Sam Stoecklin
ULMA Public Relations
May 8, 2014

Wilson Keeps on Rolling while Bodenhamer Serves Notice in ULMA competition

Two past ULMA champions rolled into victory lane last weekend during Lucas Cattle Company ULMA competition at Callaway Raceway and Central Missouri Speedway (CMS) respectively. The 2010 champ, Vance Wilson, kept his win streak alive at Callaway with his fourth straight victory while Jason Bodenhamer, the 2008 champ, claimed the win by dominating at CMS. Both men earned their association-leading 28th career ULMA sanctioned victories in the process.

Action began Friday at Callaway Raceway with 11 cars on hand competing in a pair of heat races to sort out the main event lineup. Wilson claimed the opening heat race ahead of a hard-charging David Melloway and Payton Looney. For heat two, Jake Williams bested Todd McCoin and Dwight Niehoff.

Williams and Wilson led the charge for the 20-lap main event, and as he’s done many times this season Wilson wasted no time in sending the message that when it comes to Callaway County dirt, he is the man to beat. Williams hung with Wilson through the early stages as did David Melloway while Niehoff, who started sixth, began his climb towards the front of the field.

A lap-six caution flew for debris and bunched up the field and by lap 8 a three-car battle up front between Wilson, Williams, and David Melloway began to take shape until Williams ever so slightly got too high and slipped back just a little from the leaders. A couple laps later, the same fate fell on David Melloway as he got too high in turn one. This allowed Wilson to extend his lead as his closest pursuers’ troubles led to them slipping back.

On lap 16, Niehoff began closing in on Wilson and as the fans began to notice his drive to the front many of them saw what was coming and rose to their feet for the final few laps. Late in the event Todd McCoin had an off-track excursion, which set up a late-race restart while at the same time Jon Melloway exited the track with mechanical troubles.

For the final restart, Wilson, Williams, and Niehoff took their battle to the extreme as the trio delighted the crowd with some intense racing on the white flag lap, which ultimately led to Wilson holding on for the win ahead of Williams and Niehoff. Looney, Chris Cox, McCoin, Zeke Langley, Larry Winn, and Jon & David Melloway rounded out the top ten.

Callaway Raceway hosts another weekend of action again this Friday with gates opening at 5, hot laps at 7 and racing at 7:30; visit the track’s website at www.callawayraceways.com for complete details.

ULMA Late Models returned to CMS for their first appearance of six at the recently re-opened track this season. A total of 18 cars competed in three heat races prior to the main event with Bodenhamer, long-distance traveler Dwight Niehoff, and two-time late model track champion Jon Binning claiming the heat race victories.

Jason Bodenhamer won the last late model race at CMS in the fall of 2011 and after just a couple year’s delay, picked right back up where he left off leading all 20 laps of the ULMA late model main event, serving notice in the process that when it comes to the track his family once owned and operated, he is the man to beat. The 20-lap main event went straight through, green to checker without incident. Dwight Niehoff ran a sold second the entire race distance but was unable to mount a serious charge on Bodenhamer who mastered the lapped traffic to pull away.

Behind Bodenhamer and Niehoff at the line were Jon Binning, Lane Ehlert, and Dustin Walker inside the top five while the balance of the top ten finishers included Ethan Young, Jake Williams, Gage Wineland, Payton Looney, and Joe Walkenhorst. ULMA Late Models return to CMS for two straight nights of competition during Memorial Day weekend on May 24th and 25th. Visit CMS online at www.centralmissourispeedway.net for full event details and general info.

ULMA and the rest of the weekly track competition resumes at Lucas Oil Speedway this weekend after the track hosted an all open-wheel special event last Saturday; for complete details head over to www.lucasoilspeedway.com. The track hosts the 5th Annual Area Business Expo this Saturday. There will be tons of prizes, free stuff, and samples for everyone. Lucas Oil Speedway will also be offering special $5 ticket prices for all Adults, Senior Citizens, and Youth! Kids 5 and under are free.

For the first time this season, Randolph County Raceway (RCR) is set to swing open its gates for drivers from the north-central region of ULMA’s reaches. Last year was an exciting new year for the Raceway and this year is already shaping up to be even better than last season. With the addition of RCR to the fold, ULMA championship points will really start to take shape as all regions are now covered through weekly racing. For the track’s complete schedule of events for the season and general information, visit www.randolphcountyraceway.com.

ULMA membership forms are located on the website at www.ulmaracing.com. Drivers are encouraged to complete their membership forms prior to taking their first green flag of the season. Membership for the remainder of the year is $100. Drivers should be expected to complete their membership paperwork upon checking in at each of the affiliated tracks.  
 
Visit ULMA’s title sponsor at www.lucascattlecompany.com. ULMA thanks Hoosier Tire Midwest and Rod End Supply for their continued support. For more information on ULMA, visit www.ulmaracing.com.

POS CAR # NAME STARTS POINTS
1st 1T Chris Cox 6 564
2nd 9D Dwight Niehoff 5 514
3rd 12 Payton Looney 5 480
4th 23 Zeke Langley 5 464
5th B1 Vance Wilson 4 424
6th 7X Todd McCoin 5 411
7th 72 Jake Williams 4 402
8th 65 Jon Binning 4 368
9th 23 Ethan Young ®  3 278
10th 42 Lane Ehlert 3 276

Upcoming Events
Friday, May 9 – Callaway Raceway
Saturday, May 10 – Lucas Oil Speedway
Saturday, May 10 – Randolph County Raceway
Friday, May 16 – Callaway Raceway
Saturday, May 17 – Lucas Oil Speedway
Saturday, May 17 – Randolph County Raceway
Friday, May 23 – Callaway Raceway
Saturday, May 24 – Central Missouri Speedway
Sunday, May 25 – Central Missouri Speedway
Friday, May 30 – Callaway Raceway
Saturday, May 31 – Randolph County Raceway