Richmond, KY - Joey Kramer's hard luck was Victor Lee's fortune Saturday night at the Richmond Raceway.
After taking the lead on lap 8, defending Series Champion Kramer appeared poised to take his 3rd win of 2006 when disaster struck. Just as the Hanover, IN native was about to take the white flag, the left rear wheel came loose, causing the #77 Lightning Chassis to snap into a spin that would also collect 5th place running Shawn Tolson. Victor Lee was able to avoid the spinning Kramer and inherit the lead, after charging to 2nd from his 11th place starting position. After a night filled with carnage and cautions and passing the track 12:00 AM curfew Series and Track officials decided to end the race 1 lap shy of its intended 30 lap distance, declaring the Stanford, KY native the winner of the $1,500 to win event.
The 23-car starting field was lead to green by Corbin, KY's Tommy Bailey and Seymour, IN's Matt Boknecht. Bailey would jump out to an early lead, but it didn't take long for trouble to break out. On this night, "The Action Track" would live up to its nickname, as a lap 2 incident involving Corey McKenzie and Russ Gabbert was the first of many yellows. The ensuing restart would begin a nightlong trend of trouble for championship contenders, as 2nd place running Jimmy Payne broke coming to the green. The next victim of bad luck was Don Adams, who sat 3rd in points coming into the night. Adams' #1 Lightning Chassis House car suddenly slowed and stopped on the track on lap 7, bringing out a caution.
At that point, Kramer had battled his way up to 2nd and appeared ready to challenge for the lead. On the ensuing restart, Kramer powered to the inside of Bailey down the backstretch, and took the lead on the heels of a slide-job in turn 4. As Bailey battled back, both cars made contact heading into turn 1, sending Bailey into a spin. With the track under caution, Bailey showed his displeasure with Kramer by slamming his #11 into the #77 head on. Officials disqualified Bailey for his actions, removing him from the race. Kramer would continue on, although his car was visibly damaged.
By this time, the man on the move was Victor Lee. Lee had come from his 11th place starting position to 5th in just 8 laps, and appeared to have the fastest car on the track. The next Series points contender to experience problems was Columbia, KY's Kelly Warren, who entered the night 4th in the standings. Warren would be involved in a one car incident on lap 11, damaging his #0 machine.
As the field went back to green, Kramer quickly jumped out to a lead despite the damage on his racecar. A fierce battle developed behind him for 2nd through 5th. A hard charging Brandon Green smacked the outside wall and knocked the rear spoiler loose on his #6B machine, but would continue on. The next incident occurred on lap 15 when Boknecht and Roberson made contact while battling for 2nd, which knocked Roberson out of the race. Victor Lee took advantage of the incident to move himself into the 2nd position, and began to set his sights on Kramer.
Although Lee had been fast all race, it appeared that it would be Kramer's night, as the Hanover, IN driver enjoyed a 10 car-length advantage. But on lap 29 the #38 of second fastest qualifier Jay Mobley slowed to bring out another yellow, setting up a Green-White-Checkered finish. Kramer maintained a slight edge on the restart, but just as he was about to take the white flag the left rear wheel fell off the #77 machine, sending it into a spin. Lee would dodge the spinning Kramer to inherit the lead and take the win. It was the 27 year-olds first win of 2006 with the Battle of the Bluegrass Open Wheel Modified Series. He was followed to the line by Brandon Green in the spoiler-less #6B, Matt Boknecht in the #22, and Russ Gabbert in the #11, who rebounded from the first lap incident to score a top 5. Clint Shutts rounded out the top 5 in the #135.
Victor Lee's #4 Frank Revel Chassis is powered by a Dale Meers Race Engine and sponsored by Ado's Auto Parts/Revel Race Cars/Dale Meers Race Engines/Victor Lee Designs/Barber Trucking/Autoland.
Preliminary action saw Joey Kramer capture the fast time with a lap of 15.717 seconds. 4 10-lap heat races were won by Kramer, Matt Boknecht, Tommy Bailey, and Dennis Roberson. The B-Main went to Shon Flanary.
The next Battle of the Bluegrass Open Wheel Modified Series event will take place at the Ponderosa Speedway next Friday night, September 22nd. It will pay $1,500 to win. For more information on the event, please visit the series website at www.battleofthebluegrass.com.
