Josh Richards Collects First Lucas Dirt Win of 2021

TAMPA, FL (January 28, 2021) – Josh Richards joined both Tyler Erb and Stormy Scott as drivers who started ninth but came home with the win at East Bay Raceway Park. The 2017 Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series National Champion started inside of the fifth row to score a feature win this week.

Richards took the lead on lap seven from Mark Whitener and then proceeded to lead the rest of the way to score his 32nd career win on the LOLMDS tour and his eighth career triumph at East Bay Raceway Park. Brandon Overton crossed the finish line a little over a second behind the winner, in second. Hudson O’Neal finished in third followed by Brian Shirley and Devin Moran.

Whitener was looking for the biggest win of his super late model career and bolted to the lead at the start on the second main event of the night. Richards quickly went to the front and was second by the fourth circuit. Richards made his move on Whitener, grabbing the lead with seven laps scored.

Overton moved to second on lap nine while Whitener remained in the top three until he suffered a flat tire with five laps to go. A caution with one lap to go set-up a dash to the finish with Richards holding off Overton for the victory.

Richards went to Lucas Oil Victory Lane piloting a brand new race car. “I was really frustrated in that first race. I felt like we had a really good car, but we had to take a provisional and we moved up a little and then we just ended up destroying our primary car in a wreck. I can’t thank the Mason Zeigler crew enough for all of their help in getting this thing ready for the second feature. I felt like in then first few laps it was going to be critical to get to the front and it paid off.”

Overton is the current series Point Leader heading into the final two nights of racing this week. “I tried to not make any mistakes and then had to hope we still had enough air in the tires to make it to the end. I was worried about my left rear tire, we went soft on it, but it held up. I was scared to death I was going to get a flat. So, I just eased up on the restarts to try and save them.”

O’Neal earned his second podium finish for Double Down Motorsports so far this week. “I was very concerned about my tires. You try to drive it straight and keep my tires underneath of me for a good part of the race. We didn’t have a very good first feature tonight, but we rebounded nicely in the second round.”

The winner’s Clint Bowyer Racing Rocket Chassis is powered by a Cornett Racing Engine and is sponsored by iRacing, Rush Truck Center, Big River Steel, Cometic Gasket, and Ford Performance.

Completing the top ten were Ricky Thornton Jr. Frank Heckenast Jr., Kyle Bronson, Brandon Sheppard, and Jimmy Owens.

Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series 
Race Summary 
Wrisco Industries 45th Annual Winter Nationals – Presented by Lucas Oil
Wednesday, January 27, 2021
East Bay Raceway Park – Tampa, FL

Allstar Performance Time Trials
Fast Time Group A: Brandon Sheppard / 14.385 seconds
Fast Time Group B: Mark Whitener / 14.236 seconds (overall) 

Penske Race Shocks Heat Race #1 Finish (10 Laps, Top 3 Transfer):  1. 1S-Brandon Sheppard[1]; 2. 28E-Dennis Erb Jr[2]; 3. 39-Tim McCreadie[4]; 4. 0E-Rick Eckert[3]; 5. 12D-Doug Drown[5]; 6. 22-Gregg Satterlee[7]; 7. 56JR-Tony Jackson Jr[8]; 8. 14G-Joe Godsey[6]; 9. 6S-Blake Spencer[9]; 10. 27J-Joe Denby[11]; 11. 0G-Deshawn Gingerich[10]; 12. (DNS) 2X-Devin Dixon; 13. (DNS) 3W-Brennon Willard

Summit Racing Equipment Heat Race #2 Finish (10 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 32-Bobby Pierce[2]; 2. 14-Josh Richards[1]; 3. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr[3]; 4. 1ST-Johnny Scott[6]; 5. 11H-Spencer Hughes[4]; 6. 2S-Stormy Scott[7]; 7. 16-Tyler Bruening[5]; 8. 81-Jason Riggs[10]; 9. 94M-Jason Miller[8]; 10. 40C-Joel Callahan[9]; 11. 18S-David Seibers[11]; 12. 8-Kyle Strickler[12]

Simpson Race Products Heat Race #3 Finish (10 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 00H-Wil Herrington[2]; 2. 99B-Boom Briggs[4]; 3. 3S-Brian Shirley[1]; 4. 14B-John Baker[3]; 5. 311A-Ashton Winger[5]; 6. 54-David Breazeale[8]; 7. 157-Mike Marlar[6]; 8. 24D-Michael Brown[9]; 9. 2D-Dan Stone[7]; 10. 1G-Ryan King[12]; 11. 14R-Jeff Roth[11]; 12. 17D-Zack Dohm[10]

