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| RENEGADE DIRTCAR SERIES OPENER TO O'NEAL!!! | 
Don O'Neal of Martinsville,IN is making it a habit of winning Renegade DirtCar Racing Series sanctioned events at East Bay Raceway in Tampa,FL. O'Neal copped his fourth career Renegade DirtCar Racing Series main event, all of them at East Bay Raceway, cashing the $5,000 top prize in the opening night of the "26th Winternationals". Starting from the outside pole aboard the Petroff Towing/O'Neal Wood Products/B-Auto Parts No. 71o Don O'Neal Motorsports C.J Rayburn Race Cars/Pro Power Racing Engines Chevrolet Monte Carlo, O'Neal grabbed the lead from pole sitter Mike Balzano on lap 21 in heavy lapped traffic. O'Neal then held off Rick Aukland by two car lengths at the finish to snare his second straight opening night "Winternationals 50" triumph.
Two-time defending Renegade DirtCar Racing Series champion Chub Frank raced home third after starting nineteenth with Balzano fourth and Billy Moyer fifth. Rounding out the top ten finishers were Brian Birkhofer, Shannon Babb, sixteenth starting Wendell Wallace, Jimmy Mars and Earl Pearson Jr.
At the drop of the green flag Balzano jumped into the lead followed by O'Neal, Aukland, Babb and Birkhofer at the end of the first lap. Balzano entered lapped traffic on the ninth circuit but he could not shake O'Neal. Balzano looked high and low to find room to get through the backmarkers as O'Neal kept the pressure on. On lap 20 O'Neal got his chance for the lead as Balzano left the door open in turn one allowing O'Neal to grab the lead exiting turn two. Aukland followed suit grabbing second from Balzano off of turn four as the leaders completed lap 21. The furious action slowed on lap 24 when Dan Schlieper stopped in turn three with handling woes to bring out the first caution.
The top ten restart order found O'Neal the leader ahead of Aukland, Balzano, Birkhofer and Babb with Pearson Jr. sixth ahead of Moyer, Mars, Davey Johnson and Dennis Erb Jr. Caution on lap 27 for a Terry English flat right rear tire slowed the pace again. O'Neal felt little pressure from Aukland as the race wore on enjoying the comfort of the lapped car of Tim Dohm between himself and Aukland. By lap 35 Frank was clearly the man on the move as he was now up to seventh and moving to the front. Caution for Billy Drake who suffered suspension problems brought the yellow back out on lap 38.
Once the green replaced the yellow, O'Neal again enjoyed the comfort of the lapped car of Dohm but that didn't last long as Dohm got fast and raced back around O'Neal on lap 40 to get himself back on the lead lap. But, all eyes were on Frank who broke into the top five and one lap later grabbed fourth from Birkhofer. Frank kept up his drive taking third from Balzano on lap 43 and began to pressure Aukland for the runner-up spot. Aukland had closed to within a car length of O'Neal when the races final caution waved on lap 45 when Dohm spun in turn one.
O'Neal opened up a two car margin on Aukland after going back to green with Frank hounding Aukland for the second spot. But Aukland was up to the task keeping Frank at bay as O'Neal pulled away to the victory.
The $26,000 event drew 87 drivers to the semi-banked 1/3rd mile oval with Aukland topping the CARRERA SHOCKS "Challenge the Clock" time trials with his quick lap of 14.806 seconds. Earning BRODIX,INC. heat race wins were Moyer, Darrell Lanigan, Mars, O'Neal, Steve Shaver and Birkhofer. Taking the triple MASTERSBILT RACE CARS "B" Mains were Frank, Dale McDowell and Schlieper while Balzano copped the ISKY RACING CAMS dash. In the unsanctioned Morgan Farms Strawberry Dash for non-qualifiers, Jeff Wildung led all ten laps to pocket the win. During the second MASTERSBILT RACE CARS "B" Main, Richie Hedrick tagged the turn wall flipping his mount. Hedrick was shaken but emerged from his damaged race car otherwise uninjured.
