Merritt Speedway
Fuller edges home-staters to end drought
By Kevin Kovac
World of Outlaws Late Model Series
Tim Fuller (center) discusses the finish with Eric Spangler (left) and Rich Neiser (right). (Kevin Kovac)
MERRITT, Mich. (Aug. 17) — Tim Fuller’s long-awaited return to victory lane on the World of Outlaws Late Model Series finally occurred on Saturday night at Merritt Speedway.
Snapping a frustrating winless streak that stretched over three years and 133 races, Fuller charged forward from the 14th starting spot and beat upset-minded home-state drivers Eric Spangler and Rich Neiser in a thrilling three-wide finish to capture the NAPA Auto Parts Merritt 50 presented by Allstar Performance. | Slideshow
Fuller, 45, of Watertown, N.Y., flashed under the checkered flag just 0.101 of a second ahead of Lake City's Spangler and 0.234 of a second in front of Fruitport’s Neiser to record his first WoO triumph since June 17, 2010, at Merrittville Speedway in Thorold, Ontario.
The $10,550 victory was the 13th of Fuller’s career on the national tour but first since joining Kennedy Motorsports last summer as a teammate to Shane Clanton of Zebulon, Ga. He entered Saturday night’s event with four top-five finishes in 35 WoO starts this season but confident that his breakthrough run was close at hand.
“It’s been a slow start (with Kennedy Motorsports) and I was beginning to wonder if we were ever going to win,” said Fuller, who sits sixth in the WoO points standings. “I have struggled so long, there’s so many people to thank. Everybody that stuck with me through thick and thin: (car owner) John Kennedy, Shane Clanton, (chief mechanic) Ross (Robinson), Donnie (crewman Eugene Mulhany), my wife Lori. I can’t thank them all enough.
“I’ve felt like we’ve been getting closer and closer, so I hope this is a sign of things to come.”
Spangler, 44, and Neiser, 43, fought Fuller down to the wire, both drivers threatening to join the short list of local stars to pull off a WoO victory. They each settled for finishes that were by far their best-ever in World of Outlaws competition.
Defending WoO champion Darrell Lanigan of Union, Ky., finished fourth, nearly three seconds behind the lead trio after carving his way through the pack from the 20th starting spot. Clint Smith of Senoia, Ga., completed the top five, fading to fifth place after starting on the outside pole and leading the first 39 laps.
Fuller, whose two previous WoO appearances at Merritt resulted in unspectacular finishes of 15th in 2011 and 12th last year, credited his success to his pre-race tire-compound selection.
“I picked the softest tire there was (under the event’s tire rule) and it worked,” Fuller said of the Hoosier LM 20-compound rubber he bolted on his Capital Race Car. “Shanon Rush (of Hoosier Tire), he kept saying, ‘I don’t know if it’ll work,’ but I had nothing to lose starting 14th.
“The bottom line is, we outfoxed ‘em on tires. It happens in this deal. I’ve been outfoxed before.”
Fuller reached second place behind Smith on lap 32 and was beginning to challenge his good buddy when the race’s first caution flag flew on lap 35 when Scott Phillips of Marlette, Mich., slipped over the quarter-mile oval’s turn-four banking. After another caution flag flew on lap 36 for a turn-four spin by Tim McCreadie of Watertown, N.Y., Fuller surged around the outside of Smith to assume command on lap 40.
One more caution flag was needed, on lap 41 when Brady Smith of Solon Springs, Wis., spun out of fifth place in turn four. Fuller then spent the remainder of the distance trying to fend off Neiser, who was coming hard on the inside of the track, and later Spangler, who started alongside Fuller in 13th and appeared in third place with a lap-42 pass of Clint Smith.
Neiser nosed his MasterSbilt car inside of Fuller off turn two on lap 48, prompting Fuller to switch to the inside lane racing through turns three and four. Fuller stayed on the bottom for the entire final lap — a strategic maneuver that dulled Neiser’s bid but in turn opened the top side for Spangler.
