NASCAR Home Tracks

FINALIST: Outlaw’s Shoemaker Riding High

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – A NASCAR Division III driver at a first year NASCAR-sanctioned track is riding high at mid-season in a pair of points races.

Justin Shoemaker, 23, of Inola, Okla., leads the 360 Modified division points standings at Outlaw Motor Speedway in Muskogee, Okla. The beautiful .375-mile clay oval joined the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series this year. Shoemaker enters this weekend of competition ranked second behind Brad Derry at I-80 Speedway in Omaha, Neb., in the NASCAR Finalist dirt Division III points standings.

The new NASCAR Finalist national recognition program focuses on the divisions outside of the Feature Division at each NASCAR Whelen All-American Series track. Points are kept separately for dirt and asphalt tracks. A NASCAR-licensed driver’s best 14 finishes are counted toward their final points total for the year.

Each track in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series designates its top division as its Feature Division, and assigns its remaining divisions a designation of II, III, IV or V. The Finalist Program was established this season to recognize the drivers in those latter divisions.

In addition to Derry in Division III, other dirt division leaders include Division II Jim Hendricks Jr., I-80 Speedway; Division IV, Joe Baker, I-80 Speedway; and Division V, Andy Wilkinson, Junction Motor Speedway, McCool Junction, Neb.

NASCAR asphalt division leaders include Division II Derek Stoltz, Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, N.C.; Division III, Brent Kane, Raceway Park, Shakopee, Minn.; Division IV, Danny Field, Waterford (Conn.) Speedbowl; and Division V, Doug Schmitz, Raceway Park.

COMPLETE DIRT STANDINGS | COMPLETE ASPHALT STANDINGS

Shoemaker, a pipe welder, followed his father, Sam, into short-track racing after starting out in dirt and pavement go-kart racing. When his dad stopped racing, Shoemaker went to the track with his uncle, Charlie Shoemaker. When it was time for him to start racing, young Shoemaker started out racing a Camaro stock car, and stayed in the division for three seasons. In 2009, Shoemaker moved to the 360 Modified Division at Outlaw Motor Speedway. He posted three wins and finished third in track points.

Entering this weekend’s competition, Shoemaker leads the track points race with three wins, 10 top fives and 11 top 10s in 12 starts.

“We’re trying to keep our momentum going,” Shoemaker said. “We started out last year not knowing much about the Modified race car. We got some good advice from some of the veterans and we got a good Dirt Works by Mack chassis and learned a lot.”

Shoemaker credits his crew for the smooth transition to the open-wheel 360 Modifieds. The team includes crew chief Rick Shannon, and crewmen Boone Johnson, Sonny Mathews, his dad Sam and grandfather Abner.

Team sponsors include Native Concrete Construction, Mack Race Cars, BMS Race Engines, Smith All-Fab Motorsports, Capes Welding & Fabrication and BMS Race Engines. His racing also supports the Boomer Motorsports Charity, which supports children in need.

Shoemaker’s accomplishments so far in 2010 are stout, considering a typical race night at Outlaw Motor Speedway attracted 20-28 cars, and his typical starting position – determined by points average – is in the eighth row. The feature event distance is a fast 20 laps.

Shoemaker says the combination of Outlaw Motor Speedway facility and management and the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series sanction has proven to be successful.

“The whole operation is top notch. Outlaw Motor Speedway is one of the best tracks I’ve been to,” Shoemaker said. “We’ve been getting great crowds and part of that is that we race at a NASCAR-sanctioned track. For us, having a NASCAR license has been good for us. People know what NASCAR is and we’re glad to be part of it.”

The NASCAR Finalist points structure is the same as the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Feature Division. The feature winner receives two points for every car in the feature up to 20. Second place receives two fewer points and that distribution continues through the field. Race winners receive five additional bonus points. For example, if there were 20 cars in the feature, the winner would receive 45 points, second gets 38 and third 36. If there are 15 cars the winner receives 35 points, second gets 28 and third 26.

At season’s end, the top driver in each of the four asphalt and four dirt NASCAR divisions will receive invitations to the 2010 NASCAR Whelen All-American Series awards banquet December 10 in the Crown Ballroom in the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte, N.C. where they will be recognized.