OWENS TAKES POLE POSITION FOR THE 3^RD ANNUAL CRATE RACIN’ USA WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP RACE AT EAST BAY

               TAMPA, FL – Jimmy Owens of Newport, TN will start the 3^rd Annual Crate Racin’ USA World Championship Race from the pole position in the VP Racing Fuel Warrior on Saturday night at East Bay Raceway Park.  Owens set fast time among the 74 StormPay.com Dirt Late Model Series entrants and won the first heat race on Friday night to earn the inside front row starting spot.

               Owens is looking for his second win in the Crate Racin’ USA World Championship Race.  The “Newport Nightmare” won the inaugural race in 2005.  Owens toured the 1/3-mile clay oval in 15.922 seconds to earn the pole position for the first heat race.  Owens then led wire-to-wire in the first heat.

               The top 18 starting spots for Saturday night’s $10,000-to-win 100-lap main event were set on Friday night, as the top three finishers in each of the six 15-lap heat races transferred to the big show.

               Stacey Roberts of Sylvester, GA will start alongside Owens on the front row after winning the second heat race in the Sunbelt Ford Rocket.  John Pursley of Clover, SC won the third heat race, and will start the Carolina Lawn Mastersbilt on the inside of row two.

The defending race champion Randy Korte of Highland, IL will try to repeat from the outside second row starting spot in the B&B Precision Mowing Rocket after winning the fourth heat race.

The 2007 and two-time StormPay.com Dirt Late Model Series National Champion David Gentry of Lewisburg, TN will start the Dixon Plumbing Mastersbilt from the inside of the third row after winning the fifth heat race.  The sixth heat race was won by Randy Weaver of Crossville, TN in the Hicks and Ingles Mechanical Contractors Warrior, and starts the big show from outside row three.

Transferring with Owens out of the first heat were Johnny Pursley of Clover, SC in the Carolina Lawn Barry Wright, and Keith Nosbisch of Valrico, FL in the Adams Used Auto Parts Rocket.  Nick Lyons of Centrailia, IL in the Mott Excavating Forward and Shanon Buckingham of Morristown, TN in the Rusty Wallace Toyota Barry Wright joined Roberts in transferring out of heat two.

Frankie Beard of Hartwell, GA in the Freeman Plumbing Mastersbilt and Derrick Rainey of Powder Springs, GA in the Hays Family Racing Warrior finished second and third respectively in the third heat to make the main event. 

Following Korte in the fourth heat were Mike Collins of Council Bluffs, IA in the Charley’s Speed and Machine Rocket and Steve Mathis of Plant City, FL in the Mathis Farms Rayburn.  Doug Horton of Bruceton Mills, WV in the SWS First Response Warrior and Jeff Smith of Rocky Face, GA in the AllSouth Racing Products Rocket took second and third respectively in the fifth heat.

The sixth heat saw Todd Morrow of Old Fort, TN in the Coggin Lawn Service Warrior and Jeff Fields of Aragon, GA in the Summerville Junkyard trail Weaver in the sixth heat to make the “Elite 18” of the main event.

Prior to Saturday night’s 3^rd Annual Crate Racin’ USA World Championship Race, drivers that finished outside the top three in Friday night’s heat races will have another opportunity to make the 27-car starting line-up for the 100-lap $10,000-to-win main event, as two 10-lap C-Mains, and two 20-lap B-Mains will be contested.

The top six finishers in each of the C-Mains will transfer on to the tail of the two B-Mains.  The top three finishers in each B-Main transfer to the big show.

PRELIMINARY RESULTS OF THE 3^RD ANNUAL CRATE RACIN’ USA WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP RACE AT EAST BAY RACEWAY PARK IN TAMPA, FL ON 12/7/07:

HEAT RACES (15 Laps – Top 3 Finishers Transfer To Main Event):

               1^ST HEAT:  1. Owens; 2. Johnny Pursley; 3. K. Nosbisch; 4. S. Rogers; 5. J. Nosbisch; 6. Johnson; 7. Conyers; 8. Godsey; 9. Flowers; 10. Murphy; 11. S. Miller; 12. M. Miller.

