Wayne picked up the win at Hattiesburg Speedway last weekend (USCS Photo)
Bryan Hulbert - OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. (March 7, 2018) Hard work paid off for the Outlaw Wings/Oil Medics No. 2c driven by Wayne Johnson, as the veteran Sprint Car shoe posted his first victory of the 2018 season on Friday night at Hattiesburg Speedway before following that up with a fourth-place showing at Magnolia Motor Speedway on Saturday.
Racing both nights with USCS, the Friday portion of the Mississippi doubleheader started with Wayne going seventh to fourth in the night's opening Heat Race.
Despite moving forward, Wayne explained there was more to be done with the car before the A-Feature, "I actually didn't feel that good in the Heat Race. We ran seventh to fourth, but I just didn't feel comfortable at all so right before the feature, I got with Slippy [Conner Nelson] and we made some wholesale changes and man did it help."
Gridding the A-Feature 10th, it took little time for Wayne to pick his way to the front after the first start was called back, "I had a great start and they called it back, and I thought we were in trouble because the next start wasn't very good at all but the car felt good. I was just patient going through there."
Slowed near the race's half-way point, Wayne's patience began to bear fruit, "They had a caution with, I think, about 10 laps complete and I was up to third and once we got rolling again, we were able to get to the lead pretty easy. I had been running middle to top to get to the lead. Once I got there, I adjusted to running right through the middle where everyone else was. The car was so good, I could put it anywhere and really, I wasn't running it near as hard as I could have."
Taking on Magnolia Motor Speedway on Saturday, the track proved tricky with a rather rough surface to contend with.
"We started third and ran second in the Heat Race and that put us starting sixth in the feature. We got to third pretty quick and thought we were actually better than what we ended up, but it was one of those deals where whoever bounced through the holes properly was going to get it," explained Wayne who was trailing Tony Stewart and Blake Hahn at the time.
"They actually got away from me because I'd hit the holes wrong, then they would, then I'd run them down, but it was just a matter of who got through the holes, plus your track position because when you did get next to someone, you didn't know which way they might go so we ended up fourth but overall, it was a good weekend."
Looking ahead, the TwoC Racing team is planning on taking the coming weekend off to prepare for the 2018 season opener with the Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series presented Sawblade.com at the 45th Devil's Bowl Spring Nationals in Mesquite, Texas on March 16 and 17. Wayne has nine career ASCS National Tour wins at the famed half-mile.
For continued updates on Wayne Johnson and TwoC Racing, you can follow them on Facebook (http://bit.ly/2o5zneX and http://bit.ly/2BsrIja) and Twitter (@wjr77x).
Recent Results:
Hattiesburg Speedway (Hattiesburg, Miss.)
March 2, 2018 - WIN [10th] with USCS
Magnolia Motor Speedway (Magnolia, Miss.)
March 3, 2018 - 4th [6th] with USCS
Season To Date:
Races: 12; Wins: 1; Top-5: 5; Top-10: 8; Top-20: 9
Up Next:
March 16, 2018 - Devil's Bowl Speedway with Lucas Oil ASCS
March 17, 2018 - Devil's Bowl Speedway with Lucas Oil ASCS
Follow Wayne Johnson and TwoC Racing
Facebook (Wayne): http://bit.ly/2o5zneX
Facebook (TwoC Racing): http://bit.ly/2BsrIja
Twitter (Wayne): @wjr77x
Twitter (TwoC Racing): @TwoCRacing
Online: https://www.myracepass.com/profile/?r=15868&rt=driver
Sponsors:
Wayne would like to give special thanks to his sponsors who have helped keep him behind the wheel and on the road: Todd Carlile, Outlaw Wings, The Oil Medics, Sebastian Sandblasting & Powder Coating, DHR Suspension, Chalk Stix, Rod End Supply, Astro Titanium, Schoenfeld Headers, Simpson, ButlerBuilt, Xtreme Accu-Tach, Weld Wheels, Kustom Sprint Car Supplies, Fisher Racing Engines, Speedway Graphics and Canyon Apparel.