Horton Wins NeSmith Chevrolet World Championship Race

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TAMPA, FL – Doug Horton of Bruceton Mills, WV has 10,000 reasons in the form of dollars to love NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series racing at East Bay Raceway Park. Horton drove the Adams Used Auto Parts Warrior to victory on Saturday night at “The Clay By The Bay” in the 6th Annual NeSmith Chevrolet World Championship Race.

Horton started sixth and rode in the fifth spot for the first two-thirds of the 100 lap race before making his move to the front of the pack. Horton took the lead on lap 72, and went on to collect the $10,000 top prize. It was a big payday for the driver using a $5,000 GM Performance 604 Crate Engine, a form of racing that the winner has a lot of respect for.

“There were a lot of good super late model drivers in this race tonight, and I don’t know what they think, but the guys that race with these crate engines are good because when these cars get a push where the car won’t turn left, you don’t have the horsepower a super late model has to pull you out of it,” Horton said. “You really have to drive these cars and this win special because of that.”

One of the super late drivers Horton spoke of was Tim McCreadie of Watertown, NY, who led 60 laps of the race in quest of his second straight World Championship Race win, but came up one spot short and finished second in the Image Skin Care Rocket. Randy Weaver of Crossville, TN came on strong at the end of the race and finished third in the Cardinal Paint and Body Warrior.

Dennis Franklin of Gaffney, SC was fourth in the AES, Inc. Barry Wright, and Jeff Smith of Chatsworth, GA took the fifth spot in the Josh Roberts Trucking Warrior. Phillip Cobb of Riverview, FL finished sixth in the Mathis Farms Barry Wright, and Bryan Bernhardt of Clearwater, FL was seventh in the B&B Precision Mowing Rocket.

Steve Mathis of Plant City, FL finished eighth in the Mathis Farms Rayburn, and the 2008 NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series National Champion Chip Brindle of Chatsworth, GA started 21st and charged his way through the field to take the ninth spot in the Bryson Motorsports Barry Wright. Dan Breuer of Troutman, NC rounded out the top ten in the AES, Inc. Barry Wright.

McCreadie was the fast qualifier among the 44 entrants with a lap around the 1/3-mile clay oval in 16.197 seconds and then won the first 15-lap heat race on Friday night to earn the pole position for Saturday night’s main event. When the field went green for the century grind, it was second heat race winner and outside front row starter Jonathan Davenport of Cowpens, SC taking the lead in the Baird Motorsports Barry Wright.

Davenport led McCreadie, Bernhardt, Smith and Horton during the opening laps before encountering the cars on the tail of the lead lap on lap ten. McCreadie caught Davenport in lapped traffic on lap 11, and on lap 12 used a lapped car for pick to take the lead in turn four.

The first caution flag came out on lap 15 when Jeff Mathews of Dover, FL stalled the Night Hawk Towing Rocket on the front straightaway. McCreadie led Davenport, Smith, Bernhardt, Horton, Jack Nosbisch Jr. of Riverview, FL in the Adams Used Auto Parts Rocket, Weaver, Franklin, Travis Varnadore of Dover, FL in the L. Miller and Associates Rayburn, and Shan Smith of Dade City, FL in the Outlaw Racing Parts TNT down for the restart.

By lap 20, McCreadie, Davenport and Jeff Smith had pulled out to a half straightaway lead over the fourth-place car of Bernhardt. The second caution lap came out on lap 26 when Shan Smith blew a radiator hose and spun in turn three in a cloud of steam. Davenport chose the inside for the Dixie-Style double-file restart behind McCreadie. That put Jeff Smith on the outside in the third spot.

When the green flag came back out, Smith drove by Davenport for the second spot, and Cobb moved up into the top ten. Doug Watson of Lithia, FL spun his Brandon Auto Salvage Rocket in turn two on lap 28 to bring out the third caution, and Breuer spun in turn one on the restart. Davenport got around Smith on the next restart to reclaim the second spot.

The caution bulb was lit up for the fifth time on lap 38 when Chase Washington of Houlka, MS stalled the Greg’s Sawmill GRT in turn two. When the field went back to green flag racing, McCreadie pulled away while Davenport and Smith battled for the second spot. Smith got around Davenport for second on lap 41, while McCreadie enjoyed a full straightaway lead.

