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REAPER DOMINATION--RYAN GUSTIN RUNS AWAY WITH MLRA FALLS NATIONALS NIGHT #2 WIN

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Wheatland, MO (October 4, 2024) - For the second consecutive night, the "Reaper" Ryan Gustin proved to be too tough to tame, as the Marshalltown, Iowa driver cruised to his 12th career Lucas Oil MLRA victory in the second of three nights for the MLRA Fall Nationals at the Lucas Oil Speedway.

Gustin started the 30 lapper from the outside of row two after winning the nights fourth heat race. MLRA point leader Chad Simpson started the race from the pole alongside of MyRacePass Fast Time award winner Stormy Scott. Simpson jumped to the race lead from the onset with Scott running in second, until giving way to Gustin on lap three for the runner up spot.

With Simpson maintaining the race lead, the nights only caution slowed the pace on lap seven when Payton Looney made hard contact with the turn four wall, bringing his night to an early ending. With Simpson and Gustin showing the way, all eyes were on up & coming driver Tyler Kuykendall who had raced from his sixth starting position to third at the time of the caution, and was testing Gustin for second.

On the restart Simpson moved back to the point, but it was only a matter of laps before Gustin found a rhythm along the top side of the Lucas Oil Speedway. Chad Simpson would slip up in turn 1 and 2, opening the door for Gustin to have a monster run off the exit of turn two, putting the Todd Cooney Motorsports 19r out front for the first time on the night.

Gustin would stretch out the advantage through lapped traffic in the closing laps to cash in on another $5,000 pay day by a margin of 5.379 seconds. "He was good there," Gustin commented of the early race battle with Chad Simpson. "I thought I about put him through the fence there when I through that slider, I didn't know if it was going to stick or not but it did."

Chad Simpson 3rd (Left), Ryan Gustin 1st (Center), Chris Simpson 2nd (Right). Photo Credit: Todd Boyd

Chris Simpson raced his way from tenth into a podium position and eventually into the second spot for the second night in a row after passing brother Chad with just five laps to go. "We felt good," explained Chris Simpson. "We just didn't qualify where we needed. We had to work our way up through there, and got up there pretty good. The felt good, we had to do a little more to it today than we did yesterday and it felt good. It's just when Ryan starts up front you ain't going to catch him. This would be two wins for us if Ryan would've stay home, but we'll take it," joked Simpson. "He's a hell of a racer and he has proven this year that they are the best of the best, so to come out here and run second to him twice, we'll take it."

Chad Simpson completed the nights podium in third while Justin Wells finished in fourth, his second straight top four run. Kuykendall would manage to hold onto 5th for his first career top five run with the Lucas Oil MLRA in just his first full year of open late model racing.

"Tonight was probably better than the last five races we've had so we're getting our stride back and getting closer, we're just still a tick off," noted Chad Simpson. "I think them guys found something a little better on the bottom than I did. I tried to go down there but I just felt like I had to whoa up so much to run down there. We definitely need to get a little better to run the bottom here and get around here just a little better. Hopefully I fixed my entry and we will get better."

Saturday night will put a cap on the MLRA "Fall Nationals" weekend. Action will include another complete show, culminating with a $10,000 to win and $700 to start 50 lap main event. Also on the card will be the $10,000 to win feature for the "Big Buck 50" Super Stocks.

Lucas Oil Speedway Contingencies 10/4/24

Lap Leaders - Chad Simpson (1 -12 ), Todd Cooney (13 - 30)

Cautions - 1

MyRacePass "Overall Fast Time Award" -- Stormy Scott (15.318 sec.)

Outerwears Crew Chief of the Race - Tim Douglas

MD3 "Most Laps Led" - Ryan Gustin (18)

