THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, October 31, 1995 TAG: 9510310426
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JON FRANK, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 82 lines
Both are top dirt-track drivers, and both are named Edwards. But they are not related, and no love was lost as they competed fiercely all season on stock-car tracks in Virginia and North Carolina.
On Oct. 21, the two tangled on the last lap in the season finale at Southampton Speedway, near Capron, with the Sportsman series points championship on the line.
Tony Edwards drove into Sidney ``Speck'' Edwards' rear quarter panel, sending both cars spinning, the speedway's race report stated. Speck Edwards refired his car and finished eighth; Tony Edwards was penalized for the incident and was placed in the 18th spot. Speck Edwards won the title, finishing 24 points ahead of Tony Edwards.
The rivalry reignited Sunday at a track in Halifax County, N.C., producing a bizarre scene that left Tony Edwards in hospitalized with spinal injuries and Speck Edwards facing multiple felony charges.
At the East Coast Dirt Champion 350 at Brinkleyville, Speck Edwards allegedly used his race car as a deadly weapon. Police say Speck Edwards drove his car into Tony Edwards, striking him in the legs while the Franklin driver was standing in the pit area.
``It was like a head-on collision,'' Speck Edwards said Monday from his home in Capron. ``Except Tony was on his feet.''
The incident sent Tony Edwards to Halifax Memorial Hospital and then by air ambulance to Sentara Norfolk General Hospital. He was listed in stable condition Monday night.
Speck Edwards was arrested and charged with assault with a deadly weapon and inflicting serious injury. He was released after posting a $500 bond.
The incident was a first for Halifax County Sheriff M.L. Stallings, who is no stranger to policing large crowds at races.
``Occasionally there have been instances where drivers have had disagreements, and there have been fistfights. . . ,'' Stallings said. ``But we have never had a driver strike another with a vehicle before.''
Tony Edwards refused comment on Monday.
Speck Edwards said Sunday's incident was only the latest in an ongoing feud.
``All race season we ain't got along,'' Speck Edwards said. ``He is just the type of fellow who can dish it out, but he can't take it. If he hits you, it's OK. But if you hit him, he gets mad.''
That apparently is what sparked the trouble Sunday.
Speck Edwards said both drivers were coming out of turn two about 60 laps into the Brinkleyville race when he sent Tony Edwards into a spin.
``He came up under me and when he went by me it was so dusty you just could not see,'' Speck Edwards recalled. ``I bumped him and that spun him out.''
Speck Edwards said Tony Edwards, driving a Chevrolet, then lay in wait for him to come back around the track. When he did, ``Tony shot the gas wide open and rammed my car.''
With the caution flag out, Speck Edwards took his 1994 Thunderbird into the pit area for new tires, returned to the track and followed Tony Edwards until he could strike back. He rammed Tony Edwards into the infield, which forced both drivers into the pits.
Speck Edwards said when they tried to return to the track, they were notified they both had been disqualified.
When Speck Edwards backed his Ford down the entry lane, he thought he heard that Tony Edwards had been allowed back on the track for the Limited Sportsman race.
``If Tony got back on, I decided that I was going to get back on, too,'' Speck Edwards said. ``I gunned the gas, and when I took off, I saw Tony running down the road . . . where you aren't supposed to be anyway. I hit the brakes, and he hit the hood.''
That brought the ambulance and members of Tony Edwards' family, several of whom went after Speck Edwards as he sat strapped in his car. Sheriff's deputies took Speck Edwards away and later charged him with the two felonies.
Speck Edwards, who drives a truck for a living when he isn't racing cars, said Sunday's incident may make him change hobbies.
``Me and Tony been having problems all year,'' he said. ``I can get along with any driver in the pit but him. If I got to keep racing with Tony, I'll probably quit and stop all this fussing and fighting.''
KEYWORDS: ARREST by CNB