Dennis Erb Jr. Rekindles a Past Battle Between the Two Late Model Drivers
Story By: BRENDAN CAPRIA / WOO LATE MODEL SERIES MEDIA Photos By: RACERSGUIDE.COM PHOTO STAFF
FAIRBURY, IL- July 31, 2016- Josh Richards completed the “Prairie Dirt Classic” sweep Saturday night in front of a packed house, winning the 100-lap finale at Fairbury American Legion Speedway. The victory was Richards’ 11th of the season and his 69th of his career in the series.
“To win this race at Fairbury, it’s one I’ve always looked forward to,” Richards said. “It’s cool to finally get one.”
Richards, starting 11th in the feature, worked his way to the top gradually. While he was in the pursuit of the podium, race leader Steve Casebolt – who led the field into the green flag – established himself on the top cushion of the 1/4-mile oval.
In the opening laps, Casebolt extended his lead to nearly four seconds, while the trio of drivers behind him spanned three-wide among the width of the track. On lap 15, Casebolt broke into lapped traffic – using the nose of his car to wedge himself through the field. Don O’Neal capitalized on the three-way battle, side-skirting the completion into second position. O’Neal used the bottom of the track for the majority of the race.
Tim McCreadie, who was one of the players in the three-car shootout, was able to break away from the other two. He challenged O’Neal for the runner-up spot. O’Neal had nothing for McCreadie, losing the battle. All the while, Richards gained enough momentum to challenge a fading O’Neal for the third spot; Richards eventually won the battle. Back-to-back cautions not only instantly diminished Casebolt’s 3.664-second lead, but his car experienced mechanical problems prompting the second caution. It took him out of contention as he could not finish the race.
Richards used the top groove as his route to the top, though in the process his No. 1 Valvoline/ Seubert Calf Ranches Rocket car suffered some minor left-rear body damage. Illinois-native Bobby Pierce followed suit, riding the cushion with Richards. The nose of Pierce’s car ended up pitching the car airborne, causing another caution to regroup the field.
On the restart, Richards secured the top of the track, and McCreadie and O’Neal soon revisited their battle below him. Shane Clanton and his No. 25 Weldbank Energy/ Coopers Meat Packers Capital car entered the battle three laps into the halfway point of the race. Again, a three-way battle was to determine who would take second position. The battle lasted nearly 10 laps, but Clanton came out on top.
Following the battle, McCreadie fell back into fourth position with Dennis Erb Jr.’s No. 28E J.R. McBride Leasing/ McBride Mack Black Diamond nipping at his heels. With 40 laps remaining, Erb overtook McCreadie for third position; O’Neal lost enough momentum battling Richards, which left the door open for Erb and Clanton to pass him from both sides of the track. Erb was next to challenge Richards following the race’s final caution with 26 laps remaining, but he came up short.
“We just had one heck of a race at the end,” Erb said. “I have a lot of respect for [Josh] and these other guys out here. We all wanted to race hard, and we all want to win. But we have to go out there and respect each other, too. It could have went either way. We’re just happy to come home with second.”
Richards relived a similar fight for first from earlier this season at “The Dream.” Erb ended up passing Richards that night, winning the event. Richards evened-up the score at Fairbury.
“I’ll tell you, [Dennis] is one of the best guys in the country with these long races,” Richards said. “He paced himself around the bottom and I saw him a couple of times. The top was good early, and when you’re leading you’re sometimes a sitting duck. This track had not one preferred groove.”
Though Richards did not build a comfort zone between Erb and Clanton for the next 30 laps, the closest the two ever got to him was 0.498 of a second. Erb and Clanton battled briefly for the second spot, but Erb was able to keep Clanton at bay. From there, the podium did not change.
“The outside was treacherous,” said Clanton, who could not overtake Erb in the final laps. “It was overall a good weekend. Hopefully we can keep running consistent top five finishes, and the wins will take care of themselves.”
Jonathan Davenport, who won the non-qualifier, opted to forfeit the $2,000 purse to be added to the 100-lap feature. Dvenport finished 28th.
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World of Outlaws Craftsman® Late Model Series Statistical Report; July 30, 2016; Fairbury American Legion Speedway; Fairbury, Ill.
