Media Contact: Billy Rock
Wheatland, Missouri (March 3, 2020) -With another Lucas Oil Midwest Latemodel Racing Association (MLRA) season just weeks away, Jeremy Grady and his # 43 racing team are back on the hunt for the elusive MLRA win, with high expectations of climbing the ladder after finishing 6th a year ago in the season’s final standings.
For the second consecutive year, the Story City, Iowa veteran was plagued with more than his fair share of bad luck in 2019, something he hopes to see change in 2020. In the series opener one year ago at the Davenport Speedway it appeared things were moving in the right direction. A second place finish behind eventual event winner Chase Junghans in his qualifier had put Grady running towards the front of the main event.
Unfortunately, that all came to a screeching halt late in the race when his left front wheel separated from the car at the entry of turn three, sending the 44-year old driver and his Black Diamond Chassis into the turn three fence. “It couldn’t have happened at a worse spot on the track, it couldn’t have fallen off at a worse spot, but that is just how our luck has been going,” commented Grady.
“Wrecking our primary car the very first night out pretty much let the wind out of our sails last year. We were running in the top six with just about ten laps to go when that happened, and when you start the year off like that it can be hard to rebound.”
Looking to leave those misfortunes behind, Grady plans to return full time to the MLRA this season, with a pair of 2019 Black Diamond Chassis at his disposal along with Clements Racing Engines supplying the power. While both cars are very similar, one of which has yet to be raced, Grady notes, “They should be identical, but every car seems to have its own little personality. We are planning to practice with both of our cars before opening night, and whichever one I feel more comfortable in will be the one we start the season with.”
Two of the team’s best runs of the 2019 campaign came late in the season, a 6th place run at the Rapid Speedway and an 8th place run on Labor Day Weekend at the Quincy Raceway. While the final results may not have been what the team had expected at the start of last season, their qualifying efforts from a year ago provide the team with confidence coming into this season.
The driver of the True Value sponsored entry tallied podium finishes in ten out of seventeen qualifying races in 2019, including six runner-up finishes to go along with a pair of wins at Caney Valley Speedway and the Lucas Oil Speedway during the Larry Phillips Memorial. Not too bad for a guy that was also tagged with four RacingJunk.com Hard Luck Awards during the course of the season.
“I really feel like we were going in the right direction towards the end of last year,” said Grady. We were taking provisionals and not making shows, but so much of that was simply because we were testing and trying things to make ourselves better for this year.”
“Some of the things we learned in the second half of last year with our Black Diamond have got me anxious to get this season going. We ran some races at Webster City (Iowa) last year in a limited motor deal and we tried some different things with our cars. Ever since then I have been really excited to start working with it on the open side,” concluded Grady.
The 2020 MLRA schedule sets up nicely for Grady, with a total of nine dates planned for his home state. “All of the Iowa tracks on the schedule are ones I am familiar with from my days running with the Derry Brothers Series,” noted the 2007 Derry Brothers Series champion. “Farley (300 Raceway) is awesome. They have done a great job there and it should be a really good race. It races really good and when the track is right you can about go around there wide open.”
Saturday, July 4th will mark MLRA’s first stop at 300 Raceway since it was shortened from its original ½ mile shape and turned into its current 3/8 mile configuration. Chris Simpson scored the most recent MLRA win here back in 2016.
While he may be a veteran racer, Grady makes it clear that he has no intentions on getting out of the driver’s seat in the foreseeable future. “I like racing with the guys we are racing with in MLRA. Ever since I started racing late models I have wanted to do this open deal, and I want to continue to do it as long as I can, being as competitive as I can in it,” concluded Grady.
Jeremy Grady Racing Marketing Partners: Neighbors Heating & Cooling, True Value, DMM Electrical.
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