LOFTIN SCORES FRIDAY NIGHT NASCAR WHELEN SOUTHERN SOUTHERN MODIFIED TOUR VICTORY AT CARAWAY SPEEDWAY
by:Jason Mitchell NASCAR/PR
ASHEBORO , N.C. (Aug. 22, 2008) – They say when you're hot you're hot. Following his victory on Friday night at Caraway Speedway in the Whelen Southern Modified Tour 150, there's no doubt that Brian Loftin is a man on fire after he scored his third straight win in dominating fashion.
Not only was it Loftin's third straight win, it also allowed him to take the lead in the Whelen Southern Modified Tour standings over L.W. Miller who has held the top spot in the standings since last September.
Second-place finisher Burt Myers made sure he didn't make it look too easy as he mounted a stiff challenge on a restart with two laps remaining only to come up .793 seconds short.
“I just wanted to get a good restart so bad and not spin my tires and give Burt a chance to get by me,” Loftin said. “Sometimes you get on a roll and feel like you can't do anything wrong. I'm going to ride this wave as long as I can. I know we got the points lead from L.W. but I'm more worried about winning races and just letting the points fall where they fall.”
Andy Seuss had one of the race's dominant cars, trailing Loftin in second until engine problems struck with less than 20 laps to go.
“I hate to see what happened to Andy there at the end because I really thought we were going to put on a heck of a show for them,” Loftin said. “I've been in Andy shoe's before on the down side of things so I know how bad this hurts him and his team.
Seuss earned his first career Coors Light Pole Award in qualifying when he circled the .455-mile Caraway short track at a speed of 103.227 mph. It was Jason Myers taking the early lead until Brian Loftin made his way around him on the third lap, but by Lap 30 Seuss was showing he had the car to beat as he made his way into the third position.
On Lap 89 Seuss let his presence be felt when he swept past Brandon Ward for the runner-up position behind Loftin. In the end, though, it was Loftin prevailing for his third straight Whelen Southern Modified Tour victory.
Rounding out the top five behind Loftin and Burt Myers were Brandon Ward, Jason Myers and Brian King.
NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour-Whelen Southern Modified Tour 150 Results
Friday At Caraway Speedway - Asheboro , NC
Lap length: 0.455 miles
(Start position in parentheses)
1. (3) #23 Brian Loftin, Lexington, N.C., Chevrolet, 150 laps, 66.102 mph, $2,000.
2. (5) #1 Burt Myers, Walnut-Cove, N.C., Ford, 150, $1,500.
3. (2) #93 Brandon Ward, Winston-Salem, N.C., Chevrolet, 150, $1,225.
4. (1) #4 Jason Myers, Walnut Cove, N.C., Ford, 150, $1,050.
5. (7) #17 Brian King, Burlington, N.C., Chevrolet, 150, $1,000.
6. (10) #28 George Brunnhoelzl, Babylon, N.Y., Ford, 150, $850.
7. (8) #36 L.W. Miller, Mooresville, N.C., Pontiac, 150, $750.
8. (6) #83 Tim Brown, Cana, VA., Chevrolet, 150, $690.
9. (11) #25 John Smith, Mount Airy, N.C., Chevrolet, 150, $590.
10. (20) #18 Zach Brewer, Winston-Salem, N.C., Chevrolet, 149, $750.
11. (18) #7 Thomas Stinson, Chester, VA., Chevrolet, 149, $525.
12. (15) #02 Buddy Emory, Petersburg, VA., Chevrolet, 149, $500.
13. (16) #8 Jay Mize, Clemmons, N.C., Chevrolet, 149, $485.
14. (14) #01 Jay Foley, Stuart, VA., Chevrolet, 148, $460.
15. (21) #44 Brandon Hire, Winston-Salem, N.C., Chevrolet, 148, $445.
16. (13) #14 Bobby Hutchens, Lexington, N.C., Chevrolet, 148, $430.
17. (12) #71 Dean Ward, Winston-Salem, N.C., Chevrolet, 141, $620.
18. (9) #47 Andy Seuss, Hampstead, N.H., Dodge, 132, engine, $710.
19. (19) #98 Rich Kuiken, Jr., Staffordville, N.J., Chevrolet, 57, accident, $400.
20. (17) #49 Scott Rigney, Mount Airy, N.C., Pontiac, 47, accident, $390.
21. (4) #07 Frank Fleming, Mount Airy, N.C., Pontiac, 37, accident, $380.
22. (22) #57 Sean Gartner, Sunset Beach, N.C., Pontiac, 20, fuel pump, $360.
Race Statistics
Time of Race: 1 hour 1 minute 57 seconds
Margin of Victory: 66.094 seconds
Fastest Qualifier: A.Seuss (103.227 mph, 15.868 seconds)
Caution Flags: 6 for 40 laps.
Lead Changes: 1 among 2 drivers.
Lap Leaders: J.Myers 1-2; B.Loftin 3-150.
Standings: 1. B.Loftin, 817; 2. L.Miller, 794; 3. B.Myers, 748; 4. T.Brown, 725; 5.J.Myers, 702; 6. B.King, 689; 7. A.Seuss, 668; 8. F.Fleming, 662; 9. J.Smith, 617; 10.B.Hire, 613.