The Dakotah Knuckles crew celebrating in Tazewell victory lane
Jensen Ford led 39 and three-quarter laps of the 40-lap Valvoline Iron-Man Late Model Series feature race at Tazewell Speedway on Saturday night. But on the final turn of the final lap, Dakotah Knuckles emerged from a three-way battle with the checkered flag in sight to score the $5,000 triumph leaving Ford, Donald McIntosh, and Pierce McCarter to fight for second. It was a thrilling finish at the track located in upper east Tennessee and a popular victory for the driver from nearby Ewing, Virginia.
The final 22 circuits of the feature went caution free with the top-4 cars breaking away from the rest of the pack. As the laps clicked away leading up to that race-deciding final turn, Knuckles was not only pressuring Ford but was being pressured by those behind.
“Honestly, coming off of turn two I was not expecting to win that race,” Knuckles explained in an interview with InsideDirtRacing.com following the event. “I kept seeing yellow(McIntosh’s car), I didn’t know if it was Donald or Pierce, but I knew somebody was there and we were running pretty hard them last few laps. I kept seeing Jensen’s car fade away and fade away, but every time he would mess up, I would mess up. I kept telling myself to be patient, back the entries up, slow down, and hit your marks to do what you need to do.”
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The top-4 cars took the white flag in single-file formation with Ford leading Knuckles, McIntosh, and McCarter. Exiting turn two, McIntosh went to the outside of Knuckles as both cars gained on Ford. Entering turn three, Knuckles had momentum and dove to the bottom in an attempt tom complete a slide job pass on Ford. As the No. 21K moved up the track, its right rear came in contact with the left front of Ford’s No. 83. Knuckles then sped off the exit of turn four as Ford was forced up the track making slight contact with the outside wall. McIntosh was also able to get by Ford for second at the finish line.
“When I went in there, going into three on the last lap, I knew I had a small window to hit,” Knuckles described. “I knew if I didn’t do something I would come out third. I could see that Donald was probably going to try to slide us too. Jensen was pretty tore up and said I didn’t have him cleared, but if you go over there and look at the right side of my car, the whole right side is shoved forward where he run up under me. Me and him will situate that.”
Knuckles felt as though the racing all throughout the feature was excellent, even before the excitement of the final turn.
“I thought it was pretty good racing myself,” the 27-year-old driver stated. “Back in the beginning of the race at one of those cautions I kept feeling something in my right front like it was giving up or bent or something but I think it was just the right front tire that was giving up that early. If I could get my entry right on both ends, I was pretty good. Once I moved down a groove in three and four, I could start seeing me pick up a little ground on him because he was trying to run up right against the wall. I’m pretty excited about this one, we’ve been struggling pretty bad.”
Knuckles says that winning in today’s highly competitive world of Dirt Late Model racing is difficult so every opportunity has to be taken advantage of.
For a full description of the Iron-Man Late Model Series feature please consider also reading “Knuckles emerges as Iron-Man winner at Taz after last lap contact with Ford“
“Everything has just got to click right to win one of these races with the competition of the guys we’re running against,” he said. “Honestly, like I said, I didn’t think I had the car to win but I kept seeing Jensen’s car fade away. I’m glad it worked out the way it did, of course. I hate that people are tore up about it but racing’s racing. I’m sure he’ll try to get me back or do something later on down the road but that’s part of it.”
This was not the first time Knuckles had won a race with a last lap pass.
“Jason Trammell is probably going to get mad at me for this but I passed him on the last lap of a steelhead race here. He says that was one of the suckiest races he’s had getting passed on the last lap like that. Tonight made my second one to pass somebody on the last lap like that to win a race and that was here on the same corner.”
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