A-Main (25-laps): 1. 1- Josh Richards [11] [$32,850]; 2. 28E- Dennis Erb Jr. [16] [$10,600]; 3. 25- Shane Clanton [5] [$7,300]; 4. 5- Don O’Neal [8] [$5,500]; 5. 18b- Shannon Babb [9] [$4,050]; 6. 7- Rick Eckert [17] [$4,300]; 7. 39- Tim McCreadie [4] [$5,350]; 8. 3s- Brian Shirley [21] [$3,250]; 9. 18- Eric Wells [24] [$3,050]; 10. 99jr- Frank Heckenast Jr. [7] [$2,650]; 11.15L- Darrell Lanigan [15] [$2,050]; 12. 0- Jake O’Neil [20] [$1,800]; 13. 15- Steve Francis [12] [$1,800]; 14. 14m- Morgan Bagley [27] [$700]; 15. 21JR- Billy Moyer Jr. [13] [$2,500]; 16. 15v- Kolby Vanderbergh [26] [$2,130]; 17. 76- Brandon Overton [25] [$2,110]; 18. B12- Kevin Weaver [10] [$2,040]; 19. 35- Derek Chandler [6] [$2,720]; 20. 1*- Chub Frank [19] [$2,050]; 21. Z- Joe Harlan [14] [$3,500]; 22. 99B- Boom Briggs [28] [$475]; 23. 32- Bobby Pierce [22] [$2,200]; 24. 6k- Michael Kloos [18] [$1,500]; 25. 83- Scott Bull [25] [$2,100]; 26. c9- Steve Casebolt [1] [$2,550]; 27. 89- Mike Spatola [2] [$2,400]; 28. 6- Jonathan Davenport [28] [$1,500]; 29. 10- Scott Schmitt [26] [$1,500]
Prairie Dirt Shootout Non-Qualifiers’ Race (25 laps): 1. 6- Jonathan Davenport, 2. 18c- Chase Junghans; 3. 21- Billy Moyer; 4. 1P- Earl Pearson Jr.; 5.77M- Jay Morris; 6. 2c- Joey Coulter; 7. 99B- Boom Briggs; 8. 4- Bob Gardner; 9. 7T- Steve Thorsten; 10. 33- Billy Hough; 11. 14- Glen Thompson; 12. 24- Ryan Unzicker; 13. 91- Tyler Erb; 14. 25F- Jason Feger; 15. 11- Austin Smith; 16. 12- Jason Jameson; 17. 25z- Mason Zeigler; 18. 9D- Daniel Flessner; 19. 98- Cole Swibold; 20. 45- Don Hammer
Last-Chance Showdown No. 1 (20 laps – Top 1 Transfer): 1. 1*- Chub Frank; 2. 3s- Brian Shirley; 3. 6- Jonathan Davenport; 4. 24- Ryan Unzicker; 5. 12- Jason Jameson; 6. 99B- Boom Briggs; 7. 91- Tyler Erb; 8. 77M- Jay Morris; 9. 25F- Jason Feger; 10. 18- Eric Wells; 11. 98- Cole Swibold; 12. 14m- Morgan Bagley; 13. 33- Billy Hough; 14. 14- Glen Thompson; 15. 9- Lyle Zanker; 17. 22- Chris Ferguson; 18. 10- Scott Schmitt; 19. 76-Brandon Overton (DNS)
Last-Chance Showdown No. 2 (20 laps – Top 1 Transfer): 1. 0- Jake O’Neil; 2. 32- Bobby Pierce; 3. 1P- Earl Pearson Jr.; 4. 18c- Chase Junghans; 5. 11- Austin Smith; 6. 4- Bob Gardner; 7. 25z- Mason Zeigler; 8. 21- Billy Moyer Jr.; 9. 2c- Joey Coulter; 10. 9D- Daniel Flessner; 11. 45- Don Hammer; 12. 7T- Steve Thorsten; 13. 38c- John Gardner Jr.; 14. 11G- Gordy Gundaker; 15. 2M- Allen Murray; 16. 75- Gary Turpin; 17. D2- Snookie Dehm; 18. R1- Riley Hickman; 19. 83- Scott Bull
World of Outlaws Craftsman Late Model Series Contingency Award Winners (awards presented to noted finisher/qualifier or next highest displaying decal):
Comp Cams – $50 Product certificate: Josh Richards
MSD – $50 Cash: Josh Richards
QuarterMaster – $100 Product certificate: Dennis Erb Jr.
