Tower Of Power - The 10 Most Powerful Drivers in the 2007 Legends & Bandolero Season
Legends & Bandolero Driver Rankings
1) Clay Hair : #29 Legends Masters
Our panel might have had a difference of opinion on who deserves to be in the Tower of Power for 2007, but there wasn’t any dispute as to who was top of the tower. Getting a unanimous vote for the number one spot is Legends Master Clay Hair. Winning well over 20 races this season, Hair’s knack for ending up in victory lane has become standard across the Carolinas and beyond. His regular-season record netted him the Asphalt National Championship for the Masters division and then he went to Las Vegas and won the 2007 Nationals, this after winning the Summer Shootout title at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. He didn’t stop there as he came back to the Carolinas to win the Mason-Dixon Meltdown as well as closing out the 2007 racing season with two out of the three Masters division race wins in Winter Heat competition. From the green flag in January to the checkered flag in December, Hair has been the man in the Legends and Bandolero Nation.
Rating: 1
2-Tie) John Stancill : #20 Legends Semi-Pro
The Semi-Pro Legends scene has been dashed with many talented up-and-coming drivers, but one driver stood out all season, putting him close to the top of the tower for the season, and that is John Stancill. Just like Hair, Stancill’s win record was nothing short of phenomenal. Just about every track he visited across the South he graced victory lane. His win record put him in the driver’s seat for the Asphalt National Championship in Semi-Pro, which he claimed easily. He then went to the Vegas Nationals and claimed the win there. Stancill also shook off the controversy of some late-season team changes by winning the Thanksgiving Classic event at Southern National Raceway Park against some of the toughest drivers around. If he keeps his head in the game, Stancill will continue climbing up the ladder in the racing world.
Rating: 3.33
2-Tie) Tyler Green : #20 Legends Pro
It seems only fitting that once our panel’s votes were tallied and averaged that the two drivers known for running strong and running the #20 on their cars would end up in a tie for second in the Tower of Power. While John Stancill tore up the tracks in the Semi-Pro realm, Tyler Green made his name known in the Pro division. While he didn’t run as many races during the season as Stancill and other racers in the nation, Green was a threat every time his car hit the pavement. Green won three races during the Summer Shootout 10-event series and would have won the championship if the format didn’t involve the three-race “Sizzler” chase as he had a 3.9 average finishing position. Green has also competed in two of the three Winter Heat events of 2007, claiming a victory and a second-place finish. His record over his limited schedule made him a deserving driver to stand side by side with Stancill for second on the tower.
Rating: 3.33
4-Tie) Kyle Plott - #99 Bandolero Bandit
The first Bandolero driver to hit the Tower of Power must share the fourth place with a Legends driver, but I am sure he doesn’t mind. Georgia driver Kyle Plott drove his #99 Bandolero Bandit to victory lane six times in a row in the Summer Shootout at Lowe’s Motor Speedway, helping him cruise on to the series championship as well as taking the Red, White and Blue Championship. That wasn’t his only championship during the summer though as he also claimed the Atlanta Motor Speedway Thursday Thunder crown. Plott has continued his winning ways by claiming an early victory in Atlanta’s Winter Series and has continued his progression up through the ranks in racing by finishing fifth in his first Pro Challenge Series start in November. This kid is the real deal and he is proving that early on in his racing career.
Rating: 6.33
4-Tie) Jordan Anderson : #19 Legends Pro
Jordan Anderson is one of those drivers that you want on your team. The Pro Legends driver is known as a competitor that doesn’t take anything less than winning. His aggressive driving style as well as his faith-based nature has put him in the winner’s circle a massive amount of times, including a run in August and September where he took the checkered flag 10 out of the 13 races he ran. Along with his strong finishes, Anderson “played the game” in the 2007 Summer Shootout “Sizzler” chase, claiming the Pro division championship. Besides running in the south, Anderson took the checkered flag first at Holland Speedway in New York and came in second twice at Wiscasset Speedway in Maine. His overall performance in 2007 gave him the runner-up spot in the Asphalt National Championship and put him firmly in the 2007 LN Tower of Power.
Rating: 6.33
6) Ronnie Bassett, Jr. : #04 Bandolero Young Guns
When the general population in the country thinks of the “The Rock”, they think of either the 1996 blockbuster movie hit featuring Sean Connery and Nicolas Cage or the nickname of Dwayne Johnson, professional wrestler and actor. In the NASCAR racing world the term refers to the Rockingham Speedway, but in the Legends and Bandolero realm there is only one driver that deserves the term and that is Ronnie “The Rock” Bassett, Jr. This season, Bassett has been the driving force in the Bandolero Young Guns division, racking up wins at Concord Motorsport Park, Lowe’s Motor Speedway and in Kentucky. In fact, his dominance netted him championships in the Summer Shootout as well as the track championship at Concord. Now, “The Rock” has shed the Bandolero skin as he is wheeling a Legends Car in the Winter Heat series at LMS. His performance throughout the season put him sixth on the list.
