Michael Courtney and Jed Emert race side-by-side at SMS.
Along with the two-day Spring Nationals sanctioned Super Late Models event at Smoky Mountain Speedway over the weekend, races in the Sportsman and Street Stock classes were contested with the winner of each receiving a $2,000 first prize. Two east Tennessee front runners emerged as the victors on the track located just south of Maryville, Tenn.
Michael Courtney set the pace early on Friday night in the Sportsman class when he posted a lap of 17.003 seconds in qualifying around the 4/10 mile clay oval. Jed Emert, Rick Williams and Kyle Courtney joined the fast qualifier in a dash race that would set the first two rows for the feature race.
Michael Courtney won that dash race while David Clark, Patrick Duggan and Bradley Lewelling won their respective heat races.
The feature race originally scheduled for 25 laps proved to be caution plagued as the initial start had to be scrubbed on multiple occasions due to accidents and mechanical issues among various cars. Once the main event got underway, it was Michael Courtney who would surge to the lead with Emert, Williams and the younger Courtney who gave chase early.
But trouble would strike one of the front runners after only two laps when Williams crashed on the backstretch, leaving Emert and Kyle Courtney to battle Michael Courtney for the lead.
The race was never able to develop a rhythm as caution flags waved on numerous occasions. The ensuing restarts provided opportunities for Kyle Courtney to make a move on Emert for the runner-up spot several times but the No. 98 machine was able to hold the position each time.
Ultimately, the yellow flags put the track in jeopardy of violating its curfew so the field was given a green/white/checkered finish after 18 laps with Michael Courtney taking the win ahead of Jed Emert, David Clark, Bradley Lewelling and Terry Poore.
Kyle Courtney(171) and Patrick Duggan race early in the Sportsman feature
In Saturday night’s Street Stock action, Brad Davis set fast time in qualifying with a lap of 19.419 seconds. Joining him in the dash race would be Robbie Comer, Pete Wright and Jason Savage.
Comer won the dash race to earn the pole for the feature event.
Davis went to the early lead at the start of the 20-lap feature but trouble would befall the No. 88 car on the second lap when his car slipped high on the track in turn one and spun into the outside wall. The fourth running car of Wright was damaged in a separate incident in the early going when he made contact with the outside wall on the back stretch.
Once in the lead, Comer set out to dominate the race as he built a lead of as much as a full straightaway. Meanwhile, Wesley Lester and Colby Taylor began making their way up through the field as they competed for podium finish spots.
After a lap 12 caution for a crash, Comer drove away for the win ahead of Taylor, Lester, Charles Bates and Ty Crisp.
Robbie Comer was the Street Stock winner on Saturday at SMS
