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IRWINDALE SPEEDWAY RACE REPORT – JULY 6, 2002 By Tim Kennedy

Ben Walker, in a Ford Taurus, won his third NASCAR Jani-King Super Late Model main event of the 11-race old season in a 75-lap race Saturday on the Irwindale Speedway banked half-mile. The 22-car race before 4,496 spectators was round five of the $10,000 ten-race Miller Lite Big Ten Challenge series-within-a-series. Walker now leads the Miller series
and all three of his triumphs came in Big Ten Challenge races. His 50 points earned Saturday moved him from third into second place behind overall series point leader Tony Green - 450 to 432. Eight of 19 scheduled races remain before the point season concludes at the end of September. Walker and Green are both seeking their first track championships at Irwindale. In the SLM feature, inside-running Nathan Wulff battled Walker intensely, but cleanly, from laps 12-75. He tried to take the lead on laps 67 and 75. However, his overheated RR tire caused him to get loose and forced him to settle for his third second place finish of the season, only 0.438 seconds back. Winston West driver Tim Woods III Ford Taurus was third, 2.525 seconds behind the winner. Tony Bruncati's Ford took fourth. Stephan Sadler enjoyed his best IS finish when he drove his Pontiac Grand Prix from 19th to fifth with 18 cars racing at the finish. Kazuto Yanagawa started fourth and had his inside-running Chevy Monte Carlo in second position from lap 12-53. Then his engine blew in a cloud of smoke on the backstretch. He pulled into the infield as an appreciative audience applauded his best effort to date. He received the evening's tough luck award and more applause from fans at the finish line. Winner Walker walked over and raised Yanagawa's arm in saluting his strong run and bid for his first feature victory at the track. Click Here For Complete Results and Images