Tanner English Schools Pierce, Moran for First Career World of Outlaws Win at Davenport
Jacy Norgaard Photo
Contact: Mike Warren, World of Outlaws Late Model Series PR Coordinator
Credit: World of Outlaws worldofoutlaws.com/latemodels/
ENGLISH LESSON: Tanner English Schools Pierce, Moran for First World of Outlaws Win at Davenport
The Benton, KY driver beat Pierce to the finish line by 0.235 seconds
DAVENPORT, IA – August 26, 2022 –Tanner English may never forget the number 0.235.
All he needed was a 0.235 second lead at the finish line Friday night to claim his first World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Model Series win during night two of the Quad Cities 150 at Davenport Speedway.
His journey getting there was no easy climb, though. Race after race this season he inched closer and closer to his first Series win, but a win seemed almost out of the question Friday night, having to transfer out of the Last Chance Showdown and then come from 18th in the 40-lap sprint around the 1/4-mile track.
However, as motivational speaker Les Brown once said, “The harder the journey, the sweeter the victory.”
“This is big, this is huge for our team,” English said. “This will get the momentum rolling. You know when you win one it feels like it’s a little easier after that. So, it’s been a long time coming.”
The Benton, KY driver needed all 40 laps around the Iowa track as he sliced his way from 18th to first around the bottom, passing Bobby Pierce on the last lap and last corner to win by a nose.
English’s ascension toward the front of the field started slowly as he worked his way to eighth in the race’s first 25 laps. However, a caution with 15 laps to go set the stage for the epic finale.
He thundered to the bottom on the restart, picking off five cars in one lap to get to third—his eyes squarely on Pierce and Devin Moran as they waged war for the lead.
English inched closer until he caught the lead duo with two laps left. That’s when Pierce opened the door for the Series Rookie, who didn’t squander his opportunity.
The “Smooth Operator” moved to the top, trying to keep Moran from getting by. But it wasn’t only “The Mailman” lurking behind him.
English kept his Longhorn chassis locked to the bottom and pulled into a three-wide battle in traffic as they took the white flag—none of them yielding an inch.
Pierce and English stormed away from Moran on the backstretch, leaving the two drivers to fight for the win in the final two corners.
They raced side-by-side through Turns 3 and 4, but English found the boost he needed to cross the finish line first, a triumphant victory that had the entire Davenport Speedway crowd standing and cheering.
English said he was worried his opportunity might not come, knowing how good Pierce can be running the top.
“When Bobby got to Trevor {Gundaker, a lap car], and he had to move, I was a little scared because he’s always better on the top, so I figured he’s just going to pull away,” English said. “He got off that bottom there, and it doesn’t matter how far ahead somebody is. If they’re running the bottom, it dirties the air up.
“So, when he went to the top, I think I had just enough gap between me and Trevor that I had clean air, and that car stuck the best it stuck all night. I made two perfect corners, and then next thing you know, I’m pulling up beside him.”
The Feature wasn’t the only climb English and his Riggs Motorsports team faced throughout the night. He didn’t get the start he wanted to after timing eighth in Group B of My Place Hotels Qualifying, that eventually led to him having to transfer out of the Last Chance Showdown. However, he stated he was proud of his crew for remaining optimistic.
“Everybody kept their heads up,” English said. “I think the only person who doubted us was me. I was a little down after the Heat Race, and I’m telling you, I took everything off this car. I changed every single shock, and I did everything I thought I needed to do.
“I ran that (Last Chance Showdown), and I was really good. I knew we had a decent car, I just needed to make the right tire choice, and we’d be alright.”
English’s $10,000 triumph also helped him cut into Dennis Erb Jr.’s lead in the battle for the 2022 championship. Erb now leads English by 136 points after a sixth-place finish Friday night.
English also extended his lead to 58 points in the Rookie of the Year race over Max Blair, who finished fourth.
Bobby Pierce came less than a car-length short of reaching Victory Lane for the second consecutive night. The Oakwood, IL, thought he had the winning formula but stated he didn’t realize English was there until the end.
“I didn’t even know Tanner was in the picture,” Pierce said. “It was an exciting race, but unfortunately, we were just the second-place car. I was having a hard time holding off Devin (Moran) because he was a little better. I felt like toward the end of the race. Tanner obviously was the best car at the end of the race.
“If I had a second shot, I probably run the top in (Turn) 3 and 4 or anticipate [Trevor Gundaker] pulling in and getting right down to the bottom and blocking. You never know what’s going on behind you, so it’s just one of them deals.”
Devin Moran, from Dresden, OH, crossed the line third. The “Mailman” said he was happy with his car but opened the door for English to slip by like Pierce.
“It’s just the way it goes,” Moran said. “I felt like we had a really good car, and I could run that middle-top. I just got caught up with Bobby and just let Tanner go by.
“It was just one of them deals. I need to get my race car a little better so I can get by him and don’t have to worry about that.”
Ashton Winger finished fifth—his second top-five finish of the weekend.
Tanner English completed an uphill climb Friday night at Davenport Speedway, tasting Victory for the first time in World of Outlaws CASE Late Model competition. It’s a sweet triumph he’ll remember not only for the celebration, but how difficult the journey was to get there.
UP NEXT: The Most Powerful Late Models on the Planet return to Davenport Speedway for the final night of the Quad Cities 150 presented by Hoker Trucking for a 70-lap, $30,000-to-win finale. The Xtreme Outlaw Midgets presented by Toyota will join the field for the second consecutive night.
If you can’t make it to the track, watch all the action live on DIRTVision – either online on with the DIRTVision App
Here are the top five in Quad Cities 150 points entering Saturday’s finale:
- Bobby Pierce 1481
- Ashton Winger 1467
- Devin Moran 1445
- Tanner English 1441
- Ryan Gustin 1424
CASE Construction Equipment Feature (40 Laps): 1. 81E-Tanner English[18]; 2. 32-Bobby Pierce[3]; 3. 9-Devin Moran[8]; 4. 111V-Max Blair[5]; 5. 58-Ashton Winger[1]; 6. 28-Dennis Erb Jr[4]; 7. 19R-Ryan Gustin[2]; 8. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr[9]; 9. 25-Shane Clanton[6]; 10. 15K-Justin Kay[13]; 11. 42-Chad Finley[19]; 12. 3S-Brian Shirley[11]; 13. 32S-Chris Simpson[20]; 14. 99-Jeff Larson[15]; 15. 16-Tyler Bruening[14]; 16. 25F-Jason Feger[17]; 17. 28M-Jimmy Mars[22]; 18. B1-Brent Larson[23]; 19. 18-Shannon Babb[12]; 20. 99B-Boom Briggs[21]; 21. 29-Spencer Diercks[7]; 22. 21-Billy Moyer Sr[16]; 23. 11-Gordy Gundaker[25]; 24. 1-Josh Richards[24]; 25. 11T-Trevor Gundaker[10] Fox Factory Hard Charger: Tanner English [+17].
