JUNCTION CITY, Ky. — Tim McCreadie picked up his first Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series victory of the season Friday night at Ponderosa Speedway.
A record-setting crowd for the 15th annual John Bradshaw Memorial saw McCreadie become the 15th different winner on the tour this season.
McCreadie held off a mid-race charge from Tanner English to take his first win at the D-shaped oval. English’s family owned Rocket Chassis finished in second, followed by current series point leader Jonathan Davenport, Don O’Neal and Tyler Erb.
Billy Moyer Jr. and McCreadie made up the front row of the starting grid for the 50-lap main event. McCreadie charged to the lead at the drop of the green flag. Moyer Jr. held the second-spot until Kyle Strickler moved by him on lap ten. Strickler then pressured McCreadie for the race lead by closing on his bumper several times as the two entered traffic.
The first caution of the race came on lap thirteen, just as the race for the lead was heating up. When the race resumed, McCreadie and English took the second spot after Strickler got stuck against the wall coming off of turn number two. At the halfway mark, McCreadie still showed the way with English in second and fifteenth starting Don O’Neal in his first race since mid-June.
O’Neal and Davenport went back-and-forth in the race for third and fourth for several laps. Davenport was finally able to clear O’Neal with four laps to go to earn a podium finish. Meanwhile, McCreadie pulled away from English in the waning laps to deny the Kentucky racer his first career Lucas Oil victory.
“It was very aggressive out there tonight,” McCreadie said. “It was more demanding than I wanted it to be. Thanks to Longhorn Chassis, Kevin Rumley, Justin Labonte, Philip Snellen, and everybody else with the team. This car has won a lot of money this year. We keep parking it, so maybe we shouldn’t leave it in the stable anymore. It’s about time we finally won one of the Lucas Oil races.”
English, who has been a frequent visitor at Ponderosa Speedway, was pleased with his runner-up finish.
“I thought we might have had him [McCreadie] in lapped traffic,” he said. “I also thought I was the only one to make a softer tire work, but I was fading at the end and he [McCreadie] got away from me. I will take second against these guys any night.”
The finish:
Tim McCreadie, Tanner English, Jonathan Davenport, Don O’Neal, Tyler Erb, Jimmy Owens, Kyle Bronson, Jared Hawkins, Josh Richards, Earl Pearson Jr., Hudson O’Neal, Shanon Buckingham, Billy Moyer Jr., Johnny Scott, Jason Jameson, Michael Chilton, Austin Burns, Stormy Scott, Devin Moran, Kyle Strickler, Mike Marlar, Tommy Bailey, Zack Dohm, Dustin Linville.