CAISTOR CENTRE, Ont. – August 15, 2017 – Team Turner Racing hit full speed again this weekend with a pair of 360 Sprint Car races in Southern Ontario. The team was in action for a weekly Kool Kidz-Corr/Pak Sprint Car event at Ohsweken Speedway on Friday night, before hitting the track with the Southern Ontario Sprints at Humberstone Speedway on Sunday night.
All three Turner cars were in the same heat race on Friday night at Ohsweken. Ryan Turner led the way with a third-place finish in his Ace’s Bar and Grill No.91. Cory Turner raced from seventh to fifth in his KT Tobacco/Silo Wireless No.97 to earn enough passing points for the final spot in the redraw. Jamie Turner drove his Charlie Bee Honey No.11 to a seventh-place result in the heat.
In the redraw, Cory pulled the pole starting spot for the 20-lap main event while Ryan pulled third. Unfortunately, rain hit the racetrack before the Feature could be run and forced it to be postponed to August 18. The two brothers will keep those starting spots when they hit the track on Friday and Jamie Turner will start 13th.
“Dylan Westbrook’s going to be starting beside us, so it will be tough,” Cory said, looking ahead ot Friday night. “I think we have a car that’s more than capable of winning, so we’ll see what we can do.”
“I know we have a good starting spot in that first Feature,” Ryan said. “We’re just going to try and make it through that one and have a good run.”
On Sunday, the team had their best collective night of the season in their only stop of the year at Humberstone. Ryan picked up a heat race win while Cory finished third in the same heat and Jamie missed the redraw by one spot with a fourth-place finish in the final heat.
Ryan lined up fourth for the Feature with Cory in eighth and Jamie in 12th. All three cars were well-prepared and were able to race forward at the drop of the green flag. Ryan quickly engaged in a battle with Chris Jones and took second by lap four.
“I knew everyone was going to jam to the bottom, so I was just trying to keep it wound up (on the high side),” Ryan said of his strategy with the early pass for the lead. “I think the car ended up having a little more bite than I thought. I ended up using that line even through the middle of the race. I didn’t know if I could make it around (Jones) because I knew it was going to be close. Once I made it around him, I went to the bottom and tried to reel in Westbrook.”
Behind Ryan, Cory raced into fourth by the time of a lap seven restart and used the new found track position to get past Jones for the third position. Ryan and Cory ended up in a battle for second following the lap seven restart and resulted with Cory taking the second spot just after the halfway point of the 25-lap Feature.
“Even on the pace laps when I stepped on the gas the car just wanted to go ahead,” Cory said. “I was just thrilled with how good it was. We got to fourth quick and had a quick caution. I got by Chris Jones and then my brother and we were really rolling. We caught Westbrook in lapped traffic. We got to him, but we couldn’t really do anything with him. We’re really happy with how good the car was.”
While Cory was able to catch Westbrook, he could not get close enough to make a pass. Meanwhile, Jamie was charging forward through the middle of the pack as well and worked all the way from 12th to a 6th-place finish.
“It was the best car we’ve had all year,” Jamie said of his Charlie Bee Honey No.11. “It helps that I have a lot of laps here from way back in the Modified days. We knew it was going to get slick so we setup for it and the car worked really well. I was really happy with my guys. They do a great job.”
All three drivers had to battle through heavy lapped traffic over the final 10 laps on the slick surface. As much as it made for a challenging drive, it also made for a good battle.
“It was a lot of fun,” Jamie said. “The car was working pretty decent, so I was still going ahead (in traffic). Nights like this make it fun – when you’re going ahead.”
“My crew did an awesome job today and they have given me a great car to race all year,” Ryan added. “Tonight, it started to turn around for us. I had an awesome time. I always like the slick. Racing with my brother got a little hairy. You never want to get into the back of the No.97, but it was a good time.”
Cory was also ecstatic at how strong his car was.
“It was absolutely phenomenal,” Cory said. “We’re doing a few different things with the car and it’s really been working well. Anytime you’re on offense all night, it’s a good feeling.”
The battle for second between the two brothers was one that both drivers enjoyed. The race at the front of the field for a spot on the podium was certainly enjoyable.
“If only it had been for first and second,” Ryan joked. “It’s always a good time racing with Cory and dad had a good run tonight too. It’s always a positive when we have all three cars in the top-six.”
After a strong weekend, Team Turner Racing will next be in action at Ohsweken for double features on August 18. Team Turner Racing will be hosting their annual corn roast in the pits following the race and invite all of their friends and fans to stop by after the race. For additional information on the August 18 event at Ohsweken, visit www.ohswekenspeedway.com.
SEASON STATS
11 Jamie Turner – 12 Starts: 0 Wins, 0 Top-5s, 2 Top-10s
91 Ryan Turner – 17 Starts: 0 Wins, 2 Top-5s, 8 Top-10s
97 Cory Turner – 19 Starts: 0 Wins, 9 Top-5s, 14 Top-10s
TEAM TURNER MEDIA
Website: teamturnerracing.ca
Facebook: facebook.com/TeamTurnerRacing
Twitter: @11TeamTurner19
YouTube: Youtube.com/RacingTeamTurner
MAILING LIST
Join the Team Turner Racing mailing list by emailing claytonjohnsmedia@gmail.com with the subject “Turner” to be added to the list.
TEAM TURNER PARTNERS
Team Turner Racing is proud to partner with several dedicated marketing partners for the 2017 race season, including KT Tobacco, Charlie-Bee Honey, Aces Bar & Grill, Braemar Building Systems, Pyett Spring & Alignment, DSE Performance, Gale’s Auto Aftermarket, Plazek Auto Recyclers, Malabar Super Spice, V&R Recycling, Caistor Agri Services, J’N’E Recovery, Skyway Lawn Equipment, Total Coatings, Insta-Panels, KT Gas & Convenience, Six Nations Bingo, Silo Wireless, CJ Mulholland Mattress Factory, Truck Toppers, iC Super Computers, Silverdale Gun Club, Bryan’s Farm Supply, Beamer Farms, The Powerhouse, Hitchman Trailers, Barlow Farms, Mac Tools, V&R Hose & Hydraulics, RCM Racing Equipment, JLB Mobile Mechanical, Tetra-Chem Industries, Wix Filters, Top Flight Wings, Creative Edge Signs & Graphics, ImageFactor.ca, and Clayton Johns Media.
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