Thornton, Jr. takes Third SWDRA Win of the Season

By Ryan Neuharth

Peoria, Ariz (May 29^th, 2010) – When Ricky Thornton, Jr. hopped out of his race car victorious at Canyon Speedway Park on the opening night Memorial Day weekend Total Seal SWDRA double-header, he couldn’t help but smile and utter the phrase that was clearly present in his expression “I love these cars!”

Third starting Thornton, Jr. outdueled front row starters Karl Tipton and Jason Noll on lap one to take a lead he would never relinquish, hustling his Ride Now Power Sports, Hollywood’s Body & Paint, Sunoco Race Fuels, Lone Star Racing, Metal by Woods, Manka Motorsports, Rocket Chassis to his third victory in the first four Total Seal SWDRA events in 2010. The win also expended Thornton, Jr’s. points lead over Lonnie Parker, Jr. who after struggling in his heat race rallied from the B-Main and overcame a 17^th starting spot to come home fourth.

As Thornton, Jr. grabbed the lead off of turn two on the opening lap, fellow Modified regular Jason Noll, driving for Keith McKinney, raced side by side with a much improved Karl Tipton for the runner-up spot as California invader Cody Barnett and Art Lacy made-up the top five. Noll would get the best of Tipton on lap two while Lacy turned the same trick on Barnett.

Joey Moriarty would move Barnett back another slot on lap three as Lacy was now pressuring Tipton for third. The pair would race side by side until Lacy secured the position on lap six as Thornton, Jr. and Noll began to encounter the back of the field. The lead pair would race door to door down the front straightaway on lap nine before Mike Tathinen would bring out the caution for a spin in turn one.

Lonnie Parker, Jr. was on the move early picking up seven positions over the first nine laps to ride in tenth. The six-time Total Seal SWDRA Champion would gain another spot before the caution would wave again on lap ten for a returning Jeremy Thornton, who was subbing for Keith Noyes, and another Californian Chris Barnett. Parker, Jr. would benefit just two laps later when the races final caution flew on lap 12.

After jumping to the high side to power by Tipton, Joey Moriarty got crossed-up on the front straightaway bottling up the field behind his 51. The field raced in rows of two from fifth on back for laps 11 and 12 before Tipton would spin in turn one and collect Cory Hemphill, Anthony Madrid and Cody Barnett. Hemphill would retire from the event as the other three were forced to restart at the back of the field, moving Parker, Jr. up to fifth. He would again another spot before the field would even return to green as Moriarty was docked two positions for jumping the pervious restart.

The new top four of Thornton, Jr., Noll, Lacy and Parker, Jr. would pull away from the rest of the field during the second half of the 25 lapper while Moriarty, Brad Williams and Bruce Duckett would wage a three way dance for fifth until more bad luck, this time in the form of engine woes, would end Moriarty night just three laps from the finish.

Noll would keep Thornton, Jr. honest in lapped traffic over the final ten laps but never could get close enough to the leaders rear deck to mount a serious challenge. Even with three wins and a swelling point’s advantage, it’s uncertain if the 20RT team will continue for the full season. “We’re still looking for sponsorship to keep going” said Thornton, Jr. in victory lane. “Hopefully we can find some more help and run all year.”

If the most successful member of “Thornton Nation” keeps making victory lane his very own personal playground I have a feeling he’ll be around for many more seasons to come.

Main Event

Ricky Thornton, Jr., Jason Noll, Art Lacy, Lonnie Parker, Jr., Brad Williams, Bruce Duckett, Jerry Fincher, John Cornell, Anthony Madrid, Jeremy Thornton, Tommy Hussek III, Chris Barnett, Karl Tipton, Brad Whitfield, John Romero, Mike Tathinen, Marc Herrera, Joey Moriarty, Cory Hemphill, Cody Barnett

Heat 1

Thornton, Jr., Duckett, Tathinen, Cornell, Hussek III, Alan Bowers, Butch Ried

Heat 2

Moriarty, Tipton, Williams, Hemphill, Parker, Jr., Herrera, Andy Rudy

Heat 3

Madrid, Cody Barnett, Chris Barnett, Whitfield, Romero, James Chavez, Jr.

Heat 4

Lacy, Noll, Jeremy Thornton, Fincher, Justin Thornton, Jimmy Jelvik

B-Main

Parker, Jr., Hussek III, Herrera, Romero, Chavez, Reid, Rudy, Justin Thornton, Bowers, Jelvik