SWANSBORO, N.C. – Eric Winslow picked up his second Carteret County Speedway Late Model victory in dominant fashion on Saturday night.
Winslow qualified on the pole and led every single lap in the feature at the Swansboro, North Carolina raceway. This time, he was able to drive his car into victory lane instead of a scooter, and celebrate his triumph as the crowd celebrated.
“We really struggled with both cars,” Winslow said. “We kept making swings at it simply because I knew it wasn’t a race winning car yet. I was unsure if I was doing the right thing being the first race for me on that car but we stayed after it and got it right when it counted. I had some difficulty with lap cars this week and have to apologize for getting in to (Gerald Benton) when I was trying to get by him and brought out a caution I didn’t need, but luckily Josh (Yeoman) and Chris (Burns) were battling hard and I was able to get away there.
“It’s no secret I like racing at Carteret a lot. The fans show up rain or shine and want to see a race not a demo derby and thankfully we ended up in victory lane instead of the turn one wall.”
Winslow was able to race in a car prepared by Chris Burns after his car was torn up after a race he won at Carteret County Speedway on August 6.
“Chris Burns gave me an opportunity to drive his backup, I’m really glad we worked on it and seized the opportunity instead of blow it,” Winslow remarked.
Chris Burns and Joshua Yeoman, who have been perpetually deadlocked in battle all season, once again spent much of the race battling for the second position. The two drivers swapped the position back and forth multiple times with Burns eventually securing the spot.
Jim Kelley finished in fourth while Kenneth Mercer finished fifth.
Gerald Benton, Tyler Horne, Maddy Ryan Mulligan, Cory Walker and Zach Henshaw rounded out the top ten.
Travis Miller scored the victory in a photo finish over Zac Reimer in the U-CAR feature. The two drivers raced side-by-side all race long but Miller had the inside line on the last lap and the edge at the stripe.
“I’m not really sure if I edged him out on the last lap or not,” Miller said. “I knew if I held him to the outside, I would be good. This is the first time my wife has been able to come all year so it’s pretty awesome to celebrate this win with her.”
James Horner crossed the line first in the Street Stock race, but after a protest from runner-up finisher Jonathon Belfiore, Horner was disqualified for having drill holes in his brake rotors. Belfiore inherited the victory.
Shane Irving scored his first career Carteret County Speedway Legends victory while Michael Rouse dominated to win the Mini-Stock feature.
Racing returns to Carteret County Speedway on October 8 when the Mini Stocks take center stage for Mini Stock Mayhem. The Late Models, Street Stocks, U-CARs and Legends will also be in action.
For more information, visit CarteretSpeedway.com.
