Jarrett Conquers ARCA RE/MAX Salem Complete Results

Jarrett Conquers Salem; Kimmel Clinches Crown



By Don Radebaugh - SALEM IN - (9-18-04) Jason Jarrett, before a packed house, steered clear of the continual carnage and held off a hard charging teenager to win the wild Eddie Gilstrap Motors 200 Saturday night at Salem Speedway while Frank Kimmel, despite a disappointing night, clinched a record-tying 6th ARCA RE/MAX Series national championship.



Jarrett, who led the final 66 laps, would not be denied the victory despite a green-white-checker finish that stretched the race 11 laps beyond its scheduled 200.



In the end, Jarrett, in the Bennigan's-Gladiator GarageWorks Chevrolet, finished three lengths ahead of 16-year-old Justin South, who wowed the regulars with an impressive second place finish in his career-first series start. 

"I can't tell you how good this feels," said Jarrett in victory lane. "This has completely rejuvenated this team; it's rejuvenated myself. We've finished second so many times here. We were always close but just couldn't get there. I'm so proud of these guys; they gave me a great race car tonight. And I'm so happy for ML Motorsports, Bennigan's and Gladiator GarageWorks who stuck by me through all our struggles."

Jarrett's second series victory in his 91st attempt was aided in part by the absence of Kimmel, who got caught up in a wreck after dominating nearly three-quarters of the event.



"What a shame," said Kimmel, who was credited with the 23rd finishing position. "The Advance Auto Parts-Pork Ford was unbelievable tonight. We've had some great cars at Salem over the years, but I'm not sure we ever had one this good. It's just really disappointing here in front of the hometown crowd. Congratulations to Jason Jarrett; we're certainly happy for him. And congratulations to our Tri-State Motorsports championship team. They're the best again."



Kimmel now joins the late Iggy Katona as the only drivers to win six ARCA RE/MAX Series championships, although Kimmel is now the only driver in series history to win five consecutive.



South's stout run was cut short by a checkered flag leaving many to wonder what might have been.



"I learned a lot out there tonight," said the Gardendale, Alabama driver. "I think I could have won the race if we could have had one more long run. We weren't very good in the short run, but the car was awesome in the long run."



The night was filled with flying sparks throughout for 13 cautions that slowed the race for 71 laps. There were no injuries, but there were very few unwrinkled racecars to load up onto the haulers for the ride home.



The final caution of the night was for TJ Bell, whose wounded car finally broke inside of ten laps to go causing the Sparks, Nevada racer to smack the wall in turns three and four while running third. By the time the track was cleared, series officials had to resort to their ARCA-mandated green-white-checker finish to settle the affair. While South, in Doug Reid's Alabama Brick Chevrolet, appeared as fast as Jarrett, the final two-lap trophy dash just wasn't enough time to mount any significant challenge.



Mark Gibson, in the Williams Bros Lumber Chevrolet, steered his mangled Chevy Monte Carlo to the finish in third in front of Norm Benning, who finished a solid fourth in his own unsponsored Chevrolet, the last car on the lead lap. Benning, who started 24th, also received the Hoosier Tire Hard Charger award for advancing the most positions. Josh Clemons, in the USM Productions Ford, finished fifth, one lap down.



Kimmel, who earned his 37th career Pork Pole award earlier in the day, led the first 84 laps before giving it up in favor of pit road service under caution. Series rookie Will Langhorne, in only his second start, stayed out and led the next 22 laps before Kimmel, on fresher tires, regained the lead on lap 107. Kimmel then began pulling away from the pack and appeared to be well on his way to another win before the hometown favorite got caught up in someone else's wreck. With Kimmel gone from the mix, Jarrett took over as the leader on lap 146. Outside of a challenge from Bell and a late-race charge from South, Jarrett held firm up front long enough to procure the win.



Rookie Ryan Howard, in a team car to Gibson, finished a solid sixth in his first Salem appearance over Bell, who soldiered home seventh despite a badly wounded racecar. AJ Fike, caught up in a three car wreck off turn four coming down for the checkers, finished 8th in the Ray Farms Chevrolet, despite destroying his car. Christi Passmore, in the GAP Roofing-Asphalt & Fuel Supply Ford, steered her war-torn Taurus to the finish in ninth. Brent Sherman, another driver who recovered from earlier on-track tangles, regrouped in time to finish 10th in the Serta Mattress-Hickory Farms Ford.



Kimmel, for his outstanding season, earned the Gladiator GarageWorks Gladiator of the Race honors. Joe Cooksey, who also got caught up in an accident early on, received the ARCA Hard Luck award.



Talladega Superspeedway will host the season finale for the ARCA RE/MAX Series on Saturday, October 2 with the Food World 300 LIVE on SPEED Channel at 2 pm eastern.



