DAYTONA BEACH, FL - He recently collected his tenth series championship, first with the American Speed Association. He also has been a national champion and got to fly with the United States Air Force Thunderbirds flight team. But now, Steve Carlson will take his first overseas flight to compete in the American Speed Association Transcontinental Series FreeState 500 on Sunday, January 31, 2010 at the Phakisa Freeway Circuit oval in Welkom, Free State South Africa.

“I think its really neat being one of the selected drivers to be invited to this event,” Carlson recently said. The thought of going to compete at Phakisa was not on Carlson’s mind until the season finale at the famous Oktoberfest Race Weekend at La Crosse (WI) Fairgrounds Speedway, “We were at the drivers meeting when Dennis Huth (ASA President) told everybody about it and at that point I didn’t know if I was going to win the championship or not so I really didn’t think much about it. We finished second in the race and won the championship. After the race, we were talking to Dennis about it and got real excited.”

The next step for Carlson was to find his ride for the event and found a car from fellow ASAMT competitor Russ Blakeley, “I finally got a car lined up and I think its going to be a pretty good car,” Carlson exclaimed.

He is coming off of a great season with the American Speed Association Midwest Tour where his second place finish at their final event was enough to win the 2009 champion. He had four wins, three fast times, seven top-five and nine top-ten finishes in eleven starts. He actually missed one event, but averaged 133.45 points per event to win the championship.

With his impressive resume, there is one thing that you will not find on it and that is he has never raced outside of the United States. “I never thought that I would but I think this is a really cool deal,” Carlson said. “I have never raced outside of this country so this will all be new to me but I am going to give it a shot.”

“It’s awesome that the motorsports fans in South Africa will get an opportunity see a talented driver like Steve Carlson compete at Phakisa,” Dennis Huth, ASA President said. “He is a champion driver, has won races in the former American Speed Association National Series, and will be one of the top gun’s going for the win on January 31st. Steve is a perfect example of the talent that the local tracks and regional series has in the United States and he will now be able to show it on the world stage.”

Steve Einhaus, Vice-president of the ASA Midwest Tour, echoed what Huth said as well about Carlson, “Its an honor for us to send our 2009 ASA Midwest Tour Champion to South Africa for this event,” Einhaus said. “Steve is fast no matter what size track he is on and there is no doubt in our minds that he could go there and win this inaugural event. Its going to be a great
experience for all of us, and I’m almost sure that this will be a highlight of Steve’s successful career.”

He is a four-time ARTGO Series champion (1990, 91, 94, 96) and a five-time NASCAR Elite Division - Midwest Series champion (1998, 2000, 01, 02, 03). The 2007 NASCAR Weekly Series National Champion and has six track championships at La Crosse Fairgrounds Speedway (1978, 1979, 1982, 1984, 2007, 2008). He is also a six-time winner of the Keith Fleck Miller 100 and
a seven-time winner of the famous Dixieland 150.

The weekend before the FreeState 500 event, he will be honored for his 2009 ASAMT Championship at the Chula Vista Resort in Wisconsin Dells, WI on Saturday, January 23, 2010.

Along with the racing, Carlson mentioned that he is looking forward to the other events they will be participating in while in South Africa. He along with the other American drivers invited will not only get a chance to compete on one of the finest racetracks outside of the United States, but will enjoy many off-track opportunities to see the various sights of South Africa; this includes a private tour of “Savannah” the wildlife preserve that holds the distinction of being just one of three accredited worldwide breeders of the Cheetah.

To learn more about Phakisa Freeway, visit www.phakisa.com.

To learn more of the Daytona Beach, Fla.-based American Speed Association call (386) 258-2221 or send an e-mail to info@asa-racing.com. For news and information from all the racetracks and regional tours involved in the ASA, visit www.ASA-Racing.com.

ASAT, ASA RacingT American Speed AssociationR are trademarks of Racing Speed Associates, LLC. ASA International, LLC or Racing Speed Associates, LLC are not related to or affiliated with ASA Late Model Series, LLC.

CORONA, CA- Performance Rod and Custom (PRC) based in Boonville, IN is the title sponsor of the PRC Fast Time Award on the Lucas oil Late Model Dirt Series. PRC will present a special cash and product award to Scott Bloomquist at the series year end banquet on November 21st at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, IN. Scott Bloomquist earned the PRC special award by virtue of earning the most PRC Fast time Awards on the series with 6 fast time awards in 40 events in 2009. Bloomquist beat out Earl Pearson Jr. and Shannon Babb who were tied for second with 3 Fast Time awards each.

