Chastain Kicks Off Truck Series with Win at Desoto

MANATEE COUNTY -- Chad Chastain came out of a side-by-side battle for the lead and would lead the final 33 laps of Saturday night's inaugural race of the Joey Coulter Fellows Truck Brokers Florida Pro Truck Series at Desoto Speedway. A nine-truck inversion put fast qualifiers Brent Huber and Michael Burns ninth and eighth in the 20-truck starting field.

Chad Chastain

Gerald Campbell jumped into the lead when the green flag flew and paced the field for the first 16 laps. Chastain and Campbell ran side-by-side all the way around the three-eighths-mile oval for three laps before Chastain cleared Campbell on lap 17. Chastain would begin pulling away while Campbell and Burns staged a side-by-side battle for second for several laps. Campbell would eventually slow in turn two with a mechanical failure, ending his race with 20 laps to go. Chastain fought off a challenge from Burns on the restart and began stretching his lead over the next 10 laps.

In the final stages of the race Burns closed the gap a little on Chastain as he weaved his way through lapped traffic, but it wasn't enough as Chastain cruised to the win. "We were good but we started falling off toward the end," Chastain said in victory lane. "I guess everybody else fell off like we did." Burns said the brakes wore out in his truck over the final laps, preventing him from making a final run at Chastain. Cody McDuffie finished third. Bonus money went to Halfway leader #36 Chastain- leading a lap bonus went to #2X of Campbell & Chastain and Leading the most laps bonus went to Chastain.

The J.D. Byrider Open Wheel Modifieds took to the track for a 40-lap feature event. Dalton Nelson grabbed the lead at the start of the race, but his advantage was short lived as Josh Todd, who started fourth, took away the lead three laps into the race. Halfway through the race, Todd faced a stiff challenge from Steve Arnold and Doug Moff. On a lap 24 restart, Moff elected to start on the outside but was passed immediately by Arnold for the lead.

Moff got into the back of Todd's car heading into turn three, sending him into a spin. Todd was hit by another car and retired from the race with a broken right front suspension. Arnold would go unchallenged the rest of the way on his way to the win. "We came up here and practiced Friday morning, and we haven't done that for awhile," Arnold said. "Our homework really paid off." Dalton Nelson finished second, while Moff would rally back to finish third.

In other action Saturday, Duane Best grabbed the lead from Troy Theim at the halfway point of the 30-lap Pure Stock feature event and went on to his second feature win for the young season. Darren Bass won his second consecutive Dwarf Car feature; Ronnie Robinson took the win in the Mini-Stock feature; Dakota Baggette won the Legends feature; Mike Endee won the Outlaw Modified feature event; and Rick Sirmans won the Modified Mini feature.

Next Saturday night, Desoto Speedway will host the Larry Brazil Memorial event for the Safety-Kleen TBARA Sprint Car Series. Pro 4's, Street Stocks, Cowboy Cadillacs, Rookie 4's, Modified Minis and Mini Stocks will also be in action.

3-15-2014 DESOTO SPEEDWAY RACE RESULTS

Pro Trucks

1. 36 Chad Chastain Alva

2. 14 Michael Burns Port Charlotte

3. 25 Coddy McDuffie Lakeland

4. 64 Brent Huber Venice

5. 59x Becca Monopoli Lakeland

6. 41 Steve Darvalics Venice

7. 1 Tyler Lau Bradenton

8. 84w Mica Williams Lakeland

9. 09 Tommy Caveney Mulberry

10. 28 Corey Bigley Naples

11. 51 Phil Ellis Arcadia

12. 21 Randy Leonard Lake Placid

13. 10 Richard Bullard Jr. Arcadia

14. 27 Rich Cordis Royal Palm Beach

15. 2x Gerald Campbell Sebring

16. 75 Robert St. Johns Arcadia

17. 31 Rodney Haedock Arcadia

18. 65Brian Harbin Bartow

19. 50 Danny Anderson Bradenton

20. 5 Jeremy Daring Alva

21 84m Pat Mahoney Venice D.N.S.


Open Wheel Modified

1. 19 Steve Arnold Cape Coral

2. 94 Dalton Nelson Pineallas Park

3. 46 Doug Moff Fort Myers

4. 71 L.B. Skaggs N. Ft. Myers

5. 45 Joey Logan Bradenton

6. 0 Josh Todd Polk City

7. 9 Camron Ray Inverness

8. 25 L.J. Grimm Seffner

9. 75 Bobby Blake Grand Isle D.Q.


Pure Stock

1. 3 Duane Best Parrish

2. 18 Troy Theim Sarasota

3. 9 Camron Ray Inverness

4. 63 Kyle Best Myakka

5. 80x Chad Cummings Palmetto

6. 11 Billy Carlbert Palmetto

7. 46 Chuck Mathias Bradenton

8. 44 Rick Hess Englewood

9. 74 Paul Huffstutler Bradenton

10. 1 Justine Carlbert Palmetto

11. 75 Alan Burton Sarasota

12. 26 Brian Hillyer North Port

13. 5 Cody Carlbert Zeppherhills

14. 67 Jimmy Best Sarasota D.N.S.


Outlaw Modified

1. 26 Mike Endee North Port

2. 00 Billy Campbell

3. 51 Mark Patton North Port

4. 14 Dan Ackard

5. 22 Ric Mills Arcadia

6. 5 Kevin Endee


Mod. Mini

1. 05 Rick Sirmans

2. 7 Clint Foley Dunnellon

3. 32 J eff Firestine Venice

4. 88 William Rohrer Myakka

5. 45 Mike Kerrivan Myakka

6. 29 Chris Snow Inverness

7. 17 Jimmy Wood Bradenton


Legends

1. 7b Dakota Baggette Llakeland

2. 00 Darin Coker West Palm

3. 5 Seth Adams Mulberry

4. 19 Keith Sinkula Palm City

5. 2 Robby Lyons Seminole

6. 01 Devin McLeod Zepperhills

7. 7v Mike Verhaagh Ft. Myers

8. 15David Flail Bradenton

9. 8 Donovan Ponder Orlando


Mini Stock

1. 05 Ronnie Robinson Bradenton

2. 008 Ren Wright Jr. St. Pete

3. 98 Chris Larson Zephyrhills

4. 48 Jason Weiss Zephyrhills

5. 31 James Prochaska St. Pete

6. 171 Dalton Ellis Myakka


Dwarf Cars

1.25 Darren Bass Coco

2. 77 Larry Hubbard 3rd. Cape Coral

3. 56 Larry Hubbard Jr. Cape coral

4. 33 Roger Richmond Port Charlotte

5. 36j John Atherton Cape Coral

6. 44 Brandon Bayse Covington Ohio

7. 11 Ray Gonzales Auburndale

8. 8 Jason Hitchcock Covington Ohio

9. 2 Justin Stockman

10. 71 Larry Dolbee Homestead

11. 7r Ray Gonzales jr. Auburndale

12. 26 J. D. Gorden Grand Island

13. 49 Darrell Fischer Loxahatchie

14. 7b Brian Marsh Piqua Ohio