At the halfway point, McCreadie opened up a six second lead over Smith when he caught lapped traffic. While McCreadie was trying to negotiate around the lapped cars, Smith turned up the wick and was gaining a second a lap, catching the leader by lap 55. McCreadie was able to work his way through the traffic, while Smith was also trying to get through the gauntlet as Davenport challenged him from the third spot.

Davenport once again took over the second spot on lap 65 when made an inside move on Smith going down the backstretch. Watson stalled on the backstretch on lap 67 to bring out the sixth caution flag. McCreadie led Davenport, Smith, Bernhardt, Horton, Franklin, Nosbisch, Cobb, Weaver and Mathis down to the green flag for the restart.

Several drivers began to make moves, some going forward and others going backwards, when the green flag came back out. Smith passed Davenport for second on the restart, while Horton and Franklin got by Bernhardt to take over the fourth and fifth spots respectively. Nosbisch fell off the pace before stalling on the backstretch on lap 68 to bring out the seventh caution flag.

Horton passed Davenport for the third spot on the restart, but the field was slowed by the caution flag on lap 69 when Rodney Wing of Meridian, MS in the Night Hawk Towing Rocket and Matthew Turner of Dawsonville, GA in the Turner Excavating DWB tangled in turn two. McCreadie led Smith, Horton, Davenport, Franklin, Bernhardt, Weaver, Mathis, Brindle and Varnadore down for the restart.

Horton pounced on Smith to take over the second spot when the green came back out, Franklin climbed into the third spot, Smith fell back to fourth, Bernhardt settled into fifth, and Davenport dropped back to the sixth spot. Horton was all over McCreadie to challenge for the lead, and drove by him on the outside in turn four on lap 72 to grab the point.

Just as Horton encountered lapped traffic, Davenport brought out the final caution flag of the race on lap 81 when he spun in turn four. Horton led McCreadie, Franklin, Smith, Bernhardt, Mathis, Weaver, Cobb, Varnadore, and Brindle down for the restart. Weaver made a big move when the green bulb was lit, as he moved from seventh to fourth.

Horton maintained his lead over McCreadie in the final 20 laps, while Weaver got by Franklin for the third spot on lap 95. McCreadie and Weaver got close to the leader in lapped traffic, but neither could challenge for the win.

In preliminary action on Friday night, the four 15-lap heat races were won by McCreadie, Davenport, Bernhardt, and Jeff Smith. On Saturday night, the 20-lap B-Main Races were won by Josh Pea(not a nice word)(not a nice word)(not a nice word)(not a nice word) of Dover, FL in the Frubob Fruit Floats Warrior and Breuer.

For more information about the NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series visit the series web site at www.nesmithracing.com, or visit the series on Facebook at NeSmith Racing. Becoming a fan of the NeSmith Racing Facebook page will make you eligible for special prizes that will be given away each month.

OFFICIAL RESULTS OF THE 6TH ANNUAL NeSMITH CHEVROLET WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP RACE AT EAST BAY RACEWAY PARK IN TAMPA, FL ON 12/10-11/10:

POS STRT CAR # DRIVER HOMETOWN LAPS $ WON
1. 6 11 Doug Horton Bruceton Mills, WV 100 $10,000
2. 1 101 Tim McCreadie Watertown, NY 100 $5,000
3. 8 116 Randy Weaver Crossville, TN 100 $3,000
4. 7 2 Dennis Franklin Gaffney, SC 100 $2,000
5. 4 17 Jeff Smith Chatsworth, GA 100 $1,750
6. 11 32 Phillip Cobb Riverview, FL 100 $1,500
7. 3 B69 Bryan Bernhardt Clearwater, FL 100 $1,300
8. 16 95 Steve Mathis Plant City, FL 100 $1,200
9. 21 21b Chip Brindle Chatsworth, GA 100 $1,100
10. 18 B7 Dan Breuer Troutman, NC 100 $1,000
11. 17 21p Josh Peacock Dover, FL 100 $800
12. 2 49 Jonathan Davenport Cowpens, SC 100 $700
13. 9 41 Travis Varnadore Dover, FL 100 $600
14. 23 77 Matthew Turner Dawsonville, GA 99 $500
15. 24 47 Shannon Lee Lumberton, MS 99 $450
16. 14 33x Rodney Wing Meridian, MS 68 $440
17. 5 12 Jack Nosbisch Jr. Riverview, FL 67 $430
18. 15 07 Doug Watson Lithia, FL 65 $420
19. 19 22 Perry Brown Riverview, FL 52 $400
20. 13 5 Ronnie Johnson Chattanooga, TN 49 $400
21. 22 19 Chase Washington Houlka, MS 36 $400
22. 20 8Ball Scott Weber Festus, MO 35 $400
23. 12 99 Shan Smith Dade City, FL 33 $400
24. 25 14 Mavrick Varnadore Dover, FL 23 $400
25. 10 33 Jeff Mathews Dover, FL 14 $400

