Camargo, IL (2-5-09) by Kelly Brown - Public Relations Director – After two third place finishes and a runner up finish, there was only one place that Stevie Smith could finish on the last night of the O’Reilly Circuit of Champions Florida Speedweek Winter Nationals and that was in Victory Lane. In an exciting night of racing that saw the win come down to a last lap pass, Stevie Smith showed he was on a mission.

Starting from the pole position, Smith grabbed the lead going into turn one when the Green Flag was unfurled. In close pursuit were Craig Dollansky and Kraig Kinser. Early on the battle was for the fifth position as Jason Meyers, Joey Saldana and Steve Kinser had quite a scuffle to take that spot.  

By Lap 9 Smith looked as if he was going to run away with the show as he had built over a second lead, but that was not enough when his 1 car spun its wheels Dollansky was able to catch up to him and a side-by-side battle ensued. Dollansky stole the lead on Lap 12, but Smith muscled back and reclaimed the top spot a lap later.

On Lap 19 Saldana began to make his move up to fourth. In the battle for third Saldana and Kraig Kinser were bumper-to-bumper for third. In a frenzied move Steve Kinser passed the two, but on the next revolution of the half-mile track Saldana had retook the third position with Jason Meyers lining up behind him in fourth.

The first Yellow Flag of the night flew over Volusia Speedway on Lap 20 as Sam Hafertepe jr.’s 15h came to a halt on track. On the restart at the front Smith was working the low line, while Dollansky was making himself comfortable in the cushion. A second caution period disrupted their skirmish as the Yellow Flag flew again on lap 21 for Tim Kaeding whose 83jr had come to a stop at the exit of Turn 2.

On the final restart with only nine laps to go, Smith and Dollansky stuck to their favored lines. The result was a side-by-side scuffle that saw Dollansky retake the lead on Lap 22. Behind the leaders Meyers was closely following Saldana, but time was running out.

When the White Flag soared over the field, Smith knew it was his last chance for victory. In Turn 2 he made his move and slid under Dollansky to recapture the lead. With the Checkered Flag fluttering in the air, Smith was the first to cross the finish line; he was followed by: Dollansky, Saldana, Meyers and Steve Kinser. 

This was Smith’s second Winter Nationals win. His first came at East Bay Speedway in 1994. Over all this was Smith’s seventh O’Reilly All Star Circuit of Champions win.

The next time the O’Reilly All Star Circuit of Champions will take the track will be April 10 and 11 at Attica Speedway Park in Attica, Ohio. For more information stay tuned to http://www.oreillyallstars.com/.

Top Three Quotes:Third Place Joey Saldana – “It was a great race tonight, but we just came up short. It was a great night for Kasey Kahne Racing. First and second would have been great, but second and third is pretty good. Everyone here is professional and are here for a reason. That is why I think we are seeing such great racing. It is too bad it took three nights for us to have a race like that. I know that Donny (Schatz) put on a clinic the first night, but this is definitely a better race track. Very excited to have Budweiser back on the car for 2009 and our new teammate Craig Dollansky, hopefully we can get more wins and higher in the points.”

Second Place Craig Dollansky – “Stevie did a great job. He was running his line there. I got up top towards the end and figured I was losing time up there. The last two laps I should have moved down in one and two, but we were fine in three and four. This Kasey Kahne team is moving in the right direction with Direct TV and everyone who stands behind us. The team is going to work hard and hopefully we will be in Victory Lane soon. It was fun, but you definitely want to end up on top in this type of situation. I hope it was a good show for the fans, they are a big part of what we do here and without them we would not be here. Congrats to Stevie again, second with a new team we are just going to keep working hard at it.”

First Place Stevie Smith – “These guys have been putting me in this position, but this is the first time I got the job done for them. Dollansky showed me the line in three and four and I wasn’t about to move off the bottom of one and two. The team has given me a great car. It has been a lot of fun so far. I just want to thank those guys. They have been working really hard and we are looking forward to a good year. We are definitely off to a good start. We are very thankful the way everything thing worked out and I am really happy to be a part of this team.”Kistler Engines Qualifying Car-Driver-Time