KNOXVILLE, IA (September 28, 2012) – Scoring his first career win at Knoxville Raceway, Mike Marlar of Winfield, TN completed a 25-lap journey to the checkered flag, leading all the way. Marlar, who started third in the event, bolted to the lead on the opening circuit and never looked back in taking his second Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series event of the season.
Steve Francis of Ashland, KY came home in second followed by Brady Smith of Solon Springs, WI; Jimmy Owens of Newport, TN; and Jonathan Davenport of Blairsville, GA.
“I have to thank Norman Bryson for giving me this opportunity to drive his race car, we won the Hillbilly 100 after starting last and to come here tonight and win at Knoxville, it’s sweet, it is one of the historic tracks in racing and to bring this Rocket Chassis to victory lane here is something I will never forget.”
“The car took off great at the start, it felt like it kind of slowed down there a little bit at the end, but I guess I had a big enough of a lead, that it didn’t really matter, but it is something to work on for tomorrow night’s 100-lapper,” said the 34-year-old racer. “I have to thank my sponsors SEG, LLC, Keyser Mfg, Integra Shocks, VP Fuels, GW Performance, Clements Race Engines and the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption for all of their support.”
Francis, who finished third on Thursday Night, finished one spot higher in Friday’s preliminary to set-up a good starting spot for Saturday’s $40,000 to win finale. “We have really run well here this week, there are a few things we need to tweak on the car to get it to turn better, it’s Barry’s (Wright) birthday today and I was hoping to bring home a victory for him said the driver of the Valvoline, Barry Wright Race Cars Chevrolet.
Smith, who won the Lucas Oil Late Model Knoxville Nationals event back in 2007 was happy with his run in the Big Red Motorsports, Team Zero by Bloomquist entry. “Oh we are real happy with everything tonight, Steve and I had a great race for second, but neither of us had anything for Mike, congrats to him for the victory.”
Completing the top ten were Red Buck Fast Qualifier Brian Shirley of Chatham, IL; Scott Bloomquist of Mooresburg, TN; Earl Pearson Jr. of Jacksonville, FL; Tyler Reddick of Corning, CA; and Jason Feger of Bloomington, IL.
In preliminary action, Scott Bloomquist set the Red Buck Fast Time amongst the 80 entrants, with a lap of 17.277 seconds. Brian Birkhofer, Jesse Stovall, Jimmy Mars, Billy Moyer, and Tyler Reddick won their respective Heat Races. Earl Pearson Jr. won the D-main; Frank Heckenast Jr. won the C-Main, and Brady Smith won the B-Main.
We will resume the 9th Annual Lucas Oil “Late Model Knoxville Nationals” at Knoxville Raceway tomorrow night in Knoxville, IA. The event will include Red Buck Time Trials, Heats, Last Chance Races, and another 25-Lap, $7,000-to-win A-Main! On Saturday, the weekend will be capped off with Last Chance Races and the 100-Lap, $40,000-to-win Main Event! For more information, log onto www.knoxvilleraceway.com.
