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TRAVIS COPE MAKES LATE CHARGE TO TOP FLORIDA GOVERNOR"S CUP 200 AT NEW SMYRNA
SPEEDWAY - ALLEN CRASHES AND WINS SPORTSMAN 50
New Smyrna Speedway had to battle Mother Nature nearly all weekend, but the
skies cleared just long enough to get in the Florida Governor's Cup 200, a
race that had more twists and turns than a good pretzel with young Travis Cope
leading just the final two laps to score what amounted to an improbable
victory as it seemed he had everything going against him at various points.
The pit area was full even on Friday night as 38 Super Late Models signed in
just to practice along with a number of support division cars. Jeff Choquette
of West Palm Beach, driving the Adrian Carriers car out of Milan, IL, was
fastest in two of the three sessions held for the Super Lates.
Saturday dawned overcast and a bit on the drizzly side but the wet stuff held
off long enough to get several practice sessions in the books. However, just
after 3 pm the rain became a bit harder. From time to time it would subside
only to return as drizzle and mist. With a rather large time-consuming show
yet to run and the forecast for more drizzle, mist and even fog, track
officials decided to cancel the Saturday race program that was to have
included a 100-lap contest for the Modifieds, 75 laps for the Mini Stocks, and
races for the Super Stocks and Strictly Stocks. Governor's Cup qualifying was
also postponed and rescheduled for Sunday. The Modified and Mini Stock races
will be made up in January.
Overnight rain and thundershowers led to warm and breezy conditions Sunday
morning and the sun began to pop through the clouds as race teams enjoyed a
free breakfast on the grandstand side of the track sponsored by Eagle Jet
International.
By the time the cars hit the track for practice around 11 am, temperatures
were already around 80 degrees. During the Super Late Model hot lap session,
2009 Governor's Cup winner Tim Russell had something break on his car and he
slid hard backwards into the turn one wall. The damage was extensive and
Russell was forced to withdraw from competition.
In qualifying for the Governor's Cup race, Stephen Nasse was the 32nd car on
the track but going late in the session on a very warm track did not bother
the young shoe from Pinellas Park as he set quick time with a lap of 17.721
seconds, just a tick of the watch faster than 14-year-old Harrison Burton of
Hendersonville, NC who tripped the clocks at 17.795. Choquette was third
quick at 17.816 followed closely by the 17.817 lap of Bobby Good and Brad
May's 17.818. Defending Governor's Cup champion Augie Grill of Hayden, AL was
sixth quick at 17.885 seconds.
This was an impound race and the cars were not to be touched after time
trials. Crew members went to seven cars as they sat on pit road thus negating
their time trial efforts. These included fast qualifier Nasse, ninth fast
qualifier Cope, Jordan Ives, Brian Campbell, George Gorham, Jr., Michael Self
and Dustin Dunn. All were relegated to the back of the grid for the start of
the big race. The shake-up then placed Burton on the pole position flanked by
Choquette with Good and May starting from row two.
Pre-race ceremonies featured a quintet of drivers who won the race in previous
years who were not in this year's field. Joining the festivities were 1966
Governor's Cup winner Bobby Brack, 1970 winner Don Gregory, 1979 victor Jim
"Freight Train" Fenton, 1983 winner LeRoy Porter and Jimmy Cope, the only
driver to win a Governor's Cup event at it's original track, Golden Gate
Speedway in Tampa (1982) and at New Smyrna (2000).
Florida U. S. Congressman Bill Posey read a message from Governor Rick Scott
then proceeded to recognize all veterans sitting in the stands from two WWII
vets to those currently serving in the United States Armed Forces. All were
designated as Grand Marshals for the event and together gave the command for
the drivers to start their engines.
Thirty-seven cars took the green flag but the first start of the race was
aborted quickly when 24th starting Dusty Cornelius pounded the turn two wall
ending his day before it began. Rick "Fireball" Maguire also began having
trouble under caution and eventually pulled out with a faulty clutch.
The second attempt at a start went more according to plan as Choquette roared
out to an early advantage over pole-sitter Burton. Choquette had things
pretty well in hand when the caution flew on lap eight. The large field of
cars was creating so much turbulence that part of a billboard blew off and
landed on the back stretch approaching turn three.
