FARLEY, IA (May 20, 2005)- Off to the best start in his racing career, Scott James of Lawrenceburg, IN continues to impress race fans across the country as the 33 year old second generation driver came from the 12th starting spot to win the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series event on Friday Night, May 20 at the "Palace of Speed" the Farley Speedway in Farley, IA. 

James became the new leader of the race on lap 44 when leader Shannon Babb went pitside with motor problems.  James then went on to hold off Brady Smith for his first career Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series event win.  James earned $10,000 driving the Powell Motorsports, Baylor Trucking, Whitewater Laser Auto Wash, Welsh Excavation, VP Racing Fuels, James Art Design, Hoosier Racing Tires, Jay Dickens powered Rocket Pontiac Grand Prix to the win in the series' first ever visit to the Hawkeye State.  Brady Smith of Solon Springs, WI was second in the AMSOIL/Pro Power/MasterSbilt Monte Carlo for his best career Lucas Oil finish.  Third place went to Donnie Moran of Dresden, OH in the PBM Performance Products/SMS Engines/MasterSbilt Monte Carlo.  Finishing fourth was Terry English of Benton, KY in the AAA Fence Inc/Runion Engines/C.J. Rayburn Monte Carlo and completing the top five was Don O'Neal of Martinsville, IN driving the Well Pict Berries/Jay Dickens Race Engines/C.J. Rayburn Monte Carlo.

Earl Pearson, Jr. would grab the lead at the start of the 50 lap main event from his outside front row starting spot.  Pearson would lead Don O'Neal, Terry English and Kerry Hansen across the stripe for the first scored lap of the race.  Jimmy Marts would quickly find the upper groove on the race track going to fourth around Hansen on lap two bringing Brian Birkhofer along with him.  The first five would remain in the same running order as the cars were quickly making their way around the half-mile track.  The first caution of the race took place on lap 14 when fifth place running Birkhofer stopped in turn two with front end suspension damage ending his night.  One of the cars on the move before the caution was Darren Miller.  Miller had driven from the 16th starting slot up to sixth at the time of the caution.  On the restart Shannon Babb, who began the race in the ninth hole made some unbelievable moves jumping on the gas and sprinting past four cars after the green came out zooming all the way up to second to immediately challenge Pearson for the lead.  A caution for a slowed Donnie Moran on lap 15 would slow the field momentarily, but things were about to heat up.  Miller's fine run ended at this time as he would go to his pit with brake problems.

On the second restart Pearson would lead a circuit, but Babb was up to the challenge passing Pearson on lap 17 to take over the point.   Pearson would go to second with English in third followed by Mars and Scott James, who was up from his 12th starting position.  The exciting racing action would continue as English went by Pearson for second on lap 20 and then started to close the gap on Babb.  English would try several times on the outside of the racy oval to get by Babb with the two running side by side in the corners.  A caution on lap 22 for Mars who stopped in turn two would briefly half the terrific battle for the lead.  On the restart it would be Babb in front with English, Pearson, James and O'Neal the top five drivers.  James would benefit from the Delaware double file restarts as he would get to third on lap 23.  At the halfway point of the race it was still anyone's guess as to who would bring home the top prize among the top five drivers.  Babb would hold off repeated challenges from English with James peering at English's car. The top five would remain in the same running order as the race settled down.  James would make his move for second passing English on lap 34 to gain that spot.  Babb was still in good shape at the point holding a four to five car length advantage over James, English, Pearson and O'Neal.  A caution on lap 42 for Ron Barker would bring the field under the watchful eye of chief starter, Noel Hargis for a restart.  Up front Babb had pretty much held his own and looked to be on his way to the win, but under caution Babb's mount started to show more and more smoke from under the hood as his car was starting to get overheated.  With eight laps to go the green came back out again, but it would be a brief run as someone got into Pearson's left front causing him to lose the steering capabilities of his race car coming out of turn two.  Pearson's car would drift across the race track and Ace Ihm would clip the left side of Pearson's car with result being a racing incident that saw Ihm go flipping several times down the backstretch.  Ihm would emerge uninjured in the wreck, but his car was destroyed.  Ihm had ventured into the top ten and was heading to the front when the unfortunate incident occurred.

With eight laps to go Babb now had several concerns.  Under the red flag for Ihm's wreck Babb pitted with crew members putting more water in the engine trying to cool it down.  Babb would come back out on the track before the yellow was displayed and according to series rules he would return to the front of the field.  On the restart Babb not only had to worry about his motor, but James was now right on him.  Babb would last one more circuit in front until he couldn't go anymore pulling into the pits seeing a good possibility of a win now gone.  James would pick up the lead, but had a fast moving Donnie Moran and Brady Smith to contend with.  Moran had pitted twice during the race, once to change a broken shock and was charging through the field as was Smith, who had also pitted during the race under caution flag.  Moran and Smith would then give James all he wanted in the closing laps as Smith would step up it up to go under and by Moran for second with two laps remaining.  Smith then set sail for James would was only about three car lengths in front of him.  Smith would slice the lead down to one length on the final lap, but James would hold him off for the win in a close finish concluding an exciting race.  Moran finished third followed by English and O'Neal.

A jubilant James and his crew celebrated in victory lane afterwards.  "I want to thank Ron Powell and everyone for making this happen," said the winner afterwards.  "This Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series is tough to win on, there are a lot of great drivers running this deal and we are happy to get this win and this is only the second time we had ever run here." ”At the start of the race I think I fell back to something like 16th out there after some contact with another car on the rear of my race car, but we just settled down and everything fell into place for us.  "I feel bad for Shannon because he drove a good race and I don't know if I would have gotten by him even if he had stayed out there."

