{"id":904,"date":"2022-07-08T23:53:41","date_gmt":"2022-07-09T03:53:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dirtcar.com\/woofinals\/2022\/09\/09\/halfway-home-championship-contenders-eye-whats-needed-to-secure-2022-title\/"},"modified":"2022-09-10T00:11:29","modified_gmt":"2022-09-10T04:11:29","slug":"halfway-home-championship-contenders-eye-whats-needed-to-secure-2022-title","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worldofoutlawsworldfinals.com\/late-models\/halfway-home-championship-contenders-eye-whats-needed-to-secure-2022-title\/","title":{"rendered":"HALFWAY HOME: Championship Contenders Eye What\u2019s Needed To Secure 2022 Title"},"content":{"rendered":"
As the calendar turns to July, the brush strokes on the World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Models\u2019 championship picture are becoming more transparent.<\/p>\n
Through six months of competition, a veteran driver leads the field into the second half of the season, starting with the Series\u2019 annual Upper-Midwest swing starting at River Cities Speedway in Grand Forks, ND, July 15; all while trying to outrun two Rookie of the Year contenders who are hanging on to striking distance.<\/p>\n
Dennis Erb Jr. has been the driver to beat this season after taking the points lead in March.\u00a0 However, despite his season-high four wins, it\u2019s a position the Carpentersville, IL driver has never experienced.<\/p>\n
While Erb and Crew Chief Heather Lyne take their quest for a championship one race at a time, their consistency has been essential to their journey.<\/p>\n
Dennis Erb Jr. leads the World of Outlaws CASE Late Models field into the 2nd half of the season\/Jacy Norgaard photo<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a good feeling,\u201d Erb said. \u201cObviously, it shows we\u2019ve had a good start to the year. We\u2019ve been consistent for the first half of the year, and things are rolling pretty good.\u201d<\/p>\n
The consistency Erb\u2019s shown in the first 23 races has gone unmatched. He\u2019s only finished outside the top 10 five times in 2022\u2014earning a 148-point lead over Max Blair in second.<\/p>\n
One reason he\u2019s been able to extend his lead is his ability to bounce back. An example of that perseverance was at Jacksonville Speedway last month when he gained points on Blair, sneaking into the top 10 after a mid-pack Qualifying run.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt just shows that we\u2019re out there to win and get up front and that you can have a bad Qualifying run and still be able to work our way back up there,\u201d Erb said. \u201cIt shows our car is good, and we\u2019re able to drive up to where we need to be. So, it\u2019s a good feeling to have.<\/p>\n
\u201cI hope it\u2019ll be a big advantage. Those guys are also running good, too. When we get to a new place, sometimes it\u2019s a learning curve. Hopefully, we can get back to these places that I\u2019ve been to, and that definitely would help me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Blair has been one of Erb\u2019s most formidable foes this season, scoring two wins in his quest for both Rookie of the Year and the 2022 Series title.<\/p>\n
The Centerville, PA driver finds himself in a position he never expected as he embarks on his first journey with the World of Outlaws CASE Late Models.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe year started out way better than I dreamed it would,\u201d Blair said. \u201cThe last four or five races, we\u2019ve struggled more than I would\u2019ve like to. But I knew that was going to happen coming in. We\u2019re going to so many new places, so we\u2019re just trying day by day.\u201d<\/p>\n
Max Blair hopes to close in on Dennis Erb Jr\u2019s lead\/Jacy Norgaard photo<\/p>\n
Despite his successful start, Blair stated he knows there\u2019s an uphill climb to steal the championship from Erb.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou know what you have with him for sure,\u201d Blair said. \u201cHe\u2019s steady, consistent, and he\u2019s always been that way. Even on the nights when we out-qualify him and outrun him in the Heat Race and start way in front of him, five to go, he\u2019s under me and passing me for fifth.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s going to be pretty tough to do. He\u2019s got it stretched out a little bit, but that doesn\u2019t mean we\u2019re giving up either. We\u2019re going to keep on trying.\u201d<\/p>\n
The race for the 2022 championship isn\u2019t the only battle Blair faces this season, as he currently leads the chase for Rookie of the Year\u201422 points ahead of Tanner English. And while they\u2019re trying to best each other, that hasn\u2019t stopped them from building a friendship.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s been fun; we\u2019ve kind of become buddies,\u201d Blair said. \u201cHe\u2019s helped me out a couple of times when I needed stuff.\u201d<\/p>\n
English also finds himself in contention for both battles \u2013 currently 170 points behind Erb \u2013 despite being winless in World of Outlaws competition. However, points aren\u2019t the Benton, KY driver\u2019s focus. He only has one goal\u2014 win.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe points come, but you\u2019re trying to win every race anyway,\u201d English said. \u201cI hate losing, so I\u2019m trying to win every race I go to. It\u2019s not like we\u2019re coming just to beat Dennis or beat Max.<\/p>\n
Tanner English\u2019s focus is on winning during the 2022 season\/Jacy Norgaard photo<\/p>\n
\u201cMost of the time, we know if we can just run up front, we can outrun them. We just need to put a whole night together and qualify good. I feel like we\u2019ve been running the Feature good, but that\u2019s about it. I haven\u2019t put a whole night together yet.\u201d<\/p>\n
He knows what needs to improve to be able to do that, too.<\/p>\n
\u201cJust trying to get a front-row starting spot in the Heat Race is the main deal,\u201d English said. \u201cWe\u2019ve had a few here and there, just had some bad luck that knocked us out of starting up front.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s the major improvement we need to do. If we get that done, we\u2019ll be alright.\u201d<\/p>\n
Less than 25 events remain for Erb, Blair and English to further position themselves for the 2022 championship before the season ends at the World of Outlaws World Finals at The Dirt Track at Charlotte, Nov. 2-5<\/a>.<\/p>\n All three drivers return to add another brush stroke to their hopeful World of Outlaws CASE Late Models championship masterpiece. on July 15 at River Cities Speedway in Grand Forks, ND, followed by I-94 Sure Step Speedway on Saturday, July 16 and Red Cedar Speedway on Sunday, July 17.<\/p>\n For tickets,\u00a0CLICK HERE<\/a>.<\/p>\n If you can\u2019t get to the track, watch all the action live on\u00a0DIRTVision \u2013 either online on with the DIRTVision App<\/a>.<\/p>\n The post HALFWAY HOME: Championship Contenders Eye What\u2019s Needed To Secure 2022 Title<\/a> appeared first on World of Outlaws<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" As the calendar turns to July, the brush strokes on the World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Models\u2019 championship picture are becoming more transparent. Through six months of competition, a veteran driver leads the field into the second half of the season, starting with the Series\u2019 annual Upper-Midwest swing starting at River Cities Speedway … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":23,"featured_media":905,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-904","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-late-models"],"yoast_head":"\n