KENT, Wash.
(August 24, 2003) Jeff Jefferson of Naches, Wash. christened
Pacific Raceways and scored his first ever road course victory,
as the 2003 NASCAR Elite Division, Raybestos Brakes Northwest
Series chartered new territory Sunday afternoon. Jefferson
dominated the day by collecting his fourth Bud Pole Award of the
season and then led 38 of 63 laps on the 2.25 mile road course
to score his second win of the season in the Northwest Chevy
Dealers "150" presented by Comcast. Two-time defending series
champion Kevin Hamlin of Snohomish, Wash. finished second, with
1999 series champion Pete Harding of Surrey, B.C. claiming the
third position. Victory Circle Chassis' Rookie-of-the-Year
contenders Jeff Bailey, and Rod Schultz Jr. rounded out the top
five finishers.
Jeff Jefferson led 29 qualifiers to green but it was Featherlite
Southwest Series regular Todd Souza from Aromas, Calif. who took
the advantage into turn one on the start. Souza led the first
lap before losing a transmission on lap two. Souza who was fast
all weekend and offered up advice and hints on how to drive the
course finished a disappointing 29th.
Jefferson took the lead back on lap two and held the point
through lap 18. Gary Lewis of Bothell, Wash., sporting the
Hooters colors this weekend, then set the pace after passing
Jefferson in the esses. Lewis controlled the middle section of
the race through the halftime break on lap 32. The ten minute
halftime break allowed teams to change tires and fuel at
controlled pace, allowing all cars to restart the second half
with the same track position with no advantage.
Lewis led until lap 36 when a hard-charging Stan Silva Jr., from
Castroville, Calif. got by Lewis on lap 37. Silva controlled the
point until Jefferson took command of the event with a perfectly
executed pass on the downhill section in turn three. Jefferson
would control the point in his AuBeta Networks.Com Chevrolet the
rest of the way and pull away to an eleven second victory over
Hamlin.
Series point leader Chris Hart of Yakima, Wash. continued to
have good luck shine on him as he started the event from the
rear of the field, as he had to pit during the parade lap to
replace hood pins. Hart would finish in the seventh position
after running as high as fourth. Hart maintains an 88 point
advantage over Jefferson who moved into second place in the
overall standings after the win.
Rookies Jeff Bailey of Kennewick, Wash. and Rod Schultz Jr. of
Woodland, Wash. both had solid runs with Schultz collecting his
first career top five finish. The finish also gave Schultz the
Powerade Power Move-of-the-Race for improving the most positions
in the event after starting in the 22nd position.
The race took two hours, three minutes, and 7 seconds to
complete at an average speed of 68.899 mph. There were five
cautions for 16 laps and four lead changes among four drivers.
Jeff Jefferson won the $325 bonus for the Bud Pole Award with a
time of 1 minute, 23.549 seconds/96.949 mph. Rod Schultz Jr.
collected his second Powerade Power Move-of-the-Race Award and
the $750 bonus. Jeff Bailey was the Victory Circle
Rookie-of-the-Race with his second top five finish of the season
and inched closer to Jason Jefferson in the rookie standings.
The next event for the Raybestos Brakes Northwest Series is
Sunday, September 1 at Tri-City Raceway in West Richland, Wash.
for race number twelve of the 14-race championship series. For
all the latest news and information about the Raybestos Brakes
Northwest Series, log onto www.nascartouring.com/raybestosnwseries
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