Thursday March 28th, 2024 8:58PM

Friday Night Drags titles decided in season finale at AMS

By Dustin Bixby

HAMPTON, Ga. - A large crowd of competitors and spectators gathered at the Atlanta Motor Speedway for the final night of O’Reilly Auto Parts Friday Night Drags in 2018.

The action on championship night didn’t disappoint, with fierce competition for the last victories of the season and title fights determined in the last runs of the season.

The closest championship fight was in the Harbin’s Mechanical Services Street Outlaw division, where Wayne Harris and Mike Moore entered the season finale tied at the top of the standings.

The championship was decided in the semifinal round. Harris’ 1968 Camaro stormed down the eighth-mile pit lane drag strip fast enough to advance to the final round, but Moore’s 2017 COPO Camaro was knocked out by Ross Cole and his 1972 Chevrolet Camaro.

The championship is the first for Harris since he started competing in Friday Night Drags.

“After 12 years it’s about time,” an elated Harris said. “We’re just a back yard crew. We don’t have any sponsors or anything, we do it all ourselves.”

Harris topped off his championship winning evening with the final race win for the division as well, propelled by a great launch off the line that allowed him to defeat Cole for the victory.

Another first-time champion was crowned this year in the Quiktrip Pro division. Kevin Mayo had the championship wrapped up coming into the final night, but nonetheless the title didn’t come to him easily.

“We’ve had some issues this season with the car, but we’ve fought through them to battle for the points,” Mayo said. “We had a couple nights this year where I didn’t do so good, but we came back and just fought through.”

Mayo was forced to settle for a second place finish on championship night. David Clevenger powered his 1993 Firebird down the track ahead of Mayo’s 1969 Chevrolet Nova in the final round to take the final pro division victory of 2018.

In the Starfire Automatic Gates Truck division, season champion Ed Blanford capped off a stellar season with a victory, the 10th consecutive win his 1968 Ford F100 in 2018.

“I’ve only lost one time this year and it was by like a fender to the guy that used to be the top dog,” Blanford said, adding, “but there’s a new sheriff in town now.”

The 2018 season concluded with a thriller of a race in the Super Pro division, which pitted season champion Robert Cheney and Arnie Cobb against each other for the last race of the night and the year.

Off the line, Cobb’s 1991 Chevrolet S-10 had a hiccup while trying to get up to speed, but so did Cheney’s American Dragster. Once both cars had everything straightened out, they were wheel-to-wheel.

The two vehicles flashed across the finish line nearly dead even, with Cheney’s dragster edging out Cobb’s S-10 to secure the victory.

Atlanta Motor Speedway’s O’Reilly Auto Parts Friday Night Drags & Show-N-Shine will return for a new season on May 10, 2019. For more information, visit AtlantaMotorSpeedway.com.

Atlanta Motor Speedway – Hampton, GA
Friday Night Drags – August 24, 2018

Super Pro: Robert Cheney – 2014 American Dragster
Pro: David Clevenger – 1993 Pontiac Firebird
Street Outlaw: Wayne Harris – 1968 Chevrolet Camaro
Sportsman: Tim Hall – 1988 Ford Mustang
New Edge: Steve Schaffer – 2018 Chevrolet Camaro
Street Performer: Brandon Sampler – 1995 Chevrolet S10
Domestic: Kelly Morgan – 1968 Ford Mustang
Factory Street: Michael Hartley – 2013 Ford Mustang
Street Modified: Anthony Kirkland – 2017 Dodge Charger
Truck: Ed Blanford – 1968 Ford F100
Tuner: Shane Kirkland – 1983 Datsun 280ZX
Sport Compact: Chris Mauldin – 2009 Infinity
Super Bike: Maurice Ayers – 2008 Basa 1300
Sport Bike: Robin Malcolm – 2006 GSXR 1000
Motorcycle: Keith Stamps – 2002 Honda
Cruiser: Robert Thomas – Harley Davidson
ATV: Wayne Cline – Yamaha Banshee
Burnout Zone: Kevin Mayo – 1969 Chevrolet Nova

  • Associated Categories: Sports, NASCAR News, Other Motorsports
  • Associated Tags: motorsports, Auto Racing, Drag Racing, Asphalt, Atlanta Motor Speedway, Friday Night Drags, #GAdrivers
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