Noah Kars made the move to inside line coming out of turn 2. Tyler Markel held the outside down the backstretch. Stephen Willey loomed in front of the pack running several miles per hour slower than the rest.
The #62 had a decision: move down to the apron and let them race by, or hold the race track in an attempt to keep a lap on in the final results. He would choose the latter. Willey held the middle line, ultimately blocking Markel and allowing Kars to cruise to the finish line for the first time in his NFRN Elite Cup Series career at Columbia International Speedway. "I didn't expect such a good finish to start the season today," Kars said in victory lane. "We fought hard in the last few laps and managed to take home the win today. What a way to start off this season." Kars finished 33rd in the standings in 2016, scoring a top 5 finish only twice in the 26-race season. Markel finished 4th after Nick Smith and Jonny Gardner also passed him on the last turn. Willey was a source of controversy beyond the ending. He also potentially caused the only accident of the race on lap 7 when he made contact with Colin Lindsay and collected William Brock. When asked if he thought if the incidents would come back to bite him, Willey replied, "Probably, but there is still a chance that we can change that in the next races." That wasn't the only incident to take place. Incidents like Eric Van Arsdale and Reece Butcher's contact on pit road took them both out of contention. Van Arsdale took blame for the contact. "We had a good competitive car, but it got ruined by something that was my fault," Van Arsdale said. "I hate it for my team because we all are trying to prove ourselves." Van Arsdale will run full-time in the NFRN Amateur Cup Series this season and has a limited chance at running in the NECS again this year. John Arndt was a part of the fast lead pack before being trapped trying to pass the slow cars of Lindsay and Brock. Arndt shrugged it off and says it became a testing day for the team. "It's an exhibition," Arndt said. "Points mean absolutely nothing. If this happens during the season, yeah, I'll be mad and I hope the NFRN officials handle it quickly and effectively." The drivers provided an insight of what we can expect when 42-car fields fly around the 2.5-mile track of Columbia: fast pace in the draft, major shuffling when a slow car comes around, a whole lot of passing, an ideal inside groove, and the potential for major crashes with an increase of cars. For full results of the exhibition, visit the official race page. The Clash at Columbia is on its way. Drivers took to the track for their final tests before the 30-lapper this Sunday. John Arndt led the way with a time faster than the top spot in first practice. The exhibition will be Sunday, April 16th at 9PM EST. Here are official practice times from final practice: 1) John Arndt - 43.722 (60 laps) 2) Colin Lindsay - 43.841 (62) 3) Rampage - 43.851 (60) 4) nascarfan19 - 43.881 (58) 5) Noah Kars - 43.939 (60) 6) Nick Smith - 44.103 (61) 7) Tyler Markel - 44.222 (58) 8) Stephen Willey - 44.238 (63) 9) Reece Butcher - 44.273 (57) 10) William Brock - 44.470 (58) 11) Jonny Gardner - 44.570 (59) 12) Eric Van Arsdale - 44.737 (61) |
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