Event Summary
Richmond Raceway - Richmond, KY
September 16, 2006
NARA Battle of the Bluegrass Modified Series (37 entries)
Fast Qualifier- Joey Kramer 15.717
1st Heat- Joey Kramer, Jimmy Payne, Delane Browning, Clint Shutts, Russ Gabbert, Kelly Warren, Michael Ward, Steven Gibson, Steve Perkins, Charlie Taylor
2nd Heat- Matt Boknecht, Brandon Green, Jay Mobley, Shawn Tolson, Shon Flanary, Butch Shay, Dustin Linville, Chad Barrett, Thomas Brooks
3rd Heat- Tommy Bailey, Don Adams, Victor Lee, Corey McKenzie, Skylar Marlar, Arnold Adams
4th Heat- Dennis Roberson, Walt Mayabb, Rick Gumm, Joe Turner, Walter Neal, Dwight Chitwood, Benji Lee, Troy Teegarden, Steve Leonard
B-Main- Shon Flanary, Russ Gabbert, Skylar Marlar, Benji Lee, Walter Neal, Michael Ward, Steve Perkins, Steven Gibson, Charlie Taylor, Chad Barrett, Dustin Linville, Dwight Chitwood, Troy Teegarden, Arnold Adams, Thomas Brooks, Kelly Warren, Butch Shay, Steve Leonard
O'Reilly A-Main- Victor Lee, Brandon Green, Matt Boknecht, Russ Gabbert, Clint Shutts, Don Adams, Kelly Warren, Joey Kramer, Shawn Tolson, Jay Mobley Arnold Adams, Dustin Linville, Delane Browning, Walt Mayabb, Jimmy Payne, Dennis Roberson, Joe Turner, Corey McKenzie, Shon Flanary, Michael Ward, Tommy Bailey, Rick Gumm, Walter Neal
Series Provisionals- Kelly Warren, Dustin Linville
Track Provisionals- Arnold Adams, Walter Neal, Mike Ward
Current NARA Battle of the Bluegrass Open Wheel Modified Points Standings (after Sept. 16, 2006)
1.Joey Kramer – 1980
2. Don Adams – 1910
3. Jimmy Payne – 1885
4. Kelly Warren – 1785
5. Tommy Bailey – 1685
6. Dustin Linville – 1540
7. Clint Shutts – 1340
8. Shon Flanary – 1325
9. Tim Moore – 1210
10.Cale Coffey – 1180
After taking the lead on lap 8, defending Series Champion Kramer appeared poised to take his 3rd win of 2006 when disaster struck. Just as the Hanover, IN native was about to take the white flag, the left rear wheel came loose, causing the #77 Lightning Chassis to snap into a spin that would also collect 5th place running Shawn Tolson. Victor Lee was able to avoid the spinning Kramer and inherit the lead, after charging to 2nd from his 11th place starting position. After a night filled with carnage and cautions and passing the track 12:00 AM curfew Series and Track officials decided to end the race 1 lap shy of its intended 30 lap distance, declaring the Stanford, KY native the winner of the $1,500 to win event.
The 23-car starting field was lead to green by Corbin, KY's Tommy Bailey and Seymour, IN's Matt Boknecht. Bailey would jump out to an early lead, but it didn't take long for trouble to break out. On this night, "The Action Track" would live up to its nickname, as a lap 2 incident involving Corey McKenzie and Russ Gabbert was the first of many yellows. The ensuing restart would begin a nightlong trend of trouble for championship contenders, as 2nd place running Jimmy Payne broke coming to the green. The next victim of bad luck was Don Adams, who sat 3rd in points coming into the night. Adams' #1 Lightning Chassis House car suddenly slowed and stopped on the track on lap 7, bringing out a caution.
At that point, Kramer had battled his way up to 2nd and appeared ready to challenge for the lead. On the ensuing restart, Kramer powered to the inside of Bailey down the backstretch, and took the lead on the heels of a slide-job in turn 4. As Bailey battled back, both cars made contact heading into turn 1, sending Bailey into a spin. With the track under caution, Bailey showed his displeasure with Kramer by slamming his #11 into the #77 head on. Officials disqualified Bailey for his actions, removing him from the race. Kramer would continue on, although his car was visibly damaged.
By this time, the man on the move was Victor Lee. Lee had come from his 11th place starting position to 5th in just 8 laps, and appeared to have the fastest car on the track. The next Series points contender to experience problems was Columbia, KY's Kelly Warren, who entered the night 4th in the standings. Warren would be involved in a one car incident on lap 11, damaging his #0 machine.
