July 24, 2013 – By Jacob Seelman for Speed77 Radio and Race Chaser Online

Concord, N.C. — The headline says it all.

After six straight weeks of Daniel Hemric ending up in Victory Lane in the Pro category at the Jack in the Box Summer Shootout, the challenge was given to the rest of the field: Stop Hemric, and you’ll be rewarded. To the tune of an additional $200, no less.

And the mayhem that ensued was hair-raising to watch, not to mention the fact that it was Double Points Night to boot.

With six cars under a blanket following a late caution, a four lap sprint was all that the field had to stop a charging Hemric, who had been mired back around fourth for the majority of the race and had worked his way to second behind Tyler Green. On that final restart, Hemric charged to the front for a lap, but as he and Green were battling, the field was stacking up behind.

And with two laps to go, it all came to a head. Green and Hemric got together, cars got into the back of both of them, and in a cloud of smoke, about six cars banged fenders and bumpers before it all worked it’s way out. Joey Padgett took the lead for an instant before getting shuffled in Turn 3, and when it was all said and done, Gregory Lang, who had run outside the top five most of the 30-lap race, was in the right place at the right time to storm to Victory Lane. The win was Lang’s first of 2013. Hemric matched his worst finish of 2013 in the Shootout, 2nd, and Padgett rebounded from 6th on the final lap to complete the podium.

That may have been the grand finale, but before all that, the action was just as heated in the remaining divisions. In Young Lions, seven cautions struck in the 20-lap main, none more shocking than on Lap 3, when a three-car melee at the front of the field swept up points leader and Week 7 winner, Michael Torres. Torres’ car went airborne in Turn 3 and came to rest on its wheels with significant damage.

Following three cautions at Lap 5, Connor Pyle would take the lead from Seth Werner at Lap 6, before getting a bumper in Turn 2 from second-place Stefan Parsons. Pyle would try to save the car, but spun, bringing out the fifth caution as Parsons drove through the smoke to claim the lead.

From there, it was smooth sailing for the second-generation driver, who led the final 14 laps despite two late cautions, the last of which pushed the feature one lap beyond it’s scheduled distance for a green-white-checkered finish. The win was Parsons’ first at Charlotte.

“It means a lot (to win at Charlotte),” Parsons said following the race. “Can’t say thank you enough to everyone. We finally got ourselves one.”

Dillon Faggart scored his best Shootout result, finishing second, and William Byron reclaimed the Shootout points lead with a third place run. Michael Torres made a remarkable rally from the back of the field to finish seventh.

In Semi-Pro, four cautions changed the landscape of the points race dramatically. On Double Points Night, when a bad finish can break an entire season’s worth of momentum, it was points leader Ryan Mackintosh who bit the bullet, spinning inside the final 10 laps after contact with Joe Ryan Osborne while battling for the race lead sent him around in Turn 4. Mackintosh ultimately finished 14th, and respectfully declined our interview request following the event.

Osborne would go on to hold off a final charge from Jay Coen, winner of 3 Semi-Pro features a week ago between Charlotte and Atlanta, to collect a huge Shootout win and claim the points lead going into the final two rounds. Mackintosh’s teammate Luke Demis would complete the podium in his final Shootout start of the season.

Despite being second in points, a prior conflict will prevent the #54 team from racing next week, leaving the Semi-Pro title fight to be contested between Coen and Osborne.

In the First Responders School Bus Slobberknocker, the EMS stood triumphant over local police and fire departments. Scott Honeycutt, of Cabarrus County EMS, edged Jeremy Brown out of the lead by a nose on the final lap coming to the checkered flag. Brown, of the Kannapolis Fire Department, led much of the race before being overtaken at the last moment.

Other winners on the night included Tom Pistone (Masters), Cason Werner (Bandits), Hunter Jarrett (Beginner Bandits), and surprise winner Jacob Brumagin (Outlaws). Brumagin took the win after getting through a multi-car melee on the first lap and taking advantage of points leader John Holleman being out of it due to misfortunes. Holleman had been charging to the front but was sent to the rear following a late race skirmish while battling for fifth place.

The Jack in the Box Summer Shootout roars to conclusion next week, with feature action both Monday and Tuesday nights. Rounds 9 and 10 will decide the champions for the 2013 Shootout, and you can bet the action will be a sight you won’t want to miss! For ticket information and more on the Summer Shootout Series, visit charlottemotorspeedway.com!

