David Ashley scores Ival Cooper Memorial victory!
Mendenhall, Mississippi (June 2, 2007) – Defending O’Reilly SUPR Late Model Champion David Ashley may be running a limited schedule but he hasn’t limited his winnings as he scored his 33rd O’Reilly SUPR Late Model victory in the 11th Annual Ival Cooper Memorial at Simpson County Motorsports Park. Ashley started 5th and settled into a top three position while Chris McElhenney, Bob McCool and the Chris Wall took turns leading the race. Ashley would work the bottom groove to take the lead from Wall and before the midway point and he would hold it for the remainder of the event with defending Mississippi State Championship Challenge Series Champion Chris Wall holding on to second in another classic duel between the two champions this year. Ashley piloted the B&K Underground/Serco/J&J Motorsports Chevrolet Monte Carlo TrakStar to the victory, his fourth on the O’Reilly SUPR Late Model tour and the fourth on the Mississippi State Championship Challenge Series as the 11th Annual Ival Cooper Memorial was a MSCCS/ SUPR Challenge race..
Scott Slay would score a solid third just ahead of Bub McCool who returned from the rear of the field after a cut tire ended McCool’s run in the top three. Chris McElhenney finished fifth ahead of Kenny Merchant, who’s sixth place finish allowed him to ease past Allen Tippen for second in the 2007 O’Reilly SUPR Late Model National Championship standings. Merchant and Tippen still trail Ray Moore by 254 and 258 points respectively. Tippen finished the night in 11th while Moore finished 15th.
Chris Wall started the night off by setting fast time with a lap of 13.313 seconds around the SCMP quarter mile. Joining Wall in securing a transfer based on qualifying times were Jimmy Cliburn, Bub McCool, Chris McElhenney, David Ashley, Ray Moore, Jason Cliburn and Marlon Wild. Wall would win the Wall2Wall Dash for Cash to earn the pole with Bub McCool to his outside.
David Breazeale would win the first last chance race while Jack Daughtry would score the second win. 25 O’Reilly SUPR & MSCCS Late Models were on hand and all 25 cars would start the 50-lap feature.
Official Results:
1. David Ashley
2. Chris Wall
3. Scott Slay
4. Bub McCool
5. Chris McElhenney
6. Kenny Merchant
7. James Ward
8. Marlon Wild
9. Jason Cliburn
10. Ryan Plaisance
11. Allen Tippen
12. Jack Daughtry
13. George Paul
14. David Breazeale
15. Ray Moore
16. Justin McRee
17. Chris Hoyt
18. Chad Thrash
19. Robbie Stuart
20. Devin Jones
21. Cliff Williams
22. Jimmy Cliburn
23. Buzz Miles
24. Brandon Register
25. Dennis Duncan