ARCA RE/MAX Southern Illinois 100
DuQUOIN

Challenges on the DuQuoin dirt throw a curve at Team ESR;
Lofton finishes sixth

Sharp and Lofton: Rough day at DuQuoin

Initially, Lofton, fresh off of a win on Friday at Toledo, set the pace during the one and only practice session. With a fast car and momentum following the win, Lofton was looking to extend his point lead during the Labor Day event. Trouble under his qualifying lap however, forced the No. 6 crew to roll out the backup car, dropping Lofton to 34th for the start of the 100-mile event.

In the No. 2 Ruby Tuesday Toyota, George Jr. led the way in qualifying in the 11th position. Goess's No. 81 Greenville Toyota of N.C. Toyota followed in 12th.

At the drop of the green, Lofton began to work his way through traffic, picking up 12 spots by lap four. Unfortunately, that same lap saw a five-car wreck break out off of turn 2 after Tom Hessert spun. Goess and Lofton were among those caught up in the melee.

Goess at DuQuoin

Goess's machine suffered the most damage and after a quick look-over by crew chief Patrick Donahue, the team deemed the day done. He ended the event 34th.

Lofton continued on and by lap 35, showcased his team's strength by staking claim on the 10th position.

15 laps later and at halfway, ARCA mandated all of the teams to pitroad. Following the cycle of pitstops for the restart, Lofton was ninth as George Jr.'s Ruby Tuesday entry ran 15th.

On lap 74, Lofton brought out the caution flag in a solo spin off of turn 4. He skillfully maneuvered his machine through a slide, continued on, avoiding the wall and oncoming traffic, and maintained his position in sixth.

Yet another caution flag flew in the closing laps, setting the field up for a 10-lap dash at the restart. George Jr. had slipped to 12th and was gunning to reclaim his place within the top 10, but with six laps remaining, he and Eddie Pearson got together, ending his charge.

Hard hit: "I pulled some aggressive passes off, and then wasn't so lucky when the 17 (Pearson) and I got together. He admitted that his spotter didn't let him know I was there. It was tough racing. I hit a ton and am going to get checked out when I get back to Charlotte" -Tim George, Jr.

The race resumed with one green flag lap of racing remaining as leader Parker Kligerman led the field to the green and white flags simultaneously. Kligerman went on to take the win and Lofton drove home in sixth to score his 15th top 10 finish of the season. He maintains the point lead by 35 points over Kligerman.

"It was a rough day. The car was destroyed in qualifying. We pulled out the backup car. The entire crew did an awesome job changing it over before the race without much time. We had a solid run after all of that. We had a sixth place car and we finished sixth with it," Lofton said.

After his disheartening finish, George Jr. was scored in 23rd.

"With less than 10 laps to go, I wanted to advance a bit further in the field. I pulled some aggressive passes off, and then wasn't so lucky when the 17 (Pearson) and I got together. He admitted that his spotter didn't let him know I was there. It was tough racing. I hit a ton, and am going to get checked out when I get back to Charlotte," he said.

Team ESR will have six days off before returning to competition on Sunday, September 13th on the road course at New Jersey Motorsports Park.

DRIVER REPORT

Lofton, ESR team show championship form by making best of challenging day

DUQUOIN, Illinois (September 7, 2009)-- Justin Lofton entered the Southern Illinois 100 at the DuQuoin State Fairgrounds just three days removed from his win at Toledo Speedway. Lofton and the No. 6 Eddie Sharp Racing team entered DuQuoin after winning four of the last five races and rightfully holding the lead in the point standings. The mile dirt track however challenged the team but in the end, proved Lofton to be worthy of his current position atop the points after the 23-year-old notched a hard fought sixth place finish.

"It was definitely tough out there. My team worked so hard today and we fought for every position, that's for sure," Lofton said of the effort.

After the first practice session, Lofton led the way atop the speed chart in the No. 6 Lofton Cattle Toyota. Qualifying however threw a curve at the team after Lofton spun his ride on the backstretch. The team got to work on the backup car and started the race from the 34th position.

Lofton buckled down and maneuvered his way through the field and by lap 35, impressively broke into the top 10.

After the mandatory round of pitstops as the race hit the halfway mark on lap 50, Lofton had moved into ninth.

As the laps clicked down, he continued his climb and it wasn't long before he was in contention, running in the sixth position.

Just when it appeared that the No. 6 crew had overcome all of the day's obstacles, one more was thrown at them on lap 74. The caution flag dropped after Lofton's Toyota spun off of turn 4. He skillfully maneuvered his machine, avoided the wall and oncoming traffic, and drove off, maintaining his position in sixth.

Two more caution flags slowed the race in the closing laps as Lofton held on to finish sixth, notching his 15th top 10 after 17 events.

"It was a rough day. The car was destroyed in qualifying. We pulled out the backup car. The entire crew did an awesome job changing it over before the race without much time. We had a solid run after all of that. We had a sixth place car and we finished sixth with it," Lofton said.

