By Greg MacPherson, Inside Track
LONDON, ON – With two races to go on the 2005 CASCAR Super Series schedule, Dodge / Mobil 1 / PowerWater / Exide Dodge Charger driver Mark Dilley is faced with the dilemma of finding a way to get to the lead in those races, without first having to be in second place.
On Sunday afternoon at Delaware Speedway, the Barrie, ON racer once again experienced trouble while running second. Dilley’s #9 Dodge started fifth in the 32-car field after a solid qualifying effort and was cruising comfortably behind his Whitlock Motorsports teammate Dave Whitlock on lap 66 of the 300-lap Great Canadian Race at the London, ON-area half-mile oval when he was forced to the pits by a loss of power.
“The car was really fast and we were just happy to be running second behind Dave [Whitlock] in the early part of the race,” said Dilley, who soldiered on to a 19th-place finish in the final results. “We weren’t using up the car at all and we were cruising close to the lead. But it looks like we broke some rocker arms in the engine. We were really feeling good about the race until then.”
Dilley continued, “It’s frustrating because we’ve had trouble while running second a few times this season. I just need to figure out a way to jump from third to first and avoid being in second place altogether, because it’s just been bad luck for us to be there.”
Following 10 events, Dilley’s #9 Dodge Charger is seventh in the Super Series points chase, with two races remaining.
LOOKING AHEAD:
The consummate racer, Dilley quickly put the frustrations of Delaware behind him and turned his attention to next weekend’s race at Cayuga Speedway. The event was scheduled for earlier in the season, but was postponed by rain to this Saturday night (Sept. 10).
At this point, the Dodge / PowerWater / Mobil 1 / Exide / Dodge Charger driver is looking to finish strong and begin preparations for next season. “We’re going to get the car fixed up and be ready to go hard at Cayuga. We’re looking to finish strong. There’s no reason we shouldn’t. We want to get a couple of good finishes to end the season and look ahead to 2006.”
RACE NOTES:
Peter Gibbons won the Great Canadian 300 at Delaware for the sixth time in his career on Sunday afternoon. The veteran racer overcame brake trouble en route to the victory in front of a huge Labour Day crowd at the half-mile Delaware oval.
Second-place went to Super Series points leader Don Thomson Jr. Jeff Lapcevich earned the final podium position.
For more information about the #9 team and its sponsors: http://www.whitlockmotorsports.com/
For more information about CASCAR, including complete race results, reports, point standings, event schedules and upcoming broadcast times for Super Series races on SPORTSNET, see http://www.cascar.ca/
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