Scott Bloomquist, seen here from an earlier victory, took the win in Saturday night’s Firecracker 100 at Lernerville Speedway. Photo by Mike Horne
Scott Bloomquist battled from eighth position Saturday night to win the Firecracker 100 finale at Lernerville Speedway in Sarver, PA.
Bloomquist collected his second World of Outlaws Craftsman Late Model Series win of 2016, tangoing with both front-runners in the series and regional favorites alike.
Dale McDowell began the 100-lap feature strong, as if his No. 17m Bad Boy Buggies/ University of Northwestern Ohio Warrior car was shot from a cannon. McDowell contested for the lead in the leading laps of the race, only to soon get the top spot on lap 17.
While McDowell held the No. 1 spot, three-time series champion Josh Richards consistently pursued the lead – diminishing the one-second intervals between them to less than half-of-a-second. Bloomquist bought his time in third after charging to the front from mid-pack. Not only did Richards close the gap between him and McDowell, but a caution on lap 23 included Bloomquist in a fight for first.
On a nearly perfect restart, Bloomquist overtook Richards in turn two. Richards soon reclaimed the spot, wedging his No. 1 Valvoline/ Seubert Calf Ranches Rocket car underneath Bloomquist. It was a happenstance five laps later when another caution gave Bloomquist the opportunity to throttle past Richards on the restart. Bloomquist’s No. 0 Crop Production Services / Reese Monument Co. Sweet/ Bloomquist machine succeeded.
“Overall, the car handled super,” Bloomquist said. “If you look at this car, we have a lot of good support on it. We just keep on digging.”
Bloomquist sought out the lead. McDowell, who began to fade as the race progressed, found himself in a power-struggle with Bloomquist. McDowell held off Bloomquist’s advances for a short time, only to forfeit the lead following a third caution on lap 52.
The top three remained a half-second within each other, though Richards fell more than one second back from the runner-up position briefly. Kicking his car into high gear within the final 20 laps, Richards reeled in McDowell, who rounded out the podium. McDowell led the majority of the laps on the night.
“Yeah, [Bloomquist’s] definitely one of the ones to beat,” McDowell said. “When I had a little bit of grip, I was okay. We struggled all week to get a little bit of traction. It was a good end of the week for us. We’re happy.”
Then it was down to two – Bloomquist and Richards revisited their battle. With 10 laps remaining, Richards had a lot of real estate while Bloomquist weaved through lapped traffic. Though this predicament gave Richards a fighting chance, Bloomquist’s stealth through the 28-car field built him enough of a cushion to fend off Richards. Bloomquist won the race by a 2.576-second margin.
“We just lacked a little bit…” Richards said. “Scott could turn just ever-so-slightly better, and that was the difference of winning. Scott did a good job. I mean, I’m still glad we were that close at the end.”
The victory is Bloomquist’s third Firecracker 100 win.
“We’re used to overcoming adversity,” Bloomquist said. “We got up early and got after it again for both shows. I wasn’t interested in taking the lead too early. I ran every possible line I could run around this racetrack before I took the lead. I just wanted to see where I lost ground or gained ground. So when we got the lead, I knew where to put my car.”
In the preliminary feature earlier in the day, 2015 Rookie of the Year Brandon Overton finally accomplished the win he said he would get “someday.” Overton led all 30 laps to get his first career World of Outlaws win.
Victory lane was an emotional experience for Overton, tears collecting in his eyes as he mustered-up enough composure to address a full-capacity crowd. Overton placed third in Friday night’s preliminary, but this win trumped any performance he has had so far in his career.
“I knew it was coming but… I just don’t know what to say,” said Overton, overwhelmed by the standing ovation from the fans. “My daddy went home yesterday because he wasn’t feeling good. I just wish he stayed one more day. He spent every damn dime to get me here.”
Overton opened-up a 3.171 lead on Bloomquist and Richard within the first ten laps of the race. He went on to win by a 1.257 margin. Richards finished runner-up to Overton, and Bloomquist rounded-out the podium.
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World of Outlaws Craftsman Late Model Series
Lernerville Speedway – Sarver, PA
Firecracker 100 – June 25, 2016
1. 0- Scott Bloomquist
2. 1- Josh Richards
3. 17m- Dale McDowell
4. 1P- Earl Pearson, Jr.
5. 116- Jonathan Davenport
6. 39- Tim McCreadie
7. 7- Rick Eckert
8. 25- Shane Clanton
9. 22- Gregg Satterlee
10. 21JR- Billy Moyer, Jr.
11. 76- Brandon Overton
12. 2- Dan Stone
13. C9- Steve Casebolt
14. 1*- Chub Frank
15. 18- Eric Wells
16. 18c- Chase Junghans
17. 14m- Morgan Bagley
18. 56- Russ King
19. 99B- Boom Briggs
20. H1- Jared Miley
21. 99JR- Frank Heckenast, Jr.
22. 38s- Kenny Pettyjohn
23. 3s- Brian Shirley
24. 1B- Mike Benedum
25. 72c- Jason Covert
26. 25z- Mason Zeigler
27. 10- Alex Ferree
28. 1C- Mike Pegher
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