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Michael Despain
LEXINGTON, Ky. (January 26) - The top drivers of the 2007 racing campaign with the O'Reilly NARA Battle of the Bluegrass DirtCar Series were honored on Saturday evening with the tour's championship awards ceremony, which was held at the Ramada Inn in Lexington, KY.
Victor Lee of Stanford, KY was honored as the 2007 champion with America's most competitive regional series. Lee made every A-Main event the series sanctioned in '07, and though there were no event checkered flags, Lee was able to amass 18 top ten finishes along the way to becoming the third second-generation driver to wear the crown of series champion. Lee's championship run in 2007 came aboard the Frank Revel Motorsports owned Big T's Drywall/Ado's Auto Parts/Randy's Auto Body/Victor Lee Designs and Sheet Metal/Independence Lumber/Budda Bert Transmissions and Sales/Tim Logan Racing/Wayne Bowen Racing Supply sponsored #4 C.J. Rayburn Race Car, with power from Jay Dickens Race Engines.
Jason Keltner of Campbellsville, KY would finish as the series championship runner-up and would also garner the tour's 2007 Cruise With The Champions Rookie of the Year award and was also voted the series Most Improved Driver for 2007. Tyrel Todd of Science Hill, KY would take third place honors in final series points, picking up the Fall Nationals win at Richmond Raceway along the way and also earning the PPM Racing Products Hard Charger of the Year award, while also being voted Sportsman of the Year. Tim Tungate of Campbellsville, KY would claim fourth position in the final series points tally, as the 2005 series co-champion would claim his second win in the prestigious Paul "Butterball" Wooldridge Memorial event. Completing the top five in final tour points was David Webb of Nicholasville, KY, who would race to 10 top ten feature event finishes in his first full season of action with the series.
Heading up the second five in the final points total would be Jerry Rice of Verona, KY, who totaled 11 top ten finishes during the season. Mike Marlar of Winfield, TN would only start 14 A-Main events, but finished in the top five on 11 occasions, with three series win, the most on the tour in 2007 in finishing seventh in points. Chris Combs of Isom, KY would rally back from a mid-season hand injury to post an eighth place finish in the final point totals, with 7 top ten finishes. Defending series champion Mike Jewell of Scottsburg, IN would score one series win and 7 top ten finishes on the way to ninth in points. Doug Smith of Somerset, KY would complete the top ten in series points, as the former rookie of the year with the series nabbed 2 top ten finishes.
Special awards that were handed at the evening's festivities included Tyrel Todd as Sportsman of the Year, Jason Keltner as Most Improved Driver, Chuckie May and 201 Speedway in Sitka, KY as promoter/track of the year. Jason Keltner was the Cruise With The Champions Rookie of the Year, with Jeff Watson of Campbellsville, KY and Larry Greer of Bowling Green, KY finishing second and third in the rookie points chase. Frank Revel was the championship Crew Chief of the Year, C.J. Rayburn Race Cars was the championship Chassis Builder of the Year, and Jay Dickens Race Engines claimed the championship Engine Builder of the Year award. American Race Tires representative Tony Rose was presented the Frank Wheeler Jr. Lifetime Achievement Award.
In addition, series CEO Tom McConnell announced new series sponsors for 2008. Kentucky's Best of Cynthiana, KY, will provide series sponsorship and will be the official cigarette of the Battle of the Bluegrass Series. MaxBrake, based in Louisiana, will also be a series sponsors, produces a hydraulic/air over brake controller. Also, American Prescription Assistance will also join the series as this company is a discount prescription and diabetic supply program based in Louisville, KY. Graphic Impressions of Hazard, KY has joined the "BoB Family" as well for 2008 and will be the official series merchandise and souvenir vendor. To conclude activities, Mr. McConnell introduced Larry Yantz as the new race director for the O'Reilly NARA Battle of the Bluegrass DirtCar Series.
In keeping with the motto as America's most competitive regional series, there were 223 different drivers that competed with the series in 2007. There were a total of 22 events contested, with 18 different winners. Only Mike Marlar, Don O'Neal, and Aaron Hatton won more than once with the tour in 2007.
The O'Reilly NARA Battle of the Bluegrass DirtCar Series is a regional racing series based in Louisville, KY that sanctions Super Late Model racing in Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio, and Tennessee. For more information about the upcoming 2008 O'Reilly NARA Battle of the Bluegrass DirtCar Series season, contact the series office at (502) 931-5068, as a new website for the series will be released shortly.
O'Reilly NARA Battle of the Bluegrass Dirt Car Series Media Relations (Mdespain7@aol.com)
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