DAYTONA BEACH, Florida -- Dick Dunlevy Jr., of New Carlisle, Ohio, kept his lead intact in the NASCAR Dodge Weekly Series Division III standings, following two top-10 performances last weekend. Dunlevy, who has led the NDWS Division III standings for six consecutive weeks, finished second in last Friday’s Late Model event at Kil Kare Speedway in Xenia, Ohio. He then finished ninth on Saturday at Columbus (Ohio) Motor Speedway.
Donnie Hill, one of Dunlevy’s rivals from the region, finished sixth last Saturday at Columbus but remains second in the standings. Hill trails Dunlevy by 140 points (948-808) in the NDWS Division III standings with 12 weeks of racing remaining. NASCAR Dodge Weekly Series points close Oct. 1.
Elsewhere, back-to-back Late Model victories by veteran Frank Deiny Jr., at Old Dominion Speedway in Manassas, Va., helped him crack the top five in the standings for the first time this season. Deiny, of Mechanicsville, Va., began the season ranked eighth in the NDWS Division III standings but has steadily improved each week. Deiny is currently ranked fourth, 242 points out of first place.
Hill, Deiny and the other NDWS Division III championship contenders may be behind by large margins at this time, but the NASCAR Dodge Weekly Series points system may soon turn in their favor. NASCAR points are collected each week, but each driver’s best 16 finishes are used to determine their ranking in the Division standings.
Dunlevy has already made more than 16 starts this season, meaning his results are not counted towards the NDWS Division III standings unless they’re better than a previous result. The rest of the contenders, meanwhile, have fewer than 16 starts and are simply adding points to their totals until they reach the 16-race mark themselves.
NASCAR Dodge Weekly Series
Division III Leaders as of July 11 (best 16 points finishes)
Driver, Hometown, Home track, NDWS points
1. Dick Dunlevy Jr., New Carlisle, Ohio, Kil Kare Speedway, 948 points
2. Donnie Hill, Columbus, Ohio, Columbus Motor Speedway, 808
3. Justin Johnson, Las Vegas, The Bullring at LVMS, 768
4. Frank Deiny Jr., Mechanicsville, Va., Old Dominion Speedway, 706
5. Scotty Backman, Parker, Colo., Colorado National Speedway, 680
6. Andy Mercer, Gastonia, N.C., Hickory Motor Speedway, 640
7. Rick Sexton Jr., Mattawan, Mich., Kalamazoo Speedway, 638
8. Kevin Nuttleman, Bangor, Wis., LaCrosse Fairgrounds Speedway, 634
9. Steve Jones, Meridian, Idaho, Magic Valley Speedway, 534
10. Mark Bliss, Arcade, N.Y., Lake Erie Speedway, 526
11. Steve Lance Jr., Cuba, Ill., Peoria Speedway, 448
12. Chris Young, Calverton, N.Y., Riverhead Raceway, 400
13. Brock Behnke, Poplar Grove, Ill., Rockford Speedway, 362
14. Dan Shelliam, Hazel Green, Wis., Dubuque Fairgrounds Speedway, 334
15. Bill Matuszak, Freedom, N.Y., Holland International Speedway, 212
New to the top 15:
7. Rick Sexton Jr., Mattawan, Mich.
8. Kevin Nuttleman, Bangor, Wis.
10. Mark Bliss, Arcade, N.Y.
13. Brock Behnke, Poplar Grove, Ill.
15. Bill Matuszak, Freedom, N.Y.
Dropped out of the top 15:
Andy Bozell, Portage, Mich.
Andy Burgess, Fall Creek, Wis.
Jeremy Holbrook, Madison, Ohio
Doug Bennett, Brodhead, Wis.
Will Thomas III, Sharpsville, Pa.
