NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series News Release:
Contact – ROBY HELM – (865) 207-4157
November 20, 2011

SHAW GETS FIRST CAREER NeSMITH CHEVROLET DLMS WIN AT THE MAG

COLUMBUS, MS – Jeremy Shaw of Millport, AL drove the Summit Resource Development Trak-Star to his first career NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series win on Sunday in the Black Ice 40 at Magnolia Motor Speedway. Shaw went from third to first with an outside move on a lap 21 restart and never looked back enroute to the victory.

Shaw had come close to his first win many times this season with a pair of fast time awards, leading laps, and a second-place finish. He won the 2010 NeSmith Chevrolet Weekly Racing Series Invitational Race, but Shaw said all of that doesn’t come close to winning a series Touring race.

“It feels great to finally win a NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series Touring race,” Shaw said. “We’ve come set fast times, led races, and even won the Weekly Racing Series Invitational Race, but this feels a lot better. We come so close before, but this is a really great feeling.”

Shaw lined up in the third spot for a lap 21 restart, and the green flag came out, he went to the high-side of the track to pass the second-place driver, two-time NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series Champion Eric Cooley of Fulton, MS, and the leader, Larry Harrod of Plains, GA. Shaw took the lead coming off the fourth turn, and led the rest of the way.

“I took it easy the first half of the race because my car was running a little hot, but we turned it loose in the second half,” Shaw said. “I ran into some heavy lapped traffic at the end of the race, but my crew was giving me signals on how far back the second-place car was.”

Cooley drove the Harrod Logging Special to a second-place finish followed by his teammate Harrod in the third spot. Shannon Lee of Lumberton, MS finished fourth in the Billy Riels Racing GRT, and Johnny Stokes of Columbus, MS took the fifth spot in the TJC Mortgage/Maximum Signs and Graphics GRT.

NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series point leader Dan Breuer of Troutman, NC was sixth in the AES Racing Special after starting 20th, and Chase Edge of Lafayette, AL finished seventh in the Tower Maintenance/Edge’s Gas Company Special.

Edge was not only the VP Racing Fuels Rookie of the Race, but he also clinched the 2011 VP Racing Fuels Rookie of the Year Award and will receive a $5,000 bonus at the NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series Awards Banquet in January.

Rodney Wing of Meridian, MS started 23rd in a borrowed Billy Riels Racing Special and finished eighth to earn the Hedman Husler of the Race Award. Wing raced his way into the main event driving his own Lawson Construction Rocket, but a mechanical problem at the end of the race put that car on the shelf. Wing climbed into the Riels machine and started the race in the back row.

Chris O’Connor of Cantonment, FL drove the Dean’s Solid Surfacing Warrior to a ninth-place finish, and two-time NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series Champion David Earl Gentry of Murfreesboro, TN rounded out the top ten in the Eads Farms/Dixon Plumbing Warrior. Gentry had problems in his heat race, took a provisional, and started 21st.

Breuer holds a 54-point lead over Gentry in the $20,000 battle for the NeSmith Cup. All Breuer has to do is take the green flag for the main event in the season finale on December 3 at East Bay Raceway Park in Tampa, FL to win the 2011 NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series Championship.

Harrod was the fast qualifier among the 40 entrants with a lap around the 3/8-mile clay oval in 14.475 seconds in the Harrod Logging Special to earn the pole position for the Black Ice 40. The two 12-lap Heat Races were won by Shay Knight of Columbus, MS in the DeSoto Honda Special and Edge. The two 12-lap B-Main races were won by Chase Washington of Houlka, MS in the Jerry Inmon Racing Special and Breuer.

Harrod took the lead at the drop of the green flag with Stokes, T.K. King of Columbus, MS in the Montgomery Farms Special, Cooley, and Matthew Turner of Dawsonville, GA in the Hedman Husler giving chase. King made an inside move on Stokes to take over the second spot on lap three, and Cooley passed Stokes for third on lap four.

The first of five caution flags came out on lap six when Knight spun in turn four. King began to fade after the restart, as Cooley passed him for second on lap seven, and Stokes got by King for the third spot on lap eight.

The Harrod Logging teammates battled side-by-side for the lead on lap 10 with Harrod on the outside and Cooley on the inside. Behind the lead battle, Turner got by King for the fourth spot on lap 12. The second yellow flag of the race came out on lap 15 when Tony Gray of Coker, AL stalled the Gray Motorsports Special in turn four.

Harrod led Cooley, Stokes, Turner, Shaw, Lee, Justin McRee of Tuscaloosa, AL in the Century Dedicated, Inc. Trak-Star, Edge, Mark Tice of Avon, MS in the Precision Marine Trak-Star, and Wing down for the restart. When the field went back to green flag racing, Stokes and Shaw battled side-by-side for the third spot, with Shaw taking the position on lap 16 coming off the fourth turn.

A multi-car pile-up in turn two on lap 21 brought out the red flag. The cars of McRee, Turner, Washington, and Daniel Bridgeman of Meridian, MS in the Robinson Electric Supply Special were heavily damaged, but all drivers were uninjured.

