John Blankenship Dazzles at Lucas Oil Speedway’s CMH Diamond Nationals

WHEATLAND, MO (July 13, 2013) – John Blankenship dazzled the impressive crowd on-hand at Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland, MO tonight in the 7th Annual CMH “Diamond Nationals” co-sanctioned by the Lucas Oil MLRA. Blankenship took the point’s lead from Jimmy Owens last night, and came into tonight’s event a-top the points standings for the first time in his career. He and Owens had a fierce battle for the lead, until lap 28, when Blankenship finally put some distance between himself and the “Newport Nightmare”. Blankenship went unchallenged the rest of the way in the race that had no cautions.

Blankenship’s third LOLMDS victory of the season also marked his first-ever at the track. He took home $10,000 for the win and put an end to Owens’ reign over the facility. Owens entered the event having won six out of the last seven LOLMDS races at Lucas Oil Speedway, including 3 Show-Me 100’s.

Trailing Blankenship and Owens to the finish line were Tony Jackson, Jr., Earl Pearson Jr., and Steve Francis.

“I don’t know what to say,” said the winner in Lucas Oil Victory Lane. “To beat Jimmy here is just unbelievable! He has been so strong here; I didn’t think anyone was ever going to beat him here. Our car tonight, once we got going really was fast, to catch Jimmy and then to pass him says a lot about our team and this Rocket Chassis. We have come so close to winning here before, and to finally do it tonight in front of this big crowd, is just tremendous!”

Blankenship started fifth and wrestled the second position away from Dennis Erb Jr. by lap 8. “Dennis and I had a good race going early on. Once we broke free from him, I was finally able to get Jimmy in my vision, he must have had a straightaway lead or better on us by the time we got to second, we slowly tracked him down, and once we got into traffic that was our chance.”

“What a way to bring a new sponsor into the sport! GeneratorWorld.com has come on board with us, and along with all of our other great sponsors: Todd Case Trucking, Coal, Bear Cove Village, VP, and Integra. We have also been alternating back-and-forth between the Cornett and Jay Dickens Engines. Tonight we had the Cornett in the car and both engines have been really strong!”

Blankenship forged ahead of Owens for the lead the first time on lap 23. But Owens came back and led the next three circuits, until Blankenship shot by him for good on lap 28 and was never able to seriously challenge the 32-year-old racer for the remainder of the race.

“Congrats to John on the win! I am just as excited for him as he is,” said Owens afterwards. “We have been struggling over the last month, and with last night’s parts failure, we didn’t even get to turn a lap in the feature, but his team works hard! John has gotten so much better as a driver over the last few years, it’s scary for the rest of the competition what he could become,” said the driver of the Reece Monument Company, Cornett Racing Engines, Bloomquist Ford.

Jackson had his best career LOLMDS finish with a third place finish. Jackson was outside of the top five for the first half of the race, but got going late in the 50-lapper. “I wish we had as good of a car early in the race as we had later on! To have a podium finish against these guys lets us know how far our race team has come in the last year,” said the driver of the RLB Financial, Rocket Chassis, Chevrolet. Jackson came into the race as winner in seven events since Memorial Day Weekend.

Completing the top ten were Dennis Erb Jr., Wendell Wallace, Don O’Neal, Jesse Stovall, and Terry Phillips.

In preliminary action, Ryan Gustin set the overall time (Group A) amongst the 38 entrants, with a lap of 16.347 seconds. Jimmy Owens set the fastest time in Group B with a time of 16.398 seconds. Eric Turner, Will Vaught, Jimmy Owens, and Dennis Erb Jr. won their respective heat races. Mark Dotson and Eddie Carrier Jr. won their respective B-Mains.