As the title sponsor of the PRC Fast Time Award on the series, PRC awarded the driver that set fast time a $75 cash award and a product certificate at every series event in 2009. PRC was also the title sponsor of the PRC Strawberry Dash each night during the DART Winternationals at East Bay Raceway Park in Tampa FL back in February. By sponsoring the PRC Dash, the winner of the Dash each night was put into the feature event as an extra starter in the feature event. The PRC Fast Time banquet award goes to Scott Bloomquist for earning the most Fast Time awards. “The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series is very appreciative to have PRC as a partner and sponsor of the series. Rewarding drivers that earn Fast Time at each event gives drivers a little money and some product for their efforts. We want to thank PRC for their commitment and support of the series and look forward to long relationship and partnership with the series”, stated Ritchie Lewis, series director.

Performance Rod and Custom has numerous years of hands on experience that go into everything they do at the factory. PRC believes in making product decisions based on information they gather from race teams, chassis builders, and their own experiences from the industry. PRC will continue to use information provided to them every day by drivers, crew, and chassis builders across the nation to help them look forward and change as the industry progresses. To learn more about PRC visit their website at www.prcracing.com.

The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series was founded in 2005 and has seen a steady growth in the five years of its existence to become the premier dirt late model touring series in the country. The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series 2010 schedule has been released and can be found at the official website of the series.

For the latest breaking news on the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, log onto www.lucasdirt.com or call the series’
office at (951) 532-2503.

The 2009 season may be winding down, and both fans and racers alike may have their eyes firmly on the upcoming Governor’s Cup weekend, but there was no shortage of action, incidents and controversy at New Smyrna on a long Saturday night that saw
twin 50 lap races and a surprise celebrity cameo in one division.

A field of 80 cars split across 6 divisions ensured there was plenty of on-track action for the hardy spectators who braved the cool evening to see the division championships slowly beginning to work themselves to a conclusion. Those that managed to make it through to the end of the night had seen some exciting, door-to-door racing, but mainly a night punctuated by some big wrecks leaving a number of cars needing serious rebuilds before their next trip to the track, and leaving the clean-up and wrecker crews thoroughly deserving a long, relaxing Sunday to recover from their exertions the night before.

The opening Modified division race gave little indication of the incidents to come, being completed without a caution after an initial false start for the #22 of Jason Boyd getting an absolute flyer coming out of turn 4 to take the hastily recalled green flag having already blown past the front row of cars. With a proper restart achieved at the next attempt Boyd was able to repeat his feat without much resistance, sailing into the lead by the exit of turn 2, and brining #4B Alan Bruns and #15 James Tucker with him. This lead pack of 3 cars soon raced into a healthy lead over the field and managed to navigate through the slower traffic with few problems, giving Boyd a comfortable win by the whole length of the straights, followed by Bruns who managed to gain the advantage in his race for 2nd spot with Tucker.

The Pro-Truck race raised interest once it was announced that it featured radio celebrity Bubba ‘The Love Sponge’ Clem, piloting Anthony Sergi’s spare truck and running as the #20x. It was the truck’s regular driver, Anthony Sergi in the #20, who would eventually be the story of the race, but not before he had joined a lead group of trucks that also featured #11K Dennis Gardner and #17 Colby Clements in the battle for the lead up at the front. Clements made most of the early running, with Sergi tightly behind him on his rear bumper, and when the first caution of the race came out for a spun-out truck right at the halfway point in the race the restart gave Sergi the chance to out-drag his rival in the #11K for the green flag and take what would be a decisive lead. In the middle of the field, Clem was proving he was more than just a novelty in this race, driving competently to hold his
position at the back of the lead group in 7th place, but as the race began to reach its final laps, and the racing for places became a little more desperate and with more contact, he noticeably pulled back to avoid trouble and would finish in last place having more than held his own for a large portion of the race’s 25 laps. Up at the front the checkered flag was taken by Sergi, winning comfortably ahead of Gardner in the #11K.

Last up before the interval and the burrito eating contest on the start line came the Super Late Models, running out for a 35 lap feature race and a last chance to tune up and get some meaningful track time before the coming week’s Governor’s Cup race weekend. Right from the start the drivers showed that saving their cars for the upcoming big show wasn’t on their agenda as they went three-wide into turn, seeing #34 Shaughn McCormick spinning out and being narrowly missed by the pursuing cars.
Once restarted the field settled down with the fast group of #11 David Rogers, #9 Rich Clouser and #38 Kevin Dicks building a healthy lead over the field out at the front. A restart for an incident between McCormick and #02 Mike Finn bunched the field back together and gave Rogers the jump over his rivals and a chance to drive in the clean air and build a commanding lead to leave Clouser and Dicks fighting hard for second. With no more cautions to restack the field Rogers was able to take the checkered flag for the win without further incident, Clouser following behind after winning the battle for the runners-up spot.