Swift Springs "Move of the Race" - Ryan Gustin

Sunoco Race Fuel "Rookie of the Race" - Aaron Marrant

PEM Racing "4th Place Finisher" - Justin Wells

Fluidyne: "5th Place Finisher: - Tyler Kuykendall

Sunoco "Engine Builders Challenge" - Jay Dickens

Midwest Sheet Metal "Points Leader Spoiler Challenge" - Chad Simpson

MSD Performance Holley: "1st B-Main NON-Qualifier" - Rickey Frankel

MD3 Final Finisher: - Jimmy Vanzandt

Fall Nationals Night #230 Laps | 00:04:28.223

1. 19R-Ryan Gustin[4]; 2. 32-Chris Simpson[10]; 3. 25-Chad Simpson[1]; 4. 49W-Justin Wells[8]; 5. 15T-Tyler Kuykendall[6]; 6. 22-Daniel Hilsabeck[7]; 7. 2S-Stormy Scott[2]; 8. 93-Mason Oberkramer[5]; 9. 56JR-Tony Jackson Jr[15]; 10. 8-Dillon McCowan[11]; 11. 11T-Trevor Gundaker[9]; 12. 22H-Dustin Hodges[12]; 13. 20TC-Tristan Chamberlain[21]; 14. 11-Jeff Herzog[18]; 15. 2T-Tyler Stevens[13]; 16. 46-Earl Pearson Jr[20]; 17. 1XM-Aaron Marrant[17]; 18. 1XMJ-Matt Johnson[16]; 19. 29-Keith Hammett[22]; 20. 78S-Steve Stultz[23]; 21. (DNF) 36M-Logan Martin[14]; 22. (DNF) 31C-Cole Henson[19]; 23. (DNF) 15L-Payton Looney[3]; 24. (DNF) 67-Jimmy Vanzandt[24]

B Feature 1 Fast Shafts10 Laps | 00:10:36.132

1. 1XM-Aaron Marrant[1]; 2. 31C-Cole Henson[2]; 3. 20TC-Tristan Chamberlain[3]; 4. 33F-Rickey Frankel[5]; 5. 78S-Steve Stultz[7]; 6. 7W-Cole Wells[4]; 7. 1S-Shawn Knuckles[6]; 8. 10M-Jacob Magee[8]; 9. (DNF) 26G-Glen Powell[9]

B Feature 2 Wieland10 Laps | 00:09:02.495

1. 11-Jeff Herzog[2]; 2. 46-Earl Pearson Jr[1]; 3. 29-Keith Hammett[3]; 4. 50C-Kayden Clatt[6]; 5. 9G-Joseph Gorby[5]; 6. 16-Rusty Griffaw[7]; 7. 67-Jimmy Vanzandt[9]; 8. (DNF) 15S-Clayton Stuckey[4]; 9. (DNS) 7M-Allan Middendorf

H1-Flo Sports8 Laps | 00:03:30.433

1. 25-Chad Simpson[2]; 2. 93-Mason Oberkramer[1]; 3. 11T-Trevor Gundaker[4]; 4. 2T-Tyler Stevens[3]; 5. 1XM-Aaron Marrant[5]; 6. 20TC-Tristan Chamberlain[8]; 7. 33F-Rickey Frankel[7]; 8. 78S-Steve Stultz[6]; 9. 26G-Glen Powell[9]

H2-Simpson Race Products8 Laps | 00:03:33.216

1. 15L-Payton Looney[1]; 2. 22-Daniel Hilsabeck[3]; 3. 8-Dillon McCowan[5]; 4. 56JR-Tony Jackson Jr[7]; 5. 31C-Cole Henson[2]; 6. 7W-Cole Wells[4]; 7. 1S-Shawn Knuckles[6]; 8. 10M-Jacob Magee[8]

H3-Earnhardt Technologies8 Laps | 00:02:45.315

1. 2S-Stormy Scott[1]; 2. 15T-Tyler Kuykendall[2]; 3. 32-Chris Simpson[4]; 4. 36M-Logan Martin[3]; 5. 46-Earl Pearson Jr[7]; 6. 29-Keith Hammett[6]; 7. 9G-Joseph Gorby[5]; 8. 16-Rusty Griffaw[8]; 9. (DNS) 67-Jimmy Vanzandt

H4- Lucas Oil8 Laps | 00:01:17.756

1. 19R-Ryan Gustin[1]; 2. 49W-Justin Wells[3]; 3. 22H-Dustin Hodges[4]; 4. 1XMJ-Matt Johnson[6]; 5. 11-Jeff Herzog[5]; 6. 15S-Clayton Stuckey[8]; 7. 50C-Kayden Clatt[2]; 8. (DNF) 7M-Allan Middendorf[7]

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