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Late Models division

Caraway driver Chase Murphy July2023

York, Murphy win in Late Models; Challengers race becomes rough, feisty at Caraway

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Chase Murphy was a trophy winner in Late Models on Saturday night at Caraway Speedway. (Courtesy photo)

ASHEBORO – Jason York and Chase Murphy were winners in the Late Models class Saturday night at Caraway Speedway.

Twin features were held in many classes.

York had the fastest qualifying time and went on to win the first race in the division. Former NASCAR Cup Series driver Jeremy Mayfield placed fifth in the first race and 10th in the second race.

Murphy moved to the front at the beginning of the second race and went on to win.

Camden Thomas was the runner-up in both races. York, the track’s points leader, was fourth in the second race.

In Challengers, Allen Vance had a wire-to-wire victory in the first race, but that result was later overturned.

The second race involved a scrap between Vance and Brody Duggins following a wreck, which wrapped up with Duggins’ car on top of Vance’s car. Vance’s actions in the ensuing scuffle resulted in his disqualification and wiped out all his results for the night.

Matthew Smith was the original runner-up in the first Challengers feature, but his car failed inspection. So Duggins, who was third in the first race, was moved to the top spot on that rundown of results.

The second race standings showed Blake Shupe in first place and Nicolas Graham in second.

In 602 Modifieds, Jaxon Casper captured first place in both features. Second place in both races went to Josh Lowder and third place belonged to Justice Calabro each time.

There were a pair of 10-lap UCARs races with Steven Collins winning the first and Justin Smith prevailing in the second.

In Bootleggers, Jon Morton won both races, with the 10-lap events having identical results for all the entrants. Bentley Black had a pair of second-place finishes.

In U.S. Legends, Josh Lowe was the winner after leader Neal Dulin’s crash. London McKenzie placed second.

The Bandoleros victory went to Rylan Lowder.

The next race night for Caraway Speedway comes Aug. 5. That includes a Demo Derby plus class racing in Challengers, UCARs and Bootleggers.

Archie Adams Sr Caraway Wall of Fame Aug2022

Brinkley secures Caraway win on induction night

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Archie Adams Sr., center, receives recognition as he’s inducted into Caraway Speedway’s Wall of Fame on Saturday night. (Courtesy photo)

SOPHIA – Blaise Brinkley returned to Caraway Speedway and won the Late Models feature Saturday night.

Brinkley, who was the 2021 track champion in the division, finished ahead of current points leader Coy Beard.

Tommy Neal was third, followed by Blake Bledsoe and Dylan Ward.

In Mini Stocks, Patrick Mullen claimed the checkered flag ahead Adam Thomas and Rudy Hartley. Mullen and Jimmy Crigger were engaged in a battle at the front until an electrical issue with Crigger’s car put him out of contention.

In the 35-lap Challenger race, Corey Rose secured the victory. Kenny Bost led for a chunk of the race but finished second ahead of Toby Layne, Brian Rose and Matthew Smith. Jaxson Casper was the fast qualifier.

In the UCAR feature, Caleb Allred topped fast qualifier Ron Mock, with Steven Collins in third place.

Prior to the racing, five new members were inducted into Caraway Speedway’s Wall of Fame. The group included Archie Adams, Sr., Bob Labonte, Banner Shelton, Ronald Fox and Wayne “Speedy” Thomas.

The 81-year-old Adams competed on the dirt at Caraway and won NASCAR division titles

at the track. Adams accepted his membership plaque then strapped into his No. 1sc Challenger division Chevy and turned 35 more laps on the Caraway asphalt.

Fox was a winner of many races and titles at the speedway as a driver and crew chief. After accepting his award, he hopped over the pit wall and finished the pre-race prep on

the familiar No. 21 Late Model driven by Brandon Cox.

Bob Labonte was the car owner for two sons, Bobby Labonte and Terry Labonte, who climbed the ranks to the NASCAR Cup championship. His ownership of cars driven by Bobby Labonte and grandson Justin Labonte at Caraway Speedway along with the support he gave to many other

drivers at the track earned him a spot in the Wall of Fame. Bob Labonte was unable to attend

the ceremonies due to health issues, but his award was accepted by his son Bobby Labonte.

