crusapr
09-26-2011, 01:44 PM
CARTERSVILLE, GA – Jim McDuffie of Meridian, MS clinched his second NeSmith Chevrolet Weekly Racing Series West Region Championship in dramatic fashion Saturday night at Drew County Speedway in Monticello, AR. McDuffie dropped out of the race, but clinched the title as his nearest challenger Duke Palasini of Leland, MS finished second in the 25-lap feature race.
With two laps to go in the race, it appeared that the NeSmith Chevrolet Weekly Racing Series Championship battle would continue into the 27th and final week, as Palasini was leading the race. But Palasini was passed for the lead with a lap and a half to go by John Polasini of Leland, MS, who went on to take his first win of the year in the Polasini Racing Special.
“I was disappointed that we had to drop out of the race and since we had a five hour ride ahead of us to get home, I didn’t even watch the rest of the race,” McDuffie said. “I knew Palasini was leading and I figured we’d be going back to Drew County Speedway to decide it next weekend. When the race was over, one of my guys came over with a big smile, shook my hand and said we won it.”
Going into the only NeSmith Chevrolet Weekly Racing Series West Region Week 26 race on the schedule, McDuffie held a one-point lead on Palasini, and both drivers had to win to net on second-place 49s in order to improve their respective best 14-week totals. If McDuffie won the race, he would clinch the title.
Palasini had to win this race, and one next week combined with McDuffie not winning to take the championship. If the two drivers ended the season in a tie, the tie-breaker would go in McDuffie’s favor. The drivers started off the night by winning their respective heat races that put them on the front row for the main event.
When the green flag came out for the main event, Palasini took the lead from the pole position with McDuffie right on his back bumper. McDuffie began looking inside of Palasini on lap three, and pulled alongside the leader going down the backstretch on lap four. McDuffie got loose in turn four, and Palasini pulled ahead.
Lap nine saw Palasini beginning to encounter lapped traffic, and McDuffie closed in to make another challenge for the point by lap 11. The field was slowed by the caution flag on lap 11 when Travis Ashley of Batesville, AR spun. The Dixie-style double file restart saw Palasini in front of the doubled-up field behind him.
McDuffie, as the second-place car, had the choice to choose the inside or outside for the restart. He chose the inside and the third-place car of Polasini was to his outside. When the green flag came out, Polasini got by McDuffie for the second spot. Palasini and Polasini began to pull away from McDuffie, who was suffering from handling issues due to a broken left-rear suspension.
“When I was racing side-by-side with Palasini, I hit a hole in the race track, and my car just doesn’t like holes,” McDuffie said. “The car came completely off the ground, landed, and broke something in the left-rear. We then hit one of the skidder tires on the inside of the track, and that bent the left-front spindle and wheel. I couldn’t drive it anymore, and I had nothing to gain, so I parked it.”
The caution flag came back out on lap 18, and McDuffie took his H.E. Mosley, Inc. Trak-Star to the pit area. All McDuffie could do now was wait and see if Palasini could win and take the championship battle to Week 27, or would Palasini lose the race that would clinch the championship for McDuffie. He would not have to wait long to have his fate decided.
Polasini was right with the leader Palasini when the field went back to green for the seven lap dash to the finish. With two laps to go, Polasini got by Palasini and went on to win the race, and clinch the Championship for McDuffie with 798 points. The 2011 NeSmith Chevrolet Weekly Racing Series Championship was the second for McDuffie, as he also won it 2008.
“We are proud of the season we had to have worked hard and won as many races as we did,” McDuffie said. “The thing we’re most proud of is that we spread it around and won races at several different tracks. I’m glad we got the chance to come to Drew County Speedway and race with Duke. I’m really impressed with him and the way he races. I’m also impressed with Drew County Speedway. It’s a really nice facility and everyone there made us feel welcome.”
With one week left to go in the season, McDuffie has 13 wins with six coming at Hattiesburg Motorsports Park, five at Whynot Motorsports Park in Meridian, MS, and one each at Jackson Motor Speedway in Jackson, MS and Drew County Speedway.
McDuffie will be going for his second win of the year at Jackson Motor Speedway this Saturday night in the $1,000-to-win I-20 Challenge Race and will also be going for the four-race I-20 Challenge Series Championship. The I-20 Challenge Series is between two NeSmith Chevrolet WRS tracks, with two events at Jackson Motor Speedway and two races at Whynot Motorsports Park.
