FOUNTAIN, Colorado -- Southwest Series point leader Jim Pettit II from Prunedale, Calif. had something to prove to himself, if not the rest of the field. Pettit proved that he is the man to beat in the chase for the NASCAR AutoZone Elite Division, Southwest Series crown as he claimed his third victory of the season in the King Soopers Freedom "150" Saturday afternoon at Pikes Peak Int'l Raceway.
Pettit took the lead for the final time on lap 139 and survived a green, white, and checkered finish to claim a .713 second margin of victory over Eric Holmes, with Eddy McKean finishing in third to record his 11th top three finish on mile race tracks in his last twelve races. 2004 NASCAR Dodge Weekly Series national champion Greg Pursley finished fourth with Dan Holtz rounding out the top five finishers and a top five sweep for the Southwest Series competitors.
Nick Lynch continued his momentum up the point standings with a sixth place effort while nine-time Midwest Series champion Steve Carlson was the top finishing Midwest competitor in seventh. Kevin Clark, Dave Finley, and 2004 Midwest Series champion Justin Diercks rounded out the top ten finishers in the special combination race.
"This is a special win for the team," Pettit said from Victory Lane. "This is a brand new car and our first win on a Soopers. We are also pleased for the family of James Rowe who has been missing since last year. We try to bring awareness about missing children and adults and by winning this race we can get the word out to a lot of people."
"I had a great car but when I got behind another car it pushed really bad," Holmes said after finishing second. "Out front we were great, but when Jim got by on that restart we just could not get it back."
Finishing third was McKean who had suffered blistering to his right leg during the race. "We were pretty good and had a great pit stop early which helped us a bunch," McKean said. "It was really hot in the car and I burned my leg a bit but we had a great finish that will help us in the points."
Greg Pursley led 108 laps en route to his second top five finish of the season. "I am a little disappointed to not win, but we were good all race and that was a big win for us," Pursley said. "I have fun racing with Jim out there and enjoyed the track. Everybody did a great job all day."
Justin Diercks maintains his Midwest Series point lead while Pettit extends his advantage over Burney Lamar in the Southwest Series. The Midwest will travel to Mansfield, Ohio next week while the Southwest Series heads up I-25 to Colorado National Speedway located in Erie, Colo. next Saturday night.
King Soopers Freedom "150"
NASCAR AutoZone Elite Division
Pikes Peak International Raceway July 23, 2005
1. (3) Jim Pettit, II, Prunedale Calif., Ford Taurus, 155, 90.954 mph, $9,000
2. (4) Eric Holmes, Escalon Calif., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 155, $7,650
3. (20) Eddy McKean, Jerome Idaho, Pontiac Grand Prix, 155, $6,400
4. (1) Greg Pursley, Canyon Country Calif., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 155, $5,250
5. (12) Dan Holtz, Pacific Palisades Calif., Ford Taurus, 155, $3,800
6. (18) Nick Lynch, Burley Idaho, Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 155, $2,400
7. (7) Steve Carlson, West Salem Wisc., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 155, $2,200
8. (15) Kevin Clark, Colorado Springs Colo., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 155, $2,050
9. (10) Dave Finley, Denver Colo., Dodge Intrepid, 154, $1,900
10. (11) Justin Diercks, Davenport Iowa, Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 154, $2,050
11. (6) Eddie Hoffman, Wheaton Ill., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 154, $1,675
12. (21) Erik Darnell, Beach Park Ill., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 154, $1,600
13. (17) Burney Lamar, Kernersville N.C., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 154, $1,550
14. (31) Roger Avants, Littleton Colo., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 154, $2,275
15. (14) Auggie Vidovich, Lakeside Calif., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 153, $1,500
16. (13) Russ Blakeley, Whitewater Wisc., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 153, $1,475
17. (22) Brent Kirchner, La Crosse Wisc., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 152, $1,450
18. (9) Stan Silva, Jr, Castroville Calif., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 152, $1,425
19. (30) Andrew Morrissey, DeForest Wisc., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 152, $1,400
20. (27) Dexter Bean, Westby Wisc., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 152, $1,375
21. (32) Greg Fowler, Erie Colo., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 152, $1,300
22. (24) Greg Voigt, Santa Barbara Calif., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 151, $1,275
23. (29) David Finney, Sycamore Ill., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 151, $1,250
24. (36) Darren Crocker, Littleton Colo., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 151, $1,225
25. (5) Tim Schendel, Sparta Wisc., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 150, $1,200
26. (34) Bob Lyon, Agua Dulce Calif., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 150, $1,175
27. (25) Nick Joanides, Woodland Hills Calif., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 149, $1,150
28. (28) Danny Mientka, Colorado Springs Colo., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 148, $1,150
29. (8) Rip Michels, San Fernando Calif., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 147, $1,150
30. (23) Mark Kraus, Strattford Wisc., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 141, Accident, $1,150
31. (19) Thomas Martin, Auburn Calif., Pontiac Grand Prix, 140, Accident, $1,150
32. (16) M K Kanke, Frazier Park Calif., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 84, Engine, $1,150
33. (26) Josh Bauer, Random Lake Wisc., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 63, Rear End, $1,150
34. (33) Don Campbell, Campbell Calif., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 53, Parked, $1,150
35. (38) Richard Johnson, Antioch Calif., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 51, Parked, $1,150
36. (35) Ed Belec, Arvada Colo., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 49, Rear End, $1,150
37. (39) Trevor Morrical, Brighton Colo., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 33, Overheating, $1,150
38. (2) Todd Hansen, Minneapolis Minn., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 31, Accident, $1,150
39. (37) AJ Rhoads, Hastings Minn, Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 0, Engine, $1,150
40. (40) Scott Wilson, Broomfield Colo., Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 0, Engine, $1,150
Failed to Qualify: None
Time of Race: 1 hrs., 42 mins, 15 secs Average Speed: 90.954 mph Margin of Victory: .713 seconds
BUD POLE AWARD: Greg Pursley, 70 Cheyenne Frontier Days/Star Nursery.Com Chevrolet
FEATHERLITE AWARD: Dan Holtz, 23 Rialto Concrete Products/Pipeline Carriers Ford
MIDWEST CHAMPIONS BONUS: Justin Diercks, 29 Iowa-Illinois/Taylor Insulation Chevrolet
POWERADE AWARD: Roger Avants, 27 Pro Vans USA Chevrolet/Eddy McKean, 19 Wide World of Maps Pontiac
LUNATI CREW CHIEF AWARD: Duane Sharp, #03 Racing for the Missing Ford
Caution Flags: Laps 10-12; 25-29; 33-41; 110-116; 134-138; 147-153. 6 for 36 laps.
Lap Leaders: Greg Pursley 1-3, Jim Pettit, II 4, Greg Pursley 5-14, Jim Pettit, II 15, Greg Pursley 16-101, Jim Pettit, II 102, Greg Pursley
103-104, Thomas Martin 105, Greg Pursley 106-112, Eric Holmes 113-138, Jim Pettit, II 139-155.
Total Laps Led: Greg Pursley 108, Eric Holmes 26, Jim Pettit, II 20, Thomas Martin 1. 10 changes involving 4 drivers.
