Eldora Speedway
Buckingham loses by inches, wins by DQ
ROSSBURG, Ohio (Aug. 1) — Chip Brindle's last-corner pass for a narrow victory in Eldora Speedway's Fastrak-sanctioned GM Performance Parts 50 was erased after technical inspectors found an illegal carburetor spacer on the Chatsworth, Ga., driver's crate engine. That handed Saturday's victory to Shanon Buckingham of Morristown, Tenn., who took led 33 laps but finished inches behind Brindle at the checkered flag.
Buckingham earned $5,000 and his second major Crate Late Model victory of the season by virtue of another driver's disqualification. Fast qualifier Kenny Peeples Jr. of Rural Retreat, Va., finished second followed by Lee Cooper of Greer, S.C., Daniel Karalagas of Pittsburgh, Pa., and Mike Pegher Jr. of Wexford, Pa.
Whitney McQueary of Dunnville, Ky., jumped into the lead at the outset with Buckingham and Brindle giving chase. Polesitter David Watts slipped back to fifth behind Peeples by the 10th lap before the leaders entered lapped traffic.
Amid the slower cars, Buckingham snatched the lead from McQueary on the 16th lap and was cruising before a lap-28 caution for Joe Martin bunched the field. With Brindle right on Buckingham's rear deck, it was a dogfight the rest of the way with Buckingham hanging on to the lead. But Brindle's last-ditch move edged him ahead of Buckingham at the finish.
Brindle's car came to the scales on a wrecker after he spun on the cool-down lap, collecting a few other cars. Brindle went to victory lane without his car, but 45 minutes later, he was stripped of the victory.
GM Performance Parts 50: (1) Shanon Buckingham, (2) Kenny Peeples Jr., (3) Lee Cooper, (4) Daniel Karalagas, (5) Mike Pegher Jr., (6) David Scott, (7) David Watts, (8) Josh Holtgraver, (9) Joe Reuter, (10) Gary Knollinger, (11) Joe Martin, (12) Tommy Schirnhofer Jr., (13) David Smith, (14) R.J. Otto, (15) Steve Cooke, (16) Roger Wing, (17) Tommy Krankel, (18) Randy Shuman, (19) Joe Aiken, (20) Jeremy Hines, (21) Dan Angelicchio, (22) Whitney McQueary, (23) William Thomas. Disqualified: Chip Brindle. Fast qualifier (among 38 cars): Peeples, 17.406 seconds. Heat race winners: Reuter, Hines, Wing, Brindle. Consolation winners: Scott, Holtgraver. Non-qualifers' race winner: Butch Lambert.
