Exciting times for St. Amant as Northern Division title awaits
SOUTH BOSTON, Va. (Aug. 3) -- Since the second race of 2007, JEGS.com/Speedco racer Gary St. Amant has carried the No. 1 designation in the USAR Pro Cup Northern Division points standings. Now the two-time ASA world champion will try to hold onto his ranking for the final race of the regular season Aug. 11 at South Boston Speedway to claim his first USAR divisional title and enter the five-race title chase with a 25-point lead in the championship series.
"This is what we've been racing for," St. Amant said. "It's time to clinch this deal and head into the Championship Series with as much momentum as possible."
St. Amant enters SoBo 65 points ahead of 2005 USAR champion Benny Gordon, the only driver with a chance to catch him in the points. He knows that his lead is fairly substantial, but he also knows Gordon is a very capable foe who will be ready to pounce on any misstep his JEGS.com/Speedco Truck Lube Chevrolet Monte Carlo team might make.
"We need to race smart, but we're not going to hold back too much," said St. Amant, who won earlier this year in Salem, Ind. "We'd love to close out the regular season with a win. Of course, top priority at the moment is clinching the Northern Division and getting those 25 bonus points heading into the Championship Series.
"I credit my team and my dad Bud St. Amant for all the success we've had this year. Everyone has been working so hard to give me a great car week-in and week-out and we've been able to avoid any big smash-ups on the track. I feel very lucky and very happy with the way things have gone so far, but we're not done yet."
Adding to his Salem win, St. Amant has scored a trio of third-place finishes, one fifth-place ending, and a 10th- and a 12th-place result in seven starts. His previous visit to SoBo for the season-opener resulted in the fifth-place finish and has him mulling over an interesting option for the upcoming race.
"We were still running the old car then and I might just run it again with the exact same set-up this time through," St. Amant said. "We're certainly going to bring it with us and see how she runs in testing. Then we'll make our determination on that.
"We're excited for this race. I can't remember the last time I was this fired-up for an event. Hopefully, we can bring home that Northern Division title for JEGS.com and Speedco and then make a nice run at the USAR title. That's the plan."
