RALEIGH -- Wil Smith opened the Wake County Speedway racing season Tuesday with a down-to-the-wire finish, taking the CITGO Mini Mart 4 cylinder class win in the David Champion Memorial race.
Coming down to a green-white checkered finish, Greg Carroll pulled away from the field and pulled onto the weighing scales first.
But Carroll's car was declared too light and the win was taken away, and giving Smith the win.
The 2007 Modified Four-Cylinder champion Todd Langdon was second, and Jesse Duke earned third.
In the North Carolina Iron Works Modified 4 Cylinder class, Randy "Hotdog" Pearce claimed the victory in dominating fashion over Kevin Floars.
In the Harper's Graphix Limited Late Model class, Zachary Marks, chasing Andy Wiley, finally made the winning pass with three laps to go and brought home the checkered flag.
In the Dunn Benson Super Late Model, Big Jim Kelley took the win, as he led every lap to claim the victory.
The Dirt Cheap Sand, Rock, and Mulch Ucars took to the track last to start the newly formed Ucar Clash for Cash series. Jason Capps restarted with a green-white checkered and picked up the first UCAR Clash for Cash win over second-place Ray Forest.
The evening started off with a moment of silence and a few words for four of the people who died during the off season: Eugene Ward Williams, Anna Marie Gray, Charlie Stephenson and David Champion.
The track showed its appreciation for Champion's contributions to the track and community by introducing the "David Champion Sportsmanship Award" in the form of a cup style trophy. The trophy will be handed out to a deserving driver later in the season.
Racing action will continue Friday for a regular racing program with double points for the CITGO Mini Mart 4 Cylinder drivers. The Wake County Speedway Dirt Cheap Sand, Rock, and Mulch UCARS will also be in action.