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Roby Helm
TAMPA, Fla. (February 20) - Doug Horton of Bruceton Mills, WV won his second straight NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series 40-lap feature race Friday night at East Bay Raceway Park driving the Adams Used Auto Parts Rocket. Horton swapped the lead four times during the first half of the race in lapped traffic with Shanon Buckingham of Morristown, TN, before pulling away for the win.
Horton took the lead for good on lap 21, pulled away, and left Buckingham to battle in a four-car war for the second spot with two-time NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series National Champion David Gentry of Lewisburg, TN, Keith Nosbisch of Valrico, TN, and Jeff Mathews of Dover, FL.
"Racing and swapping the lead with Shanon Buckingham through that lapped traffic was fun," Horton said. "He's good driver, and I knew he would race me clean. The track was a lot racier tonight, and my Warrior chassis handled perfectly wherever I wanted to go on the race track."
Buckingham finished second in the Rusty Wallace Toyota Bloomquist, and also earned the McLeod Construction Fast Qualifier Award by out-timing the 47 entrants with a lap around the 1/3-mile clay oval in 15.767 seconds.
Gentry took the third spot in the Eades Farms Warrior. Nosbisch drove the Miller Lite Rocket to the fourth spot, and Mathews claimed the Race Car Engineering Fifth-Place Award in the Night Hawk Towing Rocket.
Bryan Bernhardt of Clearwater, FL was sixth in the B&B Precision Mowing Rocket, and Sunoco Race Fuels Rookie of the Year point leader Jason Wilson of Margaret, AL in the Tommy Pope Construction Warrior started 17th and finished seventh to earn the Mechanix Wear Hard Charger of the Race Award and the Sunoco Race Fuels Rookie of the Race Award.
Not only does Wilson lead the Sunoco Race Fuels Rookie of the Year point standings, he also took over the overall point lead in the NeSmith Chevrolet DLMS National standings by two points over Gentry and Larry Boutwell of Baker, FL, who finished 20th in the McLeod Construction Rocket. Wilson has 300 points, while Gentry and Boutwell have 298 points.
Josh Peacock of Dover, FL picked up the Race Car Engineering Eighth-Place Award in the Frubob Fruit Floats Warrior, and Jeremy Hines of Seymour, IN took the Maximum Signs Ninth-Place Award in the Bedford Transport Rayburn.
The defending NeSmith Chevrolet DLMS National Champion Chip Brindle of Chatsworth, GA rounded out the top ten in the CSC Trailer Repair/Brindle Brothers Auto Parts Mastersbilt. The race only had one caution flag on lap 34, and 23 of the 24 cars that started the race were still running when the checkered flag fell.
The only driver to drop out of the race was Steve Miller of Tampa, FL, who retired his L. Miller and Associates Rocket on lap 32 to earn the Dominator Race Products Hard Luck Award.
The top five in the NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series National point standings are now separated by just ten points after the first four races of the 2009 season. Behind Wilson, Gentry and Boutwell are Eric Cooley of Fulton, MS in the fourth spot with 296 points, and Brindle is fifth with 290 points. Cooley finished 12th on Friday night in the 78 towing and Recovery Victory Circle.
Horton took the lead from the polesitter Buckingham coming off the second turn on lap one after starting on the outside of the front row for the second straight night. Gentry fell into the third spot followed by David Schmauss of Tampa, FL in the Cardinal Paint and Body Warrior, and Chase Washington of Houlka, MS in the Jerry Inmon Race Cars GRT.
Horton looked like he was going to run away from the event, as he built a 12 car-length lead over Buckingham by lap two. Lap four saw Bernhardt and Mathews drive past Washington, who got hung out to dry on the high side of the race track.
The fast pace Horton was setting had him catching the cars on the tail end of the lead lap by lap seven. Buckingham closed on Horton on the ninth lap, while the race leader delt with lapped traffic. Buckingham went to the outside groove, and used a lapped car as a pick, pinning Horton on the inside to take the lead on lap ten.
Turn about was fair play in this battle for the lead, as Horton shot around the outside of Buckingham to retake the lead on lap 13 coming off the fourth turn. Buckingham stayed right with Horton through the lapped cars, and found an opening on the inside on lap 20 in turn three to take the lead.
Buckingham's time on the point was short lived, as Horton dusted off a groove on the cushion, got a strong run off the fourth turn, passing Buckingham and two lapped cars down the front straightaway on the outside to take the lead for good on lap 21. The two lapped cars began racing side-by-side in front of Buckingham while Horton pulled away.