Three divisions down and three more to go, including back-to-back 50 lap features for the Mini-stocks and Super Stocks, and as things were going so well surely the evening was set-up perfectly for a swift, incident-free race night? What followed tested the limits of the fans and drivers alike, saw the wrecker and clean-up crews spending nearly as much time on the track as the drivers themselves, and saw the evening’s final division, the Strictly Stocks, battling to complete their feature race on the same day as it started.

First up after the break came the Mini-stocks, an often overlooked class on an evening’s racing schedule but one that regularly provides great entertainment with evenly matched fields rarely giving a predictable finish. A big field of 20 drivers made it out for this rare chance to take the spotlight, and it took just one lap for the race to erupt. Racing three wide down the front straight the contact between the pack of cars was obvious to the fans in the main stand, and could only lead to one outcome, which duly played itself out as #20 Jefferson Pittsley, #0 Chad Rose and #55 Greg Kopp all got way too close as they maneuvered for position into turn 1. With all four cars getting badly out of shape it was Rose who went hard into the pit-lane wall, taking Pittsley with him and seeing Ervin slamming into the outside wall and rolling into the entrance to turn 1. Other cars had to take emergency avoiding action, with Seay’s #10 spinning out and managing to avoid further contact. Ultimately this involved 7 cars with 3 needing rides on the back of the wrecker, their evening’s racing done without a single lap in the books, and a 4th car -the #4 of Dennis Colletti - not managing to survive the long caution period and pulling off just before the restart in a cloud of smoke.

As the contact that caused the incident was ruled to have started on the exit of turn 4 of the opening lap a full restart was called for, but with so many of the lead cars now out of the picture the front rows had changed to put pre-race favorite #81 Cody Blair on the second row, alongside the #85X of Rex Hollinger, and needing to find a way past #3 Buddy Sizemore and #37 Brandon McSwain if he wanted to go for the win. Blair was soon able to find the speed to make his way into the lead, and aided by a further caution and restart was able to pull clear of the chasing pack, although most eyes by this point were noticing the #8X of Robbie Yoakam. His red #8X was now quickly moving up through the field, having started back in 15th position but was already in a position to challenge for the minor placings with Hollinger, #19 Rick Maguire and #31 David Russell.

A long green flag run allowed Yoakam to work his way out of the midfield and cement himself firmly into 2nd position, but with Blair so far ahead it looked like an impossible task to get anywhere near close enough to be considered in a race for the lead. Meanwhile the 50 lap format and the long green flag run was contributing to the relative pace of the cars to be showing, and as the cars began to string out all around the track the race moved into its main phase with small battles for places developing and lapped traffic becoming the main concern, keeping flagman Ralph Miller and his blue flag busy. With an obvious pace advantage over the rest of the remaining cars it was Blair and Yoakam who put on a show by overtaking the slowed cars using both the inside and outside lines, and the leaders had soon lapped the entire field and were overtaking some for a second time. This disparity was demonstrated perfectly with 15 laps to go as Hollinger, Seay and #11 Ray Puglisi went three wide into turn 1, but this overtake comprising of Seay lapping Puglisi, while Hollinger was lapping the #11 for a second time, and the throwback #10 Ford Pinto of Seay for the first time. A scorer’s nightmare this may have been, but it gave the spectators small battles to watch being played all over the track for out the remainder of the race.

With 5 laps to go only Blair and Yoakam were left on the lead lap, and Blair would take the checkered flag by over half a lap from his nearest rival. James Dixson in the #8 finished comfortably in 3rd place, and the battle for the minor placings that had provided the only closes racing for the majority of the 50 laps saw Sizemore beating out Maguire and Hollinger.

Another 50 lap feature to follow in the shape of the Super Stocks, and it was this race that was to provide the biggest hits of the night, seeing less than half of the starters managing to finish the race, and leaving several of the drivers with bent and battered cars needing considerable repairs with just one more week of the points championship left.

