WHEATLAND, Mo. — Jim Chisholm outdueled Terry Phillips in a United States Modified Touring Series classic Friday night on Night One of the 15th annual Slick Mist Show-Me Shootout Presented by Foley Equipment at Lucas Oil Speedway.
Chisholm led six of the final eight laps, but swapped the lead with Phillips three times over the final stretch of the 40-lapper. The Osage, Iowa, driver regained the lead from Phillips on lap 38 and held on from there to win by a narrow .445 seconds over the veteran from Springfield.
Chisholm earned $5,000 to win on Night One of the USMTS 40-lap feature. A total of 41 Modifieds were in attendance and there were 89 total entries in the four divisions.
Other winners on the program were Justin Wells (Hermitage Lumber POWRi Late Models), William Garner (O’Reilly Auto Parts USRA Stock Cars) and Mitchell Franklin (Clear Creek Golf Cars USRA B-Mods).
Alex Williamson led the first 18 laps and Dan Ebert the next 10 in the night’s headliner, but neither were able to build anything close to a comfortable margin. Then it got downright wild after Phillips went to the front on lap 29, following the event’s third caution.
On the restart, Phillips found grip on the inside of turns one and two to take the lead away from Ebert and then went back to the high side to keep it. Chisholm, who entered the action just behind series points leader Jake Timm, suddenly found speed on the bottom and roared to the front on lap 34 – only to see Phillips go back to the front a lap later.
But the two swapped again the next time around. Over the final several laps, Phillips went to the top and the 21-year-rold Chisholm the bottom. Phillips, 58, found the front again on lap 35 in what turned into an epic battle.
It was Chisholm’s turn to lead again on lap 38 in what would be the final lead change. He held off the veteran from there to capture the win by .445 seconds.
“I’ve got to give hats off to Lucas Oil (Speedway),” Chisholm said. “This place is the best facility in the world, but I always hated coming here because we weren’t very good. Nothing against the race track. But I have to give it to them. This is probably the best race track I’ve been on all year long.
“We could run top to bottom. We ran through the middle a lot. I have to thank Terry. I don’t know if he led some of those laps, but we were running side by side through there. I was a little bit better through one and two and he would get me back in three and four.”
Chisholm said he was able to use the video board overlooking turn three to see he was clear of Phillips on lap 38 and moved up the track to take away Phillips’ preferred line over the closing two circuits.
Phillips said his tires were pretty well shot by that point and part of his spoiler had been knocked askew a little early when he nicked the wall in turn four while battling with Ebert.
“i didn’t help myself there,” Phillips said. “The car was fair. We just need to be a little better.”
Zack Vanderbeek finished third with Timm, who had to go to a backup car and take a series provisional to start 23rd, rallying for fourth. Ebert settled for fifth.
Alex Williamson beat fellow front-row starter Trevor Hughes to the lead at the start and had a one-second lead when action slowed due to a lap-four caution. Ebert advanced to second on the restart with Vanderbeek into third.
Ebert began to pressure the leader on lap 10 with Phillips, who started eighth, closing in on the lead duo. Chisholm joined the fray by lap 15, making it four cars bunched within 1.1 seconds up front.
Ebert dove inside of Williamson to take the lead coming off turn four on lap 19 with Phillips getting around Williamson one lap later. The leaders weaving in and out of lapped traffic, Phillips pressed Ebert on lap 24 and the two traded the lead on lap 26 with Ebert officially leading the lap after Phillips nearly hit the wall in turn four – but made a nifty save.
The race had four leaders and eight lead changes, including five in the final eight laps.
Feature Finish (40 Laps)
1. 24C-Jim Chisholm[7]; 2. 75-Terry Phillips[8]; 3. 33Z-Zack VanderBeek[4]; 4. 49-Jake Timm[23]; 5. 60-Dan Ebert[3]; 6. 20-Rodney Sanders[11]; 7. 712-Trevor Hughes[1]; 8. 15W-Alex Williamson[2]; 9. 8-Kyle Strickler[14]; 10. 10C-Cayden Carter[9]; 11. 65-Tyler Davis[12]; 12. 01-Jacob Hobscheidt[19]; 13. 58X-Gary Christian[18]; 14. 21K-Kyle Brown[13]; 15. 19K-Kyle Slader[20]; 16. 19SB-Lance Mari[17]; 17. 12-Jason Hughes[16]; 18. 02-Tanner Mullens[24]; 19. 55H-AJ Hoff[6]; 20. 7G-Gabe Hodges[25]; 21. 15WX-Wyatt Gaggero[5]; 22. 38C-Jason Pursley[26]; 23. 4W-Tyler Wolff[10]; 24. 10-Dayton Pursley[15]; 25. 0-Jake O’Neil[22]; 26. 08-Dakota Sproul[21]