LaJoie Dominates NASCAR K&N Pro Series East-West Combination Race

NEWTON, Iowa – Corey LaJoie finally was able to celebrate in Victory Lane at Iowa Speedway, closing out a dominating effort Friday night with a win in the Pork Be Inspired 150.

It was the third NASCAR K&N Pro Series win of the season for LaJoie and may be the sweetest – coming on the heels of a flat tire in the final laps at Columbus Motor Speedway.

In the May race at Iowa, LaJoie was fast early, but had a mechanical issue that put him down several laps that he was not able to recover even as he was running similar lap times as the race leaders. In 2010, he was part of a three-wide battle for the lead at the white flag but ultimately finished fourth.

Friday, there was no misfortunate to keep LaJoie out of Victory Lane.

He weathered a side-by-side battle with rookie Kyle Larson, who ultimately finished second, and then pulled away following a late red flag that set up a 14-lap sprint to the finish. Just prior to the last caution that brought out the red, LaJoie and Larson ran three straight laps side by side with Larson a nose with ahead at the line each time.

After LaJoie and Larson, Sergio Pena finished third. Chase Elliott was fourth and NASCAR K&N Pro Series East points leader Brett Moffitt was fifth. Travis Pastrana finished sixth, followed by Cale Conley, Eddie MacDonald, Michael Self and Daniel Suarez.

Self was the top finishing NASCAR K&N Pro Series West driver in the second combination event of the season between the East and West.

Earlier in the day, Conley won the 21 Means 21 Pole Award presented by Coors Light. He led the first four laps before giving way to LaJoie, who led a race-high 134 laps.

There are four races remaining in each of the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East and West. Brett Moffitt leads the East by 20 points over Larson, 22 over Elliott and 25 over LaJoie. Greg Pursley, who finished 20th overall and fifth among West drivers, leads that series by seven over teammate Dylan Kwasniewski.

The next race for the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East will be the Greenville 140 at Greenville (S.C.) Pickens Speedway, while the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West will return to the track Aug. 26 on the road course at Portland (Ore.) International Raceway.

NASCAR K&N PRO SERIES EAST-WEST-Pork Be Inspired 150 Results
Friday At Iowa Speedway Newton, IA Lap length: 0.875 miles

(Start position in parentheses)
1. (2) Corey LaJoie, Concord, N.C., Ford, 150 laps, 88.883 mph.
2. (5) Kyle Larson, Elk Grove, Calif., Toyota, 150.
3. (3) Sergio Pena, Winchester, Va., Toyota, 150.
4. (4) Chase Elliott, Dawsonville, Ga., Chevrolet, 150.
5. (6) Brett Moffitt, Grimes, Iowa, Toyota, 150.
6. (7) Travis Pastrana, Annapolis, Md., Toyota, 150.
7. (1) Cale Conley, Vienna, W.Va., Toyota, 150.
8. (21) Eddie MacDonald, Rowley, Mass., Chevrolet, 150.
9. (22) Michael Self, Park City, Utah, Chevrolet, 150.
10. (11) Daniel Suarez, Monterrey, Mexico, Toyota, 150.
11. (24) Jorge Arteaga, Aguascalientes, Mexico, Toyota, 150.
12. (15) Cameron Hayley, Calgary, Alberta, Toyota, 150.
13. (19) Darrell Wallace, Jr., Concord, N.C., Toyota, 150.
14. (8) Bryan Ortiz, Bayamon, Puerto Rico, Toyota, 150.
15. (27) Travis Miller, Chesapeake, Va., Toyota, 150.
16. (17) Jimmy Weller, Hubbard, Ohio, Toyota, 150.
17. (26) Chad Boat, Phoenix, Ariz., Chevrolet, 149.
18. (25) Eric Holmes, Escalon, Calif., Toyota, 149.
19. (28) David Mayhew, Atascadero, Calif., Chevrolet, 149.
20. (20) Greg Pursley, Newhall, Calif., Ford, 149.
21. (18) CJ Faison, Seaford, Del., Chevrolet, 149.
22. (33) Ryan Philpott, Tracy, Calif., Ford, 148.
23. (23) Jonathon Gomez, Twin Falls, Idaho, Chevrolet, 147.
24. (34) Sam Hunt, Midlothian, Va., Toyota, 147.
25. (30) Brandon Gdovic, Yorktown, Va., Toyota, 147.
26. (36) Carl Harr, Edmonton, Alberta, Chevrolet, 145.
27. (29) Dylan Kwasniewski, Las Vegas, Nev., Ford, 139.
28. (13) Ben Kennedy, Daytona Beach, Fla., Chevrolet, 137, accident.
29. (14) Derek Thorn, Lakeport, Calif., Ford, 136, accident.
30. (12) Matt DiBenedetto, Grass Valley, Calif., Toyota, 133, accident.
31. (31) Akinori Ogata, Kanagawa, Japan, Toyota, 132, accident.
32. (35) Dylan Presnell, Sevierville, Tenn., Toyota, 131, accident.
33. (16) Ryan Gifford, Winchester, Tenn., Toyota, 77, oil leak.
34. (9) Ryan Blaney, High Point, N.C., Toyota, 75, engine.
35. (10) Brennan Newberry, Bakersfield, Calif., Chevrolet, 53, accident.
36. (32) Austin Dyne, Malibu, Calif., Ford, 24, engine.

Race Statistics
Time of Race: 1 hour 28 minutes 36 seconds
Margin of Victory: 1.651 seconds
Fastest Qualifier: C.Conley (131.540 mph, 23.947 seconds)
Caution Flags: 5 for 25 laps.
Lead Changes: 5 among 4 drivers.

Lap Leaders: C. Conley 1-4; C. LaJoie 5-77; B. Moffitt 78-80; C. LaJoie 81-130; K. Larson 131-139; C. LaJoie 140-150.