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By John Rittenoure
PARK CITY, Kans. (July 3, 2007) – Andy Shouse had his doubts about winning Saturday's O'Reilly NCRA Sprint Car Series presented by ICM/Ethanol main event at 81 Speedway. Shortly after the 25-lap event got underway Shouse realized the car was too tight. His only hope was a red flag.
But Shouse did not have wait too long. The race stopped after just four laps when Jon Freeman rolled his car on the top side of the track between turns one and two. Shouse made adjustments to his number 27 and his car came to life after the halfway mark. The Oklahoma City sprint pilot shot into second on lap 18 then dived low in turn four on lap 21 to pass race long leader Gavin Punch for lead and eventual victory.
"The car was tight," said Shouse who won for the first time this season and only the second time in his NCRA career. "We did about everything, changed the shocks and made a few other adjustments."
Those changes kept Shouse in the hunt but a yellow flag on lap 17 set the stage for his move into second on the restart and a run at Punch.
"The track was so fast I did not think I could do it without a restart," said Shouse.
The track was very fast and tacky from recent rains and Punch took advantage to open up a quick lead on the start. Punch, who started outside front row, opened up good lead over J.D. Johnson in second and 16-year old Koby Barksdale in third. While Punch sailed out front Barksdale battled past Johnson for second on lap 11 and series points leader Garry Lee Maier passed Shouse for fourth. Following a lap 12 yellow for A.J. Selenke, Maier charged past Johnson into third then roared past Barksdale in turn four for second on lap 16. Maier was chasing down Punch when the three-time series champion spun sideways in turn two of lap 17 collecting Barksdale in the process. Barksdale continued as the yellow waved and Maier went to the pits for repairs and returned to the rear of the field.
That was the yellow that proved to be a winner for Shouse. Shouse passed Barksdale for second and reeled in Punch for the winning pass. Punch held on to second for his best NCRA career finish. Barksdale fell to fourth on the final lap when veteran Mike Peters charged past on the backstretch. Johnson wound up fifth.
It was Steve King Foundation Night at 81 Speedway and a total of $2,142 was raised for the foundation. The foundation offers financial support for injured drivers, crewman and officials.
King, a two-time NCRA champion from Jetmore, Kans., was killed last year in a racing accident at Knoxville Raceway.
O'Reilly Finish Line
Heat #1 (10 laps): 1. Gavin Punch; 2. Mike Goodman; 3. Shane Howard; 4. Kenneth Walker; 5. Derek Drown; 6. Mike Chadd; 7. Dusty Murray; 8. Derrik Ortega. DNS: Chris Parkinson.
Heat #2 (10 laps): 1. Andy Shouse; 2. Mike Peters; 3. A.J. Selenke; 4. Luke Cranston; 5. Mike Woodruff; 6. Marc Robe; 7. Dan Freeman; 8. Roger Sunquist; DNS: Rick Riner
Heat #3 (10 laps): 1. Garry Lee Maier; 2. Don Droud, Jr.; 3. Jamie Passmore; 4. David Wheeler; 5. Brent Swift; 6. Cody Forshee; 7. Mark Schmidt; 8. Scott Lehman.
Heat #4 (10 laps): 1. J.D. Johnson; 2. Koby Barksdale; 3. Rick England; 4. C.J. Johnson; 5. Jon Freeman; 6. Corey Moore; 7. Stu Snyder; 8. Danny Smith.
1st B feature (12 laps): 1. A.J. Selenke; 2. Mike Chadd; 3. David Wheeler; 4. Jon Freeman; 5. Luke Cranston; 6. Dusty Murray; 7. Cody Forshee; 8. Scott Lehman; 9. Roger Sunquist; 10. Mark Schmidt; 11. Chris Parkinson.
2nd B feature (12 laps): 1. Kenneth Walker; 2. Derek Drown; 3. Marc Robe; 4. Mike Woodruff; 5. Stu Snyder; 6. Danny Smith; 7. Derrik Ortega; 8. Corey Moore; 9. Dan Freeman; 10. Brent Swift; DNS: Rick Riner.
A feature (25 laps): 1. Andy Shouse; 2. Gavin Punch; 3. Mike Peters; 4. Koby Barksdale; 5. J.D. Johnson; 6. Kenneth Walker; 7. Derek Drown; 8. Jamie Passmore; 9. C.J. Johnson; 10. David Wheeler; 11. Shane Howard; 12. Mike Goodman; 13. Don Droud, Jr.; 14. Garry Lee Maier; 15. Marc Robe; 16. A.J. Selenke; 17. Rick England; 18. Mike Woodruff; 19. Mike Chadd; 20. Jon Freeman. |
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