Huntersville, North Carolina (Monday, July 13, 2015): Two impressive drives through the field headline the events of this past weekend for Matt Mills. The 18-year-old driver again had to bounce back from adversity and make the best of an otherwise unfavorable situation.
Friday, at the fast (0.400) 4/10-mile Dixie Motor Speedway located in Birch Run, Mich., Mills started on the pole. Early in the race, contact from another competitor sent the No. 5 Thompson Electric Ford Fusion spinning. Luckily the field avoided him, and he was able to continue. He restarted shotgun on the field and over the next 99-laps worked his way through the field. At one point, the New Philediphia, Ohio native was the fastest car on the track. He was able to race his way up into the top-10, scoring a very impressive 10th-place finish.
“I had a lot of fun racing at Dixie (Motor Speedway) (Mich.); it is a really cool track. I feel like I learned a lot on Friday,” Mills said. “It was exciting to start on the pole. Early in the race, contact from another competitor sent us spinning. We had to restart in the rear, but we never gave up. We worked extremely hard to race our way back towards the front. We even experienced some electrical issues halfway through the race but were able to recover and finish 10th.”
On Saturday, Mills headed to Midvale Speedway located near his home in Midvale, Ohio to complete his double duty weekend. Again, Mills was very fast and started on the pole. Early contact resulting in damage led to an early pit stop to pull a fender. Over the next 29-laps, he drove from the rear of the field to 7th-place. For the Buckeye State teenager, this weekend consisted of two tough races and two impressive finishes.
“I’m always excited to come back to Midvale (Speedway) (Ohio) and race at home,” Mills said. “Again, we started on the pole and just like at Dixie (Motor Speedway) (Mich.), contact affected the start of our race. We had to pit and pull the fender out. Restarting shotgun on the field, we were able to race back into the top-10 in the 30-lap feature, finishing 7th. Overall it was a very solid weekend of racing”
The JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour Presented by Chevrolet Performance is heading to the (0.250) 1/4-mile Anderson Speedway located in Anderson, Ind. this Friday as part of Stoops Freightliner Redbud 300 Weekend. Mills hopes to be back behind the wheel of the No. 5 Rick Turner Racing Pro Late Model; however, a recent sponsorship shake up has left him without a sponsor for the remainder of the 2015 season. He is in talks with several different companies and hopes to continue his very impressive rookie season in the JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour. Mills currently sits fifth in the overall series points standings and second in the Rookie-of-the-Year points standings.
“I would love to continue my rookie season in the JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour,” Mills said. “Driving for Rick Turner Racing and representing companies such as Thompson Electric has been a dream come true. I am hopeful that another company will see the potential this entire team has and partner with us. It would be a shame to not be able to race at Anderson (Speedway) (Ind.).”
The Rick Turner Racing No. 5 Ford Fusion being driven by Mills in the JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour has been sponsored by Thompson Electric and McGunegill Engine Performance. The No. 4 Mills Motorsports Outlaw Super Late Model also driven by Mills, will continue to carry sponsorship from Thompson Electric Inc., DTS Screen Printing Embroidery, Kwest Group, Frontier Tool & Equipment Rental, Riddle Trucking, Sunshine Signs & Decals, Bleininger Family & Truck Repair, Bombs Away Bar & Grill, Pringles Body Shop, Bee Fit with Denise, Swan Fabrication, and Racecar Engineering.
