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Roby Helm
EASTABOGA, Ala. (October 3) - Ronnie Johnson of Chattanooga, TN took the lead on lap 21, and then pulled away to win the Fall Nationals 50 Presented By NeSmithNow.com for the NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series on Saturday night at Talladega Short Track driving the Miller Brothers Coal Warrior.
Johnson started fifth and used the outside groove to work his way to the front of the pack. The victory was the 11th series career win and third of the season for the National Dirt Late Model Hall of Fame Inductee driving the Miller Brothers Coal Warrior.
"Just love this race track because it's always racy, like it was tonight, and I also love the fans here," Johnson said. "The car worked great on the outside, but I had to get to the bottom to work through lapped traffic, and it was also good down there. This was a great tune up race for the $10,000-to-win Dega 100 here in three weeks."
While Johnson pulled away from the rest of the field, Danny People of Margaret, AL topped an exciting four-car battle at the end of the race to take the second spot in the Tommy Pope Construction Warrior. Ben McCreary of Baldwyn, MS was the Sunoco Race Fuels Rookie of the Race with a third-place finish in the Waddle Trucking Mastersbilt.
Todd Morrow of East Ridge, TN took the fourth spot in the T.J. Hunt Trucking Mastersbilt, and Tim Busha of Boaz, AL finished fifth in the Kilpatrick Chevrolet GRT to earn the Race Car Engineering Fifth-Place Award. Matthew Turner of Dawsonville, GA was sixth in the Turner Excavating DWB.
Early race leader Derrick Rainey of Powder Spring, GA ended up seventh in the Hays Family Racing/Barto Enterprises Warrior. Rainey was the McLeod Construction Fast Qualifier by out-timing the 56-car field with a lap around the ¼-mile clay oval in 15.090 seconds.
It was Rainey's fifth McLeod Construction Fast Time Award this season and with two point races left in the 2009 season, and he clinched the most fast time awards this season. Rainey will receive a cash bonus award at the series banquet in Tampa, FL on December 9.
Jason Wilson of Margaret, AL finished eighth in the Tommy Pope Construction Warrior to earn the Race Car Engineering Eighth-Place Award, and Lee Burdett of Hueytown, AL was ninth in the City Auto Sales GRT to earn the Maximum Signs Ninth-Place Award. Hunter Best of Greenback, TN rounded out the top ten in the Robin Myrick Reality Executives Warrior.
Marcus Minga of Shannon, MS took a provisional and started the B&M Salvage Mastersbilt from the 24th spot. Minga finished 14th on the lead lap to earn the GM Performance Parts Hard Charger of the Race Award.
Point leader Eric Cooley of Fulton, MS had rough going at Talladega Short Track. After starting seventh in the 78 Towing and Recovery Victory Circle, Cooley was the first car out of the race on lap 15 when his car lost a driveshaft. That earned Cooley of the Dominator Race Products Hard Luck Award.
Cooley still holds an 86-point lead over Larry Boutwell of Baker, FL in the NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series National point standings. Boutwell finished 17th in the McLeod Construction TNT, and gained 16 points on Cooley to stay in the championship battle.
Rainey took the lead at the drop of the green flag from the pole position followed by McCreary, Turner, Busha, and Johnson. By lap four, the high-riding Johnson had worked his way up to the third spot. Turner began to fade out of the top five, as Busha moved to the fourth spot on lap five, and Peoples moved into the top five on lap six.
Busha drove under Johnson on lap seven and the two drivers waged a side-by-side battle for the third position. Rainey caught the cars on the tail of the lead lap by lap 10, and Johnson was able to use the lapped cars to his advantage to hold the third position over Busha.
Cooley brought out the first of two caution flags in the race when he stalled going down the backstretch on lap 15. Rainey had the cars of McCreary, Johnson, Busha, Peoples, Turner, Best, Carlton Freeman of Eastaboga, AL in the Shan Recycling GRT, Burdett and Morrow doubled up behind him for the restart.
The double-file restart shuffled up the top five when the field went back to green flag action, as Johnson and Peoples glided around the outside of McCreary to pick up the second and third spots respectively. McCreary was joined by Busha to battle Peoples for the third spot on lap 18, and McCreary retook the position behind Rainey and Johnson on lap 19.
Rainey stayed on the bottom groove, but he could see the rim-riding Johnson to his right by lap 20. After a two-lap side-by-side battle for the lead, Johnson took the lead on lap 21. Jimmy Hiett of Oxford, AL stalled the Freestyle Graphics GRT down the backstretch on lap 25 to bring out the caution flag.
