Jeff Smith claims Victory in Round 5 of the JE Pistons Roush /Yates “Chase for the Championship”

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Jeff Smith took the lead on lap32 and went on to take the $4,000 to win event Saturday night at 311 Speedway. Smith started 5th on the grid and settled into the 4th spot by the completion of lap one. Smith moved up to the third spot on lap 3 as he made the pass on points leader Dennis Franklin. On lap 17 Smith made the move up to second when pole sitter Kenny Compton Jr went pitside. Smith moved passed Luke Roffers on lap 32 and lead the remaining 8 laps en-route to his first Carolina Clash victory of the season. It was Smith’s 2nd victory of the weekend as he picked up the win in the NDRA crate event the previous night at Carolina Speedway.

Points leader Dennis “Rambo” Franklin had his woes as he had to go pitside on lap 17 with a flat tire. Franklin’s crew quickly put on a new American Racer and Franklin rejoined the field without losing a lap.  Rambo marched steadily through the field taking advantage of the deleware double file restarts and made it back into the top 5 by race end.

Kenny Compton Jr Set the XS Power Racing Batteries fast time in Qualifying . Compton turned in a lap of 15.946 to earn the pole position for the main event. While running second, Compton ran over debris which caused heavy damage to the rear-end of his machine sending him behind the wall for repairs. Compton was able to make repairs and return to the field a few laps later. Compton made as many laps as possible before race end and salvaged a 15th place finish. Compton lost valuable points to Franklin but was able to hold onto 2nd place in Chase points.

Luke Roffers was the second fastest qualifier and took the lead from the drop of the green. Roffers appeared to be unbeatable as he dominated the first half of the race. Roffers came into the race third in Chase points and only 7 points ahead of Jeff Smith. Smith’s win moved him 3 points ahead of Roffers. Both Roffers and Smith closed the gap on 2nd place Compton and gained points on the Chase points leader Franklin.

Mike Gault and Scott Autry started the night tied for 5th place in Chase points. Autry went pitside on lap 4 with engine troubles ending his night early and Gault started the event in 20th place and battle to a 6th place finish.  Gault earned the Safety Kleen Hard Charger of the race as he gained 14 spots during the event.

In the Klotz Lubricants Rookie of the Year battle, Travis Yow has a commanding lead but Yow is also fighting to hold onto eighth in the Chase points and maybe even advance a position. Tim Allen is only 5 points behind Travis and Scott Autry is only 14 points ahead after Yow’s 7th place finish Saturday night.

JE Pistons Roush/Yates Performance Chase for the Championship Feature Winner – Jeff Smith

Safety Kleen Hard Charger of the Race: (10 pts bonus) Mike Gault

Lap Leaders: Luke Roffers 1-31 Jeff Smith 32-40

XS Power Racing Batteries Fastest Qualifier –  Kenny Compton Jr 15.946

Collins Signs First Man out Award (11th place Qualifier) – Travis Yow

Comp Cams Feature Winner – Jeff Smith

Keizer Wheels Runner-Up Award – Luke Roffers

Shell Racing Solutions 3rd Place – Dustin Mitchell

ATL Fuel Cells 4th Place – Donald Bradsher

Cool Shirts Top-5– Jeff Smith, Luke Roffers, Dustin Mitchell, Donald Bradsher,     Dennis Franklin

RF Composites 6th Place – Mike Gault

Nascar Technical Institute 10th Place – Kyle Pierce

Klotz Lubricants 15th Place – Kenny Compton Jr

Ohlins Shocks Last but not Least – Scott Autry

Klotz Lubricants Hard Luck Award –  Scott Autry

Klotz Lubricants Rookie of the Race – Travis Yow

Collins Trophies Feature Winner – Jeff Smith

The Blue Collar Tour will make their last appearance of the year Saturday night at Fayetteville Motor Speedway for the 6th Annual Carolina Clash Bash. This will be a 40 lap $4,000 to win feature event. It all comes down to this weekend for the Chase Contenders. The 2011 Carolina Clash Champion will be decided in the Carolina Clash final race of the Season.


Speedway Digest Staff
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