On the restart, Brandon Johnson had something let go on his car and he popped
the turn one wall. Nasse had also come in contact with another car during the
restart and pitted with significant damage to the front of his machine. He
would not return to competition. Daniel Keene, Jr. also pitted under the
yellow flag with what looked to be a transmission issue but his crew got him
back on track for the next restart.
As the green flew Choquette again began to put some distance on the field
while Grill was on the move taking fourth on lap 30. Brian Finney spun off
turn two to bring out the caution on lap 34 and then immediately retired from
the event. Grill got a great jump on the restart and zipped into second spot
a few car lengths behind Choquette. Lap 54 saw Dustin Dunn loop his car in
turn two with Cope also getting spun onto pit road just as the yellow flag
flew. Several cars, including Cope, pitted under this caution period to make
adjustments.
Choquette continued to hold off Grill as the next yellow flew on lap 60 for a
turn two tangle involving Anthony Cataldi, Dakotah Stephens and Derek
Griffith. All three pitted for repairs and continued. Shortly after taking
the green, the caution was back out again on lap 69 for a spin by David Green
who got the car pointed in the right direction and continued.
On the restart things started getting racy for the top spot as Grill really
began to pressure Choquette. Grill made a bold move going into turn three on
lap 75 bumping Choquette and forcing him up the track as Grill took a lead
that would last only until turn two when Choquette slammed his car into
Grill's putting Grill into the wall. Grill was done for the day while
Choquette's car had just minor damage from both altercations. Track officials
put their foot down though and parked Choquette for unsportsmanlike conduct.
That ended the efforts of both drivers in their quest for a third Governor's
Cup win.
While all this was going on nobody was really noticing the great effort being
put in by T. J. Duke. The young driver from Southwest Ranches had put his car
in third place before the Choquette/Grill incident and now found himself in
the lead. Duke made the most of it as he sped out to a big advantage on the
restart. Lap 82 saw Keene back hard into the turn one wall ending his
afternoon. Duke continued to have a solid run and had built up another comfy
advantage before David Rogers, with something amiss with his car, spun in turn
two on lap 99.
The field took the half-way signal under caution with Duke leading Wayne
Anderson, Burton, Good, Steven Wallace, Joe Boyd, Cody Coughlin, Brad May,
Anthony Sergi and Rich Clouser. Cope had now worked his way up to 11th spot.
Duke continued to lead only to see Green spin a second time on lap 105. After
this spin Green retired from competition. With still 20 laps remaining until
the "competition caution" for refueling and tire changes, Joe Boyd had his car
stall in turn two, out of fuel. Boyd's car was pushed to pit road where his
crew dumped in a can of gas and sent him back out.
On the restart Wayne Anderson forged his way to the point bringing Steven
Wallace with him as Duke slipped back to third. As the field took the yellow
for the break at lap 125 it was Anderson out front trailed by Wallace, Duke,
Good, Coughlin, Burton, Cope, Chris Davidson, Ray Black, Jr. and Brian
Campbell. Rogers' car slowed as the yellow came out with he too being out of
fuel.
Anderson now began to check out on the restart as Bobby Good was now charging
hard, moving up to second spot on lap 128. Lap 131 saw Jordan Ives into the
turn one wall after tangling with Campbell. During the caution there were
reports that Anderson's car was leaking oil. Anderson pulled his car on pit
road where chief tech inspector Rocky Brooks determined there was indeed oil
leaking from the machine. Anderson's crew jacked up the car but, after a few
moments, determined the problem could not be fixed quickly and a dejected
Anderson drove his car into the pit area. During a pre-race interview,
Anderson said matter-of-factly that if he won the Governor's Cup for a fourth
time that he would retire on the spot. That will still be left for
speculation.
On the restart all heck broke loose off turn two. Duke got into the back of
Rich Clouser sending Clouser into a spin. Cope spun to miss everything and
stayed out of trouble but Ray Black, Jr. nailed Clouser's car with Joe Boyd
also slamming into the fray. Cody Coughlin tried to slip by up high but
grazed the wall. Clouser pitted and continued after repairs were made. Boyd
also pitted but was not so lucky as his machine was too badly hurt to continue.
