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Kevin Kovac
CONCORD, N.C. (October 28) - The dirt Late Model pre-entry list for this weekend's second annual VAULT World Finals at The Dirt Track @ Lowe's Motor Speedway exceeds 50 drivers.
But the ultimate car count for the season-ending World of Outlaws Late Model Series spectacular? That's anyone guess.
An all-star cast of 52 drivers from 16 states currently comprises the official pre-entry list for the VAULT World Finals, which begins on Thursday night (Oct. 30) with time trials for the WoO LMS and Advance Auto Parts World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series and continues with complete programs for both tours on Friday and Saturday night (Oct. 31 and Nov. 1).
Pre-entry is not mandatory, however - and with dozens of drivers not entered but nevertheless making plans to attend, the field could reach epic proportions. Eighty-two cars were signed in for the qualifying night of last year's VAULT World Finals, and the current high-water mark for the 2008 WoO LMS is the 70-car throng that assembled for the opener on Feb. 14 at Volusia Speedway Park in Barberville, Fla.
"By all indications, we should see the biggest car count of the season for a World of Outlaws Late Model Series event," said series director Tim Christman. "Last year's inaugural VAULT World Finals was a huge success and Late Model teams from all over the country are excited to be part of what promises to be another great show."
All of this season's WoO LMS travelers are on the pre-entry list, led by presumptive 2008 champion Darrell Lanigan of Union, Ky. He figures to clinch the tour's $100,000 points title by starting Friday night's 50-lap A-Main.
Defending WoO LMS champ Steve Francis of Ashland, Ky., will relinquish his throne this weekend, but he'll have to race hard throughout the Finals to maintain his precarious hold on second place in the points standings. He is just six points ahead of Locust Grove, Ga.'s Shane Clanton and 26 points up on Josh Richards of Shinnston, W.Va.
Other WoO LMS regulars set for battle on the four-tenths-mile oval include (in order of points position) Chub Frank of Bear Lake, Pa., who will look to erase memories of his wild flip in The Dirt Track's Circle K Colossal 100 earlier this year; Shannon Babb of Moweaqua, Ill.; Rick Eckert of York, Pa.; Clint Smith of Senoia, Ga.; Tim Fuller of Watertown, N.Y., who made a memorable drive from the 22nd starting spot to a third-place finish in the 2007 World Finals finale; and 2008 Rookie of the Year Vic Coffey of Leceister, N.Y.
The upstate New York-based JIR Motorsports team, which fielded three cars at more than three-quarters of this year's WoO LMS events, will also be on hand at The Dirt Track. A four-car effort will include brothers Joe Isabell and Jeff Isabell Jr., both of Pennellville, N.Y.; Sean Beardsley of Central Square, N.Y.; and DIRTcar big-block Modified superstar Danny Johnson of Phelps, N.Y., who makes his return to the JIR operation following a mid-summer separation.
Other prominent names on the pre-entry list include:
* Donnie Moran of Dresden, Ohio, who held off Francis to score a dramatic victory in last year's Saturday-night World Finals A-Main.
* Tim McCreadie of Watertown, N.Y., the 2006 WoO LMS champion who pocketed $85,000 for winning the Topless 100, Jackson 100 and Late Model Knoxville Nationals over a seven-week period in August and September.
* Two-time UMP DIRTcar Super Late Model national champion Randy Korte of Highland, Ill.
* Mike Balzano of Parkersburg, W.Va., who pocketed $17,000 for winning the 2004 Armour Vienna Sausage Showdown at The Dirt Track.
* Chris Madden of Gaffney, S.C., who owns three career Super Late Model wins at The Dirt Track.
* Austin Dillon of Welcome, N.C., the teenage grandson of NASCAR team owner Richard Childress who is coming off a fourth-place finish in his second career NASCAR Nationwide Series on Oct. 25 at Memphis Motorsports Park.
* Former Knoxville Late Model Nationals winner Brian Shirley of Chatham, Ill.
* Dan Schlieper of Sullivan, Wis., whose 2007 World Finals bid was marred by a wild flip during heat-race action.
* Jimmy Owens of Newport, Tenn., who earned $26,000 for capturing the 2005 Armour Vienna Sausage Showdown at The Dirt Track.
* UMP DIRTcar Summer Nationals star Jeep VanWormer of Pinconning, Mich.
* Ricky Elliott of Seaford, Del., who has won at The Dirt Track in Advance Auto Parts Super DIRTcar Series big-block Modified competition.
* Well-known Southerners such as Ricky Weeks of Rutherfordton, N.C., Jeff Smith of Gastonia, N.C., and Ed Gibbons of Manning, S.C.