For the latest breaking news on the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, log onto www.lucasdirt.com and be sure to follow the series at www.facebook.com/lucasdirt and www.twitter.com/#!/lucasdirt. Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Race Summary Friday Night, September 28th, 2012 9th Annual Lucas Oil “Late Model Knoxville Nationals” Knoxville Raceway, Knoxville, IA
Wiles Driveshafts First Heat (12 Laps – Top 4 Transfer):
| 1 | 99 | Donnie Moran |
| 2 | 14m | Morgan Bagley |
| 3 | 5 | Jared Landers |
| 4 | 3s | Brian Shirley |
| 5 | 25S | Chad Simpson |
| 6 | 18e | Eric Wells |
| 7 | 56e | Andy Eckrich |
| 8 | 89 | Mike Spatola |
| 9 | 71 | Don O’Neal |
| 10 | 21b | Rich Bell |
| 11 | 58e | Dave Eckrich |
| 12 | 93 | Jay Johnson |
| 13 | 16b | Tyler Bruening |
| 14 | 18J | Chase Junghaus |
| 15 | 56w | Mike Wallace |
| 16 | 33 | Paul Glendenning |
U. S. Steel Second Heat (12 Laps – Top 4 Transfer):
| 1 | 99 | Donnie Moran |
| 2 | 14m | Morgan Bagley |
| 3 | 5 | Jared Landers |
| 4 | 3s | Brian Shirley |
| 5 | 25S | Chad Simpson |
| 6 | 18e | Eric Wells |
| 7 | 56e | Andy Eckrich |
| 8 | 89 | Mike Spatola |
| 9 | 71 | Don O’Neal |
| 10 | 21b | Rich Bell |
| 11 | 58e | Dave Eckrich |
| 12 | 93 | Jay Johnson |
| 13 | 16b | Tyler Bruening |
| 14 | 18J | Chase Junghaus |
| 15 | 56w | Mike Wallace |
| 16 | 33 | Paul Glendenning |
Simpson Performance Products Third Heat (12 Laps – Top 4 Transfer):
| 1 | 1v | Will Vaught |
| 2 | 2s | Brady Smith |
| 3 | 20 | Jimmy Owens |
| 4 | 13 | JR Hotovy |
| 5 | 11h | Austin Hubbard |
| 6 | 32C | Bobby Pierce |
| 7 | 2a | John Anderson |
| 8 | 15b | Brian Birkhofer |
| 9 | 3E | Kevin Sather |
| 10 | 25L | Steve Lance |
| 11 | 15c | Curt Schroeder |
| 12 | 22 | Jill George |
| 13 | 5m | Mike Fryer |
| 14 | 28m | Jimmy Mars |
| 15 | 56x | Chris Spieker |
| 16 | 55 | Duane Treadwell |
HAWK Brakes Fourth Heat (12 Laps – Top 4 Transfer):
| 1 | 1v | Will Vaught |
| 2 | 2s | Brady Smith |
| 3 | 20 | Jimmy Owens |
| 4 | 13 | JR Hotovy |
| 5 | 11h | Austin Hubbard |
| 6 | 32C | Bobby Pierce |
| 7 | 2a | John Anderson |
| 8 | 15b | Brian Birkhofer |
| 9 | 3E | Kevin Sather |
| 10 | 25L | Steve Lance |
| 11 | 15c | Curt Schroeder |
| 12 | 22 | Jill George |
| 13 | 5m | Mike Fryer |
| 14 | 28m | Jimmy Mars |
| 15 | 56x | Chris Spieker |
| 16 | 55 | Duane Treadwell |
Wiles Driveshafts Fifth Heat (12 Laps – Top 4 Transfer):
| 1 | 18 | Shannon Babb |
| 2 | 25 | Jason Feger |
| 3 | 11T | Tyler Reddick |
| 4 | 7R | Kent Robinson |
| 5 | 31u | Jason Utter |
| 6 | 32S | Chris Simpson |
| 7 | 58X | Ray Guss, Jr. |
| 8 | 98 | Jason Rauen |
| 9 | 5d | John Duty |
| 10 | 93m | Ray Moore |
| 11 | 24 | Ryan Unzicker |
| 12 | 72 | John Mason |
| 13 | 20x | Jake Meier |
| 14 | 7 | Chad Chenoweth |
| 15 | 14w | Dustin Walker |
JRi Shocks B-Main (15 Laps – Top 4 Transfer):
| 1 | 50 | Denny Eckrich |
| 2 | 15b | Brian Birkhofer |
