Double the Fun! Two 100-Lap Pro Stock Races Saturday Night, Tucker Going for $10,000

By Gord Curran, General Manager

August 10th, 2005, Fredericton, NB – NBIS continues to catch up on some early season weather challenges with two 100-lap CARQUEST Pro Stock events slated for Saturday night starting at 7pm. The Coast Tire “Best of the Best” Pro Stock 100, originally slated to run on July 1st, and the scheduled Cobra Lubricants “Best of the Best” Pro Stock 100 are on tap. All eyes will be on Shawn Tucker who can take home $10,000 if he can win both races. There will also be points racing in the Martin’s Home Heating Sportsman and Coast Tire Street Stock Divisions.

The Coast Tire “Best of the Best” 100 was originally scheduled for July 1st, but a mid-race rain shower following completion of the heats and dashes forced the feature to this coming weekend. The race will start promptly at 7pm before the regularly scheduled events. Following completion of the Coast Tire “Best of the Best” 100, NBIS will start qualifying for the Cobra Lubricants “Best of the Best” 100 in addition to the heats and dashes for the Martin’s Home Heating Sportsman and Coast Tire Street Stocks.

The “Best of the Best” Pro Stock Series is a mini-series featuring three 100-lap events. For each event, position points are awarded towards the overall mini-series championship. However, position points awarded during the “Best of the Best” are not added to the season long CARQUEST Pro Stock Division Points Championship. Instead, each driver who runs a “Best of the Best” event receives 30 points towards the overall point’s championship (show up points).

All the attention will be on Shawn Tucker as he attempts to take home a $10,000 bonus for sweeping the all three “Best of the Best” events. Tucker won the CARQUEST “Best of the Best” Pro Stock 100 completed on July 1st with a late lap pass on Glenn Rasmussen and is considered a top contender each time he hits the track. No driver has ever won the bonus although defending CARQUEST Pro Stock Division Champion Dave O’Blenis came the closest three years ago when he took the first two races and was in contention during the third race before getting involved in an incident that took him out of the race.

Even if Tucker fails in his attempt to capture all three, he is still in line for some nice prize money if he can win the overall three-race series. Leon Lirette from the Capital City Roofing contributed $500 to the overall champion of the “Best of the Best”, the second year that Lirette has added prize money to the series. The overall winner also receives four (4) new Hoosier racing slicks from NBIS. Glen Livet’s Brad Mann won the “Best of the Best” series last season although he was tied with Kirk Thibeau after three races – Mann was given the edge because he won the first event. Mann is a three-time CARQUEST Pro Stock Division Champion while Thibeau was the winner of the inaugural Irving Oil 250 in 2001.

Although they are not the highlight of the evening, the Martin’s Home Heating Sportsman and Coast Tire Street Stocks should provide some outstanding entertainment as the points races in both divisions are heating up. For complete points standings, please go to www.nbisonline.com/standings.

If you or your company would like to sponsor an event, contribute a contingency award, or put up additional prize money, please contact the speedway office at (506) 455-4231 or send an e-mail to info@nbisonline.com.

Should the weather not cooperate, the rain date is Sunday at 2pm. Fans and drivers should call 506-454-RACE (7223) for updates.