Dirt
How Sweet it Was
Recapping 15 wild , wacky and awe-inspiring moments from Duck X Production ’ s Sweet 16 By Josh Hachat
Since its announcement , there has been a considerable amount of hype surrounding Donald Long ’ s Radial vs . the World Sweet 16 event . With a $ 101,000 winner-take-all prize and a totally different concept than any of Long ’ s previous drag radial events , there was also a lot at stake . But after an utterly incredible three days at South Georgia Motorsports Park , it ’ s safe to say the race exceeded all expectations .
With that in mind , let ’ s take a look at the 15 best wild , wacky and awe-inspiring moments from the thrill ride in Valdosta that made it possible .
DUCK DOES IT AGAIN
Let ’ s be clear , Long didn ’ t have to do something radically different . His Lights Out and No Mercy events are unequivocal successes and have been for years . But he deserves plenty of credit for trying something totally different , where one class – Radial vs . the World – was the sole focus , there were limited tickets sold and it was available for live viewing only on pay-per-view .
He threw traditional concepts to the wind , but Long believed in it , trusted the work he did and set the stage for the ultra-talented drivers to deliver . That happened in record-setting fashion , which certainly helped the feel of the weekend , but positivity and excitement was flowing all three days . You would be hard-pressed to find a negative word said about the Sweet 16 event from any angle . The energy was palpable , the event was a smash hit and it was another home run for Long .
MICKE RUNS THE TABLE
What more can you say about the performance of Mark Micke , car owner Jason Carter and the rest of his team ? We ran out of adjectives by the time he claimed the $ 101,000 prize by beating DeWayne Mills in the final round , wrapping up one of the best weekends in drag radial history .
Micke set the Radial vs . the World record three different times in two days , qualified No .
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1 , outslugged the biggest names in the class in eliminations and took home the biggest prize in radial racing history .
To be that dominant in a class littered with such talent is beyond impressive , but Micke proved up to the task each time he made a run . He was record-breakingly quick , he was consistent , he was dynamite on the starting line and , ultimately , he was the best of the best . That ’ s a weekend worth remembering .
HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE ?
Just a month before the Sweet 16 , Jeff Sitton , the No . 1 qualifier at Lights Out 9 , ran a 3.787 in Radial vs . the World . Amazingly enough , that number wouldn ’ t have qualified here , a tribute to the impressive performances by everyone in the field . Sure , track conditions were different and the track was prepped for kill , but it doesn ’ t take away from the job the drivers and teams did to raise their performances to another level .
DON ’ T FORGET THE FIRST
Before all the madness ensued , we can ’ t forget who made history first . That honor will forever belong to DeWayne Mills , who went 3.698 to become the first driver in Radial vs . the World history to reach the 3.60s . Mills , a longtime standout in the radial world , deserves his moment in the sun for doing it first and completing another successful weekend that ended in the final round .
HANEY AGAIN IN THE CONVERSATION
Keith Haney proved one more time he is not a person to be taken lightly in the biggest drag
radial races . Haney ’ s persona online is well known , both in his ability to dish it out and often be portrayed as a drag racing Internet meme , but on the track he is all business . Haney continues to be in the thick of things when it matters most , running well once again after his Lights Out 9 runner-up finish . His . 002 red light against DeWayne Mills ended his day in the semifinals , but not before another consistent performance , including this awe-inspiring thrash in the pits before facing off with Mills .
STEVIE FAST ALWAYS DRAWS A CROWD
As this weekend proved once again , nobody moves the needle quite like Stevie “ Fast ” Jackson . The Lights Out 9 winner didn ’ t have the result he wanted , losing to Mills in the second round , but plenty of attention still surrounded Jackson , who followed Mills into the 3.60s on Thursday . He did it again on Friday , setting a momentary record of 3.666 at 202.58 before Micke took it back .
WELCOME TO THE PARTY Daniel Pharris ’ run to the 3.60s shouldn ’ t be
PHOTOS : JEFF KLINE
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