Completing the top ten in the running order was Dennis Erb, Jr., Tim Dohm, Kerry Hansen, Dan Shelliam and Shannon Babb.

In preliminary events at Farley, Matt Miller was the Fast qualifier for the 30 entries on hand with a lap of 18.999 seconds.  The Heat Race Winners were Terry English, Earl Pearson, Jr. and Don O'Neal.  The B-Main was taken by Ace Ihm.

Race Summary  Farley Speedway-Farley, Iowa  Friday Night, May 20, 2005  Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series

Fast Qualifier: Matt Miller 18.999 seconds

Heat #1:  Terry English, Brady Smith, Brian Birkhofer, Matt Miller, Tim Dohm, Darren Miller, Steve "Ace" Ihm, Jeff Tharp, Gary Webb, Bobby Moyer, Rusty Patterson

Heat #2:  Earl Pearson, Jr., Kerry Hansen, Jimmy Mars, Dennis Erb, Jr., John Vandenberg, Caley Emerson, Mike Fryer, Todd Davis, Steve Boley, Mike Miller

Heat #3:  Don O'Neal, Donnie Moran, Shannon Babb, Scott James, Curt Martin, Freddy Smith, Dan Shelliam, Johnny Johnson, Matt Mish, Ron Barker

B-Main:  Ace Ihm, Jeff Tharp, Dan Shelliam, Ron Barker, Mike Fryer, Johnny Johnson, Mike Miller, Gary Webb, Bobby Moyer, Rusty Patterson, Steve Boley

Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series A-Main (50 Laps):  Scott James, Brady Smith, Donnie Moran, Terry English, Don O'Neal, Dennis Erb, Jr., Tim Dohm, Kerry Hansen, Dan Shelliam, Shannon Babb, Earl Pearson, Jr., Ace Ihm, Ron Barker, Curt Martin, Jeff Fryer, Jimmy Mars, John VanDenBerg, Matt Miller, Jeff Tharp, Darren Miller, Brian Birkhofer, Johnny Johnson, Caley Emerson, Freddy Smith

Race Statistics:  Entries:  30 Cautions: 3; Red Flags: 1 Lap Leaders:  Earl Pearson, Jr. 1-16, Shannon Babb 17-43, Scott James 44-50 Weld Wheels Hard Charger of the Race:  Scott James (Started 12th and finished 1st) Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Rookie of the Race:  Scott James Provisionals:  None

BROWNSTOWN, IN (April 16, 2005)- In what turned out to be Matt Miller's heartbreak was Terry English's elation as English would take advantage of Miller's flat tire with 12 laps to go as the 42 year old Benton, KY driver would inherit the lead and go on to win the 22nd Annual Hoosier Dirt Classic on Saturday Night at the Brownstown Speedway in Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series action.  English earned $7,000 for his second career Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series win of the season and his first ever at Brownstown. 

English drove his familiar number 96 C.J. Rayburn Monte Carlo sponsored by AAA Fence, Inc., Larry Seay Chevrolet, Buick, Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep, Murtco Incorporated, Wild Side Custom Trailers, Garner Inc., Hoosier Tires and with power from Runion Race Engines.  Don O'Neal of Martinsville, IN charged from the 16th starting spot to finish second in the Well Pict Berries/Jay Dickens Race Engines/C.J. Rayburn Monte Carlo.  Third was Dennis Erb, Jr. of Carpentersville, IL behind the wheel of the Petroff Towing/Malcuit Engines/C.J. Rayburn Monte Carlo with fourth place going to defending NARA champion, Shannon Babb of Moweaqua, IL in the Car City/J&J Steel/C.J. Rayburn Monte Carlo.  Rounding out the top five was Billy Drake of Bloomington, IL in the Steidinger Construction/Mullvain Engines/MasterSbilt Grand Prix.  A total of 51 cars were on hand for the event with a standing room crowd in attendance.

The 50 lap Hoosier Dirt Classic main event would turn out to be an exciting one as two and three wide racing was commonplace through out the race.  The race started off with veteran drivers John Gill and Mike Jewell on the pole as the two former Hoosier Dirt Classic winners and Brownstown track champions would go side by side for the lead for the first six laps of the race.  Gill would have the lead at the scoring line barely nipping Jewell each time they crossed.  Jewell would be scored the leader on lap seven, then a lap later Gill emerged back with the point.  As those two went side by side lap after lap, Bart Hartman was lurking in third with Darrell Lanigan and Terry English staying close.  Jewell would clear Gill for good by the 10th lap opening up a slight advantage over Gill, but Hartman would make his presence known as the pair of number 75 drivers went door to door in the battle for second Hartman would grab the second slot on lap 13 and start to close on Jewell.  As the field approached the 15 laps completed mark, Jewell was within two laps of picking up the tail end of the lead pack of cars, but a caution for debris in turn two would allow for a clear path restart for Jewell.  With double file restarts the norm for the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, Jewell would be out front by himself with Hartman and a new challenger in Matt Miller lined up behind Jewell.  Miller, who started seventh would quickly go to the outside of the race track and move by the race leader, Jewell on lap 17.  Miller then started to get away from Jewell, who would see Hartman get by him for second place a lap later.  English, who started fifth, was quietly hanging around the top four at this point of the race.

