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James Essex
LAWRENCEBURG, Ind. (August 27) - Leading all 50-laps, Dale McDowell of Chickamauga, GA held off a furious late-race-charge to take home the win in front of an enormous crowd at Lawrenceburg Speedway. Brian Birkhofer of Muscatine, IA and Jimmy Owens of Newport, TN closed to within striking distance of McDowell, but could not overtake the leader. The win was worth $10,000 for McDowell in the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series sanctioned event. It was McDowell's first series win of the 2010 LOLMDS season. Trailing the trio to the finish line were Earl Pearson Jr. of Jacksonville, FL and Quarter Master Rookie of the Year Candidate, Eric Wells of Hazard, KY.
"Man it feels good to finally make it to victory lane this year," said the 44-year-old veteran, who drives for NASCAR's Clint Bowyer. "Caleb [Baker] and Tommy [Grecco] have worked their tails off this year and they deserve much of the credit for this win. We started off good tonight by setting fast time, winning our heat and starting on the pole," said McDowell. "I have to thank Dollar General, Cheerios, General Mills, and Bugles. I also have to give a lot of credit to ECR Racing Engines and Warrior Race Cars; this is their second Lucas Oil win in a row."
McDowell bolted to the lead at the start of the feature. He and Don O'Neal ran one-two for the first 33 laps of the race, until O'Neal brushed the wall in turn four, causing the #71 MasterSbilt house-car to lose several spots in the running order. The winner of last year's event at Lawrenceburg, Brian Birkhofer, started tenth and was up to second after O'Neal's brush with the wall.
Owens made tremendous headway through the pack and joined the leaders as the 13th place starter battled with 4-time series champion, Earl Pearson Jr. Owens cleared Pearson for third with 11 laps to go. He then set his sights on the duo of McDowell and Birkhofer. The three frontrunners made the crowd rise to their feet as they battled around the 3/8ths mile oval. McDowell took the win by two car lengths over Birkhofer.
"I was racing hard there with Jimmy at the end," said Birkhofer, who drives the J&J Steel, MB Customs sponsored machine. "I pulled alongside of Dale, but I just couldn't get enough momentum on the bottom to pass him. That was a very good race and I hope the fans enjoyed that." Owens, in the Mike Reece, Reece Monument Company, Bloomquist Race Cars Ford Fusion came home third and cut the Lucas Oil Championship Point's Lead of Scott Bloomquist down to only 140 points.
Completing the top ten were Don O'Neal of Martinsville, IN; Shane Clanton of Fayetteville, GA; Scott Bloomquist of Mooresburg, TN; Ray Cook of Brasstown, NC; and Tim Isenberg of Marshfield, WI.
In preliminary action, McDowell was the Red Buck Cigars Fast Qualifier with a lap of 14.826 seconds among the 39 entrants on hand. Heat race winners were McDowell, Tyler Reddick, Tim Isenberg, and Don O'Neal. The B-Mains were taken by Brad Neat and Chris Wall.
The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series returns to Bluegrass Speedway in Bardstown, KY for the 10th Annual Bluegrass Classic tomorrow night, August 28th. For more information, log onto www.bluegrass-speedway.com.
For the latest breaking news on the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, log on to www.lucasdirt.com or call the series office at (951) 532-2503.
Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
Race Summary
Friday Night, August 27, 2010
Lawrenceburg Speedway - Lawrenceburg, IN
Red Buck Cigars Fast Time: Dale McDowell/ 14.826 seconds (Overall and Group A)
Eric Wells / 14.859 seconds (Group B)
Wiles Driveshaft's First Heat (10 Laps- Top 4 Advance): Dale McDowell, Zack Dohm, Brandon Kinzer, Jimmy Owens, Dustin Neat, Ray Cook, John Mason, Greg Johnson, Scott James, Duane Chamberlain-DNS
AFCO Racing Products Second Heat (10 Laps- Top 4 Advance): Tyler Reddick, Earl Pearson Jr., Dan Schlieper, Eddie Carrier Jr., Brad Neat, John Blankenship, Rick Combs, D.J. Wells, Mike Marlar
Allstar Performance Third Heat (10 Laps- Top 4 Advance): Tim Isenberg, Eric Wells, Brian Birkhofer, Victor Lee, Justin Rattliff, Wayne Chinn, Chris Wall, Robby Hensley, Daniel Williams, Brian Gray
Superflow Fourth Heat (10 Laps- Top 4 Advance): Don O'Neal, Scott Bloomquist, Steve Casebolt, Matt Miller, Joe Janowski, Kyle Bates, Shane Clanton, Mike Bores, Tim Rivers, Jason Jameson
Hawk Brake First B-Main (12 Laps- Top 3 Advance): Brad Neat, Ray Cook, John Blankenship, Dustin Neat, John Mason, Rick Combs, Greg Johnson, Scott James, D.J. Wells-DNS, Mike Marlar-DNS, Duane Chamberlain-DNS
Performance Rod and Custom (PRC) Second B-Main (12 Laps- Top 3 Advance): Chris Wall, Shane Clanton, Justin Rattliff, Tim Rivers, Robby Hensley, Daniel Williams, Brian Gray, Joe Janowski, Mike Bores, Wayne Chinn, Kyle Bates, Jason Jameson-DNS
A-Main
1 1 17m Dale McDowell Chickamauga, GA
2 10 15b Brian Birkhofer Muscatine, IA
3 13 20 Jimmy Owens Newport, TN
4 7 44 Earl Pearson, Jr. Jacksonville, FL
5 6 18e Eric Wells Hazard, KY
6 4 71 Don O'Neal Martinsville, IN
7 20 25c Shane Clanton Fayetteville, GA
8 8 0 Scott Bloomquist Mooresburg, TN
9 19 53 Ray Cook Brasstown, NC
10 2 9t Tim Isenberg Marshfield, WI
11 12 c9 Steve Casebolt Richmond, IN
12 11 s9 Dan Schlieper Sullivan, WI
13 21 23 John Blankenship Williamson, WV
14 3 11t Tyler Reddick Corning, CA
15 17 41n Brad Neat Dunnville, KY
16 22 16 Justin Rattliff Campbellsville, KY
17 18 71w Chris Wall Grayson, KY
18 5 17d Zack Dohm Cross Lanes, WV
19 15 28 Eddie Carrier, Jr. Salt Rock, WV
20 9 18k Brandon Kinzer Allen, KY
21 14 88 Victor Lee Danville, KY
22 23 18x Mike Marlar Winfield, TN
23 16 7 Matt Miller Waterville, OH
24 24 s44 Scott James Lawrenceburg, IN
Race Statistics
Entrants: 39
Lap Leaders: Dale McDowell (Laps 1-50)
Caution Flags: Scott James (Lap 9); Chris Wall (Lap 31)
Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Provisionals: none
Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Emergency Provisional: none
Red Buck Fast Time Provisionals: Mike Marlar, Scott James
PBM/Erson Cams Hard Charger of the Race: Shane Clanton (Started 20th; Finished 7th; Advanced 13 positions)
Ohlin's Shocks Performer of the Race: Tim Isenberg
K&N Filters Clean Pass of the Race: Tyler Reddick
Quarter Master Rookie of the Race: Eric Wells
Comp Cams Engine Builder of the Race: ECR Racing Engines
Dominator Race Products Hard Luck Award: Mike Marlar
DirtonDirt.com Crew Chief of the Race: Tommy Greco (Dale McDowell)
Time of Race: 22 minutes, 27 seconds
Lucas Oil Championship Point Standings
1 0 Scott Bloomquist Mooresburg, TN 5800
2 20 Jimmy Owens Newport, TN 5660
3 44 Earl Pearson, Jr. Jacksonville, FL 5615
4 53 Ray Cook Brasstown, NC 5235
5 71 Don O'Neal Martinsville, IN 5145
6 17m Dale McDowell Chickamauga, GA 4975
7 s9 Dan Schlieper Sullivan, WI 4520
8 c9 Steve Casebolt Richmond, IN 4515
9 71w Chris Wall Springfield, LA 4445
10 18e Eric Wells Hazard, KY 4435
11 23 John Blankenship Williamson, WV 4380
12 41n Brad Neat Dunnville, KY 4145
13 9t Tim Isenberg Marshfield, WI 3720
14 11t Tyler Reddick Corning, CA 3330
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