Right from the green flag the racing was hard, and with plenty of fast cars from the regular New Symrna championship being joined by two of Orlando Speedworld’s regulars, #16D David Gould and #52 Bobby Cuddy, the race at the front was packed with fast, experienced racers. From the off it was the #86 of Richard Goodrich, who had shown considerable improvement in recent weeks to run at the front with confidence, battling hard to keep his lead over #16 David Russell, but with the ominous shapes of Jarret Korpi’s #211 and Bobby Holley’s #56 already working their way through the field from the rear.

With 8 laps of the 50 completed the key moment of the race came, with the faster cars now racing hard at the front and jostling for position. By now Holley and Goodrich were up at the front, Goodrich’s higher line giving him the speed he needed to keep up alongside Holley on the inside, but the addition of #51 Butch Herdegen into the mix on the exit from turn 4 meant something had to give. It did - contact between the lead three cars saw Goodrich push hard into the front straightaway wall, riding up high onto the wall in a shower of sparks, his momentum carrying him all the way into turn 1. The safety crews rushed out after what was one of the hardest hits the track had seen in a number of weeks, and a lengthy caution followed that saw Goodrich needing an ambulance ride back to the pits to be checked out, his car wrecked, and a major clean-up needed along the front straight before racing could continue. Thankfully Goodrich was soon back in the pits and walking around, albeit with a very sore neck and a badly wrecked front end to his #86 car.

After such a long caution the reliability of the Super Stocks became a factor, and right from the restart another long stoppage followed when the #52 of Bobby Cuddy, making the trip north just one night after being driven to a 50 lap win and the division championship at Orlando by brother Billy Cuddy, suffered a mechanical failure going into the first turn, riding high up and into the wall in turn 2. Another long yellow flag caution period was needed to remove the orange Monte Carlo from the wall, with still just 8 laps in the books.

Finally the green flag was again waved and the race settled down for something of a calm period, but with a large group of fast cars up at the front seemingly evenly matched for speed. Korpi in the #211 and Holley were able to get out in front and develop something of a lead over the others, but behind them the battle was still raging for the 3rd place and, more importantly, a clear track to chase down the leaders. The calmness surely couldn’t last long, and inevitably by lap 22 an attempt to lap slower traffic by #15X Cody Blair saw the #29C of John Cummins Jr spin out and be hit hard in the door by David Russell Sr in the #61. Another caution whittled the field down even further as the long night and endless slow laps behind the pace truck saw cars going up in smoke and developing all manner of mechanical issues, and so by the time the half-distance flags were waved only 10 cars were left on the track, 2 of which had spent long spells in pit lane for running repairs.

With ten laps to go the race was entering its final stages, but there was still all to play for as the lead group of 6 cars had all proven they had the ability to win races around the New Smyrna track. Korpi was still holding on for the lead ahead of Herdegen, with Holley and Scott Smith in the #01 close behind in a battle of their own, before a spin on what was now a slick surface by #16 Russell put all the main contenders back together for should have been a short sprint for the checkered flag. Of course, on this night that just wasn’t going to happen and the restart lap saw Holley and Smith spinning out in turn 4, thankfully catching their cars before they could hit the walls, but scattering the field behind them as they took avoiding action. Another green flag and by now cars were slipping and sliding all over the track, Holley in particular getting sideways out of every turn, clipping #15 Michael Wooford with 6 laps to go, sending him down into the inside wall, and bringing out the pace truck yet again.

Now with only three laps remaining the race finally played itself out to a conclusion, but again the scarcity of grip on what was now becoming a dangerously slippery track thanks to the cold weather and moist nighttime air played a major role in the finish of the race. After leading for much of the race Korpi got badly out of shape in turn 2, letting Herdegen, Holley and Smith slip under him and relegate him to 4th place. Herdegen was able to ride out the late challenges to deservedly take the win in what had been a long, hard race, with Holley beating out Korpi in a drag race to the finish line to take 2nd place.

By now the time was well past 11 o’clock and with one race still to go the few remaining spectators who had decided to stay right until the bitter end really needed a quick, incident-free Strictly Stock feature race. Anyone who knows this class and how they race knew how unlikely that truly was, and as night inevitably follows day it took just half a lap for the #88 of Robert Pence to fail to cope with the pressure being exerted by William Hindman’s #89x and straight-line across turn 3 up into the high-banked wall. Thankfully this proved to be the last major wreck of the night, although it wasn’t the end of the action for this division as Hindman and Team Hit-N-Run colleague #59 Chris Brannon raced side-by-side for the lead. Brannon would get the advantage over Hindman but with 5 to go being shown from the flag-stand the slick track would claim another victim as Brannon turned himself around in turn 3, forcing the #54 of Cody Whitley to spin himself to avoid the stranded car. The resulting caution saw Hindman and his championship rival Whitley face-to-face on the front row and with the white flag being waved Hindman was holding firm under pressure to stay in the lead. But on a night like this just one lap left meant there was still plenty of time for another incident, and so it was that Hindman was left to take the checkered flag and the win uncontested after Brannon’s late charge saw him apparently touch Whitley in turn 3, spinning out the #54 to leave Brannon in 2nd place and relegating Whitley all the way back down to 5th. Miraculously the race had ended and just managed to complete the whole evening’s racing before Saturday night turned into Sunday morning, even if Hindman’s trademark post-race burnout did take place as the clock’s ticked over to midnight.

