*Story submitted by Joshua Joiner
Crown Jewel Event Concludes on Saturday with Heat Races, B-Mains & 100-lap, $100,000-to-win Main Event
ROSSBURG, Ohio. – June 5, 2015 – Jonathan Davenport further established himself as a heavy favorite and Dennis Erb Jr. emerged as another serious contender in the 21st annual Dirt Late Model Dream presented by Ferris Mowers with preliminary feature victories Friday night at Eldora Speedway.
Davenport of Blairsville, Ga., and Erb of Carpentersville, Ill., both scored impressive 25-lap triumphs at the historic half-mile oval, earning $5,000 apiece in the DIRTcar-sanctioned races. Friday’s results will be combined with finishes from Thursday’s first night of preliminary racing to determine drivers’ starting spots in heat races for Saturday’s $100,000-to-win Dirt Late Model Dream main event.
Jonathan Davenport’s AES Racing #6
Davenport was nearly unstoppable in racing to his second prelim victory of the weekend. The current Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series points leader used a turn-two slidejob to overtake Steve Casebolt of Richmond, Ind., on lap eight and quickly pulled away from the field.
Davenport’s only major obstacle came on lap 12 when he got into the back of a slower car while trying to avoid a tangle between Jared Landers and Wendell Wallace. The contact left Davenport’s machine with slight front-end damage, but it didn’t slow his pace. He cruised through the second half of the race, using the track’s high line to build a lead of 2.620 seconds by the finish.
“This thing was just excellent. It’s just such a pleasure to drive,” Davenport, who scored his fifth straight victory, said of his K&L Rumley Longhorn Chassis. “I was kind of worried when we got in that little wreck. It bent my hood up and I couldn’t turn quite as good getting into the corner. I had to back my corner entry up a little more, but it was still good.”
Casebolt settled for second, holding off Jeep Van Wormer of Pinconning, Mich., who finished third. Jimmy Mars of Menomonie, Wis., advanced from his 12th starting spot to finish fourth with Chad Simpson of Mount Vernon, Iowa, rounding out the top five.
The race was slowed by two cautions with the first coming for the lap-12 tangle between Landers and Wallace. The second yellow flag appeared when Scott Bloomquist of Mooresburg, Tenn., who was Thursday’s other prelim race winner, slowed from the fifth position.
Dennis Erb, Jr.
Erb was just as impressive as Davenport in Friday’s second 25-lap feature, albeit using a different line around the racetrack. He rode the low side of the track from his fourth starting spot to overtake polesitter Tim McCreadie of Watertown, N.Y., on lap 13. Erb never looked back from there, pulling to a lead of 4.656 seconds by the end of the caution-free race.
“The car’s working pretty good,” Erb said of the Black Diamond Chassis he debuted at Eldora this weekend. “I think we made the right choice tonight on tires. Hopefully we can keep working on it and be good tomorrow.”
McCreadie, a former World of Outlaws Late Model Series champion, held off a late-race challenge from Jason Feger of Bloomington, Ill., for the second spot with 10th-starting Don O’Neal of Martinsville, Ind., just behind in fourth. Defending Dirt Late Model Dream winner Dale McDowell of Chickamauga, Ga., rallied from the 12th starting spot to finish fifth.
At the conclusion of Friday’s racing, Davenport assisted in determining the invert number for Saturday’s Dream heat races using Eldora’s new Plinko board. Davenport dropped a chip on the number 3, setting up a three-car inversion for Saturday’s six 15-lap heats.
The 21st annual Dirt Late Model Dream Weekend Presented Ferris Mowers concludes on Saturday with an action-packed slate of racing, featuring heat races, B-Mains and the 100-lap, $100,000-to-win Dirt Late Model Dream finale.
Fans can obtain tickets for the Dirt Late Model Dream by going online towww.EldoraSpeedway.com or contacting the Eldora offices at 937-338-3815.
Fans who can’t make it to Eldora in person can still watch all the action live by purchasing the live Pay-Per-View video broadcast that is available atwww.EldoraSpeedway.com or www.DirtonDirt.com.
