Gordon Conquers Nemesis, Almost
Lakeland, Fla.-Benny Gordon has always said that USA Int’l Speedway was the one Hooters Pro Cup track that he struggled with. So after Gordon won the Sears Auto Center 200 presented by All Pro U-Pull-It, one would think his opinion had changed. Well, guess again.
"I still can’t drive here," said Gordon, driver of the No. 66n Samuel Metals Ford. "On 90% percent of the track we go to, I know where to pick up the throttle, and I can be spot-on and dial my car in. I’m still kind of erratic here, but I’m getting better."
Gordon, a Sears Auto Center Northern Division competitor, used an unorthodox pitting strategy to get the lead in the Greased Lightning Southern Division opener. While most leaders waited to pit on Lap 64, Gordon elected to take his BFGoodrich Tires g-Force radials on Lap 26 and cycled into the lead on Lap 88.
Gordon held the lead until Lap 152, when Mark McFarland, driver of the No. 81s Sears Auto Center Chevrolet, moved to the point. McFarland inched away from Gordon over the next 20 laps, but smoke began to billow from underneath his machine at Lap 175.
"When Mark started smoking, I knew I was racing for the win," said Gordon. "I knew if I could get out front we’d be tough to beat."
Matt Hawkins, driver of the No. 2s JaniKing Ford, nearly had Gordon passed before the caution waved. But over the final laps, Gordon slowly crept away from Hawkins, denying the youngster his second win at USA Int’l Speedway.
"I thought I had him, I really did," said Hawkins. "That’s why I’m so disappointed. I was passing four cars per restart. But when I got to him, I couldn’t do anything. I was trying to not let him know what I was doing, but he did a heck of job and pulled out more than we had."
Hawkins shouldn’t be too disappointed. The sophomore driver now leads the Southern Division standings-and he has a good jump on some of the more prominent Southern stars in the title chase.
Michael Ritch, the defending Southern Division champion, arguably had the best car of the night. Ritch, driver of the No. 28s Racing Ford Veterans Ford, led the first 65 laps of the event and was charging back to the front after a pit stop when his car slowed after a restart on Lap 135. Ritch pulled behind the wall and finished 28th. McFarland’s mechanical failure dropped him to 25th in the final rundown. Bobby Gill, driver of the No. 06s USG Sheetrock Ford, was involved in two accidents and finished 22nd. Trevor Bayne, driver of the No. 29 Chevy Racing Chevrolet, was running in the top five before his car fell off the pace with seven laps remaining, dropping him to 19th at the finish.
Though some of the top teams had problems, the race had some feel-good stories as well.
James Buescher, driver of the No. 84s Mercedes Homes Chevrolet, seemed to carry his late-season momentum of a year ago into the 2008 campaign. For the third race in a row, Buescher came home third.
Caleb Holman, driver of the No. 75s Food Country Chevrolet, started his season off on the right foot by finishing fourth.
Billy Bigley Jr., driver of the No. 82s Peerless Woodworking Ford, rounded out the top five, giving him his first top-five finish in over a year.
Travis Kittleson, Kirk Leone, Hunter Robbins, Scotty Crockett and Drew Herring completed the top 10.
Robbins picked up the Miller Lite Rookie of the Race Award for his eighth-place finish.
The Greased Lightning Southern Division returns to action at South Georgia Motorsports Park in Cecil, Ga., on Saturday, March 29.
Unofficial Results
1. Benny Gordon
2. Matt Hawkins
3. James Buescher
4. Caleb Holman
5. Billy Bigley
6. Travis Kittleson
7. Kirk Leone
8. Hunter Robbins
9. Scotty Crockett
10. Drew Herring
11. Tom Hessert
12. John Townley
13. J.P. Morgan
14. Wade Day
15. Michael Phelps
16. Frank Deiny Jr.
17. Don Satterfield
18. John Gibson
19. Trevor Bayne
20. Bryan Silas
21. Dusty Williams
22. Bobby Gill
23. Carl Long
24. Matt Lofton
25. Mark McFarland
26. Joey Coulter
27. Woody Howard
28. Michael Ritch
29. Johnny X
30. Bill Plemons Jr.
31. Derrick Kelley
32. Dange Hanniford
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