A host of talented racers from far-and-wide are expected to enter the VAULT World Finals when they arrive at The Dirt Track, including 2004 WoO LMS champ Scott Bloomquist of Mooresburg, Tenn., who won the Friday-night World Finals A-Main last year; former WoO LMS regular Dale McDowell of Chickamauga, Ga.; Steve Shaver of Vienna, W.Va., who was the fast-timer in both rounds of qualifying for last year's World Finals; Jeremy Miller of Gettysburg, Pa., who led laps 1-30 of last year's Friday-night World Finals feature before retiring with a broken axle; Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series champion Earl Pearson Jr. of Jacksonville, Fla.; and Mike Knight of Ripley, N.Y., who won the Alltel Ohio Speedweek All-Star contest earlier this year.
The VAULT World Finals 'unofficially' commence on Wednesday night (Oct. 29) with the Armour Vienna Sausage Showdown for the WoO LMS. Postponed by rain on Oct. 8, the Showdown will be the first race in WoO LMS history to be run 'topless' - ie., without the fiberglass roofs on the cars - and offers a unique passing bonus that could push the first-place prize of the 50-lap A-Main to as much as $30,000.
Thursday night (Oct. 30) kicks off the scheduled VAULT World Finals action. Two rounds of time trials for the WoO Late Model and Sprints - one to line up Friday night's heats, one to line up Saturday night's preliminaries - will be conducted, as well as the 'Breaking the VAULT' dashes for both divisions and the Integra Shocks Crew Chief Challenge for Late Model teams.
Complete programs of heats, B-Mains and A-Mains will highlight the cards on Fri., Oct. 31, and Sat., Nov. 1. The WoO LMS standouts will chase a first-place prize of $10,000 in each evening's 50-lap A-Main.
Saturday's competition will be aired live on the SPEED cable network starting at 8 p.m. ET, while Friday's action will be taped for telecast by SPEED on Sat., Nov. 8, at 9 p.m. ET.
Ticket information is available by calling 1-800-455- 3267 or visiting www.lowesmotorspeedway.com, Ticketmaster outlets or the Lowe's Motor Speedway Box Office.
More information on the WoO LMS is available by logging on to www.worldofoutlaws.com.
VAULT World Finals Official Late Model Pre-Entry List (Car/Driver/Hometown):
00-Randy Korte/Highland, Ill.
00h-Chuck Harper/Beverly, W.Va.
07-Ed Gibbons/Manning, S.C.
1-Josh Richards/Shinnston, W.Va.
H1-Jared Miley/South Park, Pa.
1*-Chub Frank/Bear Lake, Pa.
E1-Mike Balzano/Parkersburg, W.Va.
2J-Jeff Rine/Danville, Pa.
s2-Bruce Hall/North Wilkesboro, N.C.
3-Austin Dillon/Welcome, N.C.
3s-Brian Shirley/Chatham, Ill.
4B-Jackie Boggs/Grayson, Ky.
5-Eric Jacobsen/Watsonville, Calif.
6-Ricky Weeks/Rutherfordton, N.C.
6t-Tim Dohm/Charleston, W.Va.
7-Matt Miller/Whitehouse, Ohio
7j-Joe Isabell/Pennellville, N.Y.
L8-Norman Short Jr./Georgetown, Del.
s9-Dan Schlieper/Sullivan, Wis.
11-D.J. Wells/Wooton, Ky.
11g-Travis Greer/Marion, Va.
13-Chesley Dixon/Swainsboro, Ga.
15D-Dean Bowen/Whiteville, N.C.
16-Tony Izzo Jr./Utica, Ill.
17-Tim Allen/Kannapolis, N.C.
18-Shannon Babb/Moweaqua, Ill.
18e-Eric Wells/Hazard, Ky.
18m-Jeff Smith/Gastonia, N.C.
18w-Rick Whaley/Millsboro, Del.
19-Steve Francis/Ashland, Ky.
19T-Tim Fuller/Watertown, N.Y.
20-Jimmy Owens/Newport, Tenn.
21d-Dan Stone/Thompson, Pa.
21R-Luke Roffers/Concord, N.C.
22-Jill George/Cedar Falls, Iowa
22G-Gregg Satterlee/Rochester Mills, Pa.
24-Rick Eckert/York, Pa.
25-Shane Clanton/Locust Grove, Ga.
28-Eddie Carrier Jr./Salt Rock, W.Va.
29-Darrell Lanigan/Union, Ky.
31-Bob Gordon/Keyser, W.Va.
32C-Vic Coffey/Leicester, N.Y.
39-Tim McCreadie/Watertown, N.Y.
41-Josh McGuire/Grayson, Ky.
44-Clint Smith/Senoia, Ga.
44m-Chris Madden/Gaffney, S.C.
45-Rick Elliott/Seaford, Del.
46-Doug Horton/Bruceton Mills, W.Va.
54-G.R. Smith/Cornelius, N.C.
55-Jeep VanWormer/Pinconning, Mich.
75-Jonathan Davenport/Blairsville, Ga.
99-Donnie Moran/Dresden, Ohio
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