Black's car need a tow from the track ending what had been a very good run.
Coughlin pitted and his crew made some minor repairs but his car refused to
re-fire and he too was out of the running. Duke continued but was sent to the
back of the restart line-up for turning Clouser. Just 16 of the 37 original
starters were still running with just over 60 laps to go as Good rocketed to a
huge lead on the restart while a resurgent Cope moved up to second place on
lap 155 but was nearly a full straight behind Good.
The race stayed green and would run that way to the checker. As the laps wore
down, Cope began to inch his way closer to Good. With ten laps remaining,
Cope had closed the gap to just a few car lengths not knowing that Good's
brakes were fading. Going into turn three on the next-to-last lap, Good drove
in a bit too hard and, with no brakes, slid high allowing Cope to assume the
point and take the white flag as the leader. At that point, Good could only
watch as Cope drove off to the checker to get his name placed on the
Governor's Cup trophy alongside his uncle Jimmy Cope and so many other great
names in short track Late Model racing.
Cope was quick to praise his crew in victory lane for "not giving up" and
giving him a car capable of pulling off the victory late in the event. Cope's
dad Mike is a former NASCAR Winston Racing All-Pro champion who never had much
luck in the Governor's Cup races he ran over his career and he was incredibly
impressed with his son's run to the victory. Travis also became the first
recipient of the Governor's Cup winner's ring presented in victory lane by
Andrew Hart. Cope's win was worth $15,000.
A dejected Bobby Good took his runner-up finish with a grain of salt saying it
was just a combination of "bad brakes and brain fade" that kept his name off
the Governor's Cup. Harrison Burton came out on top of a crowd-pleasing
side-by-side battle with Steven Wallace to finish on the podium in third
place. "We bumped and rubbed a little bit but Steve ran me clean and that's
all you can ask for in that kind of situation," said Burton. "I'm really
thrilled to finish this high in a race with so many great drivers and we'll be
back for the World Series in February," he said.
Wallace was fourth while Texan Chris Davidson ran a steady, heady race to
claim fifth. Rounding out the top ten were Canada's Alex Labbe, David Rogers,
Brian Campbell, T. J. Duke and Brad May. Utah driver Michael Self found
himself three laps down at one point after an early green flag pit stop but
used the "lucky dog" during several cautions to get back on the lead lap and
wound up 11th ahead of Clouser, George Gorham, Jr. and Anthony Cataldi as just
14 cars were running at the finish. Anthony Sergi had a top-ten effort going
but his engine went sour with just a few laps remaining and he was the last
car to fall by the wayside taking 15th spot.
Roger Blevins took the initial lead in the 50-lap Sportsman feature from his
outside pole starting spot only to see caution fly on lap four as Timmy Todd,
Jr. spun in turn four. Todd Allen zoomed by Blevins for the lead on lap 11
just as another yellow flag flew when Jamie Kennedy hit the turn one wall.
With Allen out front a huge crash took place on the back stretch on lap 13.
When the dust cleared, the cars of Scott Bramlett, Michael Williams, Jr.,
Colin Allman, David Williamson, Phil Luizzo and Todd were all out of the race
with damage. On the restart, Daniel Conlin, Jr. moved to the high side to
battle Allen for the lead and the pair tangled coming off turn two sending
Allen's car head-on into the wall.
As Allens's car was towed to the pits, a light rain began to fall. The rain
began to get heavier and at that point it was decided to call the race
complete with the finish reverting back to the way the cars crossed the
start-finish line on the last green flag lap. That gave Allen the victory
despite having a badly wrecked race car.
Conlin would be credited with second trailed by George Gorham, Jr., Ron
Gustafson and Blevins. Rounding out the top ten were Aaron Williamson, Junior
Beckner, Allman, Donny Williams and Bobby Mobley. Completing the finishing
field of 25 were Austin Howell, Patrick Thomas, David Williamson, Michael
Williams, Jr., Bramlett, Wesley Keller, Todd, Luizzo, Jason Foster, George
Alexander, Mike Dahm, Adam Soukup, Scott Garrity, Kennedy and Derrick Wood.
