7/22/2006
Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
Birkhofer Completes Weekend Sweep of Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series With Win at Lucas Oil Speedway
WHEATLAND, MO (July 22, 2006)- Coming off of an impressive win on Friday Night at Knoxville (IA) Raceway Brian Birkhofer picked up his second $10,000 victory of the weekend on Saturday Night as he won the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series event at the "Diamond of Dirt Tracks" Lucas Oil Speedway.
Birkhofer survived a three wide race for the lead with one lap to go and came home the winner barely edging out Don O'Neal and Scott Bloomquist for the victory before a jam-packed audience. The 34-year-old Muscatine, IA native piloted his J&J Steel/Simon Trucking Driver Recruitment/Daufeldt Transport/TB and Company/Bryant Roofing/Pratt Motorsports/ASI Racewear/Community Bank of Muscatine/JC Dubil Race Parts/McDonald's of the Quad Cities/Pro Power Engines/Rocket Chevrolet to the winner's circle for his fourth career Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series win. O'Neal of Martinsville, IN was second in the Randall Eller/Independence Lumber/MasterSbilt Monte Carlo with Bloomquist of Mooresburg, TN finishing third in his Miller Brothers Coal/Vic Hill Racing Engines/Bloomquist Race Cars Chevrolet. Completing the top five were 16th starting Jimmy Mars of Menomonie, WI in the Deppe Enterprises/Heeg Well Drilling/MasterSbilt from Mars Monte Carlo and Terry Phillips of Springfield, MO in the Presley's Country Jubilee/Hatfield Racing Engines/GRT. A total of 42 cars were on hand at the Forrest Lucas owned facility, which hosted the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series for the very first time. The event was also a points race for the O'Reilly Auto Parts MLRA Series.
The 50 lapper, which was taped before the cameras of SPEED Channel, would see Birkhofer start from the pole alongside Don O'Neal. O'Neal would be credited with leading the opening lap with Birkhofer, Terry Phillips, Matt Miller and Ronny Lee Hollingsworth the top five. However by the second go round Birkhofer would be the new man in the lead with O'Neal in second. The top five drivers would remain in the same running order up until the ninth circuit.
At this point in the race Birkhofer was steadily holding a two to three car length advantage over O'Neal. Positions changed in the top five on the ninth lap with Phillips getting by O'Neal for second and 10th place starting Scott Bloomquist passing Hollingsworth for fifth. By lap 17 Birkhofer was starting to pick up the tail end of the field with Phillips and O'Neal slicing into his lead. But Birkhofer would manage to slip away from Phillips and O'Neal in traffic as he was up to a half a straightaway lead by the 23rd lap. On that same lap O'Neal was able to get back around Phillips in the race for second.
At the halfway mark it was still Birkhofer showing the way followed by O'Neal, Phillips, Miller and Bloomquist. While the battle for second was good Miller and Bloomquist were putting on their own show for fourth running side-by-side lap after lap until Bloomquist would take the fourth spot on lap 30. With 20 circuits to go and with Birkhofer seemingly comfortable in front, O'Neal and Phillips would again start to track down the leader in traffic.
With no cautions to clear the track in front of him, Birkhofer was encountering a little more difficult task this time around with traffic as O'Neal and Phillips would close right behind him with ten laps remaining in the race. Just when O'Neal was making a bid to take over the top spot the first and only caution of the race would come out with 46 laps complete.
On the restart it would be Birkhofer, O'Neal, Phillips, Miller, Bloomquist and 16th starting Jimmy Mars in a four-lap shootout to see who would take the win. When the green flag flew to restart the race it would signal the beginning of a tremendous last four laps for the capacity crowd on hand. O'Neal would go to the very bottom of the race track just as he had done for most of the race with Bloomquist going to the middle and top groove in their attempts to overhaul Birkhofer for the lead. Mars went to fourth with three laps to go as he was now in the battle for the win.
With the cars coming off of turn four for the white flag, they were three wide for the lead with O'Neal on the bottom, Bloomquist in the middle and Birkhofer up top. Coming off of turn number two on the final lap Birkhofer would get the run on O'Neal and Bloomquist and head out of turn four to the checkers to take a very close win over O'Neal and Bloomquist.
Mars would finish fourth followed by Phillips. "Man what a race," proclaimed Birkhofer afterwards. "I just want to thank Johnny Johnson of J&J Steel and Jeff Daufeldt of Daufeldt Transport for all of their help." "The year didn't start like we wanted to, we've really struggled at times, but lately this Rocket Chassis has been running really well." "I mean to beat guys like O'Neal and Bloomquist here tonight says alot about our team that we can get the job done." "Don raced me hard and clean and I know Scott was there as well, man what a weekend!"
Completing the top ten were Matt Miller, Ronny Lee Hollingsworth, Steve Casebolt, Donnie Moran and Earl Pearson, Jr.
