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 LACROSSE,
WI (October 10) -- Brian Hoppe led 184 of 250 laps en route to winning
the NASCAR Midwest Series "Oktoberfest 250" at LaCrosse
Fairgrounds Speedway on Sunday afternoon. It was the Madison, WI
driver's second win of the season and came in the series' 13th and
final race of the year. Hoppe pocketed $5,350 for the win. While Hoppe
won the race, it was young Justin Diercks claiming the 2004 NASCAR
Midwest Series championship with a seventh place finish. Diercks, from
Davenport, IA, finished ahead of defending series champion Steve
Carlson in the final standings as the series concluded yet another
exciting season.
Twenty-eight cars started Sunday's "Oktoberfest
250" at LaCrosse Speedway with Ryan Hanson claiming the Bud Pole
Award as the event's fastest qualifier. With the first six positions
inverted, that left Justin Diercks on the pole and Brian Hoppe
alongside for the green flag start.
The race had four leaders among three different
drivers including Justin Diercks (1-4), Brian Hoppe (5-153, 216-250)
and Tim Schendel (154-215). The race also had five cautions for a
total of 39 laps. Hoppe took the win finishing 4.051 seconds ahead of
runner-up Steve Carlson. Carlson started eighth before finishing in
second place. Previous race winner Erik Darnell finished in third
place followed by Tim Schendel and Eric Fransen in fourth and fifth, respectively.
Fransen started 17th before finishing in fifth place.
Andrew Morrissey finished in sixth place followed by
Justin Diercks, Ryan Hanson, Eddie Hoffman and Josh Vadnais. Vadnais
was the first car a lap down.
With his seventh place finish, Justin Diercks captured
the NASCAR Midwest Series championship over defending champion Steve
Carlson. Hoosier Tire congratulates Justin on winning his first career
NASCAR Midwest Series championship. Hoosier would also like to thank
all the teams and drivers who competed on our tires during the 2004
campaign.
Hoosier's Terry Newton is the Product Manager for the
NASCAR Midwest Series.
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