“It’s been forever since I’ve raced here so I really didn’t know what to think when we showed up, but we got up to speed pretty fast. The car felt good in practice so I knew I had a good racecar underneath me. I can’t explain how good it feels to finish fourth in our first race of 2012; we went all year without finishing in the top five last season so to get this finish means a lot for this team’s confidence right now,” said Smith after the race.
It didn’t take long for Smith to showcase the speed his #99 SealMaster of Austin Chevy Impala had in it as he quickly made his way just outside the top five after qualifying seventeenth in less than sixty laps. At the events halfway break on lap 100 Casey positioned himself in the third position just behind eventual winner, NASCAR Sprint Cup series driver Kyle Busch.
It soon became a four car breakaway battle for the lead with Casey right in the middle of it all. With laps winding down and Busch in the lead Smith battled fellow super late model regular Bubba Pollard for the second place position before slight racing contact sent Smith back to third. In the final few laps it would be another NASCAR Sprint Cup series driver in the form of David Ragan who would come between the #99 machine and the top spot as the checkered flag waved.
“Anytime you can say you race with Kyle Busch and David Ragan for the win your saying a lot. I really thought though we might have something for Kyle, but then I was trying to get around Bubba for second and we made some contact that cost us a few car lengths on them both,” added Smith. “It was just one of those racing deals I guess but it cost us in the end I think. Regardless I couldn’t be happier with our finish and can’t wait for the Rattler in March.”
For more information on Texas super late model driver Casey Smith and his Casey Smith Racing team visit his website at www.caseysmithracing.com.
- Tex Motorsports Marketing Press Release