Renegade DirtCar Racing Series Race Report for 2-4-02 Race No. 1-2002 Season-"26th Winternationals 50" East Bay Raceway-Tampa (Gibsonton),FL-1/3rd Mile Oval $26,000 Purse-$5,000 To Win-50 Lap Feature.
Showing Finish Pos.,Start Pos.,Car #,Driver,Laps Completed, Reason Out (if any) and Purse Money Won
1. (2) #71o Don O'Neal 50 Running $5,080
2. (5) #12 Rick Aukland 50 Running $2,540
3. (19) #1* Chub Frank 50 Running $1,540
4. (1) #E1 Mike Balzano 50 Running $1,300
5. (7) #21M Billy Moyer 50 Running $1,000
6. (3) #15B Brian Birkhofer 50 Running $960
7. (6) #18 Shannon Babb 50 Running $885
8. (16) #6M Wendell Wallace 50 Running $800
9. (9) #28M Jimmy Mars 50 Running $750
10. (11) #1P Earl Pearson Jr. 50 Running $700
11. (4) #19J Davey Johnson 50 Running $700
12. (20) #17M Dale McDowell 50 Running $640
13. (15) #28E Dennis Erb Jr. 50 Running $590
14. (22) # 1 Steve Francis 50 Running $540
15. (12) #71R Rod Conley 50 Running $450
16. (13) #71C R.J. Conley 50 Running $400
17. (26) # 7 Matt Miller 50 Running $390
18. (28) #6T Tim Dohm 50 Running $340
19. (10) #30 Steve Shaver 50 Running $300
20. (17) #53 Ray Cook 50 Running $300
21. (18) #96E Terry English 50 Running $300
22. (23) #99 Donnie Moran 49 Running $340
23. (25) #4B Jackie Boggs 49 Running $300
24. (14) #1D Billy Drake 38 Suspension $300
25. (8) #29 Darrell Lanigan 27 Mechanical $300
26. (21) #S9 Dan Schlieper 24 Handling $340
27. (24) #89 Marshall Green 13 Cooling $340
28. (27) #05 Roy Deese Jr. 7 Tires $340
Time Of Race: 25 Mins.
Yellow Flags: Four-Laps 24,27,38,45
Red Flags: None
Lap Leaders: Two-Balzano 1-20, O'Neal 21-50
OUTERWEARS CO. "Hard Charger of the Race": Frank
ROCKET CHASSIS "Rookie of the Race": None
Provisional Starters: Boggs,Miller,Deese Jr.,Dohm
Car Count: 87
CARRERA SHOCKS "Challenge the Clock" Time Trial Award: Aukland 14.806 secs.
BRODIX,INC. Heat Race Winners: Moyer,Lanigan,Mars,O'Neal,Shaver,
Birkhofer
SCOTT PERFORMANCE WIRE Heat Race Bonus Winner: None
MASTERSBILT RACE CARS "B" Main Winners: Frank,McDowell,
Schlieper
ISKY RACING CAMS Dash Winner: Balzano
SUMMARY: CARRERA SHOCKS "Challenge the Clock" Time Trials:
1. #12 Rick Aukland Zanesville,OH 14.806
2. #19J Davey Johnson Greensburg,PA 14.869
3. #17M Dale McDowell Rossville,GA 14.875
4. #05 Roy Deese Jr. Odenton,MD 14.892
5. #4B Jackie Boggs Grayson,KT 14.977
6. #6T Tim Dohm Cross Lanes,WV 15.028
7. #02 Keith Nosbisch Valrico,FL 15.055
8. #24 Rick Eckert York,PA 15.079
9. #18 Shannon Babb Decatur,IL 15.084
10. #71o Don O'Neal Martinsville,IN 15.100
11. #40A Andy Anderson Martinsburg,WV 15.104
12. #15B Brian Birkhofer Muscatine,IA 15.106
13. #E1 Mike Balzano Parkersburg,WV 15.111
14. #29 Darrell Lanigan Union,KY 15.134
15. #28M Jimmy Mars Elk Mound,WI 15.178
16. #W11 Rob Blair Titusville,PA 15.185
17. # 3 Steve Smith Powell,TN 15.210
18. #32 Greg Lucas Whitesburg,KY 15.235
19. #21M Billy Moyer Batesville,AR 15.239
20. #1D Billy Drake Bloomington,IL 15.268
21. #71 Delmas Conley Wheelersburg,OH 15.328