Barberville, FL (November 18, 2009)  Volusia Speedway Park will crown it’s 2009 Track Champions this Saturday night at the Daytona 500 Club in the infield of Daytona International.  Tickets are $30.00.  Social hour will be at 6 pm with dinner at 7 pm.  Please, no blue jeans, business casual attire is recommended.Being honored this Saturday will be Lawton Minchew, Late Model Champion; Rob Underwood, Modified Champion; Shaun Daugharty, Sportsman Champion; Grady Christian, Street Stock Champion; Danny Lunn, 4 Cylinder Challengers Champion and Scott Mooers, Thunder Stock Champion.

Volusia Speedway Park will be back in racing action on December 11th and 12th with the Holiday Convention Classic.

On Friday night, December 11th, fans will see the Top Gun Sprint Car Series, Florida Mini Sprints, and the UMP Dirtcar Modifieds.  On Saturday night, December 12th, fans will enjoy the Florida Late Models and the UMP Dirtcar Sportsman.   Nightly admission is $20.00 ($15.00 with PRI Badge, Toys for Tots Donation or coupon), Kids 10 and under are FREE.  Drive in parking is $10.00.

For the kids, Santa Claus will appear nightly with candy for the kids.

For more information on Volusia Speedway Park go to www.volusiaspeedwaypark.com or call 386-985-4402.  Come and join us for a fun-filled weekend.

A perfect evening for racing saw a small but appreciative crowd in the stands to see the final act of an eventful 2009 Championship Season that had seen to biggest winner being Mother Nature after the summer’s heavy rainfall had effectively split
the year’s racing in two. With several of the division championships still up for grabs there was plenty to race for, be it the championship itself or just the opportunity to serve notice of intent to challenge in what will hopefully be a coming 2010 season with less interruptions and rain-outs.

A good car count contributed to a fine night’s racing, and the end of season atmosphere saw some interesting additions to the fields of some divisions. William Hindman ended his Orlando season by putting a set of slick tires on the #89x that regularly runs in the Strictly Stock races to see how it would fare with the big-boys of the Super Stock division. In the tight Mini-stock division there was also a rare appearance by Late Model driver Michael Seay who literally blew the cobwebs off his rarely seen Ford mini-stock, sporting a rear spoiler that looked like he’d borrowed the take-off ramp from a US Navy aircraft carrier, to put in a creditable performance in a tense, championship-deciding race.

As always the evening started off with the combined Bandolero race, and this fittingly ended with the #17 of Mark Hooven taking the checkered flag ahead of the #54 of Tanner Cornwell, a result that confirmed the two drivers as champions of the ‘Young Gun’ and ‘Bandolero Bandit’ divisions respectively.

Qualifying for the night’s main event, the Super Stock 50 sponsored by Mannheim Central Florida, came before the racing proper began, and this was enough to provide some of the intrigue and controversy that was to follow later as the drivers jostled for grid position in this highly competitive division. With qualifying, the parade lap and national anthem out of the way the first feature race of the evening was soon upon us as the Legends Cars made their way out onto the track.

Despite the #99 of Alex Kempf having seemingly visited the winner’s circle in every race this year his championship lead was just 20 points over #54 Zach Harris, who had done a great job in securing second place in most of the races to never let Kempf get too far ahead. Starting back on the 3rdthst turn. Despair turned to hope as a glance around the track showed the #99 had met a similar fate, and having made it around the first corner was now cruising down the back straightaway, rolling to a halt going into turn 3. Both cars managed to get a push back to the pits and were able to take the green flag but again the #54 car failed to respond and retired to effectively end Harris’s bid for the title as Kempf sailed away through the pack and up into 3rd. and 4 row respectively the two points leaders were soon in the middle of the action and giving an indication of the race to come as Kempf turned Harris from the start, bringing everyone back to try again. A second attempt met with more success but with just one lap completed the #54 lost power as he tried to accelerate through the start line, grinding to a halt on the bandolero track in the 1