With the halfway mark shown it was Miller on the point with Hartman running second followed by English, Dennis Erb, Jr. and Don O'Neal, who had started in 16th.  Miller was working his way beautifully around the 1/4 mile track maintaining a comfortable margin over Hartman.  The top five would remain in the same running order, until disaster struck for the race leader, Miller on lap 37.  The header on Miller's car had come off and he ran over it causing a flat tire, which forced him to stop in turn four.  Miller quickly darted to the pits under caution to change the tire, but his dream for a big win at Brownstown was now gone.  With the lineup realigned on the restart English, who had passed Hartman a lap before Miller's misfortune to gain second was now the new race leader.  On the restart English would be out in front by himself, but had tough contenders Erb and O'Neal on his doorstep.  With 13 laps to go English would bolt into turn one with Erb and O'Neal staying right with him.  A caution with seven laps to go would momentarily halt the furious action up front.  The three way race for the lead would pick back up again after this final caution of the race.  O'Neal would go to the outside of Erb passing him with six to go, he would then move alongside of English coming off of the turns, but English would maintain his lead on the straight-aways.  O'Neal just could not get enough grip to overtake English in the final handful of laps as the top two drivers in the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series would cross the finish line with English taking his first ever win at Brownstown and O'Neal earning the hard charger kudos for coming from 16th to second.  Erb would finish a close third with Babb taking fourth and 10th place starter, Billy Drake taking fifth.

"It feels good to get a win here at Brownstown," said English in victory circle.  "We've been coming here since 1989 and been close a couple of times, but just couldn't break through, with the competition here tonight it is really satisfying to win this race."  "I don't think anybody had anything for Miller once he was in the lead, but that was a bad break for him and I guess good for us, but I just had to drive harder in the final laps cause I knew those two guys behind me (O'Neal and Erb), were coming on."   "I want to thank Lucas Oil and everybody with this series, my crew, family, sponsors and of course, C.J. Rayburn, who is here tonight, I am glad to win for him as well."

Completing the top ten were Bart Hartman, Earl Pearson, Jr., Steve Shaver, John Gill and Tim Tungate.

In preliminary action English, would be the first of the 51 cars to qualify and his time of 14.582 seconds would stand up throughout time trials as the fastest for the Fast Time Award.  The four Heat Race winners were John Gill, Darrell Lanigan, Mike Jewell and Bart Hartman.  The First B-Main went to Scott James and PBM Performance Products Second B-Main was won by R.J. Conley.

The next event for the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series will be on Saturday Night, May 14 the Tazewell Speedway in Tazewell, Tennessee.

Race Summary Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series  Brownstown Speedway-Brownstown, Indiana  Saturday Night, April 16, 2005

Fast Time:  Terry English 14.582 

Heat #1:  John Gill, Terry English, Greg Johnson, Earl Pearson, Jr., Donnie Moran, Brent Londeree, Steve Barnett, Frankie Coomer, Scott Graham, Tim Prince, Justin Shaw, Jordan Bland, Shannon Reed

Heat #2:  Darrell Lanigan, Shannon Babb, Billy Drake, Steve Shaver, Scott James, Tim Dohm, Bryan Barber, Steve Hillard, Michael England, Mark Barber, Rickey Riggle, Gary Harden, Derek Ramp

Heat #3:  Mike Jewell, Matt Miller, Tim Tungate, Brad Neat, John Mason, Brad Barrow, Dan Sturgeon, Justin Blackwell, Doug Ault, Joe Godsey, Brian Wilhite, Mike Bechelli 

Heat #4:  Bart Hartman, Dennis Erb, Jr., Mike Marlar, Don O'Neal, R.J. Conley, C.J. Rayburn, Johnny Wheeler, Freddy Smith, Jeff Wilson, Brad Erwin, Greg Ault, Ryan Eads

Shock Dyno First B-Main:  Scott James, Donnie Moran, Brent Londeree, Steve Barnett, Tim Dohm, Steve Hillard, Tim Prince, Scott Graham, Frankie Coomer, Mark Barber, Shannon Reed, Michael England, Gary Harden, Rickey Riggle, Derek Ramp, Bryan Barber, Jordan Bland, Justin Shaw

Second B-Main:  R.J. Conley, Freddy Smith, Brad Barrow, Dan Sturgeon, John Mason, C.J. Rayburn, Brad Erwin, Doug Ault, Joe Godsey, Justin Blackwell, Jeff Wilson, Greg Ault, Brian Wilhite, Ryan eads, Mike Bechelli, Johnny Wheeler

22nd Annual Hoosier Dirt Classic Main: (50 Laps):  Terry English, Don O'Neal, Dennis Erb, Jr., Shannon Babb, Billy Drake, Bart Hartman, Earl Pearson, Jr., Steve Shaver, John Gill, Tim Tungate, Matt Miller, Freddy Smith, Greg Johnson, R.J. Conley, Mark Barber, John Mason, Brad Neat, Tim Dohm, Brent Londeree, Mike Jewell, Mike Marlar, Brad Barrow, Donnie Moran, Darrell Lanigan, Scott James

Race Statistics:  Entries:  51 Cautions:  5 Red Flags: None Lap Leaders:  John Gill 1-6, Mike Jewell 7, Gill 8-9, Jewell 10-16, Matt Miller 17-37, Terry English 38-50 Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Provisionals:  Tim Dohm and John Mason Track Provisional:  Mark Barber Weld Racing Wheels Hard Charger of the Race:  Don O'Neal (started 16th and finished second) advanced 14 positions

