Double X Speedway
California, MO
June 26, 2022
Double X Speedway was proud to host the 2022 version of the Jason Russell Memorial on Sunday June 26, 2022. It is quite fitting to host the event as Jason ran much of his formative races early in his career at Double X in the Bomber and Sportsman classes at the California, MO dirt track. This event is extra special for many as it marks the only time during the season that fans get to see late models tackle the ¼ mile dirt oval. Jason’s family and friends work very hard to make this event very special for the fans and drivers and to raise money for the Jason Russell memorial scholarship fund.
In the evening’s running order the Super Stock class was the first to take the track, fitting since this is the stock car based class that Jason Russell started his career in many years ago. John Brooks and Jody Romig brought the field to green. Brooks would take the lead at the outset and claimed the victory. Romig would prevail in a race long battle with Chris Dunham to take second, Dunham was third, Adam Halley finished fourth and Ace O’Neill completed the top five. Heat two saw Joe Miller battle for the duration with John Clancy for the top spot. After Clancy’s bid to take the lead on lap 6 came up short Miller was able to open a small lead and claim the win. Ted Welschmeyer waited in third until the white flag lap and passed Clancy in turn two for the runner up spot. Clancy would finish third, Tyler Crocker fourth and Dale Berry completed the field.
Three Late Model heats were on tap with Boonville, MO veteran Curt Potter taking the win in heat one. Jason Bodenhammer finished second, Josh Newman came in third, Dennis Cook was fourth and Dwane Vandelichht was fifth. Heat two saw Justin Russell with a commanding win over Kayden Clatt in second. Scott Halley would run third, Rick Brown fourth and Wade Vandelicht completed the field in fifth. The third heat saw veteran Todd McCoin on the pole and local Sprint Car veteran Randy Martin to his outside. Martin would take the lead in turn two on the opening lap and McCoin would use a cross over in turn four to take the top spot. McCoin would claim the win over Alan Westling in second, Randy Martin in third, Tim Petty in fourth and Dustin Atkinson in fifth.
Winged Sprint car racing took to the dirt and in heat race number one, last week’s feature winner Jack Wagner took home the checkers. Garrett Hulsey was second, Jake Griffin finished third and Curtis Boyer completed the top four. Mackenzie Borchers was fifth, Russell Potter sixth, Tony Crank seventh and Matt Fox eighth. Heat two saw Marshall, MO driver Ben Brown take the win in commanding fashion. Tyler Elliott finished a solid second, Chase Porter advanced from sixth to take third and Broc Elliott was fourth. Fifth place went to Samuel Wagner, Kaitlin Boland was sixth and Taylor Walton was seventh.
The last event before intermission was the Late Model “Top 6 Dash for Cash”. The top six drivers from the heat races challenged each other for six laps. Justin Russell was standing tall in victory lane with his family at the end of the race. Curt Potter was second, Jason Bodenhammer finished third, Todd McCoin was fourth, Kayden Clatt fifth and Alan Westling was sixth.
The Super Stock feature saw veteran John Brooks take an early lead on the field and stretch it to as much as 8 car lengths during the ensuing laps. Ted Welschmeyer would settle into second and as the laps wore down he was able to move up and begin to challenge Brooks for the top spot. The two veterans ran side by side for several laps with Brooks running the top and Welschmeyer’s 21W on the bottom. Lap after lap until Welschmeyer was able to make the pass in turn four as the checkered flag was waving. Brooks would come in a strong second, Chris Dunham drove a smooth race to finish third, Jody Romig had another consistent finishing fourth and Tyler Crocker finished a very respectable fifth.
As the late models took the track for the feature many eyes were on the front row of Curt Potter and Justin Russell. At the drop of the green Justin Russell took the point running the cushion like a pro and held the lead over Potter and the rest of the field. Potter had to retire to the pit area on a mid race caution which gave Todd McCoin a chance to run down the leader. McCoin would pull alongside the leader on a couple of occasions but could not motor past. At the end of the 22 lap feature it was Justin Russell, Jason Russell’s younger brother driving into victory lane. McCoin would finish a car length back in second, Jason Bodenhamer was third, Kayden Clatt fourth and Alan Westling fifth. Completing the second five were, Brandon Atkinson was sixth, Randy Martin seventh, Tim Petty crossed in eighth, Scott Halley ninth and Rick Brown rounded out the top ten.
