KELLYVILLE, Okla. –Â Winning at Creek County Speedway was extremely tough on Saturday.
Drivers fought for the bottom groove around the quarter-mile oval with many jumping the berm. But Zach Chappell held on for 30 laps and came away with his fourth AmeriFlex / OCRS Sprint Car victory of the season.
“It was slow, but you had to really hit your marks,” said Chappell of the challenging driving conditions. “I was waiting for someone to try the high side on me. I tried it before the race started and did not feel anything special. I just could not move off the bottom until someone did. I was dedicated to it.”
Fortunately for Chappell time ran out before that happened. Mike Goodman was charging through the field from his 16th starting position and drove around Johnny Kent for second on the final lap. Goodman was bearing down on Chappell but fell short in his efforts .402 seconds.
“I heard that (Mike) Goodman was coming on pretty hard at the last. But we will take it,” Chappell said. “This AmeriFlex car is working really good right now. ”
“It was so hard to pass,” said Goodman who earned the York Plumbing Hard Charger award for advancing 14 spots. ” I like a two groove track. Something with a cushion you can beat and bang on.
“We knew we were deep so we just rolled everything we could at it. We actually set it up to run the top and surprisingly it rolled the bottom great.
“I know this track and it is difficult to run over the berm without upsetting the race car. There were times I was four wheels over the berm on exit. That is the only way we could get around anybody. I needed 20 more feet. I did not realize I was that close to him until the white flag. I caught him quick.”
Chappell started on the pole next to Shane Sellers and made a quick move into the lead on the start.
“I got a real good jump on Shane,” Chappell said. “There was a little bit of tacky on top of the curve and it launched me out in front of him.”
Sellers held down second until Kent passed him on lap 14. At the finish, Sellers edged out Kent by less than a second for third. Nick Lucito finished fifth.
The finish:
Zach Chappell, Mike Goodman, Shane Sellers, Johnny Kent, Nick Lucito, Avery Goodman, Noah Harris, Mickey Walker, Joe Bob Lee, Sheldon Barksdale, Tim Kent, Terry Easum, Kevin Brewer, Alison Slaton, Charlie Crumpton, Danny Smith, Travis Ashwood, Alex Sewell, Alex DeCamp, Len Larkin, Corey McGehee.