January 27th (FRI) - Dominion Payroll Services 200 Presented by ChamberRVA

ARENA RACING USA
at Richmond (Va.) Coliseum
Dominion Payroll Services 200
Race Report
Friday, January 27, 2017

RICHMOND, Va. (Jan. 27) -- Garrett Manes of Powhatan, Va., took the lead for good on lap 7 and posted his fourth win of the season in the 50-lap Pro Series Top Dog feature, the headlining event of Friday evening's Dominion Payroll Services 200 for Arena Racing USA at the Richmond Coliseum. Friday's finale was that rarest of Arena Racing birds -- a caution-free race.

Branden Sanders drew the pole for the start, lining up alongside Manes on the front row. After some shuffling during the warmup laps, Nate Thomas landed in the third slot, sharing Row 2 with Scott Prillaman. Chase Burrow and Savannah Nickens made up Row 3.

As the race got under way, Manes leaped into the lead, bringing Prillaman along with him. Sanders slipped back to third, just ahead of a fourth-place joust between Nickens and defending Pro Series champ Camden Testerman. Testerman finally got the better of Nickens on lap 3 to claim the fourth position.

At the head of the field, Prillaman hounded Manes for the top spot, ducking underneath the leader on lap 4. Racing door-to-door, Prillaman enjoyed an edge off the corners, but Manes was able to use the momentum off the top side to eke out a slight lead by the time they reached the middle of the straightaways. Prillaman did manage to nose ahead on lap 6. A lap later, though, Manes reclaimed the lead.

On lap 11, Manes finally cleared Prillaman as they navigated through traffic on the backstretch. Meanwhile, Testerman had slipped past Sanders and moved up to make the battle for the lead a three-way contest.

At the halfway mark, Manes was up by two lengths over Prillaman, while Testerman had faded a bit, falling nearly half a straightaway behind the two leaders.

On lap 30, slower traffic came into play for Manes. As he struggled, Prillaman motored to his outside along the backstretch. Manes quickly shook free of the logjam, though, retaining the lead as Prillaman faced a renewed challenge from Testerman.

Heading into the final 10 circuits, Manes nursed a one-length margin over Prillaman. Testerman held onto third, but had drifted back from the leaders.
On lap 44, while dealing with more slower traffic, Manes bobbled off Turn 4. Prillaman was unable to capitalize on the slip and Manes increased his advantage to a little more than two lengths.

Over the last couple of laps, Prillaman mustered a final charge, drawing to within inches of Manes' rear bumper. He could get no closer, however, as Manes hung on to win by a car-length. Prillaman was the runner-up, followed by Testerman, Burrow and Nickens.

Mark Clements headed up the second five, in sixth, while Matt Sanders, Branden Sanders, Thomas and Jim Grady rounded out the top 10. Allen Booth III and Johnny Shonk appeared for driver introductions, but pulled aside before the race began. They were credited with 11th and 12th, respectively. Chase Butler and Shane Zupo also qualified for the Top Dog race, but were unable to make it out for the pre-race festivities.

Arena Racing USA action continues at the Richmond Coliseum next Saturday, Feb. 4, with the Top Notch Tire & Auto Center 200. Doors open at 6 p.m. for the driver meet-and-greet in the infield and racing gets under way at 7.

***
Garrett Manes assumed the lead on lap 11 and rolled to his third win of the season in the 50-lap Pro Series A Main. The victory was Manes' second in an A Main, to go along with a Top Dog win on opening night.

Via the redraw, Scott Prillaman started on the pole, flanked by fast qualifier Camden Testerman. As the race got under way, Testerman nosed ahead to take a slim lead. With Testerman maintaining a slight edge, the top two stayed side-by-side until the end of lap 7 when Testerman surged ahead.

The only yellow flag appeared on lap 11 when Prillaman and Testerman tangled off Turn 4, sending Testerman for a spin into the barricade along the inside of the frontstretch. As Testerman and Prillaman retreated to the rear of the field, Manes moved atop the leaderboard. Savannah Nickens was second, followed by Jim Grady and Shane Zupo.

Back under green, Manes and Nickens bolted from the pack. By lap 18, they had opened a straightaway advantage over Testerman, who had clambered back into third with Prillaman on his heels.

On lap 22, Prillaman scooted past Testerman to take over third. Second-place Nickens was half a straightaway ahead of him, while Manes' lead had grown to a full straightaway.

By lap 28, Prillaman had tracked down Nickens and slipped past her in Turns 3 and 4 to take over the runner-up spot. He faced a steep challenge, though, as Manes held a comfortable margin.

To have a chance at the win, Prillaman needed a "friendly" caution flag. The yellow flag stayed under wraps, however, as Manes won by a straightaway. Prillaman was second, followed by Nickens, Testerman and Grady. Mark Clements was shown in sixth, while Zupo and Shonk were seventh and eighth, respectively.

***
Chase Burrow of King William, Va., grabbed the lead on the opening lap and sailed to his third straight win in the 50-lap Pro Series B Main.

The redraw put Chase Butler on the pole for the start with Burrow to his outside. On lap 1, Burrow stayed door-to-door with Butler through Turns 1 and 2, then snagged the clear-cut advantage on the backstretch. Butler setted into second, followed by Branden Sanders and Nate Thomas.

