Mississippi Driver Vaults From Third To First On Lap-29 Restart Of Sweeteners Plus 40
CANANDAIGUA, NY – June 25, 2013 – Bub McCool of Vicksburg, Miss., charged from third to first on a lap-29 restart and held off Tim Fuller of Watertown, N.Y., down the stretch to capture Tuesdaynight’s World of Outlaws Late Model Series Sweeteners Plus 40 at Canandaigua Motorsports Park.
Racing just five days after celebrating his 36th birthday, the 2012 WoO LMS Rookie of the Year broke through for his first victory of the season and the second of his career on the national tour. The $8,550 triumph culminated a successful swing through New York and Canada for McCool, who finished no worse than eighth in four starts behind the wheel of his family-owned Victory Circle car.
“We’ve been working hard at it,” said McCool, whose victory came two nights after he matched his season-best finish with a third-place run at Cornwall (Ont.) Motor Speedway. “I think we found a little something on the car that’s working good and the last couple nights we’ve done a little more to it. I felt like we may have figured something out.”
Fuller, 45, equaled his top finish of ’13 on the WoO LMS after starting 11th in the Kennedy Motorsports Capital Race Car. The former DIRTcar big-block Modified regular at Canandaigua vaulted from fourth to second on the eventful lap-29 restart and raced within striking distance of McCool for the remainder of the distance but fell short at the checkered flag by 0.588 of a second.
WoO LMS rookie Morgan Bagley of Longview, Texas, placed third, registering a career-best tour finish and first-ever top-five outing on the circuit in his Rocket car. Polesitter Rick Eckert of York, Pa., finished fourth in his Team Zero by Bloomquist machine after leading laps 1-7 and Tim McCreadie of Watertown, N.Y., who owns 14 career DIRTcar big-block Modified feature wins at Canandaigua, completed the top five in the Sweeteners Plus Warrior.
Clint Smith of Senoia, Ga., who sailed around the outside of Eckert to take the lead on lap eight and held the top spot until McCool gained control on lap 30, faded to an eighth-place finish after his soft tires gave out during the race’s second half.
The pivotal moment of the A-Main came after the caution flag waved for the first time on lap 29 for Rick ‘Boom’ Briggs of Bear Lake, Pa., who slowed between turns one and two. As Smith, whose commanding early lead had shrunk to almost nothing over Eckert just before the caution, struggled to fire off on the restart, McCool turned up the wick and surged past both Eckert and Smith to assume command as lap 30 was scored.
“When (Smith) and Eckert both took off (at the start) they probably got half a track or better on us,” said McCool, who started third. “I couldn’t even see ‘em up there no more, so I was just gonna try to drive my line and hold on to third there.
“We started running ‘em down, and then we had the caution (on lap 29). I tried to have my right-rear in the wet up there on the top (of turn four) when (Smith) fired (on the restart) and cut down and have a little more run than he did. I did on Eckert, and then we got by (Smith) when he slowed down getting into one.”
McCool’s strategy of cooling his jets until later in the race on the sprawling half-mile oval proved prescient.
“I knew they was a little softer than I was on tires,” McCool said of Smith and Eckert, “and if I could just keep it straight and keep it under me we’d be O.K. because I had a good car. It all ended up working out good.”
Fuller, who has one career DIRTcar big-block Modified feature win at Canandaigua, attempted to challenge McCool during the final circuits but couldn’t summon enough speed.
“I could run with him, but I didn’t know how I was gonna pass him unless he screwed up in lapped traffic,” said Fuller, whose winless streak reached 119 races since his last WoO LMS score on June 17, 2010, at Merrittville Speedway in Thorold, Ont. “When it’s that black and this shape of track you just gotta keep turning left and not scrub any speed, and he was doing that real well. I could run with him but then I’d lose the nose, and then I’d try to get down lower and I couldn’t make no ground up that way.
“He was good,” he added. “Maybe more laps would’ve helped, but he ran a good race.”
