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Brett Hearn Wins Slobberknocker With Pauch At Volusia.
Brett Hearn’s victory in the Advance Auto Parts Super Dirtcar Modifeds will look like many of his other wins in the statistics. He started on the pole position, and he held on for victory. The 30 laps from start to finish were nothing short of legendary.
The Sussex, NJ, driver outdueled dirt racing legend Billy Pauch in a battle for the ages Thursday night at Volusia Speedway Park. Breathtaking moves in open track conditions, and daring passes of lapped cars kept fans on their feet.
“When people come to Florida they want to see the best of the best,” said Hearn in victory lane. “They got to see a couple of guys who’ve done fairly well in their careers.
We’ve still got some work to do. It’s a great feeling to get a win this early in the season. It’s a heck of a lot of fun.”
Hearn led the field to green flanked by fellow New Jersey driver Pauch. Hearn won the race to turn one, and he immediately distanced himself from the field. Cars fanned out four wide from the inside wall to the extreme high side where AJ Slideways Alan Johnson tried his luck on lap one. Johnson would settle into fourth behind Hearn, Pauch, and Pat Ward in the early going.
Every inch of Volusia clay was used in the early going with Hearn using the middle while AJ Slideways worked the high side in one and two, and right against the inside wall in three and four. Pauch seemed content to use all of the track.
By lap four Hearn opened 12 car lengths on Pauch with Ward, edging past AJ Slideways in the third turn. They were followed by Dale Planck who appeared to have the fastest car on the track in the opening laps. Caution flew for the first time on lap nine when Andy Bachetti slowed on the track. The yellow brought Pauch, Planck, Ward, and AJ Slideways to Hearn’s back bumper for the restart.
Pauch looked high on the restart before diving to the inside off turn four and making contact with Hearn. They both regrouped, but the tone was set for the remainder of the event. Planck was the only driver in the top five using the inside groove through the middle stages, but he was unable to make gains on the lead duo.
Pauch shadowed the leader for a couple of laps before making “the move”. Hearn charged into three using the same high line he had run, and somehow Pauch found room between Hearn and the wall to fly to the outside sweeping to the top spot.
Hearn and Pauch then demonstrated the skills that made them legendary. The two spent lap after lap swapping the lead with slide jobs, brave maneuvers and plain old determination. Planck maintained his third spot, and the Cortland, New York, driver actually closed on the leaders with the battle intensifying.
Lapped traffic wreaked havoc on the top five for the final ten laps with Planck diving between lapped cars and Pauch trying to take second, but Pauch continued to power off the turns maintaining his spot.
Hearn darted through traffic with skill and precision. Pauch ensured that hesitation would lead to defeat, and Hearn seemed to sense the same as he dove three wide around lapped cars throwing caution to the wind.
Two laps remained when Hearn cleared lapped traffic, and the veteran didn’t look back leading the remaining two laps to collect his first victory of the young 2008 campaign.
Official Finish: Hearn, Pauch, Planck, Horton, Alan Johnson, Sheppard, Ward, Clair, Laubach, Mills, VanHorn, Phelps, Vauter, Beardsley, Downs, Isabel, Scagliotta, Hirthler, Wight, Vitale, Rasey, Markle, Forte jr, Flach, Forte Sr, Bachetti.
DNQ: Roger Chrysler, Jordan Watson, Wallace Stacey, John Reome, Danny Johnson, Rob Belinger, Mike Perrotte, Bob Hentschel, Steve Haggan, Colin Jackson, Darwin Greene, Dave Rauscher. |
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