Compiled by: Langley Austin ~ [email protected]

Copper Hill, VA(July 19, 2012) — As the summer has been heating up, so too has the racing around the Late Model Stock Car region in North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia and Tennessee.

With that some drivers have been heating up and some have fallen off a bit in the heat.  We’ve got another three week edition of the FDJ Motorsports Power Rankings and we’ve got plenty of moving and shaking in the order.  With that lets just get to it …

Honorable Mentions ….

Michael Hardin
He might not be one of the big guns right now, but the way he’s been running at Southern National Motorsports Park, it’s only a matter of time before he becomes one of the drivers to beat. He might well have had a car to potentially beat Lee Pulliam in his July 7th visit to the Hardin’s new home track and has proven he can run with anyone there, though he has still yet to go to victory lane.

Clay Thomas
Yeah, I know most of you are thinking … “Who?” Clay Thomas is a veteran Late Model racer in the Pee Dee region of South Carolina and with a win earlier this season at Florence Motor Speedway he didn’t make any noise, but his recent trip to Myrtle Beach Speedway proved he can win anywhere. He pulled off a win in the most recent race at Myrtle Beach and made everyone at least hear or read his name.

10 – Sam Yarborough
Myrtle Beach Speedway’s first four races were all, but owned by Justin Milliken, but as he’s fallen off on the .538 mile track, Sam Yarborough has been picking up the slack. Yarborough who came out of retirement so to speak this season to race for part time NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver, Chad McCumbee and he’s won two of the last four races.

9 – Averitt Lucas
Florence Motor Speedway might not get the respect of the average Late Model Stock Car enthusiast and admittedly their Late Models aren’t like a NASCAR Late Model Stock Car, but it’s the same chassis and generally the same rules. And, Averitt Lucas for the past two seasons has owned the division on that track and has won seven races already this season, which earns him some respect.

8 – Kenny Brooks
On Saturday, Kenny Brooks picked up win number 10 on the season. Obviously, he’s had a great season at Concord Speedway and though the season will be winding down earlier than originally anticipated, he’s still been one of the most dominant drivers of the season in Late Model Stock Car racing.

7 – Lance Gatlin
Lance Gatlin might not be competing at Motor Mile or South Boston or any of the tracks that most fans watch all the time, but the veteran driver is having the season of his life. There’s been eight races this season and his name has been on the results for every one of them. With eight wins in his pocket and recently a strong 16-car field he defeated in twins, he’s proven he has earned his spot on this list.

6 – Keith Bumgarner
Early in the 2012 season it appeared as if Austin McDaniel and Jesse LeFevers would own the season at Hickory Motor Speedway and while points wise one of them does own it, Keith Bumgarner is making fans acknowledge his presence. He’s won four of the last six races and five total on the season and he’s become the driver to beat at Hickory.

5 – Deac McCaskill
Deac McCaskill has been one of the winningest drivers of the season in Late Model Stock Car racing, but in recent weeks has fallen to two of the divisions top drivers. Lee Pulliam first defeated him for a $1,000 bounty on July 7th and then this past weekend he was defeated not once, but twice by CE Falk III. He’s on his longest losing streak of the season, but he’s still one of the most powerful drivers in the Late Model Stock Car division.

4 – Tommy Lemons, Jr.
It’s been a while since Tommy Lemons, Jr. has been a player in the Late Model Stock Car division, but he’s back as one of the drivers in contention to win and he’s even been able to go toe to toe with Lee Pulliam, which few drivers have. Lemons has many second place finishes and a win at Motor Mile Speedway and he’s just heating up.

3 – Nate Monteith
Nate Monteith might not be winning at Motor Mile Speedway, well he shouldn’t be since he isn’t racing there, but he’s owned Kingsport Speedway for the last two seasons and this season he’s fended off nearly all challengers. He’s won seven races and has five more chances to get to victory lane this season. He also made a recent trip to Southern National Motorsports Park and looked to be one of the fastest cars on the track, racing in the top five before breaking an axle.

2 – CE Falk III
CE Falk has been one of the top three drivers in Late Model Stock Car racing for the last three or four seasons and he’s been a mainstay in the FDJ Motorsports Power Rankings, probably more than any other driver and this season is no different. Just when it looked like outside of his home track of Langley Speedway that he was beginning to slump, but all of sudden he dominated two races at Southern National Motorsports Park. Looks like, he might have lost the NASCAR National Points lead(that he held for one week), but he’s not going down without a fight, though he is smartly avoiding going door to door with Lee Pulliam.

1 – Lee Pulliam
Even with a late start to the 2012 season for the suspended driver, Lee Pulliam is making the most of his season with 17 starts and 12 wins already. He’s won at every track that he’s competed at in his career, except for Kingsport Speedway, including Southern National Motorsports Park, South Boston Speedway, Motor Mile Speedway and Caraway Speedway. He’s been the most dominant driver of the past two seasons and in the absence of Philip Morris, there’s almost no one that can beat him.  He however has seemed to have lost his advantage at Motor Mile as demonstrated by Tommy Lemons, Jr.’s most recent win and he still hasn’t found a way to beat Nate Monteith at Kingsport, but he’s still the hottest driver in Late Model Stock Car racing.