21st Annual Dirt Late Model Dream by Ferris Commercial Mowers
June 4, 2015: Second of three nights of racing
DIRTcar UMP Late Models – 84 cars
A-Main 1 – (25 Laps): 1. 6-Jonathan Davenport[3] ; 2. C9-Steve Casebolt[2] ; 3. 55-Jeep VanWormer[4] ; 4. 28M-Jimmy Mars[12] ; 5. 25S-Chad Simpson[6] ; 6. 25C-Shane Clanton[18] ; 7. 20-Jimmy Owens[19] ; 8. 18-Shannon Babb[10] ; 9. 29-Darrell Lanigan[13] ; 10. B5-Brandon Sheppard[8] ; 11. 116-Randy Weaver[17] ; 12. 21JR-Billy Moyer Jr. [14] ; 13. 22S-Gregg Satterlee[22] ; 14. 99M-Devin Moran[11] ; 15. 1J-Davey Johnson[16] ; 16. 14M-Morgan Bagley[24] ; 17. 0-Scott Bloomquist[5] ; 18. 68J-Jake O’Neil[9] ; 19. 11R-James Rice[20] ; 20. 18K-Brandon Kinzer[1] ; 21. 1P-Earl Pearson Jr.[23] ; 22. 777-Jared Landers[15] ; 23. 20C-Duane Chamberlain[7] ; 24. 6m-Wendall Wallace[21]
A-Main 2 – (25 Laps): 1. 28-Dennis Erb Jr. [4] ; 2. 39-Tim McCreadie[2] ; 3. 25-Jason Feger[1] ; 4. 5-Don O’Neal[10] ; 5. 17M-Dale McDowell[12] ; 6. 3s-Brian Shirley[6] ; 7. 3-Matt Miller[5] ; 8. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr. [3] ; 9. 54-Matt Westfall[7] ; 10. 76-Brandon Overton[8] ; 11. 7R-Kent Robinson[11] ; 12. 15-Steve Francis[16] ; 13. 21-Billy Moyer[17] ; 14. 32P-Bobby Pierce[20] ; 15. 157-Mike Marlar[9] ; 16. 1-Josh Richards[18] ; 17. 22-Chris Ferguson[14] ; 18. 48L-Tim Lance[22] ; 19. R5-Chris Simpson[24] ; 20. 11S-Rusty Schlenk[15] ; 21. R1-Riley Hickman[23] ; 22. 23B-John Blankenship[13] ; 23. 28C-Eddie Carrier Jr. [19] ; 24. 31-Nick Latham[21]
Qualifying
Group A: 1. Scott Bloomquist (0), Mooresburg, Tenn., 15.406, 2. Randy Weaver (116), Crossville, Tenn., 15.626, 3. Jeep Van Wormer (55), Pinconning, Mich., 15.680, 4. Jake O’Neil (68J), Tucson, Ariz., 16.093, 5. Terry Phillips (75), Springfield, Mo., 16.196, 6. Darrell Lanigan (29), Union, Ky., 16.201, 7. Cody Mahoney (77), Madison, Ind., 16.320, 8. Mack McCarter (51m), Gatlinburg, Tenn., 16.337, 9. John Gill (75), Mitchell, Ind., 16.353, 10. Charles LaPlant (3c), East Prairie, Mo., 16.577, 11. Ernie Cordier (4c), Brodhead, Ky., 18.663.
Group B : 1. Mike Marlar (157), Winfield, Tenn., 15.652, 2. Billy Moyer (21), Batesville, Ark., 15.845, 3. John Blankenship (23), Williamson, W.Va., 15.856, 4. Tim McCreadie (39), Watertown, N.Y., 15.881, 5. Matt Miller (3), Whitehouse, Ohio, 16.038, 6. Tim Lance (48), Brimfield, Ill., 16.089, 7. Andrew Reaume (88), Blenheim, Ontario, 16.139, 8. Mark Voigt (30), Alhambra, Ill., 16.458, 9. Butch Kruckeberg (76), Edwardsville, Ill., 17.694, 10. Bryant Dickinson (5*), Ionia, Mich., 18.031, 11. Benji Cole (121), Canon, Ga., No time.
Group C: 1. Josh Rice (11), Verona, Ky., 15.717, 2. Billy Moyer Jr. (21jr), Batesville, Ark., 15.737, 3. Steve Casebolt (c9), Richmond, Ind., 15.742, 4. Chad Simpson (25), Mount Vernon, Iowa, 15.828, 5. Shane Clanton (25), Zebulon, Ga., 15.861, 6. Shannon Babb (18), Moweaqua, Ill., 15.897, 7. Wendell Wallace (6m), Batesville, Ark., 15.998, 8. Casey Noonan (1N), Sylvania, Ohio, 16.200, 9. Mark Dotson (85D), Cameron, Mo., 16.324, 10. Chase Junghans (18), Manhattan, Kan., 16.366, 11. Earl Pearson Jr. (1), Jacksonville, Fla., 16.379.
Group D : 1. Chris Ferguson (22), Mount Holly, N.C., 15.631, 2. Don O’Neal (5), Martinsville, Ind., 15.668, 3. Dennis Erb Jr. (28), Carpentersville, Ill., 15.753, 4. Brian Shirley (3s), Chatham, Ill., 16.092, 5. Josh Richards (1), Shinnston, W.Va., 16.164, 6. Devin Gilpin (1G), Columbus, Ind., 16.212, 7. Tyler Erb (91), Magnolia, Texas, 16.223, 8. Dustin Nobbe (5), Batesville, Ind., 16.603, 9. Nick Latham (31), Winchester, Ohio, 16.675, 10. Dan Shepherd (68), Greeley, Colo., 16.771, 11. Jerry Bowersock (95j), Wapakoneta, Ohio, No time.