The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series will continue its July Midwest swing next week. On Tuesday, July 16^th, the series will make its first appearance at Lakeside Speedway in Kansas City, KS. Hamilton County Speedway will host its first-ever LOLMDS event on Wednesday, July 17^th. Both events will include RED BUCK Time Trials, Heat Races, B-Mains, and the 50-Lap, $10,000-to-win main events. For more information, log onto www.lakesidespeedway.net andwww.hamiltoncospeedway.com. The series will round out its July Midwest swing with the Silver Dollar Nationals at I-80 Speedway in Greenwood, NE. The event will include a practice session on Thursday, July 18^th. There will be two rounds of heats on Friday night, July 19^th. Capping off the trip to I-80 on Saturday, July 20^th, there will be B-Mains and the 80-lap feature event. For more information, visit www.I80speedway.com.

For the latest breaking news on the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, log onto www.lucasdirt.com and follow the series on www.facebook.com/lucasdirt and www.twitter.com/#!/lucasdirt. Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series

Race Summary

Saturday Night, July 13th, 2013
“CMH Diamond Nationals”
Lucas Oil Speedway – Wheatland, MO

RED BUCK Fast Time Group A: Ryan Gustin/ 16.347 seconds

RED BUCK Fast Time Group B: Jimmy Owens/ 16.398 seconds

Wiles Drive Shafts Heat Race #1 (10 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): Eric Turner, John Blankenship, Steve Francis, Craig Vosbergen, Mark Dotson, Mark Banal, Patrick Johnson, Jay Brunson, Ryan Gustin, Brantlee Gotschall

Eibach Springs Heat Race #2 (10 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): Will Vaught, Jesse Stovall, Wendell Wallace, Jared Landers, Jack Sullivan, Billy Moyer, Timothy Culp, Brandon McCormick, Brad Looney

Simpson Performance Products Heat Race #3 (10 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): Jimmy Owens, Tony Jackson, Jr., John Anderson, Terry Phillips, Eddie Carrier Jr., Jerry Lierly, Chase Junghaus, Jason Bodenhamer, Travis Dickes, Reid Millard FK Rod Ends Heat Race #4 (10 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): Dennis Erb Jr., Tyler Reddick, Earl Pearson Jr., Jason Feger, Billy Moyer Jr., Don O’Neal, Tommy Weder, Jason Papich, Larry Jones

CV Products B-Main #1 (12 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): Mark Dotson, Jack Sullivan, Billy Moyer, Timothy Culp, Ryan Gustin, Brandon McCormick, Jay Brunson, Patrick Johnson, Mark Banal

Wrisco Aluminum B-Main #2 (12 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): Eddie Carrier Jr., Billy Moyer Jr., Don O’Neal, Jerry Lierly, Tommy Weder, Chase Junghaus, Jason Bodenhamer, Travis Dickes, Jason Papich, Reid Millard, Larry Jones

Feature Finish (50 Laps):

FINISH	START	CAR #	DRIVER NAME	HOMETOWN
1	5	23	John Blankenship	Williamson, WV
2	2	20	Jimmy Owens	Newport, TN
3	6	56	Tony Jackson, Jr.	Lebanon, MO
4	16	44	Earl Pearson Jr.	Jacksonville, FL
5	9	15	Steve Francis	Ashland, KY
6	4	28e	Dennis Erb Jr.	Carpentersville, IL
7	11	6m	Wendell Wallace	Batesville, AR
8	22	71	Don O’Neal	Martinsville, IN
9	7	00s	Jesse Stovall	Billing, MO
10	14	75	Terry Phillips	Springfield, MO
11	3	1v	Will Vaught	Crane, MO
12	10	2a	John Anderson	Omaha, NE
13	8	11T	Tyler Reddick	Corning, CA
14	1	33x	Eric Turner	Hermitage, MO
15	18	28	Eddie Carrier Jr.	Salt Rock, WV
16	19	1x	Jack Sullivan	Greenbrier, AR
17	17	85d	Mark Dotson	Cameron, MO
18	20	21JR	Billy Moyer Jr.	Batesville, AR
19	15	5	Jared Landers	Batesville, AR
20	26	21T	Travis Dickes	Madison, NE
21	13	8	Craig Vosbergen	Western Australia
22	23	7L	Jerry Lierly	Camp Point, IL
23	24	19R	Ryan Gustin	Marshalltown, IA
24	12	25F	Jason Feger	Bloomington, IL
25	25	14	Brad Looney	Republic, MO
26	21	21	Billy Moyer	Batesville, AR

