Des Moines,
Iowa (August 19, 1973) – Gene Gennetten of Gladstone Mo., showed everyone the
fast way around the half-mile dirt oval as he won the 40-lap IMCA-sanctioned,
grand-championship sprint car race on Sunday afternoon.
Gennetten
grabbed the lead from his first row outside starting position on the first lap
and never relinquished it. There was some heavy pressure, early in the race
from Larry Kirkpatrick of Wood River, Ill., and Buzz Rose of Cedar Rapids,
Iowa.
Gennetten
opened up a five-car length lead over the second running Rose only to see it
erased by two spinouts, causing the yellow to come out and the field to bunch
up.
The threat
of Bill Utz of Sedalia, Mo., who has been unstoppable in his last few IMCA
outings, was erased when he pitted with mechanical problems.
Kirkpatrick
was out of the running with a broken shock and Thad Dosher of Topeka, Kan., the
current IMCA point leader, was having mechanical issues with his R&H Farms
#40 sprint car and jumped into Bill Robison’s #65 for the feature.
Dosher,
trying to protect his IMCA point lead from the hard-charging Gennetten, who is
running second, worked hard, and with 10 laps to go, had moved up from his
fifth spot to challenge Rose for second place. He dueled Rose for three laps
before he finally got around him to take second. Dosher also won the 10-lap
consolation.
Results –
1. Gene Gennetten, Gladstone, Mo.
2. Thad Dosher, Topeka, Kan.
3. Buzz Rose, Cedar Rapids, Iowa
4. Ralph Blackett, Des Moines
5. Roy Bryant, Wichita, Kan.
6. Lenard McCarl, Bonaparte, Iowa
7. Ray Lee Goodwin, Raytown, Mo.
8. Dick Bloom, Wichita, Kan.
9. Jerry Richert, Forest Lake, Minn.
10. Jim
Jenkins, Slater, Mo.
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