Kres VanDyke of Abingdon, Va., moved into the lead just past halfway of the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Late Model Stock Car feature Friday night at Kingsport Speedway, and once out front he cruised to his fourth win of the season.
VanDyke set fast-time in qualifying at 15.166 seconds, with Zeke Shell second quickest at 15.229. The roll of the dice determined the top three from time trials would be inverted for the 60-lap main event, which placed Ronnie McCarty and Shell on the front row.
Shell grabbed the lead over McCarty, VanDyke, Wayne Hale and Austin Peters on the start. VanDyke quickly worked his way around McCarty into second place just a couple of laps in as they raced up off (turn) two.
With the race running clean-and-green, at the 20-lap mark Shell and VanDyke had pulled out to a half-straightaway advantage over the next six cars in the running order led by McCarty, Hale, Peters, Joey Trent, Justin Fontaine and Derek Lane.
Shell had his hands full in trying to hold back the hard charging VanDyke, as the 2014 track champion VanDyke kept sticking the nose of his car under Shell racing up off the corners. Shell was dealing with a brake issue and had to pump the brake (pedal) down the straightaway in order to get slowed entering the turn.
Racing down the front straightaway into the first turn on lap 33, VanDyke pulled to the inside of Shell. Shell had difficulty get slowed down and drifted up the banking between turns one and two, and that was all VanDyke needed as he seized the moment to make the pass for a lead he would never relinquish.
Back outside of the top five, Fontaine got around Trent racing off the second corner on lap 37 for the sixth spot, and just three laps later he passed Peters for fifth place as they raced off the fourth turn.
Meanwhile out front, leader VanDyke began to pull away from Shell. With 10 laps remaining, VanDyke held a full-straightaway advantage over Shell and would go on to record his division-leading fourth victory over Shell, McCarty, Hale and Fontaine.
Completing the top 10 finishers were Peters, Trent, Lane, Rick Pannell and Jamie Harrison. VanDyke now leads Shell by five points in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Late Model Stock Car standings.
Mark Christian and Duke Bare battled for the lead at start of the 30-lap Street Stock feature before Bare moved ahead on the third circuit. With Bare riding out front, behind him Christian was feeling pressure from Royce Peters. Lap-after-lap, Peters would look to the inside of Christian racing off the corners. But Christian would maintain his advantage as they raced down the straightaway.
Peters pulled alongside Christian as they raced down the backstretch into the third turn on lap 15, and as they exited the fourth turn Peters took the position. Caution waved just four laps later when Gary Crumbley spun in turn two.
Bare rocketed back out into the lead over Peters off the double-file restart, but Peters stayed glued to Bare’s rear bumper. Peters dropped to the inside of Bare racing down the front straightaway just past the flag stand on lap 27, and when Bare got into the corner just a little too fast and moved up the banking, that opened the door for Peters to drive by on the bottom and take the lead. Peters, from Kingsport, captured his second straight Street Stock victory over Bare, Christian, Paul Shull and Chris Tunnell.
Keith Helton was fastest in Pure 4 qualifying, but all that got him was the third starting position after the top three were inverted. Billy Byington of Kingsport and John Ketron led the 20-car field to green from the front row, with Byington jumping out to the lead over Ketron and Helton. Helton got around Ketron for second place with a pass racing off the fourth turn on lap 4.
Caution waved on lap 18 when Daniel McMurray spun directly in front of the leader Byington and Helton in turn two, with both having to take evasive action to keep from slamming into side of McMurray.
Helton hoped be able to grab the lead from Byington off the double-file restart, but Byington would have none of it. Byington powered back out ahead of Helton and drove to his fifth victory in six races this season. Byington was chased to the checkers by Helton, Dylan Bates, Ketron and Kenny Absher. Impressively, 16 cars finished on the lead lap.
Rocky Yates of Abingdon was making his first Mod 4 start of the season. He set fast-time in qualifying at 17.136 seconds and after starting from the third spot following the invert, he wasted no time in getting to the front. Yates passed Jason Yates for the lead on the fifth lap and remained out front to the finish in recording the victory over Jason Yates, Jerry Miller, Chris Amburgey and Darrell Whitehead.
Dennis Arnold took the initial lead over Doug Austin and Marty Tunnell in the 25-lap Pure Street feature, before Austin drove around Arnold on the fourth circuit move to the point. Tunnell passed Arnold for the second spot on lap 7 racing off the second corner and quickly began to close in behind Austin. Tunnell got underneath Austin as they raced off the fourth turn on lap 9, and over the next six circuits they raced side-by-side before Tunnell completed the pass to move into the lead. Tunnell, from Wise, Va., would go on to capture his second win of the season over Austin, Arnold, Travis Stoots and Jeremy Draughn.
Kingsport Speedway PR
