6/14/2013
Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
Breazeale and O’Neal on Front Row for Saturday Nights Clash at the Mag
COLUMBUS, MS (June 14, 2013) – David Breazeale and Don O’Neal will start on the front row Saturday Night for the $20,000 to win “Clash at the Mag” at Magnolia Motor Speedway. Mike Marlar and John Blankenship were also heat race winners will start in the second row for the 100-lap main event.
The four heat race winners redrew for their starting spots after the completion of the night’s race program.
Defending race winner, O’Neal, was the RED BUCK fastest qualifier amongst the 46 entrants. He took the lead at the start of the first heat and fought off an early race challenge from Jared Landers. O’Neal pulled away from Landers in the last half of the 10-lap event to take the win. He drove the Optima Batteries/MasterSbilt House Car. Landers took second followed by Billy Moyer, Jr. and Brian Rickman. Rickman’s brother Rick was running in the fourth and final transfer spot when he lost an engine near the end of the race.
The second heat was a tight battle throughout the entire10 laps, between David Breazeale and Chris Wall. The two drivers ran door to door with Wall pulling even with Breazeale several times during the race. Wall tried one last effort coming off of turn four on the final lap, but fell just short of the win. Breazeale was driving the L&D Trucking, MasterSbilt Chevrolet. Hall of Famer, Billy Moyer withstood a race-long, side-by-side duel with fellow Arkansas driver, Jack Sullivan to grab the third spot.
John Blankenship, who has won two out of the last three Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series events, kept Steve Francis at bay the entire 10 laps of heat number three in the Coal World’s Energy, Rocket Chassis Chevrolet to win the heat. Francis stayed close for most of the race, closing the gap on Blankenship near the end of the 10-lap event. Scott Bloomquist came home third followed by Bub McCool, who was guest driving in one of Leon Henderson’s cars.
The fourth and final heat saw Mike Marlar, driving a Bloomquist Race Car take the lead at the start and win going away. It was the first race for Marlar in a Bloomquist car that was just recently purchased from John Blankenship. Earl Pearson Jr. took the second spot followed by current points leader Jimmy Owens and Eddie Carrier, Jr., who was making his first-ever appearance at the track.
In preliminary action, Don O’Neal set the overall time (Group 46) amongst the 46 entrants, with a lap of 14.077 seconds. Steve Francis set the fastest time in Group B with a time of 14.223 seconds. Don O’Neal, David Breazeale, John Blankenship, and Mike Marlar won their respective heat races.
The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series will be back in action tomorrow night, Saturday, June 15th, to close-out the Clash at the Mag at Magnolia Motor Speedway in Columbus, MS. The event will be packed with B-Mains, and the 100-Lap, $20,000-to-win main event. For more information on Magnolia Motor Speedway, log onto www.magnoliadirt.com.
For the latest breaking news on the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, log onto www.lucasdirt.com and follow the series on www.facebook.com/lucasdirt and www.twitter.com/#!/lucasdirt.
Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
Race Summary
Friday Night, June 14th, 2013
Clash at the Mag – Magnolia Motor Speedway – Columbus, MS
Red Buck Fast Time Group A: Don O’Neal / 14.077 seconds
Red Buck Fast Time Group B: Steve Francis / 14.223 seconds
Wiles Drive Shafts Heat Race #1 (10 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): Don O'Neal, Jared Landers, Billy Moyer Jr., Brian Rickman, Jimmy Cliburn, Chad Thrash, Stacy Taylor, Brian Reese, Jerry Lierly, Leon Henderson Dwayne Britton, Rick Rickman
Eibach Springs Heat Race #2 (10 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): David Breazeale, Chris Wall, Billy Moyer, Jack Sullivan, Randy Weaver, Chris Brown, BJ Robinson, Chris Smith, Robbie Starnes, Jamie Tollison, Randy Boyd Thompson
Simpson Performance Products Heat Race #3 (10 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): John Blankenship, Steve Francis, Scott Bloomquist, Bub McCool, Dennis Erb Jr., Dillon Wood, Justin McRee, Scott Dedwylder, Neil Baggett, Henry Cooper, Patrick Michel, Clint Smith
FK Rod Ends Heat Race #4 (10 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): Mike Marlar, Earl Pearson Jr., Jimmy Owens, Eddie Carrier Jr., Eric Cooley, Ronny Lee Hollingsworth, Ray Moore, Wendell Wallace, Jason Cliburn, Dane Dacus, Robbie Stuart
Submitted By: Jeremy Shields