               2^ND HEAT:  1. Roberts; 2. Lyons; 3. Buckingham; 4. Franklin; 5. Dohm; 6. Cloer; 7. Nipper; 8. O’Connor; 9. Gillman; 10. Crouse; 11. Hill; 12. Blair DNS.

               3^RD HEAT:  1. John Pursley; 2. Beard; 3. Rainey; 4. Schmauss; 5. Sharpe; 6. Cline; 7. Nye; 8. Varnadore; 9. R. Thomas; 10. Turner; 11. Fortner; 12. Austin.

               4^TH HEAT:  1. Korte; 2. Mi. Collins; 3. Mathis; 4. Babb; 5. Maddox; 6. J. Peacock; 7. White; 8. Knowles; 9. Erskine; 10. S. Smith; 11. Santel; 12. Harris.

               5^TH HEAT:  1. Gentry; 2. Horton; 3. J. Smith; 4. Cobb; 5. Schrader; 6. Tays; 7. W. Peacock; 8. Mo. Collins; 9. Sanders; 10. Wilds; 11. Matthews; 12. B. Smith; 13. Williams.

               6^TH HEAT:  1. Weaver; 2. Morrow; 3. Fields; 4. W. Thomas; 5. Faircloth; 6. Kreke; 7. Brindle; 8. R. Rogers; 9. Freeman; 10. Mitchell; 11. Ingram; 12. Strickland; 13. Hall.

ELITE 18 MAIN EVENT LINE-UP:

ROW 1:
20 Jimmy Owens – 11 Stacey Roberts
ROW 2:
9 John Pursley – B69 Randy Korte
ROW 3:
56 David Gentry – 116 Randy Weaver
ROW 4:
09 Johnny Pursley – 2L Nick Lyons
ROW 5:
F21 Frankie Beard – 3 Mike Collins
ROW 6:
78 Doug Horton – 17 Todd Morrow
ROW 7:
02 Keith Nosbisch – 50 Shanon Buckingham
ROW 8:
87 Derrick Rainey – 95 Steve Mathis
ROW 9:
00 Jeff Smith – 16 Jeff Fields

B-MAIN LINE-UPS (20 Laps - Top 3 Finishers Transfer To Main Event):

1^ST B-MAIN:
G1 Stephen Rogers – 105 David Schmauss
95x Phillip Cobb – 12 Jack Nosbisch Jr.
26 Jimmy Sharpe – 99 Ken Schrader
5 Ronnie Johnson – 44c Curtis Cline
8 Chris Tays – 47 Jeff Conyers
55 J.J. Nye – P1 Wallace Peacock
14 Steve Godsey – 41 Travis Varnadore
M0 Mollie Collins – 06 Bill Flowers
24 Richard Thomas – 42s Anthony Sanders

2^ND B-MAIN:
F2 Dennis Franklin – 92b Shannon Babb
22 William Thomas – 6T Tim Dohm
85 Tom Maddox – 4 Jeremy Faircloth
119 Johnny Cloer Jr. – 21 Josh Peacock
1s Brent Kreke – 1n Jordy Nipper
19 Anthony White – 38c Chip Brindle
03 Chris O’Connor – 00k Jake Knowles
44 Rick Rogers – 89 Steve Gillman
444 Ted Erskine – F1 Keith Freeman

C-MAIN LINE-UPS (10 Laps - Top 6 Finishers Transfer To B-Main):

1^ST C-MAIN:
20m Todd Murphy – 10 Matthew Turner
22w Terry Wilds – 8s Steve Miller
27 Jeff Fortner – 9w Jeff Matthews
8m Matt Miller – 42 Marshall Austin Jr.
115 Brian Smith – 24 Dennis Williams

2^ND C-MAIN:
32 Roger Crouse – 17ss Shan Smith
5k Ryan Mitchell – 17 Randy Hill
92s Matt Santel – F9 Frank Ingram
2x Jay Blair – 00 Josh Harris
21s Dorsey Strickland – 47 Brad Hall