Photos courtesy of Toni Carbone
Budweiser Points leader and three-time feature winner Mat Williamson started on the outside pole along with Brad Rapp and took the early lead. The conventional wisdom in the press box was that, like in the Sprint feature, the race was on for second. But Jeremiah Shingledecker had other ideas! The first glimpse of what was in store came on a lap six restart when Jeremiah Shingledecker made a great move in turns one & two to dive below Williamson and Rapp to take the lead down the back straightaway, but a caution before the lap was completed nullified the pass for the lead and Shingledecker was denied access to the same line on the second restart. Shingledecker, however, took second from Rapp before the next caution waved and then had another great restart after a lap 11 caution before taking the lead from Williamson on lap 12. Once out front, Shingledecker drove unchallenged to his first win of the season in a caution-free end to the race. The winning decision actually came hours earlier when Shingledecker unloaded his “small block car” after evaluating track conditions upon arrival!
Williamson chased him to the checkered flag, but never posed a serious threat to retake the lead. He did however, extend his lead in the Budweiser Points to 40 over second place Brian Swartzlander (who finished Friday’s feature in fifth) and 41 points over Shingldecker. Eric Gabany, also the pilot of a “small block”, scored his best Fab Four finish in third; recall however, that Gabany won the “Small Block Showcase” at Lernerville in 2012. Polesitter Brad Rapp finished in fourth ahead of Swartzlander. Dave Murdick, Steve Feder, Rex King Jr., Rex King Sr. and Tom Winkle rounded out the Diehl Top Ten. Swartzlander and Williamson were victorious in heat race action.