Ultimate Motorsports Park
Rambo wins Friendship's Carolina Clash event
Dennis Franklin gets rolling at Friendship. (Howard Lawson)
ELKIN, N.C. (Sept 7) — Two-time series champion Dennis “Rambo” Franklin of Gaffney, S.C., used a little controversy from Labor Day weekend as a little motivation to dominate Saturday at Friendship Motor Speedway for a $4,000 victory on the Carolina Clash Super Late Model Series. | Slideshow
Franklin jumped to the lead at the first wave of the green and led every lap of the 40-lapper for his seventh victory in solidifying his points lead after the third round of the Roush Yates Performance Products Championship Series by JE Pistons.
Franklin was originally credited with a sixth-place finish Sept. 1 at his hometown Cherokee Speedway, but series officials reviewed the scoring and decided Franklin had gone a lap down during a pit stop, relegating him to a 13th-place finish.
“That lit a fire under us this week,” Franklin said. “But besides that deal last week, life is really good right now. I am just proud of the job that my daddy (crew chief Dick Franklin) and the guys do on the car. They really put a stout piece under me, and all I have to do is drive it.”
Frank notched his first-ever victory at Friendship, the home track for his Mount Airy, N.C.-based team.
“It was nice to come up here and win in AES Racing’s backyard,” Franklin said. “I can’t thank all the sponsors on this car enough.”
Franklin’s winning advantage was about four lengths over runner-up Steve Blackburn of Greensboro, N.C. Third place went to Johnny Pursley of Clover, S.C., while Ricky Weeks of Rutherfordton, N.C., and Tim Allen of Kannapolis, N.C., completed the top five.
The race was slowed on three occasions. The most serious and time-consuming cleanup came on the 15th lap after Mike Gault of Gaffney and Ross Bailes of Clover became entangled near the inside pit entrance on the backstretch after a heated battle. Both drivers walked away uninjured but car damage ended their nights. It took about 20 minutes to restart the race.
Notes: Franklin’s Barry Wright Race Car is powered by a Clements Racing Engine and sponsored by AES Racing, Nichols Plumbing and M&W Towing. ... Franklin notched his 30th career victory on the series; he’s five shy of all-time leader Ricky Weeks. ... Week spun in time trials because of a broken steering shaft, but his first lap was good enough for fourth best. ... The 40-lap main event took nearly 50 minutes to complete. ... Fifteen drivers were running at the finish. ... Friendship hosted the series for the lone time this season. ... The Carolina Clash returns to action Sept. 14, at Wythe Raceway in Rural Retreat, Va., with another $4,000-to-win event.
Carolina Clash @ Friendship: (1) Dennis Franklin, (2) Steve Blackburn, (3) Johnny Pursley, (4) Ricky Weeks, (5) Tim Allen, (6) Chris Ferguson, (7) Zack Mitchell, (8) Justin Labonte, (9) Luke Roffers, (10) Scott Shirey, (11) Kyle Pierce, (12) Gary Mabe, (13) Michael Marlowe, (14) Bubba McGee, (15) Damon Kotke, (16) Raymond Brown, (17) Ross Bailes, (18) Mike Gault, (19) Jay Sessoms, (20) Wayne Hughes, (21) Ronnie Hoover, (22) Jimmy McCormick, (23) Chris Blackwell, (24) Justin Hudspeth. Fast qualifier (among 28 cars): Blackburn, 15.159 seconds. Consolation winners: Roffers, Sessoms.
