LOCUST GROVE, Ark. (Aug. 15) — It’s been 12 years since Shannon Babb of Moweaqua, Ill., captured his first career Comp Cams Topless 100 triumph. But the 2003 race winner returned to Batesville Motor Speedway’s victory lane Saturday night, overtaking Chris Brown of Spring, Texas, for a $40,000 payday in the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series-sanctioned crown jewel event.
Advancing from the 13th starting position, Babb worked his way through the field, joining the races frontrunners by the halfway point. Using lapped traffic to his advantage, Babb charged past Brown on lap 85, leading the remaining circuits for his 11th career Lucas Oil Series victory and second career Topless 100 triumph.
“It’s been a long time since we’ve run that good here,” Babb said. “The car was excellent. We had a lot of obstacles on the racetrack and it seemed to go through there real good. Any time you can run with those guys, and on the restarts you could stay with them, you know you’re going to be there at the end. When we got down to lap 60 and the car was still good, and getting better, I was smiling. I didn’t know if I could do anything with (Chris) Brown without traffic, but when we got to traffic, I just kept playing it cool and was able to get around him.”
Babb battled closely with Scott Bloomquist of Mooresburg, Tenn., through the race’s midway point, with the four-time race winner slowing on the frontstretch to draw a caution on lap 68.
“I had him (Bloomquist) guessing which way to go, choose the bottom or the top,” Babb said of the race’s restarts. “I was good on the bottom or the top, so when he did take the bottom, the outside is always good for me and I loved it. We was just happy to get in to second and be able to get our momentum rolling and keep the car squared up and going.”
As the leaders approached lapped traffic in the final circuits, Babb was able to work his way around the race leader.
“His car was real good,” Babb said of Brown. “He was running the preferred line going in high and coming down across there. I was trying all sorts of lines to see what my car would do. You’d gain a little bit and then lose a little bit, so I knew it was going to take traffic to get by him. And then once I got the lead, and you’re leading it, they can set you back up on them cars, and I had a little trouble behind a couple cars, but we was able to get around them.”
Charging from the ninth starting spot, Mike Marlar of Winfield, Tenn., finished runner-up, with Dale McDowell of Chickamauga, Ga., rounding out the podium in third. Brown, who led the first 84 laps, slipped to finish fourth, with Brandon Sheppard of New Berlin, Ill., grabbing the fifth-place spot.
“We hard a good car there, started back about ninth and just kind of bided my time and took it easy early in the race to make sure I didn’t hurt my tires,” Marlar said. “Come time to race, I definitely had a car to race with.
“It was a good race. Shannon (Babb) and I and Chris (Brown) were having a heck of a race there. It was going to take a little bit of traffic for Shannon to get caught up for me to even get by him. But congratulations to him. I really think a lot of Shannon and like to see him run good. Like to beat him, but congratulations when he wins.”
McDowell, the winner of the 2004 Topless 100, was pleased with another top-five crown jewel run.
“It was really racy,” McDowell said. “Our car was struggling a little bit with forward bite right there in the mid and then traffic it got kind of interesting. We’ve got a little bit of work to do, but anytime you can run in the top-three, top-five with these guys, it’s a good day for us. We’re going to keep plugging along.”
