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KNOXVILLE, IA (October 8, 2010)- Wisconsin hot shoe VLR_18 used a late race caution brought out by BLS_Zombie to take home his second win this season in the VLR Crates.

VLR_18 and teammate VLR_JW were virtually side-by-side when a caution slowed the race with just twelve of the race’s forty laps remaining. The race was shaping up to be a close one, as eight different drivers were all within a second of each other with the race winding down.

However, VLR_18 used a Delaware-file restart to his benefit and pulled away from the field and proceeded to blow open what had been a close race up to that point.

“I was lucky to hang on during that late race restart,” said VLR_18, who sits third in the point standings now, 26 behind leader BLS_F1yer. “I had a lot of fun here tonight.”

VLR_18 picked up his second victory of the season in the Crates, with his first coming in the season opener at Attica Raceway Park. VLR_Shock is the only other driver to have a win on the Crate tour this season in the first four races.

VLR_18, who started ninth, gradually worked his way to the front before finally taking over the lead five laps before the caution came out. He and VLR_JW were side by side when the caution came out, but VLR_18’s nose was just ahead of the black and orange #3 of the West Point, Ms., driver.

“My night started out bad with getting wrecked in the heat, and almost in the B Main,” said VLR_18, who had a long road just to get in the feature after starting in the back of his heat race and being forced to get in the show through the B Main.

“I was lucky to make it through. I started ninth in the A and picked my way up through there, and made it three wide under JW and Shock there (for the lead), and I was lucky to hang on there on that late race restart.”

BLS_F1yer, 33, settled for his fourth runner-up finish in the first four races on the VLR Crate tour to open the season in his AMP/National Guard Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 0.683 seconds behind VLR_18 at the finish. The run gave F1yer a four point lead in the standings over second place VLR_Shock heading into this Friday’s race at the new East Bay Raceway Park.

“Second feels pretty damn good, as long as I got the points lead,” said F1yer, who started from the eighth position. “I’ll take second for the rest of the year if I can keep the points lead. It would be pretty cool to win one (a championship).”

“I think I had about the same shot (to win) after that restart. I was fifth when the caution came out, and fifth when we restarted, so I had the same damn shot as before,” laughed F1yer.

Pole-sitter WFO_Stealth started the race strong before the B Main drivers began charging up through the pack and knocked him as far back as sixth at one point before the caution. Luckily, the caution came at the perfect time for Stealth, in his first VLR Crates start of the year, and he was able to rally back for third in the end.

VLR_Shock lost a tie in the points lead to BLS_F1yer at the hands of Stealth when the two got together with six laps left in the race. Shock charged from seventh and led a few laps before the caution on lap 28 before settling with four after the late race contact.

“I was gonna work with F1yer to see if we could catch back up with Wheel and JW before the caution,” said a disappointed VLR_Shock. “Before I got in the wall I thought I could win because I went from 7th to 1st, but that restart didn’t go like I had hoped.

“I would have like to have beat F1yer for points, but I don’t know if it hurts that bad to lose four points in a race. It is when you have to try and beat F1yer and VLR_18 every week, though. If I end up losing the points by four points or something I’ll definitely think back to this and how I kinda got knocked out there at the end (by Stealth).

“Four races in you don’t know what’s gonna happen, though.”

Defending champion 44-year-old VLR_McGee from Spartanburg, SC., struggled home to a fifth place finish at one of his best race tracks and dropped to fourth in the standings, as he faces an uphill climb to win his second consecutive Crates championship. The caution was unquestionably a good break for the driver of the hawkeyetrucksales.com Ford, as he was seventh when it came out and on the verge of falling even further behind before getting up to fifth at the finish.

Finishing in positions 6-10 was BLS_Zombie, who brought out the only caution and rallied for a good finish; Doit 42 of Phoenix, Az.; VLR_AMP! Of Welland, Ontario, CN., who started 10th; BLS_BLZ of National City, Mi.; and West Point, Ms. driver VLR_JW, who was caught up in a late race accident with WFO_Stealth.

A field of 19 cars assembled for the event – which was run on a crisp fall night in the Iowa flatlands.

Heat winners were BLS_Zombie, VLR_JW, and WFO_Stealth. The B-Mains were captured by VLR_Shock and BLS_F1yer.

The VLR Crates tour will be back in action this coming Friday night (8 pm eastern) at the all new East Bay Raceway Park 2011 for the first race ever on this newly remodeled track. The action is expected to be fierce once again as VLR_18 looks to carry his momentum into the track and pick up another win over the top drivers in dtr2.

For more information on the VLR Crates visit www.crates.teamvlr.com.

Top 10 Results of VLR Late Model series Knoxville Crate Nationals 40 (Finishing Position/Start/Driver):

1. (9) VLR_18
2. (8) BLS_F1yer
3. (1) WFO_Stealth
4. (7) VLR_Shock
5. (4) VLR_McGee
6. (2) BLS_Zombie
7. (5) Doit 42
8. (10) VLR_AMP!
9. (6) BLS_BLZ
10. (3) VLR_JW

Time of Race: Unknown due to caution
Margin of Victory: 0.68 Secs.
Rookie of the Race: VLR_AMP!
SuperClean Fast Time Award: BLS_F1yer 13.68
SuperClean Hard Luck Award: VLR_JW