PIR Legend Terry English passes success to son

Last week, Terry English was on his way to winning another Late Model race at Paducah International Raceway, until one car came up and passed him on the very last lap. 

That car was driven by his 16-year-old son, Tanner.

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The English crew were back at PIR on Friday, August 13th. In the Super division, Tanner finished second in his heat behind Kevin Cole. Tanner managed to clench a top three finish in the feature behind Terry and Jeff Walston. Plans to race at Clarksville on Saturday were canceled due to rain.

Races in the Late Model division were put on hold at PIR on August 21st, so Tanner decided to race his Crate at Clayhill Motorsports the following night. He picked up a second place finish behind Joe Mike.

Tanner was back at PIR Friday night to compete in the Super Late Model division. After picking up fourth in his heat, he would soon battle from seventh to a fourth place finish in the main event.

The team traveled across state lines the following day to Winchester, Tennessee for a $1,600 to win Super race. Tanner pulled a 13.93 fast time. He was the only driver to break into the 13s. Since no heats were run, both Tanner and Terry started front row in the feature. The race concluded with no lead changes as Tanner picked up the checkers and the pay day.

The #96 pulled double duty at Clayhill Motorsports and Camden Motor Speedway on the July 23rd weekend. Tanner clenched the $1000 payday at Camden on Friday before making the trip to Clayhill the following night to earn the $1600 bonus. After winning both sets of heats, he led every lap of the twenty lap features.

Tanner returned to Paducah the following Friday to compete in the Super Late Model division. He got involved in a wreck early in his heat that resulted in front-end damage. Upon returning to the pits, Tanner and the rest of the crew got to work on the damage to prepare for the feature. The night would end with Tanner picking up a fifth place finish after starting ninth.

Photos courtesy of Kohls Racing Photos.

July 7, 2010

Tanner continued his tour with the UMP DIRTcar Summer Nationals as they returned to Clarksville (TN) Speedway on June 26th. He qualified fifth fasted in his group and went on to place fourth in his heat. Tanner maintained his fourteenth position throughout the thirty lap affair. He also had an impressive battle with the #3s of Brian Shirley as they ran side-by-side for over twenty laps.

Team English got back into the UMP action on July 1st at Clayhill Motorsports in Atwood, Tennessee. After qualifying second in his group, Tanner took the runner-up position in the heat. He ran close to the front all night as he started seventh in the feature and took the checkers in sixth.

The following night, Tanner returned to his home track of PIR in Paducah, Kentucky. He qualified fifth in his group and ran into some hard luck in his heat after retiring to the pits due to a flat tire. Tanner started in the back of the C-main. He made his name known that night as he was leading the race by the end of the first lap! Tanner would win the race, transferring him into the B-main. He wasn't able to finish good enough to transfer into the A-main, but was given the provisional after being the highest in track points to not make the show. Tanner may have started twenty-first, but he had a good enough car to win. He worked traffic and began to make his way to the front. The checkered would fall with Tanner racing hard in the eighth position.

Tanner was wheeling the #96 Late Model once again the following night back at Clayhill Motorsports. He picked up a fast win in the second heat over the #10 of Ronnie Cooper to start on the front row in the feature. Tanner would fall back to fourth sometime during the locked down twenty-lap affair. He finished the race just a bumper short of third.

June 23, 2010

As the UMP Summer Nationals kicked off with a bang on Wednesday at Brownstown (IN) Speedway, Tanner and the #96 team were all in tow to the $6000 to win event. After qualifying third in his group of time trials, Tanner placed fifth in his heat with the top two transferring to the feature. He was unable to finish good enough in the b-main to earn a spot in the main event, ending his night early.

Team English returned to the road the following day for round two of the Summer Nationals at Kankakee County Speedway in Kankakee, Illinois. Tanner qualified third in his set of time trials and went on to finish third in his heat. Since the top four transferred, he started twelfth in the feature. The thirty lap battle ended with Tanner taking home a fourteenth place finish.

Tanner was back at Clarksville Speedway on Saturday for the second week in a row in order to defend his recent win at the 1/8 mile track. He ran second in the dash after setting the third fastest time. A front row start in the feature would end with Tanner finishing second while Terry went on to take the win.

June 14, 2010

Tanner was back behind the wheel of the #96 Late Model at the Paducah International Raceway on Friday, June 11. It was Kids Night at the track presented by Electric 96.9 FM. A petting zoo was among the festivities during the overcast afternoon. Tanner's division saw another stacked field of cars.