Ohlins Shocks Heat Race #4 Finish (10 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 385-Mark Whitener[1]; 2. 40B-Kyle Bronson[2]; 3. 9-Devin Moran[4]; 4. 21-Billy Moyer Jr[3]; 5. 111-Steven Roberts[5]; 6. 51-Dean Carpenter[8]; 7. 311-Ken Monahan[7]; 8. J8-Jadon Frame[12]; 9. 1-Earl Pearson Jr[11]; 10. 25Z-Mason Zeigler[6]; 11. 20RT-Ricky Thornton Jr[9]; 12. 51B-Brandon Carpenter[10]

MyRacePass Heat Race #5 Finish (10 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 20-Jimmy Owens[1]; 2. 71-Hudson O'Neal[5]; 3. 18J-Chase Junghans[7]; 4. 81E-Tanner English[2]; 5. 111M-Matthew Lux[8]; 6. 19R-Ryan Gustin[4]; 7. 20B-Todd Brennan[9]; 8. 66C-Matt Cosner[3]; 9. 995-Manny Falcon[11]; 10. 4B-Richie Edwards[6]; 11. 29-Larry Grube[10]; 12. (DNS) KB0-Kerry King

Fast Shafts Heat Race #6 Finish (10 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 76-Brandon Overton[1]; 2. 1T-Tyler Erb[5]; 3. 49-Jonathan Davenport[4]; 4. 7R-Ross Robinson[2]; 5. 00S-Jesse Stovall[9]; 6. 76B-Blair Nothdurft[3]; 7. 8A-Rob Anderzack[7]; 8. 36-Matt Irey[6]; 9. 4S-Danny Snyder[10]; 10. 48-Colton Flinner[11]; 11. (DNS) 212-Josh Putnam

LINE-X B-Main #1 Finish (12 Laps, Top 2 Transfer): 1. 56JR-Tony Jackson Jr[7]; 2. 0E-Rick Eckert[1]; 3. 22-Gregg Satterlee[5]; 4. 11H-Spencer Hughes[4]; 5. 2S-Stormy Scott[6]; 6. 81-Jason Riggs[10]; 7. 12D-Doug Drown[3]; 8. 6S-Blake Spencer[11]; 9. 16-Tyler Bruening[8]; 10. 18S-David Seibers[16]; 11. 27J-Joe Denby[13]; 12. 14G-Joe Godsey[9]; 13. 0G-Deshawn Gingerich[15]; 14. 3W-Brennon Willard[19]; 15. 40C-Joel Callahan[14]; 16. 1ST-Johnny Scott[2]; 17. 94M-Jason Miller[12]; 18. (DNS) 2X-Devin Dixon; 19. (DNS) 8-Kyle Strickler

UNOH B-Main #2 Finish (12 Laps, Top 2 Transfer): 1. 21-Billy Moyer Jr[2]; 2. 14B-John Baker[1]; 3. 111-Steven Roberts[4]; 4. 54-David Breazeale[5]; 5. 20RT-Ricky Thornton Jr[16]; 6. 311-Ken Monahan[8]; 7. 24D-Michael Brown[9]; 8. 1G-Ryan King[13]; 9. 14R-Jeff Roth[15]; 10. 1-Earl Pearson Jr[12]; 11. 311A-Ashton Winger[3]; 12. 157-Mike Marlar[7]; 13. 2D-Dan Stone[11]; 14. 51-Dean Carpenter[6]; 15. J8-Jadon Frame[10]; 16. 51B-Brandon Carpenter[18]; 17. 25Z-Mason Zeigler[14]; 18. 17D-Zack Dohm[17]

Wrisco Industries B-Main #3 Finish (12 Laps, Top 2 Transfer): 1. 81E-Tanner English[1]; 2. 76B-Blair Nothdurft[6]; 3. 00S-Jesse Stovall[4]; 4. 48-Colton Flinner[14]; 5. 111M-Matthew Lux[3]; 6. 7R-Ross Robinson[2]; 7. 20B-Todd Brennan[7]; 8. 4S-Danny Snyder[12]; 9. 36-Matt Irey[10]; 10. 8A-Rob Anderzack[8]; 11. 4B-Richie Edwards[13]; 12. 19R-Ryan Gustin[5]; 13. 66C-Matt Cosner[9]; 14. 995-Manny Falcon[11]; 15. 29-Larry Grube[15]; 16. 212-Josh Putnam[16]; 17. KB0-Kerry King[17]

