Photo Credit: Ashley McCubbin
After running a super late model the past three years, Kevin Cornelius made his return to limited late model competition on Saturday night at Sunset Speedway. The veteran had a solid night, scoring a pair of top-five finishes with a fifth and fourth.
“I guess it was alright,” he told OnPitRoad.com. “It’s a tough field out there. Every car is a strong car. It’s a big learning curve. It’s been awhile since I’ve driven one of these. It’s certainly not a super late model.
“Man, what a tough night. These guys need to learn some patience or something. I can’t believe we call this racing. A lot of good cars are wrecked and it’s unfortunate as it’s a good field of cars and they don’t need to drive like that. But we brought it home in one piece – got a fourth in the second and a fifth in the first. All in all, it’s a good night so hopefully we can come back a little better and a little more prepared.”
After winning the Sunset Speedway track championship in 2011, followed by a third place finish in points in 2012, the KDR Motorsports driver made the decision to move up to the super late model ranks. Over the past three seasons, he racked up plenty of wins, including winning seven of the nine races last season en route to the OSCAAR Super Late Model Championship.
Now jumping back behind the wheel of a limited late, he notes there’s a huge difference between the two cars, especially the amount of horsepower.
“I was telling the guys earlier tonight that with these cars, you get to drive them,” he added. “You’re able to make moves and the car gets a way from you a little bit, you’re able to catch it. The super isn’t as forgiving. It’s a lot twitchier and you have to respect the speed in the super late. It’s quite a bit different than what the super late was.”
With his first night under his belt, the driver of the No. 17 Shane Michael Sales, Pillar to Post Home Inspectors, Sandbox Tech Child Care and Fierce Wraps Late Model feels the team is not far off in looking to make a return to victory lane.
“I think we’re there,” he said. “We ran with a lot of the big dogs – the 41 and the 10. We can run with those guys. It’s just a matter of getting the driver up to speed and getting used to the car again and getting the car set-up the way I like it and tweak it a bit. I think we’re real close.
“I’m really proud of the guys and the effort they put in here tonight. Being our first time out and these guys having three nights on us already and to run up front, I couldn’t be happier.”
