Chuck Hebing Sweeps By Justin Barger To Collect First ESS Win At Drummond
Tuesday, June 09, 2009
SYRACUSE, NY – It was a night of firsts for the Lucas Oil Empire Super Sprints on Saturday night at Autodrome Drummond. NY’s Chuck Hebing passed Justin Barger on lap 19 to collect his first A-Main victory on the 2009 racing season. Also, the victory marked the first win for the new Roush-Yates Ford power plants.
By virtue of the pill draw, Barger’s Dan Deming, Ford-powered Maxim was on the pole with current ESS point leader Lance Yonge alongside. At the drop of the green it was Barger getting the jump with Yonge close in tow looking for the $2,000 top pay in the Fondations 4 Saisons a Main.
Hebing started the Northwood 2 Construction/LaSalle Motorsports Canadian Sprint Car Series event in third.
“Both Justin and Lance got out on me at the start, but I just tried to keep the car wound up on the top and hope for traffic to make a difference,” said the driver known as The Cobra. “Once we all got to the slower cars, I was definitely at the advantage because I could see what was happening in front of me.”
Hebing got by Yonge and then set his sites on Barger. “I tried to get under Justin a few times, and I think he saw me,” Hebing noted on his bid for the lead. “When we came up to more lapped cars, he went down low; and I think he was trying to take my lane away. That opened up the door for me to go around.
“I went with the harder compound tire, and that really seemed to help; my car just kept getting faster and faster,” Hebing quipped.
When Hebing’s #45 took the lead on lap 19, his goal for the win was set. The battle was now between Barger and Yonge.
“I was right on Justin and I though I might have a chance to get him as I went with a harder tire, and I knew he was on a softer compound.” Yonge said. “But the late yellow went against me. He had a chance to cool his tires off, and that I didn’t need.”
At the finish, it was Hebing home for ESS career-win number seven, and Barger took second with Yonge in third. Rounding out the top five was Quebec’s own Alain Bergeron and Tim Kelly's ViKell Enterprises Avenger.
Only one caution slowed the pace, and that was for Michael Parent, who clipped the inside wall and broke his front end.