| 3 | 99JR | Frank Heckenast, Jr. |
| 4 | 2a | John Anderson |
| 5 | 28e | Dennis Erb, Jr. |
| 6 | 23 | John Blankenship |
| 7 | 18e | Eric Wells |
| 8 | 11h | Austin Hubbard |
| 9 | 25S | Chad Simpson |
| 10 | 89 | Mike Spatola |
| 11 | 51 | Matt Furman |
| 12 | 32C | Bobby Pierce |
| 13 | 56e | Andy Eckrich |
| 14 | 58X | Ray Guss, Jr. |
| 15 | 31u | Jason Utter |
| 16 | 48 | Tim Lance |
| 17 | 71 | Don O’Neal |
| 18 | 32S | Chris Simpson |
| 19 | 98 | Jason Rauen |
| 20 | 42c | Terry Casey |
| 21 | 58e | Dave Eckrich |
| 22 | 6s | Jesse Stovall |
PAC Racing Springs C-Main (15 Laps – Top 4 Transfer):
| 1 | 21 | Billy Moyer |
| 2 | 71 | Don O’Neal |
| 3 | 58e | Dave Eckrich |
| 4 | 21JR | Billy Moyer, Jr. |
| 5 | 5d | John Duty |
| 6 | 90 | Lance Matthees |
| 7 | 21b | Rich Bell |
| 8 | 1m | Rob Moss |
| 9 | 36 | Jeff Larson |
| 10 | 9t | Tim Isenberg |
| 11 | 16b | Tyler Bruening |
| 12 | 20x | Jake Meier |
| 13 | 3E | Kevin Sather |
| 14 | 78 | Rick Wendling |
| 15 | 1QT | Brian Diede |
| 16 | 72 | John Mason |
| 17 | 25L | Steve Lance |
| 18 | 15c | Curt Schroeder |
| 19 | 56x | Chris Spieker |
| 20 | 3x | Skip Frey |
| 21 | 93 | Jay Johnson |
| 22 | 22 | Jill George |
| 23 | 93m | Ray Moore |
| 24 | 24 | Ryan Unzicker |
JRi Shocks First D-Main (12 Laps – Top 4 Transfer):
| 1 | 16b | Tyler Bruening |
| 2 | 36 | Jeff Larson |
| 3 | 56x | Chris Spieker |
| 4 | 20x | Jake Meier |
| 5 | 18J | Chase Junghaus |
| 6 | 55 | Duane Treadwell |
| 7 | 19L | Scott Lewis |
| 8 | 7 | Chad Chenoweth |
| 9 | 14w | Dustin Walker |
| 10 | 56w | Mike Wallace |
| 11 | 44zo | Alonzo Grosse |
| 12 | 22m | Charlie McKenna |
| 13 | 10c | Junior Coover |
| 14 | 33 | Paul Glendenning |
Feature Finish – 25 Laps
| FINISH | START | CAR # | DRIVER NAME | HOMETOWN |
| 1 | 3 | 5b | Mike Marlar | Winfield, TN |
| 2 | 5 | 15 | Steve Francis | Ashland, KY |
| 3 | 6 | 2s | Brady Smith | Solon Springs, WI |
| 4 | 7 | 20 | Jimmy Owens | Newport, TN |
| 5 | 10 | 15d | Jonathan Davenport | Blairsville, GA |
| 6 | 8 | 3s | Brian Shirley | Chatham, IL |
| 7 | 11 | 0 | Scott Bloomquist | Mooresburg, TN |
| 8 | 18 | 44 | Earl Pearson, Jr. | Jacksonville, FL |
| 9 | 9 | 11T | Tyler Reddick | Corning, CA |
| 10 | 12 | 25 | Jason Feger | Bloomington, IL |
| 11 | 16 | 57J | Bub McCool | Vicksburg, MS |
| 12 | 22 | 15b | Brian Birkhofer | Muscatine, IA |
| 13 | 4 | 7R | Kent Robinson | Bloomington, IN |
| 14 | 14 | 18 | Shannon Babb | Mowequa, IL |
| 15 | 13 | 1v | Will Vaught | Crane, MO |
| 16 | 2 | 14m | Morgan Bagley | Tyler, TX |
| 17 | 19 | 39 | Tim McCreadie | Watertown, NY |
| 18 | 23 | 99JR | Frank Heckenast, Jr. | Frankfort, IL |
| 19 | 1 | 15R | Mark Burgtorf | Quincy, IL |
| 20 | 17 | 5 | Jared Landers | Batesville, AR |
| 21 | 15 | 99 | Donnie Moran | Dresden, OH |
| 22 | 24 | 2a | John Anderson | Omaha, NE |
| 23 | 21 | 50 | Denny Eckrich | Tiffan, IA |
| 24 | 20 | 13 | JR Hotovy | Hartford, MI |