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2004-08-07
Kenton Gray, Up and coming Rookie driver of the #1 Legends Car, after winning the Pole and finishing second in last month's race, has just finished wowing a crowd of 5,000 fans by winning the fifth race of the Legends series at Irwindale! This was his second time winning the pole and his first win of the season, What was the "new kid on the track" a few short months ago has now become a real threat, with Tom Landreth's winning streak broken and the "new kid" walking his way toward the wayward goal of a strong future in NASCAR.
The race was unusual, with the inversion of the field setting Kenton at the outside 8th position for the green. Two false starts ended in pile ups that took out all six of the front rows of the starting grid, leaving Kenton an open opportunity to lead, which he did - for the entire race. An every increasing lead had Kenton a full quarter lap ahead after the first 15 laps until a caution grouped the cars back up again. Then Tom Landreth took to Kenton's heels and stayed there for the entire remaining laps, resulting in one of the most exciting sparring matches of the season. Irwindale fans got what they were hoping for as Kenton, "the one to keep an eye on" kept pedal to metal to run an absolutely clean race to his first win of the season.
Fans can certainly look forward to the future of Freedom Racing as Kenton Gray continues to hold up a fast moving rocket ride from obscurity to fame.
So why isn't the win reflected in the standings. It really did happen! We have the pictures!!!!
The reason, is a small but important problem with the INEX tech inspector who decided to disqualify Kenton after making an incorrect measurement on the car following the completion of the race. The upset in the pits was widespread, with a dozen drivers and other onlookers challenging the INEX tech after he admitted that he was in error, but refused to overturn the decision.
Can there be justice and fair consistent rule enforcement in INEX? Keep your fingers crossed as we have it all in writing. The matter is now under protest and, with any good fortune of sanity from INEX, we will shortly see the just reward of Kenton’s breakthrough race appropriately acknowledged. Stay tuned and we'll keep you posted.
Regardless, we all know the truth, the 5000 fans watched it, and the car was definitely legal. So we fight our battles and move on.
In the mean time, next Saturday isn't far away and Kenton is HOT, so BE THERE and we'll give you the show you're waiting for!!!
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