Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series News Release:  Contact – ROBY HELM – (865) 207-4157

September 20, 2014

JOHNSON THRILLS PACKED HOUSE WITH 411 CHEVY SUPER SERIES WIN

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

                SEYMOUR, TN – An appreciative packed house at 411 Motor Speedway saw why Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series point leader Ronnie Johnson of Chattanooga, TN is a Hall of Fame dirt late model driver on Saturday night.  In the final ten laps of the 50-lap Chevy Super Series Race, Johnson went from third to first and took his third series win of the season.

                As Johnson exited his NeSmith Chevrolet Special powered by the economical production-based all-aluminum Chevrolet Performance CT 525 Engine in victory lane, the large crowd gave Johnson a standing ovation for his performance that was worth $3,000. 

In heavy lapped traffic, Johnson drove around the outside of Tim Busha of Boaz, AL on lap 40 for the second spot, and then drove underneath Brandon Williams of Crossville, TN to take the lead on lap 40.  Those moves and the crowd’s response after the race left the seasoned veteran a little emotional.

“This win means a lot to me,” Johnson said with a quiver in his voice.  “To be able to still race like I do, take a win like that, and give these great fans here tonight their money’s worth is what it’s all about.  Another Hall of Fame driver, Bud Lunsford, told me early in my career that you have to make every lap count.  That statement was very clear to me tonight, and we’re going to enjoy this win because I don’t think I’ll be able to do this for another 38 years.”

Williams said his brakes faded on him late in the race, but he held on to finish second in the Auto Zone Special.  Williams was the fast qualifier with a lap around the 3/8-mile high-baked clay oval in 14.135 seconds, and then led the first 44 laps of the race.  It was Williams’ second start with the Chevy Super Series, and followed up his third-place finish last week in Tazewell, TN.

Busha finished third in the Kilpatrick Racing GRT, and had the fastest car on the timing and scoring loop during the first half of the race.  Just when he would get up a head of steam to get close to Williams and challenge for the lead, a caution flag would come out and slow his momentum.

Jake Knowles of Tyrone, GA made a hard charge late in the race to finish fourth in the Cedartown Electric Rocket after starting 12th.  Pierce McCarter of Gatlinburg, TN took the fifth spot in the McCarter Brothers Racing CVR. 

McCarter was the crew chief on this car last Saturday night when his younger brother Mack McCarter of Gatlinburg, TN drove it to victory in Tazewell, TN.  For the 411 Motor Speedway race, the two siblings swapped roles with Pierce driving and Mack turning the wrenches.  Pierce McCarter swapped the second spot with Busha several times during the first half of the race.

Tyler Crowder of Lamont, FL drove the Crowder Trucking Rocket to a sixth-place finish, and Jacob Grizzle of Blairsville, GA was seventh in the Carolina Performance Special.  Dillon Tidmore of Glencoe, AL finished eighth in his first-ever start with the Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series in the DTR Motorsports Special.

David Brannon of Elora, TN took the ninth spot in the Elora Gin Company Special, and Brad Hall of Knoxville, TN came from the 16th starting spot to round out the Top 10 in the Tazewell Chiropractic Special.

Williams took the lead at the start of the race from the pole position followed by the outside front row starter McCarter in second.  Johnson, Brannon and Busha raced three-wide on the opening lap to battle for the third spot, with Busha taking the position at the completion of the first lap followed by Johnson and Brannon.

The field was slowed by the first of five caution flags on lap two when Josh Henry of Newport, TN spun the Henry Trucking Stinger in turn two.  With Williams leading the field, McCarter chose the inside for the “Dixie-Style” double-file restart with Busha lining up to his outside.  When the green flag came out, Busha drove around McCarter for the second spot.

The second caution flag came out on lap five when Warren McMahan of White Pine, TN cut down a tire on his Dandridge Service Station Warrior.  When the field doubled up behind Williams, it was Busha choosing the inside, with McCarter to his right on the outside.  This time on the restart, McCarter would power around Busha to reclaim the second spot.

Busha reloaded to take another shot at McCarter for the second spot on lap six, and got under McCarter for the positing coming off the fourth turn.  Crowder had advanced from his tenth starting spot to restart seventh, and then climbed up to the fifth spot when green flag came out after the caution period.

Crowder then closed in on Johnson to battle for the fourth spot on lap eight, but Johnson would hold the position.  Busha was closing on Williams by lap ten, but the third caution flag came out on lap 13 when Mark Dowdy of Waterloo, AL slammed the second turn wall in the Dowdy Racing Special.

Williams had Busha, McCarter, Johnson, Crowder, Tidmore, Grizzle, Knowles, Brannon and Brad Seagle of Seymour, TN doubled up behind him in the Top 10 for the restart.  When they got to turn three, Seagle spun and collected seven other cars that completely blocked the race track.  All of the cars involved were able to continue.

