Terre Haute, IN. - June
14, 2009. Jon Stanbrough of Brownsburg, IN, won the Don Smith Classic
at the Terre Haute Action Track Sunday evening.
Stanbrough’s victory in the Hoosier Tire Midwest Sprint Car Series
feature was earned behind the wheel of the familiar Fox Brothers sprinter.
It marked his first MSCS win of this season and eighth victory
overall to move him into a share of the top spot on the MSCS All Time
Winners List.
Stanbrough had started on the pole for the
feature but during the early course of the event he fell back to fourth
until making a late race drive that gave him one last opportunity.
Coming off the final corner of the final lap he steered to the
outside of Damion Gardner, planted his foot, and took the lead as the two
drivers passed in front of the grandstands.
A long arduous race had ended with an unbelievably exciting finish.
Gardner first took the lead on the fifth
lap. He sailed past the front
running duo of Jon Stanbrough and Robert Ballou on a restart.
Turn one got exciting. Gardner
had the lead and would hold it until the final lap. MSCS Points leader Kyle
Cummins moved up to third at the midway point in the race.
A fuel issue developed late in the race with 11 laps to go.
Ballou was among the first group of drivers with empty tanks.
Yellow flags and restarts had used up the allotted number of laps
and the entire field was stopped under the red for refueling purposes and
then the race was resumed.
Cummins finished third behind Stanbrough
and Gardner. Ricky Williams
was fourth and Ballou finished fifth.
The second five included Blake Fitzpatrick, Ty Deckard, Chase
Stockon, Chase Briscoe, and Jonathan Vennard.
Fitzpatrick was one of the drivers who was able to steer out of a
troubling situation when he completed a 360 in turn four and continued.
Fitzpatrick also earned the MSCS Keizer Aluminum Wheels Hard Charger
Award. Chase Briscoe had the
highest finish of the rookies present.
Adam Nigg was the Wilwood Tuff Brakes Award Winner.
The MSCS Rookie finished 11th in the A-Main after
improving upon a last place starting position for his qualifying heat.
Fourteen cars finished the feature on the
lead lap. Twenty-eight drivers
had started the 30 lap main. The
three qualifying heat races were won by Stanbrough, Jon Sciscoe, and Robert
Ballou. A B-Main was not held.
Elements of the rain from the day before were still present and time
was needed to prepare and maintain the track Sunday.
Sunday became the fourth attempt to run the race.
Saturday the show was rained out before hot laps.
Twenty nine drivers were on hand each day.
The first lap of the feature brought out
the first red flag. An
accident sent cars tumbling down the backstretch reducing the field by 5
cars. Damaged cars included those driven by Jamie Frederickson, J.T.
Stapp, Ron Gerhardt, Marc Arnold, and Craig Budde. Red flags were also needed twice later for separate flips in
turn two. Brandon Mattox and
Aric Gentry were the two drivers involved.
Gentry was transported to Regional Hospital for an evaluation.
In total there were at least three red flags thrown plus five
caution periods for spins or debris.
The next event on the schedule for the
Hoosier Tire Midwest Sprint Car Series will be on June 27th at
the Vermilion County Speedway in Danville, IL.
It is a quarter mile facility with $2,000 going to the winner.
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