(Daelynn Spalding photo) John Rittenoure - ENID, Okla. (October 15, 2022) - Joe Godsey got a call this week to drive the Hayden Ross number 66 late model in the Complete Well Testing non-point Sooner Late Model Series finale at Enid Speedway.
Godsey jumped at the chance as a friend of the Ross family and it resulted in a very meaningful victory on Saturday.
Ross locked up the CWT Sooner Series title along with the Southern Touring Late Model Series a month ago in a co-sanctioned event at Thunderbird Speedway just a week before he died in a tragic ATV accident.
It was only fitting that Godsey would get the season finale win in the Ross late model.
“It is just such an honor to get in there and represent Hayden. It is heart felt for all of us,” Godsey said of his run to victory.
“Brady (Hayden’s dad) and I had a conversation. It needed to happen. We just came here to represent the family and do the best we can. Hayden is a great young man and a champion.”
On the initial green a turn 1 multi-car crash took several cars out of competition and Godsey had to visit the work area for minor repairs. Godsey restarted on the rear.
“The first lap of the race was kind of sketchy and we got some damage and had to come in and get it fixed,” he said. “That got us to the back and we just worked our way back up there. We were lucky enough on the cautions to take the lead.”
Dustin Allen led the first eight laps as Godsey worked his way through the field. After a lap 9 restart Godsey charged around Allen, who ended up leaving the race, and went the distance for his second Sooner career win.
“With everything the way it is, this is definitely the biggest win of my career,” Godsey said of his win over Brett Hansen.
Having Godsey drive the number 66 in the season finale and get the win was the best thing that could have happened according to car owner and Hayden’s dad, Brady Ross,
“It meant so much for us to be able to take the win and have Joe sit in the seat for us,” Brady said. “Joe has done so much for us. We had so many experiences with Joe. He helped us race in Australia. I just felt like he was the person I wanted to put in the seat.”
“It is the best thing I could ever imagine is having us win the last race for Hayden as a team. I know Hayden helped us do that.”
As far as the future. Brady says the team will continue to race next season with Hayden’s 14-year old brother Eli behind the wheel.
“Hayden would not want us to quit,” Brady said. “There is definitely more racing for us as a team. Eli wants to do it real bad. We will practice in the off season with him and I hope next season we can hit the Sooner Series hard with Eli.”
Complete Well Testing Sooner Late Model Series
Enid Speedway - Enid, Oklahoma
October 15, 2022
Complete Well Testing A Feature 1 (25 Laps): 1. 66-Joe Godsey[5]; 2. 7H-Brett Hansen[3]; 3. 96-Jon Herring Jr[2]; 4. 10 4-Adam Popp[13]; 5. 81-Troy Bynum[9]; 6. 17-Christopher Wilhite JR[17]; 7. 22-AJ Brochu[12]; 8. 229-Damian Patocka[8]; 9. 84-Gary Kilbourn[15]; 10. 11-Dustin Allen[1]; 11. 5R-Kaleb Roach[11]; 12. 60-Kip Hughes[4]; 13. 24B-Chris Bragg[6]; 14. 51-Eddie Martin[7]; 15. 22AD-Jacob Ulrich[10]; 16. 57-Jerry Derr[16]; 17. (DNS) 88S-Richard Shepler; 18. (DNS) 1-Eddie Tidwell
Matt’s ATV Heat 1 (10 Laps): 1. 60-Kip Hughes[2]; 2. 96-Jon Herring Jr[1]; 3. 51-Eddie Martin[4]; 4. 22AD-Jacob Ulrich[5]; 5. 10 4-Adam Popp[6]; 6. 57-Jerry Derr[3]
Design One Racewear Heat 2 (10 Laps): 1. 11-Dustin Allen[1]; 2. 66-Joe Godsey[4]; 3. 229-Damian Patocka[2]; 4. 5R-Kaleb Roach[3]; 5. 88S-Richard Shepler[6]; 6. 17-Christopher Wilhite JR[5]
O’Reilly Auto Parts Heat 3 (10 Laps): 1. 7H-Brett Hansen[2]; 2. 24B-Chris Bragg[1]; 3. 81-Troy Bynum[3]; 4. 22-AJ Brochu[5]; 5. 84-Gary Kilbourn[6]; 6. (DNS) 1-Eddie Tidwell Lap Leaders: Dustin Allen 1-8, Joe Godsey 9-25. Margin of victory: 1.215 seconds.
Final Top 10 Standings: 1. Hayden Ross 10310; 2. Kip Hughes 8605; 3. Eddie Martin 7635; 4. Brett Hansen 7415; 5. Eric Brill 6790; 6. Kerney Weaver 6630. 7. Richard Shepler 6510; 8.Troy Bynum 5490; 9. Eddie Tidwell 5350; 10. Ron Brown 4855.
2022 Winners: 3/25 - Hayden Ross (Thunderbird Speedway); 3/26 - Brett Hansen (Thunderbird Speedway). 4/2 - Brett Hansen (Enid Speedway); 4/15 - Hayden Ross (Thunderbird Speedway); 4/22 - Kip Hughes (Thunderbird Speedway); 4/23 - Hayden Ross (Oklahoma Sports Park); 5/6 - Jamie Burford (West Texas Raceway); 5/7 - Jamie Burford (Route 66 Motor Speedway); 5/14 - Dustin Allen (Enid Speedway); 5/20 - Brett Hansen (Thunderbird Speedway); 5/21 - Hayden Ross (Thunderbird Speedway); 6/3 - Kip Hughes (Creek County Speedway); 6/4 - Dustin Allen (Enid Speedway); 6/11 - Brett Hansen (81 Speedway); 7/9 - Kip Hughes (Enid Speedway); 8/6 - Hayden Ross (Enid Speedway).; 8/13 - Dan Smith (81 Speedway); 8/26 - Brett Hansen (Tulsa Speedway); 8/27 - Clint McFadden (Caney Valley Speedway); 9/17 - Jason Redman (Oklahoma Sports Park); 9/23 - Kip Hughes (Thunderbird Speedway); 9/24 - Hayden Ross (Crawford County Speedway); 9/30 - Hayden Ross (Thunderbird Speedway); 10/1 - Cole Wells (Tri-State Speedway); 10/8 - Dustin Allen (Enid Speedway) 10/15 - Joe Godsey (Enid Speedway).
About Complete Well Testing
Based in Oklahoma, Complete Well Testing is a family owned and operated company specializing in hydrostatic tubing testing and EMI tubing scanning.
About Sooner Late Model Series
The Sooner Late Model Series was formed in 2016 by Enid Speedway co-promoter Mark Brill. Brill felt there was not many opportunities for late model competitors to race in Oklahoma and the Sooner Late Model Series was formed. Now the series has grown beyond the borders of Oklahoma with events held in the neighboring states of Kansas, Texas and Arkansas as well.