Group E : 1. Jonathan Davenport (6), Blairsville, Ga., 15.707, 2. Jimmy Owens (20), Newport, Tenn., 15.822, 3. Duane Chamberlain (20c), Richmond, Ind., 15.826, 4. Devin Moran (99m), Dresden, Ohio, 15.946, 5. Morgan Bagley (14m), Longview, Texas, 16.009, 6. Garrett Alberson (F5), Las Cruces, N.M., 16.067, 8. Jared Landers (777), Batesville, Ark., 16.085, 9. Jason Riggs (81jr), Harrisburg, Ill., 16.343, 10. Austin Siebert (16), Grandview, Mo., 16.621, 11. Rodney Hamblin (14H), Downs, Ill., 17.958.
Group F : 1. Matt Westfall (54), Pleasant Hill, Ohio, 15.374, 2. Eddie Carrier Jr. (28), Salt Rock, W.Va., 15.734, 3. Frank Heckenast Jr. (99jr), Frankfort, Ill., 15.847, 4. Rusty Schlenk (11s), Weston, Ohio, 16.110, 5. Kent Robinson (7r), Bloomington, Ind., 16.168, 6. Austin Smith (11), Cedartown, Ga., 16.171, 7. Chris Simpson (R5), Oxford, Iowa, 16.224, 8. Kelly Guy (28G), Thomson, Ga., 16.664, 9. Matt Cochran (16), Williamsport, Ind., 17.382, 10. Jeff Robertson (P3), Defiance, Ohio, No time.
Group G : 1. Mason Zeigler (25z), Uniontown, Pa., 15.874, 2. Davey Johnson (1j), Latrobe, Pa., 15.895, 3. Brandon Sheppard (B5), New Berlin, Ill., 16.033, 4. Brandon Kinzer (18), Allen, Ky., 16.125, 5. James Rice (11r), Verona, Ky., 16.175, 6. Jimmy Mars (28), Menomonie, Wis., 16.291, 7. Gregg Satterlee (22), Indiana, Pa., 16.338, 8. Jay Johnson (93), West Burlington, Iowa, 17.018, 9. Brian Gray (3), Hamilton, Ohio, 18.157, 10. Jason Bodenhamer (2), Centerview, Mo., no time.
Group H : 1. Tim Shaffer (47), Aliquippa, Pa., 15.778, 2. Riley Hickman (R1), Ooltewah, Tenn., 15.780, 3. Brandon Overton (76), Appling, Ga., 15.862, 4. Jason Feger (25), Bloomington, Ill., 15.892, 5. Dale McDowell (17m), Chickamauga, Ga., 15.928, 6. Scott James (83), Bright, Ind., 15.931, 7. Steve Francis (15), Ashland, Ky., 15.941, 8. Bobby Pierce (32), Oakwood, Ill., 15.964, 9. Tim Manville (33), St. Jacob, Ill., 15.982, 10. Brian Ligon (444), Augusta, Ga., 16.974.
Heat 1, Group A – (8 Laps): 1. 55-Jeep VanWormer[2] ; 2. 0-Scott Bloomquist[4] ; 3. 68J-Jake O’Neil[1] ; 4. 29-Darrell Lanigan[6] ; 5. 116-Randy Weaver[3] ; 6. 51M-Mack McCarter[8] ; 7. 75P-Terry Phillips[5] ; 8. 77-Cody Mahoney[7] ; 9. 75-John Gill[9] ; 10. 3c-Charlie LaPlant[10] ; 11. 4C-Ernie Cordier[11]
Heat 2, Group B – (8 Laps): 1. 39-Tim McCreadie[1] ; 2. 3-Matt Miller[5] ; 3. 157-Mike Marlar[4] ; 4. 23B-John Blankenship[2] ; 5. 21-Billy Moyer[3] ; 6. 88-Andrew Reaume[7] ; 7. 48L-Tim Lance[6] ; 8. 30-Mark Voigt[8] ; 9. 76K-Butch Kruckeberg[9] ; 10. 5*-Bryant Dickinson[10] ; 11. 121-Benji Cole[11]