The first caution flag appeared on lap 3 when Blaine Schumann stopped off Turn 2 with mechanical issues. Todd Meredith also pulled aside during the ensuing caution period, reducing the field to six.

On the restart, Burrow quickly cleared Matt Sanders, who took over second. Within a couple circuits, Burrow had pulled away by almost half a straightaway.

Things got a bit dicey for Burrow on lap 9 as he struggled to get past a slower machine, allowing Matt Sanders to close to within two car-lengths. Once he freed himself, though, Burrow began to drive off again.

The second yellow flag waved on lap 20 when Butler drove underneath Matt Sanders at the end of the backstretch in a bid for second. Instead, the two locked horns in Turns 3 and 4, collecting Branden Sanders in the process. Butler was sidelined by the incident. Allen Booth III also retired his machine to the infield, leaving just four machines on the track.

Back under green, Burrow quickly fashioned a half-straightaway lead over second-place Thomas. On lap 25, Thomas skated loose off Turn 4 and, suddenly, had Matt Sanders right on his rear bumper.
The third, and final, caution flag was unfurled on lap 28 when Thomas and Matt Sanders tangled off Turn 4, sending Thomas for a spin. Thomas decided to park his car, whittling the field to only three -- Burrow, Branden Sanders and Matt Sanders.

Returning to green, to start lap 32, Burrow jumped out to a half-straightaway lead. By the finish, his winning margin had swelled to better than a full straightaway. Branden Sanders was second, followed by Matt Sanders. Thomas was credited with fourth, while Butler, Booth, Schumann and Meredith completed the finishing order.

***
Layton Harrison of Dinwiddie, Va., started on the pole and was never headed, leading from flag-to-flag for his third straight victory in a 30-lapper for the Future Stars division.

Harrison took the lead as the race got going, followed by Jay Seward. On lap 8, Harrison was momentarily stymied by a slower car in Turn 1. Spotting an opportunity, Seward motored to the inside of the leader. He couldn't make the move pay off, though, as Harrison remained in command.

While Harrison was cruising at the head of the field, Seward endured shunts with slower cars on laps 13 and 20, allowing Harrison to pad his lead to nearly half a lap.

Harrison's healthy margin vanished, however, when the only caution flag appeared on lap 27.
Back under green for a four-lap sprint to the checkers, Harrison quickly opened a half-straightaway advantage over Seward. Nearing the finish, though, the leader ran up on a pair of slower machines and decided not to stick his nose into that private battle. While Harrison was taking a conservative approach, Seward rapidly closed ground.

At the finish, Seward's charge came up just short as Harrison held on to win by a car-length. Seward was the runner-up, followed by Fred Daniels, Connor Garlitz and Rachel Ingram.

***

Camden Testerman of Sandston, Va., notched his second straight pole in Pro Series qualifying. He circled the tenth-mile oval in 7.798 seconds to nip Scott Prillaman by 41-thousandths of a second.

Chase Burrow was third-fastest, only 2-thousandths of a second behind Prillaman. Savannah Nickens and Garrett Manes rounded out the top five. Fifteen drivers posted laps during the three practices that made up the session with a little over six-tenths of a second separating the fastest and slowest.

In Future Stars time trials, Layton Harrison bagged his third pole in as many attempts, clocking in at 8.259 seconds. Jay Seward was second-quickest, 0.286-second off Harrison's standard. Fred Daniels, Connor Garlitz and Rachel Ingram completed the rundown.

***
JANUARY 27 RACE RESULTS from Richmond Coliseum:
PRO SERIES TOP DOG (50 laps): 1. Garrett Manes; 2. Scott Prillaman; 3. Camden Testerman; 4. Chase Burrow; 5. Savannah Nickens; 6. Mark Clements; 7. Matt Sanders; 8. Branden Sanders; 9. Nate Thomas; 10. Jim Grady; 11. Allen Booth III; 12. Johnny Shonk. Pole: B. Sanders.

PRO SERIES A MAIN (50 laps): 1. Garrett Manes; 2. Scott Prillaman; 3. Savannah Nickens; 4. Camden Testerman; 5. Jim Grady; 6. Mark Clements; 7. Shane Zupo; 8. Johnny Shonk. Pole: Prillaman.

PRO SERIES B MAIN (50 laps): 1. Chase Burrow; 2. Branden Sanders; 3. Matt Sanders; 4. Nate Thomas; 5. Chase Butler; 6. Allen Booth III; 7. Blaine Schumann; 8. Todd Meredith. Pole: Butler.

FUTURE STARS SERIES (30 laps): 1. Layton Harrison; 2. Jay Seward; 3. Fred Daniels; 4. Connor Garlitz; 5. Rachel Ingram. Pole: Harrison.

NEXT EVENT: Top Notch Tire & Auto Center 200. Saturday, Feb. 4, at the Richmond Coliseum. Doors open at 6 PM and racing starts at 7 PM.

MEDIA CONTACT: Ricky Dennis
Phone: (804) 835-5211
E-mail: ContactUs@ArenaRacingUSA.com