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Mike McGuire
DAVENPORT, Iowa (April 16) - After being rescheduled twice, the 2008 season-opening WORLD Dirt Racing League event was finally completed here at the Davenport Speedway on Wednesday night.
The wait was well worth it for Darren "The Thriller" Miller of Chadwick, Ill., as he took home the win. The victory was his third straight and fifth overall WDRL win at the half-mile Davenport oval.
Miller was perfect on the evening in the Drt Trak Racing-promoted event, winning his heat, the Iowa-Illinois Taylor Insulation Dash and the feature event.
Miller started the Fiesta 40, sponsored by Rudy's Tacos, in the pole position. Jimmy Mars of Elk Mound, Wis., dogged Miller throughout the first 30 laps but was unable to make a pass for the lead.
While Miller and Mars were dicing their way through lapped traffic, Brian Birkhofer of Muscatine, Iowa, was slowly making his way through the field. And a late-race caution put Birkhofer right on the leaders' heels.
After the restart, Mars bobbled in the corner and Birkhofer powered past him into second place, but that was as close as he would get to the lead. The speedy Miller slipped away and cruised on to the win.
Birkhofer would hold on for second, with Mars third and Frank Heckenast using a late-race charge to finish fourth. Tim Lance rounded out the top five.
Thirty-six WDRL Late Models were on hand for the event on a beautiful spring evening with heat race wins going to Miller, Mars, Eric Pember and Kerry Hansen. Curt Martin took the B-main.
Two Drt Trak Racing divisions also competed Wednesday. In Pro Mod feature action, Ryan Dolan was the class of the field.
Dolan went from his fifth-place starting spot to the lead by the end of lap three. From there to the end of the 20-lap main, the Lisbon, Iowa, driver was untouchable.
Bob Silaggi of Freeport, Ill., was mired in the fifth position until late in the race, when he was able to leap-frog up to second. Bob Dominacki took third, with Rick Hixson fourth and Steve Stewart fifth.
Pro Mod heat race wins went to Ray Guss Jr. and Hixson.
Buck Harmening grabbed the lead in the Street Stock feature from the pole and led all 15 laps en route to the win. Ron Marks Jr. took second over Rob Henry, Greg Gill and Tim Koehler, in that order.
The next event at the Davenport Speedway will be the IMCA Deery Brothers Summer Series for J&J Steel Late Models this Friday, April 18. Also on the card are Pro Mods, B-Mods and Street Stocks. The event is sponsored by Barak's Truck Repair of Fulton, Ill.
The Late Model stars and cars of the WORLD Dirt Racing League now head to Illinois for a double-header weekend. This Saturday, April 19, they'll compete on the Freeport Raceway Park half-mile track. On Sunday, April 20, they'll be on the quarter mile at Quad City Raceway in East Moline.
The WDRL's next visit to Davenport Speedway will be Friday, May 23.
For more information on the WORLD Dirt Racing League or the latest WDRL Late Model Series schedule, check out the WORLD Dirt Racing League's Web site, www.worldraceleague.com.
RACE REPORT
DAVENPORT SPEEDWAY
DAVENPORT, IOWA
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16, 2008
WDRL Late Models
Heat 1: 1. Eric Pember.
Heat 2: 1. Jimmy Mars.
Heat 3: 1. Kerrry Hansen.
Heat 4: 1. Darren Miller.
B-Main: 1. Curt Martin.
Feature: 1. Darren Miller; 2. Brian Birkhofer; 3. Jimmy Mars; 4. Frank Hackenast; 5. Tim Lance; 6. Chad Simpson; 7. Eric Pember; 8. Ryan Dauber; 9. John Kaanta; 10. Pat Doar; 11. Rick Hanestad; 12. Tommy Elston; 13. Brian Harris; 14. Chris Simpson; 15. Dave Eckrich; 16. Rob Moss; 17. Curt Martin; 18. Ace Ihm: 19. Jay Johnson; 20. Kerry Hansen; 21. Denny Eckrich; 22. Kevin Kile; 23. Jason Utter; 24. Dale Stolte.
Pro Modifieds
Heat 1: 1. Ray Guss Jr.
Heat 2: 1. Rick Hixson.
Feature: 1. Ryan Dolan; 2. Bob Silaggi; 3. Bob Dominacki; 4. Rick Hixson; 5. Steve Stewart; 6. Mike Zemo Jr.; 7. Matt Stein; 8. Noah Coppess; 9. Steve Wetter; 10. Rich Bell; 11. Rich Smith; 12. Ray Guss Jr.; 13. Tim Sorn; 14. John Ahlers; 15. Ron Barker; 16. Mel Saffran: 17. Chad Pateh; 18. Troy Emerick; 19. Jason Pershy; 20. Mark Schulte.
Street Stocks
Heat: 1. Jason Bahrs.
Feature: 1. Buck Harmening; 2. Ron Marks Jr.; 3. Rob Henry; 4. Greg Gill; 5. Tim Koehler; 6. Bruce Fosdyck; 7. Jason Bahrs; 8. Rob Nylin; 9. Rick Schriner; 10. Jerry Pratt; 11. Dale Tetmeyer.
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