He continues to lead the point standings by 35 markers over Parker Kligerman.

Abandoning the unpredictable dirt, Lofton will next take to the road course New Jersey Motorsports Park on Sunday, September 13th.

DRIVER REPORT

Late run-in steals top 10 from George Jr. at DuQuoin

DUQUOIN, Illinois (September 7, 2009)-- All signs pointed to a solid finish for Tim George Jr. and the No. 2 Ruby Tuesday Toyota team on the one-mile dirt track at DuQuoin State Fairgrounds on Monday. Following a quick turnaround from Friday's run at Toledo, George Jr. laid down a solid qualifying effort and an impressive drive in the Southern Illinois 100. George Jr. was within the top 10 for the majority of the race but a run-in just six laps from the finish left the team with a 23rd place showing.

The trip to DuQuoin marked only the second dirt track appearance for George Jr. since transitioning from road racing to the ARCA RE/MAX Series. He showed well on Sunday, proving that he's a quick study. He finessed his way around the slick one-mile track with skill as track conditions were unpredictable, after heavy rain soaked the track and compacted the racing surface into a slick, gripless challenge.

Following qualifying, George Jr. showed the way for all of Eddie Sharp Racing, qualifying 11th in front of teammates Craig Goess, and Justin Lofton, who currently leads the point standings. He also impressively outran NASCAR star and dirt expert Ken Schrader.

"I was really happy with the qualifying effort. We were not as strong in qualifying at Springfield, so I was glad to put a good lap down for the guys. Everyone worked really hard, and it was a quick turnaround from the short track race on Friday to the dirt race on Labor Day," George Jr. said.

Though George Jr. started ahead of Schrader, it didn't stop the veteran from pouncing quickly for position. However, an overzealous drive from Schrader got the best of him at the start and left George Jr. the victim as his No. 2 Toyota was sent spinning in turn 2.

"The race started with a surprise. Veteran Schrader got into my left rear and spun me around on the first lap. The whole field drove by me. I was able to regain all of the positions I lost, and moved into the top 10," George Jr. explained.

George Jr. maneuvered his No. 2 Ruby Tuesday Toyota through the field to make up the lost track position through the first half of the race. Following the mandatory pitstop at the halfway mark on lap 50, he was knocking on the door of the top 10 yet again, running 12th.

It didn't take long from that point forward for George Jr. to continue his climb. By lap 68, he was back within the top 10 and gunning for more. In the closing laps, George Jr. turned up the wick, battling the competition for every inch on the slick track.

With just six laps remaining, circumstance won out, with George Jr. falling victim to tight racing while battling with Eddie Pearson.

"With less than 10 laps to go, I wanted to advance a bit further in the field. I pulled some aggressive passes off, and then wasn't so lucky when the 17 (Pearson) and I got together. He admitted that his spotter didn't let him know I was there. It was tough racing. I was aggressive on the brakes and he didn't leave me room," George Jr. said. "I hit a ton, and am going to get checked out when I get back to Charlotte."

The next event on Sunday, September 13th is a welcome one for the graduate of the Grand Am Series as ARCA hits the road course at New Jersey Motorsports Park.

TOLEDO QUALIFYING
DuQuoin's Magic Mile Messy; Schedule Adjusted

DUQUOIN, Illinois (September 7, 2009)--Eddie Sharp Racing's rookies Tim George, Jr. and Craig Goess, Jr. will start from beside each other on the sixth row for today's ARCA RE/MAX Southern Illinois 100 at the DuQuoin State Fairgrounds

Point leader Justin Lofton and second-place point contender Parker Kligerman will each start the race utilizing provisional positions after separate qualifying incidents. Kligerman scraped the outside wall, causing damage to his No. 77 car, and Lofton spun his No. 6 Lofton Cattle Toyota on the backstretch and will race in a backup car.

The Southern Illinois 100 rolls off at 1:30 p.m. Central/2:30 p.m. Eastern. Check arcaracing.com for Live Timing and Scoring.

Messy...

On and off rain showers Friday, Saturday and Sunday - at times torrential downpours - across southern Illinois have made things challenging right out of the gate for ARCA RE/MAX Series teams for today's 57th running of the Southern Illinois 100 here at the DuQuoin State Fairgrounds "Magic Mile".

Every bit as messy as it is magic today, teams had to unload outside the track, move/push their pit equipment and racecars inside the historic mile dirt track where they will set up shop on pit road, which will double as their garage and pit stall.

Track workers have been working on the track all night (and still are) in an effort to get it race-ready for on-track activity. Subsequently, series officials have moved everything back (schedule-wise) a half-hour, which puts practice from 9:30 - 10:30 AM local central time followed by Menards Pole Qualifying at 11:30. The Southern Illinois 100 is scheduled to go at 1:30 PM central. All on-track activity will be featured live in streaming audio at ARCAracing.com via the ARCA Racing Network.