Winged Sprint Cars have traditionally closed out the race nights at Double X and Sunday night was no exception. For the second week in a row, at the end of 25 laps it was Jack Wagner and the JHR #77 car celebrating in victory lane. Wagner drove a smart, smooth race to take the win. Ben Brown gave chase early before Broc Elliott moved into the number two spot with about five laps remaining. Following Wagner and Elliott under the checkered were Brown in third, Chase Porter in fourth and Tyler Elliott in fifth. Jake Griffin led the second five in sixth, Samuel Wagner in seventh Taylor Walton from 15th to eighth, Garrett Hulsey ninth and Curtis Boyer in tenth.
Only five weeks of racing action remain in the 2022 season at Double X Speedway. If you would like to donate a bike for the upcoming “Race for Riley” or donate school supplies for the “Racing Back to School” night be sure to reach out and we will be glad to assist you. Next Sunday is the “Missouri One Call” night at Double X. Check out the Double X Speedway Fan Page on Facebook for updates.
Jason Russell Memorial Race Results
Double X Speedway
California, MO
June 26, 2022
Late Models
Feature- 1. 12-Justin Russell, Henley; 2. 7X-Todd McCoin, Barnett; 3. 22B-Jason Bodenhamer, Centerview; 4. 50-Kayden Clatt, Ashland; 5. 20-Alan Westling, Fulton; 6. 4A-Dustin Atkinson, Lebanon; 7. 14-Randy Martin, California; 8. 22-Tim Petty, Niangua; 9. H20-Scott Halley, New Haven; 10. 16-Rick Brown, Iberia; 11. 3-Wade Vandelicht, Ashland; 12. 00-Dennis Cook, California; 13. 7V-Dwane Vandelicht, Ashland (DNF); 14. 11P-Curt Potter, Boonville (DNF); 15. 40-Josh Newman, New Bloomfield
Hard Charger- Dustin Atkinson 14th to 6th
Top 6 Dash for Cash: 1. Russell; 2. Potter; 3. Bodenhamer; 4. McCoin; 5. Clatt; 6. Westling
Heat 1- 1. Potter; 2. Bodenhamer; 3. Newman; 4. Cook; 5. D. Vandelicht
Heat 2- 1. Russell; 2. Clatt; 3. Halley; 4. Brown; 5. W. Vandelicht
Heat 3- 1. McCoin; 2. Westling; 3. Martin; 4. Petty; 5. Atkinson
Super Stocks
Feature- 1. 21W-Ted Welschmeyer, Tebbetts; 2. 27-John Brooks, Warrensburg; 3. 54-Brandon Dunham, California; 4. 12-Jody Romig, Syracuse; 5. 19J-Tyler Crocker, Holts Summit; 6. 409-Joe Miller, Centertown; 7. 2A-Ace O’Neill, Lake Ozark; 8. 8H-Adam Halley, New Haven (DNF); 9. 05-Dale Berry, Tuscumbia (DNF); 10. 8-John Clancy, California (DNF)
Hard Charger- 21W Ted Welschmeyer 4th to 1st.
Heat 1- 1. Brooks; 2. Romig; 3. Dunham; 4. Halley; 5. O’Neill
Heat 2- 1. Miller; 2. Welschmeyer; 3. Clancy; 4. Crocker; 5. Berry
Winged Sprint Cars
Feature- 1. 77-Jack Wagner, Lone Jack; 2. 00-Broc Elliott, California; 3. X-Ben Brown, Marshall; 4. 2-Chase Porter, St. Joseph; 5. 49-Tyler Elliott, California; 6. 0-Jake Griffin, Quincy,Il; 7. 73-Samuel Wagner, Lone Jack; 8. 93-Taylor Walton, Odessa; 9. 88G-Garrett Hulsey; 10. 72-Curtis Boyer, New Haven; 11. 41-Mackenzie Borchers, Marshall; 12. 3P-Russell Potter, Boonville; 13. 23F-Matt Fox Sedalia; 14. 15K-Kaitlin Boland, Columbia; 15. 9C-Tony Crank, St. Augustine,Fl.
Hard Charger 93- Taylor Walton 15th to 8th
Heat 1-1. J. Wagner; 2. Hulsey; 3. Griffin; 4. Boyer; 5. Borchers; 6. Potter; 7. Crank; 8. Fox
Heat 2- 1. Brown; 2. T. Elliott; 3. Porter; 4. B.Elliott; 5. S. Wagner; 6. Boland; 7. Walton