Entrants: 38

Lap Leaders: Jimmy Owens (Laps 1 – 22); John Blankenship (Lap 23); Jimmy Owens (Laps 24 – 27); John Blankenship (Laps 28 – 50)

Caution Flags: none

Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Provisionals: Jerry Lierly

Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Emergency Provisionals: none
RED BUCK Fast Time Provisionals: Ryan Gustin
Lucas Oil Midwest Latemodel Racing Association Provisionals: Brad Looney; Travis Dickes

Optima Batteries Hard Charger of the Race: Don O’Neal (Started: 22nd, Finished: 8th, Advanced: 14 positions)

Allstar Performer of the Race: John Blankenship

Sunoco Race for Gas Highest Finisher: Jimmy Owens

JRi Shocks/Dunn Benson Ford Rookie of the Race: Billy Moyer Jr.

COMP Cams Engine Builder of the Race: Cornett Racing Engines

Ohlins Shocks Chassis Builder of the Race: Rocket Chassis

Outerwears Crew Chief of the Race: Tom Buckingham (John Blankenship)
HAWK Performance Fastest Lap of the Race: Jimmy Owens (Lap # 2; 17.106 seconds)

Time of Race: 20 minutes 41 seconds

Lucas Oil Championship Point Standings:

POS	CAR #	DRIVER NAME	HOMETOWN	POINTS
1	23	John Blankenship	Williamson, WV	3535
2	20	Jimmy Owens	Newport, TN	3485
3	15	Steve Francis	Ashland, KY	3440
4	71	Don O’Neal	Martinsville, IN	3365
5	44	Earl Pearson Jr.	Jacksonville, FL	3330
6	28e	Dennis Erb Jr.	Carpentersville, IL	3275
7	5	Jared Landers	Batesville, AR	3060
8	28	Eddie Carrier Jr.	Salt Rock, WV	2995
9	21JR	Billy Moyer Jr.	Batesville, AR	2720
10	7L	Jerry Lierly	Camp Point, IL	2455

==========================================================================

Francis Gets First Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Win of the Season at Tri-City

PONTOOON BEACH, IL (July 12, 2013) – Steve Francis won his first feature of the season on the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series tonight at Tri-City Speedway. Francis started third in the $10,000 to win “Battle at the Beach”. He took the lead on lap nine and was challenged all the way to the checkers by John Blankenship, who finished second. Trailing Francis and Blankenship to the finish were Chris Simpson, Don O’Neal, and Billy Moyer.

Francis; claimed six series wins last year; recorded his 12^th career LOLMDS victory. He also became the 12^th different winner on the tour in 2013. Blankenship, in the Coal World’s Energy Rocket stayed within striking distance until the end, and came up just short of his third win of the year. With his second place finish, Blankenship took over the series points lead from Jimmy Owens, who failed to make a lap in the main event due to transmission issues.“The team worked really hard for this win,” said Francis, who registered his first ever win at Tri-City. “I told Kevin (Gundaker) earlier that I liked the old half-mile better, but not now! We had a meeting this week with Clint (Bowyer) and decided we wanted to finish the season strong, this is a very good start to that goal!”Blankenship bolted to the lead and led the first eight circuits until Francis took to the outside and dashed by him. The race was slowed by three caution flags and remained close all the way with Blankenship cutting the lead on the final lap to less than one-car length. “Congrats to Steve, he drove a heck of a race! We switched cars before the night, and went with the car that had the smaller motor in it, Tom (Buckingham) made the right call on that and it nearly paid off! I didn’t even know Owens did not run a lap,” said Blankenship who leads the series points for the first time in his career.Francis thanked a multitude of people in Lucas Oil Victory Lane and hopes the win can vault the team to bigger things. “Our goal every year is to win the championship. I have to thank all the crew, along with Lance and Barry Wright, Clint Bowyer, and everybody back at the shop. It’s a big win for my sponsors: Georgia Boot, Peak Motor Oil, Cometic Gasket, Toyota, VP, Clements Racing Engines, and of course Barry Wright Race Cars.”

