INNISFIL, ON- After an off-season spent upgrading his program for a fulltime run with the OSCAAR Super Late Model tour, rookie contender Corey Jones did not disappoint in his 2014 debut at Sunset Speedway.
The Shakespeare, ON-based driver appeared confident and composed through practice and qualifying, rattling off the most consistent lap times of the 4 Rookie contenders present at the 3rd annual Lucie Aylwin Memorial.
“We were thrilled with the way the car responded in qualifying”, said Jones post-race. “I think it really speaks to the quality of work this team put in over the off-season. We unloaded today with the goal of being the best Rookie in the pits, and I feel as though we accomplished that”
Unfortunately, Jones’ feature event ended prematurely, when an engine issue sidelined the J Star Motorsports No. 82 just 4 laps into the event.
“Shortly after we took the green, the car started to vibrate and shake”, explained a visibly despondent Jones. “As soon as I took a look at the oil pressure, and saw that we had none, I knew our night was toast and that it was time to shut the car down and pull ‘er to the pits”
“We immediately thought our season was over”, continued the likeable freshman. “But, we’ve spoken to McGunegill Engine Performance in Indiana, and now we have hopes of being ready to go for Round 2 at Kawartha”
Despite the unwavering disappointment the situation has brought, Jones’ chooses to instead look on the bright side of his 2014 debut.
“As I was pulling off the speedway on Saturday, it felt as though all of our hard work over the offseason was for nothing”, admitted Jones. “But after taking a moment to reflect, the fact that our car was in the same ballpark as guys like [Glenn] Watson, [Dwayne] Baker and [Jesse] Kennedy, we have every reason to be confident in what we can accomplish this season. We will be back stronger than ever”
Corey Jones’ J Star Motorsports team hopes to return to action in Round 2 of the OSCAAR tour at Kawartha Speedway on June 1st.
Stay up to date on Jones’ situation by following him on Twitter @CoreyJones82.
The J Star Motorsports 2014 season is made possible thanks to support from Castle Building Centres, RBC, Accountable Automotive, Dan Simpson – RBC Mortgage Specialist, Lafleche Roofing, Anmar Cleaning Services, Inno-Tech, Ken Robinson Refrigeration, Oktane Productions, Epic Racewear and Westmeadow Dental.
By Spencer Lewis (@itsspencerlewis)
