Dillon Bassett Maintains Point Position after Newport Disappointment

Dillon Bassett in his #44 Roof Shampoo Bassett Racing Ford

In three starts at Newport Speedway, Dillon Bassett has yet to get the monkey off his back and show how strong his racecar is.

It was another night of tough luck at Newport Speedway for Dillon Bassett as the UARA-STARS took to the high banks for the Jeff’s Auto Sales 150.

Bassett was hoping to carry momentum from his Hickory victory three weeks prior and have another solid run to gain points on Travis Swaim. Instead, his tough luck continued at the track he made his UARA debut in October 2011.

Dillon Bassett had a strong #44 Roof Shampoo Ford in practice, just as he had one month earlier, placing him fourth on final practice charts. The tough 4/10 mile suits Bassett’s driving style well and he has always been able to find speed around the tight bullring.

Unfortunately when qualifying came around Bassett was unable to back up his top five qualifying effort in June as rain began to fall making the track just slick enough to lose grip. The young driver was discouraged with his 15th place starting spot, but knew his car was strong enough to make his way to the front.

At the drop of the green Bassett began to pace himself knowing Newport breeds a lot of yellow flags. By the halfway point he had broken into the top ten and began to battle Jake Morris for the seventh position. With approximately 60 laps to go Bassett broke a right front hub sending him into Morris and the outside turn two wall.

The young driver cannot seem to escape misfortune at Newport Speedway, but his team worked hard to get him back on track to make the most of the night and not lose any point positions. The team finished 39 laps down in 19th, which certainly did not display the type of racecar they had.

Dillon Bassett remains second in point standings trailing Travis Swaim by 63 points and leads Rookie of the Year standings in a solid rookie field this season.

Dillon and his Bassett Racing team, led by crew chief Kenyon Davidson, will return to action at Caraway Speedway in two weeks where Dillon has experience in a limited late model. The team knows veteran Swaim will be tough to beat at his home track, but is confident 15 year old Bassett is capable and that pushes them to rise to the challenge.

Follow @Dillon_Bassett and @Bassettracing1 on Twitter for updates.