Dustin Burge Scores First Career CRA Street Stocks Series Championship
Anderson, Indiana Driver Brings Home Series Title After Taking Points Lead Early in the Year
January 12, 2014
Indianapolis, Indiana (January 11, 2014) – The 2013 Champion Racing Association
(CRA) Powered by JEGS Awards Banquet was held on Saturday, January 11th at the
Crowne Plaza Hotel Union Station in downtown Indianapolis, Indiana as the 2013
Series Champions within the ARCA/CRA Super Series Powered by JEGS, JEGS/
CRA All-Stars Tour Presented by Chevrolet Performance, Top Speed Fabrication CRA
Late Model Sportsman Series Powered by JEGS and Stealth Trailers CRA Street
Stocks Series Powered by JEGS were honored, along with several special award
recipients.
For the Stealth Trailers CRA Street Stocks Series Powered by JEGS, Dustin Burge,
who was competing in his second full season of CRA Street Stocks Series
competition, took over the points lead after the second race of the 2013 season and
never relinquished the top spot the rest of the year in his #63 S&B Racing / Chevrolet
en route to his first career CRA Championship.
The 26-year-old scored his first career Feature Win in the series at his home track of
Anderson Speedway (IN) on April 27th. He also collected seven top five finishes and
eight top 10 showings while only finishing one race outside of the top 10 throughout
his championship winning campaign. Burge would win the series championship by a comfortable 51 points over 2012 Series Champion, Jimmy Kirby.
Kirby, in his #11 USA Tires / Chevrolet, made a late charge in an effort to defend his series title as he scored two late season victories at Anderson Speedway (IN) on September 14th and then the following weekend at Lucas Oil Raceway (IN) on September 22nd, but the Indianapolis, Indiana driver just came up short in his bid to repeat. The now 41-year-old (On November 26th) also collected four top five showings and six top 10 finishes to grab the 2013 Runner-Up position.
J.J. Schafer, the 2011 Rookie of the Year, also finished on the podium in third place in the 2013 CRA Street Stocks Series Drivers Points Standings as the Bremen, Indiana pilot in his #68 Bremen CarQuest / Chevrolet picked up one top five finish, which was a fourth place effort at Anderson Speedway (IN) on June 8th to go with six top 10 showings for the 19-year-old.
Finishing fourth in the CRA Street Stocks Series Drivers Points Standings was Josh Myers, as the now 34-year-old (On November 28th) #35 Goober Stanley Motorsports / Chevrolet would rack up two top five finishes, both of those were podium showings of third and both came at Anderson Speedway (IN) on April 27th and June 8th. He also collected four top 10s as well.
Veteran campaigner, Jim Crabtree Jr., would round out the top five in the CRA Street Stocks Series Drivers Points Standings in his #163 Jim's Automotive / Chevrolet despite missing one event due to his Super Cup Stock Car Series commitments, where he finished second in those final points tallies. The Muncie, Indiana driver picked up three top five finishes with a season high finish of a second at Anderson Speedway (IN) on August 17th as the 41-year-old also picked up six top 10 showings.
The sixth place driving in the CRA Street Stocks Series Drivers Points Standings would be Calvin Parham while his team, Parham Motorsports, finished third in the CRA Street Stocks Series Owners Points Standings as Brandon Mefford would make one appearance in the #33 Stanley Show Pigs / Chevrolet. The Knightstown, Indiana driver picked up one victory, which came at Winchester Speedway (IN) during Winchester 400 Weekend on October 12th.
Jeff Albright finished seventh in the Drivers Points Standings as Larry Lathan recorded an eighth place finish over Jason Atkinson, who finished ninth in the Drivers Points Standings while his team, Accelerator Racecars, with Danny Acrey II also piloting the #73 Accelerator Racecars / Chevrolet, was sixth in the Owners Points Standings with Atkinson collecting two victories with both of those coming at Anderson Speedway (IN) on June 8th and August 17th.
19-year-old Tyler Marsh, the 2012 Rookie of the Year, rounded out the top 10 in the Drivers Points Standings, while his team, Russell Racing with second driver, Wes Russell Jr., finished fourth in the Owners Points Standings as the two drivers shared time in the #31 Russell Racing / Chevrolet. The 2013 Rookie of the Year was 35-year-old Josh Lank who secured the freshman title in his #17 MBP Appraisals / Chevrolet while also finishing 14th overall in the final Drivers Points Standings.
Among the drivers securing trips to victory lane, but finishing outside of the final top 10 in either the Drivers or Owners Points Standings were; Dave Bice-Lucas Oil Raceway (IN) on April 14th, Josh Poore-Anderson Speedway (IN) on June 22nd during the prestigious Street Stocks 200, his third victory in the last four seasons in the longest race of the season for the series and Jason Thompson-Winchester Speedway (IN) on September 2nd.
While Lank won the 2013 Rookie of the Year title, more special award winners included; Albright who won the Harris Racing Products Sportsman of the Year Award while Parham was the winner of the Speed51.com Most Popular Driver Award. Lathan would receive the CRA Street Stocks Series Dedication Award while Crabtree Jr., and Albright each won four (4) Aero Race Wheels, Schafer picked up the $500 Certificate from McGunegill Engine Performance and Atkinson got the Miller Welder.
The 10th anniversary 2014 Racing Season for the Stealth Trailers CRA Street Stocks Series Powered by JEGS will begin with the 5th annual Cabin Fever Championships, which will be held for the second year in a row at the immaculate 0.686 mile progressively banked paved oval of Lucas Oil Raceway, located west of Indianapolis in Clermont, Indiana on a special Sunday afternoon, April 6th. The CRA Street Stocks will compete in a 40-lap main to kick off the 2014 campaign.
For more information about all four touring series’ within Champion Racing Association Powered by JEGS, please go to the series website at: www.cra-racing.com You can also follow CRA on Facebook at: www.facebook.com/ChampionRacingAssociation as well as Twitter at www.twitter.com/CRAracing Finally for more information about Lucas Oil Raceway, the host facility for the first race of the new season for Stealth Trailers CRA Street Stocks Series Powered by JEGS, go to the track website at: www.lucasoilraceway.com
