When was the last time you saw a good Sunbelt Series race?

[JackTripper]

I'm not interested in any, "Sunbelt sucks!" or "I only go to dirt races" answers here or any other attempts at baiting people. For those of you that have followed the Sunbelt Series for a few years, what was the last good race you saw? When and where and why?

[DeMan951]

I don't know if this really counts because it was not exclusive to Sunbelt, but the SpeedFest race at USA Int. in February was great. The additions of Kyle Busch and David Stremme added to the excitement. There were several strong cars and even the ones not racing for the win were mixing it up, I have to say I was thoroughly entertained.

[Jane]

One of my favorite memories of a Sunbelt race was a few years back when Brian Finney won the race at Ocala Speedway. Alex was much younger then and they let him give Brian his trophy and be in the winning photo since at that time, Brian was his teacher and it meant alot to him being there and being with Brian. Also the year Jeff Choquette came out of the clear blue and won the Governor's Cup at New Smyrna.

Fain Skinner when he won the Florida State Championship race at Lakeland
and was worn out when he got out of the car. Watching any race with Mike Fritts at the wheel whether he won or not. Billy Bigley when he won the Governor's Cup on his wife's birthday. And the Florida Pro race at Volusia Speedway Park when Pete Orr and David Russell raced on that flat, flat track.

You can get mad at me and I know some will, but every race has a good memory and I enjoy them all. Justin Drawdy winning at Orlando, watching Barry Willoughby when he still raced, all of them.

But the Ocala race will always be special because it was so special to Alex to give Brian the trophy and be in that photo.

[bubba]

Sadly enough, I dont remember. I do recall enjoying the Gov Cup each year, but more from the "spectacle" of it and the number of drivers that usually attend, than the actual racing lately.

One thing I noticed at NSS last week...I was doing a thorough inspection of the new stalls in the mens room for a large portion of the evening (great work on the remodel btw), so I decided to hang out in the lower sections located more conveniently off turn 4 - instead of the aluminum stands. It really made a difference in the sense of speed and car control to be closer. I found myself enjoying the same race more from that perspective, even though I couldnt see the whole track. You really lose the sense of speed up on the top of the big grandstands. Ironically, my excitement level about the races has waned during the same period, so maybe I should blame the stands?

[Frasson118]

A few years ago, I was asked to write the Karnac story for a Lakeland Sunbelt race. It was a cool experience (other than the hassle trying to get from the pits to the stands... they wanted me to buy another ticket). It was a very competitive race, and not a train-race at all. The thing that stands out in my mind, was meeting Matt Hawkins for the first time (actually, had never even heard the name before). Through the inversion, he started on the pole, and I figured it would be about 1/2 lap before he got mowed over by Anderson, Rogers, Choquette, Scofield, Dempsey, Fritts, and the others. To my shock, he led for more than half of the race.
As the race settled down near the end, Fritts had taken over and was GONE. But behind him, the next 4 cars were side-by-side and nose to tail for about 40 laps, including Anderson, Rogers, Bigley (?) and Hawkins. It came down to a near photo finish for 2nd, and also for 4th (which Hawkins got).
In Victory Lane, every single one of those guys were smiling, congratulating each other and complimenting each other on what a clean, fair job they had done. And NONE of them knew Matt Hawkins before, but they sure knew him now!
Since then, I've become a huge fan of his talents, and have seen him win in ASA, Hooters, the Snowflake 100 at The Derby, and now he's won in ARCA. The kid is for real, and I'll never forget the first time I had seen him... a Sunbelt race in Lakeland!

[AB195]

Lot's of good races all around, but not really since it was the
former FLA-PRO Series way back when, ran alot of Sunday Afternoon Shows.