Lucas Oil Feature Finish (40 Laps): 

Race Statistics
Entrants: 73
Lap Leaders: Mark Whitener (Laps 1 – 6); Josh Richards (Laps 7 – 40)
Wrisco Feature Winner: Josh Richards
Arizona Sport Shirts CJC – Presented by DirtOnDirt Feature Winner: n/a
Brandon Ford TV Challenge Feature Winner: Josh Richards
Margin of Victory: 1.115 seconds
Cautions: Bobby Pierce (Lap 1); Brandon Sheppard (Lap 2); Devin Moran, Tanner English, Tyler Erb, Chase Junghans, Blair Nothdurft, Kyle Strickler, Wil Herrington (Lap 5); Tony Jackson Jr., Kyle Strickler (Lap 8); Tim McCreadie (Lap 29); Mark Whitener (Lap 35); Tyler Erb, John Baker, Chase Junghans (Lap 37); Tanner English (Lap 39)
Series Provisionals: Earl Pearson Jr., Kyle Strickler
Fast Time Provisional: n/a
Series Emergency Provisionals: Mike Marlar, Ricky Thornton Jr.
Track Provisionals: n/a
Berry Barn Pole Award: Mark Whitener
Big River Steel Podium Top 3: Josh Richards, Brandon Overton, Hudson O’Neal
Penske Shocks Top 5: Josh Richards, Brandon Overton, Hudson O’Neal, Brian Shirley, Devin Moran
Optima Batteries Hard Charger of the Race: Ricky Thornton Jr. (Advanced 22 Positions) 
Midwest Sheet Metal Spoiler Challenge Point Leader: n/a
Hot Rod Processing Most Laps Led: Josh Richards (34 Laps)
Sunoco Race for Gas Highest Finisher: Josh Richards
Eibach Springs Rookie of the Race: n/a
Dirty Girl Racewear Fastest Lap of the Race: Josh Richards (Lap #32 – 15.087 seconds)
Fast Shafts Tough Break of the Race: Mark Whitener
Outerwears Crew Chief of the Race: Brian Leonberg
ARP Engine Builder of the Race: Cornett Racing Engines
Miller Welders Chassis Builder of the Race: Rocket Chassis
Dirt Draft Fastest in Hot Laps: Brandon Overton
Time of Race: 45 minutes 57 seconds

Lucas Oil Point Standings:

Wrisco Winternationals Point Standings:

*Results are unofficial until Close of Business on the Tuesday following Race Day*

For the latest breaking news concerning the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, including the latest series standings, 2021 tour schedule, driver information, and more visit the official website at: www.lucasdirt.com.

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Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Official Sponsors Include:

Allstar Performance - The Official Fast Time of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
ARP - The Official Fastener of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
Arizona Sport Shirts - The Original Racing Shirt
Big River Steel - A leading Steel Mill in the flat-rolled steel industry
Brandon Ford - "The Official Pace Truck" of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
Dirt Draft - "The Official Fantasy Sports Provider" of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
DirtonDirt.com - All Late Models. All The Time.
Dixie Chopper - "The Official Mower" of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
E3 Spark Plugs - "The Official Spark Plug" of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
General Tire - Anywhere is Possible
Holmatro - Mastering Power
Hoosier Tire - Tires Designed for Champions
K&N Engineering - "Make your Move" to K&N Performance Filters
Lucas Oil Products - Keep That Engine Alive!
LINE-X - LINE-X Protects
MAVTV - Your motorsports destination
Miller Welders - WE BUILD With You
Nitro-Bee PLUS - "The Official Race Receiver" of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
OPTIMA Batteries - The Ultimate Power Source
ProtectTheHarvest.com - Keeping American traditions alive, for future generations
Rugged Radios - “The Official Communications” of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
Summit Racing Equipment - "Let's Build it Together"
Sunoco Race Fuels - "The Official Fuel" of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
Super Clean - Super Easy. Super Fast. Super Clean!
UNOH - "The Official Educational Partner" of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
Whelen Engineering Company - "The Official Emergency Lighting" of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
Wrisco Industries, Inc. - 100 Years of Industry Experience

Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Marketing Partners Include:

Advanced Powder Coating, Allstar Performance, Arizona Sport Shirts, Automotive Racing Products, Big River Steel, Bilstein, Black Diamond Chassis, Boyd Bilt Fabrication, Brandon Ford, Brodix, Capital Race Cars, Cornett Racing Engines, CP Carrillo Pistons, DirtonDirt.com, DirtCarLift.com, Dirt Draft, Dirty Girl Racewear, Dixie Chopper, E3 Spark Plugs, Earnhardt Technologies Group, Eibach Springs, Etchberger Trucking, Fast Shafts, Fox Shocks, General Tire, Heath Lawson Photography, Holmatro, Hoosier Tire, Hot Rod Processing, Keyser Manufacturing, K&N Engineering, LINE-X, Longhorn Chassis, Lucas Oil Products, MAVTV Motorsports Network, Mega Plumbing of the Carolinas, Midwest Sheet Metal, Miller Welders, MSD Performance, MyRacePass, Nutrien Ag Solutions, Öhlins Shocks, OPTIMA Batteries, Outerwears, Penske Racing Shocks, Performance Bodies, Pit Stop USA, Pro Power Racing Engines, ProtectTheHarvest.com, Pro Things Apparel, Rocket Chassis, Rugged Radios, Schoenfeld Headers, Simpson Race Products, Slicker Graphics, Sunoco Race Fuels, Super Clean, Swift Springs, Stop Tech Brakes, Summit Racing Equipment, Thermo-Tec Automotive Products, UNOH - University of Northwestern Ohio, Vahlco Wheels, Vic Hill Race Engines, Whelen Engineering Company Inc, Wrisco Aluminum, 5150 Race Trailers

About Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series

Founded in 2005, the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series is the nation’s premier dirt late model sanctioning organization.  In 2021, the LOLMDS will sanction 59 feature events, at 30 different venues, across 18 states.  The series is owned by the parent company Lucas Oil Products Inc. and receives national exposure through a TV package filmed, produced and edited by Lucas Oil Production Studios.  LOLMDS events will be broadcast on four TV Networks including CBS, NBC Sports, CBS Sports Network and the MAVTV Motorsports Network. All 59 feature events will be LIVE Streamed on MAVTV Plus. For more information about the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series visit the official website at: www.LucasDirt.com. 

About MAVTV Motorsports Network

MAVTV Motorsports Network is the only television network in the U.S. dedicated exclusively to motorsports. MAVTV offers an unparalleled line-up of exclusive and unique events. MAVTV goes beyond the national mainstream motorsports events to include grassroots racing from across the globe: drag racing, pro motocross, sprint boats, rally cars, short course off-road truck racing, sprint cars, pro pulling, drifting, ice racing, and everything in between. MAVTV knows you don't have to be a race fan to be an automotive enthusiast, which is why we have developed a package of automotive reality and custom build shows that are truly second-to-none. From 24/7 automotive and motorsports content on MAVTV Motorsports Network to the free and exclusive content available on MAVTV Select and the on-demand streaming service of MAVTV Plus, if it has a motor, it's probably on MAVTV - The Motorsports Network!
For more information, visit www.MAVTV.com.

About Lucas Oil Products

Founded in 1989 by Forrest and Charlotte Lucas, Lucas Oil Products, Inc. has established itself as one of the fastest-growing lubrication product lines in the consumer automotive aftermarket, featuring a line of engine oils, greases, gear lubes, problem-solving additives, and car-care products.  Through innovative product research and development, along with aggressive marketing programs, Lucas Oil has established itself as a worldwide leader in the lubrication industry.  Motorsports has always been part of the Lucas Oil culture and the cornerstone of the company's marketing strategy.  Such passion for motorsports has inspired Lucas Oil to sponsor many race teams, events and series at all levels, including, NHRA, IRL, ASCS, NASCAR, IHRA and many more.  Lucas Oil has also taken ownership and operational control of a number of high profile racing properties, such as: Lucas Oil Pro Pulling League, Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, Lucas Oil MLRA, and Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland, MO.

In 2007 Lucas Oil founded its own production house, Lucas Oil Production Studios, dedicated to producing high action motorsports television.  Currently Lucas Oil Production Studios produces over 300 hours of original programming for networks such as CBS, CBS Sports, NBC Sports and MAVTV.  More information about Lucas Oil Products, Inc. visit the company website at:  www.LucasOil.com.