With the championship now in the bag, Kempf and his silver #99 were still at the center of the action – and the controversy – as the race played itself out to a conclusion for the season. Maybe it was the number on the car he was chasing down that inspired him to race so hard, but as Kempf closed in on the leading #54B of Brandon Thomson he made hard contact and turned the race leader going into turn 4, spinning him out. Obviously unhappy with what he saw as a deliberate move, the #54B raced around to hit Kempf hard in the door under the caution, only succeeding in pushing the #99 straight into the hapless #4 car that was going low on the track to avoid the fracas – a car that was ironically being driven by Russ Thomson, the father of #54B’s driver! The impact saw #4 rise up over the wheel arches of #99 and land so hard it needed a tow off the track, its racing finished for the season, while both the #54B and #99 would play no further part in the race, Thomson being DQ’d for the deliberate hit and Kempf being black flagged for his part in the incident.

With the mess on the track sorted out and the culprits back in the pits the race ran to its conclusion with the #12 of Critter Saille getting out at the front and never looking back, although if he had he would have seen a good battle in his mirrors between the chasing cars. Saille would take the checkered flag with a handy lead over the pack, with the #06 of Rick Wetmore pulling away in the closing laps to take 2nd and secure 3rd place in the points championship.

The Sportsman cars were next up in the packed program for the evening, This race saw some of the hardest driving of the night, with the #61 of Bobby Simcox receiving a warning midway through the race to tone his driving down a little or risk a black flag, but not before the crowd had been treated to some bumper-to-bumper and door-scraping action as the evenly matched lead group of cars put on a show. With all the cars seemingly struggling for grip the racing was close, and saw Simcox, #4 Timmy Todd Jr and #20 Justin Reynolds running each other hard and pushing the limits of the traction that was available. And so it was that an inevitable caution flag came out when Reynolds pushed just too hard on an attempted overtake of Simcox, resulting in the #20 spinning out and being sent to the back.

With the cars bunched back up for the restart Todd was left trying to get past the #20S of Ron DiCandio to reclaim a place, but an attempted slide up the inside going into turn 3 saw both cars hook together and drive each other onto the infield before separating and bringing out the yellow flag. DiCandio was able to restart, albeit with massive damage to his bodywork, while Todd was able to rejoin the race after a quick trip to the pits to replace a damaged tire. The green flag saw Simcox and the 66 of track champion Andy Nicholls away at the front and racing hard, and although Nicholls was able to apply plenty of pressure on the remaining laps, his attempts to finish his season with a win were denied by Simcox’s blocks. The #61 was able to cross the finish line to take the win with the #66 finally settling for a well-earned 2nd place.

The tightest championship race of the season was without doubt in the Mini-stock division, with last week’s race putting the #31 of David Russell and the #92 of Pedie Allison level on points and leaving them with a single, winner-takes-all shootout race to decide who would be the track champion. The potential spoiler for the race came in the shape of Rex ‘Boneman’ Hollinger, who both points leaders needed to get around once he was confirmed as the pole-sitter for the race, and who had proven in recent races had the pace in his #85 car to take the checkered flag himself. From the green flag the Boneman showed he would be no pushover and that the cars behind him would have to earn their points if they wanted to take home a trophy, with the #85 getting out to small lead ahead of Russell’s #31 before a spin-out at the rear brought the pace car out to bunch the cars back up. An aborted attempt at a restart was followed by a green flag that saw Russell taking the outside line and slowly pulling his way past Hollinger into the lead, with the #92 of Allison pushing hard from behind.

As the race developed it was Allison who began to see his championship dreams fading as he struggled to find the pace to overtake the #85, but knowing that both cars were keeping pace with Russell’s #31 at the front and that his lead was far from unassailable. As the laps began to count down Allison pushed harder and harder, before one last attempt to dive down the outside of Hollinger saw him get out of shape down the front straight and drop back far enough to know his championship ambitions were over. The #85 began to claw back the lead of #31 in the closing laps, getting his nose alongside the rear quarter of his rival in the race for the checkered flag, but Russell was not to be denied and took the division championship with a measured, tactical drive in the final race of the year.

