With only four more points races remaining on the schedule this season entering Saturday night, a pair of points leaders made visits to the winner's circle at Independence - for one it helped him pad a nearly insurmountable lead and for the other it offered just a little bit of breathing room.
Darin Duffy entered the night 34 points ahead of his nearest competitor in the I.M.C.A. Modified division, nearly one full feature win ahead of the field. By night's end, he earned his sixth victory of the season to add one more point to his expanding lead.
At the start of the 20-lapper, Jeff Kriz held the lead until Tony Snyder spun on lap two while in second place. A number of cars were collected in the mayhem and, when the dust settled, many of the mid-pack starters found themselves right behind Kriz for the ensuing restart. Duffy, Jerry Luloff, Troy Cordes and Johnathan Thimmesch lined up right behind the race leader for the two-wide restart.
Kriz led for three more laps until the caution flag waved a second time. Following that stoppage, Duffy went to work on the low side, blowing by Kriz in turns one and two to snag the lead. He survived a handful of additional caution periods to score the win. Jerry Luloff was running a strong second when he spun in the first set of turns on the final lap. This allowed Troy Cordes and Max Corporon to sneak by for second and third, respectively. That pair of drivers also sits second and third in the division standings, now 35 and 77 points behind Duffy. Thimmesch and Justin O'Brien ran fourth and fifth. For Duffy, the streak continues. Not only was that his sixth win of the season, but his 11th top-4 finish in as many races this season.
In the I.M.C.A. Stock Car feature, close three-wide racing highlighted the early portion of the event. Norman Chesmore led the wheel-to-wheel group during the race's only cautions on laps three and four. Following the stoppages, Chesmore continued to run out front, receiving heavy pressure from Jarod Weepie.
With Weepie on Chesmore's bumper, Brian Irvine was looking for racing room both high and low. He eventually found a faster groove on the high side of the speedway to make his way around Weepie. He slipped past Chesmore on the ninth of 20 laps to drive to his track leading seventh win of the season. Chesmore ran second at the line ahead of Justin Temeyer, Jarod Weepie and Phil Holtz.
Entering the night, Irvine held a slim one point lead over Weepie and a mere six points separated the top five drivers. By virtue of Irvine's win, his lead expanded to four points over second-running Weepie and seven points over Temeyer. Dan Trimble sits nine points out in fourth place and Holtz is 10 points back in fifth.
In the I.M.C.A. SportMod division, not only did a first-time winner grace victory lane, but it was a driver who had never before made an appearance on the 3/8-mile oval. Austin Kaplan, who currently leads the points at Benton County Speedway in Vinton, made his first visit to Independence a memorable one as he dominated the field to take home the victory.
Scott Thomas challenged Brandon Davis in the early going of the 15-lapper. Thomas held the point for the first three circuits while Kaplan made his way through the field from a sixth row starting spot. Kaplan mastered the low groove and swept under Thomas on just the fourth lap to sail into the lead. He survived a pair of cautions to score the impressive win ahead of Joel Rust, Kaleb Bentley, Thomas and Curt Hilmer.
Following a flat tire that he believes may have cost him the win a week ago, Chad Lerch wasted little time looking for redemption in the 25-lap I.M.C.A. Late Model feature. From a row three start, Lerch motored into second place behind Tom Struve after just one lap. He then took the lead just three laps later and quickly distanced himself from the rest of the field.
It appeared to be smooth sailing for Lerch until a pair of mid-race cautions bunched the field, removing his straightaway lead on the field. Luke Goedert, who started from the sixth row, settled into second and was attempting to chase down Lerch by the time the caution flag waved on lap nine. Goedert tried to use the low groove to sneak under Lerch following restarts on laps nine and 12, but Lerch was just too strong one groove higher as he led the remainder of the event to score his second win of the season. Goedert, Curt Martin, Tom Struve and Darin Burco rounded out the top five.
Mark Butler held the early lead in the 15-lap I.M.C.A. Hobby Stock feature. While Butler led, Justin Lichty was working through traffic from a third row start. Following a lap four restart, Lichty worked the low side of Butler and made his way to the front one lap later. Adam Cline shadowed Lichty's efforts and made his way to second two laps later.
Following a restart on lap eight, Cline was challenging for the lead when contact from Lichty sent Cline into a spin to bring out the yellow. Both drivers were penalized for involvement, allowing Quinton Miller to take over the lead. Miller led the next lap and was awarded the win when the time limit expired for that event. Points leader Josh Irvine, Butler, Kyle Anderson and Wes Stanek completed the top five.
Still on top
Late Model points leader Darren Ackerman suffered an unpleasant early end to his night. On a restart early in that event, the field in front of Ackerman got bunched up and, when all was said and done, Ackerman was upside down on the front straightaway in the #53. Although it was "only" half of a rollover, Ackerman's night was done. He was complaining of a sore shoulder in the pits following the races, but seemed to be in good spirits considering his recent streak of bad luck. One positive note for Ackerman and his team, he retained the points lead following the night's show, although it is a very slim advantage. He now sits two points ahead of Jon Passick and three ahead of Travis Smock entering the final three nights of racing. Coincidentally, this was Ackerman's second rollover of the year. He also got upside down at a Deery Brothers special in West Union earlier this summer.
From flip to fifth
SportMod driver Curt Hilmer also spent time on his hood over the weekend. Hilmer reportedly got upside down and rolled three times on Friday night at Marshalltown Speedway. When he came through the pit gates at around 5:30 on Saturday, his car looked a little worse for wear and he said they just got it put back together late in the afternoon. Their hard work paid off as Hilmer qualified out of his heat race and ran an impressive fifth place in the evening's feature.
Cumulus next week
Next Saturday night is Cumulus Broadcasting Night at the Races. As is tradition on Cumulus Night, Bucky Doren of 98.5's Bucky and Brooks in the Morning will be calling the I.M.C.A. Modified action. It should be a fun and exciting Saturday night so be sure to stop out as only three races remain this season at Independence.
Corn Belt "Cash"
The final installment of the five-race Corn Belt Clash series will be making its way to Fayette County Speedway in West Union this Wednesday night, August 12. Normally a $2,000-to-win show for the Late Models, this event will pay $3,500 to the winner. With the point fund up for grabs, one lucky driver could earn $5,500 for his efforts Wednesday night.
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