Following Polasini and Palasini under the checkered flag were Cody Kierre of Beebe, AR in third, Chandler Petty of Austin, AR in fourth, and Landon Frith of Terry, MS rounded out the top five. The fourth-place effort for Petty moved him up one spot to the eighth position in the NeSmith Chevrolet WRS West Region standings with one week to go in the 2011 season.
Palasini clinched the second spot in the 2011 NeSmith Chevrolet Weekly Racing Series point standings with 797 points and Justin McRee of Tuscaloosa, AL has locked up the third spot with 777 points. Going into the last week of the season, drivers that are fourth through tenth in the standings came still compete for their finishing spots. They are separated by just 22 points
Michael Arnold of Hattiesburg, MS is fourth in the NeSmith Chevrolet WRS West Region standings with 768 points and Bobby Jordan of McCarley, MS is fifth with 766 points. Frith is sixth with 765 points and Randy Boyd of Marion, MS is seventh with 757 points. Petty is eighth with 756 points, Larry Murphy of Meridian, MS is ninth with 752 points, and Bubba Harrison of Cleveland, MD rounds out the Top 10 with 746 points.
There were two Week 26 races on Saturday night in the NeSmith Chevrolet Weekly Racing Series Old Man’s Garage (OMG) East Region. It was the final week of competition for the OMG East Region, as there are no events scheduled for the 27th and final week of the 2011 NeSmith WRS season.
Todd Watson of Eastaboga, AL took his second win of the season driving the Watson Racing Special at Talladega Short Track in Eastaboga, AL, and Chad Wallace of LaGrange, GA drove the Wallace Construction GRT to his first win of the season at New Senoia Raceway in Senoia, GA.
Tod Darda of LaGrange, GA finished second at New Senoia Raceway and passed Adam Gauldin of Talladega, AL for the second spot in the final 2011 NeSmith Chevrolet Weekly Racing Series Old Man’s Garage (OMG) East Region point standings. Darda netted on a 44 to bring his best 14 week season total to 789 points, while Gauldin did not any points and ended up with 788 points.
Darda and Gauldin finished behind the 2011 NeSmith Chevrolet Weekly Racing Series Old Man’s Garage (OMG) East Region Champion Jimmy Elkins Jr. of Talladega, AL, who clinched the title in Week 24.
Mike Combs of Odenville, AL takes the fourth spot in the final 2011 NeSmith Chevrolet WRS OMG East Region standings with 760 points based on his best 14 week total and Doug Ludwig of Grantville, GA will take the fifth-place money in the point fund with a best 14 week total of 759 points.
Brian Ponder of Talladega, AL will finish sixth in the 2011 NeSmith Chevrolet WRS OMG East Region standings with 747 points. Russ Ogletree of Phenix City, AL finishes seventh in the OMG East Region standings with 737 points.
Trey White of Jenkinsburg, GA finished fourth at New Senoia Raceway, picked up 25 Regional Bonus Points for his fourth straight week of perfect attendance, and moved up in the OMG East Region standings to finish eighth with 724 points. Ryan King of Anniston, AL takes the ninth spot with 715 points, and Kevin Maher of McDavid, FL rounds out the Top 10 with 689 points.
GRT Race Cars of Greenbrier, AR clinched their fourth NeSmith Chevrolet Weekly Racing Series Chassis Manufacturers Challenge Championship, as Wallace gave them their 56th win of the season. Two-time NeSmith Chevrolet Weekly Racing Series Chassis Manufacturers Challenge Champion Trak-Star Race Cars built by Boland Performance of Cuba, AL has locked up the second spot in the 2011 standings with 51 victories.
Rocket Chassis of Shinnston, WV has clinched the third spot of the NeSmith Chevrolet Weekly Racing Series Chassis Manufacturers Challenge standings with 18 wins and Warrior Race Cars built by Goddard Performance of Knoxville, TN is fourth in the standings with one win.
Also participating in the 2011 NeSmith Chevrolet Weekly Racing Series Chassis Manufacturers Challenge and still looking for their first win of the season are TNT Race Cars of Piney Flats, TN and Stinger Race Cars built by J.T. Kerr Racing Equipment of Rockford, TN.
