June_21

Donnie And The Masters

June 21st, 2003

Xtreme DirtCar Series News Release: Contact - ROBY HELM - (865) 207-4157

WHEEL OF FORTUNE SPINS THE WINNING WAY FOR WALLACE AT THE MASTERS

NEW RICHMOND, WI - Wendell Wallace of Batesville, AR had the wheel of fortune spin his way Saturday night as he drove the J&J Steel GRT/Craft Taurus to a $20,950 win in the Xtreme DirtCar Series All-Star Race, the 5th Annual Masters at Cedar Lake Speedway.

It was the second Masters win for Wallace, who had a down night until the wheel was spun for the inversion in the third of three segments. Wallace started the first 40-lap segment from the third spot, but finished seventh. He didn't fare any better in the second 40-lap segment, and finished 11th.

With the top 12 cars from segment two advancing to the third segment, the wheel was spun and landed on the mark to invert the entire 12-car field. Wallace ended up starting on the outside front row on a track that locked down late in the second segment. Wallace got the jump on the start, and led all 20 laps of the final segment for the win.

Justin Fegers of Mound, MN also had an up and down night. Fegers started his Seubert Calf Ranches Mastersbilt/Pro Power Monte Carlo from the seventh spot in the first segment, climbed up to the fourth spot early in the race, but had a 360 degree spin in turn two on lap 34 and dropped to seventh. Fegers recovered to finish sixth, where he started segment two.

Fegers faded to 13th and out of a top 12 transfer spot early in the second segment. Fegers spun down the front straightaway on lap eight, and restarted 17th. The second-year late model driver charged back to finish in the 12th and final transfer spot for the final segment. When the wheel was spun to invert the entire field for the last segment, Fegers ended up on the pole.

When the field took the green flag, Fegers dove for the bottom groove, slipped in the wet dirt, and slid up the banking. Fegers fell back to third, but was able to regain the second spot, as Wallace took the lead. Fegers held his ground in the bottom groove for the rest of the race to finish second and earn an $11,000 payday.

Darren Miller of Chadwick, IL finished third in the Seubert Calf Ranches Mastersbilt/Pro Power Taurus. Fourth went to 1996 series champion Freddy Smith of Knoxville, TN in the White Oaks Motorsports Warrior/Gaerte Intrepid, followed by his son Jeff Smith of Dallas, NC in fifth driving the Die Cast Digest Magazine/Starrette Trucking GRT/Gaerte Monte Carlo.

Steve Shaver of Parkersburg, WV started the first segment from the 28th and last starting spot after making the field as a Promoter's Choice. Shaver ran tough all night and brought his Bill Bland Towing/The Farm Used Auto Parts Rocket/Malcuit Monte Carlo home in the sixth spot in the third segment to earn the Advance Auto Parts Hard Charger of the Race Award.

Donnie Moran of Dresden, OH was seventh in the QPI Tools Dirt Ripper Mastersbilt Malcuit Monte Carlo, and four-time series champion Scott Bloomquist of Mooresburg, TN finished eighth in the Miller Brothers Coal Warrior/Custom Taurus.

Second segment winner Dale McDowell of Rossville, GA took the ninth spot in the Larry Shaw Race Cars/J&J Steel Rocket By Shaw/Kuntz Taurus. Steve Francis of Ashland, KY finished 11th in the Valvoline/Mopar Parts Rocket/Stanton Intrepid, and two-time and defending series champion Rick Eckert of York, PA rounded out the third segment in the 12th spot.

Eckert won the first segment, and after the spin of the wheel inverted the top two finishers of the first segment, Eckert started outside McDowell on the front row. After leading all 40 laps of the first segment, Eckert led for the first 36 laps of the second segment riding the high side of the track, before loosing the lead to McDowell as the track rubbered up and
locked down.

The first segment got off to a spectacular start, as 15 cars of the 28 that started piled up on the backstretch taking out many favorites. The wreck eliminated XDCS top ten drivers Brian Birkhofer of Muscatine, IA, Dan Schlieper of Pewaukee, WI, and Matt Miller of Waterville, OH.

Jimmy Mars of Elk Mound, WI and Earl Pearson Jr. of Jacksonville, FL were also involved in the crash, returned for the restart, and made it to the next segment through process of elimination. Pearson didn't make it out to start the second segment. Mars finished 14th and missed the cut for the third segment.

Mars won the first 15-lap Consolation Race earlier in the evening driving the Deppe Construction/Heeg Well Drilling Mastersbilt/Pro Power Monte Carlo, and Tony Bahr of Eau Claire, WI won the second consy in the AMS Oil Mastersbilt/Pro Power Grand Prix. Miller was the Lucas Oil Rookie of the Race in the McCullough Motorsports Rocket/Russell Baker Grand Prix.

The Masters non-point XDCS All-Star race was taped by SPEED Channel, and will air on July 10 at 9 p.m. ET.

The next two events on the XDCS schedule will be an East Tennessee Showdown with a 50-lap $10,000-to-win main event on Friday night at Crossville Raceway USA in Crossville, TN, and a 50-lap $10,000-to-win main event on June 28 at Tazewell Speedway in Tazewell, TN.

