ALLEN COMES OUT OF RETIREMENT TO POST O'REILLY USCS EAST BAY WIN
November 5, 2005
TAMPA, FL - Six days earlier, Sport Allen of Pinellas Park, FL retired as winged outlaw sprint car driver after a 20-year career at the ripe old age of 33. Friday night, Allen gave it one last try, and won the 25-lap O'Reilly United Sprint Car Series feature race at East Bay Raceway Park.
Allen started sixth, took the lead from 16-year-old Matt Tiffany of Daytona Beach, FL on lap 20, and then pulled away to win by a half straightaway in the American Well Drilling Schnee/ZRE. It was Allen's third career O'Reilly USCS win.
"I flipped here last Saturday night, and I decided that was enough for me, and I retired from driving race cars," Allen said. "Paulie Milum called me earlier this week, and they wanted me to drive their car here this weekend. I've got to thank the Milums for having enough faith in me, even though I destroyed one of their race cars last week."
Allen had to reach back and find some patience in order to make the pass on Tiffany for the lead. Tiffany, even though he's a teenaged rookie, drove through lapped traffic like a veteran, and it seemed he had lost Allen in the sea of lapped cars.
"Matt did a great job getting through the lapped traffic, and that had me kind of flustered," Allen said. "The more he got away, the more impatient I got, and the more impatient I got, the further he got away. Then I saw two lapped cars racing for position in front of him, and I knew I had a chance. I caught him, and when you're racing through lapped cars, it's like a big chess game. You just have to wait for the chance to make the right move, and we made it."
Allen was the C&B Mushrooms Fast Qualifier among the 33 entrants with a lap around the 1/3-mile clay oval in 13.507 seconds for an average speed of 88.843 miles per hours.
Tiffany had to settle for second in the Independent Printing Shaw/Ott. Tiffany was the Robison Racing Products Rookie of the Race, as well as the SpeedMart Young Gun of the Race, and the Outlaw Racing Disc Brakes Fast Brake Award winner.
Third spot went to Greg Wilson of Benton Ridge, OH in the Tim Hogan's Carpets Maxim/Hampshire. Brock Mayes of Bucyrus, OH finished fourth in the All Star Plumbing Heating and Air Eagle/Hampshire, and Kenny Adams of Malabar, FL was fifth in the Milk Movers, Inc./Goodson Farms Shaw/Ott.
Adams' finish clinched his second O'Reilly USCS National Championship, and the O'Reilly USCS Southern Thunder Tour Championship. After starting 17th and finishing fifth, Adams also earned the Huggins Cams Hard Charger Award, and he won the 12-lap B-Main.
Jason Sides of Bartlett, TN took the sixth spot in the Wetherington Tractor Service Maxim/Gray, and Stephen Darvalics of Venice, FL was seventh in the CineMoves Shaw/Gaerte. Four-time O'Reilly USCS National Champion Terry Gray of Bartlett, TN finished eighth in the C&B Mushrooms/Goodson Farms Maxim/Wesmar. Gray also won the six-lap Air Flow Research Power Dash.
Teammates Tom Winegardner Jr. of Pierson, FL and Greg Leonard of Tampa, FL rounded out the top ten. Winegardner finished ninth in the Snap On Tools/WRP J&J/WRP, and Leonard was tenth in the Snap On Tools/WRP J&J/Hampshire.
The top six finishers were also locked into the Saturday night's O'Reilly USCS A-Main at East Bay Raceway Park. Drivers were earning points in Friday night's C&B Mushrooms Qualifying, heat races, and the A-main. The top six in points respectively were Allen, Sides, Adams, Tiffany, Wilson, and Mayes.
They will run a six-dash on Saturday night to determine their respective starting spots in the Saturday night A-Main.
K&N Pole Award winner Tiffany took the lead at the drop of the green flag, but that quickly gave way to a red flag, when a multi-car incident on the backstretch launched the Martin Structures, Inc./Food Grade Transport Schnee/ZRE of Danny Martin Jr. of Sarasota, FL in its side.
Martin walked away uninjured, but his championship hopes were handed to Adams when he was done for the night. Martin earned the Weld Racing Hard Luck of the Race Award.
Tiffany once again took the lead on the restart followed by Mayes, Allen, Darvalics, and Gray. Allen made the biggest move on the opening lap, coming from the sixth starting spot to third. The red flag came out again on two when Danny Curry of Lutz, FL flipped his Reeves Import Motor Cars Schnee/All Pro in turn three. Curry was O.K.
Allen made another move on the restart, driving by Mayes, and into the second spot. Tiffany had company to his inside by lap three, with Allen taking a look at the point. Tiffany was up to the early race challenge, and pulled away from Allen. Tiffany caught the lapped cars on lap eight, and Allen began to close.
After a six-lap duel in lapped traffic, Tiffany put two lapped cars between himself and Allen, and started to pull away. Tiffany then got another batch of heavy lapped traffic a few laps later, and Allen stormed in for yet another challenge at the lead.
Allen got by Tiffany on lap 20, and began to pull away, but a caution flag came out on lap 24 when Tyler Godwin of Tampa, FL stalled the Godwin Racing Schnee/Gaerte in turn four. Tiffany had another chance to try and regain the lead, but Allen was up to the task, and pulled away in the two-lap dash to the finish to win by a half straightaway.
There was also plenty of action behind the leaders, as Wilson moved up from fifth to third, and Adams raced from seventh to fifth in the final two laps.
In other preliminary action, Martin won the Engler Machine and Tool first eight-lap heat race, and Godwin won the ButlerBuilt second eight-lap heat race. Leonard won the Koolbeans Trophies third eight-lap heat race, and Curry won the O'Reilly Auto Parts four eight-lap heat race.
The O'Reilly USCS returns to East Bay Raceway Park on Saturday night for another full program with a dash, heat races, a B-Main, and a 30-lap A-Main.
OFFICIAL RESULTS OF ROUND 49 AT EAST BAY RACEWAY PARK IN TAMPA, FL ON 11/4/05:
