Rock Crest Raceway
Louisiana visitor captures Hoosier State 75
By Roby Helm
StormPay.com Dirt Late Model Series
Jay Blair (2x) overtakes Chip Brindle (38). (Eric Thompson)
NORTH VERNON, Ind. (Sept. 22) — Jay Blair of Angie, La., took the lead on lap 19, and led the rest of the way in the StormPay.com Dirt Late Model Series Hoosier State 75 at Twin Cities Raceway Park. The $5,000 win was the third of the season for the driver dubbed the Angie Assassin and moved him up to the second spot in series points. | Slideshow
“It was all about tire choice tonight, and we picked the right setup tonight,” Blair said. “It feels good to be right in this championship battle with just a couple of race left to go in the season, and we hope to be there at the end.”
The 25-car starting field ran the first 70 laps of the race caution-free as Blair built a full straightaway lead over polesitter Chip Brindle of Chatsworth, Ga., at one point. As the laps wound down, Brindle and Steve Barnett of Franklin, Ind., were slowly closing in on the leader.
Josh Walker of Auquia, Ind., brought out the first caution flag, followed by the red flag when a fire erupted under the hood of his Terry Eaglin Motorsports GRT on lap 71. A couple of more cautions on the restarts kept the field bunched up, but in the four-lap dash to the finish, Blair had pulled out to a half-straightaway lead at the checkered flag.
“I would have liked for the race to have gone the distance without a caution, but when it came out, I knew any lead I had would be gone,” Blair said. “When the green came back out, our tires came back to life pretty quick, and we were able to stay out front.”
Brindle, who led the first 18 laps, finished second and moved into a tie with Frank Ingram of Woodstock, Ga., for the fourth spot in series points. Ingram skipped the event.
Barnett finished third and defending series champion David Gentry of Lewisburg, Tenn., took the fourth spot and holds a 20-point lead over Blair.
Brad Barrow of Bloomington, Ind., started 14th and finished fifth to earn the NeSmith Chevrolet Hard Charger of the Race Award.
Notebook
Blair's MasterSbilt Race Car is sponsored by All-Star Graphics. ... Blair got under Chip Brindle for the lead on the 19th lap and took the lead exiting turn two. ... Derrick Rainey finished seventh and dropped behind Blair in the points chase. ... Patrick Sheltra was running fifth when a broken rear-end assembly knocked him out of action during a lap-71 caution. ... Josh Walker climbed out of his burning car on lap 71 under his own power and was uninjured. ... The next event for the StormPay.com regulars will be a 50-lap $3,000-to-win race on Oct. 27 at Talladega Short Track in Eastaboga, Ala.