22. #1P Earl Pearson Jr. Jacksonville,FL 15.380
23. #30 Steve Shaver Vienna,WV 15.381
24. #71C R.J. Conley Wheelersburg,OH 15.414
25. # 1 Steve Francis Ashland,KY 15.416
26. #50 Ed Dixon Washington,MO 15.425
27. #13 Barry Doss Sardinia,OH 15.443
28. #6M Wendell Wallace Batesville,AR 15.465
29. #71W Jeff Wildung Nassau,MN 15.478
30. #32C Vic Coffey Leceister,NY 15.487
31. # 2 Anthony White Clinton,TN 15.524
32. #00H Chuck Harper Beverly,WV 15.527
33. #28E Dennis Erb Jr. Carpentersville,IL 15.527
34. #21 Jason Montgomery Jackson,OH 15.543
35. #7J Dave Troutman Hyndman,PA 15.546
36. #00S Freddy Smith Knoxville,TN 15.565
37. # 7 Matt Miller Waterville,OH 15.567
38. #28 Steve Lucas Charleston,WV 15.576
39. #H20 Mark Kraus Stratford,WI 15.587
40. #T8 Mark Banal St. Clairsville,OH 15.595
41. #S9 Dan Schlieper Pewaukee,WI 15.600
42. #96E Terry English Benton,KY 15.608
43. #1* Chub Frank Sugar Grove,PA 15.623
44. #1K John Anderson Omaha,NE 15.629
45. #99 Donnie Moran Dresden,OH 15.664
46. #18D Jim Bernheisel Lebanon,PA 15.684
47. #9X Russ Scheffler Waukesha,WI 15.695
48. #0A Bobby Alexander Jr. Riverview,FL 15.714
49. #201 Billy Ogle Knoxville,TN 15.717
50. #21D Dan Stone Thompson,PA 15.765
51. #77 Bill Bartels Marina Del Rey,CA 15.766
52. #12S Jason Setser Columbus,IN 15.770
53. #89 Marshall Green White,GA 15.780
54. #9Z Jayme Zidar Greenfield,WI 15.798
55. #43 Aaron Bapst Jackson,OH 15.800
56. #12C Cortney Clewell Cambridge,OH 15.835
57. #45 Russ Frohnapfel Columbus,OH 15.838
58. #70J D.J. Myers Greencastle,PA 15.843
59. #53 Ray Cook Brasstown,NC 15.857
60. #32D Scott Douglas Waco,KY 15.895
61. #25 Jeff Kohn Sheridan,MI 15.907
62. #72R Steve Russell Pontotoc,MS 15.912
63. #72 John Mason Millersburg,OH 15.924
64. #26 Paul Spires Cincinnati,OH 15.948
65. #71R Rod Conley Wheelersburg,OH 15.957
66. #19Y Timmy Yeager Harrodsburg,KY 15.970
67. #J8 Billy Jones Gravel Switch,KY 15.971
68. #166 Joey Izzo LaSalle,IL 15.989
69. #46 Jason Tolliver Proctorville,OH 16.108
70. #6H Tom Hall Denton,KY 16.113
71. #32S Ronnie Smith Waco,KY 16.115
72. #17 Mike Gault Gaffney,SC 16.132
73. #80 Bryan Durig Warren,OH 16.142
74. #64 Ryan Dauber Tonica,IL 16.164
75. #17S Frank Smith Mechanicsville,MD 16.220
76. #T31 Shane Tankersley Morganton,GA 16.233
77. #59 Bill Cunningham Jefferson,OH 16.497
78. #96 Cory Daugherty 16.571
79. #42 Marshall Austin Dover,FL 16.822
80. #J0 J.O. Nobles Nahunta,GA 16.857
81. #23J Greg Johnson Edinburgh,IN 17.101
82. # 0 Richie Hedrick Urbana,IL 17.151
83. #1A Dan Autullo Worth,IL 17.349
84. #07 Scott Cross Stevensville,MD NT
85. #00K Randy Korte Highland,IL NT
86. #63 Rod Patterson Lansing,MI NT
87. #26S Dan Sturgeon Bedford,IN NT
BRODIX,INC. Heat # 1(12 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Moyer,
Aukland,Balzano,Francis,Nosbisch,Miller,Ogle,Frank,Bapst,White,Kohn,
Durig,Austin,Jones,NS-Korte
BRODIX,INC. Heat # 2 (12 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Lanigan,D.
