KNOXVILLE, IA (September 26, 2013) – In his first visit to Knoxville Raceway since 2010, Josh Richards captured the opening night of the 10th Annual Lucas Oil Knoxville Late Model Nationals presented by Casey’s General Stores. Richards took the lead from Brandon Sheppard on lap eight and led the remainder of the race, for the $7,000 victory in the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series-sanctioned event.

Richards took the Mark Richards Racing, Valvoline, Roush-Yates Racing Engines, Rocket Chassis Ford to Lucas Oil Victory Lane ahead of Darrell Lanigan, Jason Feger, Dale McDowell, and Bub McCool.

“It’s great to be back here, I love this place! It’s hard to believe it has been three years!The track was great as always, and it’s one of my favorite tracks, no doubt,” said the 25-year-old racer. I could hear him (Lanigan) a few times, but I just kept my line. I had a couple of issues in turn two and he was able to pull along-side me a few times.”

Sheppard took the lead at the start of the 25 lapper and looked dominant in the early going. A red-flag for a multi-car accident involving Jimmy Owens, Dennis Erb Jr., and Joel Callahan halted the action with seven laps complete. All drivers escaped unharmed, but their cars were done for the night.

When the race went green again, Richards made the pass for the lead on Sheppard. Richards then had to fight off several challenges from Lanigan as he held the lead to the finish. Feger made it close towards the end, rallying on the topside to earn a podium finish.

“We had a really good car! He (Richards) was just a tick better tonight! We aren’t used to this hard-tire rule, but it’s the same for everyone!The crew did a great job. The track was great as always here! We got some good points tonight, so we’ll tune on the car even more tomorrow,” said Lanigan.

Feger nearly stole the win from the top two, but his efforts came up just short. “We really like running here! That berm was a little tricky tonight, but we had a good car,Like Josh and Darrell said, we have to get used to these harder tires. My car was better as the race went on. I think with some more work we can win one of the next two nights,” said Feger.

Completing the top ten were Billy Moyer, Chad Simpson, John Blankenship, Brandon Sheppard, and Earl Pearson Jr.

In preliminary action Don O’Neal set the RED BUCK Fast Time (Group A) with a lap of 17.363 seconds. Dale McDowell set the RED BUCK Fast Time (Group B) with a lap of 17.718 seconds. Billy Moyer, Bub McCool, Joel Callahan, Tony Jackson Jr., Morgan Bagley, and Steve Francis won their respective heat races. Ryan Gustin won the D-Main. Shannon Babb won the C-Main. Eddie Carrier Jr. won the B-Main.

The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series will return to action tomorrow night for the second preliminary night at the Lucas Oil Late Model Knoxville Nationals presented by Casey’s General Store. There will be RED BUCK Time Trials, Heat Races, last chance races, and another 25 Lap main event. The weekend will conclude on Saturday, September 28th, with a D-Main, C-Main, B-Main, and the $40,000-to-win 100-Lap main event. For more information, log on to www.knoxvilleraceway.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, September 26th, 2013
Lucas Oil Late Model Knoxville Nationals
Knoxville Raceway – Knoxville, IA

RED BUCK Fast Time Group A: Don O’Neal / 17.363 seconds

RED BUCK Fast Time Group B: Dale McDowell / 17.718 seconds

Wiles Drive Shafts Heat Race #1 (15 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): Billy Moyer, Jared Landers, Jason Feger, Don O’Neal, Jason Rauen, Charlie McKenna, Ricky Weiss, Ray Guss, Jr., Dustin Walker, Brian Harris, Curt Schroeder, Rodney Sanders

Eibach Springs Heat Race #2 (15 Laps, Top 3 Transfer):

Simpson Performance Products Heat Race #3 (15 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): Joel Callahan, Brandon Sheppard, Frank Heckenast, Jr., Kent Robinson, Scott Bloomquist, Dave Eckrich, Mike Marlar, AJ Diemel, Tyler Bruening, Skip Frey, Dennis Vandermeersch, Greg Kimmons

FK Rod Ends Heat Race #4 (15 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): Tony Jackson, Jr., Dale McDowell, Jason Utter, Eddie Carrier Jr., Earl Pearson Jr., Denny Eckrich, Shannon Babb, Terry Phillips Jonathan Brauns, Rich Bell, Matt Furman, Jason Jaggers

DirtonDirt.com Heat Race #5 (15 Laps – Top 3 Transfer): Morgan Bagley, Josh Richards, Chad Simpson, Brady Smith, Jimmy Owens, Jason McBride, Tim Lance, Darrel DeFrance, Tim Isenberg, Steve Lance, Jesse Stovall, Mike Fryer

RED BUCK Heat #6 (15 Laps – Top 3 Transfer): Steve Francis, Darrell Lanigan, Spencer Diercks, Dennis Erb Jr., Jimmy Mars, Justin Kay, Billy Moyer Jr., Brian Shirley, Travis Dickes, Jay Johnson, Ray Sveeggen, Andy Eckrich

CV Products D-Main (10 Laps, Top 4 Transfer to C-Main):

Wrisco Aluminum C-Main (12 Laps, Top 4 Transfer to B-Main): Shannon Babb, Mike Marlar, Brian Shirley, Terry Phillips, Ryan Gustin, Tim Lance, Tyler Bruening, Chris Spieker, Travis Dickes, Tim Isenberg, Jay Johnson, Rodney Sanders, Matt Furman, AJ Diemel, Michael Smith, Darrel DeFrance, Ricky Weiss, Ray Guss, Jr., Jonathan Brauns, Tim McCreadie, Chris Simpson

CV Products B-Main (15 Laps, Top 6 Transfer to A-Main): Eddie Carrier Jr., Don O’Neal, Jimmy Owens, Scott Bloomquist, John Blankenship, Earl Pearson Jr., Denny Eckrich, Jimmy Mars, Chase Junghans, Jason McBride, Jason Rauen, Mike Marlar, Brady Smith, Billy Moyer Jr., Justin Kay, Kent Robinson, Shannon Babb, Brian Birkhofer, Dave Eckrich, Charlie McKenna, Brian Shirley, Terry Phillips

Feature Finish (25 Laps):

Race Statistics

Entrants: 72

Lap Leaders: Brandon Sheppard (Laps 1 – 7); Josh Richards (Laps 8 – 25)

Caution Flags: Dennis Erb Jr., Joel Callahan (Lap 7); Scott Bloomquist (Lap 14); Frank Heckenast Jr. (Lap 17)

Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Provisionals: none

Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Emergency Provisionals: none
RED BUCK Fast Time Provisionals: none

Lucas Oil Late Model Knoxville Nationals Thursday Night Points:

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

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 Official Camera” of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series

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.