Showdown: Race notes

MIDWEST SERIES CHAMPIO TIM SCHENDEL WINS NASCAR AUTOZONE ELITE DIVISION RACE AT NASCAR TOYOTA ALL-STAR SHOWDOWN

IRWINDALE, Calif. (Oct. 21, 2006) -- Tim Schendel took the lead early but had to fight off challenges on three late restarts that sent the race it overtime to win the NASCAR AutoZone Elite Division event, which opened the fourth annual NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown Saturday at Irwindale Speedway. The NASCAR Grand National Division was also scheduled to complete the $500,000 "super bowl of short track racing" televised nationally by SPEED.

Schendel, the NASCAR AutoZone Elite Division, Midwest Series champion from Sparta, Wis., took the lead on lap 18 of the scheduled 125-lap distance and didn't face a major challenge until a restart on lap 119 gave Minnesota's Dan Fredrickson a clear shot. The same scenario would be repeated two more times, extending the distance to 130 laps, but Schendel was equal to the competition. On the final corner of the race, Californian Thomas Martin dove under Fredrickson to take second at the checkered flag. Golden State drivers Eric Holmes and Jim Pettit II completed the top five, helping the AutoZone Elite Southwest Series win the team competition among the four regional tours.

"Winning the championship then winning the Showdown and getting to drive a NASCAR Busch Series car next weekend in Memphis is fantastic," the winner said in victory lane. "I wanted this one bad because it was the last chance I had to win in the AutoZone Elite Division," he continued, referring to the fact that the late model-type cars are in their final season as a NASCAR Touring division.

-credit: nascar