Johnson,Drake,Eckert,Harper,Dixon,Anderson,Stone,Izzo,Russell,S. Lucas, Clewell,Nobles,Dauber,NS-Patterson
BRODIX,INC. Heat # 3 (12 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Mars,Babb,
Erb Jr.,D. Conley,McDowell,Moran,G. Johnson,Doss,Mason,Frohnapfel,
Bartels,Fk. Smith,Kraus,Tolliver,NS-Sturgeon
BRODIX,INC./SCOTT PERFORMANCE WIRE Heat # 4 (12 Laps-Top 3
Advance To Feature): O'Neal,Pearson Jr.,Wallace,Banal,Blair,Myers,
Montgomery,Tankersley,Hall,Spires,Deese Jr.,Bernheisel,Setser,Hedrick
BRODIX,INC. Heat # 5 (12 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Shaver,
Rd. Conley,Cook,Green,Schlieper,Scheffler,Boggs,Wildung,S. Smith,
Anderson,R. Smith,Cunningham,Autullo,Troutman
BRODIX,INC. Heat # 6 (12 Laps-Top 3 Advance To Feature): Birkhofer,
R.J. Conley,English,G. Lucas,Zidar,Dohm,Yeager,Fy. Smith,Cross,
Alexander Jr.,Coffey,Gault,Daugherty,Douglas
MASTERSBILT RACE CARS "B" Main # 1 (15 Laps-Top 2 Advance To
Feature): Frank,Francis,Eckert,Izzo,Miller,Nosbisch,Dixon,Anderson,S.
Lucas,Ogle,Harper,Clewell,Durig,Nobles,Stone,Dauber,Bapst,Russell,
White,Kohn,NS-Austin,Jones,Korte,Patterson
MASTERSBILT RACE CARS "B" Main # 2 (15 Laps-Top 2 Advance To Feature): McDowell,Moran,Banal,Mason,Blair,G. Johnson,D. Conley,
Doss,Frohnapfel,Myers,Fk. Smith,Tankersley,Kraus,Bartels,Tolliver,Spires,
Hall.Hedrick,Deese Jr.,NS-Montgomery,Bernheisel,Setser,Sturgeon
MASTERSBILT RACE CARS "B" Main # 3: (15 Laps-Top 2 Advance To
Feature): Schlieper,Green,Dohm,G. Lucas,Wildung,Anderson,Alexander
Jr.,Cross,Gault,Cunningham,Douglas,Coffey,Scheffler,R. Smith,Autullo,
Zidar,Yeager,S. Smith,Fy. Smith,Troutman,Daugherty,NS-Boggs
ISKY RACING CAMS Dash (6 Laps-Finish Determines First Three Rows Of Feature: Balzano,O'Neal,Birkhofer,D. Johnson,Aukland,Babb
Morgan Farms Strawberry Dash (10 Laps): Wildung,Ogle,Mason,Anderson,
Banal,White,R. Smith,S. Smith,Tolliver,Autullo
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