By: Fast Time Media
10/26/23… Tulare, Caledonia: Thursday, Friday, and Saturday Night, Dawson took on the biggest race of his 2023 season. He’d make the short trip to Tulare Thunderbowl to run the 29th annual Trophy Cup this past weekend.
He’d start the weekend out with qualifying. Dawson would be in Group B & ended up timing in 19th quickest in the group. That set him to lineup on the outside of the front row for his heat race. He would have a great battle in his heat race, as he went on to finish in the 3rd spot.
Dawson entered the B-main by starting in the 10th starting spot. It would be tough to pass in the B-main as the track was pretty hooked up. He’d rip off some good laps & battle hard, coming home with a 8th place finish in the B-main & ending night one there.
“Messed up both of my qualifying laps, once in 1 & 2 and once in 3 & 4. It wasn’t my best qualifying effort. Started 2nd in the heat race & was there for a while. Got passed by Balog & tried to pass him back but a lapper got in my way & finished 3rd. Was hoping the track would be two lanes for the B-main. Got a good start & got to 9th. Ran there for most of race then passed for 8th & finished there. There wasn’t much I could do as it was locked down.”
Friday Night got off to a little better start. He’d tune in 17th quickest overall in his group. That put him starting front row outside in second for his heat race. He’d end up going on to finish where he started in the 2nd spot.
That put him in the B-main, where he’d start on the outside of the front row in the 2nd spot. Unfortunately, he would now get the start he wanted and quickly began to slip backwards. The track would be super slick & it took him a while to get comfortable. Once he did, Dawson was able to rip off some good laps but would finish 12th.
“In the heat race, I went to the middle on the initial start & Schurenburg got a run around me. I followed him for the rest of the heat & finished 2nd. I spun the tires on the start of B-main Two. It’s been a while since I’ve been on a slick track like that. I’ve probably only raced 12 times this year compared to these guys running 30-40 times this year. I just got eaten up until I got my bearings around the top. Ended up getting a few spots back & finished like 12th.
Going into Saturday, he’d start the night with heat race action as he was in the top-48 in points. Dawson would roll off from the 2nd spot for his heat race, He’d get a great start & quickly jump to the lead. From there, he’d go on to grab the heat race win.
That put him in the B-main where he’d roll off from the 13th spot. He’d try to move forward early on as it was super racey and hard to pass during the B-main. While running the wall in 3 & 4, Dawson would get sideways & spin. The car behind him had nowhere to go & made a lot of contact with Dawson. That would bring his B-main & Trophy Cup to an end.
Overall, it was a solid weekend for Dawson & his team. Despite running just a third of the races a lot of drivers had last weekend, Dawson was super fast all weekend & had what was probably his best overall Trophy Cup!
Dawson would like to thank all of his sponsors for their support!
Dawson's 2023 stats: 11 races, 6 features, 0 wins, 0 top-5's, 2 top-10's
Next Race: TBA