SWAINSBORO, GA (June 20, 2013) – Dennis Erb Jr. led the final 17 laps, and went on to win the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series event on Thursday night at Swainsboro Raceway. Erb’s fourth win of the season was worth $10,000. Earl Pearson Jr. led the first 32 laps until Erb passed him on the high-side. Pearson finished second followed by Jared Landers, Don O’Neal, and Steve Francis.

“It’s our first time here; the car was good whether we ran low or high. I was setting him (Pearson) up for four or five laps and finally went into turn three and the car stuck, enabling me to finally get by Earl. It’s been a great year for us so far, this if our fourth Lucas Oil win! We aren’t worried about the points right now, we just want to win races,” said Erb, who was joined by Crew Chief, Heather Lyne, in Lucas Oil Victory Lane.

“It was a really good race for the lead there early on between us, Earl, and Jared. The track was really good after they worked on it during the break. I have to thank my sponsors: J&L Scrap Metal Metals, JR McBride Leasing, Bloomquist Race Cars, and Kuntz and Company Motors.”

Pearson, who was looking for his second series win of the year, said afterwards, “We really wanted to win this race; we had a lot of friends and family here tonight. The car was strong all night long; we will take this finish in the Lucas Oil Products, MAVT TV Longhorn.”

Landers was looking for a clean sweep of the evening’s racing activities after setting fast time and winning his heat. Landers was in hunt for most of the race. “We are knocking on the door for a win, last week we ran strong in Mississippi, so we are going to move onto Cherokee tomorrow night. We’ve won there before, so we should feel real comfortable racing there.”

Completing the top ten were Eddie Carrier Jr., Casey Roberts, Jimmy Owens, Jeff Smith, and John Blankenship.

In preliminary action, Jared Landers set the overall time (Group B) amongst the 19 entrants, with a lap of 14.069 seconds. Earl Pearson Jr. set the fastest time in Group A with a time of 14.072 seconds. Jared Landers, Earl Pearson Jr., and Steve Francis won their respective heat races.

The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series will get back underway tomorrow night. On Friday, June 21st, the series will make its only stop in the Carolinas at Cherokee Speedway in Gaffney, SC. Rounding out the weekend, the series heads into the Blue Ridge Mountains to Wythe Raceway in Rural Retreat, VA on Saturday, June 22nd. Both events will feature RED BUCK Time Trials, Heat Races, B-Mains, and 50-Lap $10,000-to-win main events. For more information on these speedways, check out: www.cherokeespeedwaysc.com, and www.wytheraceway.com.

For the latest breaking news on the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, log onto www.lucasdirt.com and follow the series on www.facebook.com/lucasdirt and www.twitter.com/#!/lucasdirt.

Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
Race Summary
Thursday Night, June 20th, 2013
Swainsboro Raceway – Swainsboro, GA

RED BUCK Fast Time Group A: Earl Pearson Jr. / 14.072 seconds
RED BUCK Fast Time Group B:
Jared Landers/ 14.069 seconds

Wiles Drive Shafts Heat Race #1 (10 Laps, Everyone Transfers): Jared Landers, Dennis Erb Jr., Jeff Smith, Casey Roberts, Jimmy Owens, Phil Pittman, Henry Carter

Eibach Springs Heat Race #2 (10 Laps, Everyone Transfers): Earl Pearson Jr., Don O’Neal, Brent Dixon, Billy Moyer Jr., Joe Ramey, Chesley Dixon

Simpson Performance Products Heat Race #3 (Everyone Transfers): Steve Francis, Eddie Carrier Jr., John Blankenship, Brandon Overton, Albert Cosnahan, Jerry Lierly

Feature Finish (50 Laps):
FINISH START CAR # DRIVER NAME HOMETOWN
1 4 28e Dennis Erb Jr. Carpentersville, IL
2 2 44 Earl Pearson Jr. Jacksonville, FL
3 1 5 Jared Landers Batesville, AR
4 5 71 Don O’Neal Martinsville, IN
5 3 15 Steve Francis Ashland, KY
6 6 28 Eddie Carrier Jr. Salt Rock, WV
7 10 101 Casey Roberts Toccoa, GA
8 13 20 Jimmy Owens Newport, TN
9 7 70 Jeff Smith Gastonia, NC
10 9 23 John Blankenship Williamson, WV
11 8 1d Brent Dixon Elberton, GA
12 17 2r Joe Ramey Ironton, OH
13 18 7L Jerry Lierly Camp Point, IL
14 16 3P Phil Pittman Vidalia, GA
15 19 20c Henry Carter Kite, GA
16 12 76 Brandon Overton Appling, GA
17 11 21JR Billy Moyer Jr. Batesville, AR
18 15 4u2 Albert Cosnahan Metter, GA
19 14 3 Chesley Dixon Swainsboro, GA