Wrisco Aluminum – 3 Sheets of aluminum: Josh Richards
Penske Shocks – TBD Product certificate: Don O’Neal
JE Pistons – $50 Cash: Shannon Babb
VP Racing Fuels – $50 Cash: Brian Shirley
Edelbrock – $50 Cash: Eric Wells
Comp Cams – $50 Cash: Frank Heckenast Jr.
Morton Buildings – $50 Cash: Darrell Lanigan
Cometic Gasket – $50 Cash: Morgan Bagley
JRI Shocks – $50 Cash: Billy Moyer Jr.
SuperFlow – $50 Cash: Billy Moyer Jr.
QuarterMaster – $25 Product certificate: Billy Moyer Jr.
JE Pistons – Set of rings: Kolby Vanderbergh
QuarterMaster – $50 Product certificate: Chub Frank
Arizona Sport Shirts – $100 Product certificate: Bobby Pierce
JE Pistons – Set of rings: Boom Briggs
MSD – $25 Cash: Steve Casebolt
QA1 – $50 Cash: Kolby Vanderbergh
Bonus Bucks – $500 Cash: Don O’Neal
Rookie Bonus – $250 Cash: Billy Moyer Jr.
Craftsman Bonus – $100 Cash: Dennis Erb Jr.
Craftsman Bonus – $200 Cash: Josh Richards
Craftsman Bonus – $200 Cash: Shane Clanton
Craftsman Bonus – $200 Cash: Rick Eckert
Craftsman Bonus – $200 Cash: Brian Shirley
Craftsman Bonus – $200 Cash: Eric Wells
2016 World of Outlaws Craftsman Late Model Series Point Standings as of July 30 – 26 A-Mains completed (rank/driver/residence/points/deficit to leader):
Pos. Car # Driver Residence Points Trail By
1 1 Josh Richards Shinnston, WV 3760 0
2 25 Shane Clanton Zebulon, GA 3546 214
3 7 Rick Eckert York, PA 3448 312
4 3S Brian Shirley Chatham, IL 3338 422
5 76 Brandon Overton Evans, GA 3314 446
6 C9 Steve Casebolt Richmond, IN 3238 522
7 21JR Billy Moyer Jr. Batesville, AR 3230 530
8 99JR Frank Heckenast Jr. Frankfort, IL 3210 550
9 1* Chub Frank Bear Lake, PA 3204 556
10 18 Eric Wells Hazard, KY 3170 590
11 14M Morgan Bagley Gladewater, TX 3148 612
12 18C Chase Junghans Manhattan, KS 3038 722
13 91 Tyler Erb New Waverly, TX 2794 966
14 2C Joey Coulter Union Grove, NC 2666 1094
15 99B Boom Briggs Bear Lake, PA 2476 1284
16 77 Jordan Yaggy Rochester, MN 1416 2344
17 11 Austin Smith Cedartown, GA 1368 2392
18 0 Scott Bloomquist Mooresburg, TN 1116 2644
19 6 Jonathan Davenport Blairsville, GA 1100 2660
20 17M Dale McDowell Chickamauga, GA 1088 2672
The World of Outlaws Craftsman® Late Model Series is brought to fans across the country by many important sponsors and partners, including: Arizona Sport Shirts (Official Apparel Company), Bad Boy Off Road (Official Side-by-Side Vehicle), Craftsman (Official Tool), Hoosier Racing Tire (Official Tire), Morton Buildings (Official Building), Sears (Official Home Store), The Kenny Wallace Dirt Racing Experience (Official Racing Experience, VP Racing Fuels (Official Racing Fuel) and DirtonDirt.com (Hard Charger Award); in addition to contingency sponsors, including: Cometic Gasket, Comp Cams, Edelbrock, JE Pistons, JRI Shocks, MSD, Penske Shocks, QA1, QuarterMaster, Superflow Dynos and Wrisco Aluminum; along with manufacturer sponsors, including: Capital Race Cars, Integra Shocks, Impact Racing Products, Intercomp, Racing Electronics, Rocket Chassis and TNT Rescue.
