Dave Hoffman & Alexander Horn Win at Talladega
September 28th, 2009 by Jaime Baker
Sunday was another day of first time winners in the iRacing Oval Pro Series as Dave Hoffman and Alexander Horn both grabbed their first win at Talladega.
In the first of two races on Sunday, Hoffman, coming from the eighth starting position, took his first iRacing Oval Pro series win after an exciting race that saw only one caution and one lead change over 80 laps. Hoffman passed for the lead on lap 42 and never looked back, holding-on to the win with a green-white-checker finish and earning 259 points towards the championship. Hoffman gained 90 iRating for his win, giving him a total iRating of 4310. With his victory, Hoffman moved to 25th overall in the iRacing Oval Pro Series point standings.
Rick Savage started on pole and led the first 41 laps but ultimately finished second, just .061 seconds behind Hoffman. Savage earned 243 points for his second place finish and increased his iRating 103 points to a total iRating of 3380. With his second place finish, Savage moved up to 62nd overall in the iRacing Oval Pro Series point standings.
Brad Wright used a consistent strategy after starting third to finish third and earn 228 points towards the championship. Wright gained 73 iRating to have a total iRating of 4103 and grabbed his fourth top-5 of the season. With his fourth top-5, Wright moved up to 47th in the iRacing Oval Pro Series point standings.
The second race had a slower pace but was none the less exciting as Alexander Horn grabbed the victory after starting in the fifth position. Horn lead only 15 laps on the day and earned 254 points with his first place finish. Horn gained 58 iRating to have a total iRating of 5684 and moved to 12th overall in the iRacing Oval Pro Series.
Tony LaGrene, who has been quiet all year, scored his first top-5 of the season with his second place finish at Talladega. LaGrene scored 239 points with his second place finish and moved up to 60th in the iRacing Oval Pro Series point standings. LaGrene also put on a stellar drive as he started seventh on the day and earned 81 iRating to have a total iRating of 4173 with his runner up finish.
Howard LeBon started third and maintained that position when he crossed the finish line. Lebon had eight incidents but still managed a strong finish and gained 224 points towards the championship. Lebon lead 13 laps during the day and gained 51 iRating to have a total iRating of 4950. Lebon is quite a ways out from the top-50 cut off, but still jumped up to 118th overall in the iRacing Oval Pro Series standings.
Former NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver, Daniel Pope II, finished 11th at Talladega in this split and iRacing Road Pro Series championship contender Luke McLean had a rough day finishing last after starting eighth in his split, 28 laps down.
With the eighth week of the iRacing Oval Pro Series behind us in Talladega in the books, the series heads onto New Hampshire Motor Speedway with Brad Davies still in command of the championship.
The Top-10 drivers in the iRacing Oval Pro Championship oand other notables are as follows:
1. Brad Davies 2307
2. Brian Schoenburg -154
3. Theo Olson -181
4. Jesse Atchison -227
5. Josh Parker -237
6. Nicholas Morse -248
7. Ray Alfalla -309
8. Josh Berry -335
9. Connor Mackenzie -356
10. Tyler Hudson -376
Notables: 28th – Dale Earnhardt Jr., 45th – Daniel Pope II, 50th – Mike Izzo, 139th – TJ Majors.
Of the 250 drivers to earn an iPSO License, 213 have made a start this season.