Rounding turns three and four for the final time Spangler drove to the outside of Fuller, but Fuller slid up just enough off turn four to force Spangler over the wall-less homestretch berm. Fuller beat Spangler to the finish line by less than a half car length as Neiser looked to sneak by both on the inside.
“I had to pass Cat (Smith) up on the top (for the lead) and I used up a little too much tire, but I thought I could stay straighter and smoother up there and keep my momentum up,” Fuller said. “I went back to the bottom because I saw (Neiser) nosing up inside of me.”
Fuller was surprised by the sudden appearance of Spangler as the checkered flag was displayed ahead of them.
“I just thought it was 87 (Neiser),” said Fuller. “As I drifted out toward the outside of the track (off turn four on the last lap) I seen a car right there (Spangler) and we touched a little bit. Good thing it wasn’t 51 laps. That 27 car (Spangler) was fast and my right-rear tire was dying.”
A three-time Merritt Speedway Late Model champion and winner of the track’s recent Wood-Tic special event, Spangler was disappointed to fall just short of the biggest victory of his career.
“I got good momentum into three and four (on the last lap) and got alongside (Fuller),” said Spangler, who drove a MasterSbilt car. “But he pushed up — and he’s the leader, so you gotta him some room and we put it off the frontstretch so we didn’t hit.
“It was almost three-abreast on the last lap. I’m sure it was a great show for all the fans.”
Neiser, meanwhile, wore a large smile despite coming so close to becoming the second Michigan driver to win a WoO.
“Two local guys and one of the World of Outlaw guys? That was definitely a spectacular finish,” he said.
Neiser, who started seventh, used the inside groove to work his way to second place by lap 20. He challenged Smith several times midway through the race and did the same to Fuller during the final circuits before Fuller’s lane change stemmed his charge.
“He was up a little higher and I was catching him more and more,” Neiser said of Fuller. “The yellows kind of hurt me a little bit, and when he seen me there he come down (on the last lap) — which anybody would’ve. Then man, by time I went to the top, there was Spangler. I didn’t know he was there, but I figured he would be because he’s fast here.
“When I seen him, I figured, ‘Wow, this is gonna be a race to the end now.’ It was a good time — an amazing time. I was thrilled just to be racing for a win in a World of Outlaws race. That’s probably why I bumped the (inside) tires a couple times here and there. I was getting a little too excited and was missing my marks just thinking, I can’t believe where I’m at right now.”
WoO points leader Josh Richards of Shinnston, W.Va., started and finished sixth, hampered in his efforts to contend for the win by a tire-compound choice that was too hard for the conditions. Chris Brindley of West Branch, Mich., who started from the pole position, finished seventh in the first-ever WoO start. Eighth place was claimed by Clanton, ninth went to Merritt veteran David Hilliker of Midland, Mich., and Rick Eckert of York, Pa., rounded out the top 10.
The next action for the WoO comes Aug. 22 at Little Valley (N.Y.) Speedway and Aug. 24, at Winchester (Va.) Speedway.
NAPA Auto Parts Merritt 50 presented by Allstar Performance: (1) Tim Fuller, (2) Eric Spangler, (3) Rich Neiser, (4) Darrell Lanigan, (5) Clint Smith, (6) Josh Richards, (7) Chris Brindley, (8) Shane Clanton, (9) David Hilliker, (10) Rick Eckert, (11) Tim McCreadie, (12) Bub McCool, (13) Jeep Van Wormer, (14) Chub Frank, (15) Eric Wells, (16) Andrew Reaume, (17) Mike Spatola, (18) Morgan Bagley, (19) Scott Phillips, (20) Tom Sprague Jr., (21) Jason Feger, (22) Brady Smith, (23) Mike Kresnak, (24) Sam Epling. Fast qualifier (among 35 cars): Bagley, 13.263 seconds. Heat race winners: C. Smith, B. Smith, Neiser, Feger. Consolation winners: Wells, McCreadie. Provisional starters: Van Wormer, Epling.
