2005 Team Demolition Derby
Tournament of Destruction
Presented by series sponsor A-Reliable Auto Parts in Blue Island, IL
June 25th: Round 2
'Crush smashes way into Victory Lane again; Stranglehold frustrated
No wins for three years and now back-to-back wins for Orange Crush. The A-Reliable sponsored Orange Crush has become the team to beat and now have 6 of the other 7 teams looking up at them in the point standings. Second place finisher Stranglehold and Orange Crush are tied at the top of the standings due to the 4-point deduction handed down on Crush for rules violations back in May. For this month, new rules, new reinforced cars and how about a secret weapon...
Speed Channel was on hand taping for the second season of "Lucas Oil On The Edge."
The Junkyard Dogs took the "Beauty Contest" after a cheer off with Stranglehold.
Round 1
Black Plague
VS.
Stranglehold
The battle for car supremacy kicked off with the very popular and very consistent Stranglehold taking on the now struggling Black Plague. Stranglehold took an early lead with quicker cars over the lumbering giant wagons of Black Plague. After gaining several laps, the Stranglehold cars turned their attention to choking out the slow moving wagons. Every corner of the track had a white car smashing a black car into the wall with smoke billowing out leaving the plague totaled and a single car left running on 3 wheels.
Road Rage
VS.
Havoc
Havoc left 2004 on a high note taking the win in the final event and looked on the upswing, only to show up in 2005 and have a rough and very painful night including trips to the hospital. Road Rage had the same feeling a year prior to that in 2003 after dominating the World Finals only to come up short in 2004. Rage made it to Round 2 last month only to fall to Orange Crush in a Team Demo Classic that lasted over 8 minutes. This race would prove to be the match of the night as both teams battled hard over the first 3 laps remaining fairly equal and no big hits to fall either side. That was until Pete Millette, Jr. in the #18 Road Rage car put a monster head-first hit on a lead Havoc car tangling both front ends into an iron pretzel. Engine mounts ripped off, hood into the windshield opening and a steering column left resting on the driver's leg was the result and the changing of the tide in the race. Rage took over the lead and moved into Round 2 leaving Havoc looking for answers.
Junkyard Dogs
VS.
Orange Crush
The Dogs were a 1/4 lap from a trip to the finals last month but were put on a leash by Stranglehold and had to watch Orange Crush roll to victory. The Dogs put up a good fight but it was apparent that the Crush win at Round 1 was not a fluke. The JYD cars became nothing more than moving targets for the Crush to aim for and they did not miss. Several vicious head-ons left three pairs of cars stuck together at the end and resulted in a 10 second countdown finish in favor of Orange Crush.
Damage, Inc.
VS.
Team Xtreme
Neither team has tasted victory in 2005 and look to break out in some way to gain back it's slipping notoriety and popularity among the Team Demo ranks. Damage, Inc. put the speed game in business during the early going and staked themselves to a lead. Team Xtreme looked lost out in the mud as they continually missed hits and were caught off guard in the turns and pushed into the wall several times. Damage looked good but would still need improvement as they headed into the next round.
In place of the now defunct Consolation Race, a DJ's race was run featuring two female personalities from two local radio stations. After an unbearable time trying to get the cars to the line due to a combination of being stock cars not ready for deep mud and women who cannot drive, the "race" was under way as only one of the cars managed to make a lap. The other car never left the starting line and just spun in a circle. Lame.
Round 2
Stranglehold VS. Road Rage
Road Rage was hurting in the early going as Stranglehold jumped out to the lead and prevented any red cars from making laps. A back and forth battle ensued as the teams traded blows to the lead cars over the course of three laps. Just as Stranglehold gained control on lap 4, the lead car's engine blew up right at the start/finish line! Road Rage was back in the lead but was stopped yet again and Stranglehold hung on long enough to move into their third straight Final round dating back to the Round 4 event last September.
Damage, Inc. VS. Orange Crush
In the Team Demo version, David does not beat Goliath. Orange Crush stomped all over Damage, Inc. and quickly reduced the yellow cars to scrap metal strewn around the track. We were headed for a Finals re-match from last month!
The other filler act on the night was a women's county-fair style demolition derby and thankfully these women did know how to drive and managed to not get stuck after 2 feet into the track.
#5, #37, and #45 were the aggressors in the bunch and were the only few to get in some hard hits while others relied on continuous light bumping and denting to try and knock the cars out. Surprisingly, not a bad event. The eventual winner was the #43 Havoc car.
