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 IRVINE,
CALIFORNIA (JULY 7, 2011)
– Lakeport's
Derek Thorn made a valiant return to the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West
Saturday in Irwindale, California. Competing in the Toyota Dealers
of Southern California 200 presented by King Taco at Toyota
Speedway, Thorn raced his way to an impressive second place finish
aboard the Byron Campbell Racing #44 Chevrolet that carries primary
sponsorship from Four Star Fruit with additional support from
Superior Crankshaft and Hronis Racing.
"The crew did an
awesome job getting the car dialed in and it really showed in the
last 100 laps," said Thorn. "Four Star Fruit and Hronis Racing have
created a great opportunity for us to show that we belong up front.
We ran well at the Showdown back in January and to come back to
Irwindale and run up front again compliments our partners and
sponsors that work so hard to get us there."
Saturday night
marked Thorn's third start of 2011 in the series that features the
future stars of NASCAR and some of the most action packed racing of
all NASCAR sanctioned divisions with the best of the best in young
talent. When the checkered flag flew on Saturday's race, Thorn once
again proved he is very much among that top talent and has a solid
future ahead in professional auto racing.
In preliminary
action on Saturday, Thorn drove the Four Star Fruit/Superior
Crankshaft and Hronis Racing #44 Chevrolet to the top of the charts
in practice with a lap time of 18:668 seconds and a top speed of
96.422 around the half mile. The early success illustrated that
Thorn picked up right where he left off in Irwindale back in January
when he turned many heads by earning the pole in the Toyota
Showdown.
In qualifying on
Saturday, Thorn turned the eighth fastest lap of the day with a top
speed of 96.489 miles per hour. Thorn's Chevrolet appeared to be
destined for a top qualifying lap after the success in practice but
a slight error in turn three during his run cost the 25-year-old
stock car ace a few ticks on the stopwatch. Thorn would do what he
does best in the wake of the slight set back, rally back towards the
front of the field and put on a show for the fans and the 80 plus
Superior Crankshaft guests in attendance.
After the waving of
the green flag, Thorn quickly muscled towards the front of the field
and began to battle with fifth place runner Jason Fensler with only
three laps into the event. Shortly after both drivers broke into the
top five it became a multi car battle as Thorn and Fensler began
racing with Michael Self in the fourth position. Thorn would settle
into the fifth position for several laps as he battled a very loose
car and was looking forward to the caution break at the race's
halfway point to make the needed adjustments.
With crew chief
Junior Joiner making the perfect calls on the needed adjustments,
Thorn returned to the track at the halfway point in the seventh
starting position. With a much tighter car he quickly began working
his way to the front. On lap 105 he went to the low side of the
track and powered his way all the way up to the fourth position.
Five laps later he reinstated his battle with Fensler for the third
position for the next nine laps until overtaking Fensler with 119
laps complete.
"After restarting
seventh at that final 100 mark it was awesome being able to make it
back to the front and challenge for the lead," said Thorn. "We had a
chance there at one point to try and pass the leader but I couldn't
complete the pass. The car was a little off in the first 100, we
were only good on the short runs but the crew did a good job getting
the car where it belonged for the final half."
With 164 laps in
the book, Thorn made the battle for the second position a three car
contest he raced side by side with Dylan Kwasniewski and Michael
Self for the position behind leader Greg Pursley. One lap later
Thorn overtook the bridesmaid position from Self and began closing
in on Pursley for the lead. He made one strong attempt to get around
the dominant leader; however, as the #44 Impala was becoming loose
once again he was forced to settle down into the second position all
the way to the checkered flag.
As he pulled into
the pit area following his run the celebration was a jubilant as if
he had scored the victory with the Campbell and Joiner crew as well
as many fellow team owners and drivers who were quick to commend
Thorn for his solid run. The second place finish was well needed by
the team who were forced to park their car at the last NASCAR West
event in Vegas due to mechanical woes prior to the start of the race
"I really wanted
that win, I feel the caliber of our team is very capable of winning
one of these K&N races," added Thorn. "It's harder being a part time
team and showing up against these well funded operations. It was
awesome being able to put on a charge late in the race. Four Star
Fruit and Hronis were there on hand watching as well as a lot of the
employees from Superior Crankshaft so it was really cool being able
to run up front. I'm really proud of our Joiner Motrorsports crew;
they worked their butts off to keep us up front and in contention. I
can't wait to get back to the K&N Series; we're shooting for the
Phoenix
race in the fall so hopefully we can get this team their first win
there in the series."
Thorn will now
return to his championship chase in the SPEARS SRL Southwest Tour
Series on July 23rd at Rocky Mountain Raceway in Salt Lake City
Utah.
Derek Thorn is
proud to carry the sponsorship of Four Star Fruits and Hronis Racing
in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West. Additionally Thorn has a number
of marketing partners and associate sponsors supporting his efforts.
Among the sponsors are: Eibach Springs, Joiner Race Cars, Superior
Crankshaft, JRI Shocks, Joe's Racing Products, NEO, Finishline
Signs, Sigma Engineering and Fastenal.
To learn more about this talented young driver
visit Derek Thorn's personal website at
www.derekthorn.com. Further information
can also be found at the site of one of his title sponsors,
www.superiorcrankshaftracing.com.
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