MacDonald Takes NCWS East Checkered Flag at New Hampshire

LOUDON, N.H. (June 27, 2008) - Eddie MacDonald reached Victory Lane for the first time in 16 NASCAR Camping World Series East career starts at New Hampshire Motor Speedway Friday evening in the Heluva Good! Summer 125.

MacDonald (No. 71 Grimm Construction/NEMO Chevrolet) and Trevor Bayne (No. 1 Dale Earnhadt Chevrolet) traded the lead several times down the stretch before the final caution came out on lap 122. On the ensuing restart MacDonald got the jump on Bayne to pull away for the win by half a second.

"This is just awesome," MacDonald said. "The one goal we had this year was to win Loudon, and we got it."

The victory for MacDonald was the fourth of his NASCAR Camping World Series East career. A native of Rowley, Mass., his previous best career finish at New Hampshire was seventh in 2004. His last trip to Victory Lane was on June 18, 2007 at Stafford (Conn.) Motor Speedway.

"We've led a lot of laps here," MacDonald said, "but never seemed to be able to finish it off."

Bayne, a rookie, wound up as the runner-up, followed by Matt Kobyluck. It was the best career finish for Bayne, who had been third twice. Kobyluck tied his best New Hampshire finish in his 25th start at the 1.058-mile oval.

Rookies Austin Dillon and Ricky Carmichael registered top-five finishes in their first race at New Hampshire.

Marc Davis, Mike Olsen, John Salemi, Brad Leighton and Brian Ickler rounded out the top 10.

The NASCAR Camping World Series East will return to New England for the sixth race of the 2008 season on Saturday, July 12 at Thompson (Conn.) International Speedway.

NASCAR Camping World Series East-Heluva Good! 125 Results
At New Hampshire Motor Speedway
Loudon, N.H.
Lap length: 1.058 miles
(Start position in parentheses)
1. (10) Eddie MacDonald, Rowley, Mass., Chevrolet, 127 laps, 81.011 mph, $13,900.
2. (6) Trevor Bayne, Knoxville, Tenn., Chevrolet, 127, $10,215.
3. (4) Matt Kobyluck, Uncasville, Conn., Chevrolet, 127, $8,450.
4. (1) Austin Dillon, Lewisville, N.C., Chevrolet, 127, $7,400.
5. (12) Ricky Carmichael, Clearwater, Fla., Chevrolet, 127, $6,500.
6. (7) Marc Davis, Mitchelville, MD., Toyota, 127, $5,900.
7. (21) Mike Olsen, North Haverhill, N.H., Chevrolet, 127, $5,100.
8. (24) John Salemi, Nashua, N.H., Chevrolet, 127, $4,600.
9. (22) Brad Leighton, Center Harbor, N.H., Chevrolet, 127, $4,100.
10. (2) Brian Ickler, San Diego, Calif., Chevrolet, 127, $4,200.
11. (18) Dustin Delaney, Mayfield, N.Y., Chevrolet, 127, $3,550.
12. (8) Jesus Hernandez, Fresno, Calif., Chevrolet, 127, $4,000.
13. (11) Jody Lavender, Hartsville, S.C., Chevrolet, 127, $3,900.
14. (33) Mike Johnson, Salisbury, Mass., Ford, 127, $4,800.
15. (16) Jeff Anton, Russell, Mass., Chevrolet, 127, $3,200.
16. (19) Max Dumarey, Gent, Belgium, Chevrolet, 127, $3,068.
17. (23) Jonathan Smith, Beacon Falls, Conn., Chevrolet, 127, $3,000.
18. (31) Charles Lewandoski, Stafford Springs, Conn., Toyota, 127, $2,950.
19. (15) Jamie Hayes, Norlina, N.C., Chevrolet, 127, $3,400.
20. (32) Joe Masessa, Franklin Lakes, N.J., Chevrolet, 127, $2,850.
21. (28) Alan Tardiff, Lyman, Me., Chevrolet, 127, $2,800.
22. (17) Craig Goess, Greenville, N.C., Toyota, 127, $2,750.
23. (13) Bryon Chew, Mattituck, N.Y., Chevrolet, 127, $3,200.
24. (26) Derek Thorn, Lakeport, Calif., Ford, 126, $2,675.
25. (36) Chase Mattioli, Long Pond, Pa., Ford, 125, $2,650.
26. (35) Antonio Perez, Mexico City, Mex., Dodge, 120, accident, $2,625.
27. (29) Scott Bouley, Wolcott, Conn., Chevrolet, 120, $2,600.
28. (3) Steve Park, East Northport, N.Y., Chevrolet, 118, $3,100.
29. (14) Peyton Sellers, Danville, VA., Chevrolet, 118, $3,100.
30. (20) Ryan Duff, Hazard, Ky., Chevrolet, 108, accident, $2,600.
31. (34) Patrick Dupree, Saranac Lake, N.Y., Dodge, 108, accident, $2,600.
32. (9) Rogelio Lopez, Aquascalientes, Mexico, Chevrolet, 102, $3,100.
33. (30) Todd Peck, Glenville, PA., Chevrolet, 81, accident, $2,600.
34. (5) Jeffrey Earnhardt, Mooresville, N.C., Chevrolet, 34, accident, $3,100.
35. (25) Bobby Hamilton, Jr., Nashville, Tenn, Dodge, 23, accident, $2,600.
36. (27) James Pritchard, Wharton, N.J., Dodge, 0, engine, $2,600.
Race Statistics
Time of Race: 1 hour 39 minutes 31 seconds
Margin of Victory: .515 secs
Fastest Qualifier: Field set as per rulebook, rain.
Caution Flags: 7 for 44 laps.
Lead Changes: 9 among 6 drivers.
Lap Leaders: M.Kobyluck 1-35; R.Lopez 36-41; E.MacDonald 42-70; B.Ickler 71-104; J.Hernandez 105-106; M.Kobyluck 107-118; T.Bayne 119-120; E.MacDonald 121-124; T.Bayne 125; E.MacDonald 126-127.
Standings: 1. A.Dillon, 807; 2. M.Kobyluck, 759; 3. B.Ickler, 731; 4. T.Bayne, 731; 5. M.Davis, 702; 6. E.MacDonald, 690; 7. J.Hernandez, 677; 8. S.Park, 669; 9. R.Carmichael, 654; 10. J.Earnhardt, 631.