Final Round
Orange Crush VS. Stranglehold
The secret weapon has been revealed! That stylish, vintage classic car you saw in the opening from Orange Crush was not there for just eye candy; it was the key to victory. The beautiful beast was sporting a 440 motor and it showed quickly as it was leaving all the other drivers picking mud out of their teeth. Driver Ron Tyrakowski piloted the #6 car around the mud oval like it was a sprint car track while letting the rest of his team plow the road of any Stranglehold cars in the way, that was, if they could even catch up to him. Only one white car got in a shot on Tyrakowski and it turned the #6 around backwards. But that didn't stop Ron as he continued to collect two more laps and won the race in reverse! Two other Crush members 'CRUSHED' the final remaining Stranglehold car with a double sandwich hit. Orange Crush takes two in a row!
From there nothing was left to do but get interviewed by Speed Channel and start celebrating. Not a bad night at all. Stranglehold suffers the second place blues for the third time in a row but on the up side, a look at the point standings has them tied atop with Orange Crush after two rounds. This was again due to the 4-point deduction from Orange Crush after the May event. With the points all knotted up and more teams knocking from below, this points race had a long way to go as the 2005 Tournament of Destruction headed into July!
2005 Team Demolition Derby
Tournament of Destruction
Presented by series sponsor A-Reliable Auto Parts in Blue Island, IL
July 23rd: Round 3
Orange Crush wins three in a row; lead points chase into final event
A jam-packed Route 66 Raceway witnessed the most destructive night in Team Demo's recent history as the Orange Crush one again proved they are for real with a dominating performance capturing their third win in as many events this year. With the pressure on all the teams to gain points in hopes of still having a shot at the championship at the final race, only one team secured a spot in keeping hope alive. Stranglehold stays in the hunt but for the third time falls short to Orange Crush in the Final Round, losing by less than 50 feet from the finish line.
The Junkyard Dogs once again were the crowd favorites and took home their second
Beauty Contest trophy.
Round 1
Damage, Inc
VS.
Junkyard Dogs
The carnage meter wasted no time going to the extreme in this brutal match up. Sickening t-bones, death-blow door shots and horrific head-on collisions filled this race as even the spectator's eyes could not keep up with all the mayhem. Damage, Inc. was on the receiving end of nearly all the hits including a 40mph head-on collision that echoed throughout the track and sent shivers down spines. The Dogs were attacking Damage, Inc like they were fresh meat and mauled all the cars until they were toast. The JYD were not just beauty contest winners anymore. Vicious race.
Road Rage VS. Stranglehold
A pre-race engine failure on one of the Stranglehold cars nearly put them at an immediate disadvantage but thankfully they had another car waiting right by the track entrance that was to be used in the DJ's race later on. They fired it up and Stranglehold was fired up, poised to knock down Road Rage for the second time. Rage took heavy damage early in the laps and cars were quickly dropping off. Stranglehold pounded away and moved into the next round with a decisive victory.
Team Xtreme VS. Black Plague
A battle of win-less teams this year and one of them needed to break through. Black plague put their experience into play and over powered the struggling and slower Team Xtreme. Hard hits were dealt out to everyone by the plague including a double hit on the back of one car and then a high speed door shot that annihilated the side of the car and ripped half the roof off! That is why door shots on the driver's side are illegal! If that had been on the driver's side, I shutter to think. To add insult to injury, the Xtreme car that was still alive and trying to fight, succumbed to a blown motor.
Havoc VS. Orange Crush
Perfect in wins taking on zero wins. No team has been able to stop the streaking Orange Crush and the trend continued for the winless Havoc. This race was pretty much just that, a race. Minus two nice hits, one so close I couldn't get a shot as they were right along the cement wall, there was not too much happening. Two Havoc cars and one Crush car got tangled in a mess right at the start of Lap 1 and remained stuck there the entire time. With the numbers on their side, Orange Crush moved on.
Once again, it was time for DJ races but this time it would be guys behind the wheel. These two DJ's have tackled the demo cars before but it was a 1-on-1 actual demolition derby. Of course that did not work too well either as both cars broke down after about two little love taps. After several agonizing minutes on the starting line trying to keep the cars fired, we had a race for once! "Flounder" won the two lap grudge race in the yellow Damage, Inc. car. We have GOT to find a new intermission act.