The preliminary action would see Kerry Hansen take the Comp Cams Fast Time at 16.351 seconds. The PBM Performance Product Heats Races went to Matt Miller, C.J. Lyle, Brian Birkhofer and Don O'Neal. The Mason Racin' Rebel Shock Dyno First B-Main winner was Scott Drake and the Penske Shocks Second B-Main was taken by Al Purkey. The K&N Engineering "Clean Pass of the Race" went to Birkhofer whose last lap pass of Steve Casebolt in heat race number three put him in a scenario where he would be in the heat race winner draw in which he drew the pole position for the feature. The K&N Engineering "Clean Pass of the Race" is awarded at each Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series event and can take place during a heat race, b-main or the feature event.
The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series will next be in action in the Illini State of Illinois with back-to-back races this upcoming weekend. On Saturday Night, July 29 the series will be at the Izzo Family promoted La Salle Speedway in La Salle, IL for the $10,000 to win "Illinois Valley Challenge" and on Sunday Night, July 30 a visit to Kevin and Tammy Gundaker's Tri City Speedway in Pontoon Beach, IL awaits the fans and drivers for the "Miller Lite 50" paying $10,000 to win. Both events will be taped by the cameras of SPEED Channel and shown on a date and time to be announced in the future.
Race Summary Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series/O'Reilly Auto Parts MLRA Series Saturday Night, July 22, 2006 Lucas Oil Speedway-Wheatland, MO
Comp Cams Fast Time: Kerry Hansen 16.351 seconds
PBM Performance Products First Heat: (10 Laps-Top 4 Advance): Matt Miller, Ronny Lee Hollingsworth, Kerry Hansen, Chris Wall, Michael England, David Turner, Richard Foster, Shad Badder, Justin Wells, Steve Rushin, Gary Stolba
PBM Performance Products Second Heat: (10 Laps-Top 4 Advance): Terry Phillips, C.J. Lyle, Scott Bloomquist, Dewaine Hottinger, Scott Drake, Shane Essary, Scott James, Brandon McCormick, Brady Smith, Reid Millard, Bryon Allison
PBM Performance Products Third Heat: (10 Laps-Top 4 Advance): Brian Birkhofer, Steve Casebolt, Shannon Anastosopolos, Stacy Taylor, Larry Jones, Chris Smyser, Jeff Floyd, Freddy Smith, Johnny Bone, Jr., Earl Pearson, Jr.
PBM Performance Products Fourth Heat: (10 Laps-Top 4 Advance): Don O'Neal, Donnie Moran, Alan Vaughn, Jimmy Mars, Al Purkey, Larry Clawson, David Barker, Jason Bodenhamer, Eric Anderson, P.J. Haskins
Mason Racin' Rebel Shock Dyno First B-Main: (12 Laps-Top 2 Advance): Scott Drake, Shane Essary, Michael England, David Turner, Richard Foster, Steve Rushin, Justin Wells, Brandon McCormick, Shad Badder, Reid Millard, Brady Smith, Gary Stolba, Scott James
Penske Shocks Second B-Main (12 Laps-Top 2 Advance): Al Purkey, Jeff Floyd, Freddy Smith, Larry Jones, Johnny Bone, Jr., Jason Bodenhamer, Eric Anderson, David Barker, P. J. Haskins, Earl Pearson, Jr., Larry Clawson, Chris Smyser
Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series/MLRA Main Event: (50 Laps): Brian Birkhofer, Don O'Neal, Scott Bloomquist, Jimmy Mars, Terry Phillips, Matt Miller, Ronny Lee Hollingsworth, Steve Casebolt, Donnie Moran, Earl Pearson, Jr., Alan Vaughn, Al Purkey, Scott Drake, David Turner, Shane Essary, Stacy Taylor, Freddy Smith, Scott James, Dewaine Hottinger, Michael England, Kerry Hansen, Shannon Anastosopolos, Chris Wall, Jeff Floyd, David Barker, C.J. Lyle
Race Statistics Entries: 42 Yellow Flags: 1 Red Flags: 0 Lap Leaders: Don O'Neal 1, Brian Birkhofer 2-50 Allstar Performance Performer of the Race: Jimmy Mars (started 16th and finished fourth, advanced 12 positions) K&N Engineering Clean Pass of the Race: Brian Birkhofer Hawk Brake Tough Break Award: Chris Wall Quarter Master Move of the Race: Scott Bloomquist On the Edge Graphics Fastest Non Qualifier: Brandon McCormick Weld Wheels Award: Ronny Lee Hollingsworth Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Provisionals: Earl Pearson, Jr. and Scott James O'Reilly Auto Parts MLRA Series Provisionals: David Turner and David Barker Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Rookie of the Race: Steve Casebolt
Submitted By: Jeremy Shields