Tanner overcame a third row start in the second heat by finishing in the runner-up spot behind his dad, Terry. This would transfer him to third in the main event. Tanner got around front-row starter Nick Lyons to take over second. With five laps in the books, he made a pass for the lead and held on to the position for several laps until falling back behind Terry. A late race battle would end with Tanner surrendering his position to Jeff Walston. The twenty lap affair concluded with Tanner taking home a solid third place finish.

The following day, Team English were en route to Richmond, Kentucky when rain showers struck the speedway. Forced to turn around, they headed to Clarksville (TN) Speedway for the first time ever. Tanner finished second behind Terry in the dash to earn them both the front row in the feature. They raced side-by-side for over ten laps until Tanner slipped past Terry to lead them the rest of the way and clench the checkers.

June 7, 2010

Team English returned to the Paducah International Raceway in Paducah, Kentucky on Friday for the Tri-Track Challenge. The event presented a $5,000 payday to the winner of the Super Late Model main event.

After qualifying eighth fastest, Tanner picked up a second place finish in the fourth heat to earn him a top ten starting position for the feature. Tanner made some progress at the beginning of the race, but slowly started to fall back near the end. He would finish eleventh after starting eighth.

Tanner returned to Clayhill Motorsports the following night to race in the Crate division. He took the checkers in the heat race after picking up a front row start. Tanner was the pole car in the thirteen-car feature and never lost his position on the rest of the field. He would go on take the win and clench two in a row at Clayhill.

June 1, 2010

Clayhill Motorsports' 2009 Crate points champion returned to the famed quarter-mile clay oval for a weekend's worth of racing. Since Paducah didn't run Super Late Models on Friday, it was back to the basics for Tanner and Team English as they ventured south into Tennessee the following night.

The stout twenty-car field included the likes of T.J. Herndon, Bronson Berry, and Ronnie Cooper. After dealing with a mix up in the heat race, Tanner finished third to start nine cars deep in the feature. He overcame the obstacles and passed everyone but the leader to take the checkers as the runner-up.

Tanner returned to Atwood on Sunday for another round of action. The track was more hooked up than the previous night, giving Tanner the advantage in the third heat. He picked up a fast win over T.J. Herndon, which earned him a third place start in the main event. Tanner battled hard with leader Bronson Berry for a short time before taking over the lead and stretching it to several car lengths. The twenty lap affair resulted in Tanner winning his third race of the season and his 40th of his career.

The English crew returned to the Bluegrass Speedway in Bardstown, Kentucky on Saturday, May 22 to take on the regular competitors. Tanner made a good run in hot laps, but choosing the bottom in qualifying would lead to a not so good starting position in the heat. He managed to pass several cars to finish fourth. Tanner held his ground in the main event and left with a ninth place finish.

Tanner took his third trip to the Malden Speedway the following afternoon. Being a day race, the track wasn't to Tanner's liking. With the lack of moisture and no clouds in the sky, it ultimately turned into a dust bowl. Tanner couldn't make anything happen in the heat race, finishing fourth to start seventh in the feature. After a dust filled main event, he would cross the line to take the checkered in the fourth position.

May 13, 2010

After a two week hiatus, Tanner and the #96 racing team returned to action at the Bluegrass Speedway in Bardstown, Kentucky on May 8th for the 8th Annual My Old Kentucky Home Shootout World of Outlaws Super Late Model event. Thirty-nine cars were in attendance for the $10,000 to win race.

Tanner started ninth in his heat race after a sour pill draw. He overcame the obstacles in front of him and passed the likes of Chub Frank and Vic Coffey, but fell one car short of a transfer position into the main event as he battled with Dan Schlieper during the final laps of the race.

Finishing second behind Brad Neat in the consi, Tanner picked up a twentieth start in the feature. He managed to pass three cars while battling with Brady Smith, Rick Eckert, and Dustin Neat to place seventeenth.

April 24, 2010

Paducah saw some of NASCAR's best on Thursday as the co-owners of PIR, Tony Stewart and Ken Schrader, along with Kenny Wallace were in attendance for the annual Night of NASCAR Stars event. Tanner raced with Tony and Ken in the Super Late Model division, all three setting their sights on the $1500 trophy.

After picking up a second place finish in the heat, Tanner sat comfortably in fourth at the drop of the green flag for the feature. He battled hard all night for the top position until finally taking it over on the final lap to clench his first victory at PIR. The driver he passed was none other than his dad. A solid one-two finish for Team English.

