By: Fast Time Media
5/16/23... Hanford, California: Saturday Night, Luke Hayes & the 9L team would be back in action with the Sprint Car Challenge Tour. The competition would be tough as 37 Winged 360 Sprint Cars would pack the pit area ready to roll on Saturday Night.
The night would start out with qualifying, where Luke would be the 6th car to hit the track in group four. He would end up laying down a lap of 15.014. That would end up putting Luke 6th quickest overall in his group.
Luke would then lineup on the outside of row three in the 6th spot for his heat race. He would be in a very good heat race. When the green flag fell, Luke would try & fight forward but would end up falling backwards to the 7th spot where he would finish.
He would have to go through the B-main where he would start on the inside of row three in 5th. Starting 5th, he would need to get into the top-4 to transfer to the feature. Luke would do just that as he would finish in the 4th & final transfer spot.
That would put Luke starting in the 24th position on the outside of row twelve. Early on, Luke would start to battle forward, picking off a few cars. Unfortunately, he would end up getting upside down in turns 1&2 & bring his night to an early end in Hanford.
It was an up & down night for Luke & his team. He would struggle early on but he got faster as the night got going. They'll regroup & look to rebound Saturday in Placerville.
Luke would like to thank his sponsors; Hayes Farms, Finley Farms, Inter State Oil, and Farm Logistics.
Next Race: TBA
2023 season stats: 13 events, 8 features, 0 wins, 1 top-5, 3 top-10's