Post by Dirt Master on May 30, 2007 6:50:10 GMT -5
Contact: DIRT MotorSports d/b/a World Racing Group
Kevin Kovac, World of Outlaws Late Model Series P.R. Director
704-254-7929 . kkovac@dirtmotorsports.com
Josh Richards Suffers Slight Concussion In Show-Me 100 Practice Crash, Will Sit Out Weekend Of Racing
Teenage Sensation Will Return To Action In May 31 World of Outlaws Late Model Series Event At Delaware International Speedway
WEST PLAINS, MO - May 25, 2007 - World of Outlaws Late Model Series star Josh Richards suffered a slight concussion in a hard crash during Thursday night's practice for the 15th annual Show-Me 100 at West Plains Motor Speedway, forcing him to withdraw from competition for the remainder of the weekend.
Richards, 19, of Shinnston, W.Va., was shaking down a new Mark Richards Racing-owned Seubert Calf Ranches Rocket car on the three-eighths-mile oval when the accident occurred. The machine reared up on its right-rear corner as Richards slid hard into turn one, sending him into a wild series of barrel-rolls.
The car bounced off the top of the track's concrete wall rollcage-first and flipped at least two more times before coming to rest between turns one and two.
Richards was stunned but conscious when safety crews reached him. He climbed out of the cockpit and rode the ambulance back to his team's hauler, but shortly thereafter was taken by his father Mark to a local hospital for tests.
"We were at the hospital for about three hours and everything checked out O.K.," said Mark Richards, who co-owns the well-known Rocket Chassis business in Shinnston, W.Va. "He has a slight concussion and he's sore, but he's going to be alright."
Mark Richards said Josh's car was "completely totaled," but held up well considering the hit it absorbed on the wall. It was a car that Josh had never before raced and sported some new setup ideas that the Rocket team has developed during recent test sessions.
Prior to his wreck, Josh had been turning laps around West Plains Motor Speedway that were among the fastest of the night, making him confident of his chances in the Show-Me 100. Fellow WoO LMS regular Steve Francis of Ashland, Ky., was also fast in Thursday night's practice driving a new Rocket car identical to Richards's.
"The car was really good," said Richards, who had flipped a dirt Late Model only once previously in his career, last August at Lernerville Speedway in Sarver, Pa. "I really think we had something for the weekend, but things happen sometimes.
"The track (surface) was smooth but it was real fast, and I think my car was a little tight," he continued, describing the circumstances of his crash. "When I went in the turn it just stuck and flipped completely over. I don't remember much about what happened after that."
For precautionary reasons relating to his concussion, Richards will not pull out a backup car and compete in the Show-Me 100, a crown-jewel dirt Late Model event that runs this Friday and Saturday night and pays $41,000 to win. He had also contemplated entering Sunday night's Sunoco American Late Model Series show at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio, to obtain valuable track time in advance of the June 8-9 UMP DIRTcar Racing-sanctioned 'Dirt Late Model Dream,' but those plans have been scrapped.
Richards's next start will be the WoO LMS 'First State 50' on Thurs., May 31, at Delaware International Speedway in Delmar, Del. He will also see WoO LMS action that weekend on Sat., June 2, in the 'Conococheague 50' at Hagerstown (Md.) Speedway.
Coming off a runner-up finish in the WoO LMS 'Great Lakes 50' on May 18 at I-96 Speedway in Lake Odessa, Mich., Richards ranks fourth in the current tour point standings.
For more information on the WoO LMS, visit www.worldofoutlaws.com.
Kevin Kovac, World of Outlaws Late Model Series P.R. Director
704-254-7929 . kkovac@dirtmotorsports.com
Josh Richards Suffers Slight Concussion In Show-Me 100 Practice Crash, Will Sit Out Weekend Of Racing
Teenage Sensation Will Return To Action In May 31 World of Outlaws Late Model Series Event At Delaware International Speedway
WEST PLAINS, MO - May 25, 2007 - World of Outlaws Late Model Series star Josh Richards suffered a slight concussion in a hard crash during Thursday night's practice for the 15th annual Show-Me 100 at West Plains Motor Speedway, forcing him to withdraw from competition for the remainder of the weekend.
Richards, 19, of Shinnston, W.Va., was shaking down a new Mark Richards Racing-owned Seubert Calf Ranches Rocket car on the three-eighths-mile oval when the accident occurred. The machine reared up on its right-rear corner as Richards slid hard into turn one, sending him into a wild series of barrel-rolls.
The car bounced off the top of the track's concrete wall rollcage-first and flipped at least two more times before coming to rest between turns one and two.
Richards was stunned but conscious when safety crews reached him. He climbed out of the cockpit and rode the ambulance back to his team's hauler, but shortly thereafter was taken by his father Mark to a local hospital for tests.
"We were at the hospital for about three hours and everything checked out O.K.," said Mark Richards, who co-owns the well-known Rocket Chassis business in Shinnston, W.Va. "He has a slight concussion and he's sore, but he's going to be alright."
Mark Richards said Josh's car was "completely totaled," but held up well considering the hit it absorbed on the wall. It was a car that Josh had never before raced and sported some new setup ideas that the Rocket team has developed during recent test sessions.
Prior to his wreck, Josh had been turning laps around West Plains Motor Speedway that were among the fastest of the night, making him confident of his chances in the Show-Me 100. Fellow WoO LMS regular Steve Francis of Ashland, Ky., was also fast in Thursday night's practice driving a new Rocket car identical to Richards's.
"The car was really good," said Richards, who had flipped a dirt Late Model only once previously in his career, last August at Lernerville Speedway in Sarver, Pa. "I really think we had something for the weekend, but things happen sometimes.
"The track (surface) was smooth but it was real fast, and I think my car was a little tight," he continued, describing the circumstances of his crash. "When I went in the turn it just stuck and flipped completely over. I don't remember much about what happened after that."
For precautionary reasons relating to his concussion, Richards will not pull out a backup car and compete in the Show-Me 100, a crown-jewel dirt Late Model event that runs this Friday and Saturday night and pays $41,000 to win. He had also contemplated entering Sunday night's Sunoco American Late Model Series show at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio, to obtain valuable track time in advance of the June 8-9 UMP DIRTcar Racing-sanctioned 'Dirt Late Model Dream,' but those plans have been scrapped.
Richards's next start will be the WoO LMS 'First State 50' on Thurs., May 31, at Delaware International Speedway in Delmar, Del. He will also see WoO LMS action that weekend on Sat., June 2, in the 'Conococheague 50' at Hagerstown (Md.) Speedway.
Coming off a runner-up finish in the WoO LMS 'Great Lakes 50' on May 18 at I-96 Speedway in Lake Odessa, Mich., Richards ranks fourth in the current tour point standings.
For more information on the WoO LMS, visit www.worldofoutlaws.com.