Fuller credited his strong run from mid-pack to his pre-race selection of Hoosier rubber.
“We had the right tires,” said Fuller. “In the beginning of the race those 1325s (compound) took off really well, but in the end when it got black and shiny and slippery the 1425s were the tire to have – and the top three had ‘em.”
Bagley, who celebrated his 27th birthday on June 10, moved forward from the seventh starting spot to nail down his career run on the WoO LMS. He sat sixth when the caution flag flew on lap 29, then picked up two spots on the restart and overtook Smith to reach third on a lap-31 restart following a caution flag for debris.
“That last restart ‘Cat’ (Smith) couldn’t get going,” said Bagley, who made his first-ever start at Canandaigua. “We got by him, but that just put a distance between us and Fuller and Bub. We started to get back to them at the end with some help from lapped traffic, so I would’ve loved 50 laps. I was real comfortable riding out there.”
Shane Clanton of Zebulon, Ga., finished a steady sixth after starting ninth; WoO LMS rookie Eric Wells of Hazard, Ky., moved up from the 14th starting spot to place seventh; Smith settled for eighth two nights after finishing a season-best second at Cornwall; former Canandaigua DIRTcar big-block Modified regular Vic Coffey of Caledonia, N.Y., placed ninth; and Chub Frank of Bear Lake, Pa., rounded out the top 10.
WoO LMS points leader Josh Richards of Shinnston, W.Va., and Darrell Lanigan of Union, Ky., who entered the evening riding a two-race win streak after sweeping the tour’s Canadian swing, experienced rare subpar nights. Richards started 12th and was never a factor while struggling to a 13th-place finish – a run that cut his points lead to eight markers over Clanton – and Lanigan backed up from the sixth starting spot to a 14 th-place finish.
Smith’s lap of 18.262 seconds in Ohlins Shocks Time Trials topped the night’s 23-car field. It was his seventh career WoO LMS fast-time honor but first since May 7, 2010, at Lincoln (Ill.) Speedway
Heat winners were Smith, Eckert and Lanigan, who rallied to capture the third prelim after officials penalized him from the pole starting spot to third place for firing early at the initial green flag. No B-Main was run, but Fuller earned $740 for winning a special 4-lap dash for drivers with DIRTcar big-block Modified roots over McCreadie, Billy Decker of Unadilla, N.Y., and Coffey.
The WoO LMS next heads to Lernerville Speedway in Sarver, Pa., for the three-day Firecracker 100 Presented by GottaRace.com on June 27-29. Full WoO LMS programs topped by 30-lap, $6,000-to-win A-Mains will be contested on Thurs., June 27, and Fri., June 27, with the $30,000-to-win Firecracker 100 finale set for Sat., June 29.
For more information on the WoO LMS, visit www.worldofoutlaws.com.
Results of WoO Late Model Series at Canandaigua Motorsports Park (Finishing Position/Start/Driver/Laps Completed/Money Won):
1. (3) Bub McCool/40 $8,550
2. (11) Tim Fuller/40 $5,290
3. (7) Morgan Bagley/40 $3,500
4. (1) Rick Eckert/40 $3,000
5. (5) Tim McCreadie/40 $2,650
6. (9) Shane Clanton/40 $2,150
7. (14) Eric Wells/40 $2,000
8. (4) Clint Smith/40 $1,850
9. (8) Vic Coffey/40 $1,750
10. (16) Chub Frank/40 $1,650
11. (10) Dan Stone/40 $1,000
12. (2) Billy Decker/40 $900
13. (12) Josh Richards/40 $1,500
14. (6) Darrell Lanigan/40 $1,450
15. (17) Larry Wight/40 $800
16. (20) John Volpe/40 $750
17. (13) Rick ‘Boom’ Briggs/39 $710
18. (18) Dave Zona/38 $640
19. (19) John Mason/37 $620
20. (23) Alan Fink/37 $610
21. (21) Gil Tegg Jr./20 $600
22. (15) Greg Oakes/15 $600
23. (22) Jon Rohacevich/2 $625
* Earnings include Winners Circle program and cash contingency award bonuses
Time of Race: 20 Mins., 16.229 Secs.