ENTRIES: 44
FAST QUALIFIER: McCreadie, 16.197 Seconds
PROVISIONALS: Turner and Lee
TRACK PROVISIONAL: M. Varnadore
LEAD CHANGES: 2
LAP LEADERS: Davenport, 1-11; McCreadie, 12-71; Horton, 72-100
LAPS LED: McCreadie, 60; Horton, 29; Davenport, 11
CAUTIONS: 10
MARGIN OF VICTORY: .822 Seconds
TIME OF THE RACE: 1 Hour, 15 Minutes and 25.204 Seconds

GROUP QUALIFYING:
1ST GROUP:
POS CAR # DRIVER HOMETOWN CHASSIS LAP 1 LAP 2 TIME
1 49 Jonathan Davenport Cowpens, SC Barry Wright 16.508 16.197 16.197
2 11 Doug Horton Bruceton Mills, WV Warrior 16.526 16.237 16.237
3 33 Jeff Mathews Dover, FL Rocket 16.601 16.491 16.491
4 3s Dustin Griffin Quincy, IL Pierce 16.801 16.596 16.596
5 8Ball Scott Weber Festus, MO Rocket 16.651 16.600 16.600
6 33x Rodney Wing Meridian, MS Rocket 16.742 16.645 16.645
7 48 Tim Lance Brimfield, IL Rocket 17.089 16.647 16.647
8 2h Shane Hitt Buchannon, WV Rocket 17.653 16.854 16.854
9 111 Steven Roberts Sylvester, GA Victory Circle 17.015 17.094 17.015
10 72p Len Parrish Spring Hill, FL Barry Wright 18.809 17.155 17.155
11 25 Bob Gardner Metamora, IL Rayburn 18.071 17.524 17.524

2ND GROUP:
POS CAR # DRIVER HOMETOWN CHASSIS LAP 1 LAP 2 TIME
1 101 Tim McCreadie Watertown, NY Rocket 16.135 16.263 16.135
2 12 Jack Nosbisch Jr. Riverview, FL Rocket 16.252 16.820 16.252
3 21b Chip Brindle Chatsworth, GA Barry Wright 16.622 16.442 16.442
4 41 Travis Varnadore Dover, FL Rayburn 17.434 16.563 16.563
5 11 Stacey Roberts Sylvester, GA Rocket 17.138 16.616 16.616
6 1P Wallace Peacock Dover, FL Rocket 16.821 16.642 16.642
7 5 Ronnie Johnson Chattanooga, TN Warrior 16.776 16.662 16.662
8 17c Steve Cooke Mount Airy, NC Barry Wright 16.900 16.682 16.682
9 77 Jason McBride Latrobe, PA Rocket 16.842 16.732 16.732
10 88 Charlie Henderson Cottondale, AL HMS 16.837 16.743 16.743
11 59 Jason Feger Mount Vernon, IL Rayburn 16.923 16.807 16.807

3RD GROUP:
POS CAR # DRIVER HOMETOWN CHASSIS LAP 1 LAP 2 TIME
1 99 Shan Smith Dade City, FL TNT 16.655 16.289 16.289
2 95 Steve Mathis Plant City, FL Rayburn 16.646 16.422 16.422
3 17s Jeff Smith Chatsworth, GA Warrior 16.469 16.474 16.469
4 77 Matthew Turner Dawsonville, GA DWB 16.869 16.596 16.596
5 116 Randy Weaver Crossville, TN Warrior 17.226 16.620 16.620
6 B7 Dan Breuer Troutman, NC Barry Wright 16.626 16.746 16.626
7 19w Chase Washington Houlka, MS GRT 16.666 16.854 16.666
8 3b Alex Boerner Seffner, FL BTS 16.699 17.474 16.699
9 47 Shannon Lee Lumberton, MS DWB 17.189 16.814 16.814
10 8k Brent Kehrer New Memphis, IL Rocket 17.190 16.921 16.921
11 1* John Koller Grand Island, FL Rocket 16.938 17.259 16.938

