Round nine of Thursday Night Thunder at Beech Ridge Motor Speedway. With Max Zachem pulling away from the field in the points standings, it's still a tight battle for second, with only 24 points separating Bobby Timmons from eighth place Terry Kirk. After a few weeks hiatus after some rough luck, Chris Sargent was back in the series behind the wheel of his 21 car, while Nelcar tour driver Charlie Buxton made his first appearance in the Thursday series. While in practice, the 56 of Evan Beaulieu's bad luck continued as he hit the wall while going to avoid a spun car, ending his day early.
When the green flag flew, it was veteran Aaron Lewis in the 1 car leading the field with defending champion in the 399, Bob Weymouth on his outside. On lap two, Bobby Timmons and Steve Fox made contact running for the fifth spot, sending both of them for a spin, and leading them at the tail end of the field as the green stayed out.
Bob Weymouth got the lead from Lewis, and checked out on the field as the 27 of Kevin Hutchens drove his way to second. Zachem however, had to start from the rear of the field after winning the previous week, and had his work cut out for him as he made his way up through the field. When the checkered flag flew, Weymouth held a straightaway lead over Hutchens, who held off Zachem in a heated battle for second. Forest Boucher put up an impressive run in fourth, and Tyler Jordan rounded out the top five.
With just one race remaining, Zachem holds a 45 point advantage over Hutchens, while Ed Getty is third, 51 points back. While Zachem looks to hold his first Thursday Thunder championship next week, you can believe the rest of the field won't give up, as anything can happen. The final race is Thursday, August 13th, racing starts at 7 PM and grandstand tickets are only $4. For more info, news and points, visit Nelcar.net.