After Mother Nature provided an impromptu power washing, Meridian Speedway came to life Saturday, May 26, for the Naylor Classic. The Mountain Dew Interstate Winged Sprintcars and Super Modifieds combined to contest the Naylor Classic, while the Coors Super Stocks fought for the Dee Forrey and Don VanSchoiack memorial, and the Domino’s Legends raced in honor of Austin Christoperson and Eldon Cahill. The Pepsi Crate Cars and TEAM Mazda Mini Stocks filled Saturday night’s thrilling short-track slate.
A dozen TEAM Mazda Mini Stocks took Saturday night’s first green flag as they contested a twenty lap feature. On the break Everett Meeks battled Billy Shipp to claim the top spot on lap one. But Shipp’s car hooked up in the high groove, and he sprinted to the top spot on lap two. Shipp’s shift up front was short-lived as Terrell Daffron piloted his 208tire.com, The Wrap Shop entry to the front on lap six.
An early caution for point leader Jayson Wardle reset the field and brought Luke Wolverton and Jason Sanders into the lead fight. The green flag waved and Ship shot to the point with Sanders’ machine in tow. Daffron’s car came back to life at the race’s halfway point, and he immediately swung low to take the top spot.
But Sanders was quick to Daffron’s rear bumper, and as the laps wound down he looked low in his bid for the lead. Try as Sanders might, Daffron proved too strong and he sped across the Caleb’s Chop Shop Victory Stripe first. Behind the lead duo, Wardle tore through the field to bring his Lazee Days RV, Catapult 3 racer home third and retain his point lead.
The Mountain Dew Interstate Winged Sprintcars and Super Modifieds joined forces for the 35 lap Naylor Classic. On the green Caldwell, Idaho’s Justin Segura overpowered Tony Thomas to take the early lead. Thomas’ super modified proved too much to handle early, and the Mill City, Oregon racer jammed the field up as they sped through turns one and two. Matt Elliott was the beneficiary of this scramble, and found his Westside Body Works, Westside Machine sprinter in the runner up spot. Behind Segura and Elliott, Cory Lockwood pinned his Herold’s Auto Body, Dave Haver Race Engines machine to the outside groove and marched up the Pepsi-Cola scoreboard.
A lap thirteen caution bunched the field and brought Elliott to Segura’s outside and Lockwood to Segura’s tail tank in row two. Elliott blazed a trail in the high line on the green, but Segura took the shorter way around to retake the point. This left Elliott in the clutches of Nampa, Idaho’s Lockwood. Lockwood slid his sprinter high and low as he hunted for a way into the runner up spot. Elliott had all the answers and held off Lockwood to take second spot. But it all happened behind Segura, who led wire-to-wire en route to his first Naylor Classic victory.
“I’m lost for words right now,” Segura said in the Caleb’s Chop Shop Winner’s Circle. “I’ve wanted to win this race for so long.”
The Domino’s Legends brought thirteen strong machines to the Austin Christopherson and Eldon Cahill’s twenty lap memorial race. Hermiston, Oregon’s Don Guist and Nampa, Idaho’s Donovan Barr battled throughout lap one before Barr raced his way to the top spot on lap two.
On the move early was quick-qualifier Ethan Jones, who diced his way from thirteenth to third within five laps. An early caution bunched the field and brought Jones to Barr’s rear bumper for the restart. Jones pushed Barr’s Sound Hound Stereo, Blue Line Graphics machine to the top spot, then jumped into the high line and screamed to the lead.
This left Barr in the clutches of Zach Telford, Trevor Cristiani, and defending Austin Christopherson and Eldon Cahill memorial winner Casey Tillman. First to jump out of line was Cristiani, who worked the outside line. But Barr held off the Ukiah, California racer to keep the runner up spot. But no one had anything for Jones, who cruised into the Caleb’s Chop Shop Winner’s Circle.
The Pepsi Crate Cars had twenty laps to find a feature winner Saturday. On the break Boise, Idaho’s Rob Grice motored around Naylor Classic winner Justin Segura to put his ART Speed Equipment, Swire Coca-Cola machine in the early lead. This left Segura to fend off Ryan Wiederich and Nate Little in the early going.
Wiederich ducked low in his bid for second on the Pepsi-Cola scoreboard, but Segura shut the door. Next to try Segura was Little, who also jabbed low without success. But Segura’s TEAM Mazda Subaru, Garage Graffix sprinter broke loose with six laps left and Little’s Biz Print, Fishers Technology entry rocketed by. But Grice’s five second lead was too much, and the division point leader the checkers.
Nine Coors Super Stocks took the green flag on the Dee Forrey and Don VanSchoiak memorial race. Gale Carter worked his Shake-N-Bake racing machine into the early lead while the field jockeyed for position behind him. First to mount a challenge was Nampa, Idaho’s Tommy Harrod, who planted his PBT Auto Sales racer in the low line and on lap five made his way to the lead. But Harrod had fast company as Pat Tully, Melissa Arte, and Josh Jackson pulled to the leader’s back bumper.
Tully ate Harrod up and took the lead at the race’s halfway point. But Jackson’s Jackson Built Racing, Jackson Excavation car came alive late in the going, and he chopped into Tully’s lead as the laps wound down. With six circuits left Jackson arrived on Tully’s rear bumper and the two went to war for the lead. A late-race caution quelled the battle and reset the field for a three lap dash to the checkers.
Jackson got to the gas first, but Tully banked his Dillon Auto Craft Performance Engines, Pinnacle Appraisal racer off Jackson’s machine to keep the top spot. Jackson repaid the favor in turns three and four as the race for the lead became an all-out slugfest. As the white flag waved Tully and Jackson tangled in turn one, which handed the win to third place runner Melissa Arte.
The Memorial Day action continues Monday, May 28, as the NAPA Auto Parts Big 5 Latemodels face their shortest test of the year, the Bill Crow 50. The Project Filter Pro-4s take part in the Sean Miller Memorial race, and the Teleperformance Claimer Stocks race in memory of LeeRoy Nelson Monday. The PitStopUSA.com NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Modifieds, Rebel Modifieds of Idaho, High School Tuners and Junior Stingers complete the Memorial Day weekend schedule. General admission for Monday’s Bill Crow Memorial 50 races is $11.50 for adults, $9 for seniors and military members. As always, kids 6 and under get in free. Skip the line at the gate and purchase your tickets online at meridianspeedway.com. And be sure to text ‘meridianspeed’ to 84483 to receive exclusive updates from the track affectionately known as the Concrete Jungle. We’ll save you a seat Monday, May 28, under the big yellow water tower for the Bill Crow Memorial 50 at your NASCAR Home Track, Meridian Speedway.
Meridan Speedway PR
