Ricky Thornton Jr.
Another night and another win for Ricky Thornton Jr. on Saturday night in the World Finals finale at The Dirt Track at Charlotte. The No. 20RT charged from the 8th starting position to take the lead during the second half of the World of Outlaws CASE Construction Late Models feature race.
The Longhorn Chassis driver from Martinsville, Indiana earned $25,000 from the track located in Concord, NC.
A total of 74 cars were signed in for competition
Heat Race Results: Heat race lineups were determined from points compiled during Thursday and Friday competition.
Heat 1 Results: 1. Chris Madden, 2. Kyle Bronson, 3. Tim McCreadie
Heat 2 Results: 1. Dale McDowell, 2. Brandon Overton, 3. Scott Bloomquist
Heat 3 Results: 1. Mike Marlar, 2. Nick Hoffman, 3. Ryan Gustin
Heat 4 Results: 1. Garrett Smith, 2. Ricky Thornton Jr., 3. Jimmy Owens
Heat 5 Results: 1. Cade Dillard, 2. Bobby Pierce, 3. Dennis Erb Jr.
Heat 6 Results: 1. Daulton Wilson, 2. Ben Watkins, 3. Brian Shirley
Last Chance Showdown 1 Finish: 1. Jonathan Davenport, 2. Tyler Erb
Last Chance Showdown 2 Finish: 1. Chris Ferguson, 2. Donald McIntosh
Last Chance Showdown 3 Finish: 1. Zack Mitchell, 2. Carson Ferguson
WoO Redraw Results: 1. Dillard, 2. McDowell, 3. Madden, 4. Wilson, 5. Marlar, 6. Smith
Feature Re-cap: The 50-lap feature started off with Dillard ahead of McDowell, Madden, Smith and Wilson. Madden moved quickly toward the front as he wrested second away from McDowell on the second lap. Smith followed suit by grabbing third and push McDowell back to fourth on lap 3. At the same time, Thornton broke into the top-5 by passing Wilson.
After a few more laps, the top-3 of Dillard, Madden and Smith were tightly bunched with Madden constantly pressuring Dillard in an attempt to grab the lead.
Thornton continued to rise on lap 17 when he got around McDowell for fourth. Two laps later, it was Smith who found himself being passed by the No. 20RT. Using the high line around the track, Thornton quickly closed on the top-2 of Dillard and Madden.
At the halfway point of the race, Thornton took second from Madden by swinging out high then diving low to make the pass. On lap 27, RTJ went to the lead after getting around Dillard.
The race’s only yellow flag was displayed on lap 33 when Gustin slowed. On the restart, Madden moved into second and briefly challenged Thornton for the top spot. Further back, Thursday night winner Marlar was looking to move forward as he passed Dillard for fourth on lap 36. He then got by McDowell for third one lap later.
For several laps after the restart, Madden and Marlar kept pace with Thornton but were unable to challenge. With six laps remaining, Marlar moved by Madden for second. But over the closing laps, as it has been so many times this season, it was Thornton who would sail under the checkered flag for the win.
Click the play button below to hear out post-race interview with Ricky Thornton Jr.
Feature Results: 1. Ricky Thornton Jr., 2. Mike Marlar, 3. Chris Madden, 4. Dale McDowell, 5. Garrett Smith, 6. Bobby Pierce, 7. Nick Hoffman, 8. Cade Dillard, 9. Jimmy Owens, 10. Kyle Bronson, 11. Jonathan Davenport, 12. Daulton Wilson, 13. Brandon Sheppard, 14. Ben Watkins, 15. Scott Bloomquist, 16. Donald McIntosh, 17. Tim McCreadie, 18. Dennis Erb Jr., 19. Tyler Erb, 20. Tanner English, 21. Shane Clanton, 22. Brian Shirley, 23. Carson Ferguson, 24. Brandon Overton, 25. Ryan Gustin, 26. Zack Mitchell, 27. Chris Ferguson, 28. Brent Larson
Please consider also reading:
Brad Sweet clinches fifth WoO Sprints title with Charlotte feature win
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