Walt
09-17-2009, 08:30 PM
Morris Claims Third National Championship In Four Years
Virginia driver edges Connecticut’s Rocco and California’s Joanides
Click Here for the WHELEN All-American Series National Standings (http://localracing.nascar.com/node/228)
Click Here for the WHELEN All-American Series State-by-State Standings (http://localracing.nascar.com/node/255)
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Sept. 16, 2009) – Every time Philip Morris thinks he’s reached the pinnacle of his racing career, he goes out and tops himself. The Ruckersville, Va., driver did it again this year as he claimed the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series national championship for the third time in four years.
The 44-year-old Morris finished the season with his seventh Late Model championship at Motor Mile Speedway in Radford, Va. Combined with his performance at South Boston (Va.) Speedway, Morris collected nine wins, 20 top fives and 23 top 10s in 28 starts to outdistance runner-up Keith Rocco of Wallingford, Conn., and Nick Joanides of Woodland Hills, Calif., for NASCAR’s top short-track honor.
Morris previously won the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series national championship in 2006 and 2008.
“I thought the first we won would be the best,” Morris said. “When we won last year by two points, I thought that was going to be untoppable. Having this year go the way it did, this is definitely the most gratifying, the hardest earned, and I thought, the most competitive. This was the best one yet.”
Morris finished with 841 points, pulling away from Rocco (816 points) and Joanides (813) over the final month of the season.
Track, state and province, and the top three finishers in the national standings earn invitations to the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Awards Banquet in Concord, N.C., Friday, Nov. 13.
By virtue of his national championship, Morris also earned a secure spot in the NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown, to be held at the Toyota Speedway at Irwindale (Calif.) Jan. 29-30, 2010.
Morris is just the second driver in the history of the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series, which dates back to 1982, to win multiple championships. The late Larry Phillips of Springfield, Mo., won five titles between 1989-1996.
In his first two championship seasons, Morris won the title by just two points – equal to one position on the track during the course of the season. Although his final margin of victory was larger this year, Morris said this one was definitely harder, and therefore, more special.
It started out easy, as Morris won six of his first nine races. He also had two second-place finishes and a third.
Then came the dry spell.
From May 23 to Aug. 1 – a span of 13 races – Morris went to Victory Lane just once. He had seven finishes outside the top five and four of worse than 10th.
“We stepped up our energy level,” Morris said. “We just poured ourselves into getting back. The more we failed to get to Victory Lane, the more we tried. When it came back at the end of the season, the victories were so much sweeter and it was so much more appreciated.
“That extra effort, that extra sacrifice, made it mean so much more when we finally won the championship again.”
In the last six races of the season, Morris had two wins, two seconds and a third to reclaim the top spot in the national points standings. Behind crew chief Neil Perkins and driving cars he owned in addition to equipment owned by Jim Dean, Morris also earned his third straight NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Virginia state championship.
A driver’s best 18 results are counted toward their state and national points totals.
Rocco, who was fourth in the nation in 2008, had 13 wins, 31 top fives and 35 top 10s in 45 starts this season in the Modified divisions at Thompson (Conn.) International Speedway, Stafford (Conn.) Motor Speedway, and Waterford (Conn.) Speedbowl.
“It was just an awesome season,” said Rocco, who credited his relationship with crew chief Shane Hopkins over the past three seasons as a big reason for his success. “You sit here and think about it, and it all comes down to the people behind you. I wouldn’t be where I was today if it wasn’t for the people surrounding me.”
Rocco also earned his second straight NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Connecticut state title.
“I can’t say enough about the Whelen All-American Series for giving us an awesome series to race with,” Rocco said. “And I can’t forget about the tracks – Stafford, Thompson and Waterford. Without them being NASCAR-sanctioned, we wouldn’t be able to get where we are either.”
Joanides ended up 13 wins and 21 top fives in 21 starts in the Super Late Model division at the Toyota Speedway at Irwindale (Calif.). He won his second straight track title and is the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series California state champion.
“It was an incredible year,” said Joanides. “I didn’t think we even had a shot at the national championship initially. It’s tough – almost bittersweet – to come that close. But the fact that a West Coast track was in contention until the final week was incredible. You have to give credit to Toyota Speedway with coming up with a schedule that allowed us to compete for the championship.
A bent valve in the second-to-last race of the season produced a fifth-place finish in that event. It was just the second time he finished outside the top two all season.
“The team did a really great job on the car to help me run well,” said Joanides. “Fortunately, I did my job. It was one of those dream seasons.”
Bill Leighton Jr. of Omaha, Neb., who won dirt Late Model championships at Junction Motor Speedway in McCool Junction, Neb., and I-80 Speedway in Omaha, finished fourth with 803 points. Plainville, Conn., driver Ted Christopher, who races against Rocco at Thompson and Stafford, rounded out the top five with 779.
Under the points structure for the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series, the race winner received two points for every car in the event up to 23 cars. Second place received two fewer points, and so-on through the field. For example, if there were 23 cars, the winner received 46 points, second got 44 and third 42. If there were 15 cars, the winner received 30 points, second got 28 and third 26. Race winners received an additional five bonus points.
