FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
WAYCROSS, GA (October 24, 2014) - Don O'Neal of Martinsville, IN, driver of the Clint Bowyer Racing car #5, clinched his first Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series National Championship title Sunday by virtue of his 4th place finish in the series finale. O'Neal, who finished second in the series points title chase three times (2012, 2006, 2005), finished 65 points ahead of Jimmy Owens to win the 2014 series championship. O'Neal won seven (7) events on the tour and finished in the top five (5) in twenty-six (26) series point events in 2014. O'Neal becomes the oldest driver in the history of dirt late model racing to win a national touring series championship at age fifty (50).
In 2014, Don O'Neal teamed up with Clint Bowyer Racing to compete on the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series. His sponsors include: Peak Motor Oil and Antifreeze, Crawford Supply/Traeger Grills, Georgia Boot, Cometic Gasket, Toyota, Ohlins Shocks while piloting a Barry Wright Chassis powered by a Clements Racing Engine. This is also the first Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Championship for Clint Bowyer as a team owner.
"What an awesome season and great race team to drive for. Winning the series championship is a great accomplishment for me, personally, but also for all our sponsors and this entire team Clint has put together. To beat the best of the best over the whole season is very gratifying! All the drivers on this tour are great competitors and you have to race against the toughest drivers in the country every week on this deal. Congrats to Jimmy and Scott for a great year as well". O'Neal went on to say, "I have to thank Clint Bowyer, Casey Bowyer and Chip Williams for giving me the opportunity to drive for them. I also want to thank all my crew, Barry and Lance Wright, Jeremy Justice and Tony Trent for all their hard work and dedication to giving me the best cars to drive every week. It's just an incredible accomplishment to win this championship over all the years I've been racing".
Don O'Neal will collect $75,000 at the series awards banquet on December 11th for winning the 2014 LOLMDS championship. In the final series championship point standings, Jimmy Owens (IN) finished second, followed by Scott Bloomquist (TN), Steve Francis (KY) and Eddie Carrier Jr (WV), to round out the top five. Sixth through tenth in the series championship point standings include: Earl Pearson Jr. (FL), John Blankenship (WV), Jared landers (AR), Dennis Erb Jr (IL) and Jason Hughes (OK).
Jason Hughes of Westville, OK clinched the Dunn-Benson Ford Rookie of the Year title at this past weekend's Optima Batteries Dirt Track World Championship - Presented by NAPA Auto Parts. Hughes beat out fellow Rookie of the Year contender, Jason Papich from Arroyo Grande, CA by 45 points. Both drivers have battled against some amazing drivers all season long on the tour, while competing at new venues for both drivers for most of the season. Jason Hughes, the 2014 Dunn-Benson Ford Rookie of the Year will receive $10,000 at the series awards banquet. Jason Papich will receive a $2,500 cash award.
"It was an honor to get to race with all the great drivers on the Lucas Oil Series this year. They are a great bunch of guys and the toughest competitors in the sport. We're thrilled to win the Rookie of the Year title and I want to thank Lucas Oil, Dunn-Benson Ford, Midwest Sheet Metal and all the product sponsors for sponsoring the Rookie of the Year program this year. It was a long season but we learned a lot and look forward to the awards banquet to celebrate", stated Jason Hughes.
For the latest breaking news about the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, including the 2014 tour schedule, TV schedule, drivers, sponsors and all the information about the series visit the official website at: www.lucasdirt.com.
Follow the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series on the social media outlets at www.facebook.com/lucasdirt and https://twitter.com/lucasdirt
About Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
Founded in 2005, the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series is the nations' premier dirt late model sanctioning organization. In 2014 the LOLMDS will sanctions 47 events in 19 states. The series is owned by the parent company Lucas Oil Products Inc. and receives national exposure through a TV package filmed, produced and edited by Lucas Oil Production Studios. LOLMDS events will be broadcasted on four TV Networks in 2014 including CBS, NBC Sports, CBS Sports Network and MAVTV American Real Network. For more information about the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series visit the official website at www.Lucasdirt.com.
About MAVTV American Real Network
MAVTV was founded in 2002 by four former Showtime Networks executives and was originally geared towards a male dominated audience. In 2011, Lucas Oil Products, an automotive lubricant manufacturer with a history in television production, purchased MAVTV. Lucas Oil was eager to employ the same growth strategies to transform MAVTV into a premier cable network that it employed to grow the lubricants business. MAVTV aims to become a broader scoped network, geared towards the modern American family. Lucas Oil is investing in programming, an updated on-air look, and increased production quality, all to add more value to the viewer experience. MAVTV is an acronym that stands for Movies, Action and Variety. MAVTV brings you plenty of never-before-seen high definition exclusives, including Comedy, Movies, Action Sports, Adventure and More, all in fantastic HD detail. MAVTV is no ordinary television network. It's a 24/7, high-definition entertainment extravaganza, featuring everything from blockbuster films, high octane motorsports, MMA fighting, gaming, gut busting comedy, original reality shows and scripted dramas. Learn more about MAVTV American Real go to www.mavtv.com.
About Protect The Harvest
The animal rights movement in America, led by the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), has evolved into a wealthy and successful attack group determined to end the consumption of meat, threaten consumer access to affordable food, eliminate hunting, outlaw rodeos and circuses, and even ban animal ownership (including pets) altogether.Protect The Harvest was created to fight back and defend American families, farmers, sportsmen and animal owners from the growing threat posed by the radical animal rights movement. We believe Americans deserve the truth. These radical groups are intent on restricting the abilities of our food producers who already face the significant challenge of feeding a growing world population. It's our mission to ensure that American farmers are able to meet that challenge so that consumers at home and abroad have access to safe, affordable and healthy food. To learn more go to www.ProtectTheHarvest.com.
About Lucas Oil Products
Founded in 1989 by Forrest and Charlotte Lucas, Lucas Oil Products, Inc. has established itself as one of the fastest-growing lubrication product lines in the consumer automotive aftermarket, featuring a line of engine oils, greases, gear lubes, problem-solving additives, and car-care products. Through innovative product research and development, along with aggressive marketing programs, Lucas Oil has established itself as a worldwide leader in the lubrication industry. Motorsports has always been part of the Lucas Oil culture and the cornerstone of the company's marketing strategy. Such passion for motorsports has inspired Lucas Oil to sponsor many race teams, events and series at all levels, including, NHRA, IRL, ASCS, NASCAR, IHRA and many more. Lucas Oil has also taken ownership and operational control of a number of high profile racing properties, such as: Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series, Lucas Oil Drag Boat Series, Lucas Oil Pro Pulling League, Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, Lucas Oil Modified Series, Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland, MO. and the Lucas Oil I-10 Speedway in Blythe, CA.
In 2007 Lucas Oil founded its own production house, Lucas Oil Production Studios, dedicated to producing high action motorsports television. Currently Lucas Oil Production Studios produces over 300 hours of original programming for networks such as CBS, CBS Sports, NBC Sports and MAVTV. More information about Lucas Oil Products, Inc. visit the company website at www.lucasoil.com. |