OFFICIAL RESULTS OF THE MASTERS AT CEDAR LAKE SPEEDWAY IN NEW RICHMOND, WI

THIRD SEGMENT - 20 LAPS:

POS STRT CAR # DRIVER HOMETOWN CAR LAPS $ WON
1. 2 88 Wendell Wallace Batesville, AR Ford 20 $20,000
2. 1 F15 Justin Fegers Mound, MN Chev. 20 $10,000
3. 4 32d Darren Miller Chadwick, IL Ford 20 $6,000
4. 3 00 Freddy Smith Knoxville, TN Dodge 20 $4,000
5. 6 70 Jeff Smith Dallas, NC Chev. 20 $3,500
6. 5 0s Steve Shaver Parkersburg, WV Chev. 20 $3,100
7. 8 99 Donnie Moran Dresden, OH Chev. 20 $2,500
8. 10 0 Scott Bloomquist Mooresburg, TN Ford 20 $2,000
9. 12 17m Dale McDowell Rossville, GA Ford 20 $2,000
10. 7 21 Billy Moyer Batesville, AR Chev. 20 $2,000
11. 9 m15 Steve Francis Ashland, KY Dodge 20 $2,000
12. 11 24 Rick Eckert York, PA Ford 20 $2,100

SECOND SEGMENT - 40 LAPS:

POS STRT CAR # DRIVER HOMETOWN CAR LAPS $ WON
1. 1 17m Dale McDowell Rossville, GA Ford 40 $600
2. 2 24 Rick Eckert York, PA Ford 40 $600
3. 6 0 Scot Bloomquist Mooresburg, TN Ford 40 $600
4. 3 m15 Steve Francis Ashland, KY Dodge 40 $550
5. 8 99 Donnie Moran Dresden, OH Chev. 40 $550
6. 4 21 Billy Moyer Batesville, AR Chev. 40 $550
7. 15 70 Jeff Smith Dallas, NC Chev. 40 $500
8. 12 0s Steve Shaver Parkersburg, WV Chev. 40 $500
9. 11 32d Darren Miller Chadwick, IL Ford 40 $500
10. 10 00 Freddy Smith Knoxville, TN Chev. 40 $450
11. 7 88 Wendell Wallace Batesville, AR Ford 40 $450
12. 6 F15 Justin Fegers Mound, MN Chev. 40 $450
(Did Not Transfer To The Third Segment)
13. 17 28e Dennis Erb Jr. Carpentersville, IL Chev. 40 $1,300
14. 14 28 Jimmy Mars Elk Mound, WI Chev. 40 $1,600
15. 13 1k John Anderson Omaha, NE Pont. 40 $1,300
16. 9 11 Pat Doar New Richmond, WI Pont. 40 $1,300
17. 16 9i Steve Isenberg Marshfield, WI Pont. 21 $1,300
18. 18 1 Earl Pearson Jr. Jacksonville, FL Ford 0 $1,650

FIRST SEGMENT - 40 LAPS:

POS STRT CAR # DRIVER HOMETOWN CAR LAPS $ WON
1. 2 24 Rick Eckert York, PA Ford 40 $600
2. 5 17m Dale McDowell Rossville, GA Ford 40 $600
3. 6 m15 Steve Francis Ashland, KY Dodge 40 $600
4. 1 21 Billy Moyer Batesville, AR Chev. 40 $550
5. 11 0 Scott Bloomquist Mooresburg, TN Ford 40 $550
6. 7 F15 Justin Fegers Mound, MN Chev. 40 $550
7. 3 88 Wendell Wallace Batesville, AR Ford 40 $500
8. 8 99 Donnie Moran Dresden, OH Chev. 40 $500
9. 9 11 Pat Doar New Richmond, WI Pont. 40 $500
10. 17 00 Freddy Smith Knoxville, TN Dodge 40 $450
11. 14 32d Darren Miller Chadwick, IL Ford 40 $450
12. 28 0s Steve Shaver Parkersburg, WV Chev. 40 $450
13. 10 1k John Anderson Omaha, NE Pont. 39 $400
14. 21 28 Jimmy Mars Elk Mound, WI Chev. 39 $400
15. 12 70 Jeff Smith Dallas, NC Chev. 39 $400
16. 23 9i Steve Isenberg Marshfield, WI Pont. 39 $350
17. 13 28e Dennis Erb Jr. Carpentersville, IL Chev. 38 $350
18. 25 1 Earl Pearson Jr. Jacksonville, FL Ford 36 $350
(Did Not Transfer To Segment 2)
19. 4 18 Shannon Babb Decatur, IL Chev. 3 $1,200
20. 15 15b Brian Birkhofer Muscatine, IA Chev. 3 $2,000
21. 22 QQ Tony Bahr Eau Claire, WI Pont. 3 $1,200
22. 19 11i Ace Ihm Hazel Green, WI Pont. 3 $1,200
23. 27 7 Matt Miller (R) Waterville, OH Pont. 3 $2,000
24. 18 25 Kerry Hansen Spencer, WI Pont. 3 $1,200
25. 26 s9 Dan Schlieper Pewaukee, WI Chev. 3 $2,000
26. 24 12 Rick Aukland Zanesville, OH Dodge 3 $2,000
27. 20 71 Lance Mathees Winona, MN Chev. 3 $1,200
28. 16 50 Jeff Wildung Nassau, MN Pont. 2 $1,200

ENTRIES: 64
JE PISTONS AWARD WINNER: Eckert
PROMOTER'S CHOICES: Pearson, Schlieper, M. Miller, and Shaver
WELD WHEELS ALMOST MADE IT AWARD: Bob Pierce
LEAD CHANGES: 2
LAP LEADERS: Eckert, 1-40 (Segment 1); Eckert, 1-36 (Segment 2); McDowell,
37-40 (Segment 2); Wallace, 1-20 (Segment 3)
LAPS LED: Eckert, 76; Wallace, 20; McDowell, 4
ADVANCE AUTO PARTS HARD CHARGER: Shaver (Started Segment 1 28th, Finished
Segment 3 6th)
LUCAS OIL ROOKIE OF THE RACE: M. Miller
CAUTIONS: 5 (3 in Segment 1, 2 in Segment 2)
XTREME SHOOTOUT INVITEES: Isenberg, Bahr, Mathees, Wildung, Bob Pierce, and
Jerry Redetzke (Promoter's Choice)