After Four-Year Absence, Santos and King of the Wing Series Returns 1 Donald Crocker 4 Bill Cooley 4 Bill Touchtone 7 Kody Brusso 8 Jacob Bensock 9 Kody Jett 14w Wesley King 15 Perry Patino 15 Kevin Chase 17 Chance Adkins 21 Jason Furrow 21 Jason Welch 21 Michael Fisher 22 Jeremy Pate 26 Corbitt Moseley 28 Rick Ortell 30 Ricky Vice 31 Jr. Niedecken 32 Stuart Dutton 33 Joe Bathea, Jr 40 Todd Jones 41 Troy Grisaffi 51 Derrick Griffin 54 Conner Sutton 57 Charlie Skipper 81 Chris Cotto 84 Joe Mahuron 84 Doug Thorpe 88 Brandon Spreen 92 Bubba Winslow 94 Jason Johnson 95 Phillip Crownover 96 Fisher Smith 96 Rick Pollaro 97 Hunter Lambert 98 Scotty Anderson 151 Gary Sutton 311 Michael Johnson
By Chuck Corder There’s always a buzz around Five Flags Speedway. But, this Friday night that buzz will sound like a full-on swarm of bumblebees as the King of the Wing Series make their triumphant return since Mother Nature drowned their 2016 trip. There are only a few nights of the Five Flags season that are more highly anticipated than when the winged sprint cars descend on Pensacola’s high banks. This year’s running promises to be more special since the winged warriors haven’t run in Pensacola in four years. In 2015, Bobby Santos III who came home with the victory. Santos is excited to leave his native Massachusetts and return to Florida’s Panhandle for some warmth, a win, and a new track record if the cards align. “Five Flags is a track I really enjoy going to,” said Santos, who has raced with King of the Wing since 2014. “The racing has always been good when we’ve been there. It’s a bummer we
haven’t been able to come down the last few years. “If we get the track record, that’s great. I know that’s what the fans want to see. But, my goal is to always try and win the race.”
Santos and the King of Wings will be joined by the Outlaws, The Dock on Pensacola Beach Sportsmen, and the Lloyd’s Glass Pure Stocks. The winged sprints are annually one of the hottest tickets Five Flags offers its adoring public and with a shot at history on the line, this year’s edition promises to be no different. Fans flock from all over to the see the UFO-like vehicles. Some come for the novelty of the cars. Some come for the eardrum-shattering noise. Some come to see the raw power of these tiny machines that rattle the catchfence and shake the cables that hang over the start-finish line. But everyone comes for the speed. Indiana’s Brian Gerster is the current track record holder after his fast lap of 13.046 seconds in 2014. That speed equates to an average of more than 137 mph.
1:00 PM Pits Open 3:30 PM KOTW Practice #1 4:30 PM KOTW Practice #2 5:00 PM Outlaw, Sportsman, Pure Stock Round 1 5:30 PM KOTW Practice #3 6:00 PM Outlaw, Sportsman, Pure Stock Qualifying 6:45 PM KOTW Qualifying 7:30 PM O, SP, PS Driver’s Meeting 7:50 PM Pre- Race Festivities 8:00 PM King of the Wing Heats Pure Stock Feature 20 Laps Sportsman Feature 25 Laps Outlaw Feature 35 Laps KOTW Feature 30 Laps * •KOTW Sprint Car Feature to be started no later than 10:00PM. Schedule Adjustments may be necessary
In the 2015 race, Santos led the final 10 laps of a 40 lapper to win the heartpounding feature. The field of sprints flirted with the track record during qualifying, but no one was able to reach Gerster’s mark.
National Anthem Tiffany Harvey
2 2 11 11 12 12 15 16 16 17 19 21 22 22 24 27 29 30 34 42 49 51 52 80 86 91 95 97
Tony Boyd, Pensacola, Chance Imel, Irvington, AL Johnathan Day, Mobile Cameron Leytham, Mobile Michael Moody, Mobile T J Thompson, Mobile Robert Loper, Theadore, Brad Mosley; 8 Mile Rocky Boyd; Pensacola Lee Williams, Theadore, Daryl McDonald, Theadore, Butch Harvell, Pensacola John K Merritt, Pensacola Dylan Courtney, Citronelle, Caleb Burkett, Pensacola Jimmy Hollingsworth, Mobile Matt Thompson, Wilmer, AL Bobby Suarez, Pensacola Cory Pittman, Cantonment Brandin Sidner, Pensacola Jay Whalen, Pensacola Randall Moye, Robertsdale Robert Balkum, Pensacola Zack Jordan, Pensacola Jonathan Smith, Theadore Sarah Dority, Pensacola Robert Riley, Gulfbreeze David Johnson, Irvington
2019 Schedule
Apr 26 ATPLM, Mods, PT, PS Apr 27 * Electrathon May 10 O, PT, SP, PS May 24 O, PT, SP, PS Jun 7 ATPLM, SP, PS; Kids Bike Races Jun 21 Blizzard, O, PT, PS; Fireworks Jul 19 Blizzard, PT, SP, PS Aug 2 Demo Derby , Mods of Mayhem, O SP Aug 16 ATPLM O, PT, PS AUG 31 * Big Rig Trucks Sep 14 * O, PT, SP, PS, Championships Sep 21 * Blizzard, ATPLM Championships Nov 23 * SBD Preview Dec 4-8 Snowball Derby
1 Johnathan Langham, Mobile 3 Mark Barnhill, Mobile, AL 07 Jim Pokrant, Pensacola 07 Johnny McNair, Pensacola 8 B J Leytham, Mobile 09 Hunter McNair, Cantonment 13 Paul Mathis, Pensacola 28 Dayton Sidner, Cantonment 29 Shanna Ard, Milton, FL 29 Garrett Cobb, Pensacola 31 Johnny Greene, Daphne, AL 32 Red Dog Reynolds, Mobile 54 Donald Hardy, Cantonment 55 Jimbo Walker, Mobile, AL 60 Jimmy Goodwin, Pensacola 71 Tommie Blocker, Irvington AL 76 Tony Boyd, Pensacola 97 Hunter Lambert, Pensacola 99 Billy Hoover, Pensacola 357 Jason Huffmaster, Mobile
Robert
Mark
Geo
Balkum
Barnhill
Bromante
Michael
B. J.
Kyle
Moody
Leytham
Plott
Corey
Shanna
Lucas
Pittman
Ard
Jones
Brandin
Tommie
Trey
Sidner
Blocker
Bayne
Randall
Jim
Jesse
Moye
Pokrant
Dutilly
2018 Final Rank Joshua Hicks Grant Thompson Brandon Burks Brian Weimer Darryl Rudd
Chris Cotto Bubba Winslow Connor Sutton Derrick Griffin Jeremy Pate
Casey Roderick Chris Davidson Connor Okrzesik Ryan Paul Derrick Griffin