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| Press Release |
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FOR THE FIRST
TIME IN OVER A YEAR, ITS MILLER TIME AT MANZY |
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Phoenix, AZ (April 10) When Marty Miller flipped wildly into turn one in the April 5, 2003 Sprint Car main event on Manzanita Speedway’s half mile track, it was the end of his season and many feared also the end of his career. Miller, who was seeking a third straight win, had several injuries including vision problems and did not return. It was not until well after the 2003 season ended that, after talking with his family, car owner and sponsors that he decided to try again. He did defer to his family’s wishes and bypassed the season opener on the half mile track and will probably skip all such races.
He made his first start in the March 13th outing and failed to qualify for the feature. He got the feel of the Bill Sweeney car two weeks later and finished eighth. He let his presence be known early Saturday night when he finished second to Eric Wilkins in the first eight lap heat race. He showed the patience and skill that carried him to the 2000 driving title as he came out of the third row to win the 25 lap feature on Manzy’s one third mile track. The wind swept track put passing at a premium and Miller was up to the task. He took his time and did not find a way to get to the front until the closing laps as Chuck Buckman turned in his best drive since winning the July 12, 2002 main event.
Buckman, who started third, wrested the lead from Ashley Corey on the fifth lap and had to wait out two red flags immediately after moving out front. Wilkins and Ryan Linder got together as they worked the sixth lap and both cars rolled. Neither driver was injured but the night ended early for both. On the restart Charles Davis, who was far back in the field after starting 17th, got upside down at the green flag, ending his night.
Buckman went back to work with Miller in hot pursuit. The two were nose to tail until Miller got the message from the flagman that only five laps remained. He showed his championship form as he made a pass for the lead on the 22nd lap and pulled away to a three car length advantage at the checkered flag.
Nathan High, after flipping hard in the March 27 race put together 25 good laps and finished third. Points leader Bob Ream, Jr., winner of two of the three previous races, finished fourth and increased his points lead dramatically with Davis and Wilkins, his closest pursuers both failing to finish. Josh Pelkey took fifth with Bugs Norbury, Joey Moriarity, Corey, Ricky Johnson and Willy Grombach rounding out the top ten. As his crew celebrated behind him Miller thanked his owner and sponsors for having faith in his ability to regain the form that had made him a champion and expressed his belief that more wins would follow.
Davis started off the evening in good fashion with a win over Ream, Miller and Buckman in the Arizona Race Mart trophy dash but ran into problems on the first lap of his heat race when he made a quick move from his fourth starting berth but ran out of room, crossed up and was involved in minor contact that sent him to the pits. He rejoined the field at the back of the pack and failed to transfer to the feature. He won the 12 lap semi which put him 17th in the starting grid. Davis entered the race only 16 points out of the lead but his 18th place finish dropped him 110 points in arrears. Wilkins maintained his third place standings but is now 140 points behind Ream.
In addition to Wilkins, Ream, Jay Ervine and Buckman scored heat race wins. Behind Wilkins and Miller in the first heat were Grombach, making his first start of the year, and Ricky Johnson. Ream’s win came at the expense of Corey, Norbury and Bernie Smith. Ervine won a race long battle with High to get the third heat win. Andy Reinbold and Moriarity earned the other main event positions. Buckman used his pole position to good advantage as he beat Linder, Pelkey and Mike Martin in the final heat. Behind Davis in the semi were Jeff Henry, Jeff Slinkard and R. J. Johnson who made a great pass in the final turn to take the fourth spot away from Ben Gregg. SUMMARY ARIZONA SPRINT CAR ASSOCIATION Main
Event: Lap Leaders: laps 1-4 Corey, laps 5-21 Buckman, laps 22-25 Miller
Semi
Main:
1st
Heat:
2nd
Heat:
3rd
Heat:
4th
Heat:
Trophy
Dash:
UNOFFICAL ASCA POINTS 1. Bob Ream, Jr. 851 2. Charles Davis, Jr. 741 3. Eric Wilkins 711 4. Josh Pelkey 626 5. Joey Moriarity 615 6. Jeff Slinkard 556 7. Bernie Smith 536 8. Chuck Buckman 520 9. Jeff Henry 442 10. Ricky Johnson 415 |
