June 14
Belleville High Banks,
Belleville, KS
Sanction: Malvern Bank Series (Belleville Dirt Nationals) - $5,000
Information provided by: Series reports (last updated June 15, 8:58 am)
Berck sneaks by Leighton for Belleville win
Belleville Dirt Nationals
- Kyle Berck
- Bill Leighton Jr.
- Jesse Sobbing
- Tad Pospisil
- Darrel DeFrance
- Andrew Kosiski
- Curt Schroeder
- Cole Wayman
- Brian Kosiski
- Charlie McKenna
- Corey Zeitner
- Jake Neal
Kyle Berck celebrates his $5,000 Malvern Bank victory at Belleville.
What won the race: Stealing the lead away from Bill Leighton Jr. with four laps remaining, fifth-starting Kyle Berck of Marquette, Neb., won Tuesday’s Malvern Bank Series main event on the quarter-mile infield oval at the Belleville High Banks. Berck finished 0.586 of a second ahead of Leighton, who rallied from 11th to lead laps 24-26.
Quotable: “I didn’t see the flagman. I didn’t see the white (flag) or the checkered,” said Berck. “Caution came out and I’m like, ‘Dang it.’ And they’re like, ‘Oh it’s over.’ That might have a little to do with age but I was so focused on hitting the inside marks. I wanted to be on the outside, but that was just going away for me. We fought so hard to get to the lead. This track is so technical.”
Key notes: Berck claimed his first series win of the season and 94th of his career. … The race had four leaders, with Charlie McKenna of Ames, Iowa, leading 1-8; Jesse Sobbing of Malvern, Iowa, leading 9-23; Bill Leighton Jr. of Lavista, Neb., leading 24-26; and Berck leading 27-30. … Two cautions slowed the 30 lapper. Corey Zeitner spun on lap seven to draw a caution and third-running Jake Neal spun on lap 23 to bring out the yellow. … Jake Neal had just taken the lead from McKenna with a slider when the race’s first caution negated the move. … Leighton made a three-wide move on a lap-24 restart, splitting Sobbing and Berck to grab the lead. ... The Malvern Bank Series ran a second $5,000-to-win event following Neal's Monday victory. .... Berck's win snapped Neal's two-race series win streak. ... The tour raced on the quarter-mile layout prior to the XRSS tour, which switched to the smaller circuit after safety concerns about the half-mile oval.
On the move: Runner-up Bill Leighton Jr. started 11th.
Winner's sponsors: Berck’s Longhorn Chassis is sponsored by Aurora Cooperative, Strobel Manufacturing, Griess Truck Wash, Preferred Popcorn, Stevens Bros. Bison Farms and Campbell Family Farms.
Points chase: After Belleville Tuesday: 1. Jesse Sobbing (1,556); 2. Bill Leighton Jr. (1,550); 3. Tad Pospisil (1,504); 4. Corey Zeitner (1,488); 5. Jake Neal (1,486).
Current weather: Few Clouds, 90°F
Car count: 12
Fast qualifier: Jesse Sobbing
Time: 13.585 seconds
Polesitter: Jake Neal
Heat race winners: Curt Schroeder, Darrel DeFrance
Next series race: June 18, Adams County Speedway (Corning, IA) $3,000
Editor's note: Results and race details are unofficial.