NEW RICHMOND, Wis. — The winningest driver in USMTS history at the legendary Cedar Lake Speedway, Rodney Sanders blasted off from the pole and led nearly every lap of the 40-lap main event Friday in securing his eighth win at the track.
It’s a three-day weekend at the 25th Annual Masters, and Sanders came close to winning both of the opening two nights, but he also came close to losing them both too.
On Thursday, the five-time and defending USMTS national champion led the opening lap while current series points leader Jake Timm hunted him around the high-banked four-tenths-mile clay oval.
With both running the hairy high side, Sanders smacked the yellow guardrail in turn one which opened the door the Timm to take the lead and eventual victory while Sanders limped to a 15th-place finish with a damaged machine.
On Friday, ‘The Rocket’ earned the Sybesma Graphics Pole Award and again took charge with Timm giving chase. This night, however, Sanders hugged the low side while Timm returned to the outer limits.
With 13 laps to go, Timm’s right rear tire exploded and the caution waved. With Timm getting fresh rubber, Jake O’Neil led Jim Chisholm, Lucas Schott and Jason Hughes like a pack of wild dogs chasing Sanders.
Soon, however, O’Neil became a lone wolf as he hunted Sanders and eventually pulling in close behind Sanders’ rear bumper until he finally made one of many slide jobs stick and took the lead with two laps to go.
O’Neil led still when the two competitors crossed beneath the flagstand and got the Hochatown Saloon White Flag. Heading side-by-side into the final set of turns, O’Neil slid to the top while Sanders ran the lowest line he had tried all night.
A slight bobble from O’Neil was all that Sanders required and the 34-year-old from Happy, Texas, crossed the finish line first for a $5,000 payday and the 119th of his USMTS career.
“I thought I about gave it away again,” Sanders said as he celebrated in Victory Fuel Victory Lane. “I don’t know if my tire sealed over and went away but I felt like I was spinning pretty bad.
“Jake surprised me more than anything. We raced hard and he raced me really clean. A couple times I slid in front of him but I thought it was just really hard racing. I respect Jake a lot so it’s pretty cool to have a race like that.”
O’Neil, who won at Cedar Lake two years ago, had to settle for the runner-up position following a crowd-pleasing back-and-forth over the last few laps.
Jim Chisholm was third, Dan Ebert passed ten cars to finish fourth and Lucas Schott steered the Jimmy Mars house car to a top-five result.
Feature Finish (40 Laps)
1. (1) 20 Rodney Sanders, Happy, Texas, 2. (5) 0 Jake O’Neil, Tucson, Ariz., 3. (4) 24C Jim Chisholm, Osage, Iowa, 4. (14) 60 Dan Ebert, Lake Shore, Minn., 5. (6) 69 Lucas Schott, Chatfield, Minn., 6. (16) 12 Jason Hughes, Watts, Okla., 7. (8) 4 Jeremy Nelson, Alexandria, Minn., 8. (15) 21K Kyle Brown, Madrid, Iowa, 9. (2) 49 Jake Timm, Winona, Minn., 10. (11) 7G Gabe Hodges, Lebo, Kan., 11. (22) 75 Terry Phillips, Springfield, Mo., 12. (19) 30 Matt Leer, Bruce, Wis., 13. (18) 02 Tanner Mullens, Wichita, Kan., 14. (13) 65 Tyler Davis, Haysville, Kan., 15. (25) 15W Alex Williamson, Rushford, Minn., 16. (28) 99L Steve Lavasseur, River Falls , Wis., 17. (24) 2C Dave Cain, Corcoran, Minn., 18. (27) 26S Steven Glenn, Hamilton, Mo., 19. (3) 43K Kaden Blaeser, Chippewa Falls, Wis., 20. (21) 12M Jason Miller, Osceola, Wis., 21. (20) 19SB Lance Mari, El Centro, Calif., 22. (26) 58X Gary Christian, Broken Bow, Okla., 23. (23) 21 Jake Smith, St. Joseph, Minn., 24. (7) 10C Cayden Carter, Oskaloosa, Iowa, 25. (12) 50III Brandon Davis, Hayfield, Minn., 26. (9) 25 Joe Chisholm, Osage, Iowa, 27. (17) 112 Brennan Gave, Princeton, Minn., 28. (10) 99 Jason Grimes, Jamestown, N.D.