BLYTHE, California — On April 12th of this year the SuperClean Modified Series officially launched its 2008 season at the Lucas Oil I 10 Speedway in Blythe-California. The 22 drivers who qualified for the A feature that night began the process of running a highly competitive 10 race series that will eventually have them visiting five different race tracks in three different western states. On the line was a combined purse and points funds valued in excess of $105,000 provided SuperClean Products and backed by a multi corporate marketing campaign known as Team Lucas. From the very beginning that night it was apparent that the series' 2008 season was going to exciting. It also became apparent that drivers Andrew Phipps and Jimmy Dickerson were heading towards a two man fight for the points title which awards the winner $2,500 plus $1,000 worth of Lucas Oil products.
The SuperClean Modified Series will turn a full circle this Saturday night, November 8th, when it once again returns to where it started: the Lucas Oil I 10 Speedway's quarter mile paved oval located at the Colorado River Fairgrounds. This speedway launched the season long battle between Phipps and Dickerson and, when the checkered flag falls on the R&L Carriers 75 Saturday night, this very same speedway is going to end that season long battle and crown a new champion.
Simi Valley-California's Andrew Phipps has been a model of consistency this year and sits on top of the series' standings with 424 points going to the final race this Saturday. Those championship points were accumulated on the strength of three feature wins along with 8 top five and 8 top ten finishes. However, he only holds a 16 point advantage over second heading towards the R&L Carriers 75 this Saturday.
From El Cajon-California Jimmy Dickerson's performance levels this season has been simply awesome. He has a series high five feature wins along with 8 top five and 8 top ten finishes. He has won the last two series' features and that has helped him whittle the Phipps lead down to the 16 point deficit. Despite his five feature wins, the big difference maker here is the series' July 12th event at the Orange Show Speedway in San Bernardino. That was the night when a surprise mechanical failure only allowed Dickerson to collect 14 points while Phipps collected 48 for his second place finish.
The SuperClean Modified Racing Series' points structure is based on the winner of the A feature receiving 50 points with a difference of two points per position for second on down. In a pre race hypothetical, Dickerson needs to finish nine positions ahead of Phipps to take the title home.If Dickerson wins the R&L Carriers 75 Saturday night and Phipps finishes ninth then they are tied for the series lead and the tie breaker will be in Dickerson's favor because of his five series wins this year.
Qualifying could also play a huge role towards the resolution of this championship. Both Phipps and Dickerson will be very anxious to run hot laps to get as close to the front row as possible.During the series' round nine event, the Blue Water Resort & Casino 75 held on October 18th also at the Lucas Oil I 10 Speedway, 2007 series champion Danny Gay set the fast time for that race with a lap of 14.613 seconds. It's likely that it's going to take a lap of that caliber, if even not a few ticks of the clock faster, to win the Budweiser pole. But even fast time could get upset because the SuperClean Modified Racing Series employs the use of the inversion dice. A pre race roll of the dice could place the fastest qualifier anywhere from first to sixth in the starting field.
While the focus of the R&L Carriers 75 will be on the two drivers running for the championship, the remainder of the 22 car field will also bear a great deal of scrutiny as well. That's because the SuperClean Modified Racing Series awards end of the season bonus checks to the drivers in the top 15 of the points standings. In many cases the breakdown between the drivers in points positions three through 15 are even tighter than the two drivers at the top of the standings.
A case in point involves drivers Tim Morse and Chris Gerchman who are third and fourth in the standings but only separated by two points. There are only eight points between James Cole and Scott Brown in fifth and sixth,four points separates veteran drivers Larry Gerchman and Dave Arce in seventh and eighth and a mere two points separates Doug Carpenter and Mike Salm who are holding down the ninth and tenth positions in the rankings. Meanwhile in 12th and 13th Randy Ussery and Danny Gay are only four points apart. Gay will be a driver to watch Saturday night. The 2007 series champion is Dickerson's team mate and that means he has a very fast car. Gay has only ran a part time schedule in the series this year but has quickly moved up the points standings during the course of the last three races.
At the bottom end of the top 15 is Ed Patton who is only 14 points away from Josh Green in 14th. Patton will also have to be aware of a trio of drivers who are outside of the top 15 but are close to be on the outside looking in. There are only 14 points separating the drivers from 15th through 18th. Randy Forbis is in 16th and only 10 points from Patton's coveted 15th spot. Drivers Chris Stress and David Gerchman SR are only 14 points each away from Patton. Any combination of hard driving, along with good or bad luck, could greatly alter the status of the bonus checks for the top 15 drivers.
But the action doesn't stop with the conclusion of the R&L Carriers modified race. The Lucas Oil I 10 Speedway fans will also be treated to some red hot racing action from the Late Model, Street Stock and Factory Stocks which will be presented by race sponsor Dekens Cycle and Marine. The Late Model teams are currently conducting their own special points series with scheduled races at the Lucas Oil I 10 in Blythe and the Havasu 95 Speedway in nearby Lake Havasu City-Arizona. In three completed events it's apparent that this is going to be one terrific points battle. Ron Daniel managed to break a three way tie for the series lead after winning his second feature of the season last Saturday night at the Havasu 95 Speedway. But it's expected that he can anticipate plenty of competition from Mark Schriner and Austin Murphy when the series returns to Blythe this Saturday.
The Lucas OIl I 10 Speedway's Street Stock program has been a hotbed of exciting racing, while featuring close points championships, for several years now and the 2008 season apparently is going to present the fans with more of the same. Going into this Saturday night there are only 16 points separating the top five in the standings. Richard Selph leads the standings with 140 but its only two markers ahead of D J Lonie in second. Two time feature winner Ralph Adams is in third and just eight points away from the leader. Bryant Sutterfield, also a feature winner this season, holds down fourth just ten points away from the leader while Kenny Faulkner is in fifth just 16 points out of first.
The always fun Factory Stock teams will also be a major highlight of the Lucas Oil I 10 Speedway's show this Saturday. While this affordable entry level into racing only runs 12 lap features, the racing is always intense with plenty of slam bang action that produces a lot of yellow flags. They are truly a delight with the fans.
As if all of this racing action in one night wasn't enough incentive to get to the Lucas Oil I 10 Speedway this Saturday, promoter Greg Scheidecker has announced that the first 500 patrons walking through his gate will receive a free Lucas Oil racing hat. On Friday the speedway will host a test and tune session for the race teams from 6 to 9 pm which is free to spectators in the grandstands. On Saturday, Dekens Cycle and Marine race day, the spectator gates will open at 5 pm with the racing getting underway at 7 pm. Ticket prices for Saturday are $10 general admission, $8 for seniors,the military and the handicapped, $5 for teens 13 to 17, $3 for kids 6 to 12 while kids 5 and under are admitted free when accompanied by an adult. The speedway also offers a family pack for $20 which admits two adults and two kids 17 and under.
In addition to their title sponsor the SuperClean Modified Racing Series is strongly supported by a highly potent marketing concept known as "Team Lucas" which includes Lucas Oil Products Inc, Jim Beam, Hoosier Racing Tire, K&N Performance Filters, Blue Water Resort and Casino, General Tire, Dixie Chopper, Sencon Concrete LLC, Fatheadz Sunglasses, Poly Dome Plastic Products, Sunoco Fuels, R&L Carriers, E3 Spark Plugs and Budweiser. .