Johnson led Rainey, McCreary, Peoples, Busha, Turner, Best, Burdett, Morrow, and Freeman down to the green flag to start the second half of the race. On the restart, McCreary moved up to challenge Rainey for the second spot, and Busha passed Peoples for the fourth position. Rainey held the second spot on lap 27, while Morrow moved up to the seventh spot and Wilson moved into the top ten on lap 29.
McCreary drove under Rainey for the second position coming off the fourth turn on lap 31, but by lap 35, Johnson had pulled out to a full straightaway lead. Morrow continued his march to the front, passing Turner for the sixth spot with 15 laps to go. While Morrow was moving forward, Rainey was falling back, settling into the seventh spot on lap 37.
With five laps to go, McCreary, Busha, Peoples, and Morrow battled each other two and three-wide for the second spot, while Johnson checked out. Peoples took the second spot for good on lap 48, with McCreary holding on to third followed by Morrow and Busha at the checkered flag.
In preliminary action, Cooley, Best, Morrow and Freeman won the 12-lap heat races, while Brian Smith of Cedar Bluff, AL in the Patriot Performance JC3 and Chris O'Connor of Cantonment, FL in the Coggin Land Services Warrior won the two 15-lap B-Main races.
The next two events for the NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series will be topless events at South Mississippi Speedway in Gulfport, MS with 40-lap $2,000-to-win race on October 16, and a 50-lap $2,500-to-win race on October 17. These two events will be the final two points race of the 2009 season.
The NeSmith Chevrolet DLMS will return to Talladega Short Track for a non-points race on October 22-24 with the $10,000-to-win Red Top Auto Auctions Dega 100 Presented By Hoosier Race Tire.
OFFICIAL RESULTS OF ROUND 21 AT TALLADEGA SHORT TRACK IN EASTABOGA, AL ON 10/3/09:
POS STRT CAR # DRIVER HOMETOWN LAPS $ WON
1. 5 5 Ronnie Johnson Chattanooga, TN 50 $2,500
2. 6 22p Danny Peoples Margaret, AL 50 $1,250
3. 3 21m Ben McCreary (R) Baldwyn, MS 50 $850
4. 9 T16 Todd Morrow East Ridge, TN 50 $700
5. 4 15 Tim Busha * Boaz, AL 50 $650
6. 2 10 Matthew Turner Dawsonville, GA 50 $550
7. 1 87 Derrick Rainey Powder Springs, GA 50 $600
8. 11 22 Jason Wilson (R) Margaret, AL 50 $450
9. 13 B97 Lee Burdett Hueytown, AL 50 $400
10. 8 007 Hunter Best Greenback, TN 50 $375
11. 15 1 Jason Hiett Lincoln, AL 50 $350
12. 12 25 Justin McRee Woodstock, AL 50 $300
13. 19 17s Brian Smith Cedar Bluff, AL 50 $280
14. 24 19 Marcus Minga Shannon, MS 50 $360
15. 25 47 Adam Martin Talladega, AL 50 $250
16. 10 F22 Carlton Freeman Eastaboga, AL 49 $240
17. 14 58 Larry Boutwell Baker, FL 49 $220
18. 18 55 Terrance Nowell Phenix City, AL 49 $200
19. 16 82 Jason Sanderford Pheba, MS 49 $200
20. 22 B4 Justin Beasley Montevallo, AL 49 $200
21. 23 38 Chase Washington (R) Houlka, MS 48 $200
22. 20 17 Chris O'Connor Cantonment, FL 35 $200
23. 21 55h Jimmy Hiett Oxford, AL 24 $200
24. 17 17k Scott Knowles Lanett, AL 17 $200
25. 7 33c Eric Cooley Fulton, MS 14 $200
* - Busha's fifth spot pending tire inspection
ENTRIES: 56
McLEOD CONSTRUCTION FAST QUALIFIER: Rainey, 15.090 Seconds
PROVISIONALS: Washington and Minga
PROMOTER'S CHOICE PROVISIONAL: Martin
LEAD CHANGES: 1
LAP LEADERS: Rainey, 1-20; Johnson, 21-50
LAPS LED: Johnson, 30; Rainey, 20
SUNOCO RACE FUELS ROOKIE OF THE RACE: McCreary
GM PERFORMANCE PARTS HARD CHARGER: Minga (started 24th and finished 14th)
DOMINATOR RACE PRODUCTS HARD LUCK AWARD: Cooley
RACE CAR ENGINEERING FIFTH-PLACE AWARD: Busha
RACE CAR ENGINEERING EIGHTH-PLACE AWARD: Wilson
MAXIMUM SIGNS NINTH-PLACE AWARD: Burdett
CAUTIONS: 2
TIME OF THE RACE: 27 Minutes and 51.234 Seconds
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