CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas (May 21, 2022) — Versatile short track master Cody Leonard, skilled driver Jared Maupin and South Texas mainstay Memphis Villarreal earned wins in their respective divisions, as officials hosted another full program of points racing on Saturday night at South Texas Race Ranch.
Leonard powered to victory in a caution-free affair for IMCA Modifieds; Maupin held off a talent-filled field in the Limited Modified feature, while Villarreal won a hotly-contested Factory Stock A Main.
Curtis King (Pure Stock); Daniel Preston (EMods); and Brett Lee (Mini Mods) were also feature winners on Coastline Waste Solutions Night at the racy little dirt oval in Corpus Christi.
Leonard, of Sinton, drove underneath early leader Cameron Starry to take command at lap two and hung on for top honors in that high-speed tilt for the ground-pounding Mods. Maupin is always a threat to win yet settled for second this time, while Starry filled out the podium in third.
Robert Liese Jr. (Schertz) and Chandler Fox (Kerrville) finished fourth and fifth, respectively.
“This gave me a chance to learn track conditions before my other two races,” Leonard (doing triple duty on Saturday) told speedway promoter Owen Pittman in Victory Lane. “The high side can be pretty dominant in these things; but when the top and bottom are both there, it gets pretty racy.
“I think we gained a little bit knowledge going into the next two, so we'll see what happens.”
Maupin, of College Station, drove underneath early leader Jaden Edmond coming off Turn 4 with just two laps remaining and hung on for top honors. Jarrett Barber started from the pole and crossed the stripe in second, while red-hot rookie Edmond finished third.
Marcus Mikulencak (Corpus Christi) and Ray Allen Kulhanek (Danbury) completed the top five.
“We took a big old swing at the setup here tonight,” Maupin said. “It got four new shocks on it after the Heat race, I don't know how much extra bite we had. From tires, to shocks and springs, we changed a little bit of everything. We even added some lead.
“We were hoping to be too tight when the track turned dry-slick, and it just happened to be perfect.”
Finishing sixth through 10th in the Limited Modified A Main were Ben Mikulencak, Gilbert Perez III, Cody Beddoe, Brian Rye and Tryton Temple. Two cautions slowed the pace, both for minor spins. The Limited Modified teams often put on the best show in a typical night, and Saturday was no exception.
Villarreal, of Corpus Christi, led all 20 laps of his feature in convincing fashion. San Antonio racer Allen Torres was fast all evening and crossed the line in second, while local racer Brian Rye was third. Cody Tesch (Yoakum) and Mason Castoneda (Orange Grove) rounded out the top five.
“It was going really good for a while,” Villarreal said. “Until I think I caught the wall coming down the front stretch. Something broke, I wasn't happy with that second caution. The steering was moving around on me.
“But it's always fast, the Traction Control kicked in pretty good on this Powers car. I want to thank everybody for coming out, and I hope to see you all again next weekend.”
Finishing sixth through 10th in the SAMES Ford Factory Stock A Main were Cameron Starry, Jared Maupin, Cody Leonard, Chuck Perry and Nathan Rachui. Only two cautions (laps 4 and 17) slowed the pace, both for minor incidents.
For Leonard, Maupin and Villarreal to have won on Saturday night was fitting, since many feel they are the three most talented, versatile Texas-based racers of the modern era. Owen Pittman and his staff pulled another smooth show, knocking out 13 heats (94 entries) and six features in roughly three hours.
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By Phil Whipple, RaceOnTexas.com Staff Writer
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