Shelton died in 1976 but not before his contributions to racing at

Caraway Speedway earned him the honors.

Thomas, most just know him as “Speedy,” was one of the best-known car owners in the Modified ranks for more than 40 years. His cars won many Modified features at Caraway Speedway. His drivers included Sam Ard, Paul Radford, Jimmy Spencer, Jimmy Hensley and Billy Hensley along with three of his drivers present at the track to help with the Wall of Fame induction. Those included Hank Thomas, Satch Worley and Frank Fleming.

The track’s next racing night comes Sept. 10 with Mini Stocks, Challengers, UCARs, Legends, Bandoleros and the Grand National Super Series.

Bob Labonte with sons

Elder Labonte to be honored at Caraway Speedway

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Bob Labonte, rear, poses with his sons Bobby Labonte, left, and Terry Labonte, right. (Courtesy photo)

SOPHIA — Bob Labonte will be inducted into Caraway Speedway’s Wall of Fame on Saturday during the speedway’s 57th anniversary night.

He’ll join Wayne “Speedy” Thomas, Ronald Fox, Banner Shelton and Archie Adams, Sr. in the Wall of Fame’s Class of 2022.

Bob Labonte is the father of NASCAR Cup champions Terry Labonte and Bobby Labonte and grandfather of Justin Labonte.

Bob Labonte was born in 1933 in Rumford, Maine and turned 89 this year. He became interested in racing when he was 16 or 17 years old when he began racing at Oxford, Maine. He raced for a bit then began working on other people’s cars. When he turned 18, he joined the Navy and was stationed at Corpus Christi, Texas, as a helicopter mechanic.

Bob Labonte moved the family to North Carolina in 1979 and went to work for Billy Hagen. He was an integral part in shaping the careers of both sons and his grandson.

Bobby Labonte followed in Terry Labonte’s footsteps graduating to go-karts and then Late Models, winning the Caraway Speedway championship in 1987 while working for Jay Hedgecock Racing before moving on to the Busch Grand National series and then on to the NASCAR Cup series.

Bob Labonte still tinkers on his great grandson’s quarter midget and attended a SMART Modified event this spring at Caraway to watch Bobby Labonte compete in the Cook Out Modified.

The Wall of Fame ceremony is set for 7 p.m. with racing beginning at 8 p.m.

Saturday’s on-track schedule includes double points in the feature races. There will be a 57-lap Late Models race, 57-lap 602 Modifieds race, 35-lap Challenger feature, 20-lap Mini Stocks race and 15-lap UCARs.

In last Saturday’s results on an abbreviated card of points divisions, the winners were Rudy Hartley (Mini Stocks), Brian Rose (Challengers with four entrants) and Daniel Hughes (UCARs)

Hughes is the points leader in UCARS. Among the other points contenders in the division, two of the drivers – Josh Phillips and Stephen Trotter — were disqualified in the race.

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Black snags two victories at Caraway

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SOPHIA – Tony Black won twice in the Late Models division in feature races Saturday night at Caraway Speedway.

Black finished ahead of runner-up Donnie Apple in both races.

It was a racing card stocked with twin features.

In 602 Modifieds, Carson Loftin won the first race and Cody Norman ended up second. The order among the top two spots was flipped in the second race, with Norman prevailing and Loftin taking second.

In Mini Stocks, Jimmy Crigger was the winner of the first race. In the other race in the division,

Rudy Hartley won at the track for the first time since mid-May, while runner-up Alex Higginson had his best finish of the season.

In Challengers, Josh Waldron won both races as he continued his identity as a substitute driver in the division. Runner-up positions were earned by Brian Rose in the first race and Bobby Salisbury in the second race.

The Legends race was a 25-lap national qualifier. Scotty Benford captured the victory ahead of Charles Parker.

Steven Collins claimed first place in both of the UCAR races.

Neal Dulin prevailed in a 15-lap Bandolero race.

The next racing card at the speedway is set for Aug. 6.

Donnie Apple Caraway driver June2022

Apple pulls off Caraway surprise

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Donnie Apple claimed the checkered flag by winning a feature Saturday night at Caraway Speedway. (Photo courtesy of Caraway Speedway)

SOPHIA – Donnie Apple turned back the clock and won a Late Models feature Saturday night at Caraway Speedway.

