Bragg Snags 2019 Red River Modified Tour Opener at Kennedale

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Bragg Snags 2019 Red River Modified Tour Opener at Kennedale

By Jackson Braun

KENNEDALE, Texas (May 25, 2019) – The IMCA Modified drivers continue to have different faces show up in victory lane on the Lone Star Super Gas Red River Modified Tour presented by Smiley’s Racing Products. To open up the 2019 tour, Chris Bragg became the 7th driver to put his name in the record books as a Red River Modified Tour feature winner.

62 IMCA Modifieds were in the pits at the Kennedale Speedway Park. Mansfield’s Marvin Skinner and Bragg, out of Springtown, started the feature on the front row. Going through the first set of corners, Skinner made slight contact with a tractor tire on the infield and swerved to avoid another, handing the lead off to Bragg. Taylor’s Chris Morris and Jacksonville, Arkansas racer Tyler Stevens settled into 2nd and 3rd place behind Bragg.

Morris was able to stick his nose underneath Bragg’s car on the bottom-dominant speedway, but could not get enough momentum to get around him. Soon enough, lap traffic was encountered, and Bragg, Morris, and Stevens all stuck together in a clump. Morris slipped up the track enough for Stevens to get on by as Stevens set his sights on Bragg. However, Stevens did not have enough time to give Bragg a legitimate challenge for the top spot as Bragg was able to hold him off in the caution-free feature. The victory ended up being Bragg’s 100th IMCA win.

In the IMCA Southern SportMods, 44 machines were ready to do battle. Damon Hammond and Michael Dabney led the field to green. Hammond and Dabney raced side by side down the backstretch with Hammond getting the advantage going into the corner. Hammond, fresh out of racing in the IMCA Stock Car feature, was soon bombarded by Bonham Motorsports teammates Nick Clinkenbeard and Greg Frazer.

Frazer found something on the outside line of the speedway and catapulted into the lead by lap 3. Clinkenbeard followed suit and was able to clear Hammond by lap 6. Right after halfway through the 20-lap contest, something went awry on Frazer’s machine, passing the lead off to Clinkenbeard. From that point on, Clinkenbeard continued to walk away from the rest of the field, claiming the Southern SportMod victory at Kennedale Speedway Park in back-to-back years.

The IMCA Stock Cars boasted a strong car count of 43 to kick off the tour in Kennedale. Gary Williams, from Bonham, and Ryan Powers of Kennedale claimed front row starting positions. Williams was able to get out to the lead and hold off Powers for the whole contest. Powers dug in too deep on the final lap, almost spinning out. He recovered to finish third behind Comanche’s Jeffrey Abbey.

Feature Results

Modifieds – 1. Chris Bragg, Springtown; 2. Tyler Stevens, Jacksonville, Ark.; 3. Chris Morris, Taylor; 4. Kevin Green, Waco; 5. Marvin Skinner, Mansfield; 6. Mark Carrell, Redmond, Ore.; 7. Cory Davis, Eunice, N.M.; 8. Matthew Martin, Alvarado; 9. Josh McGaha, Abilene; 10. Drew Armstrong, Alexander, Ark.; 11. Brint Hartwick, Rose Bud, Ark.; 12. Fred Wojtek, Blackwell; 13. Dillon Pike, Waxahachie; 14. John Gober, Poolville; 15. Matt Guillaume, Haslet; 16. Chris Elliott, Abilene; 17. Jeff Taylor, Cave City, Ark.; 18. Beau Begnaud, Spring; 19. Cody Shoemaker, Decatur; 20. David Goode Jr., Copperas Cove; 21. Cody Tidwell, Round Rock; 22. Chuck Sanders, Mabelvale, Ark.; 23. Ronnie Bell, Lorena; 24. Jeffrey Abbey, Comanche; 25. Justin McCoy, Waxahachie.

Southern SportMods – 1. Nick Clinkenbeard, Weatherford; 2. Jacob Pirkle, Midlothian; 3. Trevor Raney, Sherman; 4. Kasey Kuykendall, Howe; 5. Jake Upchurch, Red Oak; 6. Blaine Shives, Leonard; 7. Trevor Egbert, Salado; 8. James Skinner, Burleson; 9. Kaden Honeycutt, Willow Park; 10. Kevin Rowland, Cedar Hill; 11. Gary Fox, Fort Worth; 12. Casey Brunson, Lott; 13. Damon Hammond, Burleson; 14. Don Owens, Weatherford; 15. Kyle Wilkins, Italy; 16. Chris Cogburn, Robinson; 17. Michael Dabney, Kaufman; 18. Justin Nabors, Kemp; 19. Greg Frazer, Weatherford; 20. Bret Young, Crowley; 21. Brian Flowers, Hobbs, N.M.; 22. Ryan Thomas, Lubbock; 23. Jay Wells. DNS – Tory Yant, Arlington.

Stock Cars – 1. Gary Williams, Bonham; 2. Jeffrey Abbey, Comanche; 3. Ryan Powers, Kennedale; 4. Jacob Pirkle, Midlothian; 5. Dennis Bissonnette, Stephenville; 6. Billy Wade, San Angelo; 7. Jason Batt, Harker Heights; 8. Westin Abbey, Comanche; 9. Brandon Hood, McGregor; 10. Dean Abbey, Roanoke, 11. Caleb Crenshaw, Fort Worth, 12. A.J. Dancer, Red Rock; 13. Damon Hammond, Burleson; 14. Tyler Muirhead, Mabank; 15. Cody Shoemaker, Decatur; 16. Kirk Martin, Weatherford; 17. Craig Moss, Kennedale; 18. Jerrett Bransom, Burleson; 19. Dustin White, Lamesa; 20. Gary Kerr Jr., Odessa; 21. Markiss Harcrow, Killeen; 22. Brad Ekstrom, Fort Worth. DNS – George Egbert, Salado; Tobie Talk, Hawley.