Rating: 7.00
7) Steven Ross : #88/38/48 Legends Semi-Pro
Steven Ross is not a driver many people has heard of until this season. Now, the Semi-Pro Legends driver has his name etched in the brain of many competitors across the nation. From Caraway Speedway to Concord Motorsport Park and beyond, Ross drove his #88 Legends car to victory multiple times. Ross was a contender in the Summer Shootout championship until the last race where a wreck damaged his car significantly. Ross continued to compete using his brother’s #38 car racking up more wins and top finishes. His style and form on the track caught the attention of Ladyga Motorsports, who threw him in the famous #48 Legends at Lowe’s on NASCAR Pole Night and came out of it with a win. Ross continues to drive the #48 Legends during the Winter Heat Series at Lowe’s, winning two of the three races held so far in the season. We expect Ross to move up the Tower of Power in 2008.
Rating: 7.33
8) Craig Goess, Jr. : #81 Legends Pro
Some drivers, when they show up at a race track, put the fear in the competition as they know they are going to have a hard time taking the win away from them. Craig Goess, Jr. is one of those drivers. His raw talent behind the wheel of his Pro Legends over the last few years has snared him his fair share of winner’s trophies and then some. In 2007 Goess kicked off his season by winning at Caraway Speedway, then selling off his cars as he took time away from the Legends realm. He came back in winning form at the PRI Invitational by cruising onto victory, then selling that car as well. Soon Goess will be announcing his move up to a full-bodied Stock Car racing in a national touring series in 2008, but the Legends world cannot rest easy thinking he is gone for good. Goess has picked up a new Legends car and is having it prepared to run a limited schedule next season, which keeps his feet firmly planted on the Tower of Power.
Rating: 8.00
9) Mitchell Coble : #4 Legends Pro
Mitchell Coble’s familiar black, orange and yellow #4 Legends car has been a force to be reckoned with at multiple tracks across the Carolinas. Whether it was racing at Lowe’s Motor Speedway during the Summer Shootout, Caraway Speedway or at Friendship Motor Speedway, Coble was right there contending for the win. While taking trophies and honors in the Pro division, Coble started his move up in the racing world by practicing and racing his Late Model Stock at Caraway Speedway. Coble has told LegendsNation.com that he will still race some Legends races next season while focusing on his Late Model Stock, so the Legends community hasn’t gotten rid of this powerhouse just yet.
Rating: 8.33
10-Tie) Chad Finchum : #19 Bandolero Young Guns
Most of the drivers that have climbed their way up on the Tower of Power have won championships and multiple races throughout the season, but some have shown power by improvement and skill advancement during the year. Chad Finchum is one of those drivers that have matured on the track in 2007. His season started a bit shaky, but quickly the young driver blossomed into a solid force in the Bandolero Young Guns division. By the end of the season, Finchum was crowned the champion at the Bandolero Nationals in Kentucky as well as taking the Spooktacular victory at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. Finchum is continuing to put pressure on the competition as he finished first and second in the first two Winter Heat events of the season. With his adaptability, the sky is the limit for Finchum’s potential.
Rating: 8.67
HONORABLE MENTIONS
Daniel Hemric (Legends)
Christian PaHud (Legends)
Jordan Penninger (Legends)
Dylan Presnell (Legends)
Power. It’s a term used a lot in racing circles. Whether it means the horses beneath the hood or a strong move on the track, power asserts good days from bad and catapults drivers towards victory lane. When things are clicking and a driver seems unstoppable, leaving other drivers scratching their heads on how to catch them – that’s power in its rarest form.
LegendsNation.com has polled those closest to the goings-on in the Legends and Bandolero Nation and has compiled a list of the 10 most powerful drivers of the 2007 racing season.
This is not a popularity contest. It’s not about who’s got the famous last name. It’s all about who was the most on top of their game this season. Now, onto the top-10 in LegendsNation.com’s “Tower of Power.”
10-Tie) Davey Matthews : #41 Bandolero Bandits
The Tower of Power is supposed to only contain 10 drivers, but two drivers tied for the final spot and fittingly they were two top Bandolero drivers. Sharing the top spot with Chad Finchum is “Super D” Davey Matthews, who made the season fun to watch. Outside of his #41 Bandolero, Matthews is a goofy kid that enjoys life and having fun, but in the car with the helmet on, he is one of the fiercest competitors on the track. In the Bandits division this season he has placed himself in victory lane at Lowe’s Motor Speedway during the Summer Shootout, OCR Action Sports Park (NC) and Concord Motorsport Park (NC). Besides his Carolinas’ stomp, Matthews tore up the tracks in Georgia claiming the 2007 Georgia State Championship. Matthews has himself a Legends Car now and is showing he can run up front and win races in the next step of his racing career.
Rating: 8.67