OFFICIAL FINISH - 49th ANNIVERSARY FLORIDA GOVERNOR'S CUP 200:
1) Travis Cope, Weeki Wachee, FL #26C
2) Bobby Good, Lake Mary, FL #27
3) Harrison Burton, Hendersonville, NC #12B
4) Steven Wallace, Mooresville, NC #66
5) Chris Davidson, Pearland, TX #14
6) Alex Labbe, St. Albert, Quebec, Canada #36L
7) David Rogers, Orlando, FL #11
8) Brian Campbell, Battle Creek, MI #81
9) T. J. Duke, Southwest Ranches, FL #28
10) Brad May, Orlando, FL #10M
11) Michael Self, Salt Lake City, UT #99
12) Rich Clouser, Deland, FL #9
13) George Gorham, Jr., Lakeland, FL #10G
14) Anthony Cataldi, Umatilla, FL #00
15) Anthony Sergi, Geneva, FL #20
16) Dakotah Stephens, Brandon, FL #79
17) Wayne Anderson, Wildwood, FL #84
18) Ray Black, Jr., Flagler Beach, FL #19
19) Joe Boyd, Riverview, FL #5
20) Cody Coughlin, Delaware, OH #1
21) Jordan Ives, Gladstone, MI #18
22) David Green, Ft. Pierce, FL #12G
23) Derek Griffith, Hudson, NH #12D
24) Daniel Keene, Jr., Weeki Wachee, FL #5K
25) Jeff Choquette, West Palm Beach, FL #29
26) Augie Grill, Hayden, AL #112
27) Johanna Long, Pensacola, FL #7
28) Dustin Dunn, Jupiter, FL #59
29) Bubba Pollard, Senoia, GA #26P
30) Brian Finney, Merritt Island, FL #12F
31) Michael Lira, Port Orange, FL #57
32) Danny Esposito, Jr., Loxahatchee, FL #40
33) Stephen Nasse, Pinellas Park, FL #51
34) Brandon Johnson, Lake Mary, FL #41
35) Zach Jarrell, New Smyrna Beach, FL #18Z
36) Rick Maguire, Williston, FL #119
37) Dusty Cornelius, Cocoa, FL #22
DNS - Tim Russell, Longwood, FL #36R
DNS - Jeff Scofield, Plant City, FL #77
SPEEDWAY - ALLEN CRASHES AND WINS SPORTSMAN 50
New Smyrna Speedway had to battle Mother Nature nearly all weekend, but the
skies cleared just long enough to get in the Florida Governor's Cup 200, a
race that had more twists and turns than a good pretzel with young Travis Cope
leading just the final two laps to score what amounted to an improbable
victory as it seemed he had everything going against him at various points.
The pit area was full even on Friday night as 38 Super Late Models signed in
just to practice along with a number of support division cars. Jeff Choquette
of West Palm Beach, driving the Adrian Carriers car out of Milan, IL, was
fastest in two of the three sessions held for the Super Lates.
Saturday dawned overcast and a bit on the drizzly side but the wet stuff held
off long enough to get several practice sessions in the books. However, just
after 3 pm the rain became a bit harder. From time to time it would subside
only to return as drizzle and mist. With a rather large time-consuming show
yet to run and the forecast for more drizzle, mist and even fog, track
officials decided to cancel the Saturday race program that was to have
included a 100-lap contest for the Modifieds, 75 laps for the Mini Stocks, and
races for the Super Stocks and Strictly Stocks. Governor's Cup qualifying was
also postponed and rescheduled for Sunday. The Modified and Mini Stock races
will be made up in January.
Overnight rain and thundershowers led to warm and breezy conditions Sunday
morning and the sun began to pop through the clouds as race teams enjoyed a
free breakfast on the grandstand side of the track sponsored by Eagle Jet
International.
By the time the cars hit the track for practice around 11 am, temperatures
were already around 80 degrees. During the Super Late Model hot lap session,
2009 Governor's Cup winner Tim Russell had something break on his car and he
slid hard backwards into the turn one wall. The damage was extensive and
Russell was forced to withdraw from competition.
