A solid, steady swing through the Midwest last week was just what Chub Frank needed to put himself in the thick of the World of Outlaws Late Model Series championship battle.
The popular driver known as ‘Chubzilla’ scored top-10 finishes in all five events that made up the tour, highlighted by a victory in the prestigious 28th annual Featherlite Trailers ‘Gopher 50’ Charity Late Model Race on June 14 at Deer Creek Speedway in Spring Valley, Minn.
Chub entered the swing as arguably the hottest driver on the WoO LMS and he didn’t let down. After an eighth-place finish in the swing’s opener on June 12 at River Cities Speedway in Grand Forks, N.Dak., Chub rolled to his third win in the last five events two nights later at the three-eighths-mile Deer Creek oval.
It was a flawless march to the checkered flag for Chub, who kept his Lester Buildings, Corry Rubber, All Star Performance, Corry Laser, Slavic Corporation, Genesis Racing Shocks, Lake Shore Paving, Custom Race Engines Chevrolet Impala SS Rocket Chassis No. 1* in the lead from flag-to-flag after starting from the outside pole. He held off Clint Smith to pocket the $10,000 top prize.
“It feels good to win one real far from home, ” said Chub, who made Deer Creek the farthest west he has ever won a dirt Late Model feature.
“You just keep riding the wave, because you know things can change, ” he added of his run of good fortune on the WoO LMS. “You get on that low side a lot, so it’s nice to get on the high side. We just have to try and make it last. ”
Chub did that on June 15 at the famed Knoxville (Iowa) Raceway, where he set fast time and finished fifth in the 50-lap Mediacom Late Model Shootout. The run also brought Chub the closest he’s been to the WoO LMS points lead all season, moving him to second in points just 10 markers behind Steve Francis.
Chub closed his trip through the Midwest with back-to-back ninth-place finishes, on June 16 at Lakeside Speedway in Kansas City, Kans., and June 17 at the historic Belleville (Kans. ) High Banks.
Chub now sits third in the WoO LMS point standings, 24 points behind leader Clint Smith. He started the Midwest swing with a deficit of 34 points, so he’s keeping himself right in the thick of the battle of the $100,000 title check.
Chub will get a chance to make a quick stop at his western Pennsy shop before embarking on the five-race ‘Great Northern Tour’ for the WoO LMS. The trail will compete on June 20 at Port Royal (Pa. ) Speedway; June 23 at Quebec’s Auodrome Drummond; June 24 at Cayuga County Fair Speedway in Weedsport, N.Y. ; June 27 at Stateline Speedway in Busti, N.Y. ; and June 29-30 for the $30,000-to-win ‘Firecracker 100’ at Lernerville Speedway in Sarver, Pa.
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