Eldora Speedway
O'Neal achieves Dream, grabs first crown jewel
By Joshua Joiner
DirtonDirt.com staff writer
Don O'Neal celebrates his $100,000 victory. (thesportswire.net)
ROSSBURG, Ohio (June 11) – After falling short of victory in nearly every way imaginable in some of Dirt Late Model racing’s biggest races, Don O’Neal finally earned his first crown jewel victory Saturday night at Eldora Speedway.
The 12th-starting O’Neal, 46, of Martinsville, Ind., moved by race-long leader Billy Moyer on lap 87 of the Dream XVII feature at the historic half-mile racetrack and led the remainder of the 100-lap event to claim his first trophy from one of the sport’s traditional crown jewel races. | Complete Dream XVII coverage
The satisfying triumph earned O’Neal and his MasterSbilt Race Cars house car team a $100,000 payday and helped to erase O’Neal’s frustration after losing crown jewel races throughout his career from everything to flat tires to last-lap defeats.
“What a long time coming. I drove the wheels off this thing for 100 laps and finally we got it done,” said O’Neal, whose best previous Dream finish was a third in 2002. “Whenever people would ask me what’s the biggest thing I’ve accomplished, I’d say I haven’t accomplished it yet. Winning one of these (races at Eldora) was the biggest accomplishment for me.”
Moyer, who last year swept both the Dream and Eldora’s other major event, the World 100, brought home the runner-up finish while polesitter Darrell Lanigan of Union, Ky., finished third after battling carburetor issues in the race’s final 40 laps. First-time Dream starter Will Vaught of Crane, Mo., finished fourth with Eddie Carrier Jr. of Salt Rock, W.Va., rounding out the top five finishers.
The second-starting Moyer led the first 86 laps of the race as he attempted to become the first driver to win three consecutive major events at Eldora. Lanigan pressured Moyer throughout most of his time at point, pulling alongside the veteran driver a number of times in traffic.
While Moyer and Lanigan battled for the top spot, O’Neal began his march forward. He moved by Shannon Babb of Moweaqua, Ill., for fifth on lap 32 and by the time the race’s only caution appeared on lap 45, he had moved by Eddie Carrier Jr. of Salt Rock, W.Va., for the fourth position.
Not long after passing Carrier, O’Neal began running a different line in turns one and two than the extreme high line the majority of the field, including O’Neal, had ran all race. While everyone else stayed glued to the cushion all the way around the racetrack, O’Neal began driving low into turn one and letting his race car slide up the track though turn two.
The creative line change allowed O’Neal to make up considerable ground and helped him make it to the front.
“I done something, I don’t know exactly when it was, probably around halfway through the race when I found it and that’s what really paid off for me,” O’Neal said of his adjustment. “It was a line that nobody else had found yet and I could make up a lot of distance getting off into one.”
While Lanigan continued to chase Moyer for the lead, O’Neal began to battle with Will Vaught of Crane Mo., for third. After the two swapped the position a number of times, O’Neal finally took control of the spot and also moved by the fading Lanigan by lap 79.
It was around the time he made it to second that O’Neal began to think he had a good shot at winning the race.
“I started off and held my own,” O’Neal said. “Really there for probably 20 or 30 laps I didn’t know if I had the car (capable of winning) or not. But I started picking the pace up 40, 50 laps in and I kept thinking we might have a shot here. I was just getting one car at a time every few laps and then I finally got in the top five, then third, then second and I thought I’m gonna win this race.”
Once he moved to second, it only took O’Neal a handful of laps to catch Moyer. And by lap 85 he was using his low entrance to turn one to get under the leader. Moyer denied O’Neal’s first shot at taking the lead, but O’Neal again tried the same move on the next lap, this time nosing out front before Moyer again pulled ahead.
The third time was the charm for O’Neal as he again drove under Moyer entering turn one. The two drivers made contact and O’Neal pulled ahead while Moyer chased his car up the banking and nearly hit the wall.
After the race, Moyer wasn’t pleased with O’Neal’s race-winning pass, saying O’Neal twice made contact.
"Yeah, I'm upset, I know (O’Neal) did (make contact),” Moyer said. “Not once but twice. I've raced against him my whole life, and when he gets beside you, be ready."