Apple, 60, tied in qualifying with points leader Coy Beard. Apple won a coin toss for the coveted top starting spot and went on to win the 35-lap race. Beard placed second.

Ross Dalton, who was third in the first race, captured the second feature while holding off Tony Black. Beard was third in that race.

There was a familiar tone to the Modifieds feature, with Cody Norman capturing his fourth consecutive victory in the first of the two 20-lap races.

Jaxson Casper ended Norman’s streak by winning the second feature for his first win the Modifieds division. Norman took second.

In Mini Stocks, Jimmy Crigger won in a six-car field in the first 10-lap event, with Tony Black the runner-up. In the division’s second race, Crigger prevailed again.

In the Challenger division, Brian Rose won the first 20-lap features and Nathan Bess claimed the second 20-lapper. Both drivers were the runner-up in the races they didn’t win among 16 drivers.

In the UCAR class, Troy Ring was declared the winner of the first 10-lap race after Brandon Collins was disqualified. Corey Rose was seventh in the first race but took the victory in the second race.

The next regular racing card at the speedway is set for June 18, though Late Models and Modifieds won’t be in action again at the track until a special mid-week card June 29.

Heath Causey at Caraway May2022

Causey comes from back to capture Caraway victory

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Heath Causey, left, celebrates his Late Models victory Saturday night at Caraway Speedway. (Courtesy photo)

SOPHIA – Heath Causey emerged at the front at the right time to win Saturday’s Late Models feature at Caraway Speedway.

Causey was at the back of the 15-car field before making his moves.

Garrett Campbell, Coy Beard and Justin Hicks all held the lead at some point during the 75 laps.

Beard ended up second and Chase Murphy turned in his best finish at the track in third place, followed by Tristian McKee and Ronnie Riggs.

In the Mini Stocks race, Rudy Hartley roared to the victory as he avoided a wreck on the final lap.

Jimmy Crigger and Alex Whatley appeared poised to race to the finish line before Criggers got off line and crashed and Whatley had to stay out of the way. That allowed Hartley to move to the front.

Crigger gained a form of satisfaction by claiming the trophy in the Enduro 50-lapper.

In the Challengers, Brian Rose was the winner in the 35-lap feature. Top qualifier Fletcher Whaley was the runner-up, with Tony Housman, Anthony Bennett and Bobby Salisbury in the next three spots.

Justin Smith, bidding to repeat as UCAR champion, was the winner in that division’s 15-lap race for front-wheel drive cars. Teammate Daniel Hughes placed second.

Mason Vance and Josh Phillips were winners in the five-lap UCAR qualifying heats.

Clay Rogers rekindled memories at the speedway in the Grand National Super Series, winning a pair of 50-lap races in the new touring division. A.J. Henrickson was second in both races.

Rogers last won at Caraway Speedway in 1997 in the Hooters ProCup series. The Grand National Super Series will return to the track Sept. 10.

This week, there will be Carolina Monster Truck Madness on Friday and Saturday nights at the speedway. The next regular racing night at the track comes June 4.

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Beard, Black claim Caraway features

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SOPHIA – Coy Beard and Tony Black were winners of twin features in the Late Models division Saturday night at Caraway.

Two races were contested across each of six divisions.

Beard won the first of the 35-lap Late Models races, leading from the start. Beard was second in the second feature, unable to get around Black.

The winner in the Modifieds action was Cody Norman for his first victories in the division. He won both races, leading from the front in the first race and coming from the rear in the second event.

In Mini Stocks, Johnny Baker and Jimmy Crigger were the winners. Crigger was the runner-up in the first race before improving one spot.

In the Challenger class, Cory Rose posted a wire-to-wire victory. Matthew Smith, a grandson of former Caraway driver Lowe Smith, was the winner in the second Challenger race.

In the UCars, Steven Collins and Corey Rose made it across the line first to win the respective races. Steven Collins was the runner-up in both of the races, which drew a field of 16 drivers.

The Bandolero races produced the same winner in each case, with Bryson Brinkley capturing those.

The next night of regular racing at the speedway is scheduled for April 16.