Magnolia Motor Speedway
Clanton edges Wall for SAS victory at Magnolia
Shane Clanton (25) works past Chris Wall to take the lead. (Scott Oglesby)
COLUMBUS, Miss. (May 29) — Shane Clanton of Fayetteville, Ga., overtook polesitter and race-long leader Chris Wall of Springfield, La., in the closing laps Sunday at Magnolia Motor Speedway for a $5,000 victory on the Southern All Star Dirt Racing Series.
Clanton, who rallied from his seventh starting spot at the 3/8-mile oval, won the Memorial at the Mag 50 for his 10th career Southern All Star victory. | Sildeshow
Wall, the previous series winner at Magnolia two years ago, settled for second while Super Late Model rookie Chip Brindle of Chatsworth, Ga., finished third. Brooks Strength of Jackson, Miss., was a series-best fourth and Eric Cooley of Fulton, Miss., rallied from his 22nd starting spot to rounded out the top five.
Rodney Wing of Meridian, Miss., lost a top-five spot when he broke in the race's final moments. Among other drivers who ran among the top five but didn't finish there were Jonathan Davenport of Blairsville, Ga., and Billy Ogle Jr. of Knoxville, Tenn.
The victory is Clanton's second of the season on the Southern All Star circuit. He captured the season opener March 12 at Cleveland (Tenn.) Speedway.
Notes: Clanton's Rocket Chassis is sponsored by RSD Enterprises, SAE Parts, GW Performance, Slavic Shirts & Decals and PRC. ... Klint Byars of Carrollton, Miss., had a two-race win streak broken. He'd won earlier in the weekend in MSSCS competition at Hattiesburg (Miss.) Motorsports Park and in Southern All Star action at Whynot (Miss.) Motorsports Park. ... Chris Ragan won the night's feature for NeSmith Chevrolet-sanctioned Crate Late Models. ... Next up for the Southern All Stars is a June 18 event at Smoky Mountain Speedway in Maryville, Tenn. The race will be promoted by Chris Corum, former promoter of 411 Motor Speedway.
Memorial at the Mag 50: (1) Shane Clanton, (2) Chris Wall, (3) Chip Brindle, (4) Brooks Strength, (5) Eric Cooley, (6) Ronnie Johnson, (7) Klint Byars, (8) Skip Arp, (9) William Thomas, (10) Tommy Kerr, (11) Jason Brock, (12) Shep Lucas, (13) David Payne, (14) Scott Creel, (15) Charlie Henderson, (16) Jay Burchfield, (17) Rodney Wing, (18) Jonathan Davenport, (19) Ronny Lee Hollingsworth, (20) Billy Ogle Jr., (21) Justin McRee, (22) Jimmy Cliburn, (23) Brian Reese, (24) Dane Dacus. Fast qualifier (among 47 cars): Wall, 14.685 seconds. Consolation race winners: Reese, Davis, Brock, Byars.
Correction: Fixes Clanton's chassis brand.
