Johnny Burke Memorial Mini Stock Race Added to Rodney Cook Memorial at Ace Speedway
Johnny Burke’s name was synonymous with Mini (Stadium) Stock racing at Bowman Gray Stadium. Burke was one of the most well liked drivers on pit road with his laid back style and friendly approach.
Burke passed away just before this season began after being diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2012.
Burke will be memorialized with a 56-lap Mini Stock feature bearing his name and running the same amount of laps as his the number on his car on Saturday July 2nd as part of the Rodney Cook Memorial event at Ace Speedway. The Johnny Burke Memorial 56-lap Mini Stock race will be the biggest Mini Stock event of the year and it will mean a lot for any Mini Stock racer to win the race given the respect that Burke earned on the track.
“This just continues to add to the event at Ace Speedway,” said RACE22.com Founder and race promoter Langley Austin. “Johnny Burke was a clean racer who was loved by everyone who ever met him. He was the kind of racer you wanted to race door to door with. His loss is significant to the Mini Stock crowd. Winning a race named in his honor would be a big deal for anyone racing Mini Stocks.”
The Johnny Burke Memorial race will pay at least $500 to win the race before any additional sponsor money is added to the purse. This will be one of the best paying races around and on a day when not many tracks are competing and even less are running Mini Stocks of any kind.
“We tried to look at schedules around us and see where the Mini Stocks were racing and virtually no one is running Mini Stocks that day. It’ll be a perfect scenario for his friends at Bowman Gray Stadium to come and run the race given that it’s a rare weekend off for them. We’re expecting a huge crowd of Mini Stocks for what will be the biggest race around in honor of a great man who left us much too soon.”
Additional details on the Johnny Burke Memorial 56-lap Mini Stock race will be released soon. The addition of this event only adds to the stature of the Rodney Cook Memorial race which will feature a 114-lap NASCAR Whelen All-American Series rules Late Model Stock Car race as well as a 60-lap Limited Late Model feature, a 50-lap Ace Modified feature, 50-laps for the Street Stocks and a 49-lap Sandy Edgley Memorial U-Car race.
For more information on the Rodney Cook Memorial event please visit the event Facebook Page www.facebook.com/rodneycookmemorialrace or on twitter @rodneycookrace or www.twitter.com/rodneycookrace. The Rodney Cook Memorial website is being built and will be available soon at www.RodneyCookMemorial.com. Contact Langley Austin at 276.613.4208 for more information.