Heat 3, Group C – (8 Laps): 1. C9-Steve Casebolt[2] ; 2. 25S-Chad Simpson[1] ; 3. 18-Shannon Babb[6] ; 4. 21JR-Billy Moyer Jr. [3] ; 5. 25C-Shane Clanton[5] ; 6. 6m-Wendall Wallace[7] ; 7. 18J-Chase Junghans[10] ; 8. 1P-Earl Pearson Jr.[11] ; 9. 1N-Casey Noonan[8] ; 10. 85D-Mark Dotson[9] ; 11. 11JR-Josh Rice[4]
Heat 4, Group D – (8 Laps): 1. 28-Dennis Erb Jr. [2] ; 2. 3s-Brian Shirley[1] ; 3. 5-Don O’Neal[3] ; 4. 22-Chris Ferguson[4] ; 5. 1-Josh Richards[5] ; 6. 31-Nick Latham[9] ; 7. 91-Tyler Erb[7] ; 8. 1G-Devin Gilpin[6] ; 9. 68-Dan Shepherd[10] ; 10. 5N-Dustin Nobbe[8]
Heat 5, Group E – (8 Laps) : 1. 6-Jonathan Davenport[4] ; 2. 20C-Duane Chamberlain[2] ; 3. 99M-Devin Moran[1] ; 4. 777-Jared Landers[7] ; 5. 20-Jimmy Owens[3] ; 6. 14M-Morgan Bagley[5] ; 7. F5-Garrett Alberson[6] ; 8. 16-Austin Siebert[9] ; 9. 81JR-Jason Riggs[8] ; 10. 14H-Rodney Hamblin[10]
Heat 6, Group F – (8 Laps): 1. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr. [2] ; 2. 54-Matt Westfall[4] ; 3. 7R-Kent Robinson[5] ; 4. 11S-Rusty Schlenk[1] ; 5. 28C-Eddie Carrier Jr. [3] ; 6. 11A-Austin Smith[6] ; 7. R5-Chris Simpson[7] ; 8. 28G-Kelly Guy[8] ; 9. 16c-Matt Cochran[9]
Heat 7, Group G – (8 Laps): 1. 18K-Brandon Kinzer[1] ; 2. B5-Brandon Sheppard[2] ; 3. 28M-Jimmy Mars[6] ; 4. 1J-Davey Johnson[3] ; 5. 11R-James Rice[5] ; 6. 22S-Gregg Satterlee[7] ; 7. 93-Jay Johnson[8] ; 8. 3G-Brian Gray[9] ; 9. 25Z-Mason Zeigler[4].
Heat 8, Group H – (8 Laps): 1. 25-Jason Feger[1] ; 2. 76-Brandon Overton[2] ; 3. 17M-Dale McDowell[5] ; 4. 15-Steve Francis[7] ; 5. 32P-Bobby Pierce[8] ; 6. R1-Riley Hickman[3] ; 7. 83-Scott James[6] ; 8. 33-Tim Manville[9] ; 9. 47-Tim Shaffer[4] ; 10. 444-Brian Ligon[10]
B-Main 1 – (10 Laps): 1. 6m-Wendall Wallace[2] ; 2. 22S-Gregg Satterlee[4] ; 3. 1P-Earl Pearson Jr.[10] ; 4. 14M-Morgan Bagley[3] ; 5. F5-Garrett Alberson[7] ; 6. 75P-Terry Phillips[5] ; 7. 11JR-Josh Rice[20] ; 8. 51M-Mack McCarter[1] ; 9. 16-Austin Siebert[11] ; 10. 75-John Gill[13] ; 11. 25Z-Mason Zeigler[16] ; 12. 81JR-Jason Riggs[15] ; 13. 85D-Mark Dotson[18] ; 14. 1N-Casey Noonan[14] ; 15. 3c-Charlie LaPlant[17] ; 16. 93-Jay Johnson[8] ; 17. 14H-Rodney Hamblin[19] ; 18. 4C-Ernie Cordier[21] ; 19. 18J-Chase Junghans[6] ; 20. 77-Cody Mahoney[9] ; 21. 3G-Brian Gray[12]
B-Main 2 – (10 Laps) : 1. 31-Nick Latham[2] ; 2. 48L-Tim Lance[5] ; 3. R1-Riley Hickman[4] ; 4. R5-Chris Simpson[7] ; 5. 11A-Austin Smith[3] ; 6. 33-Tim Manville[12] ; 7. 28G-Kelly Guy[11] ; 8. 30-Mark Voigt[9] ; 9. 16c-Matt Cochran[15] ; 10. 47-Tim Shaffer[16] ; 11. 68-Dan Shepherd[14] ; 12. 1G-Devin Gilpin[10] ; 13. 444-Brian Ligon[20] ; 14. 5N-Dustin Nobbe[18] ; 15. 5*-Bryant Dickinson[17] ; 16. 88-Andrew Reaume[1] ; 17. 83-Scott James[8] ; 18. 91-Tyler Erb[6] ; 19. 76K-Butch Kruckeberg[13] ; 20. 121-Benji Cole[19]
For more information on DIRTcar Racing, visit www.DIRTcar.com.