In qualifying for the Governor's Cup race, Stephen Nasse was the 32nd car on
the track but going late in the session on a very warm track did not bother
the young shoe from Pinellas Park as he set quick time with a lap of 17.721
seconds, just a tick of the watch faster than 14-year-old Harrison Burton of
Hendersonville, NC who tripped the clocks at 17.795. Choquette was third
quick at 17.816 followed closely by the 17.817 lap of Bobby Good and Brad
May's 17.818. Defending Governor's Cup champion Augie Grill of Hayden, AL was
sixth quick at 17.885 seconds.
This was an impound race and the cars were not to be touched after time
trials. Crew members went to seven cars as they sat on pit road thus negating
their time trial efforts. These included fast qualifier Nasse, ninth fast
qualifier Cope, Jordan Ives, Brian Campbell, George Gorham, Jr., Michael Self
and Dustin Dunn. All were relegated to the back of the grid for the start of
the big race. The shake-up then placed Burton on the pole position flanked by
Choquette with Good and May starting from row two.
Pre-race ceremonies featured a quintet of drivers who won the race in previous
years who were not in this year's field. Joining the festivities were 1966
Governor's Cup winner Bobby Brack, 1970 winner Don Gregory, 1979 victor Jim
"Freight Train" Fenton, 1983 winner LeRoy Porter and Jimmy Cope, the only
driver to win a Governor's Cup event at it's original track, Golden Gate
Speedway in Tampa (1982) and at New Smyrna (2000).
Florida U. S. Congressman Bill Posey read a message from Governor Rick Scott
then proceeded to recognize all veterans sitting in the stands from two WWII
vets to those currently serving in the United States Armed Forces. All were
designated as Grand Marshals for the event and together gave the command for
the drivers to start their engines.
Thirty-seven cars took the green flag but the first start of the race was
aborted quickly when 24th starting Dusty Cornelius pounded the turn two wall
ending his day before it began. Rick "Fireball" Maguire also began having
trouble under caution and eventually pulled out with a faulty clutch.
The second attempt at a start went more according to plan as Choquette roared
out to an early advantage over pole-sitter Burton. Choquette had things
pretty well in hand when the caution flew on lap eight. The large field of
cars was creating so much turbulence that part of a billboard blew off and
landed on the back stretch approaching turn three.
On the restart, Brandon Johnson had something let go on his car and he popped
the turn one wall. Nasse had also come in contact with another car during the
restart and pitted with significant damage to the front of his machine. He
would not return to competition. Daniel Keene, Jr. also pitted under the
yellow flag with what looked to be a transmission issue but his crew got him
back on track for the next restart.
As the green flew Choquette again began to put some distance on the field
while Grill was on the move taking fourth on lap 30. Brian Finney spun off
turn two to bring out the caution on lap 34 and then immediately retired from
the event. Grill got a great jump on the restart and zipped into second spot
a few car lengths behind Choquette. Lap 54 saw Dustin Dunn loop his car in
turn two with Cope also getting spun onto pit road just as the yellow flag
flew. Several cars, including Cope, pitted under this caution period to make
adjustments.
Choquette continued to hold off Grill as the next yellow flew on lap 60 for a
turn two tangle involving Anthony Cataldi, Dakotah Stephens and Derek
Griffith. All three pitted for repairs and continued. Shortly after taking
the green, the caution was back out again on lap 69 for a spin by David Green
who got the car pointed in the right direction and continued.
On the restart things started getting racy for the top spot as Grill really
began to pressure Choquette. Grill made a bold move going into turn three on
lap 75 bumping Choquette and forcing him up the track as Grill took a lead
that would last only until turn two when Choquette slammed his car into
Grill's putting Grill into the wall. Grill was done for the day while
Choquette's car had just minor damage from both altercations. Track officials
put their foot down though and parked Choquette for unsportsmanlike conduct.
That ended the efforts of both drivers in their quest for a third Governor's
Cup win.
While all this was going on nobody was really noticing the great effort being
put in by T. J. Duke. The young driver from Southwest Ranches had put his car
in third place before the Choquette/Grill incident and now found himself in
the lead. Duke made the most of it as he sped out to a big advantage on the
restart. Lap 82 saw Keene back hard into the turn one wall ending his
afternoon. Duke continued to have a solid run and had built up another comfy
advantage before David Rogers, with something amiss with his car, spun in turn
two on lap 99.