For a complete rundown of the 2011 NeSmith Chevrolet Weekly Racing Series point standings in both the West Region and the Old Man’s Garage (OMG) East Regions visit the Points page of the NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series web site at www.nesmithracing.com.
With two laps to go in the race, it appeared that the NeSmith Chevrolet Weekly Racing Series Championship battle would continue into the 27th and final week, as Palasini was leading the race. But Palasini was passed for the lead with a lap and a half to go by John Polasini of Leland, MS, who went on to take his first win of the year in the Polasini Racing Special.
“I was disappointed that we had to drop out of the race and since we had a five hour ride ahead of us to get home, I didn’t even watch the rest of the race,” McDuffie said. “I knew Palasini was leading and I figured we’d be going back to Drew County Speedway to decide it next weekend. When the race was over, one of my guys came over with a big smile, shook my hand and said we won it.”
Going into the only NeSmith Chevrolet Weekly Racing Series West Region Week 26 race on the schedule, McDuffie held a one-point lead on Palasini, and both drivers had to win to net on second-place 49s in order to improve their respective best 14-week totals. If McDuffie won the race, he would clinch the title.
Palasini had to win this race, and one next week combined with McDuffie not winning to take the championship. If the two drivers ended the season in a tie, the tie-breaker would go in McDuffie’s favor. The drivers started off the night by winning their respective heat races that put them on the front row for the main event.
When the green flag came out for the main event, Palasini took the lead from the pole position with McDuffie right on his back bumper. McDuffie began looking inside of Palasini on lap three, and pulled alongside the leader going down the backstretch on lap four. McDuffie got loose in turn four, and Palasini pulled ahead.
Lap nine saw Palasini beginning to encounter lapped traffic, and McDuffie closed in to make another challenge for the point by lap 11. The field was slowed by the caution flag on lap 11 when Travis Ashley of Batesville, AR spun. The Dixie-style double file restart saw Palasini in front of the doubled-up field behind him.
McDuffie, as the second-place car, had the choice to choose the inside or outside for the restart. He chose the inside and the third-place car of Polasini was to his outside. When the green flag came out, Polasini got by McDuffie for the second spot. Palasini and Polasini began to pull away from McDuffie, who was suffering from handling issues due to a broken left-rear suspension.
“When I was racing side-by-side with Palasini, I hit a hole in the race track, and my car just doesn’t like holes,” McDuffie said. “The car came completely off the ground, landed, and broke something in the left-rear. We then hit one of the skidder tires on the inside of the track, and that bent the left-front spindle and wheel. I couldn’t drive it anymore, and I had nothing to gain, so I parked it.”
The caution flag came back out on lap 18, and McDuffie took his H.E. Mosley, Inc. Trak-Star to the pit area. All McDuffie could do now was wait and see if Palasini could win and take the championship battle to Week 27, or would Palasini lose the race that would clinch the championship for McDuffie. He would not have to wait long to have his fate decided.
Polasini was right with the leader Palasini when the field went back to green for the seven lap dash to the finish. With two laps to go, Polasini got by Palasini and went on to win the race, and clinch the Championship for McDuffie with 798 points. The 2011 NeSmith Chevrolet Weekly Racing Series Championship was the second for McDuffie, as he also won it 2008.
“We are proud of the season we had to have worked hard and won as many races as we did,” McDuffie said. “The thing we’re most proud of is that we spread it around and won races at several different tracks. I’m glad we got the chance to come to Drew County Speedway and race with Duke. I’m really impressed with him and the way he races. I’m also impressed with Drew County Speedway. It’s a really nice facility and everyone there made us feel welcome.”
With one week left to go in the season, McDuffie has 13 wins with six coming at Hattiesburg Motorsports Park, five at Whynot Motorsports Park in Meridian, MS, and one each at Jackson Motor Speedway in Jackson, MS and Drew County Speedway.
McDuffie will be going for his second win of the year at Jackson Motor Speedway this Saturday night in the $1,000-to-win I-20 Challenge Race and will also be going for the four-race I-20 Challenge Series Championship. The I-20 Challenge Series is between two NeSmith Chevrolet WRS tracks, with two events at Jackson Motor Speedway and two races at Whynot Motorsports Park.