CONCORD, NC (April 9, 2005)- In a race that saw 6 different leaders and 12 lead changes among those drivers, Jackie Boggs of Grayson, KY came from the 10th starting position and emerged victorious taking the lead with eight laps to go as he went on to win the Pit Pass Cabarrus Super Nationals for the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series on Saturday Night, April 9 at The Dirt Track @ Lowe's Motor Speedway.  The 35 year old second generation racer earned his first career Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series win and his first ever win at Lowe's as he became the sixth different winner in seven races in 2005 for the emerging series.  Boggs drove the Steve Cascio owned, McDonald's of Flemingsburg, KY, Maysville, KY and Georgetown, KY, Miller Brothers Coal, Perry County Tire, Graphic Impressions, Hoosier Racing Tires, Hawkeye Trucking, Tri State Oxygen, Ronald A. Mitchell Inc., Combs Custom Cycles, Clay Tire Sales, Mac Metal Sales, Cropper Racing Engines sponsored Swartz Chassis Monte Carlo to the $10,000 win.  19th starting Donnie Moran of Dresden, OH was second in the PBM Performance Products/SMS Engines/MasterSbilt Monte Carlo.  Third was 18th place starter Chris Madden of Gaffney, SC driving the HMI Motorsports/Hamrick's of Gaffney/Bloomquist Race Cars #44 with fourth place going to Shane Tankersley of Morganton, GA running the Hicks Specialty Welding/Gaerte Engines/C.J. Rayburn Monte Carlo and completing the top five was Matt Miller of Waterville, OH in the Dirt Shop, Inc/McCullough Industries/Rocket Grand Prix.  A total of 43 cars were on hand for the series' first ever visit to the facility just outside of Charlotte, NC.

The 40 lap main event would go green with polesitter Freddy Smith grabbing the initial lead of the lead.  The North Carolina native was looking for his first win at Lowe's as he would lead the first three circuits of the race.  Scott James would zoom from his fourth starting slot to challenge Smith for the lead on the very first lap with Jeff Cooke holding down third followed by Steve Lucas.  An accident of the front stretch would bring out the first caution of the race on lap four when the coil failed on Don O'Neal's car causing him to slow and then rear ended by Michael England ending both drivers night.  On the restart James would gain the advantage on Smith passing him for the point on lap four, Lucas then got in going screaming from fourth to second on the same lap and then overhauling James for the lead on the fifth circuit.  Lucas and James would then start to pull away from the field until the next caution flew on lap seven.  On that restart James would bolt past Lucas and retake the lead with positions being contested throughout the field at this point of the race.  Matt Miller would make his presence known by the eighth lap coming to second from sixth, but a flat tire under a caution would force him to pit for a tire change.  Miller would make it back out before the race went green again.  The exciting battle for the lead would go hammer down again with James, Lucas, Cooke, Jackie Boggs and Earl Pearson, Jr. who was up from 20th to the top five.

James would continue to lead the race until Lucas would race him to take over the lead on lap 15 dropping James to second with Pearson now up to third.  A lap later James would see a wheel break taking him to the pits for repairs.  Pearson then on the on the restart went around Lucas to take over the lead with Lucas, Boggs, Miller and Chris Madden your top five at the halfway mark of the race.  Madden would go by both Boggs and Miller on lap 21 to move into third place.  Up front Pearson appeared to be in complete control of the race now with Lucas holding down second place, but Lucas would suffer a flat tire on the 24th lap forcing him to stop bringing out a caution flag.  Madden then would pick up the challenge of racing for the lead with Pearson.  Madden stayed with Pearson for three laps until another caution for Chuck Southard's smoking car slowed the action.  On the restart Miller would gain an advantage passing Madden for second and the whipping around Pearson for the lead a lap later.  But Pearson would fight back retaking the point with ten laps remaining in the race.

In the final ten laps it would get really wild with Pearson, Miller, Boggs, Madden and Shane Tankersley all in the hunt for the win in front of the camera's of ESPN2 who was taping the race for a later broadcast.  With 32 laps in the books and coming off of a caution flag Miller and Pearson would restart side by side and race hard into turn number one with Pearson getting caught on the outside and slamming into the turn one concrete wall ending his night after such a strong effort.  Miller would then lose his lead on the final restart after Pearson's car was removed from the track as Boggs would gain the top spot roaring by Miller as Miller would slip in turn two not only did Boggs go by him but Madden, Donnie Moran and Tankersley would push Miller back to fifth place.  Boggs would then be buoyed by his move and he would go on to take an exciting win holding off Madden down the stretch for his first ever Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series and Lowe's victory.

"After last year's misfortune here, it's great to come back here and win this one," said Boggs in victory circle.  Boggs was speaking of last year when he ended up in the catch fence outside the track and suffered a foot injury following an accident.  "I turned the wick up there at the end and it really came together for us, Earl Pearson, Jr. had the fastest car out there, but we just kept plugging away holding our own until we needed to go for the lead."

Completing the top ten drivers were Mike Duvall, Dennis Franklin, Billy Hicks, Steve Lucas and Earl Pearson, Jr.

In preliminary events for the 43 cars on hand Petey Ivey, Freddy Smith, Scott James and Jeff Cooke won the Heat Races.  The First B-Main went to Ricky Weeks and the second B-Main winner was Chris Madden.

