Portsmouth Raceway Park
Covert collects another $10,000 on MACS tour
From series reports
Jason Covert holds off Bart Hartman en route to his Portsmouth victory. (suestevensonphotography.com)
PORTSMOUTH, Ohio (Sept. 2) — Observers on the Mid-Atlantic Championship Series said that Jason Covert had arrived after his mid-August victory in the USA 100 at Virginia Motor Speedway.
It looks like he's arrived again.
The York Haven, Pa., driver posted another impressive performance by holding off a hard-charging Jackie Boggs at Portsmouth Raceway Park in the Glockner Toyota Tundra 75 for another $10,000 victory. Covert's fourth career MACS victory helped him increase a points lead he'd just taken two days earlier from Rob Blair.
Boggs, the Grayson, Ky., driver who started 13th in the 24-car field, settled for second place and $6,000 while Ohio drivers Bart Hartman, Doug Drown and Audie Swartz rounded out the top five at the riverside oval.
Hartman and Steve Casebolt led the field to the green flag with Covert starting seventh on the gride. Casebolt used his outside lane to the lead and quickly stretched his advantage over the rest of the field.
Fast qualifier Billy Drake was running fourth in the early going, but he jumped the cushion on the 13th lap and four laps later slowed to draw the first caution.
On the restart, Covert made a bold move to the outside in turns one and two to catapult into the second behind Casebolt. Covert’s pass relegated Hartman to third as Josh McGuire and upstart Jared Hawkins fought it out for fourth.
Casebolt had his No. 19 on a rail as he stretched his lead to almost half a straightaway, but disaster struck for the Richmond, Ind., driver. Casebolt’s car came up lame on lap 21 as he coasted to a halt with a sour fuel pump, knocking him out of the race.
Casebolt's misfortune handing the lead to Covert as Hartman, Boggs, Drown and Hawkins tried to catch him. Hartman and Boggs stayed close, but the third and final caution appeared on lap 32 for R.J. Conley.
Once racing continued, the lead trio of Covert, Hartman and Boggs were nose-to-tail for the next 18 laps until Boggs showed Hartman his car's nose. Boggs and Hartman raced side-by-side for several circuits before Boggs had enough momentum to grab the second spot for good.
Once Boggs cleared Hartman, he set his sights on the race leader. Boggs had no problem quickly reeling in Cover as he quickly closed the gap. Lap after lap, Boggs squeezed the leader trying to look for the soft spot, but he couldn't find a way past.
On lap 57, the frontrunners made slight contact in turn four, but Covert was able to hang on as Boggs burped the throttle to avoid a double spin. Covert maneuvered through lapped traffic the rest of the way to complete the victory.
Notebook
Covert's Barry Klinedinst-owned Rocket Chassis has a Hershey Racing Engine and sponsorship from Pre-Mach Inc., Red Wing Shoes, Baker Carburetion, Bam’s Auto Center and Kuppy’s Diner. ... The event drew 47 drivers from seven states. ... Fast qualifier Billy Drake received a total of $500 in gift certificates from AlturnaMats, Genesis Shocks and Impact Graphics. ... Donnie Moran advanced from his 15th starting spot to finish eighth.