A small field of Late Models came out for their season’s finale, seeing a good 4-car race up at the front to end the year for this division. The early action saw the #111 of Donny Williams and the #55 of Todd Allen racing for the lead, with the #19 of Bobby Good and the #4B of Alan Bruns having their own battle for 3rd. It was this secondary battle that provided the first incident of the race as contact between Bruns and Good saw the #19 spin out down the front straight, skid across the infield grass and come to rest just inside the 1st turn. These four cars continued to race hard in their last outing at Orlando of the year, seeing Allen leading from the front and Good slowly working his way past Bruns and Williams into 2nd place, getting right onto his rear bumper by the 5-to-go signal. As is often the case it was left to the lapped traffic to have one final say in the result, and so it was with this race as the leaders came across a slower car with 3 laps to go. Facing one last back-marker to deal with, Allen managed to get past with no problems, but Good lost just enough time in getting past to allow the #55 to take the win by a couple of car lengths, confirming his 2nd place in the division championship behind Bruns.

One more race before the interval and this saw the Pro-Trucks out on the track for a short blast sandwiched between last week’s 100-lapper at New Smyrna Speedway and the upcoming 200 lap Charity Truckers race at Orlando. The early running was made by the #63 of Zach Curtis, with the #20 of Anthony Sergi coming strongly through the pack to race hard with the #00 of Whitney Poole and take the 2nd spot. Sergi was soon pushing for the lead, and saw his chance to move inside and take the front spot coming around turn 1, making contact with the #63 as they powered out of turn 2. This contact obviously dislodged something in the engine compartment of the #63 as flames suddenly leapt from under the hood of the overtaken truck, seeing Curtis scrambling for safety as the fire crew raced to the scene. Curtis was OK, and the race was able to resume after a lengthy caution period to clear up the fluids dropped onto the track in the fire.

From the restart the #20 pulled away, followed by the #96 of Ben Kennedy and the #37 of Nick Hernandez, and with 10 laps to go it was Kennedy right on the rear bumper of Sergi at the front of the race, with Poole’s #00 racing hard with #55 of Scott
Reeves in the middle of the pack to add to the excitement for the fans. This fight for 5th place erupted when the #55 touched the wall down the back straight, pushing his car into Poole and leaving her no option but to straight-line across the bandolero track in turn 3, taking out the unfortunate #18 of Jason Rosarius as she scooted across and back up onto the track. All the trucks involved were able to continue, and the race played out with Kennedy chasing Sergi hard up at the front, but being unable to make a move stick and leaving Sergi to take the win by a couple of car lengths.

The interval gave the fans a chance to stretch their legs and get themselves refreshments ready for the drama that was to follow in the Super Stock 50 immediately after the break. With the qualifying complete and a complete field invert announced, fans were surprised to see the #52 of points leader Billy Cuddy still at the front of the field, having put in a couple of qualifying laps that were well off the pace of the rest of the cars, and particularly compared to the cars he usually runs with at the front. Regardless of whether this was a deliberate tactical interpretation of the rules or not, it really made little difference as the race would ultimately see the cream of the division soon racing at the front for the vast majority of the laps, and the final results being decided as much in the tech shed as they were out on the track.

With the #52 up at the front and the field inverted it took little time for the faster cars to carve their way through the field, and by the first caution of the race it was championship rivals Billy Cuddy and the #16D of David Gould up on the front row, with the #211 of Jarrett Korpi and #64 of Bobby Cuddy already up close behind them. The restart saw the #51 of Butch Herdegen and the #01 of Scott Smith joining the party up at the front, and further cautions in quick succession saw the lead group of cars all pushed together to battle at the restarts while the #316 of Joe Bandur was black-flagged and sent to the pits for being the cause of 3 cautions in quick succession.

Plenty of racing to go, and with Billy and Bobby Cuddy making up the front row it was left to Korpi to work his way past the #64 and start to claw into the lead of the #52. With the half-distance flags displayed the lead group of five cars were battling hard up at the front, and with lapped traffic beginning to get in their sights it was obvious that the race was moving into a key period. And so it turned out, as the #211 went around a lapped car but with the #64 trying to steal a march by going underneath and using the bandolero track as way to reclaim a place. This attempted move saw the #64 spin out and bring out a caution that put the #211 and #52 up on the front row for the restart. With the green flag waving it was Billy Cuddy who pulled away, leaving Korpi chasing hard but watching his mirror for Herdegen and Gould who were both chasing him down hard and looking for any
opportunity to get past. Gould’s evening, and reason at Orlando, would soon be over as with 15 laps to go his #16D began to smoke from the engine down the back straight, taking himself and Bobby Cuddy into the wall in turn 4 and picking up a couple of lapped cars for good measure. Both Cuddy and Gould were able to get back onto the track after quick repairs, but an overheating engine meant Gould’s night was finished and he was quickly back in the pits and loading his car on his trailer.