Margin of Victory: 0.588 Secs.
Yellow Flags: 2 (lap 29, 31)
Lap Leaders: Eckert (1-7); Smith (8-29); McCool (30-40)
Provisional Starters: none
Rookie of the Race: Bagley ($250)
WoO LMS ‘Bonus Bucks’ Winner: Coffey ($500)
Ohlins Shocks Time Trial Results (Position/No./Driver/Hometown/
1. 44-Clint Smith/Senoia, GA 18.262
2. 24-Rick Eckert/York, PA 18.288
3. 29-Darrell Lanigan/Union, KY 18.311
4. 2-Dan Stone/Thompson, PA 18.339
5. 57J-Bub McCool/Vicksburg, MS 18.408
6. 91-Billy Decker/Unadilla, NY 18.510
7. 14M-Morgan Bagley/Longview, TX 18.529
8. 53-John Volpe/Lakewood, NY 18.647
9. 1-Josh Richards/Shinnston, WV 18.702
10. 39-Tim McCreadie/Watertown, NY 18.742
11. 32c-Vic Coffey/Caledonia, NY 18.754
12. 99z-Dave Zona/Montrose, PA 18.762
13. 99b-Rick ‘Boom’ Briggs/Bear Lake, PA 18.801
14. 18-Eric Wells/Hazard, KY 18.811
15. 25-Shane Clanton/Zebulon, GA 18.830
16. 1*-Chub Frank/Bear Lake, PA 18.870
17. 19-Tim Fuller/Watertown, NY 18.902
18. 22-Greg Oakes/Franklinville, NY 19.223
19. 24J-Jon Rohacevich/Prattsville, NY 19.460
20. 99L-Larry Wight/Phoenix, NY 19.510
21. 22x-Gil Tegg Jr./Rochester, NY 19.705
22. 72-John Mason/Millersburg, OH 19.880
23. 15-Alan Fink/Central Square, NY 20.077
Heat No. 1 (10 laps – Top 2 redraw for A-Main): Smith, McCreadie, Bagley, Stone, Briggs, Frank, Mason, Rohacevich
Heat No. 2 (10 laps – Top 2 redraw for A-Main): Eckert, McCool, Coffey, Fuller, Wells, Wight, Volpe, Fink
Heat No. 3 (10 laps – Top 2 redraw for A-Main): Lanigan, Decker, Clanton, Richards, Oakes, Zona, Tegg
World of Outlaws Late Model Series Contingency Award Winners (awards presented to noted finisher/qualifier or next highest displaying decal:
Ohlins Shocks ($50 cash to fast qualifier): Rick Eckert
Eibach Springs (one free spring to each B-Main winner): none
VP Race Fuels ‘Nice Jugs’ Award: (One VP 5-gallon container to fastest qualifier who misses A-Main): none
Wrisco Aluminum (3 sheets of aluminum to A-Main winner only): Bub McCool
Armor All (One case of product to highest-finishing non-WoO team in A-Main): Larry Wight
Comp Cams ($50 certificate to A-Main winner): Bub McCool
QuarterMaster ($100 certificate to A-Main winner, $50 certificate to 5th-place finish): Bub McCool/Larry Wight
MSD Ignition ($50 cash to A-Main winner): Bub McCool
STP ($50 cash to 2nd-place finisher in A-Main): Tim Fuller
XS Power ($50 cash to 3rd-place finisher in A-Main): Morgan Bagley
Roush Yates ($50 cash to 4th-place finisher in A-Main): Rick Eckert
JE Pistons ($50 cash to 5th-place finisher in A-Main): Tim McCreadie
Dominator ($50 cash to 6th-place finisher in A-Main): Eric Wells
American Race Wheels ($50 cash to 7th-place finisher in A-Main): Eric Wells
VP Race Fuels ($50 cash to 8th-place finisher in A-Main): Clint Smith
Edelbrock Manifolds ($50 cash to 9th-finisher in A-Main): Vic Coffey
Comp Cams ($50 cash to 10th-place finisher in A-Main): Chub Frank