Round 2
Junkyard Dogs VS. Stranglehold
Another back and forth tug-o-war in this race between two rival teams. JYD had an early lead but squandered it after taking on too much damage. My camera/flash were not playing nicely during this race so I missed a lot of the action and unfortunately all the good impacts. In the end, it was Stranglehold choking the dogs out and moving to their fourth straight final round appearance.
Black plague VS. Orange Crush
Win streaks are nothing new to these teams as over the last 6 Team Demo events, they have won all but one, that being the September event last fall won by Havoc. Crush is currently rolling along nicely on their wave of success, while Black plague is trying to find that success they've lost. But in this race, all they found was the back of a tow truck. Right from the opening seconds we were in a war! Crush took first blood with a sick t-bone shot right in front of me and from there all hell broke loose. Every corner of the track was a war zone as cars squared off and then took runs all the way to the other side and mashed in the opposition with incredible force. All eight cars were left twisted and torqued laying in pairs around the track leaving no cars to complete laps. Orange Crush found the antidote for the Black plague and moved into the Finals via countdown.
Our other intermission act of the night was the Captain Explosion car stunt. Guy in fire suit+lots of gasoline+two sticks of dynomite=one big bleepin' BANG!
Looking for a simple way to get the fans on your side? Blow yourself up in a car and run around on fire! The heat off that thing was ridiculous and what a fireball. Crowd loved it, good stuff.
Final Round
Orange Crush VS. Stranglehold
Didn't we just see this last month? And the month before that? Orange Crush again brought out their secret weapon in the 440ci #6 hot rod looking to make it a replay of last month. Out of the gate the plan was put into effect as Tyrakowski in the #6 pulled out to an early lead over the rest of the pack out maneuvering the Stranglehold cars in his way. He was finally put to a stop on Lap 3 and had to actually take a hit for the first time. But the Crush cars were not going to let that happen very long as a two car attack sprung into action and flew across the track from turn 4 and blasted into the troublesome Stranglehold car putting it out of its misery. Stranglehold did not quit though and mounted a very strong comeback and took over the race lead! It was down to one Stranglehold car and one Orange Crush car, both had 4 laps under their belts and were headed for a final lap showdown. The #57 car led the #63 by a car length as the raced around the course through turn 2 and down the back stretch. #63 slowed down just a bit, letting #57 go by and then sprung another trap. The cat led the mouse in perfectly and blasted the Stranglehold car in the doors mashing them completely into the interior. The #63 car was now a car length in the lead but both cars were stalled out against the wall in turn 4! No one in the place was sitting as both cars were within 30 feet of victory but stranded. The engine of the #63 car came to life and rolled backwards just enough to cross the finish and take home the 3-peat victory.
Who can stop the Orange Crush? Stranglehold nearly answered that question but again tastes a bitter defeat for their fourth consecutive second place finish. Heading into the Tournament of Destruction Final Round August 28th, the points look like this:
Orange Crush--26*
Stranglehold--24*
Junkyard Dogs--16
Road Rage--16
Damage, Inc.--14
Black Plauge--14
Havoc--13
Team Xtreme--12
*Only Orange Crush and Stranglehold have a shot at winning the
championship and it will take an all out failure by Orange Crush and a stroke of luck for
Stranglehold for the positioning to change. If Crush loses in Round 1, they will be at 30
points and Stranglehold will need to win at least one race to be in a tie for the lead.
There can also be a tie if we see the impossible and both these teams get back to the
Finals but this time Stranglehold is victorious.
If that happens, then the elapsed times are added up from all their races and
the team with the quickest victories will be Champion. For Stranglehold to win it all
outright, Crush must LOSE in the first round and Stranglehold must WIN the Finals.
Round 4 of the 2005 Team Demolition Derby Tournament of Destruction has all the makings of a classic showdown between Orange Crush and Stranglehold and certainly is not to be missed. See what happens LIVE! for yourself on August 28th at Route 66 Raceway in Joliet, Illinois. Will it be Orange Crush capping an incredible year with the title or will Stranglehold take advantage of all their opportunities and finally clutch victory? Results of the event will be on TeamDemo.com within days of the race and then a complete coverage here a short time later.
Sadly, no footage from this year will be shown on Speed Channel as they pulled the plug on it after production crews complained that the drivers refused to cooperate with the filming and did not give interviews. The demo footage from other sources is being shopped around to other media outlets in hopes of finding a way onto tv soon.