One week after driving to a fourth-place finish in a 100-lap NASCAR Whelen All-American Series race at Hickory Motor Speedway (NC), 15-year-old Kentucky-racer Ben Rhodes headed back to the historic track to race in the UARA-STARS Late Model Stock season opener on Saturday, March 17th. After starting the 150-lap race in the 10th position, Rhodes used patience through the race, driving the Marcos Ambrose Motorsport #9 Stanley Ford Fusion to a third-place finish, earning the Rookie of the Race award.
On Friday, Rhodes and the team pulled into the track for a few hours to shake down the car and get it ready for race day.
“We used Friday to try out a few things for Saturday,” said Rhodes. “We didn’t really work on race runs and handling; just more getting the right gear and a few other things prepared. Last week we learned a few things we wanted to check out and get set for this week, so Friday worked well to check out those things.”
Rhodes and the Marcos Ambrose Motorsport team unloaded on Saturday for practice, turning strong times during the two sessions. On the charts, he was fifth fastest in the first session and second fastest in the final practice prior to qualifying. When he went out for the qualifying run, Rhodes clicked off a 15.435-second lap, putting him 10th out of 28 cars.
“We were a little loose during qualifying,” explained Rhodes. “We wanted to qualify a little better, but 10th wasn’t a bad spot for us based on our race strategy.”
With 150 laps of competition taking the green flag, Rhodes paced himself during the event, saving his car and tires for the end of the race. He dropped back to 12th at one point, but was up to ninth at the halfway point. With 50 laps to go, Rhodes started to pick up the pace, picking off cars until he was up to sixth with 25 laps remaining. He continued to work his way to the front, getting to the third position by lap 138. After a late-race yellow, Rhodes was able to hang on to the third position when the checkered flag flew.
“We had a great race,” said Rhodes. “The car handled really well and we were just being patient during the first 100 laps. My spotter kept me out of trouble on the track while we logged laps until go time. We did end up with a little damage on the car during the race, but that happens in short track racing.”
Rhodes’ third-place finish earned him the Rookie of the Race honors.
“There is a huge crop of talented rookies this year in UARA, so it is an accomplishment to obtain the Rookie of the Race award for the first race of the year.
“It was a great effort by the entire Marcos Ambrose Motorsport team, including Jamie Yelton, Lee McCall and the Fat Head Racing gang. They did a great job keeping the #9 Stanley Ford Fusion fast and consistent during the entire weekend.”
The next UARA-STARS Late Model Stock event will take place on Saturday, April 7th, at Dillon Motor Speedway (SC). Prior to that event, Rhodes will be back behind the wheel of the #9 Stanley Ford Fusion at Hickory Motor Speedway on Saturday, March 24th, in a 50-lap NASCAR Whelen All-American Series event.
Make sure to follow Rhodes on Facebook and Twitter for updates during the week and race day updates at www.facebook.com/benrhodesinc and www.twitter.com/benrhodesinc.