Joe Gibbs Driven

That speed carried him to the fast time award and eventually the 100 lap Main Event Racing Series Final victory. In practice he was the only driver of the 40 plus on hand to get under the 13 second mark every time he hit the track. In qualifying veteran Columbus and ASA racer Robbie Pyle hit the track and bested the soon to be former track record with a lap of 13.089. However, it was short lived as Needles turn came just moments later. Needles did not disappoint as he busted the track record with a new time of 12.872, the only car under 13 seconds. Through qualifying the top ten where locked in and inverted, thus putting Pyle and Needles in the fifth row for the traditional end of year race.

As race time rolled around the perfect race day sun had heated the track to a nice hot temperature for the drop of the green flag on the stellar field of Super Late Models. 2008 Columbus Motor Speedway Late Model track Champion Donnie “Zero” Hill started on the pole with Trent Hellenga along side. Hill shot out immediately to the front and set pace however, the first of 17 caution flags on the day flew at lap four when young Josh Smith spun in turn two. From that point on the cautions flew freely as 15 laps would be the most under the green flag through lap 56. The biggest mishap of the day happened at lap 44 when former Main Event Final winner Freddy Campbell and veteran Dennis Strickland got together and Campbell climbed over the top slamming the first turn wall. Both veteran racers where uninjured but done for the day. By this time Needles had moved from his tenth starting spot to third separated from the leader by Jack Landis who had assumed second position early and was staying in Hill’s tracks. By lap 62 Needles had disposed of Landis and sailed to the outside of Hill. Two laps later Needles would become the leader and started making tracks towards the checkered flag. Enduring four more caution flags to the finish Needles had no challengers and little effort to secure the win. Following Needles across the line was Hill, Landis, Toledo Glass City 200 winner Harold Fair Jr., Joe Bush, Gary Whipkey, Tim Ice, Robbie Pyle, Rich Rohrer, and Jimmy Carter rounding out the top ten. Whipkey and Carter came into this event on top of the Main Event Series points and when the dust settled in Columbus Whipkey became the 2008 series Champion. Whipkey has now won the Main Event Championship the last three years in a row.

After the winners circle presentations and back at the trailer an exhausted Needles said, “I had an awesome car. It took about halfway through before I could get it going, about lap 50 or 55 it really came in. I got to the top groove and those guys are clean racers, it just turned out good. The plan was to ride the first fifty and hope the top groove would come in, it finally did and we got kind of lucky there. I was starting to get nervous because there was no top groove but thank goodness it finally came in. There were more cautions than I expected but that too work in my favor as the car was just really good on restarts,” finished Needles.

“I was a little short,” noted Landis. “I started second row outside, not much passing, I take my hat off to Needles, and he did a heck of a job. Donnie Hill to, he ran a great race, I saw him all the way. I want to give a shout out to Harold Fair jr. for winning the Toledo Glass city race last week; he finished fourth today and watched my back. Tons more caution flags than I expected there would be, I thought maybe there would be a couple of those big wrecks like there usually is. It is tight racing here and cars get bottled up. We may have run a 20 lap run, but that would have been the most of the whole race. I don’t think it would have been any different without all the yellows, but it would have been nice to find out. Anyway, we got what we got and I am pretty happy with it,” finished Landis.

Runner up Hill reflected, “I had a great car, my guys worked hard all weekend long, the 14 car, man those guys got their stuff together. I think we just need to do a little homework; I am not ashamed of my finish. I think all those caution flags hurt us, I was better on long runs and the track got slippery. But it’s the Main Event, the years over and I will just enjoy the vacation. It feels good to get back in a Super Late Model; I wish Columbus would do it more. Man that horsepower just felt good,” finished hill.