XS Power ($60 product certificate to 11th-place finisher in A-Main): Darrell Lanigan
Cometic Gasket ($50 cash to 12th-place finisher in A-Main): Josh Richards
JRI Shocks ($50 cash to 13th-place finisher in A-Main): John Volpe
Super Flow Dynos ($50 cash to 14th-place finisher in A-Main): Larry Wight
JE Pistons (one complete set of JE Pro Seal rings to 16th-place finisher in A-Main, redeemable w/next purchase of set): John Volpe
Klotz Lubricants ($50 cash to 17th-place finisher in A-Main): Rick ‘Boom’ Briggs
Roush Yates ($50 gift card to 18th-place finisher in A-Main): Dave Zona
QuarterMaster ($50 certificate to 19th-place finisher in A-Main): Alan Fink
Arizona Sport Shirts ($100 certificate to 20th-place finisher in A-Main): Gil Tegg Jr.
JE Pistons (one complete set of JE Pro Seal rings to 21st-place finisher in A-Main, redeemable w/next purchase of set): Greg Oakes
Roush Yates ($50 gift card to 22nd-place finisher in A-Main): Gil Tegg Jr.
MSD Ignition ($25 cash to 24th-place finisher in A-Main): Jon Rohacevich
XS Power ‘Power Move of the Race’ ($60 product certificate): Bub McCool
Roush Yates ($25 gift card to driver who leads most laps in the A-Main): Clint Smith
Reliable Painting Award (free tire): Rick Eckert
2013 World of Outlaws Late Model Series Point Standings as of June 25 – 22 A-Mains completed (rank/driver/points/deficit to leader):
1. Josh Richards 3090
2. Shane Clanton 3082 (-8)
3. Darrell Lanigan 3044 (-46)
4. Rick Eckert 3012 (-78)
5. Tim Fuller 2860 (-230)
6. Tim McCreadie 2838 (-252)
7. (tie) Eric Wells 2822 (-268)
7. (tie) Bub McCool 2822 (-268)
9. Chub Frank 2808 (-282)
10. Morgan Bagley 2796 (-294)
11. Clint Smith 2672 (-418)
12. Scott James 1958 (-1132)
13. Dillon Wood 1426 (-1664)
14. Dan Stone 1270 (-1820)
15. Gregg Satterlee 1248 (-1842)
The World of Outlaws Late Model Series is brought to fans across the country by many important sponsors and partners, including: American Racing Custom Wheels (Official Custom Wheel), Arizona Sport Shirts (Official Apparel Company), Armor All (Official Car Care Products), Hoosier Racing Tires (Official Racing Tires), KMC (Official Custom Truck Wheel), STP (Official Fuel Treatment), Vicci (Official Uniform), VP Racing Fuel (Official Racing Fuel), DirtonDirt.com (Hard Charger Award) and McCarthy’s One Hour Heating & Air Conditioning (Raye Vest Memorial Pill Draw Award); in addition to contingency sponsors: Butlerbuilt, Cometic Gasket, Comp Cams, Dominator Race Products, Edelbrock, Eibach Springs, JE Pistons, JRI Shocks, Klotz Synthetic Lubricants, MSD Ignition, Ohlins Shocks, QuarterMaster, Roush Yates Performance Parts, Superflow Dynos, Wrisco Aluminum and XS Power Racing Batteries; along with manufacturer sponsors Capital Race Cars, Integra Shocks, GRT Chassis, Jake’s Carts, Racing Electronics, Rocket Chassis, TNT Rescue, and Warrior Chassis.