The next Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series event will take place this Saturday Night, April 16 at the legendary Brownstown Speedway in Brownstown, IN.  The 22nd Annual "Hoosier Dirt Classic" will be on tap with a purse of $7,000 to win and $500 to start on the line.  For more information please go towww.brownstownspeedway.com.

Race Summary  Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series  Saturday Night, April 9, 2005  The Dirt Track @ Lowe's Motor Speedway-Concord, NC 

First Heat Race:  Petey Ivey, Mike Duvall, Don O'Neal, Steve Shaver, Chuck Harper, Donnie Moran, John Gill, Raymond Brown III, Bruce Hall, Devin Friese, Brandon Gordon

Second Heat Race:  Freddy Smith, Matt Miller, Jackie Boggs, Shane Tankersley, Doug Sanders, Ricky Weeks, Ricky Elliott, John Mallett, Dennis Franklin, Dan Breuer, Evan Harrell

Third Heat Race:  Scott James, Randle Chupp, Tim Dohm, Billy Hicks, Patrick Sheltra, Chris Madden, Stacy Holmes, Brandon O'Neil, Jeff Smith, Noel Tucker, Damon Eller

Forth Heat Race:  Jeff Cooke, Steve Lucas, Michael England, Chuck Southard, Larry Blankenship, Eddie Carrier, Jr., Earl Pearson, Jr., Ray Cook, Terry English, Jimmy Owens

First B-Main:  Ricky Weeks, Donnie Moran, Dennis Franklin, Doug Sanders, Ricky Elliott, Devin Friese, Evan Harrell, Bruce Hall, John Gill, John Mallett, Brandon Gordon, Raymond Brown

Second B-Main Results:  Chris Madden, Earl Pearson, Jr., Patrick Sheltra, Eddie Carrier, Jr., Ray Cook, Jeff Smith, Stacy Holmes, Brandon O'Neil, Damon Eller, Larry Blankenship, Jimmy Owens

Pit Pass Cabarrus Super Nationals Main Event: (40 Laps): Jackie Boggs, Donnie Moran, Chris Madden, Shane Tankersley, Matt Miller, Mike Duvall, Dennis Franklin, Billy Hicks, Steve Lucas, Earl Pearson, Jr., Tim Dohm, Ricky Weeks, Scott James, Chuck Southard, Randle Chupp, Jeff Cooke, Steve Shaver, Terry English, Patrick Sheltra, Freddy Smith, Don O'Neal, Michael England, Eddie Carrier, Jr., Petey Ivey

Race Statistics: Entries: 43 Cautions:  10 Red Flags:  1 Lap Leaders:  Freddy Smith 1-3, Scott James 4, Steve Lucas 5-7, James 8-14, Lucas 15-16, Earl Pearson, Jr. 17-28, Matt Miller 27, Pearson 30-32, Jackie Boggs 33-40 Lucas Oil Rookie of the Race:  Scott James Weld Racing Wheels Hard Charger of the Race:  Donnie Moran (advanced 17 positions) started 19th and finished 2nd Provisionals:  Terry English and Eddie Carrier, Jr.

TAMPA, FL (February 12, 2005)- In an incredible drive to the front Don O’Neal of Martinsville, IN came from 25th position to win the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series event on Saturday Night at the East Bay Raceway Park as the 29th Annual Winternationals ended for the Late Models.  The 40 year old driver earned $12,000 for his victory as he became the first repeat winner of the week with his 11th career win at East Bay tying him with Billy Moyer on the all-time win list.  O’Neal would start 20th in the race, stop for a flat tire on lap 14 , pit and then return to the race restarting in 25th place and passed race leader, Steve Francis on lap 70.  O’Neal drove his C.J. Rayburn Monte Carlo powered by a Jay Dickens Racing Engines to victory lane with sponsorship assistance from A-1 Auto Salvage, Living Room Center, O’Neal Wood Products, All Star Performance, Hoosier Racing Tires, Ken Schrader Racing and Fast Graphix.  Donnie Moran of Dresden, OH started 21stand finished second in the PBM Performance Products, SMS Racing Engines, MasterSbilt Monte Carlo with third place going to Brian Birkhofer of Muscatine, IA in the Daufeldt Transport, Pro Power Engines, MasterSbilt Ford Taurus.  The fourth place finisher was Steve Francis of Ashland, KY in the Valvoline, Gary Stanton Racing Engines, Rocket Dodge Intrepid R/T and rounding out the top five was Rick Eckert of York, PA in the Raye Vest Excavating, Cornett Racing Engines, Rocket Ford Taurus.  A total of 93 cars were on hand for the Saturday finale of the Lucas Oil NARA DirtCar Series as 140 different drivers raced with the series during the week.

