8/2/2014
Josh Marcham wins the $1,000-to-win Quick Engineering preliminary night feature at SIR's 7th Annual IKE Honda Terry Sprague Memorial
Competing against some of the best non-wing Micro racers in the country, Oklahoma brothers Josh and Trey Marcham had strong showings in the 7th annual Terry Sprague Memorial at the 1/8-mile Southern Illinois Raceway in Marion, Ill on August 1-2.
The All-Star field included Tulsa Shootout champions Frank Flud, Chris Andrews, and Chris Cochran along with POWRi stars Joe B. Miller and Dereck King and over 70 racers from across the U.S.
With only 24 positions available in Saturday’s 40-lap, $5,000-to-win finale, making the main event was a task of its own. Lap-after-lap saw some of the most intense racing anywhere on the tight bullring oval.
In the $1,000-to-win Quick Engineering preliminary night feature (contested on August 2 due to late thunder storms on Friday that halted racing prior to the start of Qualifier 3), younger brother Josh got off to a stellar start, claiming the win in the 10-lap Heat 7, giving him the tenth best points total of all entries. Josh went on to guide his #8 Lightning Chassis to the win in the 20-lap Qualifier 2, garnering him the outside pole position for the preliminary 30-lap feature.
Older brother Trey was running in a transfer spot in one of the 20-lap qualifying races when he fell out of contention – one of many who did so while fighting to earn one of the 24 coveted starting positions in the preliminary feature.
The 30-lap Quick Engineering preliminary feature locked the top six finishers into the $5,000-to-win, 40-lap Terry Sprague Memorial Saturday feature event. Josh Marcham began the 30-lap preliminary feature from the outside pole position, settling into second with fellow Oklahoman Chris Andrews leading the way. A.J Hopkins found his way to the front on lap seven, with Josh dropping back to third.
A myriad of cautions unfurled throughout the first half of the feature, making it tough for anyone to carry momentum. With 15 laps remaining, Josh powered back, gaining on Andrews, closing in while patiently chauffeuring the car around the inside berm. After passing Andrews, Josh set his mark on Hopkins and the final five laps would see Josh and Hopkins intertwined in an exciting side-by-side duel, with Josh working the inner berm and Hopkins rim riding around the top. Josh took the lead on Lap 27, leading the final laps en route to the win, giving him a clean sweep for the preliminary events.
“It was a tough race, but the car was dialed in, so I’m glad we were able to grab the W,” Marcham said.
Josh again battled with Hopkins in the six-lap dash to determine the top three rows of the 40-lap feature, taking second to Hopkins, earning the outside pole for the feature event.
Lining up second, Josh battled toe-to-toe with drivers with eons of experience more than him, dicing side-by-side with the Nation’s best, swapping the second position with Andrews and Brandon Rose for the duration of the race before coming home fifth place at the checkers. Older brother Trey earned his way into the 40-lap feature by claiming fifth in the 15-lap Last Chance Showdown. Starting 23rd in the feature, Trey methodically worked his way forward to tenth place, claiming hard charger honors.
Select Coatings, RD Marcham Energy, Inc., Simpson Race Products, Pinacle Energy Services, Best Western Tulsa Airport, Metals Supermarket Oklahoma City, J & B Digital Graphics, Madden Steel Buildings and Mud-X support Marcham Racing.
Article Credit: Robert Haugh
Submitted By: Cheri Marcham
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