10/22/2023
Ricky Thornton Jr
RTJ finishes third in Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series title chase
SSI Motorsports and Ricky Thornton Jr. rolled into Eldora Speedway (Rossburg, Ohio) on Friday as the famed half-mile oval hosted the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series (LOLMDS) for the 43rd General Tire Dirt Track World Championship weekend presented by Automotive Racing Products.
After Mother Nature postponed the majority of the originally scheduled two-day event to Sunday, Thornton backed up the third-fastest qualifying effort with a third-place finish in his heat.
Rolling off fifth for the $100,000-to-win Dirt Track World Championship, contact with a rut in turn four on the eighth circuit sent Ricky bouncing into another competitor, damaging several parts in his right-front suspension and forcing him into the infield hot pit. Despite being laps down, Thornton rejoined the field an salvaged an eighth-place outing in the 100-lap series finale.
His eighth-place finish in the Dirt Track World Championship relegated him to third in the final LOLMDS point standings.
Full results from the events are available at www.LucasDirt.com.
Article Credit: Mike Campbell photo