While Buckingham fought with the lapped cars, Gentry was able to close in to mount a challenge for the second spot. Gentry drove under Buckingham in turn four on lap 23 to take over the second spot. Buckingham fought back to retake the spot on lap 24 with an outside move on the front straightaway.
Gentry came back to drive back under Buckingham in turn three on lap 26, and by lap 30, Nosbisch and Mathews made it a four-car battle for the second spot.
The only caution flag of the race came out on lap 34 when Washington spun in turn four. Horton led Gentry, Buckingham, Nosbisch, Mathews, Bernhardt, Hines, Schmauss, Wilson, and Cooley down for the seven lap dash to the finish.
Buckingham was able to drive under Gentry to take the second spot in turn two on lap 35. Peacock, and Brindle were able to gain positions on the track in the last five laps to earn top ten finishing positions. By lap 37, Horton had pulled out to a half-straightaway lead over Buckingham, and cruised home to his second straight win.
In preliminary action on Friday night, the eight-lap heat races were won by Brindle, Mathews, Hines, and Frank Ingram of Woodstock, GA in the Gardner Excavating Rocket. The two 12-lap B-Main races were won by Phillip Cobb of Riverview, FL in the Coastal Trucking GRT, and Hunter Peacock of Macon, GA in the Nasworthy Mechanical Bullitt.
Horton will go for the "Hat Trick" on Saturday night at East Bay Raceway Park, looking for his third straight NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series win in the 50-lap $3,000-to-win main event.
OFFICIAL RESULTS OF ROUND 4 AT EAST BAY RACEWAY PARK IN TAMPA, FL ON 2/20/09:
POS STRT CAR # DRIVER HOMETOWN LAPS $ WON
1. 2 11 Doug Horton Bruceton Mills, WV 40 $2,500
2. 1 50 Shanon Buckingham Morristown, TN 40 $1,350
3. 3 2 David Gentry Lewisburg, TN 40 $850
4. 13 102 Keith Nosbisch Valrico, FL 40 $700
5. 8 33 Jeff Mathews Dover, FL 40 $650
6. 5 B69 Bryan Bernhardt Clearwater, FL 40 $550
7. 17 22 Jason Wilson (R) Margaret, AL 40 $500
8. 14 21p Josh Peacock Dover, FL 40 $450
9. 9 49 Jeremy Hines Seymour, IN 40 $400
10. 7 38c Chip Brindle Chatsworth, GA 40 $475
11. 4 105 David Schmauss Tampa, FL 40 $350
12. 11 33c Eric Cooley Fulton, MS 40 $300
13. 19 32 Phillip Cobb Riverview, FL 40 $280
14. 10 F9 Frank Ingram Woodstock, GA 39 $260
15. 24 2x Jay Blair Angie, LA 39 $250
16. 16 10 Matthew Turner Dawsonville, GA 39 $240
17. 18 12n Jack Nosbisch Riverview, FL 39 $220
18. 21 88 David Pollen Jr. Tampa, FL 39 $200
19. 20 12 Hunter Peacock Macon, GA 39 $200
20. 23 58 Larry Boutwell Baker, FL 39 $200
21. 15 16 Jeff Fields Aragon, GA 39 $200
22. 12 87 Derrick Rainey Powder Springs, GA 38 $200
23. 6 38 Chase Washington (R) Houlka, MS 38 $200
24. 22 8s Steve Miller Tampa, FL 32 $200
ENTRIES: 47
McLEOD CONSTRUCTION FAST QUALIFIER: Buckingham, 15.767 Seconds
PROVISIONALS: Boutwell and Blair
LEAD CHANGES: 4 Among 2 Drivers
LAP LEADERS: Horton, 1-9; Buckingham, 10-12: Horton, 13-19; Buckingham, 20; Horton, 21-40
LAPS LED: Horton, 36; Buckingham, 4
SUNOCO RACE FUELS ROOKIE OF THE RACE: Wilson
MECHANIX WEAR HARD CHARGER: Wilson (started 17th and finished 7th)
DOMINATOR RACE PRODUCTS HARD LUCK AWARD: Miller
RACE CAR ENGINEERING 5TH-PLACE AWARD: Mathews
RACE CAR ENGINEERING 8TH-PLACE AWARD: J. Peacock
MAXIMUM SIGNS 9TH-PLACE AWARD: Hines
CAUTIONS: 1
TIME OF THE RACE: 15 Minutes and 19.480 Seconds
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