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JIMMY SILLS WINS KNOXVILLE'S HOOSIER TIRE MIDWEST MASTERS CLASSIC By Kathy Bell Knoxville, IA (May 30) - California native Jimmy Sills won Friday night’s Hoosier Tire Midwest Masters Classic 360-cubic-inch sprint car race for drivers age fifty and over at the Knoxville Raceway. Keith Hutton, former Aussie racer and current mechanic for Knoxville weekly driver Don Droud Jr., was the early leader.
The defending Masters champion, Mike Peters, vied for position early in the race with John Bankston Memorial quick-qualifier Sills. With five laps down, as Peters was trying to reel in the leader for position, Mackie Heimbaugh spun in turn two, causing a yellow. The race resumed with with Hutton, Peters, Sills and a hard-charging Roger Rager in contention.
On lap six, Sills took the lead, as Hutton, Rager who had claimed the third spot and Peters continued to challenge at the front of the field. Coming across the line on lap eight, Rager stole the second place position from Hutton. Sills and Rager spread out their lead at the front as the race for third started to heat up between Hutton and Peters. Sills began to stretch out his lead on lap 12. By lap 16, Peters had moved into the third spot and Rager was beginning to close in on leader, Sills. On lap 18, Rager was reeling in leader, Sills as Peters slowed down and headed for the pits. He was third at the time. Reports from the pits said Peters lost the bolt that holds the throttle pedal on the car. He was done for the evening.
On the restart, Sills regained his momentum as he dominated the first place position and held on for the win. Rager and Hutton finished second and third, respectively. Sills commented, "Running in traffic is always fun. It forces you to run in different places on the track As well as they have this car running I’d have to screw up pretty bad not to do well. The last three times I was here, I knocked down a couple of walls. Having a good ride like this is hard to say no to." Heat race winners were Rager, Roger Fickett, and George Prosser.
Knoxville Raceway - May 30th, 2003 Hoosier Tires Midwest Masters Classic
Time Trials: 1. 20, Jimmy Sills, California, 16.845; 2. 2K, Larry "Smokey" Snellbaker, Pennsylvania, 16.997; 3. 5t, George Prosser, Ohio, 17.296; 4. D1, Dan Oswalt, Kansas, 17.393; 5. 24, Bob Thompson, Iowa, 17.432; 6. 11, Keith Hutton, Queensland (Australia), 17.584; 7. 49, Mike Peters, Kansas, 17.63; 8. 8s, Chris Maurer, Iowa, 17.657; 9. 00, Larry Weeks, Iowa, 17.767; 10. 56, Dave Heskin, Minnesota, 17.777; 11. 4S, Tommy Scott, Illinois, 17.78; 12. 6r, Roger Rager, Minnesota, 17.862; 13. 24X, Randy Droescher, Iowa, 17.921; 14. 12X, Jerry Crabb, Iowa, 17.948; 15. R134A, Jim Payne, Ohio, 17.988; 16. 6K, Rick Sorem, Minnesota, 18.049; 17. 66, Roger Fickett, Pennsylvania, 18.062; 18. 126, Earnest Jennings, Oklahoma, 18.228; 19. 38, Miles Grein, South Dakota, 18.5; 20. 4, Oscar Smith, Michigan, 18.699; 21. 79, Dick Mahoney, Ontario (Canada), 18.737; 22. 6x, Mackie Heimbaugh, Iowa, 18.878; 23. 33, Bill Smith, Minnesota, 19.214; 24. 6, Steve Johnson, Iowa, 19.342.
First Heat, 8 laps: 1. Roger Rager; 2. Jimmy Sills; 3. Mike Peters; 4. Randy Droescher; 5. Keith Hutton; 6. Ernest Jennings; 7. Steve Johnson.
Second Heat, 8 laps: 1. Roger Fickett; 2. Tommy Scott; 3. Chris Maurer; 4. Bob Thompson; 5. Oscar Smith; 6. Jerry Crabb; 7. Smokey Snellbaker.
Third Heat, 8 laps: 1. George Prosser; 2. Rick Sorem; 3. Dave Heskin; 4. Jim Payne; 5. Larry Weeks; 6. Dick Mahoney; 7. Dan Oswalt; 8. Mackie Heimbaugh.
Hoosier Tire Midwest Masters Classic A Main, 22 laps: 1. Jimmy Sills; 2. Roger Rager; 3. Keith Hutton; 4. George Prosser; 5. Chris Maurer; 6. Miles Grein; 7. Bob Thompson; 8. Larry Weeks; 9. Tommy Scott; 10. Dave Heskin; 11. Randy Droescher; 12. Roger Fickett; 13. Mackie Heimbaugh; 14. Dick Mahoney; 15. Bill Smith; 16. Rick Sorem; 17. Oscar Smith; 18. Jim Payne; 19. Steve Johnson; 20. Earnest Jennings; 21. Mike Peters; 22. Dan Oswalt. * 30 * --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
