JACKSONVILLE, NC – The most intriguing championship battle in the final round of the Winter Heat Series at Goodyear All American Speedway was saved for last – and the race did not disappoint.
Entering the race, Steve Sullivan, Nicholas White and Dustin Jolly were separated by just one point between the three in the U-CAR standings. When the checkered flag flew on the race, the championship initially had to be determined by a tiebreaker when Jolly was unofficially scored with a second-place finish over Sullivan – with Sullivan having the tiebreaker and clinching the title.
“It’s awesome to be the winner of the Winter Heat Series, something that started back in December,” Sullivan said. “We didn’t win a race but stayed as consistent as we could. These guys have been so awesome t o race, they brought their A-game every race. When we gained a little, they gained a little too. It’s been so competitive. It’s awesome to come into a race and hopefully win a championship and you have the top-three with one point separating us all, that’s so awesome.”
When Sullivan cracked the top-three, Jolly needed to win the race to win the championship. After leading the most laps, Jolly surrendered the lead to Curtis Lanier with five laps to go and had to settle for second. His valiant effort was ultimately disallowed in post-race technical inspection – moving Sullivan to second on the rundown and further cementing his title.
Two other championships were decided on the track on Saturday.
Entering Saturday’s race, Chase Singletary needed to finish seventh or better to clinch the Legends championship. When exactly seven cars took the green flag, all Singletary had to do was ride around to secure the title. Riding around, however, is not Singletary’s style – winning is, and he did everything he could to do just that before ultimately finishing second to Brenton Irving.
“Brenton’s a really good driver man,” Singletary said after the race. “It’s so fun to race with him. That wasn’t the finish I was looking for. If I had a couple more laps, I could have got him. It feels really good to win the championship. We’ll come back stronger next race and hopefully get the win.”
Justin Breshears, who is a Chief Master-At-Arms in the United States Navy, only needed to start the race to clinch the Bomber division championship, and he did just that with a runner-up finish in what will likely be his last race.
“I love running down here,” Breshears said. “These guys run so clean and so nice. To be able to run side-by-side and never touch is absolutely amazing. We had a good run, the car was just getting tighter and tighter as it went. Just happy to be here. Thank you to the Goodyear family for opening this track up and giving us a place to race in the winter.”
Breshears, driving car no. 34, dedicated his championship to the late Wendell Scott, Jr., son of the trailblazing NASCAR Hall of Fame driver Wendell Scott. Wendell Scott, Jr., who Breshears described as a friend, passed away earlier this month at the age of 75.
“He was a good friend of mine,” Breshears remarked. “He did a lot for me. Last week was the first time in probably eight years I got out of the car and didn’t call him. It was really rough.”
The Bomber race was won by Eddie Humphrey.
Trey Massengill and Dustin Phillips picked up wins in a Champ Kart doubleheader.
Travis Miller had already clinched the Mini Stock championship back in January while Phoenyx Kimball secured the Bandolero title by virtue of her wins in December and January.
“I’m so excited and honored in winning my first-ever championship,” Kimball said in a remote interview after learning her championship fate. “I honestly did not think I could do it, because I knew I was going to miss two races being in Florida. I want to thank Tonya and Anthony Goodyear for hosting Bandos. I look forward to racing at the track this year.”
The next race at Goodyear All American Speedway will be on Saturday, March 5, and will kick off the regular season. Late Models, Street Stocks, Mini Stocks, Bombers, and Champ Karts will all be in action. The green flag will fly at 2pm.
Goodyear All American Speedway is Jacksonville’s Action Attraction featuring racing and other events. For more information about Goodyear All American Speedway, check out the speedway’s website, like/follow “Goodyear All American Speedway” on Facebook, or follow the track on Instagram.