23rd annual Comp Cams Topless 100
Driver (car no.), hometown, chassis
1. Shannon Babb (18), Moweaqua, Ill., Black Diamond, $40,000
2. Mike Marlar (157), Winfield, Tenn., Capital, $20,000
3. Dale McDowell (17m), Chickamauga, Ga., Warrior, $10,000
4. Chris Brown (21B), Spring, Texas, Club 29, $6,000
5. Brandon Sheppard (B5), New Berlin, Ill., Rocket, $5,000
6. Earl Pearson Jr. (1), Jacksonville, Fla., Black Diamond, $4,500
7. Wendell Wallace (6m), Batesville, Ark., Black Diamond, $4,000
8. Steve Francis (15), Ashland, Ky., Barry Wright, $3,500
9. Dennis Erb Jr. (28e), Carpentersville, Ill., Club 29, $3,000
10. Don O’Neal (5), Martinsville, Ind., Barry Wright, $2,800
11. Garrett Alberson (F5), Las Cruces, N.M., Black Diamond, $2,600
12. Jonathan Davenport (6), Blairsville, Ga., Longhorn, $2,500
13. Tyler Erb (91), Magnolia, Texas, Rocket, $2,450
14. Eddie Carrier Jr. (28), Salt Rock, W.Va., Rocket, $2,400
15. B.J. Robinson (1R), Shreveport, La., Black Diamond, $2,350
16. Jack Sullivan (18x), Greenbriar, Ark., Rocket, $2,300
17. Jimmy Owens (20), Newport, Tenn., Club 29, $2,250
18. Chris Simpson (R5), Oxford, Iowa, Black Diamond, $2,200
19. Scott Bloomquist (0), Mooresburg, Tenn., Sweet-Blomquist, $2,175
20. Hunter Rasdon (R5x), Jonesboro, Ark., Black Diamond, $2,150
21. Kyle Beard (86), Trumann, Ark., Pierce, $2,100
22. Jared Landers (777), Batesville, Ark., Sweet-Bloomquist, $2,075
23. Stacy Taylor (27), Jacksonville, Ark., Black Diamond, $2,050
24. Jesse Stovall (00), Billings, Mo., Black Diamond, $2,000
25. Billy Moyer Jr. (21JR), Batesville, Ark., Longhorn, $2,000
26. Terry Phillips (75), Springfield, Mo., Rocket, $2,000
Blog-style reports:
Main event notes
10:45 pm. (lap 100): Babb wins the 23rd annual Comp Cams Topless 100.
10:41 p.m. (lap 85): Babb takes the lead over Marlar and Brown.
10:40 p.m. (lap 80): Babb is closing in on Brown. Marlar runs third, McDowell, Brandon Sheppard.
10:34 p.m. (lap 68): Third-running Bloomquist slows on the frontstretch to draw a caution. Brown leads Babb, Marlar, McDowell and Earl Pearson Jr.
10:30 p.m. (lap 64): A yellow flag waves as Davenport slows in turn two. Owens rejoins the tail of the field.
10:24 p.m. (lap 60): A fading Owens draws a caution as he spins on the frontstretch. Brown continues to lead Bloomquist, Babb, McDowell and Marlar.
10:18 (lap 51): A yellow flag flies as Hunter Rasdon slows down the backstretch. Brown leads Bloomquist, Shannon Babb, Owens and Dale McDowell.
10:15 (lap 43): Fifth-running Landers retires to the hot pit under yellow.
10:11 (lap 43): Jesse Stovall slows on the frontstretch with a flat tire to draw a caution. Brown continues to lead Bloomquist, Owens, Mike Marlar and Landers.
10:06 p.m. (lap 38): A yellow flag waves for Davenport as he heads to the hot pit under caution.
10:03 p.m. (lap 27): The leaders begin working through lapped traffic. Brown leads Owens and Landers. Blommquist is up to fourth.
9:57 p.m. (lap 17): Dennis Erb Jr. draws a caution when he slows in turn three. Brown leads Landers, Jimmy Owens, Jonathan Davenport and Earl Pearson Jr.
9:52 p.m. (lap one): Chris Brown edges polesitter Jared Landers to lead the opening lap.
9:43 p.m.: Drivers are given the call to fire engines.
9:36 p.m.: Feature cars have made their way to the frontstretch and driver introductions are under way.
Pre-feature notes
Dennis Erb Jr. of Carpentersville, Ill., and former Topless 100 winner Steve Francis of Ashland, Ky., will use Lucas Oil Series provisionals to start the $40,000-to-win feature event. … Jack Sullivan of Greenbriar, Ark., and Kyle Beard of Trumann, Ark., were given Comp Cams Super Dirt Late Model series to make the lineup for the 100-lapper. Sullivan tops the Comp Cams points standings. … Four-time Topless 100 winner Billy Moyer of Batesville, Ark., scratched from the first consolation, failing to make the race’s starting lineup for the first time since 2009.
Second consolation
Polesitter David Payne led the first lap, with second-starting Stacy Taylor slipping past on the second circuit. Payne fell off the pace, retiring under green on lap four. Third-running Tyler Erb began reeling in Taylor, nearly taking the lead on lap 13. Taylor fought back Erb’s challenge to win the second consolation, with Erb finishing second to transfer to the feature.