April 19, 2010

Team English took their first trip of the season to Clayhill Motorsports. Tanner was among twenty other drivers in the Super Late Model division, including his dad, Terry. The fifty lap Southern Allstar Series main event presented a $7500 check to the winner.

After clocking in fourteenth fastest, Tanner picked up a fifth place finish in the second heat to start fourteenth in the feature. The track turned into one groove early in the race, making it nearly impossible to pass. Tanner was able to pass three cars, however, to take home eleventh right behind Jack Sullivan and Freddy Smith.

April 12, 2010

Tanner and the 96 crew returned to Paducah International Raceway for fan appreciation night and a full card of racing. Tanner competed in the Super Late Model class alongside his dad.

After giving the fans a chance to see the cars up close and personal on the front stretch, it was time for the main events. Tanner started thirteenth in the seventeen car field. When the twenty laps of hard racing drew to a conclusion, he would arise from the dust in the sixth position.

Photos of the night's festivities are to follow shortly.

Team English returned to Malden this weekend after making a U-turn while on the road to Batesville, AR. The two-day race planned at Batesville had been postponed due to inclement weather. Tanner pulled into the pits at five o'clock, with racing starting at seven.

It may have been a regular night at Malden, but it was also the first night for points racing. Tanner started out the night by drawing the best pill to start on the pole in the first of three heats. He saw no challengers as he led all eight laps to win the race.

The feature lineup saw a stacked field of cars, which included Jeff Floyd, Ronnie Cooper, and Billy James. Nobody was a threat to English during the first half of the race. A late-race caution pulled all of the cars back together. When the green flag dropped for the final time, SLM veteran Jeff Floyd was following closely to Tanner's back bumper. It was a dash to the finish as Tanner was able to hold off Floyd in the final laps to clench his first win of the season.

To add to English's success this weekend, he is the current points leader at Malden.

March 30, 2010

Tanner was back behind the wheel this weekend in the UMP Super Late division. Team 96 joined in on the festivities at PIR for the first annual Rumble By The River. The show, which was dubbed 'history in the making' threw out $1000 to the winner of Friday night's event.

Early rain showers brought rough track conditions to the famed 3/8 clay oval. After staring mid-pack in the heat, Tanner was fortunate enough to keep his wheels on the car long enough to finish in the fifth position.

As the night progressed, the track started to come apart even more. Tanner decided to start the feature, however, but pulled off the track after lap one to escape further damage to the car. Later reports showed that only six cars actually finished the race.

Team English is returning to action on April 2 & 3 for the premiering of the Isle of Capri Late Model Series at the Batesville Motor Speedway.

Tanner and Team English started out the 2010 season by trekking to the Malden Speedway for the 4th Annual Bootheel 200. This two-day race boasted a $1000 payday to the winner of Saturday night's main event. Tanner was one of the fifteen Crate Late Models in attendance for the race.

Friday night featured time trials and heat races for all classes. Tanner timed his #96 Rayburn Chassis in second fastest to start on the pole in the second heat. English bested six other cars to take the win.

Tanner returned to the track on Saturday with high hopes. Starting on the outside pole next to former champion Billy James, the fans were in for a great race. At the drop of the green flag, Tanner and Billy pulled away from the rest of the pack. They held their positions for several laps until a spun car brought out the caution. Late charger Doug Moore would slip past Tanner on the restart and challenge the leader until the next caution. Doug would eventually fall victim to Tanner as he took back second place and carried it to the checkered flag.

Next week, Tanner will be at Paducah International Raceway for the 1st Annual Rumble By The River.

This is the car that Tanner drove last year.

Car is set to sell as a complete roller, less wheels, tires, transmission, bellhousing, driveshaft, and motor.

Driven in the Crate division and achieved several feature wins.

All interested parties are asked to call 270-210-6204 for information.

Team English and Full Force Creations are proud to welcome you to the all-new www.tannerenglish.com! Here, you will find everything you need to know about the sixteen year old Benton, Kentucky native.

Tanner competes in the Crate Late Model division in surrounding states, including Kentucky, Tennessee, and Missouri. He is currently holding the 2009 points championship at Clayhill Motorsports in Atwood, TN, which accompanies several feature victories over the past five years.

His first year in a Late Model, Tanner was named rookie of the year at PIR in Paducah, KY, an accomplishment that was also achieved by his dad, Terry. They have since been seen racing side by side.

Tanner is carrying on a family tradition that will likely continue for many years to come.