Tyler Young celebrates in victory lane after winning his first CARS Pro Cup Series race Saturday nigh at Hickory Motor Speedway. Photo by Adam Fenwick/AKFPhotos.com
Tyler Young finally sealed the deal Saturday night, winning his first CARS Pro Cup Series race at Hickory Motor Speedway in Hickory, NC when he held off Allen Purkhiser to capture the Catawba Valley 250.
“My guys worked really, really hard for this,” said an ecstatic Young after his first Pro Cup win. “I’ve got to thank all of my sponsors, Randco Industries and Young’s Building Systems, they’ve really stood behind me for a long time.”
Young, driving the No. 02 Chevrolet, started from the pole after a blazing 15.939-second lap and led the first 32 laps before losing the lead on a restart to rookie Harrison Rhodes.
The two spent the next 60 laps battling before third-place A.J. Frank took the pair three-wide exiting turn two, resulting in contact between Rhodes and Young that sent Rhodes into the wall in turn three. Frank, meanwhile, found himself in the lead.
Frank, who earned his first Pro Cup win last October at Hickory, spent the middle portion of the event battling Purkhiser for the lead. Meanwhile, Young was lingering mid-pack, saving his stuff for the final run to the checkers.
When the caution flag waved on lap 180 Young got the opportunity he was looking for. When all the leaders came down pit road for new tires, Young’s crew got him out second behind Frank. Frank got the jump on the restart, but on lap 194 Young drove by Frank to retake the lead.
Young quickly pulled away, but the race was far from over. With 14 laps left Bill Plemons, Jr. went for a spin coming out of turn four, giving Frank another shot at Young. The field returned to racing on lap 141, but Frank couldn’t keep up with Young and on lap 244 spun his car coming out of turn two, collecting Plemons in the process.
That put Purkhiser, who was also seeking his first Pro Cup win, in second for a green-white-checkered restart.
Driving the No. 02 Chevrolet, Tyler Young started from the pole and led the most laps en route to his victory. Photo by Adam Fenwick/AKFPhotos.com
When the green flag waved Purkhiser and Young went into turn one side-by-side, but it was Young who came out of turn two with the lead. Purkhiser tried to get to Young’s bumper, but it was all for not as Young pulled away to his first Pro Cup triumph.
“I just can’t say enough about my pit crew,” Young said. “We were riding around in seventh or eighth place and came down pit road. We left (pit road) second and we got the chance to restart on the outside and we got out front. We had a couple cautions there at the end, we were real nervous. I just had to get up on the wheel.”
Purkhiser and the No. 68 Premiere Motorsports team were forced to settle for second.
“We definitely had something for him (Young), but we just ran out of laps,” said Purkhiser. “I got under him and he did what he had to do, he came down and we got together. I backed off because I didn’t want to wreck him.”
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“I am pleased, I really am. I think we had a lot more car than we did driver,” Mitchell said. “Of course I wanted to win the race. I thought maybe Allen and Tyler would get together and give me a shot at it, but they’re smarter than that.”
J.P. Morgan, who won the season-opening Palmetto State 250 at South Carolina’s Anderson Motor Speedway last month, finished fourth. Dalton Hopkins completed the top five in his No. 08 Chevrolet.
The race was slowed seven times by the caution flag.
The CARS Pro Cup Series returns to action May 5 at Orange County Speedway in Rougemont, NC. For more information, visit carsprocup.com.
CARS Pro Cup Series
Hickory Motor Speedway – Hickory, NC
Catawba Valley 250 – April 21, 2012
1. Tyler Young
2. Allen Purkhiser
3. Trey Mitchell
4. J.P. Morgan
5. Dalton Hopkins
6. Bill Plemons, Jr.
7. A.J. Frank
8. Tom Finney
9. Nathan Russell
10. Mike Williams
11. Joe Shannon
11. Harrison Rhodes
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