Special thanks to Jason Christley, NASCAR PR for providing us with these releases throughout the season.
Virginia driver edges Connecticut’s Rocco and California’s Joanides
Click Here for the WHELEN All-American Series National Standings (http://localracing.nascar.com/node/228)
Click Here for the WHELEN All-American Series State-by-State Standings (http://localracing.nascar.com/node/255)
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Sept. 16, 2009) – Every time Philip Morris thinks he’s reached the pinnacle of his racing career, he goes out and tops himself. The Ruckersville, Va., driver did it again this year as he claimed the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series national championship for the third time in four years.
The 44-year-old Morris finished the season with his seventh Late Model championship at Motor Mile Speedway in Radford, Va. Combined with his performance at South Boston (Va.) Speedway, Morris collected nine wins, 20 top fives and 23 top 10s in 28 starts to outdistance runner-up Keith Rocco of Wallingford, Conn., and Nick Joanides of Woodland Hills, Calif., for NASCAR’s top short-track honor.
Morris previously won the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series national championship in 2006 and 2008.
“I thought the first we won would be the best,” Morris said. “When we won last year by two points, I thought that was going to be untoppable. Having this year go the way it did, this is definitely the most gratifying, the hardest earned, and I thought, the most competitive. This was the best one yet.”
Morris finished with 841 points, pulling away from Rocco (816 points) and Joanides (813) over the final month of the season.
Track, state and province, and the top three finishers in the national standings earn invitations to the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Awards Banquet in Concord, N.C., Friday, Nov. 13.
By virtue of his national championship, Morris also earned a secure spot in the NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown, to be held at the Toyota Speedway at Irwindale (Calif.) Jan. 29-30, 2010.
Morris is just the second driver in the history of the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series, which dates back to 1982, to win multiple championships. The late Larry Phillips of Springfield, Mo., won five titles between 1989-1996.
In his first two championship seasons, Morris won the title by just two points – equal to one position on the track during the course of the season. Although his final margin of victory was larger this year, Morris said this one was definitely harder, and therefore, more special.
It started out easy, as Morris won six of his first nine races. He also had two second-place finishes and a third.
Then came the dry spell.
From May 23 to Aug. 1 – a span of 13 races – Morris went to Victory Lane just once. He had seven finishes outside the top five and four of worse than 10th.
“We stepped up our energy level,” Morris said. “We just poured ourselves into getting back. The more we failed to get to Victory Lane, the more we tried. When it came back at the end of the season, the victories were so much sweeter and it was so much more appreciated.
“That extra effort, that extra sacrifice, made it mean so much more when we finally won the championship again.”
In the last six races of the season, Morris had two wins, two seconds and a third to reclaim the top spot in the national points standings. Behind crew chief Neil Perkins and driving cars he owned in addition to equipment owned by Jim Dean, Morris also earned his third straight NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Virginia state championship.
A driver’s best 18 results are counted toward their state and national points totals.
Rocco, who was fourth in the nation in 2008, had 13 wins, 31 top fives and 35 top 10s in 45 starts this season in the Modified divisions at Thompson (Conn.) International Speedway, Stafford (Conn.) Motor Speedway, and Waterford (Conn.) Speedbowl.
“It was just an awesome season,” said Rocco, who credited his relationship with crew chief Shane Hopkins over the past three seasons as a big reason for his success. “You sit here and think about it, and it all comes down to the people behind you. I wouldn’t be where I was today if it wasn’t for the people surrounding me.”
Rocco also earned his second straight NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Connecticut state title.
“I can’t say enough about the Whelen All-American Series for giving us an awesome series to race with,” Rocco said. “And I can’t forget about the tracks – Stafford, Thompson and Waterford. Without them being NASCAR-sanctioned, we wouldn’t be able to get where we are either.”
Joanides ended up 13 wins and 21 top fives in 21 starts in the Super Late Model division at the Toyota Speedway at Irwindale (Calif.). He won his second straight track title and is the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series California state champion.
“It was an incredible year,” said Joanides. “I didn’t think we even had a shot at the national championship initially. It’s tough – almost bittersweet – to come that close. But the fact that a West Coast track was in contention until the final week was incredible. You have to give credit to Toyota Speedway with coming up with a schedule that allowed us to compete for the championship.
A bent valve in the second-to-last race of the season produced a fifth-place finish in that event. It was just the second time he finished outside the top two all season.
“The team did a really great job on the car to help me run well,” said Joanides. “Fortunately, I did my job. It was one of those dream seasons.”
Bill Leighton Jr. of Omaha, Neb., who won dirt Late Model championships at Junction Motor Speedway in McCool Junction, Neb., and I-80 Speedway in Omaha, finished fourth with 803 points. Plainville, Conn., driver Ted Christopher, who races against Rocco at Thompson and Stafford, rounded out the top five with 779.
Under the points structure for the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series, the race winner received two points for every car in the event up to 23 cars. Second place received two fewer points, and so-on through the field. For example, if there were 23 cars, the winner received 46 points, second got 44 and third 42. If there were 15 cars, the winner received 30 points, second got 28 and third 26. Race winners received an additional five bonus points.
Special thanks to Jason Christley, NASCAR PR for providing us with these releases throughout the season.