, with two to go, Weyandt slid by Brown for the lead. But as Jay and Replogle also descended on Brown they collided, with Jay suffering serious damage and retiring after the only caution in the race. Weyandt held on for the last lap shootout ahead of Brown, Greg Hainsey, Chuby Childers and Replogle. Kyle Weyandt and Jay won the heats.
Drake Troutman led pole to pole in the EMod event but he was shadowed every inch of the way by Mike Altobelli Jr. In the race that went all the way green after a first lap crash by first time visitor Jerry Foster, The lead pair pulled away from the field to settle it between themselves. Altobelli was unable to effect a successful pass and settled for second at the line. Dan Cornman, Sam Reeder and John Whitfield completed the top 5. Foster won the only heat for the short field.
Dalton Ritchey was the Pure Stock leader from the start but he had serioous pressure. Charlie Clise chased him early but Josh Frankenberry was second by lap 5. Frankenberry applied the pressure, actually taking the lead once before a yellow negated the move.
When a big crash stopped the action on lap 14, it gave the field a long time to think about the last lap shootout to come. On the restart, Frankenberry made a bold move and grabbed the lead for the win. Ritchey was second, followed by Clise, Keith Killander and Bruce Broadwater. Tim Brown and Kyle Deneen won the heats.
LATE MODEL 1 Matt Sponaugle, DJ Troutman, Chuck Clise, Drake Troutman, Wayne Johnson, Danny Snyder, Jeff Johnson, Jeff Rine, Andy Haus, Nathan Lasalle, Travis Wilson.
SEMI LATE 15 LAPS 1 Brian Weyandt J, Jarrod Brown, Greg Hainsey, Chubby Childers, Bill Replogle, Trent Clark, Mark Patterson, Matt Mellott, Chris Wolfe, Bob Jay, Travis Calhoun DNS Kyle Weyandt
EMOD 20 LAP 1 Drake Troutman, Mike Altobelli J, Dan Cornman, Sam Reeder. John Whitfield, Justin Milburn, Ryan Beckett, Jerry Foster, DNS Bryce Miller.
PURE STOCK 12 LAP 1 Josh Frankenberry, Dalton Ritchey, Charlie Clise, Keith Killander, Bruce Broadwater, Dalton Weyandt, Larry foor, Kyle Deneen, Tim Brown, Laura Chamberlain, Andrew Stough, Eric Bittner, Delmar Donivan, DNS Dominick Shipley, Corey Weaver
