The Gressel Racing team headed out Thursday for a three-night adventure with the Lucas Oil MLRA Late Model Series. Unfortunately, Mother Nature had different plans and just one of the three events was completed. Thursday's race at the Southern Iowa Speedway in Oskaloosa, Iowa, was rained out as well as Saturday's stint at the Randolph County Raceway in Moberly, Mo. In between, the team was albe to enjoy a night of racing on Friday at the Lee County Speedway in Donnellson, Iowa.
After a dismal start to the night, Ryan 'The Reaper' Gustin stormed through the pack in the 40-lap main event to record a fifth-place finish.
LUCAS OIL MLRA REPORT:
DONNELLSON, Iowa—For the second time in as many visits, the Lee County Speedway in Donnellson, Iowa, proved itself thrilling for the fans of the Lucas Oil MLRA. During the 40-lap main event, Jesse Stovall, Jason Utter and Chad Simpson all took turns pacing the field. Stovall was strongest at the end, pocketing the big check and his seventh overall win with the series.
For much of the early portion it appeared either Utter or Simpson were headed for victory. Stovall fell back to third while the other two sliced in and out of lapped traffic. Slowly, Stovall made strides back towards the front and completed the race winning pass on lap 35. Just one lap later, Simpson slowed and pulled the infield with a broken ball joint. Stovall clicked off the final three laps uncontested and crossed the line with nearly an eight-second cushion.
Utter's run is one more in a string of successes this season. The Lee County Speedway runner-up is his best finish yet, and now gives him top-five finishes in four of the last five events. California driver Jason Papich rounded out the top three in his second Lucas Oil MLRA appearance of the season.
Denny Eckrich and Ryan Gustin were fourth and fifth, respectively.
R.C. Whitwell was the Casey's General Stores Hard Charger and Sunoco Rookie of the Race with a 15-spot improvement and ninth-place finish.
For all of the latest news and information fans are encouraged to visit the series website at www.MLRARacing.com. Fans may also "like" the Lucas Oil MLRA Facebook page by clicking www.Facebook.com/lucasoilmlra or follow us on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/MLRA.
RESULTS
Hoosier Racing Tires Heat #1 (10 laps): 1. Jason Papich, 2. Chad Simpson, 3. Spencer Diercks, 4. Mark Burgtorf, 5. Ryan Gustin, 6. Jim Shereck, 7. Dustin Griffin, 8. Todd Frank, 9. J.C. Wyman.
RacingJunk.com Heat #2 (10 laps): 1. Jason Utter, 2. Terry Phillips, 3. Scott Lewis, 4. Jake O'Neil, 5. Jay Chenowith, 6. Austin Siebert, 7. Dick Weber, 8. R.C. Whitwell, 9. Clint Kirkham.
G2 Gemini Custom Apparel Heat #3 (10 laps): 1. Jesse Stovall, 2. Denny Eckrich, 3. Dave Eckrich, 4. Jaosn O'Brien, 5. Jeremy Payne, 6. Jamie Wison, 7. Denny Woodworth, 8. Jay Johnson, 9. Vance Wilson.
HotRodProcessing.com "B" Main (12 laps): 1. Jamie Wilson, 2. Dustin Griffin, 3. Jay Chenowith, 4. Todd Frank, 5. Denny Woodworth, 6. Jay Johnson, 7. Vance Wilson, 8. Dick Weber, 9. J.C. Wyman.
Lucas Cattle Company "A" Main (40 laps): 1. Jesse Stovall, 2. Jason Utter, 3. Jason Papich, 4. Denny Eckrich, 5. Ryan Gustin, 6. Jeremy Payne, 7. Mark Burgtorf, 8. Scott Lewis, 9. R.C. Whitwell, 10. Terry Phillips, 11. Jake O'Neil, 12. Dustin Griffin, 13. Jason O'Brien, 14. Denny Woodworth, 15. Jim Shereck, 16. Jay Johnson, 17. Jay Chenowith, 18. Todd Frank, 19. Jamie Wilson, 20. Chad Simpson, 21. Dave Eckrich, 22. Spencer Diercks, 23. Austin Siebert, 24. J.C. Wyman.
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