The field took the half-way signal under caution with Duke leading Wayne
Anderson, Burton, Good, Steven Wallace, Joe Boyd, Cody Coughlin, Brad May,
Anthony Sergi and Rich Clouser. Cope had now worked his way up to 11th spot.
Duke continued to lead only to see Green spin a second time on lap 105. After
this spin Green retired from competition. With still 20 laps remaining until
the "competition caution" for refueling and tire changes, Joe Boyd had his car
stall in turn two, out of fuel. Boyd's car was pushed to pit road where his
crew dumped in a can of gas and sent him back out.
On the restart Wayne Anderson forged his way to the point bringing Steven
Wallace with him as Duke slipped back to third. As the field took the yellow
for the break at lap 125 it was Anderson out front trailed by Wallace, Duke,
Good, Coughlin, Burton, Cope, Chris Davidson, Ray Black, Jr. and Brian
Campbell. Rogers' car slowed as the yellow came out with he too being out of
fuel.
Anderson now began to check out on the restart as Bobby Good was now charging
hard, moving up to second spot on lap 128. Lap 131 saw Jordan Ives into the
turn one wall after tangling with Campbell. During the caution there were
reports that Anderson's car was leaking oil. Anderson pulled his car on pit
road where chief tech inspector Rocky Brooks determined there was indeed oil
leaking from the machine. Anderson's crew jacked up the car but, after a few
moments, determined the problem could not be fixed quickly and a dejected
Anderson drove his car into the pit area. During a pre-race interview,
Anderson said matter-of-factly that if he won the Governor's Cup for a fourth
time that he would retire on the spot. That will still be left for
speculation.
On the restart all heck broke loose off turn two. Duke got into the back of
Rich Clouser sending Clouser into a spin. Cope spun to miss everything and
stayed out of trouble but Ray Black, Jr. nailed Clouser's car with Joe Boyd
also slamming into the fray. Cody Coughlin tried to slip by up high but
grazed the wall. Clouser pitted and continued after repairs were made. Boyd
also pitted but was not so lucky as his machine was too badly hurt to continue.
Black's car need a tow from the track ending what had been a very good run.
Coughlin pitted and his crew made some minor repairs but his car refused to
re-fire and he too was out of the running. Duke continued but was sent to the
back of the restart line-up for turning Clouser. Just 16 of the 37 original
starters were still running with just over 60 laps to go as Good rocketed to a
huge lead on the restart while a resurgent Cope moved up to second place on
lap 155 but was nearly a full straight behind Good.
The race stayed green and would run that way to the checker. As the laps wore
down, Cope began to inch his way closer to Good. With ten laps remaining,
Cope had closed the gap to just a few car lengths not knowing that Good's
brakes were fading. Going into turn three on the next-to-last lap, Good drove
in a bit too hard and, with no brakes, slid high allowing Cope to assume the
point and take the white flag as the leader. At that point, Good could only
watch as Cope drove off to the checker to get his name placed on the
Governor's Cup trophy alongside his uncle Jimmy Cope and so many other great
names in short track Late Model racing.
Cope was quick to praise his crew in victory lane for "not giving up" and
giving him a car capable of pulling off the victory late in the event. Cope's
dad Mike is a former NASCAR Winston Racing All-Pro champion who never had much
luck in the Governor's Cup races he ran over his career and he was incredibly
impressed with his son's run to the victory. Travis also became the first
recipient of the Governor's Cup winner's ring presented in victory lane by
Andrew Hart. Cope's win was worth $15,000.
A dejected Bobby Good took his runner-up finish with a grain of salt saying it
was just a combination of "bad brakes and brain fade" that kept his name off
the Governor's Cup. Harrison Burton came out on top of a crowd-pleasing
side-by-side battle with Steven Wallace to finish on the podium in third
place. "We bumped and rubbed a little bit but Steve ran me clean and that's
all you can ask for in that kind of situation," said Burton. "I'm really
thrilled to finish this high in a race with so many great drivers and we'll be
back for the World Series in February," he said.
