KIMMEL BECOMES SEVENTH DIFFERENT WINNER THIS YEAR IN NASCAR WINSTON WEST SERIES

Source: NASCAR Media Relations
Date: 06/04/2001

Frank Kimmel became the seventh different driver to visit victory lane in eight NASCAR Winston West Series races this season -winning the Kansas 100 at Kansas Speedway on June 2.

Kimmel led 29 of the 100 laps en route to victory in the inaugural event on the beautiful new 1.5-mile superspeedway in Kansas City, Kan,

The Jeffersonville, Ind., competitor netted $15,260 in prize money and posted awards -including the Gatorade Front Runner Award for leading the most laps. His Advance Auto Parts-sponsored Chevrolet crossed the finish line with a margin of victory of .231 seconds, white establishing a race record at 112.406 mph.

Second place went to 19-year-old Jon Wood of the famous Wood Brothers racing family from Stuart, Va. Wood had set the fast mark in qualifying, winning the Bud Pole Award and establishing the track record of 168.534 mph in his AutoConcierge Ford.

Andy Hillenburg of Charlotte, N.C., finished the race in third - with defending series champion Brendan Gaughan of Las Vegas taking fourth in the NAPA/Martin Senour Chevrolet. The 1999 series champion - Sean Woodside of Saugus, Calif. -- was fifth in the TWM/Ron's Rear Ends/NAPA Chevrolet. Rounding out the top 10 were Mark Reed of Bakersfield, Calif.; Eric Norris of Dallas; Austin Cameron of El Cajon, Calif, Troy Cline of Hawthorne, Calif.; and Mike David of Modesto, Calif.

The race featured 11 lead changes among eight drivers - Kimmel, Wood, Gaughan, Reed, Kevin Richards, Jason Small, Steve Portenga and Brandon Ash. The pace of the event was slowed by five cautions for 24 laps.

The chase for this year's NASCAR Winston West Series championship continues to heat up, meanwhile. With his fourth-place finish, Gaughan trimmed Reed's lead in the standings to just 33 points -1,260 to 1,227. Cameron is 49 markers back with 1,178 points. Norris moved to fourth in the standings with 1,121 -while Portenga of Bakersfield, Calif-, is fifth with 1,109. Completing the tap 10 are Scott Gaylord, Woodside, Johnny Borneman, Richards and Ash.

Reed continues to lead the chase for this year's Rookie-of-the-Year title. He tops those standings with 77 points - followed by Borneman with 68 and Tim Woods III with 57. They are trailed by Ross Thompson with 40, Tony Schmidt with 17, Scott Lynch with 17, Brett Thompson with 11 and Dennis Hannel with 10.

Gaughan leads the Gatorade Front Runner standings with nine points. Reed is second with seven, followed by Portenga, Richards and Wool with four each. Seven drivers are tied with three points each - Ash, C.T. Hellmund, Kimmel, Norris, Schmidt, Ken Schrader and Woodside.

Chevrolet has moved out in front in the battle for this year's Manufacturers' Championship, meanwhile. Chevrolet has 54 points and four wins, over Pontiac with 51 points and three wins and ford with 47 points and one win.

Bill Maropulas leads the standings for this year's Clevite Engine Builder Award. He has accumulated 109 points as the engine builder for Dillons/Sara Lee/Coca-Cola Pontiac. He is trailed in the standings by Kevin Kroyer, who has 95 points as the engine builder for the NAPA/Martin Senour Chevrolet.

The next event on the NASCAR Winston West Series schedule is the Coors Light 200 Presented by NAPA and Albertson's at Evergreen Speedway in Monroe, Wash., on June 30.

The NASCAR Winston West aeries is one of nine NASCAR Touring Series' that blanket the United States, bringing special events to many NASCAR Weekly Racing Series tracks and some NASCAR superspeedways and road courses. NASCAR Touring Series are extremely popular with fans and competitors.

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