The 75 lap race got off to a roaring start with Billy Moyer and Scott Bloomquist occupying the front row as the two Hall of Famers roared off at the drop of the green flag as Bloomquist would gain the lead heading into turn number one.  Bloomquist then opened up a two to three car length advantage over Moyer, who was running in second place.  A torrid pace was being set by the drivers before a lap four caution for a flat tire on Scott James’ stalled car slowed the action.  When the race resumed it was still Bloomquist holding the lead with Moyer, Brian Birkhofer, Steve Francis and Jimmy Mars in the top five.  A yellow for Shannon Babb on lap seven again would bring a double file restart,  The race for third would change on lap 10 when Francis went by Birkhofer for third place.  On the restarts Bloomquist would get away from Moyer, but now Francis and Moyer would go at it with contact on a restart shuffling both cars back a few spots.  A yellow on lap 12 for R.J. Conley slowed the action again.  Two more laps in the record books would get recorded before O’Neal stopped with a flat tire as he would go pitside for a tire change rejoining the field in the 25thposition.  The race would then see a stretch of solid green flag racing with Jimmy Mars now up to second place just ahead of Francis.  Francis would race Mars into the turns and pass him on lap 21 and bring Birkhofer along with him.  Francis then would start to challenge Bloomquist for the lead by the 25th lap.  Francis was putting the heat on Bloomquist and went around him for the lead on lap 30.  When Bloomquist fell to second he would run three more laps until he slowed dramatically on the back stretch and head to the infield.  Birkhofer would go to second with Mars, Rick Eckert and Shannon Babb now in the top five.  A yellow for Rick Aukland, who lost a wheel on the front stretch in lap 36 would slow the heated action.  The race would go three more laps green until Matt Miller came to a halt in turn four necessitating another caution flag.  With 35 laps to go Francis would hold the lead with Birkhofer running in second, Mars was third with O’Neal charging from the tail to go to fourth with Babb in fifth.  Both O’Neal and Babb had made their way into the top five after pitting for flat tires.  O’Neal would get by Mars for third on lap 48 and Babb would get by Mars a lap later.

With 25 laps remaining it was still Francis showing the way with Birkhofer in second followed by O’Neal, Babb and Mars.  A yellow for Brady Smith on lap 53 would slow Francis only momentarily as on the restarts Francis would pull away from his competition.  O’Neal would set sail moving to second on lap 54 overhauling Birkhofer for second place.  O’Neal had begun to show smoke from out of the number 71 for the last several laps, but he kept his foot in as he and Babb would race side by side for second place as Babb slid by O’Neal for second briefly for two laps.  O’Neal would regain the spot a lap later on the 67th circuit.  O’Neal then really put the pressure on Francis for the lead and despite his smoking racer which had dropped a cylinder he was still one of the fastest cars on the track.  O’Neal made his move for the lead sliding in front of Francis in turn number four on lap 70 as he would pass him for the lead.  O’Neal then would cap off an exciting race as he would go on to take the victory leading the last five laps of the race.  Moran made it to second from 21st passing Francis with four laps to go as Birkhofer would also get by Francis in the latter stages of the race to finish third.  Francis wound up fourth with Rick Eckert scored for fifth.

Completing the top were Dan Schlieper, Eddie Carrier, Jr., R.J. Conley, Shannon Babb and Earl Pearson, Jr.

In preliminary events Matt Miller was the fast timer with a lap of 15.007 seconds.  The six heat races were taken by Francis, Birkhofer, Butch McGill, Dennis Erb, Jr., Scott Bloomquist and Billy Moyer.  The first B-Main went to Earl Pearson, Jr. with the second B-Main going to Don O’Neal.  The other B-Main winners who advanced to the 75 lap feature were Donnie Moran and Jason Montgomery.

Race Summary  Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series  Saturday Night, February 12, 2005 East Bay Raceway Park

Fast Time:  Matt Miller  15.007 seconds

First Heat:  1) Steve Francis  2) Jimmy Mars  3) R.J. Conley  4) Matt Miller  5) Dan Stone  6) Don O’Neal  7) Victor Lee  8) Greggie Oliver  9) Jackie Boggs  10) Jason Smith  11) Mike Mataragas  12) Chris Conley  13) Johnny Chastain  14) Kristin Flory  15) Michael Jackson  16) Tom Turner

Second Heat:  1) Brian Birkhofer  2) Davey Johnson  3) Eddie Carrier, Jr.  4) Michael England  5) Rod Conley  6) John Mason  7) Brian Shirley  8)  Roger Crouse  9) Sonny Conley  10) Anthony White  11) Matt Hubbard  12) Rick Sowders  13) Evan Herrell  14) Terry Casey  15) Shannon Babb

Third Heat:  1) Butch McGill  2) Rick Eckert  3) Terry English  4) Billy Drake  5) Earl Pearson, Jr.  6) Shane Tankersley  7) Jayme Zidar  8) Robbie Blair  9)  Keith Nosbisch  10) Ray Cook  11) Garrett Durrett  12) Greg Johnson  13) Steve Radich  14) Steve Hillard  15) Mike Hammerle

Fourth Heat:  1) Dennis Erb, Jr.  2) Steve Shaver  3) Tim McCreadie  4) Donnie Moran  5) Eric Jacobsen  6) Mark Voigt  7) Freddy Smith  8) Roy Deese, Jr.  9) Rohn Moon  10) Dave Hess, Jr.  11) Josh Manning  12) Brent Robinson  13) Jon Krogstad  14) Tim Dohm

Fifth Heat:  1) Scott Bloomquist  2) Rick Aukland  3) Darren Miller  4) Corey Conley  5) Josh Richards  6) Scott James  7) Randy Korte  8)  Delmas Conley  9)  Wes Steidinger  10) Ronnie DeHaven, Jr.  11) Pat Doar  12) Jason Flory  13) Randy Lucas  14) John VanDenBerg

Sixth Heat:  1) Billy Moyer  2) Brady Smith  3) Dan Schlieper  4) Jason Montgomery  5) Anthony Rushing  6) Shane Clanton  7) Ricky Elliott  8) Trent Follmer  9) Mike Benedum  10) Bill Cunningham  11) Russ Scheffler  12) Wayne Johnson  13) Jeff Gress  14) Ronnie Smith

