StormPay.com Dirt Late Model Series News Release:  Contact: ROBY HELM – (865) 207-4157

January 28, 2007

BLAIR PLAYS LAPPED TRAFFIC TO WIN STORMPAY.COM DLMS COLUMBUS SPEEDWAY WINTER CLASSIC

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

COLUMBUS, MS – Jay Blair of Angie, LA had an up and down race with lapped traffic, but ended on the up side when he drove his Parish Disposal Mastersbilt to victory on Sunday in the StormPay.com Dirt Late Model Series 40-lap Winter Classic at Columbus Speedway.  Blair took the lead from Frank Ingram of Woodstock, GA coming off the fourth turn on lap 39.

Blair held on for the final lap to post the win in only his second race driving a crate late model, and in his first appearance ever with the StormPay.com Dirt Late Model Series.  Lapped traffic cost Blair the lead to Ingram on lap 24.  On lap 39, it was Ingram that got caught in lapped traffic, and Blair was able to make the winning pass.

“I was trying to pace myself before we caught the lapped cars, and Frank was right there to pass me when I got caught behind one,” Blair said.  “The same thing that happened to me happened to him there at the end of the race, and we got by.  This is only the second time I’ve ever driven a crate late model and it was a lot of fun.  You really have to learn how to keep up your momentum and stay smooth because you don’t have the extra horsepower to make up for a mistake.”

Blair led the race on two different occasions for a total of 22 laps.  Blair took over the lead for the first time on lap five after early race leader Shannon Buckingham of Morristown, TN dropped off the pace.

Ingram had to settle for second in the Universal Concrete Rocket, but with his second straight top five finish in StormPay.com Dirt Late Model Series competition, he now has a share of the National Tour point lead.

Stephen Brantley of Monoreville, AL took the third spot in the Airport Sports Center Rocket, and Derrick Rainey of Powder Springs, GA was another driver posting his second top five finish with a fourth-place effort in the Dixon Hauling and Grading Rocket.  Rainey moved into the third spot in the StormPay.com Dirt Late Model Series National Tour points chase.

Carnell Parker III of Clarksville, TN finished fifth in the CPM Racing Mastersbilt.  Curtis Cline of Douglasville, GA was sixth in the Pearson Construction Warrior.

Chip Brindle of Chatsworth, GA kept a piece of the point lead with a seventh-place finish in the Brindle Bros. Auto Parts GRT.  Brindle, who was also the Rookie of the Race, and Ingram are tied for the point lead with 186 points apiece.

Logan Yates of Delta, AL posted his second straight top ten finish with an eighth-place effort in The Bargain Barn TSR.  Defending StormPay.com Dirt Late Model Series National Champion David Gentry of Lewisburg, TN took the ninth spot in the Dixon Plumbing Mastersbilt.

Robert Stutts of Murfreesboro, TN rounded out the top ten in the Bob Parks Realty Barry Wright after starting 17th.  Stutts was the NeSmith Chevrolet Hard Charger of the Race.

Buckingham took the lead on the original start, but three caution flags were unfurled on three tries to start the race.  That forced a single-file restart with Buckingham leading Scott Cook of Shelbyville, TN in the A+ Moving and Storage Mastersbilt, Blair, Ingram, and Brantley.  Blair and Ingram raced by Cook on lap two to take the second and third spots respectively,

Buckingham had a four car-length lead over Blair on lap five when he suddenly slowed in turn four.  Buckingham made a had left into the infield and Blair took over the lead.  By the eighth lap, Blair was in lapped traffic, and on lap 11, Ingram began to put on the pressure. 

The battle for the lead, and the lapped traffic went away on lap 12 when Michael Keener of Temple, GA spun the Dixon Hauling and Grading Rocket in turn two,  Blair led Ingram, Rainey, Brantley, and Rusty Hoge of Ooltewah, TN in the H&H Powersports GRT down for the restart.

Hoge got busy when the field went green, as he passed Brantley for fourth coming off the fourth turn, and then moved by Rainey for the third spot down the backstretch on lap 13.  The caution came out on lap 15 when Brindle and Jeff Fields of Aragon, GA in the Summerville Junkyard Mastersbilt tangled in turn four.

Brindle got his ninth spot back for the restart, and Fields was ticketed for the caution.  Blair led Ingram, Hoge, Rainey and Brantley down for the restart.  Brantley passed Rainey for the fourth spot on the restart and Gentry got around Brindle for the ninth spot.

The field raced under the green flag for four more laps until the caution came out on lap 19 for a spin by Brian Rickman of Columbus, MS in the Ponds Racing GRT.  As the field began the second half of the race, several drivers began to make moves with several position changes taking place.

Nextel Cup star Ken Schrader of Fenton, MO put the Red Baron Pizza Rayburn into the top ten by getting around Brindle on the restart.  Brantley passed Hoge for the third spot on lap 20 and Ingram closed in on Blair to challenge for the lead on lap 22. 

Ingram got an inside run on Blair coming off the second turn on lap 24 and the pair raced side-by-side down the backstretch.  When they got to turn three, a lapped car slid up in front of Blair, and that opened the door for Ingram to take the lead coming off the fourth turn.

A caution flag on lap 31 was very costly for a top five driver.  Brad Banes of Lerned, MO spun his Diversified Pest Management GRT in turn two right ion front of the fourth-place car of Hoge, who had no place to go.  Hoge went over the top of the right front of Banes’ car, heavily damaging both machines.