When the field went to green flag racing action, Grizzle got by Tidmore for the sixth spot on lap 15, and Knowles passed Tidmore for seventh on lap 19.  Henry brought out the fifth and final caution flag on lap 21 when he stalled on the race track. 

In setting up for what would be the long stretch run to the checkered flag, Williams had Busha, McCarter, Johnson, Crowder, Grizzle, Knowles, Tidmore, Brannon and Hall lined up behind him in the top ten.  On the restart, Johnson got inside McCarter to take over the third spot and the longer the field raced under green flag conditions, the faster Johnson got.

Knowles would also fall into that category, as he got by Grizzle for the sixth spot on lap 22.  The leaders reached lapped traffic by lap 30, and Busha began to close in on Williams.  By lap 35, Johnson joined the party and while he was contesting the second position with Busha, Williams pulled away to an eight car-length advantage for his biggest lead of the race.

The top three cars bunched up together on lap 39 as they negotiated through heavy lapped traffic, and that’s when Johnson began to shine.  Johnson drove around the outside of Busha coming off the fourth turn to take over the second spot. 

When he got to the race leader, Johnson began looking to the inside of Williams, who having trouble with his brake issues keeping his car stuck to the bottom of the race track to spoil Johnson’s charge.  Coming off the fourth turn on lap 45, Johnson got the bite he needed and passed Williams for the lead on the front straightaway. 

Knowles got around McCarter for the fourth spot on lap 46, but up front, it was Johnson pulling away to claim his third Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series win of the season with a 1.970 second margin of victory over Williams. 

The win also gives Johnson a 42-point lead over Crowder in the Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series point standings. Knowles is third in the standings, ten points behind Crowder, and Grizzle is fourth, ten points behind Knowles. 

Brent Barrett of Cleveland, MS is fifth in the Chevy Super Series point standings and leads the Rookie of the Year point standings by just four points over 15-year-old Jadon Frame of Winchester, TN, who is sixth overall in the point standings.  Frame finished 12th in the race, and Barrett was 16th.

The next two races for the Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series will be at the Alabama State Championship Race next weekend at East Alabama Motor Speedway in Phenix City, AL.  There will be a $2,000-to-win 30-lap race on Friday night and a $3,000-to-win 50-lap race on Saturday night.

For more information about the Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series visit the series web site at www.525superseries.com, or visit the series on Facebook at Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series. 

OFFICIAL RESULTS OF ROUND SIX AT 411 MOTOR SPEEDWAY IN SEYMOUR, TN ON 9/20/14:

POS        STRT     CAR #    DRIVER                               HOMETOWN                     LAPS     $ WON 
1.             3              5              Ronnie Johnson                  Chattanooga, TN                50           $3,000
2.             1              95           Brandon Williams             Crossville, TN                     50           $1,500
3.             5              15           Tim Busha                           Boaz, AL                              50           $1,000
4.             12           66           Jake Knowles                      Tyrone, GA                          50           $850
5.             2              51           Pierce McCarter                                Gatlinburg, TN                   50           $750
6.             10           47           Tyler Crowder                    Lamont, FL                         50           $700
7.             9              99g         Jacob Grizzle                      Blairsville, GA                    50           $650
8.             6              38           Dillon Tidmore                   Glencoe, AL                         50           $600
9.             4              33           David Brannon                   Elora, TN                             50           $550
10.          16           3              Brad Hall                             Knoxville, TN                     50           $500
11.          11           29           Rusty Ballenger                  Sevierville, TN                    50           $475
12.          13           J8           Jadon Frame (R)                Winchester, TN                   50           $450
13.          19           79c         Marty Calloway                 Maynardville, TN              49           $425
14.          7              30           Ryan King                            Seymour, TN                       49           $400
15.          15           44           Chase King                          Seymour, TN                       49           $375
16.          17           110         Brent Barrett                      Cleveland, MS                     49           $350
17.          8              31           Brad Seagle                         Seymour, TN                       49           $325
18,          20           33m        Warren McMahan             White Pine, TN                   49           $300
19.          23           7              William Overbey               Norris, TN                            48           $300
20.          18           101         Forrest Trent                      Talbott, TN                          48           $300
21.          22           B00        Josh Henry                          Newport, TN                        19           $300
22.          14           1              Matthew Summers             Estill Springs, TN               15           $300
23.          21           88d         Mark Dowdy                       Waterloo, AL                      12           $300