Race Statistics

Entrants: 19
Lap Leaders: Earl Pearson Jr. (Laps 1 – 32); Dennis Erb Jr. (Laps 33-50)
Caution Flags: Brandon Overton (Lap 17); Phil Pittman (Lap 46)
Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Provisionals: none
Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Emergency Provisionals: none
RED BUCK Fast Time Provisionals: none
Optima Batteries Hard Charger of the Race: Jimmy Owens (Started: 13th, Finished: 8th, Advanced: 5 positions)
Allstar Performer of the Race: Dennis Erb Jr.
Sunoco Race for Gas Highest Finisher: Earl Pearson Jr.
JRi Shocks/Dunn Benson Ford Rookie of the Race: Jerry Lierly
COMP Cams Engine Builder of the Race: Kuntz Race Engines
Ohlins Shocks Chassis Builder of the Race: Bloomquist Race Cars
Outerwears Crew Chief of the Race: Heather Lyne (Dennis Erb Jr.)
HAWK Performance Fastest Lap of the Race: Earl Pearson Jr. (Lap# 1; 14.890 seconds)
Time of Race: 30 minutes 48 seconds

Lucas Oil Championship Point Standings:

POS CAR # DRIVER NAME HOMETOWN POINTS
1 20 Jimmy Owens Newport, TN 2560
2 23 John Blankenship Williamson, WV 2430
3 71 Don O’Neal Martinsville, IN 2390
4 15 Steve Francis Ashland, KY 2340
5 28e Dennis Erb Jr. Carpentersville, IL 2325
6 44 Earl Pearson Jr. Jacksonville, FL 2265
7 5 Jared Landers Batesville, AR 2190
8 28 Eddie Carrier Jr. Salt Rock, WV 2095
9 0 Scott Bloomquist Mooresburg, TN 2005
10 21JR Billy Moyer Jr. Batesville, AR 1890
11 7L Jerry Lierly Camp Point, IL 1700

*Points are unofficial until Close of Business on the Tuesday following Race Day*

Related Links

2013 Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Tour Schedule

2013 Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series TV Schedule

Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series

Lucas Oil Products

MAVTV

ProtectTheHarvest.com

2013 Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Sponsors

ASI Racewear – “The Official Merchandise Vendor” of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series

E3 Spark Plugs – “The Official Spark Plug” of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series

GEICO – “The Official Insurance” of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series

General Tire – “The Official Tire” of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series

Hoosier Tire – “The Official Race Tire” of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series

iON Cameras -The lightest, fastest, fully-waterproof HD action camera on the market
Lucas Oil Products – “The Official Oil” of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
MAVTV “American Real”- “The Official TV Network” of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
Optima Batteries – “The Official Battery” of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
ProtectTheHarvest.com- “The Official Protect the Harvest Campaign of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Serie
RED BUCK- “The Official Fast Time Sponor” of the Lucas Oil late Model Dirt Series
Sunoco Race Fuels – “The Official Fuel” of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
2013 Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Supporters Include:
Allstar Performance, AR Bodies, Banshee Graphics, Barry Wright Race Cars, Bloomquist Race Cars, Borrowed Blue, COMP Cams, Cornett Racing Engines, C&R Racing, Crawford Supply, CV Products, Dart Machinery, DirtonDirt.com, Dunn-Benson Ford, Dyers Top Rods, Edelbrock, Eibach Springs, Fast Shafts, Fuel Safe Fuel Cells, FK Rod Ends, Gaerte Engines, Georgia Boot, Hawk Performance, Jay Dickens Racing Engines, JRi Shocks, Keyser MFG, Kuntz Race Engines, Longhorn Chassis, Mann Merchant Processing, MasterSbilt Chassis, Öhlins, Outerwears, Performance Bodies, Pierce Racecars, Performance Rod and Custom, Pro Power Racing, Race Engine Design, Rayburn Race Cars, RED BUCK, Rick Schwallie Photography, Roush Yates Engines, Roush Yates Parts, Simpson Performance Products, Sweet Mfg, Traeger Grills, Weld Racing Wheels, Wiles Drive Shafts, Wrisco, 5150 Race Trailers.