LUCAMA, NC :: Lee Pulliam swept twin Late Model features at Southern National Motorsports Park on Saturday night but the sweep did him no good in his pursuit of his third consecutive NASCAR Whelen All-American Series (NWAAS) National Championship.
Maxed out on points, Pulliam is now in a position where he has to start 10th (or worse) in each race he competes in to collect bonus points in his pursuit of the current NWAAS points leader Anthony Anders. Anders has been starting in 10th in each of his most recent victories at Greenville-Pickens Speedway. Southern National’s rules dictate that Pulliam would have to start at the rear of the field, if he elected to relinquish his pole – a stark contrast to Greenville, which has allowed Anders to elect to drop to 10th.
Pulliam qualified on the pole and led wire-to-wire in the first of the two races, holding off Myatt Snider and former NASCAR K&N Pro Series East teammate David Garbo. An eight car invert in the second race was just shy of what Pulliam would have needed to collect bonus points in the second race. That invert put NASCAR K&N Pro Series East standout Kaz Grala on the pole. On the third lap of the race, Southern National points leader Tommy Lemons, Jr. roared past and held on until Pulliam worked his way up from the eighth starting spot to take the lead. Pulliam held off challenges from Lemons and Mike Darne to score his 21st win of the 2014 season.
Despite winning the race, there was still a sour taste in Pulliam’s mouth over the shenanigans at Greenville-Pickens Speedway.
“It’s sad,” Pulliam told Southern National Motorsports Park race announcer Ken Childs after the race. “What’s going on at Greenville, hopefully NASCAR will change the system next year.”
Pulliam continued, saying that it was disappointing Anders could choose to start 10th at Greenville while he has to start at the rear of the field in races he competes at. Pulliam did start 10th (or worse) at Caraway Speedway on Friday night but, once again, gained no ground on Anders as Dillon Bassett held him off in both races to sweep Friday’s races.
Mike Darne, who finished second in the second race, was the only driver on the podium who was happy with his finish. For the second consecutive week, Darne came just one spot shy of snapping a winless streak that dates back to August 2012 when he scored his final victory at the now-defunct Old Dominion Speedway.
Tommy Lemons, Jr., who finished in third, added to his points lead in Southern National’s track standings when Myatt Snider was forced to retire from the second race with overheating problems. When asked about the points situation, Lemons stated that he was there to win races, not race for points.
Lemons said he didn’t care about the points and said it was disheartening to run as strong as he did last weekend only to come up with a third and sixth place finish this week. He concluded his interview by saying, “third place sucks”.
Southern National Motorsports Park will be back in action on Saturday, August 30th with twin 50-lap races for their Late Model Stock Car division.
Race Results
1. 5 – Lee Pulliam
2. 2 – Myatt Snider
3. 8 – David Garbo Jr.
4. 23b- Payton Ryan
5. 14 – Mike Darne
6. 27 – Tommy Lemons Jr.
7. 38 – Ricky Jones III
8. 31 – Kaz Grala
9. 41 – Rusty Skewes
10. 12 – Ryan Wilson
11. 23 – JOnathan Findley
12. 54 – Michael Fose
13. 20 – Jonathan Cash
14. 74 – Ronald Hill
15. 42 – Craig Stallard
16. 29 – Melvin Langley
17. 27b- Tommy Lemons Sr.
18. 5b – Matt Taylor
Late Model Stocks – 50 laps (Race 2)
1. 5 – Lee Pulliam
2. 14 – Mike Darne
3. 27 – Tommy Lemons Jr.
4. 20 – Jonathan Cash
5. 38 – Ricky Jones III
6. 31 – Kaz Grala
7. 12 – Ryan Wilson
8. 54 – Michael Fose
9. 74 – Ronald Hill
10. 41 – Rusty Skewes
11. 8 – David Garbo Jr.
12. 42 – Craig Stallard
13. 29 – Melvin Langley
14. 2 – Myatt Snider
15. 23b- Payton Ryan
16. 23 – Jonathan Findley
17. 27b- Tommy Lemons Sr.
18. 5b – Matt Taylor