Current ARCA RE/MAX Series Points after Salem (9-18-04)        1) Frank Kimmel 5555; 2) Brent Sherman 4815; 3) TJ Bell 4685; 4) Billy Venturini 4645; 5) Jason Jarrett 4530; 6) Christi Passmore 4410; 7) Mark Gibson 4355; 8) AJ Fike 4325; 9) Todd Bowsher 4145; 10) Norm Benning 4090.




       2004 ARCA RE/MAX SERIES EVENT #21   
       Salem Speedway, Salem IN, 9-18-04   
       Official Results, Eddie Gilstrap Motors 200 by Advance Auto Parts   
           
      FIN STR NO DRIVER/HOMETOWN TEAM & CAR LAPS  STATUS   
      1 6 67 Jason Jarrett/Hickory NC Bennigan's-Gladiator GarageWorks Chevrolet 211 Running 
      2 16 78 Justin South/Gardendale AL Alabama Brick Chevrolet 211 Running 
      3 11 59 Mark Gibson/Winder GA Williams Bros Lumber Chevrolet 211 Running 
      4 24 84 Norm Benning/Pittsburgh PA Benning Motorsports Chevrolet 211 Running 
      5 10 41 Josh Clemons/New Albany IN USM Productions Ford 210 Running 
      6 18 56 Ryan Howard/Tipp City OH Jeld-Wen Windows & Doors Chevrolet 210 Running 
      7 4 08 TJ Bell/Sparks NV Brad Kemp Motorsports Chevrolet 210 Running 
      8 9 11 AJ Fike/Galesburg IL Ray Farms Chevrolet 209 Running 
      9 14 91 Christi Passmore/Pryor OK GAP Roofing-Asphalt & Fuel Supply Ford 209 Running 
      10 7 44 Brent Sherman/N. Barrington IL Serta Mattress-Hickory Farms Ford 208 Running 
      11 29 28 Mike Buckley/Ann Arbor MI ETS-Kelly Tire Chevrolet 208 Running 
      12 32 6 Clay Greenfield/Clarksville TN Nealco-Reid's Auto Color Chevrolet 206 Running 
      13 23 7 Jeff Caudell/Austin IN Ferguson Enterprises Chevrolet 206 Running 
      14 21 38 Marty Butkovich/Romeo MI Messina Trucking-Dow Dawson Trucking Chevy 206 Running 
      15 3 64 Josh Allison/Waverly IN AE Powersports Dodge 205 Running 
      16 30 26 Brad Smith/Belleville MI KoolMat.com Ford 204 Running 
      17 34 48 Carl McCormick/Jacksonville FL James Hylton Ford 204 Running 
      18 12 96 Brandon Knupp/Sidney OH MKR Ford 200 Engine 
      19 25 34 Darrell Basham/Henryville IN Darrell Basham Racing Chevrolet 199 Running 
      20 19 25 Billy Venturini/Chicago IL Central Merchant Services-SPEEDBIDZ.com Chevy 197 Running 
      21 22 21 Todd Bowsher/Springfield OH GFS Marketplace Ford 167 Accident 
      22 28 5 Randy VanZant/Brookville OH Devers Truck Bodies-Mike's Body Shop Pontiac 166 Accident 
      23 1 46 Frank Kimmel/Clarksville IN Advance Auto Parts-Pork Ford 145 Accident 
      24 8 04 Will Langhorne/Washington DC Sanitec Industries-Hard Core Choppers Ford 143 Accident 
      25 2 75 Michael Simko/Clarkston MI Mound Steel-Diamond Racing Products Chevrolet 132 Accident 
      26 31 06 Ricky Gonzalez/South Plainfield NJ MechanicsFoam.com-KKH Foundation.org Chevy 131 Accident 
      27 5 58 John Hayden/Whitesville KY 31W Insulation-Spectra Metal Pontiac 110 Rear End 
      28 20 50 Brad Payne/Philpot KY Payne Racing Ford 88 Accident 
      29 17 70 Josh Richeson/Mooresville NC J&J Motorsports Chevrolet 84 Electrical 
      30 33 0 Tim Mitchell/Fayetteville TN Star Wheels Skate Center-Nealco-Reid's Chevrolet 69 Trans 
      31 15 1 Andy Belmont/Penndel PA ShowControl.US Ford 58 Accident 
      32 13 23 Joe Cooksey/Centralia IL 1-800-SERVPRO/Fans-N-Motion Pontiac 53 Accident 
      33 27 37 John Busse/Dillsboro IN American Legion Post 231 Aurora IN Pontiac 7 Accident 
      34 26 10 Rick Tackman/Waukesha WI Dick's Westridge Plaza-Timberwolf Cnstrctn Ford 6 Rear End 
           
       PORK POLE AWARD:  Frank Kimmel 17.604 (113.497 mph)   
       MRGN OF VICT:  .508 seconds CAUTIONS:  13 cautions for 71 laps   
       TIME OF RACE:  1:52:54 AVG SPEED:  62.235 mph   
       LAP LEADERS:  Kimmel 1-84, 107-145 (123); Langhorne 85-106 (22); Jarrett 146-211 (66)