Blair was able to stay with Ingram on the restart, but behind the leaders, Brantley and Rainey were waging a war of their own for the third spot.  Rainey passed Brantley on the restart, but Brantley regained the position on lap 34.  By lap 36, Ingram, Blair, and Brantley began to pull away from Rainey while getting closer to lapped traffic.

With two laps to go, the leaders caught a large group of lapped cars.  Gong into turn three on lap 39, the leaders and the lapped cars went four-wide.  Ingram got caught on the outside and Blair took the lead coming off turn four with the white in sight signaling one lap to go.  By the time Ingram got untangled from the lapped cars, Blair was gone for the win.

Buckingham was the fast qualifier on Saturday among the 49 entrants with a lap around the 3/10-mile clay oval in 14-770 seconds.  Two of the three 10-lap Qualifying Races were run on Saturday before the rains came, postponing the third Qualifying Race and the main event until Sunday.  Rickman, Gentry, and Brindle won the three Qualifying Races.

The next three StormPay.com Dirt Late Model Series National Touring point races will take place at East Bay Raceway Park in Tampa, FL on February 22, 23, and 24.  For more information about the StormPay.com Dirt Late Model Series, visit the series web site at www.stormpayracing.com.

OFFICIAL RESULTS OF ROUND TWO AT COLUMBUS SPEEDWAY IN COLUMBUS, MS ON 1/27-28/07:

POS       STRT     CAR #    DRIVER                                HOMETOWN                      LAPS     $ WON 
1.             3              2x            Jay Blair                               Angie, LA                    40           $2,500
2.             4              F9           Frank Ingram                      Woodstock, GA            40           $1,250
3.             5              02           Stephen Brantley                Monroeville, AL              40           $850
4.             6              87           Derrick Rainey                   Powder Springs, GA        40           $700
5.             10           75           Carnell Parker III               Clarksville, TN                  40           $650
6.             7              44c         Curtis Cline                         Douglasville, GA 40          $550
7.             13           38           Chip Brindle (R)  Chatsworth, GA                   40           $500
8.             14           5              Logan Yates                          Delta, AL                      40           $450
9.             12           56           David Gentry                        Lewisburg, TN                 40           $500
10.          17           302         Robert Stutts (R) Murfreesboro, TN               40           $475
11.          16           44t          Jim Till                                 Greenville, AL              40           $350
12.          2              27           Scott Cook                            Shelbyville, TN           40           $300
13.          18           75L         Neil Lee                                 Flowood, MS              40           $280
14.          8              21           Rusty Hoge                           Ooltewah, TN              40           $260
15.          19           10           Matthew Turner                  Dawsonville, GA              40           $250
16.          22           18           Shawn Rayfield                    O’Fallon, MO                 40           $240
17.          23           25           Michael Keener   (R)          Temple, GA                      39           $220
18.          20           4b            Brad Banes                           Lerned, MO                  38           $200
19.          21           8              Chris Tays                            Corinth, MS                   38           $200
20.          24           00           Chris Hoomes                      Brenton, AL                     38           $200
21.          15           99           Ken Schrader                       Fenton, MO                     34           $200
22.          9              16           Jeff Fields                             Aragon, GA                    22           $200
23.          11           x15         Brian Rickman                    Columbus, MS                   16           $200
24.          1              44           Shannon Buckingham       Morristown, TN                   4              $200

ENTRIES:  49
FAST QUALIFIER:  Buckingham, 14.770 Seconds
PROVISIONAL:  Keener
LEADCHANGES:  3
LAP LEADERS:  Buckingham, 1-4; Blair, 5-23; Ingram, 24-38; Blair, 39-40
LAPS LED:  Blair, 21; Ingram, 15; Buckingham, 4
NeSMITH CHEVROLET HARD CHARGER:  Stutts (started 17th and finished 10th)
ROOKIE OF THE RACE:  Brindle
CAUTIONS:  8

QUALIFYING (Top 10 Transfer To Main Event Straight Up):

QUALIFYING RACES (10 Laps – Top 4 Finishers Transfer To The Main Event):

                1ST QUALIFYING RACE:  1. Brian Rickman; 2. Logan Yates; 3. Robert Stutts (R); 4. Brad Banes; 5. Chris Hoomes; 6. Josh Taylor; 7. Matt Wilson (R); 8. Joe Denby; 9. John Pierce; 10. Terry Kelley; 11. Mark Stokes; 12. Corey Doyle DNS.

                2ND QUALIFYING RACE:   1. David Gentry; 2. Ken Schrader; 3. Neil Lee; 4. Chris Tays; 5. Michael Keener (R); 6. Darrell Guess; 7. Lee Burdett; 8. Kody Barber; 9. Mike Shirley; 10. Lance Carroll (R); 11. Darryl Seals; 12. Jimmy Kay; 13. Jeff Moss DNS.

                3RD QUALIFYING RACE:  1. Chip Brindle; 2. Jim Till; 3. Matthew Turner; 4. Shawn Rayfield;  5. Chase  Washington; 6.  Robbie Harvey; 7. Jim Tice; 8. Tony Barnett; 9. Stacy Tyler;  10. Randy Harmon; 11. Carson Wallace; 12. Wesley Briggs; 13. Randall Beckwith.

R – Denotes Rookie of the Year Candidate

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