Simpson, who was the runner-up in the Show-Me 100 back in May at Lucas Oil Speedway came home in another solid run. “Congrats to Steve for his win! John and I battled hard for second; we never touched the whole race! It’s great to able to compete with these guys, they do it on a weekly basis, we are getting our program to where we are a threat to win each time out,” said the driver of the Simpson Farms, Five Star Shop Service, MB Customs Chevrolet.

Completing the top ten were Brian Birkhofer, Billy Moyer Jr., Randy Korte, Jason Feger, and Tyler Reddick.

In preliminary action, Billy Laycock set the overall time (Group A) amongst the 33 entrants, with a lap of 15.506 seconds. Michael Kloos set the fastest time in Group B with a time of 15.774 seconds. John Blankenship, Steve Francis, Chris Simpson, and Jimmy Owens won their respective heat races. Craig Smith and Tim Manville won their respective B-Mains.

The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series will be back in action tomorrow night, July 13th. The series will head to the “Diamond of the Dirt Tracks” Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland, MO for the annual running of the “CMH Diamond Nationals”. The event will include RED BUCK Time Trials, Heat Races, B-Mains, and the 50-Lap, $10,000-to-win main event. For more information, log onto www.lucasoilspeedway.com.

For the latest breaking news on the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, log onto www.lucasdirt.com and follow the series on www.facebook.com/lucasdirt and www.twitter.com/#!/lucasdirt.

Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series

Race Summary

Friday Night, July 12th, 2013
“Battle at the Beach”
Tri-City Speedway – Pontoon Beach, IL

RED BUCK Fast Time Group A: Billy Laycock / 15.506 seconds

RED BUCK Fast Time Group B: Michael Kloos / 15.774 seconds

Wiles Drive Shafts Heat Race #1 (10 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): John Blankenship, Don O’Neal, Billy Laycock, Tyler Reddick, Craig Smith, Jeff Herzog, Jason Zobrist, Steve Lampley

Eibach Springs Heat Race #2 (10 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): Steve Francis, Billy Moyer, Billy Drake, Jason Feger, Jerry Lierly, Chris Fetter, Jared Landers, Jason Papich

Simpson Performance Products Heat Race #3 (10 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): Chris Simpson, Brian Birkhofer, Michael Kloos, Eddie Carrier Jr., Tim Manville, Dennis Erb Jr., Craig Vosbergen, Derek Fetter FK Rod Ends Heat Race #4 (10 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): Jimmy Owens, Earl Pearson Jr., Randy Korte, Billy Moyer Jr., Timothy Culp, Scott Weber, Chris Shelton, Chad Zobrist

CV Products B-Main #1 (12 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): Craig Smith, Jerry Lierly, Jared Landers, Jeff Herzog, Chris Fetter, Jason Zobrist, Jason Papich, Steve Lampley

Wrisco Aluminum B-Main #2 (12 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): Tim Manville, Timothy Culp, Scott Weber, Dennis Erb Jr., Craig Vosbergen, Derek Fetter, Chris Shelton, Chad Zobrist, Jason Zobrist, Jason Papich, Steve Lampley

Feature Finish (50 Laps):

