Randy Smith Claims 16th Masters Classic at Knoxville
Saturday, May 31, 2008
By Bob Wilson
KNOXVILLE, Iowa – Randy Smith, a six-time Knoxville Raceway track champion returned to his home track to capture the 16th annual Masters Classic at this central Iowa raceway Friday night. The Classic is an event presented by the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum in conjunction with its weekend of hall of fame induction ceremonies and features drivers who have reached age 50 or more. Smith, a winner of 35 410 feature events here, can now count a lone 360 feature to his record.
Smith, driving a car owned by Dwight Snodgrass and normally entered in the weekly 360 division at this track, started in the sixth spot. The race however was controlled in the beginning by the defending Masters Classic champion, A.J. Weaver.
Weaver, who had the pole, shot to the lead at the outset with Judy Bates chasing the Texan on the big Knoxville half mile. On lap five the center broke out of Weaver’s right rear wheel and he smacked the third turn fence and rolled several times. He exited the car complaining of shoulder pain but no report was available at press time concerning his condition.
The restart saw Bates in the lead followed by Kramer Williamson. Mike Peters grabbed third from Tony Moro on that restart as Smith filled in behind. Bates found the bottom to her liking and let the field of twenty-one 360 sprinters through the six laps as Smith began to make a run at the field.
Lap ten of the 22-lap feature saw Bates enter into lap traffic and Smith edge closer to her. Finally after a nose to tail run, Smith made a dive low in turn one of the 13th lap and took the lead as he began to pull away as he took his Maxim/Wesmar to the cushion and checked out.
Only a yellow on lap 16 could slow the Smith assault on the Knoxville oval after the Iowa native had been away from competition for eleven years. Once the race went green again it was all Smith the rest of the way to take the $3,000 to win check. Bates, who had lost her brakes on lap two, claimed $2,000 for the runner-up position. Third went to Peters, fourth to Williamson and fifth went to Bobby Becker, Jr., who started tenth. Completing the top ten were Ron Rosenboom (from 16th), Moro, Joe McCarthy, Greg Rilat (from 14th) and Shane Carson.
The companion program of 305 winged sprints found Justin Giannetto in the winner’s circle at the end of the 12-lap feature event. The win was the first time Giannetto had scratched Knoxville soil. He took the lead half-way through the event and won going away. Tom Lenz, Johnny Anderson, Matt Stevenson and Mitch Alexander formed the top five finishers.
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