Eldora Speedway
September 7, 2011
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ILLINOIS LATE MODEL FANS CONTINUE TO ASK – WHEN?

ROSSBURG, OH (Sept. 1) – Year after year, the state of Illinois ranks among the highest in numbers at the World 100, not only in the number of competitors, but the number of ardent race fans as well. Yet, the Prairie State remains winless since the event’s inception in 1971, with the recurring question of – when? When will Illinois be placed into the history of the Nation’s most prestigious dirt Late Model race, the World 100 at Eldora Speedway?

For one brief moment, back in 2005, the roar from Ohio’s famed Eldora Speedway could be heard clear across Indiana and into Illinois as Moweaqua, IL driver Shannon Babb crossed the finish line ahead of Dale McDowell to end what was at that time a 35 year drought from the World 100 victory lane That cheer was quickly silenced when Babb drove up on to the scales for post-race inspection and failed to meet the minimum weight requirement. That wiped out the Babb/Illinois win; handing it over to a dismayed McDowell.

And the drought continues. This year’s 41ST annual running will fall over the weekend of September 9 and 10, with the legendary globed trophy and a paycheck of $44,000 on the line.

Babb has again entered and will more than likely be the focus of the Illinois faithful as they grip to the hope that this will be the year to answer the question of when. Going into the first weekend of September, Babb has been turning in some impressive runs, with a total of 13 feature wins to his credit. He has a couple of axes to grind with this year’s running of the World 100. Not only does the 2005 defeat haunt him, but the popular hot shoe has missed the World 100 starting line each of the past two years.

Joining Babb as pre-race favorites would be fellow IL drivers Dennis Erb, Jr., Jason Feger and Brian Shirley – all with impressive credentials. Erb and Feger have each won the rugged UMP (United Midwestern Promoters) National Late Model championship. UMP is the sanctioning body for Eldora’s World 100 and features some of the toughest racing every weekend during the summer across the Nation, yet neither Erb nor Feger have been able to transform the knowledge learned from chasing the UMP title towards a strong World 100 finish.

Erb has five World 100 starts to his credit, while Feger has two. A pair of tenth place finishes for Erb (2004, 2009) is the highest showing of the twosome, with Feger’s 17th place finish in 2007 his highest accomplishment. Shirley’s first foray into the World 100 came in 2007 when he crossed the line 6th to mark his strongest showing in the time honored event.

Ten states hold the distinction of sending drivers on to the esteemed Eldora stage to earn World 100 bragging rights. Ohio leads the way with 11 wins, followed by Tennessee with 7 and Arkansas at 6. Iowa has five nameplates , followed by Georgia with four and Kentucky with three. Single event honors go to South Carolina, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Florida.

The road to the stage begins on Friday (Sept. 9) night with a pair of single lap time trial runs to place the drivers into one of six qualifying heat races on Saturday (Sept. 10). Three drivers will advance from each of those heat races, with yet another chance to advance coming through one of two B-Main races. Each B-Main will transfer five cars into the World 100, with the final two positions in the 30-car starting line up reserved for the quickest two drivers that did not advance through their heat race.

Complete event and ticket ordering information may be found on the track’s website www.eldoraspeedway.com.