Bailey Hibbard Wins First Career ISCS Series Victory On August 31st At Cottage Grove
By Ben Deatherage
Cottage Grove, Oregon- The Interstate Sprint Car Series returned to Cottage Grove Speedway on Saturday, August 31st. It marked the first of two consecutive nights of action at the historic ¼-mile clay oval for the tour’s championship weekend. Twenty-eight cars were on hand representing the states of Oregon, Washington, Idaho, and California.
Two stoppages had occurred before the completion of the first circuit. Shane Forte led the first lap of the main event. The Junction City veteran lost possession of the top lace position on lap two. The driver to make the pass would be rookie pilot Johnny Burke, of Eagle Point.
Burke held down the lead for several laps. In his first time in a Sprint Car at Cottage Grove, Burke got bottled up in lapped traffic. On the sixteenth trip past the flag stand, Bailey Hibbard beat out Johnny by mere inches at the line to become the third different leader of the race.
A couple of additional incidents happened after Hibbard secured the lead and allowed him to work in open racetrack. On the final restart, Shane Forte built up a lot of momentum and got side by side for with Hibbard to try and overtake him. Bailey was able to get his elbows up and edged out Forte to win for the first time with the ISCS Series. He is the eleventh different winner in series history and the sixth different winner of the 2019 campaign.
Shane Forte ended his evening in a strong second while Tanner Holmes, of Jacksonville, placed third. Cottage Grove native Kinzer Cox was credited with fourth-place over fifth finishing Dave Hibbard, Bailey’s father and also from Medford.
Qualifying was split up into four groups. Quick timers in each group were Tanner Holmes, Castro Valley, California chauffeur Emily Williams, Ricky Ashley of Thurston, and Central Point veteran T.J. Winningham. Achieving wins in heat race action included Holmes, Johnny Burke, Kinzer Cox, and Ian Bandey of Cottage Grove. Sutherlin rookie Nickye Mendenhall won the consolation feature.
The ISCS Sprint Car Series will be back at Cottage Grove on Sunday, September 1st for the final points race of the season. Tickets are $13.00 for Adults, Seniors/Juniors/Military $10.00, Youths (6-12) $5.00, and Children (5 & Under) are FREE. Pit Gates open at 1:00 PM, Front Gates 3:30, and Time Trials at 5:30 with racing beginning at 6:00. For more information and updates log on to www.cottagegrovespeedway.com or check out the official Facebook page.
Race Results
Interstate Sprint Car Series #11
Saturday, August 31st, 2019
Cottage Grove Speedway
Cottage Grove, Oregon
Quick Qualifiers: Tanner Holmes (1), Emily Williams (2), Ricky Ashley (3), T.J. Winningham (4)
Heat Race Winners: Tanner Holmes (1), Johnny Burke (2), Kinzer Cox (3), Ian Bandey (4)
B-Feature: 1. Nickye Mendenhall; 2. T.J. Winningham; 3. Steven Snawder; 4. Scott Fox; 5. Don Waddell; 6. Heath Shelton; 7. Morgan Burks; 8. David Marble; 9. Tyler Driever; 10. Ricky Ashley; 11. Justin Tracy; 12. Tyrell Mead
A-Feature: 1. Bailey Hibbard; 2. Shane Forte; 3. Tanner Holmes; 4. Kinzer Cox; 5. Dave Hibbard; 6. Raquel Ivie; 7. Johnny Burke; 8. Tyler Thompson; 9. Brett McGhie; 10. Brody Sim; 11. Emily Williams; 12. Scott Fox; 13. Nickye Mendenhall; 14. Melissa Solesbee; 15. Anthony Pope; 16. Kyler Barraza; 17. Ian Bandey; 18. Steven Snawder; 19. T.J. Winningham; 20. Vern Scevers
- Ben Deatherage on Sep 01, 2019
- Article Date: 9/1/2019