Following Polasini and Palasini under the checkered flag were Cody Kierre of Beebe, AR in third, Chandler Petty of Austin, AR in fourth, and Landon Frith of Terry, MS rounded out the top five. The fourth-place effort for Petty moved him up one spot to the eighth position in the NeSmith Chevrolet WRS West Region standings with one week to go in the 2011 season.
Palasini clinched the second spot in the 2011 NeSmith Chevrolet Weekly Racing Series point standings with 797 points and Justin McRee of Tuscaloosa, AL has locked up the third spot with 777 points. Going into the last week of the season, drivers that are fourth through tenth in the standings came still compete for their finishing spots. They are separated by just 22 points
Michael Arnold of Hattiesburg, MS is fourth in the NeSmith Chevrolet WRS West Region standings with 768 points and Bobby Jordan of McCarley, MS is fifth with 766 points. Frith is sixth with 765 points and Randy Boyd of Marion, MS is seventh with 757 points. Petty is eighth with 756 points, Larry Murphy of Meridian, MS is ninth with 752 points, and Bubba Harrison of Cleveland, MD rounds out the Top 10 with 746 points.
There were two Week 26 races on Saturday night in the NeSmith Chevrolet Weekly Racing Series Old Man’s Garage (OMG) East Region. It was the final week of competition for the OMG East Region, as there are no events scheduled for the 27th and final week of the 2011 NeSmith WRS season.
Todd Watson of Eastaboga, AL took his second win of the season driving the Watson Racing Special at Talladega Short Track in Eastaboga, AL, and Chad Wallace of LaGrange, GA drove the Wallace Construction GRT to his first win of the season at New Senoia Raceway in Senoia, GA.
Tod Darda of LaGrange, GA finished second at New Senoia Raceway and passed Adam Gauldin of Talladega, AL for the second spot in the final 2011 NeSmith Chevrolet Weekly Racing Series Old Man’s Garage (OMG) East Region point standings. Darda netted on a 44 to bring his best 14 week season total to 789 points, while Gauldin did not any points and ended up with 788 points.
Darda and Gauldin finished behind the 2011 NeSmith Chevrolet Weekly Racing Series Old Man’s Garage (OMG) East Region Champion Jimmy Elkins Jr. of Talladega, AL, who clinched the title in Week 24.
Mike Combs of Odenville, AL takes the fourth spot in the final 2011 NeSmith Chevrolet WRS OMG East Region standings with 760 points based on his best 14 week total and Doug Ludwig of Grantville, GA will take the fifth-place money in the point fund with a best 14 week total of 759 points.
Brian Ponder of Talladega, AL will finish sixth in the 2011 NeSmith Chevrolet WRS OMG East Region standings with 747 points. Russ Ogletree of Phenix City, AL finishes seventh in the OMG East Region standings with 737 points.
Trey White of Jenkinsburg, GA finished fourth at New Senoia Raceway, picked up 25 Regional Bonus Points for his fourth straight week of perfect attendance, and moved up in the OMG East Region standings to finish eighth with 724 points. Ryan King of Anniston, AL takes the ninth spot with 715 points, and Kevin Maher of McDavid, FL rounds out the Top 10 with 689 points.
GRT Race Cars of Greenbrier, AR clinched their fourth NeSmith Chevrolet Weekly Racing Series Chassis Manufacturers Challenge Championship, as Wallace gave them their 56th win of the season. Two-time NeSmith Chevrolet Weekly Racing Series Chassis Manufacturers Challenge Champion Trak-Star Race Cars built by Boland Performance of Cuba, AL has locked up the second spot in the 2011 standings with 51 victories.
Rocket Chassis of Shinnston, WV has clinched the third spot of the NeSmith Chevrolet Weekly Racing Series Chassis Manufacturers Challenge standings with 18 wins and Warrior Race Cars built by Goddard Performance of Knoxville, TN is fourth in the standings with one win.
Also participating in the 2011 NeSmith Chevrolet Weekly Racing Series Chassis Manufacturers Challenge and still looking for their first win of the season are TNT Race Cars of Piney Flats, TN and Stinger Race Cars built by J.T. Kerr Racing Equipment of Rockford, TN.
For a complete rundown of the 2011 NeSmith Chevrolet Weekly Racing Series point standings in both the West Region and the Old Man’s Garage (OMG) East Regions visit the Points page of the NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series web site at www.nesmithracing.com.