BY BROOKE JOHNPIER, SPORTS STAFFER
World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series: Friday and Saturday night saw the WOO sprint cars head back to their inaugural track, Devil’s Bowl Speedway in Mesquite, Texas, for the track’s final racing event — The Final Stampede. Friday night’s winner was Carson Macedo after he pulled away from the pole position and holding the lead until the end, driving the Jason Johnson Racing No. 41.
“It’s really special,” said Macedo. “Devil’s Bowl has got a lot of history. The Johnson family, a lot of them are from this area or close to it and it’s special for them.”
Winning the race gave Macedo a $12,000 pay day, as well as a win at his 23rd different track. It puts him at an all-time high of 35 wins, putting him one spot away from tying with Shane Stewart at 20th on the series win lost.
Saturday night’s winner, and the last winner at Devil’s Bowl, was David Gravel. He sent the track off with a bang as he took the lead from James McFadden on the final lap after chasing him for the entire 30 lap feature in front of a full crowd.
“Obviously, I wasn’t alive in 1978,” said Gravel. “But this is where it all started. It’s cool to put my stamp on the end of the race. What a great crowd tonight, probably the biggest crowd ever in the history of Devil’s Bowl.”
The win puts Gravel at 10th on the all-time winning list, surpassing Daryn Pittmann with 87 wins. It also places him 2nd in points, 50 behind leader Brad Sweet.
United Sprint Car Series: The USCS headed to Hattiesburg Speedway in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, on Friday night. Mark Smith took the 25 lap feature and the prize of $2,250. He held off Hall-of-Famer Danny Smith for the entire race after taking the lead away from the latter on Lap 1, winning the Fall Brawl in the Hub City.
Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series: Sunday night saw the LOLMDS head to New Weston, Ohio, and Eldora Speedway where the drivers competed in the Dirt Track World Championship. Brandon Sheppard took home the win and $100,000. The win also gave Sheppard a tie with Freddy Smith for the most wins in this specific race. Hudson O’Neal, the race runner-up, won the LOLMDS championship, taking home $200,000.
“I was able to make it to the line, Hudson almost got me there,” said Sheppard. “That was a pretty crazy end to the night. When I crossed the line for the white flag I ran out of gas. I had just enough gas to make it to the line, every time I have driven this car it has been good all year. It was phenomenal.”
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