PHOTO CREDIT:  Dillon Faggart (12) chasing Tripp Gerrald  (4) – Ali Debrakeleer Photo

RESULTS, ROUND 8:

Young Lions (21 laps): 1. 98- Stefan Parsons, 2. 12- Dillon Faggart, 3. 25- William Byron, 4. 28- Jared Irvan, 5. 91- Stevie Johns Jr., 6. 02- Brayton Haws, 7. 15- Michael Torres, 8. 14- Seth Werner, 9. 54- Matt Craig, 10. 4T- Tripp Gerrald III, 11. 72- AJ Davis, 12. 22X- Michael Womack, 13. 88- Doug Barnes, 14. 1- Trent Barnes, 15. 22- Alex Murray, 16. 07- Connor Pyle, 17. 77- Austin Cindric, 18. 00- Carson Ferguson

STEFAN PARSONS AUDIO: YL- Stefan Parsons VL         DILLON FAGGART AUDIO:  July23DillonFaggart
WILLIAM BYRON AUDIO:   YL- William Byron 3rd        JARED IRVAN AUDIO:  July23JaredIrvan
STEVIE JOHNS, JR. AUDIO:  YL- Stevie Johns Jr 5th     MICHAEL TORRES AUDIO:  YL- Michael Torres PostRace

Semi-Pro (30 laps): 1. 13- Joe Ryan Osborne, 2. 67- Jay Coen, 3. 54- Luke Demis, 4. 29- Sheldon Crouse, 5. 23- Bronson Butcher, 6. 114- Riley Halverson, 7. 88- Billy Webb, 8. 77- Joe Gregory, 9. 24- JoJo Helberg, 10. 84- Adam Welch, 11. 16- Joshua Plummer, 12. 14- Tyler Hanberry, 13. 00- Craig Biryla, 14. 03- Ryan Mackintosh, 15. 17- Joshua Turner, 16. 71- Matt Wallace, 17. 777- Dylan Barbosa, 18. 7- Austin Langenstein, 19. 96- Ethan MacMillan, 20. 25- Devin Amos, 21. 52- Jordan Stillwell

JOE RYAN OSBORNE AUDIO: SP- Joe Ryan Osborne VL      JAY COEN AUDIO:  SP- Jay Coen 2nd

Pro (30 laps): 1. 54- Gregory Lang, 2. 48- Daniel Hemric, 3. 83- Joey Padgett, 4. 28- Steven Cantrell, 5. 18- Evan Swilling, 6. 13- Ryan Shattuck, 7. 14B- Jordan Black, 8. 20X- Tyler Green, 9. 66- Reid Wilson, 10. 38- Justin Swilling, 11. 66Z- Zane Smith, 12. 3- Kaz Grala, 13. 4- Kason Plott, 14. 18W- Clayton Weatherman, 15. 4L- Tyler Lester, 16. 25S- Mackena Bell

GREGORY LANE AUDIO: PRO- Gregory Lang Victory Lane      DANIEL HEMRIC AUDIO: July23DanielHemric
JOEY PADGETT AUDIO:    PRO- Joey Padgett 3rd

Masters (30 laps): 1. 72- Tom Pistone, 2. 58- Carl Cormier, 3. 09- Scott Whitaker, 4. 12- Robby Faggart, 5. Rodney Tharp; 6. Jan Ingram; 7. Jody Folice; 8. Shawn Geisel; 9. Eddie Harwell; 10. Bruce Silver; 11. Jamie Smith; 12. John Craig; 13. Chip Ferguson; 14. David Fulk; 15. Carlos Moore

TOM PISTONE AUDIO: MASTERS- Tom Pistone VL

Beginner Bandits (20 laps): 1. 8- Hunter Jarrett, 2. 06- Trevor Rizzo, 3. 44- Josh Kossek, 4. 55- Isabella Robusto, 5. 22- William Robusto, 6. 93- Carson Kvapil, 7. 74- Henry Broadbent, 8. 18- Matthew Eades

Bandits (20 laps): 1. 01- Cason Werner, 2. 11- Dawson Cram, 3. 23- Zachary Dabbs, 4. 90- Daniel Wilk, 5. 88- Justin Taylor, 6. 62K- Kamera McDonald, 7. 29- DJ Canipe, 8. 11L- Ryleigh Lemonds, 9. 07- Hayden Humphrey, 10. 9- Liz Montgomery, 11. 64- Noah Ewing, 12. 84- Richard Kuty, 13. 18- Brayde Miranda, 14. 02- Graysn Bundrick, 15. 77- Blake Cisneros, 16. 74- Enzo Fittipaldi, 17. 03- Braydn Mander

CASON WERNER AUDIO:  BANDITS- Cason Werner VL

Outlaws (15 laps): 1. 37- Jacob Brumagin, 2. 19- Nate Tretow, 3. 7- Tal Davidson, 4. 8- Chase Purdy, 5. 95- Jacob Heafner, 6. 18- Alex Reece, 7. 27C- Nicholas Ceraolo, 8. 22- Jordan Plummer, 9. 27- Eric Brown, 10. 17- Scott Joy, 11. 2- Austin Green, 12. 33- Sprout Royal, 13. 05- Hannah Bell, 14. 14- Banks Johnson, 15. 4- John Holleman, 16. 5- Daniel Bedford, 17. 15- Casey Kirwan, 18. 9- Ashley Caldwell, 19. 10- Matthew Davey, 20. 90- Jack Fread, 21. 01- Ivan Gudmestad, 22. 41- Dakota Ratcliff, 23. 88- Kayla Lyons, 24. 3- Miguel Cesar Jr., 25- 29- Austin Powell

JACOB BRUMAGIN AUDIO:  OUTLAW- Jacob Brumagin VL    AUSTIN GREEN AUDIO:  OUTLAW- Austin Green PostRace