"Davey Ray scores first victory for car owner John Jones at Angell Park"

By Bryan Gapinski
Sun Prairie, Wis., Aug. 17---Former series champion Davey Ray captured the 50-lap Badger Midget Series feature, Sunday Night at Angell Park Speedway. It marked the first ever feature victory for car owner John Jones and Jones Motorsports.
Joe Wipperfurth paced the initial two laps, before Ray moved into the lead. As Ray took the lead, Jerry Coons Jr. moved into fourth place, after starting in the 12th position. Two cautions appeared on laps six and seven for stalled cars. On the second restart, Coons passed Ray for the lead on the backstretch. Tracy Hines passed Ray for second place on lap 12 and trailed Coons by nearly three seconds.
Coons' lead was narrowed as he began lapping cars on lap 20. Coons led Hines at the midway point by one second. One of the events turning points took place on lap 28, when Hines pulled into the pit area, with mechanical problems. Fast qualifier Bobby East running in fourth place stopped on the track with a flat tire. During the caution series points leader Mike Hess pitted to change a right rear tire.
Coons pulled away from Ray, and began increasing his advantage, when on lap 35, Coons pulled off the track, with engine problems. Ray reassumed the lead, and with five laps remaining held a five car length lead over Scott Hatton. The caution then appeared for Brandon Waelti, who stopped with a flat tire.
On the restart Ray pulled away from the field, while Hess restarting in sixth place quickly passed two cars, and then Hatton slowed, one lap later, with engine problems. Hess continued his charge through the field and trailed Ray by one second at the finish. Ray drove the John Jones owned Stealth/Sesco-Mopar No. 41 to the victory followed by Hess, Brad Kuhn, Aaron Fiscus and Bubba Altig.
The victory ended a string of near-miss feature victories by Jones, who the series Rookie of the Year in 1997, and retired from driving a few seasons ago to become a car owner. Hess holds a point lead over Hatton heading into the doubleheader Aug. 23-24 events co-sanctioned with the USAC Mopar National Midget Series.

SUMMARY
50-lap Feature: 1. Davey Ray; 2. Mike Hess; 3. Brad Kuhn; 4. Aaron Fiscus; 5. Bubba Altig; 6. Joe Wipperfurth; 7. Scott Hatton; 8. Buddy Luebke; 9. Kurt Mayhew; 10. Dan Mecum; 11. Brandon Waelti; 12. Jerry Coons Jr.; 13. Tracy Hines; 14. Bobby East; 15. Chad DeSelle; 16. Pat Jones; 17. Tim Noble; 18. Byron Walters.

15-lap Semi Feature Winner: Waelti .
10-lap Heat Race Winners: Hines, Hatton, Coons .
Fast Time: East, 14.652 seconds.
Cars Present: 23 Feature Lap Leaders: Wipperfurth 1-2, Ray 3-7, Coons 8-35, Ray 36-50.
*Jim Fuerst flipped in Semi Feature, uninjured.

Current Badger Midget Series points: 1. Mike Hess 1474; 2. Scott Hatton 1307; 3. Brandon Waelti 1282; 4. Bubba Altig 1034; 5. Jerry Coons Jr. 994; 6. Aaron Fiscus 966; 7. Joe Wipperfurth 893; 8. Davey Ray 857; 9.Chad DeSelle 834; 10. David Gough 827.