Jon Agan won a battle of veterans versus rookies with the Shottenkirk.com Sprint Invaders Sunday night. The Knoxville, Iowa driver survived a four-lead change duel with rookie Brayden Gaylord to win his first Sprint Invaders contest of the year and the seventh of his career with the series.
Another Sprint Invaders rookie, Tanner Gebhart grabbed the early lead in the 25-lap main event. Damian Getchell would stop after contact after one lap, slowing things. Gebhart led Gaylord, Jamie Ball, Agan and John Schulz back to green. While Gebhart rode through the middle on the beautifully prepared ¼-mile oval, Gaylord was hugging the low side. Gaylord would take control of the race on lap three, while Agan moved by Ball into third.
Gaylord approached traffic on lap 10, but contact between Cody Wehrle and Bailey Goldesberry brought out the yellow flag. Both were done. Gaylord led Gebhart, Agan, Ball and Ryan Jamison back to green. Agan headed to the cushion to race around Gebhart for second. Agan’s persistence on the high side paid off on lap 13, when he took the point from Gaylord. A bobble in one and two permitted Gaylord to return the favor on lap 14.
When Rob Weuve spun on lap 17, Gaylord led Agan, Gebhart, Jamison and John Schulz. Agan took advantage again on the restart and got around Gaylord for good. Gebhart reeled in the lead pair. A caution slowed that battle when Jarrod Schneiderman tagged an infield tire and came to a stop with five to go. On the restart, a chain reaction accident saw Dustin Clark upside down and McKenna Haase on the hook. Both were unhurt.
Agan pulled away to win over Gaylord, Schulz, Gebhart and Jamison. Ball, Ayrton Gennetten, Joey Moughan, Harold Pohren and JC Bland rounded out the top ten. Gaylord, Ball and Agan won heats, while Schulz took the Shake-up Dash. Cody Wehrle won the B main.
“We started the season off pretty good, but unfortunately, got crashed a couple times,” said Agan in Victory Lane. “We’re not running full-time anymore, and this means a lot. It’s been rough. We’ve been fast. It feels great. I love coming to places like this. This is my second time at Quincy. Two years ago, it was absolutely loose and laid rubber. Thank you, new owners. It was a fantastic racetrack.”
“I had it on the bottom,” said Gaylord. “I tried it up top a couple laps, but we got on the bottom and the crew told me we were running away. I didn’t know what I was going to do in traffic. There was one on top, one on the bottom and another in the middle. I really didn’t have a plan going into that, to be honest. We were fortunate to draw well, get in the Dash and finish up front. I’m ecstatic to run in the top three to be honest! This is one of my favorite tracks to come to.”
“It’s been kind of a battle this year,” said Schulz. “We got the new motor back that we hurt in the early spring. We put it in and it ran really well. The guys worked hard. It feels good to be running up front again. The track was pretty racy and we were right there in the thick of things. The Dash draw (five) didn’t go the best for us, but we were right there with them.”
The Shottenkirk.com Sprint Invaders finish up a competitive 2017 season next Saturday, September 23 with their Season Championship at the 34 Raceway in West Burlington, Iowa. For more information on the Shottenkirk.com Sprint Invaders, visit www.SprintInvaders.com or follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
- administrator on Sep 18, 2017
- Article Date: 9/18/2017