4TH GROUP:
POS CAR # DRIVER HOMETOWN CHASSIS LAP 1 LAP 2 TIME
1 2 Dennis Franklin Gaffney, SC Barry Wright 16.242 16.421 16.242
2 32c Phillip Cobb Riverview, FL Barry Wright 16.958 16.459 16.459
3 22b Perry Brown Riverview, FL Rocket 16.818 16.459 16.459
4 B69 Bryan Bernhardt Clearwater, FL Rocket 16.639 16.527 16.527
5 21 Josh Peacock Dover, FL Warrior 16.627 16.940 16.627
6 21j Kelly Walker Moultine, GA Brown 16.785 16.743 16.743
7 18L Brent Lewis Harrisburg, IL Mastersbilt 16.891 16.993 16.891
8 07 Doug Watson Lithia, FL Rocket 16.892 17.066 16.892
9 89 Credence Mott Vicnna, IL Barry Wright 17.533 16.969 16.969
10 36 Eric Gowin Jerseyville, IL Rocket 17.123 17.460 17.123
11 14 Mavrick Varnadore Dover, FL Rayburn 17.212 17.162 17.162

HEAT RACES (15 Laps – Top 4 Transfer To Main Event):

1ST HEAT: 1. McCreadie; 2. Nosbisch; 3. T. Varnadore; 4. Johnson; 5. Brindle; 6. W. Peacock; 7. McBride; 8. Sta. Roberts; 9. Cooke; 10. Feger; 11. Henderson.

2ND HEAT: 1. Davenport; 2. Horton; 3. Mathews; 4. Wing; 5. Weber; 6. Griffin; 7. Ste. Roberts; 8. Hitt; 9. Gardner; 10. Parrish; 11. Lance.

3RD HEAT: 1. Bernhardt; 2. Franklin; 3. Cobb; 4. Watson; 5. J. Peacock; 6. Lewis; 7. Brown; 8. Gowin; 9. Mott; 10. M. Varnadore; 11. Walker.

4TH HEAT: 1. J. Smith; 2. Weaver; 3. S. Smith; 4. Mathis; 5. Breuer; 6. Washington; 7. Turner; 8. Lee; 9. Koller; 10. Kehrer; 11. Boerner DNS.

B-MAINS (20 Laps – Top 3 Transfer To Main Event):

1ST B-MAIN: 1. J. Peacock; 2. Brown; 3. Brindle; 4. W. Peacock; 5. Cooke; 6. McBride; 7. Walker; 8. Feger; 9. M. Varnadore; 10. Henderson; 11. Gowin; 12. Lewis; 13. Sta. Roberts; 14. Mott DNS.

2ND B-MAIN: 1. Breuer; 2. Weber; 3. Washington; 4. Turner; 5. Lee; 6. Hitt; 7. Ste. Roberts; 8. Kehrer; 9. Koller; 10. Gardner; 11. Lance; 12. Griffin; 13. Boerner; 14. Parrish DNS.


NeSmith Chevrolet, Buick, GMC of Claxton, GA is the Title Sponsor of the NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series. NeSmith Chevrolet, Buick, GMC is the nation’s number one GM Powertrain Dealer four years running, and is also the nation’s number one volume dealer of Chevrolet, Buick, and GMC cars, trucks, SUVs and vans with free delivery anywhere in the Southeast. GM Performance Parts is an Official Sponsor of the NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series and Hard Charger Award sponsor. Hoosier Race Tire is the Official Tire Sponsor of the NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series. VP Racing Fuel is the Official Racing Fuel of the NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series. NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series Contingency Sponsors for 2010 are Dominator Race Products, Race Car Engineering, KRC, Joe Gibbs Driven, Maximum Signs and Graphics, Mike Custom Tanks, Shorty’s Shock Service, Warrior Race Cars, Trak-Star Race Cars, GRT Race Cars, TNT Race Cars, and Rocket Chassis.
 




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