Bill McAnally Racing drivers Hailie Deegan and Derek Kraus had a packed crowd of fans on their feet at All American Speedway on Saturday, as they battled their way through the field to contend for the win in the closing laps of the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West NAPA AUTO PARTS / ENEOS 150.
Deegan came away with a second-place finish in her No. 19 Monster Energy/NAPA Power Premium Plus Toyota Camry, while Kraus finished fourth in his No. 16 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry.
After starting side-by-side on the front row, the two 18-year-old NASCAR Next drivers encountered trouble in the first portion of the race and ended up charging back through the field to try to grab the win.
Deegan, who turned in the fastest lap in time trials to secure her third pole of the year and fifth of her career, was running second to Kraus on Lap 28 when she spun in Turn 4 after contact from the third-place car. Without a caution, she scrambled to stay on the lead lap and begin battling back.
“It was rough,” Deegan said after the event. “We had a good car, but we used it up trying to come back through the field. The tires got hot and we didn’t have anything for the end.”
Nevertheless, she took a positive view of the event.
“It was a good points race for us,” she said. “Bill gave me a great car. All the crew guys, everyone on the team, did a great job this weekend.”
Kraus, meanwhile, had to pit with a flat right rear tire after contact with a slower car on Lap 53. He lost a lap in the process and was not able to get back on the lead lap until a late-race caution.
Their BMR teammate, Brittney Zamora, charged her No. 99 ENEOS / NAPA Filters Toyota Camry up to second place early in the race and remained there through much of the event. Some tight shuffling in a late-race caution left her to finish sixth, however.
The Roseville race featured two additional BMR entries, with Dylan Garner in the No. 50 NAPA Belts & Hoses/California Peace Officers Memorial Foundation Toyota Camry and Derrick Doering in the No. 12 Burning Barrel Brewing/Community Home Mortgage Toyota Camry.
Garner of Yorba Linda, California started fourth – but suffered body damage in an early incident and ended up finishing 12th.
Doering, who races in the NASCAR Modified Division at All American Speedway, started 12th and went on to notch a ninth-place finish in his series debut.
Kraus of Stratford, Wisconsin was able to maintain his 40-point lead in the championship standings, with two races remaining on the schedule. He has four wins, nine top-five, and 11 top-10 finishes in 12 series starts this season. In addition, he scored two wins early this year in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East.
Deegan of Temecula, California is fourth in the standings. She is three points out of third, four points from second and 44 points out of the lead. She has two wins, six top-five and nine top-10 finishes in 12 starts this year.
Zamora – a 20-year-old from Kennewick, Washington – is tied in points for fifth in the standings and is second in rookie points. She has five top-five and eight top-10 finishes in her 12 series starts.
The K&N West race was the featured event for the Annual October Classic at All American Speedway. It benefitted two foundations – the Placer County Breast Cancer Foundation and the California Peace Officers’ Memorial Foundation.
Off-track activities included a NAPA Big Show at the BMR facility in Roseville on Friday evening, which was part of a fundraiser for the California Peace Officers Memorial Foundation.
Saturday’s race featured a large turnout at the VIP Hospitality event, with NAPA and Toyota being well-represented. Their guests received a special VIP experience.
The Roseville race, won by Jagger Jones, will be televised to a national audience on NBCSN on Oct. 17 at 3 p.m.
The next event on the K&N West schedule will be at Kern County Raceway Park near Bakersfield, California on Oct. 26.
Bill McAnally Racing PR