First B-Main:  1) Earl Pearson, Jr.  2) Matt Miller  3) Keith Nosbisch  4) Rod Conley  5) Sonny Conley  6) Evan Herrell  7) Mike Mataragas  8) Michael Jackson  9) Rick Sowders  10) Steve Radich  11) Victor Lee  12) Greggie Oliver  13) Shane Tankerseley  14) Tom Turner  15) Ray Cook  16) Michael England  17) Roger Crouse

Second B-Main:  1) Don O’Neal  2) John Mason  3) Brian Shirley  4) Jackie Boggs  5) Jayme Zidar  6)  Garrett Durrett  7) Anthony White  8) Johnny Chastain  9)  Matt Hubbard  10) Kristin Flory  11) Mike Hammerle  12) Greg Johnson  13) Billy Drake  14) Dan Stone

Third B-Main:  1) Donnie Moran  2) Josh Richards   3) Anthony Rushing  4) Corey Conley  5) Delmas Conley  6) Wes Steidinger  7) Brent Robinson  8) Ronnie Smith  9)  Randy Lucas  10) Shane Clanton  11) Josh Manning  12) Jeff Gress  13) Jason Flory  14) Freddy Smith

Fourth B-Main:  1) Jason Montgomery   2) Scott James  3) Trent Follmer  4) Tim Dohm  5)  Eric Jacobsen  6)  Rohn Moon  7) Russ Scheffler  8) Dave Hess, Jr.  9)  Pat Doar  10) Wayne Johnson  11) Randy Korte  12) Ricky Elliott  13) Mark Voigt  14) Jon Krogstad

Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series A-Main (75 Laps):  1) Don O’Neal  2) Donnie Moran  3) Brian BIrkhofer  4) Steve Francis  5) Rick Eckert  6) Dan Schlieper  7)  Eddie Carrier, Jr.  8) R.J. Conley  9) Shannon Babb 10) Earl Pearson, Jr.  11) Jimmy Mars  12) Dennis Erb, Jr.  13) Tim McCreadie  14) Scott Bloomquist  15) Davey Johnson  16) Steve Shaver  17) Terry English  18) Brady Smith  19) Darren Miller  20) Matt Miller  21) Rick Aukland  22) Jason Montgomery  23) Shane Clanton  24) Billy Moyer  25) Butch McGill  26) Scott James

Race Statistics Entries:  93 Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Provisionals:  Matt Miller and Shannon Babb R.A.C.E. Provisionals:  Shane Clanton and Scott James Lap Leaders:  Bloomquist 1-29, Francis 30-69, O’Neal 70-75 PPM Racing Products Hard Charger of the Race:  O’Neal (advanced 19 positions)

TAMPA, FL (February 11, 2005)- Steve Francis of Ashland, KY become the fifth different winner in five nights as the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series completed another exciting night of Dirt Late Model Racing during the 29th Annual Winternationals on Friday Night at the East Bay Raceway Park.  The 37 year old racer earned his first career Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series win and his 6th career victory at East Bay.  Francis had to fight off determined charges from Shannon Babb and Earl Pearson, Jr. to take the $10,000 triumph.  Francis drove the Valvoline, Freeport Recycling Center, Banshee Graphics, Gary Stanton Racing Engines, MOPAR Rocket Dodge Intrepid to the victory in the 50 lap feature race.  Babb gave Francis a scare in the closing laps nearly overtaking him for the win.  Babb of Moweaqua, IL finished second in the Arkansas Motors/Jay Dickens Racing Engines/C.J. Rayburn Monte Carlo.  Third place went to Pearson of Jacksonville, FL in the Carlton and Kemp Lamm owned/Lucas Oil Products/Rocket Ford Taurus.  Fourth place at the finish was Matt Miller of Waterville, OH in the Denny Thornton owned McCullough Industries/Russell Baker Racing Engines/Rocket Grand Prix and Terry English of Benton, KY took fifth in the Arizona Sport Shirts/Rayburn Automotive/C.J. Rayburn Monte Carlo.  On Friday Night there were 100 cars entered for the racing events marking the fifth straight night there have been 100 or more cars on hand for the Winternationals.

Francis would bolt to the lead right from the start of the 50 lap main event with Scott James riding in second followed by Don O’Neal, Eddie Carrier, Jr. and Jason Montgomery.  Francis and James would go side by side for the lead on a couple of occasions early on, but Francis would gain a two car length lead by the sixth circuit.  O’Neal then would challenge James for second racing side y side with his fellow Hoosier State driver.  With Francis in front and a side by side battle going on between James and O’Neal, there were several drivers making their way to the front including Earl Pearson, Jr. Shannon Babb, Dennis Erb, Jr. and Matt Miller.  Pearson had started ninth and broke into the top five early on and started to put the heat on Carrier for fourth.  With 15 laps in the books it was still Francis showing the way followed by James, O’Neal, Carrier and Pearson.  The first caution of the race came out for a stopped Davey Johnson in turn one.  Right after the restart O’Neal would pass James for second with the racing still going on at a rapid pace with two wide racing common through the field.  The next yellow would fly for O’Neal who had a flat tire on lap 28 and stopped on the race track.

