PETERSEN MEDIA
Robert Ballou took the white flag on Friday night nearly a half a straightaway behind race leader Kyle Cummins. Keeping his right rear planted on the Eldora Speedway cushion, the driver known as ‘The Mad Man’ wowed on lookers as he erased the gap heading into turn three, and edged out Cummins at the stripe to score his seventh career series win at the famed speedway.
“Our night started off pretty bad, and we weren’t that great at the start of the race,” Robert Ballou said. “I kept searching and moving around and really felt good on the top late in the race, and really let it all hang out. I didn’t think I had a chance when the white flag flew, but we kept at it and had just enough to pull it off.”
Timing the Deaton’s Waterfront Service/berks Western Telecom Inc./Suburban Subaru backed No. 12 in 10th fastest in qualifying time trials, a sour engine saw Ballou and company make a swap before heat race action.
Running fourth in his heat race, the Rocklin, CA driver transferred into the USAC portion of the Let’s Race Two feature, where he rolled off of the starting grid from the 11th starting position.
Biding his time in the Top-10 for much of the race, a late race incident propelled Ballou into the Top-Five for a late restart.
Coming to life on that restart, Ballou was able to work his way into third as he chased after Max Adams and Cummins who had built up a sizeable advantage.
Reeling in Adams with two to go, Ballou moved into second as the white flag flew and had his work cut out for him with Cummins out front with what appeared to be a comfortable advantage.
Staying committed to the top of the speedway, Ballou cut into his head as the raced into turns one and two, and had a drive off of two that shot him out of a cannon and allowed him to build up momentum to pull up alongside Cummins in turns three and four.
The duo raced neck and neck out of turn four and in a photo finish, it was Ballou winning by just .016 seconds, giving him his third win of the season and his first USAC National score.
Back in action for the finale on Saturday, Ballou’s night didn’t quite go as well. Timing in 10th fastest in time trials again, his second place finish in his heat race put him 13th on the starting grid.
Unable to get going from his mid-pack starting spot, Ballou capped his weekend off with a 14th place finish.
“We went from the penthouse to the outhouse over night,” Ballou joked. “Saturday night we were a little off, but it was one of those nights where being off really taught us a few things which is always good. Happy to get the win on Friday, and really happy with how things are going for our team as we finally are able to get racing.”
Robert Ballou would like to thank Suburban Subaru, Deaton’s Waterfront Service, Berks Western Telecom, Inc., CORinstallation, Amy Gardner Roofing, Hinchman Indy, Don Ott Racing Engines, Manvel Motorsports, Walker Performance Filtration, Amsoil Inc, Murray’s Body Shop, Konnected Clothing, Hooker Harness, Indy Race Parts, Hoosier Tire, Schoenfeld Headers, Chalk Racing Products, Keizer Aluminum Wheels, Saldana Racing Products, Moose Blocks, Inc., AO Designs, and Arai Helmets for their support.
ON TAP: Robert Ballou returns to action with the USAC National Tour on Friday night at Bloomington Speedway and on Saturday night at Tri-State Speedway in Haubstadt, IN.
BY THE NUMBERS: Starts-13, Wins- 3, Top 5’s- 6, Top-10’s- 6
STAY CONNECTED: Stay up to speed with ‘The Mad Man’ by following him on Twitter @RoberBallou81, liking https://www.facebook.com/robertballoumotorsports/, or by clicking over to www.balloumotorsports.com.