Shryock Ends His Streak Of Bad Luck With A Resounding Win, Regains A Comfortable Points Lead
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Aug 02, 2008
USMTS
BLOOMFIELD, Iowa – Anybody who was thinking that Kelly Shryock may be losing his touch were given a loud wake-up call Friday night as the eight-time O’Reilly USMTS National Champion dominated the first night of the 3rd Annual Iowa-Missouri Border War at the Bloomfield (Iowa) Speedway.
Shryock started on the pole for the 35-lap Holley “A” Main, and was never challenged en route to his tenth O’Reilly USMTS National Tour win of the season.
The win, worth $2,000, was a timely pick-me-up for Shryock, who had suffered a career-worst three DNFs in three of the last six main events.
Shryock’s failure to finish Thursday night’s main event at the Knox County Fairgrounds allowed Zack VanderBeek to close the gap on the Central Region points leader.
But Shryock’s performance on Friday, coupled with VanderBeek’s 13th-place finish, gives Shryock a wide enough cushion that simply showing up for Saturday’s race at the 24 Raceway in Moberly, Mo., should be enough to seal the deal in the Central States Region finale.
Jon Tesch recorded his fifth top-5 finish in the last seven races with a runner-up at Bloomfield, while Ron Ver Beek earned a season-best third-place finish at the 3/8-mile semi-banked clay oval.
In a battle between the two drivers from Woodward, Okla., fighting for the Rookies Rockin’ Sports Bar Rookie of the Year crown, Brandon Kenny came from 14th to finish fourth—one spot ahead of Dereck Ramirez—and garnered the KSE Racing Products Hard Charger Award in the process.
The pair are currently neck-and-neck in what is proving to the be closest-ever race for the rookie title.
Although Kenny holds a slim 14-point lead (726 to 712) over Ramirez, there are still 23 events left on the 58-race O’Reilly USMTS National Tour schedule.
After claiming his first AFCO Pole Award, Ryan Gustin went on the take sixth in Friday’s main event, followed by Dean Mahlstedt, Scott Green, Michael Long and Al Hejna.
With Shryock sitting comfortably atop the rankings going into Saturday’s Central States Region finale, and VanderBeek a safe bet to lock-up second in points, the battles for positions behind them are hot and tight.
Ramirez is currently third with 798 points, with Hejna just three markers behind in fourth. Fifth is Gustin with 726, followed by Ver Beek (701), Jason Hughes (655), Donovan Lodge (655), Dean Mahlstedt (573) and Alan Mondus (563).