After O’Neal went to the pit area Pearson would now be the new second place runner with Carrier in third followed by James and Erb.  With 20 laps remaining in the race Francis still showed the way with Pearson putting the pressure on Francis for the point.  At this point all eyes were on Babb as he would go to the top of the race track and storm to the front passing Miller and Erb to take third.  Babb and Pearson then hooked up and started to track down Francis.  The final caution came out of lap 40 for mechanical problems on James’ car ending his night.  This would set up a ten lap dash to the finish between Francis, Pearson and Babb that had the fans on their feet.  Babb would take the high line by Pearson for second on lap 42 and with eight laps to go he had his sights set on getting by Francis.  Babb would slide to the outside of Francis on a couple of occasions looking like he would take the high side past Francis, but Francis would hold his low line around the race track and despite the best efforts of Babb, Francis would be the first driver to cross the line and take the win.  Babb and Pearson’s exciting charges were noted with a standing ovation from the large crowd on hand.  “It feels good to finally win one this week,” said Francis afterwards.  “I saw the red on the nose of a car and I looked at the scoreboard and I knew it was Shannon so I just tried my hardest to keep my line and I about slipped up there once coming off of four and I thought I was in deep trouble.” Said the smiling Francis in victory lane.

Completing the top ten were Dennis Erb, Jr., Anthony Rushing, Tim Dohm, Billy Moyer and Rick Eckert.

John Mason would be the Fast Timer with a lap of 15.420 seconds.  The heat race winners were Eddie Carrier, Jr., Scott James, Babb, Jason Montgomery, Francis and Don O’Neal.  The first B-Main was won by Davey Johnson with the second B-Main taken by Butch McGill.  The other two B-Mains were captured by Tim Dohm and Brian Shirley, who both advanced to the feature event.  Steve Hillard won the Strawberry Dash.

Race Summary  Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series  Friday Night, February 11, 2005 East Bay Raceway Park

Fast Time:  John Mason  15.420

First Heat:  1) Eddie Carrier, Jr.  2) Trent Follmer  3) Terry English  4) John Mason  5) Billy Moyer  6) Butch McGill  7) Bill Cunningham  8) Pat Doar  9) Keith Nosbisch  10) Jeff Gress  11) Mike Benedum  12) Chris Conley  13) Steve Harvey  14) Brad Neat  15) Joe Morris  16) Dean Bowen  17) Ronnie DeHaven, Jr.

Second Heat:  1) Scott James  2) Darren Miller  3) Anthony Rushing  4) Brady Smith  5) Brian Birkhofer  6) Michael England  7) Terry Casey  8) Rick Aukland  9) Randy Korte  10) Johnny Chastain  11) Sonny Conley  12) John Kuchar  13) Mike Hammerle  14) Michael Jackson  15) Steve Hillard  16) John Gill  17) Wes Steidinger

Third Heat:  1) Shannon Babb  2) Earl Pearson, Jr.  3) R.J. Conley  4) Shane Clanton  5) Davey Johnson  6) Dale McDowell  7) Tim McCreadie  8) Freddy Smith  9) Rod Conley  10) Josh Richards  11) Dan Schlieper  12) Steve Lucas  13) Jayme Zidar  14) Bryan Collins  15) Jason Flory  16) Scott Riggs

Fourth Heat:  1) Jason Montgomery  2) Jimmy Mars  3) Scott Bloomquist  4) Mark Voigt  5) John VanDenBerg  6) Delmas Conley  7) Darin Meierotto  8) Roy Deese, Jr.  9) Russ Scheffler  10) Zach Carney  11) Corey Conley  12) Frank Smith  13) Eric Jacobsen  14) Ronnie Smith  15) Dennis Little

Fifth Heat:  1) Steve Francis  2) Billy Drake  3) Dennis Erb, Jr.  4) Tim Dohm  5) Rick Eckert  6) Ray Cook  7) Jason Smith  8) Greg Johnson  9) Evan Herrell  10) Bo Feathers  11) Garrett Durrett  12) Anthony White  13) Victor Lee  14) Josh Manning  15) Carl Edwards  16) Mike Mataragas

Sixth Heat:  1) Don O’Neal  2) Matt Miller  3) Donnie Moran  4) Steve Shaver  5) Rohn Moon  6) Jackie Boggs  7) Wayne Johnson  8) Brian Shirley  9) Ricky Elliott  10) Dave Hess  11) Dan Stone  12) Brent Robinson  13) Matt Hubbard  14) Kristin Flory  15) Marshall Austin  16) Greggie Oliver

Strawberry Dash:  1) Steve Hilllard  2) Evan Herrell  3) Anthony White  4) Kristin Flory

Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series A-Main (30 Laps):  1)  Steve Francis  2) Shannon Babb  3) Earl Pearson, Jr.  4) Matt Miller  5) Terry English  6) Dennis Erb, Jr.  7) Anthony Rushing  8) Tim Dohm  9) Billy Moyer  10) Rick Eckert  11) Darren Miller  12) Scott Bloomquist  13) Steve Shaver  14) Dan Schlieper  15) Trent Follmer  16) Eddie Carrier, Jr.  17) Jimmy Mars  18) Donnie Moran  19) Butch McGill  20) Brian Shirley  21) Scott James  22) Billy Drake  23) Don O’Neal  24) Davey Johnson  25) R.J. Conley  26) Jason Montgomery

Race Statistics Entries:  100 Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Provisionals:  Rick Eckert and Steve Shaver R.A.C.E. Provisionals: Billy Moyer and Dan Schlieper Lap Leaders:  Francis  1-50 Cautions:  3 Hard Charger of the Race:  Dennis Erb, Jr. (advanced 11 positions)