In a race that saw five lead changes among three drivers, Ricky Thornton, Jr. emerged victorious on Saturday night at All-Tech Raceway in Lake City, Florida.
Thornton passed race leader Max Blair after a lap 29 restart and went on to win his second Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series race of the season. For the first time in his career, Thornton has taken over the top spot in the championship point standings after his seventh career series win.
Tim McCreadie finished in second, with Brandon Sheppard in third, Devin Moran in fourth and Tyler Erb in fifth.
Thornton started on the outside of the front row and grabbed the lead at the start of the 50-lap main event. He quickly built a sizable lead in the opening laps of the race until Zebulon, Georgia’s Shane Clanton, who started alongside Thornton on the front row was able to close the gap and take over the point with eight laps scored.
Clanton would hold the lead until lap 17 when Thornton regained the top spot. At the halfway mark it was Thornton still in front followed by Clanton and Max Blair, who was now up to third. Blair then went to second on lap 27 and two laps later took the lead away from Thornton to become the third different leader of the race.
A caution came out with 29 laps complete with Blair out in front. On the restart, Thornton swung to the outside as he pressured Blair and completed the pass heading down the backstretch. Thornton then had to withstand two cautions in the waning laps, one with nine laps to go and one with just two circuits remaining, holding off McCreadie both times.
“I really didn’t know what to do tire wise,” said Thornton. “I knew Max (Blair) and Kyle (Strickler) were on softer tires. I told Max to go soft and it lasted a while for him. I didn’t know if there was really a line there in one and two. It was kind of a do or die. I was like I really want to win this pretty bad, so I was trying really hard on that restart, and it worked. I kept missing the bottom there in three. It was getting tight. Luckily, we held them off.”
Hudson O’Neal, Blair, Clanton, Kyle Bronson, and Spencer Hughes rounded out the top 10.
Action continues for the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series at East Bay Raceway Park in Tampa, Florida on Sunday, February 5. For more information, visit LucasDirt.com.
Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
All-Tech Raceway – Lake City, FL
Winter Nationals – February 4, 2023
1. 20RT-Ricky Thornton, Jr.
2. 39-Tim McCreadie
3. B5-Brandon Sheppard
4. 99-Devin Moran
5. 1T-Tyler Erb
6. 1H-Hudson O’Neal
7. 111B-Max Blair
8. 25C-Shane Clanton
9. 40B-Kyle Bronson
10. 11-Spencer Hughes
11. 18D-Daulton Wilson
12. 96V-Tanner English
13. 28-Dennis Erb Jr
14. 3S-Brian Shirley
15. 8K-Kyle Strickler
16. 22*-Payton Freeman
17. 16-Tyler Bruening
18. 7-Ross Robinson
19. 20-Jimmy Owens
20. 46-Earl Pearson, Jr.
21. 49-Jonathan Davenport
22. 58-Garrett Alberson
23. 19R-Ryan Gustin
24. 19M-Wil Herrington
25. 89-Logan Roberson
26. 10-Garrett Smith
27. 17SS-Brenden Smith
