Not Cup, but weekly racing... file under the heading the more things change, the more they stay the same. This is a newspaper report on one of the NASCAR Late Model races Friday night at Richmond's Southside Speedway that involved father and son Eddie Johnson and Chris Johnson - 2nd and 3rd generation NASCAR drivers... Eddie's father (Chris' grandfather) was NASCAR racer Cal Johnson. While we're focusing on the confrontations between Busch and Sadler on the national level, rest assured the home fire are still burning, three NASCAR driver generations deep!
Smith wins while tempers simmer at Southside
By: GEORGE TEMPLETON | Richmond Times-Dispatch
Published: September 04, 2011
Nick Smith overcame a mechanical problem early in the evening to win the second 50-lap Late Models feature Friday night at Southside Speedway. But while Smith celebrated his hard-fought victory, the drivers who finished second and third, Eddie Johnson and Chris Dodson, clashed briefly.
Dodson and Chris Johnson, Eddie Johnson's son, had battled for third in the final laps of the second feature. Dodson won that battle, but he was angry "at getting beat on and beat on" and spun Chris Johnson after both finished. Eddie Johnson followed Dodson into the pit area.
"His daddy came running at me and I picked him up and threw him down," Dodson said.
Eddie Johnson called it "good, old, hard racing at Southside."
Said Eddie Johnson: "Christopher, my son, got into Chris [Dodson], but [Dodson] hit him as well, so I don't see what his problem was."
Smith's night began similar to his other experiences at Southside this season. Smith qualified fastest again and pulled the fourth position, but disaster struck in Lap 6 of the first 50-lap feature.
"We were coming on strong early and my distributor broke," Smith said. "We borrowed one from Jeff Oakley's backup car. The crew had to bust their butts to make sure it would work."
The mishap eliminated Smith from the first feature race, but he ran well in the second. He surged past Eddie Johnson on Lap 22 and held him off on two late restarts to win.
"Eddie's a great racer and he's always raced me clean," Smith said. "It feels good to get a big monkey off our back and win."
Eddie Johnson said he and Smith were equal on the long runs, but that Smith's fresher tires made the difference.
Eddie Johnson had a much smoother start to the evening and won the first 50-lap feature. Eddie Johnson carved his way through the field and, along with Oakley and Dodson, was part of a three-car breakaway in the middle of the race. After a caution on Lap 28, Eddie Johnson made his move, getting around the other two drivers by Lap 33 and holding the lead the rest of the way.
"It's hard to pass people when everyone is on equal ground, so I just waiting to see how they would pan out," Eddie Johnson said.
Southside will raise the curtain on NASCAR's fall race week in Richmond with a Thursday night card that includes a 150-lap Late Model feature as well as U-Cars and Grand Stocks.
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updated by @dave-fulton: 12/05/16 04:02:07PM