MESQUITE, Texas — A three-hour rain delay at Devil’s Bowl Speedway Saturday night proved to be well worth the wait, as Jason Johnson came away with his fourth O’Reilly American Sprint Cars on Tour National series victory of the year in the final leg of the Red River Shootout.
Johnson battled past Gary Taylor for the point six laps into the non-stop 25-lapper and fought off Travis Rilat’s late charges to snare his 32nd-career ASCS National Tour feature triumph aboard Lanny Row’s Wesmar-powered The Shop Motorsports/Custom Equipment Design No. 41 Eagle.
“There was a time earlier tonight that I don’t think anybody thought there was any way we could get this show in, I’m glad we did though,” Johnson explained of the torrential downpour and hail storm that hit the speedway at 6:15 p.m., leaving the track and pit area drenched.
But after Lanny Edwards and track crew worked the clay, the first sprint heat race hit the track just before 11:00 p.m., with the checkered flag flying on the feature less than two hours later.
Rilat challenged for the lead during the second half of the race, but Johnson held on.
Rilat settled for second, with Taylor third. Four-time series champion Gary Wright romped from 14th to finish fourth, with Wayne Johnson fifth.
The finish:
Jason Johnson, Travis Rilat, Gary Taylor, Gary Wright, Wayne Johnson, Jack Dover, Danny Jennings, Zach Chappell, Garry Lee Maier, Kevin Ramey, Johnny Miller, Larry Neighbors, Donnie Ray Crawford, Michael Lang, Matt Covington, Skip Wilson, Eric Baldaccini, Kenneth Walker, Billy Melton, Kathryne Minter, Chris Tarrant, Nick Smith, Marvin Lough, Todd Evans.