Sutton Makes it Two-for-Two, Awarded Allen Turner PLM 100 After Teammate Fails Tech

June 16

By Chuck Corder
5flagsspeedway.com reporter
The night felt destined to be special for the Rackley W.A.R. Late Model team.
Two cars in a field of 21 for the second Allen Turner Hyundai Pro Late Model 100 this season at Five Flags Speedway. Rackley-Willie Allen Racing (W.A.R.) saw its 17-year-old phenom Dawson Sutton capture the first 100-lapper in April at the famed half-mile asphalt oval. Adding 15-year-old open-wheel wunderkind Gavan Boschele to the mix only increased optimism as they returned Friday to Pensacola’s high banks from their native Tennessee.
The plan nearly worked flawlessly. Boschele and Sutton finished 1-2 with the pair running in the top-five all night and the younger teenager victorious in his Five Flags debut.
“The Rackley W.A.R. guys gave me a great car,” Boschele said. “(Sutton) was better off corners, so I had to try and drive it straighter. I knew that if I stayed on the bottom, it’ll turn out well.”
Unfortunately, like so many rookie and veteran drivers before him, Boschele couldn’t pass technical inspection. The youngster was DQ’d for the left side of his No. 25 being over the weight limit. That meant his Rackley W.A.R. teammate was awarded the official win.
Sutton has won the first two PLM features of the season and quickly dialed in the nuances of Five Flags’ abrasive asphalt.
“We had a fast racecar tonight,” he said. “Overall, this was a good night. We’re going for points (in Pensacola), so this helps with that, as well.”
Pensacola’s Hunter Robbins started 12th, but hustled home to round out the podium.
“We had a good car tonight,” Robbins said. “We had some problems in qualifying and we’re still learning what we need. I’m happy to be here and finish third. It’s hard to run somebody down. It takes a lotta laps to get there.”
Bryson Shaffer—yet another Tennessee driver, although not out of the Rackley W.A.R. shop—was fastest in qualifying (16.844 seconds).
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Zoom Equipment Pro Trucks
Chances are pretty good that when Steven Davis gets behind a steering wheel, the checkered flag is coming home with him.
It happened again Friday night at Five Flags Speedway. Davis won his second straight Zoom Equipment Pro Trucks 25-lap feature and pocketed a cool $1,000 for the victory.
“I didn’t have a clue.” Davis said when asked about the cash prize. “We don’t race for money. We race because we love it. We have a good team and I’m grateful.”
He has raced just two of the four features this year, meaning Davis is batting 1.000 to go with the grand he won Friday night. He took the lead from eventual runner-up Treyce Capers on Lap 14, bulldogging his way to the front with a hotrod.
“Believe it or not, I don’t work much on this truck,” Davis said. “It’s hard with the wife, the kids and buying houses.”
Capers has finished on the podium in all four races in 2023, taking home second twice while still searching for his first victory.
“We had a really good truck in the first half,” he said. “The right-rear thread disappeared. It was a good race, though. I got to lead laps and be competitive.”
Grant Thompson, the other two-time winner this season, collected third-place honors while doing double-duty in the Allen Turner Hyundai Pro Late Model 100 race earlier in the night.
“I’m exhausted,” a worn-out Grant said. “I really do think we had the best truck. It just took too long to get through the field.”

The Dock on Pensacola Beach Sportsmen
Maddox Langham is his own worst critic. That’s saying a lot coming from a family of short-track drivers, who enjoy dissecting laps just as much as making them.
Langham was determined Friday night at Five Flags Speedway to make up for his lackluster performance in The Dock on Pensacola Beach Sportsmen feature earlier this month. He was spectacular, setting the fast time in qualifying (19.634 seconds) and backed it up with his second Sportsmen 25-lap feature win of the year.
Langham was overjoyed with his return trip to Victory Lane. His enthusiastic celebration included him denting his No. 1’s roof after he an emphatic slap. He quickly popped it back out much the delight of his family and crew.
“I knew I had to have a good run tonight,” Langham said. “Hopefully, we can fight back and gets us a championship by the end of the year. Right now, we’re just racing for wins.”
That carefree approach seems a perfect fit for the young driver. Langham and James Patrick swapped the lead early on with each Alabama driver pulling off several successful slingshots around the other before Langham got around Patrick for good on Lap 9.
Patrick finished runner-up and Chad Robinson’s maintained his series points lead with a third-place finish.
“We’ve been working on stuff,” Robinson said. “But, honestly, it’s hard for me flip-flopping between asphalt to dirt.”

Story & Bleich Roofing Crown Stocks
Adam Salter has been trending up in his black No. 3 Crown Stocks car.
The Andalusia, Ala., driver has dominated the series at his home track of South Alabama Speedway in Opp, capturing all five features this season. Salter also just scored a dirt track a couple weeks back.
He continued his trajectory north in the Story & Bleich 15-lap feature Friday at Five Flags Speedway. Salter started sixth, but quickly found clean air and held off runner-up Ryan Bleich Sr., the series points leader, down the stretch.
“The last race, we had a little issue in practice,” Salter explained in Victory Lane. “We messed the front-end up and couldn’t run it. I’ve never had good luck here until tonight.”
Tyler Young rounded out the top-three.