ANDERSON – On a night to honor the late Tanner Ballard, Josh Poore drove his car into victory lane at Anderson Speedway.
The Champion Racing Association Late Model Sportsman race Saturday was dedicated to Ballard, a former racer, who died earlier this year.
The Speedway had to content with frequent rounds of rain that caused some adjustments to the qualifying routine. Instead of individual qualifying runs, there was group qualifying for all three divisions.
Cassten Everidge set fast time and the inversion following qualifying put Poore and Ryder VanAlst on the front row.
At the start Poore spun his tires which allowed VanAlst to take the lead with Everidge runing third followed by Jason Timmermon.
Everidge took the second spot on lap 13 with an inside pass of Poore on the back straight and immediately started to apply pressure on VanAlst for the top spot.
The two leaders raced nose to tail until lap 44 when both VanAlst and Everidge spun, which put Poore on the point followed by Timmermon.
Everidge moved into the second spot on the restart, keeping Poore in site until the finish but never able to mount a challenge for the lead.
Poore win the 75-lap race followed by Everidge, Timmerman, VanAlst and Don Mahaffey.
There was only 1 caution period and two lead changes among two drivers.
“I thought I lost the race at the start,” Poore said in the Hoosier Lottery Victory Lane. “I had Tanner riding with me tonight.”
Andrew Teepe made it two consecutive wins in CRA Street Stock competition taking the lead in the 75-lap feature on lap 47 when leader Rickie Tharp II got loose bunching up the lead pack of cars on the back straight.
Teepe emerged as the leader followed by Chad Chaffin, Alan Williams Jr. and Tharpe.
Tharpe’s and Chaffin’s night ended on lap 48 when they came together in turn one.
Teepe went on to win by .215-seconds over Williams with Duane Damon, Ricky Craig and Kaden Rose rounding out the top five.
Chaffin grabbed the lead at the start and led the first 13 laps before Tharp used an outside pass on the front straight to take the point.
The race was slowed only three times by caution flags and there were two lead changes among three drivers.