FINISH	START	CAR #	DRIVER NAME	HOMETOWN
1	3	15	Steve Francis	Ashland, KY
2	1	23	John Blankenship	Williamson, WV
3	2	32x	Chris Simpson	Oxford, IA
4	5	71	Don O’Neal	Martinsville, IN
5	7	21	Billy Moyer	Batesville, AR
6	6	15b	Brian Birkhofer	Muscatine, IA
7	16	21JR	Billy Moyer Jr.	Batesville, AR
8	12	81K	Randy Korte	Highland, IL
9	15	25F	Jason Feger	Bloomington, IL
10	13	11T	Tyler Reddick	Corning, CA
11	14	28	Eddie Carrier Jr.	Salt Rock, WV
12	8	44	Earl Pearson Jr.	Jacksonville, FL
13	23	28e	Dennis Erb Jr.	Carpentersville, IL
14	11	75	Billy Drake	Bloomington, IL
15	9	82	Billy Laycock	Marine, IL
16	19	7L	Jerry Lierly	Camp Point, IL
17	25	15x	Chris Fetter	Troy, MO
18	26	32F	Derek Fetter	Troy, MO
19	21	5	Jared Landers	Batesville, AR
20	20	C8	Timothy Culp	Prattsville, AR
21	17	8x	Craig Smith	Godfrey, IL
22	18	33T	Tim Manville	Highland, IL
23	10	6k	Michael Kloos	Trenton, IL
24	22	92w	Scott Weber	Festus, MO
25	24	11	Jeff Herzog	Herculaneum, MO
26	4	20	Jimmy Owens	Newport, TN

Race Statistics

Entrants: 33

Lap Leaders: John Blankenship (Laps 1 – 8); Steve Francis (Laps 9 – 50)

Caution Flags: Michael Kloos (Lap 29); Craig Smith (Lap 36); Jared Landers (Lap 45)

Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Provisionals: Dennis Erb Jr.

Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Emergency Provisionals: none
RED BUCK Fast Time Provisionals: Jeff Herzog
Tri City Speedway Track Provisionals: Chris Fetter, Derek Fetter

Optima Batteries Hard Charger of the Race: Billy Moyer Jr. (Started: 16th, Finished: 7th, Advanced: 9 positions)

Allstar Performer of the Race: Steve Francis

Sunoco Race for Gas Highest Finisher: Billy Moyer

JRi Shocks/Dunn Benson Ford Rookie of the Race: Billy Moyer Jr.

COMP Cams Engine Builder of the Race: Cornett Racing Engines

Ohlins Shocks Chassis Builder of the Race: Barry Wright Race Cars

Outerwears Crew Chief of the Race: Tommy Grecco (Steve Francis)
HAWK Performance Fastest Lap of the Race: Don O’Neal (Lap # 19; 16.514 seconds)

Time of Race: 32 minutes 35 seconds

Lucas Oil Championship Point Standings:

POS	CAR #	DRIVER NAME	HOMETOWN	POINTS
1	23	John Blankenship	Williamson, WV	3285
2	20	Jimmy Owens	Newport, TN	3245
3	15	Steve Francis	Ashland, KY	3235
4	71	Don O’Neal	Martinsville, IN	3175
5	44	Earl Pearson Jr.	Jacksonville, FL	3120
6	28e	Dennis Erb Jr.	Carpentersville, IL	3075
7	5	Jared Landers	Batesville, AR	2925
8	28	Eddie Carrier Jr.	Salt Rock, WV	2840
9	21JR	Billy Moyer Jr.	Batesville, AR	2580
10	7L	Jerry Lierly	Camp Point, IL	2330

Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series News and Results from Fri/Sat July 12th & 13th:

ByTyler Altmeyer

John Blankenship Dazzles at Lucas Oil Speedway’s CMH Diamond Nationals

Francis Gets First Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Win of the Season at Tri-City

By Tyler Altmeyer

Related Post

Chase Randall Hard Charges at Knoxville; Set for return July 15

Ryan Giles aims to cap Knoxville season with victory after tough Nationals outing

TKS Motorsports and Tasker Phillips secure first top-ten of 2022 season