O’Neal, on the other hand, thought the move was fair.
“We were down in crunch time and he’s won these things several times and I haven’t,” O’Neal said. “He probably should understand. ... It was hard, close racing.”
Even with clear track ahead of him, the final 10 laps of the race didn't go easily for O’Neal. He almost saw another potential crown jewel victory slip through his hands when he jumped over the cushion in turn two and made slight contact with the wall. But the focused O’Neal didn’t let the slip bother him.
“I got up on top of the fluff down there and I could not get off of it and I about had to stop,” O’Neal said. “I just had to gather my senses back up and hit my next mark down there in turn three.”
A resurgent Moyer chased down O’Neal in the closing laps, pulling within a few car lengths by the final circuit. But one last attempt to retake the lead in the final turn fell short and O’Neal raced to the victory.
"I came back to him there,” Moyer said. “When you're leading it seems like it takes forever to get over, and then when you get to hustling, it seems like it was over. I saw the white flag and I couldn't believe it. One more lap and it would've been interesting."
Jimmy Owens of Newport, Tenn., was the cause of the race’s only caution when he spun exiting turn four. Owens, who was the event’s second fastest qualifier during Friday night’s time trials, had advanced from 20th to ninth before the spin.
Jared Landers of Batesville, Ark., set a new track record in time trials. His time of 14.922 seconds topped York Pa. driver Rick Eckert’s lap of 15.215 set at the 2004 Dream. Landers started 19th and was never a factor in the feature. He finished 17th.
Both Landers and Owens had to use fast-time provisionals to make the race after a six-car heat race inversion led to both drivers finishing outside the transfer positions.
Dream XVII results
Pos., driver (car no.), hometown, chassis, earnings
1. Don O'Neal (71), Martinsville, Ind., MasterSbilt $100,000
2. Billy Moyer (21), Batesville, Ark., Victory Circle, $20,000
3. Darrell Lanigan (29), Union, Ky., Rocket, $10,000
4. Will Vaught (1), Crane, Mo., Warrior, $6,000
5. Eddie Carrier Jr. (28), Salt Rock, W.Va., Rocket $5,000
6. Jeep Van Wormer (55), Pinconning, Mich., Rocket, $4,000
7. Chris Madden (44), Gray Court, S.C., Bloomquist, $3,500
8. Bart Hartman (25), Zanesville, Ohio, Rocket, $3,000
9. Josh Richards (1), Shinnston, W.Va., Rocket $2,500
10. Steve Shaver (6), Vienna, W.Va., Rocket, $2,200
11. Shannon Babb (18), Moweaqua, Ill., Victory Circle, $2,000
12. Scott Bloomquist (0), Mooresburg, Tenn., Bloomquist, $1,900
13. Kent Robinson, Bloomington, Ind., MasterSbilt, $1,800
14. Matt Miller (7), Waterville, Ohio, MasterSbilt, $1,750
15. Brian Shirley (3s), Chatham, Ill., Rocket, $1,725
16. Jonathan Davenport (49), Blairsville, Ga., Barry Wright, $1,700
17. Jared Landers (777), Batesville, Ark., Rocket, $1,675
18. Jimmy Owens (20), Mooresburg, Tenn., Bloomquist, $1,650
19. Dale McDowell (17m), Chickamauga, Ga., Rocket, $1,625
20. Clint Smith (44), Senoia, Ga., Rocket, $1,600
21. Chris Brown (21), Spring, Texas, Bloomquist, $1,575
22. Bub McCool (57j), Vicksburg, Miss., Victory Circle, $1,550
23. Jacob Hawkins (20H), Fairmont, W.Va., Rocket, $1,525
24. Doug Drown (12D), Wooster, Ohio, Lazer, $1,500
25. Frank Heckenast Jr (99jr), Frankfort, Ill., $1,500
Scratched: Dustin Neat (25), Dunnville, Ky., Longhorn
Fast qualifier (among 91 cars): Landers, 14.922 seconds
Heat race winners: Van Wormer, Hartman, Carrier, Vaught, Moyer, Lanigan
C-main winner: Dennis Erb Jr.
B-main winner: Smith
Provisional starters: Landers, Owens
