Jared Irvan knew he could win the PASS South super late model race at Anderson, S.C., Speedway if his parents would allow him to enter, but his father, former NASCAR driver Ernie Irvan, was still stunned when his 17-year-old son received the checkered flag for his first-ever victory in the series. “I was dumfounded,” the 1991 Daytona 500 winner said. “I couldn’t believe that we had finally put it all together. It’s probably one of the best Father’s Day presents I’ve had. We all knew he had a lot of talent and was able to win races. We just hadn’t been able to put it all together. He did a great job. He drove like a veteran because he knew he had enough car under him not to have to push it harder than he had to push it.”
The young Midland resident’s confidence in his ability to win at the three-eighths-mile track stemmed from the fact that he had raced more at that speedway than any other on the circuit. “I knew some tricks of the track that some other people didn’t,” Jared said. “I was able to change up my line a little bit and use that to my advantage.” Jared’s side-by-side duel with Concord’s Roger Lee Newton began with 15 laps remaining. For the next nine laps, they remained fender-to-fender before Jared gained the advantage with six laps to go. He then gradually pulled away, forcing Newton to settle for second. Troutman’s Clay Rogers placed third.(Charlotte Observer)(6-26-2015)
