2015 Apex Racing School Rookie Shootout

F S DRIVER LAPS LED STATUS
1 9 B Carlisle -R- 30 5 Running
2 19 T Rowe -R- 30 14* Running
3 6 R Durbin -R- 30 2 Running
4 16 L Pellerin -R- 30 0 Running
5 4 J Walls -R- 30 9 Running
6 3 J Rivers -R- 30 0 Running
7 11 R Leckliter -R- 30 0 Running
8 5 D Holifield -R- 30 0 Running
9 8 E Goodman -R- 30 0 Running
10 10 C Lester -R- 30 0 Running
11 14 J Pacer -R- 30 0 Running
12 12 M Duncan -R- 30 0 Running
13 17 Z Churchill -R- 30 0 Running
14 2 E Garza -R- 30 0 Running
15 13 K Cobb -R- 30 0 Running
16 15 G Gray -R- 30 0 Running
17 18 R Carter -R- 28 0 Running
18 1 T Ellison -R- 27 0 Running
19 7 M St. Martin -R- 8 0 Retired

Furious Walls rips Ellison for costing him, MT Motorsports FARC Rookie Shootout

Jacob Walls made quite the impression in his FARC Elite Series debut in the Apex Rookie Shootout at Texas World Speedway in College Station.

But it probably should've been a winning one.

Walls, a 20-year-old Arkansan, who will split MT Motorsports' 44 car with Shane Williams this season, finished fifth in the Rookie Shootout, after starting third and leading many laps, managing to keep himself near the front for most of the race.

He was leading the race with two laps to go, when he and the rest of the lead pack encountered the slow car of polesitter Trueman Ellison. Ellison was in the outside line on the backstretch, the very line Walls was driving on. Walls caught up to Ellison, and couldn't pass him immediately. He tried to cut to the inside in Turn 3, only to have Ellison cut down in front of him, holding up both lanes of traffic. Bradley Carlisle rocketed off with the win.

After the race, an angry Walls did not hold back his frustration.

"Why the hell was [Ellison] still out there?" Walls said. "We all saw him in pole qualifying; he was slower than molasses. We all knew he wasn't gonna win this race from pole. For God's sake, a little kid in one of those battery-powered kiddie cars would've lapped him. We would've walked off with the trophy today if it weren't for that jackass. Me and Shane would've sat atop the FARC points standings for at least a couple of days."

Walls, though, did ruffle some feathers himself during the race. He made contact with Efrain Garza on the backstretch on the first lap, and later Riley Durbin in almost the exact same spot. In both cases, Garza and Durbin managed to keep their cars from spinning.

"I certainly wasn't trying to wreck either of them; Lord knows this series has enough of people who do that. But I will use the bumper from time-to-time if need be."

Mark Mummert, father of TM Master Cup Series driver Kraig Mummert, and the new head of MT Motorsports' FARC program, applauded his rookie's effort, and lamented the missed chance.

"Jacob was awesome today; he definitely should've won," the elder Mummert said. "He drove really well, and kept it near the front all day. Too bad some people in this series have no courtesy."

In addition to missing out on the 25 bonus points to start the season, MT Motorsports also missed out on the guaranteed starting spot in Sunday's Smash Beer 200.

Many, including OEN commentator Scott Bush, wondered aloud if MT Motorsports would abandon its plan to have Williams drive the car for Sunday's official season opener. Walls and Williams are to alternate the car race-by-race this season, to allow each driver to gain experience on all track types.

Mummert confirmed Williams would've still driven on Sunday if Walls had won.

"Like I said, we want both of our drivers to get experience on all tracks. Shane would've been in the car on Sunday if Jacob had won. And besides, it's not like Shane is slow. You all saw him in pole qualifying."

Indeed, the Memphis native Williams finished third in pole qualifying for the Smash Beer 200, and will start from the pole in the first B-Main. Many are predicting that Williams will successfully qualify for the race on Sunday.