By Ken de la Bastide
Curtis Chapman hit a hot streak in the final month of NASH FM ThunderCar competition to repeat as the division champion at Anderson Speedway on Saturday, September 27.
Chapman and Robbie Wyman were locked in a season long battle for the top spot in the point’s chase. Chapman grabbed a one-point lead over Wyman on Sept. 6 and claimed the title with a dominating performance in the feature race.
The Anderson driver set fast time and the led all 35 laps to score his fourth victory of the year.
Wyman was glued to the rear bumper of Trent Gossar in a battle for second place, but was never able to get inside to make the pass.
Following his win, Chapman and Wyman exchanged a handshake and embrace at the crossover.
“This is awesome,” Chapman said in the Tim Thompson Nationwide Insurance Winner’s Circle.
“I want to thank Robbie Wyman for racing me hard all year. It was fun.”
Jerry Dane capped his first Front Wheel Drive Oval championship the way he started the season with a feature win.
Dane set fast time during qualifications to start on the pole position and from there led the entire distance for his sixth feature win of the year.
Behind Dane there was a good battle for second between Billy Hooten and Ronnie Phipps. Phipps passed Hooten with a pass entering turn three to claim the second position.
Nick Warner won his ninth feature win in the Front Wheel Drive Figure-8 Division but the championship went to the team of Jeff Williams and Randy Owens.
Warner was ineligible for the title.
Williams entered the night in a tight three-way battle for the title, but Kamden Creek missed the feature with a mechanical problem and Brian McKinney pulled out of competition after three laps.
Williams kept the pressure on Warner but was never able to get close enough to complete the pass. Several times Warner had to slam on the brakes to avoid contact in the cross-over.
Elliott McKinney led the first lap before being passed by Warner and settled for a third place finish.
Frankton driver John Robbins captured his fourth feature win of the season on his way to the Thunder Roadsters championship.
Robbins was the fast qualifier and led all 30 laps to record the victory with Doug Dugger, looking to make it three wins in a row, closing over the second half of the race but never able to close to within more than a handful of car lengths. Dugger finished second followed by Marty Griffin.
Anderson Speedway returns to racing action on Saturday, October 4 with the rescheduled 18th Annual Grant Fritz/Greg Dietzen Memorial featuring the Legends. The Twin 50’s for McGunegill Engine Performance Late Models and Street Stocks plus Pro Compacts will be part of the racing lineup.
