ROSSBURG, Ohio — The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series took to the track on Friday night at Eldora Speedway for the preliminary night portion of the 44th Annual General Tire Dirt Track World Championship presented by ARP.
Sixty-one entries were divided into six heat races.
Tim McCreadie, who set the Allstar Performance overall fastest lap in time trials, bolted to the lead at the start of Penske Shocks heat number one, leading all ten circuits to earn the Victory Fuel Pole Award for Saturday night’s $100,000 to win finale.
Daulton Wilson came from the fourth spot to finish in second place, with Max Blair grabbing the third and final transfer spot.
Ricky Thornton Jr., the current series points leader, dominated all ten laps, leading wire-to-wire in winning Summit Racing Equipment heat number two. Thornton was never challenged for the race lead as he led Carson Ferguson and James Rice to the finish line to advance to the Dirt Track World Championship.
In Earnhardt Technologies heat three, Jonathan Davenport split the middle of two other drivers on a restart and pulled away for the win. Trailing Davenport to the line and qualifying for the Dirt Track World Championship were Josh Rice and Hudson O’Neal.
In a pivotal Simpson Race Products heat four where the winner would start on the outside front row of the Dirt Track World Championship, Mason Zeigler, a former Lucas Oil Rookie of the Year barely edged Dale McDowell in a photo finish. McDowell and World 100 winner Bobby Pierce completed the top three to punch their ticket into the finale.
The fifth heat race saw Jordan Koehler race his way into his first Dirt Track World Championship, leading all 10 laps as the 22-year-old North Carolina racer crossed the line ahead of the 2024 O’Reilly Auto Parts Rookie of the Year Drake Troutman, who will start his first career Dirt Track World Championship on Saturday as well. Ryan Gustin finished third.
Mike Marlar, coming off a Jackson 100 win at Brownstown Speedway last weekend, cruised to victory in the sixth and final heat race of the night. Brian Shirley, the runner-up in the Knoxville Late Model Nationals, came home in second, followed by Devin Moran, who was third.
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