Finish (top two transfer): Stacy Taylor, Tyler Erb, Chandler Petty, Robert Baker, Dennis Erb Jr., Justin Asplin, Allen Tippen, Ryan Gustin, Jamie Elam, Clay Fisher, Austin Rettig, Cole Farmer, Shane Harris, Jack Sullivan, Jeremy Payne. Scratched: Gavin Landers
First consolation
Second-starting Chris Simpson slipped past polesitter Steve Francis to take an early lead, with a yellow flag waving on the fifth lap when David Payne and Austin Siebert tangled in turn four. Larry Campbell drew a caution on the following lap when he climbed the inside wall down the backstretch. Another yellow waved on the ensuing restart when Campbell tangled with Austin Siebert, hitting the wall in turns three and four. The fourth yellow flew when Charlie LaPlant spun in turn two. Dwight Falcon drew another caution on lap nine when he hit the wall in turns one and two. Robbie Stuart spun in turn four to draw a caution on the ensuing restart. Another yellow waved on the ensuing restart when Francis, Stuart, Ray Moore and Tommy Surrett tangled down the frontstretch. Simpson picked up a win the first consolation, with B.J. Robinson edging Jon Mitchell on the final restart to grab the second and final transfer spot.
Finish (top two transfer): Chris Simpson, B.J. Robinson, Jon Mitchell, Robbie Stuart, Payton Looney, Travis Ashley, Steve Francis, Dwight Falcon, Ray Moore, Tommy Surrett, Brad Looney, Austin Siebert, Brandon Smith, Charlie LaPlant, Larry Campbell, David Payne. Scratched: Billy Moyer
Consolation lineups
(15 laps; top two transfer)
First consolation
Row 1: Steve Francis, Chris Simpson
Row 2: David Payne, Jon Mitchell
Row 3: Austin Siebert, Robbie Stuart
Row 4: B.J. Robinson, Billy Moyer
Row 5: Dwight Falcon, Travis Ashley
Row 6: Tony Jackson Jr., Brad Looney
Row 7: Charlie LaPlant, Ray Moore
Row 8: Tommy Surrett, Payton Looney
Row 9: Larry Campbell, Shannon Scott
Row 10: Brandon Smith, Robby Moore
Second consolation
Row 1: Jeremy Payne, Stacy Taylor
Row 2: Tyler Erb, Chandler Petty
Row 3: Allen Tippen, Robert Baker
Row 4: Kyle Beard, Dennis Erb Jr.
Row 5: Clay Fisher, Justin Asplin
Row 6: Raymond Merrill, Gavin Landers
Row 7: Ryan Gustin, Jamie Elam
Row 8: Jack Sullivan, Austin Rettig
Row 9: Timothy Culp, Cole Farmer
Row 10: Shane Harris
Pre-race setup
Racing action continues Saturday evening with the conclusion of Batesville Motor Speedway’s 23rd annual Comp Cams Topless 100. Friday’s preliminaries set the first nine rows of the 100-lap, $40,000-to-win crown jewel event.
Jared Landers of Batesville, Ark., will start on the pole of Saturday’s feature event after winning his heat race and drawing the first starting spot in the redraw.
Friday’s other heat race winners were Earl Pearson Jr., Dale McDowell, Jimmy Owens, and Garrett Alberson. The top three finishers from each heat race transferred to the main event, locking 18 driver’s in to the feature lineup.
Saturday’s program will include two consolation races, which along with provisional starters, will set the remainder of the field.
Pre-race notes
For the second straight week, Jared Landers of Batesville, Ark., will start on the pole of the 100-lap main event. He finished fifth after starting on the pole of Florence Speedway’s North-South 100. … Seven former Topless 100 winners are already locked in to Saturday’s main event, the most recent being Jimmy Owens of Newport, Tenn., who lines up fourth in the 100-lapper. … Along with Landers, hometown drivers Billy Moyer Jr. and Wendell Wallace transferred to the main event through Friday’s preliminaries. … Jonathan Davenport of Blairsville, Ga., who boasts 17 victories on the 2015 season, will roll off from the seventh-place starting spot. The previous two Topless 100 winners started from the seventh position. … Rookie Late Model driver Hunter Rasdon of Jonesboro, Ark., and Garrett Alberson of Las Cruces, New Mexico, are among drivers cracking the Topless 100 starting lineup for the first time. … After struggling in Friday’s preliminaries, four-time Topless 100 winner Billy Moyer will lineup eighth in Saturday’s first consolation.
