Brown Has Good and Bad Luck; Holleman Also Wins at Bowman Gray

Jonathan Brown was affected by both ends of the spectrum Saturday night Bowman Gray.

Brown won the first 50-lap race in the Brad’s Golf Car’s Modified Series, but in the second 50-lap race, he became entangled with Chris Fleming and Junior Snow on the first lap, knocking Brown out of the race. John Holleman IV, who started second in the second race, took advantage of the pileup and won for his first victory of the season.

Lee Jeffreys had the fastest qualifying lap for the first race. And when the top six drivers redrew for positions. Jonathan Brown started first, alongside 11-time and defending points champion Tim Brown. Jeffreys started third.

Jonathan Brown took advantage of his good luck. He fought hard and ended up winning the race – his third of the season and 23^rd of his career.

“We didn’t have the fastest car all day, but we were good and consistent,” Jonathan Brown said. “We had pretty decent speed in qualifying, just not fast enough to get the pole (qualified fifth), but (I) was lucky.”

Despite the win, Jonathan Brown had some anxious moments with the car.

“We’ve been struggling with the car getting tight on us during the race,” he said. “And it kind of did the same thing tonight during that first race. But I was able to move some brakes around and stuff in the car and ended up holding on at the end to win that first race.”

There were two cautions, but Jonathan Brown maintained his lead over Tim Brown. Chris Fleming was third, Burt Myers was fourth, and Jason Myers was fifth.

“So, my car for whatever reason, Tim was better than me for about four or five laps,” Jonathan Brown said. “It took me four or five laps for my car to get going, to get on the racetrack and get going. But after that, I could kind of drive away from him.

“But obviously it’s nerve-wracking having somebody as good as Tim right up your rear there those last couple laps, but it ended up working out. We were able to bring home our third win of the season.”

After the race, Jonathan Brown drew for position in the Madhouse Scramble, which inverts the field at whatever number the winner of the first race draws. Jonathan Brown drew 8, which is the best he could’ve drawn. Therefore, he had a chance to duplicate the feat that only Tim Brown has done, winning both ends of the twin 50-lap Modified races on the same night.

Snow, who won his first Modified race on June 11, started on the pole for the second race, side-by-side with Holleman. Brandon Ward was third, Jason Myers fourth, Burt Myers fifth, Fleming sixth, Tim Brown seventh, and Jonathan Brown eighth.

Just as the green flag dropped to start the race, Jonathan Brown, Snow, and Fleming collided with each other.

“I went about 50 feet in that second race and got the whole left side and whole right front torn on the car,” Jonathan Brown said. “I almost turned over two cars over, I think.”

Jonathan Brown said it looked like Fleming was caught in the middle.

“It looked like the 16 (Fleming) just got crammed up in the wall there,” Jonathan Brown said. “His right side bounced off the outside wall, and he come back across the track. I just had nowhere to go. I checked up and tried to turn down, and I think Lee (Jeffreys) and the 45 (Gary Young, Jr.) both were on my left side.

“It’s tight, close corners here at Bowman Gray Stadium. I mean it’s, it’s why they call this place the Madhouse.”

Both Jonathan Brown and Fleming got out of their cars unhurt. Also, both tried to get in backup cars. Fleming got in the car that was originally driven by his son, Jordan. However, even though Chris Fleming continued to race, the points went to his son. Jonathan Brown tried to get in his backup car, but he was told by Bowman Gray officials that he would be giving points for the car he started the race driving.

“I thought I was going to be able to jump in my backup car there since we didn’t have any laps on the board,” Jonathan Brown said. “The board was still zero, and I said, ‘Wait, I’ve got another car out here.’

“I jumped in it and the officials told me I wasn’t going to score.”

Holleman took advantage of the pileup on the first lap and dominated much of the race, his first win of the season.

“I thought we had a good car today,” Holleman said. “We’ve been running the backup car for a few weeks because we broke the rack in the primary car. Couldn’t get parts for it for a couple weeks. We brought it back last week and we were really good.”

Holleman somehow avoided too much damage on the first lap as he batted with Junior Snow.

“I definitely pinched Junior on the start,” he said. “I didn’t turn left into him. I just pinched him the whole time. That’s just part of racing at Bowman Gray Stadium. You’ve got to do what you’ve got to do to get the win. I don’t think there’s anything dirty. It’s just part of racing over here.”

After the caution on lap 1, there was another one on Lap 9.

“It seems like we’ve had adversity every single week,” Holleman said. “And we’ve found ways to overcome and have a pretty darn good year no matter what kind of problems we’ve had.”

