BRL OUTLAWS S36 R9 Recap

24 August 2024
Bootleg Racing League | Season 36 | Round 9
Outlaw Modified Series | South Boston Speedway

On Saturday, August 24th, the Bootleg Racing League’s Outlaw SK Modified Invitational Series took to South Boston Speedway for the 9th round of Season 36. Steve Hilbert started the night from the pole, with Adam Schoen to his outside. Points leader Todd Liston faced a challenging night, starting deep in the field in 11th.

As the green flag dropped, chaos erupted almost immediately. Contact between Schoen and Kurt Smith on the opening lap shuffled the front of the pack, giving John Wilson a prime opportunity to strike. When racing resumed on lap 7, Wilson found himself on the outside of the front row. He took full advantage, launching off the restart and wrestling the lead away from Hilbert with a daring move on the outside.

Wilson quickly settled into a rhythm, maintaining the race lead through the first half of the night. Meanwhile, Donny Moore, who started further back, was methodically working his way through the field, biding his time and saving his equipment for a late charge. The second half of the race saw the action intensify as tires began to wear, and drivers became more aggressive in their attempts to gain positions.

The frequent cautions and short green flag runs in the latter stages played into Wilson’s hands, allowing him to protect his lead without putting too much stress on his tires. However, these restarts also provided Moore with the perfect opportunity to climb through the pack and emerge as a serious contender. On a crucial restart at lap 69, Moore made his move, seizing the second spot and setting his sights on Wilson out front.

As the laps wound down, Moore inched closer to Wilson, and with just 6 laps to go, he made his decisive move. Exiting turn 2 with a strong run, Moore carried his momentum into turn 3, diving to the inside and out-braking Wilson to snatch the race lead. But the drama was far from over. On the final lap, Moore got loose in turn 3, momentarily losing grip and pace. Sensing an opportunity, Wilson dove low in a last-ditch effort to reclaim the lead, but he too found himself struggling to keep his car under control.

The two drivers charged out of the final corner, wheels spinning and hearts racing. Moore managed to gather his car up just enough to hold off Wilson by a razor-thin margin, crossing the line 9 hundredths of a second ahead to claim the victory.

The Bootleg Racing League will return in two weeks, on September 7th, for the penultimate round of the season at Oswego Speedway, with the action going live at 7:40 PM ET only on the Virtual Grip Network!