Wallace was fourth while Texan Chris Davidson ran a steady, heady race to
claim fifth. Rounding out the top ten were Canada's Alex Labbe, David Rogers,
Brian Campbell, T. J. Duke and Brad May. Utah driver Michael Self found
himself three laps down at one point after an early green flag pit stop but
used the "lucky dog" during several cautions to get back on the lead lap and
wound up 11th ahead of Clouser, George Gorham, Jr. and Anthony Cataldi as just
14 cars were running at the finish. Anthony Sergi had a top-ten effort going
but his engine went sour with just a few laps remaining and he was the last
car to fall by the wayside taking 15th spot.
Roger Blevins took the initial lead in the 50-lap Sportsman feature from his
outside pole starting spot only to see caution fly on lap four as Timmy Todd,
Jr. spun in turn four. Todd Allen zoomed by Blevins for the lead on lap 11
just as another yellow flag flew when Jamie Kennedy hit the turn one wall.
With Allen out front a huge crash took place on the back stretch on lap 13.
When the dust cleared, the cars of Scott Bramlett, Michael Williams, Jr.,
Colin Allman, David Williamson, Phil Luizzo and Todd were all out of the race
with damage. On the restart, Daniel Conlin, Jr. moved to the high side to
battle Allen for the lead and the pair tangled coming off turn two sending
Allen's car head-on into the wall.
As Allens's car was towed to the pits, a light rain began to fall. The rain
began to get heavier and at that point it was decided to call the race
complete with the finish reverting back to the way the cars crossed the
start-finish line on the last green flag lap. That gave Allen the victory
despite having a badly wrecked race car.
Conlin would be credited with second trailed by George Gorham, Jr., Ron
Gustafson and Blevins. Rounding out the top ten were Aaron Williamson, Junior
Beckner, Allman, Donny Williams and Bobby Mobley. Completing the finishing
field of 25 were Austin Howell, Patrick Thomas, David Williamson, Michael
Williams, Jr., Bramlett, Wesley Keller, Todd, Luizzo, Jason Foster, George
Alexander, Mike Dahm, Adam Soukup, Scott Garrity, Kennedy and Derrick Wood.
OFFICIAL FINISH - 49th ANNIVERSARY FLORIDA GOVERNOR'S CUP 200:
1) Travis Cope, Weeki Wachee, FL #26C
2) Bobby Good, Lake Mary, FL #27
3) Harrison Burton, Hendersonville, NC #12B
4) Steven Wallace, Mooresville, NC #66
5) Chris Davidson, Pearland, TX #14
6) Alex Labbe, St. Albert, Quebec, Canada #36L
7) David Rogers, Orlando, FL #11
8) Brian Campbell, Battle Creek, MI #81
9) T. J. Duke, Southwest Ranches, FL #28
10) Brad May, Orlando, FL #10M
11) Michael Self, Salt Lake City, UT #99
12) Rich Clouser, Deland, FL #9
13) George Gorham, Jr., Lakeland, FL #10G
14) Anthony Cataldi, Umatilla, FL #00
15) Anthony Sergi, Geneva, FL #20
16) Dakotah Stephens, Brandon, FL #79
17) Wayne Anderson, Wildwood, FL #84
18) Ray Black, Jr., Flagler Beach, FL #19
19) Joe Boyd, Riverview, FL #5
20) Cody Coughlin, Delaware, OH #1
21) Jordan Ives, Gladstone, MI #18
22) David Green, Ft. Pierce, FL #12G
23) Derek Griffith, Hudson, NH #12D
24) Daniel Keene, Jr., Weeki Wachee, FL #5K
25) Jeff Choquette, West Palm Beach, FL #29
26) Augie Grill, Hayden, AL #112
27) Johanna Long, Pensacola, FL #7
28) Dustin Dunn, Jupiter, FL #59
29) Bubba Pollard, Senoia, GA #26P
30) Brian Finney, Merritt Island, FL #12F
31) Michael Lira, Port Orange, FL #57
32) Danny Esposito, Jr., Loxahatchee, FL #40
33) Stephen Nasse, Pinellas Park, FL #51
34) Brandon Johnson, Lake Mary, FL #41
35) Zach Jarrell, New Smyrna Beach, FL #18Z
36) Rick Maguire, Williston, FL #119
37) Dusty Cornelius, Cocoa, FL #22
DNS - Tim Russell, Longwood, FL #36R
DNS - Jeff Scofield, Plant City, FL #77
Attached Files