(Photo Credit: Rob Kocak)
Lonnie Wheatley, LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (October 25, 2014) – Three wildly intense nights of action are in the books atop the famed red clay. And now it really ratchets up as a $15,000 winner’s share is on the line in Saturday’s 27th Annual COMP Cams Short Track Nationals presented by Hoosier Tires championship finale at I-30 Speedway.
After Aaron Reutzel opened the week with a triumph over a field of 66 in Wednesday night’s Second Annual Short Track Nationals Open, Brian Brown and Christopher Bell enjoyed first career STN victory lane time with prelim scores on Thursday and Friday, respectively.
With 73 different drivers from 18 states as well as the Canadian province of Ontario slugging it out over the past two nights, six drivers have already locked themselves into Saturday’s finale that offers up a minimum of $2,500 to start to go along with the lucrative winner’s share.
The remaining portion of the field will vie for the remaining 14 starting positions with another pair of potential provisionals pushing the 40-lap championship feature to as many as 22 starters.
So, what to expect on Saturday?
First off, the six locked in drivers will take part in the Dash for Cash, with the finish of that race setting the lineup for the first three rows of the STN championship feature. Those six drivers include the top three finishers from the Thursday and Friday preliminary features.
Those that have secured a position include, with number of previous STN feature starts in parentheses, the following: Brian Brown (5), Christopher Bell (2), Aaron Reutzel (1), Matt Covington (1), Dalton Davis (0) and A.G. Rains (6).
The balance of the field will redraw and contest eight Saturday Night STN Showdowns that will award double passing and finishing points, with those points added to preliminary night points totals. The top eight drivers in combined points from preliminary night and Saturday Night Showdown action earn STN championship positions 7-14 with the next 24 to three “B” Mains and the balance of the field to three “C” Mains.
Four drivers will advance from each “C” Main to set up the 12-car “B” Mains from which two will advance from each to fill positions 15 through 20.
The 21st position is reserved for I-30 Speedway track champion Marshall Skinner should he not race his way in otherwise while the 22nd position will go to one of the top four finishers from Wednesday night’s STN Open if needed. Wednesday winner Reutzel and third-place finisher Davis have already locked in, leaving runner-up Stevie Smith first in line if needed and then fourth-place finisher Derek Hagar, who will be the president of the Stevie Smith Fan Club after a rough qualifying night in the hopes that the provisional will fall to him if needed. If not, Hagar will have to be elbows up to make his third consecutive STN finale.
With double points sure to make for some huge jumps and huge declines after the Saturday Night STN Showdowns, the Qualifying Night Point Totals (minus the six lock-in cars) are as follows:
Saturday’s racing action is set to go green at 7:30 p.m. For more information, contact the track at 501-455-4567.