As the field went back to green, Kramer quickly jumped out to a lead despite the damage on his racecar. A fierce battle developed behind him for 2nd through 5th. A hard charging Brandon Green smacked the outside wall and knocked the rear spoiler loose on his #6B machine, but would continue on. The next incident occurred on lap 15 when Boknecht and Roberson made contact while battling for 2nd, which knocked Roberson out of the race. Victor Lee took advantage of the incident to move himself into the 2nd position, and began to set his sights on Kramer.
Although Lee had been fast all race, it appeared that it would be Kramer's night, as the Hanover, IN driver enjoyed a 10 car-length advantage. But on lap 29 the #38 of second fastest qualifier Jay Mobley slowed to bring out another yellow, setting up a Green-White-Checkered finish. Kramer maintained a slight edge on the restart, but just as he was about to take the white flag the left rear wheel fell off the #77 machine, sending it into a spin. Lee would dodge the spinning Kramer to inherit the lead and take the win. It was the 27 year-olds first win of 2006 with the Battle of the Bluegrass Open Wheel Modified Series. He was followed to the line by Brandon Green in the spoiler-less #6B, Matt Boknecht in the #22, and Russ Gabbert in the #11, who rebounded from the first lap incident to score a top 5. Clint Shutts rounded out the top 5 in the #135.
Victor Lee's #4 Frank Revel Chassis is powered by a Dale Meers Race Engine and sponsored by Ado's Auto Parts/Revel Race Cars/Dale Meers Race Engines/Victor Lee Designs/Barber Trucking/Autoland.
Preliminary action saw Joey Kramer capture the fast time with a lap of 15.717 seconds. 4 10-lap heat races were won by Kramer, Matt Boknecht, Tommy Bailey, and Dennis Roberson. The B-Main went to Shon Flanary.
The next Battle of the Bluegrass Open Wheel Modified Series event will take place at the Ponderosa Speedway next Friday night, September 22nd. It will pay $1,500 to win. For more information on the event, please visit the series website at www.battleofthebluegrass.com.
Event Summary
Richmond Raceway - Richmond, KY
September 16, 2006
NARA Battle of the Bluegrass Modified Series (37 entries)
Fast Qualifier- Joey Kramer 15.717
1st Heat- Joey Kramer, Jimmy Payne, Delane Browning, Clint Shutts, Russ Gabbert, Kelly Warren, Michael Ward, Steven Gibson, Steve Perkins, Charlie Taylor
2nd Heat- Matt Boknecht, Brandon Green, Jay Mobley, Shawn Tolson, Shon Flanary, Butch Shay, Dustin Linville, Chad Barrett, Thomas Brooks
3rd Heat- Tommy Bailey, Don Adams, Victor Lee, Corey McKenzie, Skylar Marlar, Arnold Adams
4th Heat- Dennis Roberson, Walt Mayabb, Rick Gumm, Joe Turner, Walter Neal, Dwight Chitwood, Benji Lee, Troy Teegarden, Steve Leonard
B-Main- Shon Flanary, Russ Gabbert, Skylar Marlar, Benji Lee, Walter Neal, Michael Ward, Steve Perkins, Steven Gibson, Charlie Taylor, Chad Barrett, Dustin Linville, Dwight Chitwood, Troy Teegarden, Arnold Adams, Thomas Brooks, Kelly Warren, Butch Shay, Steve Leonard
O'Reilly A-Main- Victor Lee, Brandon Green, Matt Boknecht, Russ Gabbert, Clint Shutts, Don Adams, Kelly Warren, Joey Kramer, Shawn Tolson, Jay Mobley Arnold Adams, Dustin Linville, Delane Browning, Walt Mayabb, Jimmy Payne, Dennis Roberson, Joe Turner, Corey McKenzie, Shon Flanary, Michael Ward, Tommy Bailey, Rick Gumm, Walter Neal
Series Provisionals- Kelly Warren, Dustin Linville
Track Provisionals- Arnold Adams, Walter Neal, Mike Ward
Current NARA Battle of the Bluegrass Open Wheel Modified Points Standings (after Sept. 16, 2006)
1.Joey Kramer – 1980
2. Don Adams – 1910
3. Jimmy Payne – 1885
4. Kelly Warren – 1785
5. Tommy Bailey – 1685
6. Dustin Linville – 1540
7. Clint Shutts – 1340
8. Shon Flanary – 1325
9. Tim Moore – 1210
10.Cale Coffey – 1180