The last caution was on lap 37, and on the double-file restart on the next lap, Snow lined up side-by-side with Holleman. Holleman surged ahead, and Ward moved past Snow for second. Tim Brown finished fourth.

“When I’m on the front row, I’m not going to be denied,” Holleman said. “Outside, inside, I don’t care. I mean, we’re there and we’re going to make a statement. I don’t care if it’s the start of the race, if it’s the last caution coming to the checkered. I mean, it’s going to be hard to knock us off.”

Ward took the lead in points with 344, two ahead of second-place Jason Myers, and six ahead of Fleming for third.

Zack Ore finished runner-up last year in the McDowell Heating & Air Series, but he hadn’t won a race this season. However, that changed on Satuday. Ore started fourth in the first 20-lap race and held off Tommy Neal for his first win of the season.

“We had a good car all season,” Ore said. “We started off with a third-place finish. We had a fast car. We had some bad luck. It’s about time. It took us too long to win a race this year.”

Ore took the lead from Michael Adams after slipping past him on turn 1 of lap 10. However, there were two cautions after that.

There was one more caution, and on the restart, Neal, who was in third place, was able to get underneath Adams for second. Ore was able to hold off Neal for the win.

Adams finished third and Zack Clifton was fourth.

In the second 20-lap Sportsman race, Amber Lynn came back from a wreck in the first race to taking the checkerd in the second.

By winning, she picked up her third win of the season, and eighth overall in the Sportsman Series. She also has 11 overall wins, counting her wins in the Law Offices of John Barrow Street Stock Series, tying her with Susan Kimel for the most wins by a woman at Bowman Gray.

“I think it means a whole lot more for the younger generation coming up than it does for me,” Lynn said. “I’ve raced for over half of my life. So, I’ve really gotten used to lack of diversity and the bullying the comes with it.

“So, I think that when little girls in the stands see another female win, and they’re doing very well, I think it gives the younger girls, growing up, the message that they can do whatever they put their mind to.”

She added that she doesn’t think of herself as an elite driver.

“I have terrible, terrible luck and people hate me for God only knows why,” she said. “And that’s OK, but we’ve always adapted over time, and we don’t listen to anybody. Like there’s so much trash being talked on Facebook and I haven’t peeped a word back, or about them or anything else.

“…I just don’t care. That’s 90% of Bowman Gray is making sure people aren’t in your head. You’re in theirs.”

There were three cautions in the first three laps of the race. Lynn moved up to second to threaten leader Wesley Thompson. After some hard racing between the two, Thompson spun and Lynn took the lead around turn 4 of lap 5.

“Some men’s mindsets is still the women are to be in the kitchen,” Lynn said. “I’m not a stay-at-home mom. I’m not a stay-at-home wife. I never will be. My life’s goals have not been accomplished yet. And I’m working towards that every single day, doing what I’m doing.

“And I do cook and I do clean, but I do it all and still win races.”

Lynn cruised after the last caution. Justin Taylor was runner-up, followed by Zack Ore and Tommy Neal.

Lynn will try to win the second 100-lap Sportsman race next week after winning the first one in May.

“I think that we’re more so racing for wins rather than points this year,” she said. “You know, we did that last year, and it took us pretty far.”

In the 20-lap race in the Law Offices of John Barrow Street Stock Series, Bryant Robertson won, defeating Billy Gregg.

“It’s been 12 years since I’ve won a race,” Robertson said.

Nate Gregg, Billy’s son, finished third, and both are tied for the points lead. Kevin Gilbert was fourth.

There was only one race in the Q104.1 Stadium Stock Series, and true to form this season, A.J. Sanders held off Brandon Brendle and Chuck Wall for the win in the 15-lap race.

There were three cautions during the race – and in the third one on the 11th lap, Sanders held a slight lead over Brendle and Wall. On the final lap, Sanders came around turn 4 and Brendle tried to slip underneath him. However, Sanders came across the finish line in first, just ahead of Brendle and Wall. Blaine Curry finished fourth.

“I’m just the lucky man sitting in the driver’s seat,” Sanders said.

Next week is the last week before the annual Fourth of July break. Next week’s racing will be highlighted by the 100-lap race in the McDowell Heating & Air Sportsman Series.

There will also be twin 25-lap races in the Brad’s Golf Cars Modified Series, a 20-lap race in the Law Offices of John Barrow Street Stock Series, and one or two 15-lap races in the Q104.1 Stadium Stock Series. And the night will end with the Midway Mobile Storage Skid race.

To honor our nation, there will also be the “Fire in the Sky” nighttime pyrotechnic parachute jump.

BGS Racing PR