Turner’s car was hit hard by Washington’s machine and it got on its side an almost getting upside-down. Turner, who is third in the NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series point standings, received the Dominator Race Products Hard Luck Award. When the field lined up for the double-file restart, Cooley lined up behind Harrod with Shaw to his outside.

When the green flag came out, Shaw cleared Cooley for second coming off the second turn, and then pulled alongside Harrod in turn three. Shaw sailed around the outside of Harrod to take the lead coming off the fourth turn on lap 21. Two laps later, Cooley got inside Harrod coming off the fourth turn to take the second spot.

The final caution flag of the race came out on lap 30 when Chandler Petty of Austin, AR stalled the Whistle Stop Barbeque Rocket in turn one. On the restart, Lee went to the outside to pass Stokes for the fifth spot.

With five laps to go, Shaw had a half straightaway lead on Cooley as he caught lapped traffic. While Shaw looked for a path through the lapped cars, Cooley began to close the gap, but came up .738 seconds short at the checkered flag.

The next event for the NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series will be the 2011 season finale with the $10,000-to-win 100-lap 7th Annual GM Performance Parts World Championship Race at East Bay Raceway Park in Tampa, FL on December 1-3.

For more information about the NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model Series visit the series web site at www.nesmithracing.com, or visit the series on Facebook at NeSmith Racing. Becoming a fan of the NeSmith Racing Facebook page will make you eligible for special prizes that will be given away each month.

OFFICIAL RESULTS OF ROUND 16 AT MAGNOLIA MOTOR SPEEDWAY IN COLUMBUS, MS ON 11/20/11:
POS STRT CAR # DRIVER HOMETOWN LAPS $ WON
1. 10 1s Jeremy Shaw Millport, AL 40 $2,000
2. 4 27c Eric Cooley Fulton, MS 40 $1,000
3. 1 27 Larry Harrod Plains, GA 40 $700
4. 6 47 Shannon Lee Lumberton, MS 40 $550
5. 2 1 Johnny Stokes Columbus, MS 40 $500
6. 20 B7 Dan Breuer Troutman, NC 40 $425
7. 12 18 Chase Edge (R) Lafayette, AL 40 $375
8. 23 47x Rodney Wing Meridian, MS 40 $450
9. 15 03 Chris O’Connor Cantonment, FL 40 $325
10. 21 56 David Earl Gentry Lewisburg, TN 40 $300
11. 11 3 Shay Knight Columbus, MS 40` $275
12. 16 77 Mark Tice (R) Avon, MS 39 $250
13. 13 2T Tootie Arnold (R) Bude, MS 38 $225
14. 24 93 Jake Knight (R) Georgetown, MS 31 $200
15. 17 47c Chandler Petty Austin, AR 29 $175
16. 14 25 Justin McRee Tuscaloosa, AL 19 $150
17. 8 10 Matthew Turner Dawsonville, GA 19 $140
18. 7 09 Daniel Bridgeman Meridian, MS 19 $125
19. 19 38 Chase Washington Houlka, MS 19 $125
20. 3 6 T.K. King Columbus, MS 14 $125
21. 22 35 Tony Gray Coker, AL 14 $125
22. 5 19 Marcus Minga Shannon, MS 9 $125
23. 9 73 Evan Ellis Plantersville, MS 8 $125
24. 18 J88 Jered Smith Hazlehurst, MS 5 $125

ENTRIES: 40
FAST QUALIFIER: Harrod, 14.475 Seconds
PROVISIONALS: Gentry and Knight
LEAD CHANGES: 1
LAP LEADERS: Harrod, 1-20; Shaw, 21-40
LAPS LED: Harrod, 20; Shaw, 20
VP RACING FUELS ROOKIE OF THE RACE: Edge
HEDMAN HUSLER OF THE RACE: Wing (started 23rd and finished 8th)
DOMINATOR RACE PRODUCTS HARD LUCK AWARD: Turner
INTEGRA RACING SHOCKS JUST MISSED IT AWARD: Blount
RACE CAR ENGINEERING 5TH-PLACE AWARD: Stokes
KRC 6TH-PLACE AWARD: Breuer
QA RACE PRODUCTS 7TH-PLACE AWARD: Edge
RACE CAR ENGINEERING 8TH-PLACE AWARD: Wing
MODERN IMAGES 9TH-PLACE AWARD: O’Connor
KRC 10TH-PLACE AWARD: Gentry
MIKE CUSTOM TANKS 11TH-PLACE AWARD: S. Knight
SHORTY’S SHOCK SERVICE 12TH-PLACE AWARD: Tice
SCHOENFELD HEADERS 13TH-PLACE AWARD: Arnold
J.T. KERR RACING EQUIPMENT 14TH-PLACE AWARD: J. Knight
COFIELD RACING STARTERS 15TH-PLACE AWARD: Petty
KINSER AIR FILTERS 16TH-PLACE AWARD: McRee
CAUTIONS: 5
MARGIN OF VICTORY: .738 Seconds
TIME OF THE RACE: 37 Minutes and 16.248 Seconds