DirtonDirt.com Dispatches
Dispatches: Pierce puts it together at Tri-City
Bobby Pierce in victory lane. (jacynorgaardphotography.com)
The latest notes and quotes from Dirt Late Model special and sanctioned events the first weekend in June, including World of Outlaws Case Late Model Series action at Tri-City Speedway in Granite City, Ill., the Comp Cams doubleheader weekend in Arkansas and Southern All Star action in Kentucky, among other events:
Pierce heating up
After three consecutive races when his contending car fell by the wayside, Bobby Pierce was glad to finish one off Friday with his $10,000 World of Outlaws Case Late Model Series victory at Tri-City Speedway in Granite City, Ill.
After making an overnight engine swap, the pole-starting driver from Oakwood, Ill., led all 40 laps at the 3/8-mile oval to notch his fifth overall victory of the season. The victory was the fourth of his career on the WoO circuit and second of the season.
"Lapped cars were making me nervous there. They were pretty sideways a few times, and them uke tires are right there. It was a little tricky getting through there. But you know, drawing that one (starting position) really is what won the race for us tonight. Usually don't see Tri-City like this, but huge thanks to the Gundakers and everyone, the World of Outlaws for putting this show on," he said. Big shoutout to the crew. We had to work super hard for this one. Just working all night, really, on the motor, like I said, getting it switched out. Because we just had a minor issue with that other one, so all in all, to come back and get the (victory), it's awesome."
Pierce's capable car hadn't been around at the finish in three consecutive events. After rallying as high as fourth in May 28's Show-Me 100 at Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland, Mo., distributor issues forced him out. He was leading one night later at Ohio's Eldora Speedway when a flat tire ended his hopes in the Johnny Appleseed Classic. Then on Thursday at Tri-City, in a hastily scheduled DIRTcar event preceding WoO's first visit to the track since 2004, Pierce was running among the leaders when his engine woes cropped up.
Pierce knows his team hasn't "been able to capitalize on our good nights. You know, we've been falling out of the good ones and finishing the bad ones. So just to put a whole night together how we want it, that's awesome."
And with the Eldora Million coming up June 8-9, with a seven-figure payday on the line for the victorious driver at the Tony-Stewart owned oval, Pierce is glad his car is up to speed.
"I guess it's good timing," he said. "We'll go back to the shop, regroup, get that car ready to go and go try to win that."
Streaking Putnam
Josh Putnam went all of 2021 without a victory on a regional racing tour, and the Florence, Ala., driver's dry spell continued early in 2022.
But Memorial Day weekend marked a turnaround for his Jeff Greer-owned team and suddenly Putnam is on a three-race winning streak in touring competition. Putnam's latest victory came Friday at Mountain Motorsports Park in Isom, Ky., where he earned $4,000 in the Walter "Peg" Combs Memorial on the XR Southern All Star Racing Series Putnam's victory follows a $5,000 Southern All Star victory May 28 at Thunderhill Speedway in Summertown, Ky., and a $5,053 Schaeffer's Spring Nationals victory May 29 at Duck River Raceway Park in Wheel, Tenn.
Last season at Mountain Motorsports Park, Putnam posted a fourth-place SAS finish, but he improved on that considerably.
"It feels good. ... this is a cool place and we enjoy coming here," Putnam said in victory lane. "I mean, it's got a lot of character and it lets you move around and run different lanes and, I mean, you could race all over this thing tonight.
"These guys done an awesome job. I was a little iffy about it when we hot-lapped. I said 'I don't know; I just don't feel like I'm that good,' but you know it all come together and I think maybe we shook this monkey (off our back) that we put up with a little bit last year that kept knocking us down. But we kept plugging away. These guys that work on this car, they just keep digging and they keep putting it back together when I tear it up, and keep pushing me along. But maybe we got something rolling here now."
Putnam wasn't sure of the team's racing plans midweek, but he's glad they headed to the Bluegrass State.
"I mean, when you end up in victory lane, all your decisions are good," he said. "But if we'd have run fourth or fifth, we might have been kicking ourselves but yeah, we might have last-minute decision to come here we came last year and we kind of enjoy it down here. We just kind of talked it over the team — I think it was really yesterday — and thought we'd come on back."
