NORWALK, Ohio (November 8, 2013) – Wes Neely loves racing at Memphis International Raceway.
The
Florence, Mississippi native visited the Tennessee track three times in
2013, winning every time he unloaded the car. The first two wins helped
him clinch the Division 4 championship on the Summit Pro-Am Tour in
convincing fashion.
And
his third win at the track? Well, that only handed him his very first
IHRA World Championship in Stock by winning the Summit Racing Equipment
Tournament of Champions at the Summit World Finals.
Wes Neely
Neely
entered the Summit World Finals as one of six drivers representing
their division as Summit Pro-Am champion and Neely did his division
proud by winning it all in Memphis. Driving a bright red 1988 Trans Am
that he has campaigned throughout the south the past four years, Neely
went four rounds on championship Sunday culminating with a huge win over
Wade, North Carolina's Jeff Longhany.
With
nothing to lose, Neely attacked the tree and took a convincing holeshot
with a .010 reaction time to Longhany's .057 light and turned that into
a very close double-breakout win at the stripe. Neely crossed the
finish line first with a 12.369 second elapsed time at 104.35 miles per
hour on a 12.37 dial, while Longhany produced a 10.549 on a 10.56 dial
at 120.10 mph in the runner-up effort.
"I
went into the final with nothing to lose. I was just glad to be in the
finals that it didn't really matter to me, win lose or draw," Neely
said. "Once I realized I had won it really hit me what it meant. It
means that I won, not only in my state and division, but out of the
entire country I am the last one standing. That is a big honor."
Wes Neely
Neely's
weekend, which included a complete washout of competition on Saturday
that left him sitting around waiting for his opportunity to get after
the track, including a number of gifted rounds that helped advance him
through the ladder. He recorded wins over Stephen McGrath, Terry Taylor
and Brent Darroch on his way to the final, with all three making
mistakes at the line.
McGrath
was late off the line in round one by a considerable margin – a .016
light by Neely to McGrath's .075 bulb – while Taylor and Darroch both
went red in rounds two and three. Taylor went red by -.004, while
Darroch lit the red bulb by -.019.
Even
with the mistakes by his opponents, Neely ran well enough to earn his
spot in the final and further proved his worth by taking the win.
"It
was an exciting weekend. Long and drawn out, yes, but it was exciting,"
Neely said. "We had a lot of close races, but there are a lot of good
racers out here. You know, Stock Eliminator is a tough class to be in. A
lot of people around the world can foot brake, so it is tough. And to
be the best out of that group, that is really amazing."
In
the runner-up spot, Jeff Longhany, the runner-up in Division 9 on the
Summit Pro-Am Tour, had wins over Lee Truell and Sam Pourciau and
received a bye in round one to reach the final.
Stock Final – Jeff Longhany (near) vs. Wes Neely
Neely's
win wrapped up a season in which he won the Division 4 championship
despite attending fewer racers than most of his competitors. Neely
reached the semifinals in four of his five Summit Pro-Am races in
2013, winning twice at MIR earlier in the year.
Now the veteran of 17 years can add world champion to his resume after producing once again at his new favorite track in IHRA.
"Out
of five races we won twice and went to the semis several times. And to
win the division, while everyone around us went to more races, that is
pretty special," Neely said. "I really couldn't be here today without
the support of my wife Audrey, my son Landon, my daughter Brittney, my
brother David and his wife Ashley. They have all been very supportive of
me. And I also want to give a special thank you to Sammy, he has been
an inspiration to me and I am proud to run alongside him."
While
Division 4 typically takes some heat with fewer Super Stock and Stock
participants than other IHRA divisions, both world champions in the two
Stock categories arose from the Renegades Division. A fact that Neely
is very proud of.
"Division 4 is a tough place to race, no matter what," Neely said. "It is a great place to race and I am proud to call D4 home."
