Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, July 18, 1993 TAG: 9307180200
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: D12 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BRIAN DeVIDO STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RADFORD LENGTH: Medium
In the end, Ronnie Thomas finished just a hair ahead of Johnny Rumley as a packed house cheered wildly at the New River Valley Speedway's Basham Oil/F&L Oil-Pennzoil 300.
"I wouldn't give him a thing," Thomas said of Rumley. "When you rob a bank, you enjoy it more when you've got to fight for it."
Thomas took the lead from pole-winner Frankie Pennington on the fifth lap. Rumley took the lead from Thomas on the 16th lap, but Thomas passed Rumley going into the starting line on lap 17.
He never trailed again.
But Rumley stayed right by Thomas' side for the remainder of the race. Rumley dropped to fourth on lap 126, but he reclaimed second on lap 149, passing points leader Paul Radford on the inside of turn 4.
Then the two top finishers put on a fight to the end.
Rumley gained on the turns and several times appeared to be ready to pass Thomas. The straightaways, however, turned out to be Thomas' strong point. He stayed on the outside while Rumley took the inside route. Thomas turned it on when he reached the straightaways and never let Rumley reclaim the lead.
"I couldn't run low," Thomas said. "The car was pushing too bad on the bottom side."
Said Rumley, "I'm disappointed. I don't mind running side by side, but I like to win."
Radford finished third, Tink Reedy was fourth and Pennington ended up fifth.
Last week, Thomas had a four-second lead when he was black-flagged on the 44th lap for an excessive oil leak.
"I wasn't Santa tonight," he said, laughing. "I had Rudolph by my side all night, and you know how reindeer are."
After winning his sixth Late Model Stock Car race of the season, Thomas would define a reindeer in one word: persistent.
In the other races Saturday night:
Rock Harris won the pole and led all the way as he won the 35-lap Limited Sportsman race. Points leader Kenny Montgomery was second, Mark Akers finished third and Charlie Miles was fourth.
Kevin Light took advantage of a first-lap spin that slowed several competitors to win his first 25-lap Mini Stock race of the season. Light held off pole-sitter Jay McCray, who was involved in the spin, over the last several laps to claim the victory.
Points leader Charlie Smith held off Jimmy Hinkley to pick up his second victory of the season in the 25-lap Modified-Mini race.
Keywords:
AUTO RACING
by CNB