ENTRIES:  23
FAST QUALIFIER:  Williams, 14.135 Seconds
LEAD CHANGES:  1
LAP LEADERS:  Williams, 1-44; Johnson, 45-50
LAPS LED:  Williams, 44; Johnson, 6
ROOKIE OF THE RACE:  Frame
SCHAEFFER’S OIL 8TH-PLACE AWARD:  Tidmore
MODERN IMAGES 9TH-PLACE AWARD:  Brannon
DAVID SMITH CARBURETORS 10TH-PLACE AWARD:  Hall
MIKE’S CUSTOM TANKS 11TH-PLACE AWARD:  Ballenger
SHORTY’S SHOCK SERVICE 12TH-PLACE AWARD:  Frame
CAUTIONS:  5
MARGIN OF VICTORY: 1.970 Seconds
TIME OF THE RACE:  31 Minutes and 37.094 Seconds

QUALIFYING:

POS

CAR #

DRIVER

HOMETOWN

CHASSIS

LAP 1

LAP 2

TIME

1

95

Brandon Williams

Crossville, TN

Mastersbilt

14.152

14.135

14.135

2

51

Pierce McCarter

Gatlinburg, TN

CVR

14.395

14.149

14.149

3

5

Ronnie Johnson

Chattanooga, TN

Mastersbilt

14.314

14.241

14.241

4

33

David Brannon

Elora, TN

Barry Wright

14.295

14.374

14.295

5

15

Tim Busha

Boaz, AL

GRT

14.343

14.493

14.343

6

38

Dillon Tidmore

Glencoe, AL

Barry Wright

14.400

14.433

14.400

7

30

Ryan King 

Seymour, TN

Stinger

14.412

14.500

14.412

8

31

Brad Seagle

Seymour, TN

Mastersbilt

14.564

14.433

14.433

9

99g

Jacob Grizzle

Blairsville, GA

Mastersbilt

14.461

14.564

14.461

10

47c

Tyler Crowder

Lamont, FL

Rocket

14.472

14.515

14.472

11

29

Rusty Ballenger

Sevierville, TN

Mastersbilt

14.505

14.521

14.505

12

66

Jake Knowles

Tyrone, GA

Rocket

14.641

14.576

14.576

13

J8

Jadon Frame - R

Winchester, TN

Revelution

14.584

14.625

14.584

14

1

Matthew Summers

Estill Springs, TN

Mastersbilt

14.678

14.998

14.678

15

44

Chase King

Seymour, TN

Stinger

14.724

14.705

14.705

16

3

Brad Hall

Knoxville, TN

Mastersbilt

15.424

14.881

14.881

17

110

Brent Barrett - R

Cleveland, MS

GRT

15.015

14.883

14.883

18

101

Forrest Trent

Talbott, TN

Rocket

14.912

15.333

14.912

19

79c

Marty Calloway

Maynardville, TN

Mastersbilt

15.138

15.462

15.138

20

33

Warren McMahan

White Pine, TN

Warrior

15.300

15.250

15.250

21

88

Mark Dowdy

Waterloo, AL

Killer

15.288

15.265

15.265

22

B00

Josh Henry

Newport, TN

Rocket

15.496

15.600

15.496

23

7

William Overbey

Norris, TN

Rayburn

15.516

15.558

15.516

CHEVROLET PERFORMANCE SUPER LATE MODEL SERIES POINT STANDINGS THROUGH 9/20/14:

1. 5 Ronnie Johnson – 588
2. 47c Tyler Crowder – 546
3. 66 Jake Knowles – 536
4. 99g Jacob Grizzle – 526
5. 110 Brent Barrett (R) – 458
6. J8 Jadon Frame (R) – 454
7. 88d Mark Dowdy – 414
8. 11 Lavon Sparks – 384
9. 49 Dingus Griffin – 370
10. 18 Chase Edge (R) – 316
11. 33 David Brannon – 310
12. 10 Matthew Turner – 306
13. 15 Tim Busha – 290
14. 19m Josh Adkins (R) – 266
15. 72 Frank Wilson – 212
16. 95 Brandon Williams – 190
17. 51 Mack McCarter – 176
18. 47a Adam Martin (R) – 172
19, 47r Ross Martin – 168
20. 17 Ronald Dunn - 152

R – Denotes Rookie of the Year Candidate

 

Chevrolet Performance Parts is the Title Sponsor of the Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series.  Hoosier Racing Tire is the Official Tire Sponsor of the Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series.  Schaeffer’s Oil Presented By Chad Wallace and Heather Newsome is the Official Oil of the Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series.  AR Bodies is an Official Sponsor of the Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series.  Cruise With The Champions is an Official Sponsor of the Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series.  Chevrolet Performance Super Late Model Series Contingency Sponsors for 2014 are Modern Images, Mike Custom Tanks, KRC Power Steering, David Smith Carburetors, Kinser Air Filters, and Shorty’s Shock Service.

-30-




===============================


Bryan Hulbert
ASCS / Chili Bowl P.R.
O: 918-838-3777
C: 575-496-9348
announcer@ascsracing.com