Just 15 laps left and again the #52 of Billy Cuddy was able to get away from the restart and leave the chasing pack in his wake, with the action now right behind him in the form of Herdegen and Korpi battling for 2nd place, and with Smith and the crafty veteran Ron McCreary in the #14 having avoided trouble and slowly moved up into contention should the front-runners get into difficulty. Cuddy continued to lead, but made the race much more interesting when he lost grip coming out of turn 4 with 5 laps to go, getting out of shape and catching his car before it went around, but giving the chasing pack an opportunity to regain some ground on him.

As the race entered its final two laps it really was everything to play for, and it was here that Billy Cuddy produced the maneuver of the night – knowing Korpi was looking down his inside and with Herdegen pushing hard from behind, Cuddy took his line coming out of turn 2 to pull alongside a lapped car, leaving Korpi no choice but to back off the gas and lose revs and momentum. The genius of the move was for Cuddy to also blip his throttle just enough to force Herdegen behind him to do the same as they came alongside the lapped #23, and effectively create his own restart for the last lap and a half. With their momentum gone and a lapped car blocking the inside line for him, Cuddy was able to blast away and leave his rivals behind, taking the checkered flag and leaving Korpi to beat Herdegen in a straight drag race for the line to take 2nd place.

As always, the night wasn’t over for the Super Stock cars and a lengthy tear-down and tech inspection ensued, which ultimately confirmed Billy Cuddy as the winner of both the race and the points championship for the year. Things didn’t go as well for the #211 of Korpi as he was disqualified to give Herdegen the 2nd place, and pushing Scott Smith and Ron McCreary, who had both provided plenty of entertainment during the race, into the 3rd and 4th places.

Still two classes to go before the Orlando season came to an end, and so next out on track were the Open Wheel Modifieds. Just taking the green flag was enough to confirm #30 Mark Emberson as the division champion, and he was soon pushing for the lead right from the start by overtaking the #4B of Alan Bruns. With regular driver Chad Pierce unable to drive due to a hand injury, the #38 car was handed over to SLM points leader Jared Allison, and he was soon able to show the car’s speed by racing through the field and getting up into 2nd place, chasing down the #55 of Shain Held that had led from pole position. Taking the 5 laps to go signal inspired Allison to try the high line and see if that gave him the pace to challenge for the lead, and this proved a wise move as he pulled alongside Held, making contact in turns 1 and 2 before getting open track in front of him to bring the #38 car back to it’s regular place in victory lane, with Held in 2nd and Emberson underlining his championship with a 3rd place ahead of Bruns.

Just the Strictly Stocks left, and as always they provided more than enough entertainment for the crowd who stayed on to watch them race. With the whole race taking place in a shroud of smoke provided by the constantly rubbing rear tire of #19 Ricky Solomon Jr, it was the #8 of Neil Kirby who was able to get his Ford Probe out to the front and make the early running, although the real action was taking place at the back of the field as William Hindman’s #89 Lincoln began to reel in the slower cars, and the #6.7 of Todd McCreary expertly picked his way through the pack, using every inch of the track to make his overtakes. Once Hindman and McCreary got alongside each other the fun really began, with both cars looking for a way around the #93 of Bruce Gayton. Hindman was the first to profit as Gayton moved low to block McCreary, leaving the outside line open to the #89. Gayton would soon bring out the caution flags for turning the #24 of Tony Bandur, bunching up the pack and putting the battling McCreary and Hindman up at the front of the field with Kirby.

A door-to-door battle saw McCreary getting the advantage by going three-wide into turn 3 and moving into 2nd place with Kirby well and truly in his sights. Now there was a real chance that the final race of the year at Orlando Speedworld could go down as a classic, but with just two laps to go Kirby’s #8 lost grip in turn 2, span out, and left McCreary with nowhere to go, taking both cars up the bank and to the wall. Kirby managed to get clear, but before the #6.7 could restart he was rear-ended by Hindman, sending McCreary back to the pits for a quick repair and leaving Hindman out of the race despite his desperate attempts to prove that he could complete the race even with his hood popped up and totally blocking his windshield. The track officials weren’t convinced, and Hindman was ushered into the pits and wouldn’t return. The crash put the leaders to the rear for the end of the race, which allowed the #9 of Chris Brannon to take advantage and claim a win over the #93 of Gayton with a last lap pass for the checkered flag