For Immediate Release: Angola, IN (May 19, 2008)   Claucherty Comes Through at Angola Looking to make a statement early in 2008, reigning ShortTrackTrucks.com Challenge Series champion, Justin Claucherty, drove steady and smooth to pilot his Chevy Silverado to the front of the field earning the first feature win of the new season. Not that it was easy as three-time series champion, Joey Shuryan, and Speed Pro Masters Division veteran, John Smalley made Claucherty earn the victory with a dramatic last lap finish.   Qualifying action saw Shuryan, making the trip from his Mooresville, NC, home earning the Renegade Racing Fuels Fast Qualifier award setting fast time for the night. Smalley and Claucherty rounded out the top three qualifiers. Last season's rookie of the year, Darren Lane, and series veteran Keith Wioncek qualified fourth and fifth setting the stage for a great feature with the top five qualifying within less than a tenth of a second.   In the first heat race it was Shuryan winning over Smalley and Lane. The second heat race was action packed as former rookie of the year winner, Larry Barylski, and truck veteran Ray Axsom delighted the fans running nearly the entire event side by side for the top spot. At the end it was Axsom getting the victory of Barylski and Doug Vander Vliet a bumper pounding third.   Under blue but threatening skies, the truck feature rolled off for 50 laps as Paul Schaffer jumped to the early lead. Schaffer pulled ahead of front row mate Josh Leo who was battling Jim Davis and Darren Lane for the second spot. But it was Claucherty, Smalley and Shuryan making the noise from their inverted starting positions.   Early on Claucherty had made various moves to reach third but by lap ten he had Jim Davis set up for an inside pass to move to second position. Soon thereafter he was on the inside of Schaffer for the lead and looked to complete the pass as the yellow flew for a fire in the engine compartment of Davis who was pulled to the pits.   Taking the green on the restart, Schaffer held on but Claucherty was too strong and jumped to the lead. In the pack Smalley and Shuryan teamed up for some fine racing making moves to the outside on several competitors. It was Smalley, especially who would rim ride high in turns one and two carrying great momentum down the backstretch and sailing past the likes of Lane and Wioncek to the back bumper of Schaffer. Smalley used an inside move to nail Schaffer for second followed closely by Shuryan.   At the halfway point it was Claucherty out front over Smalley with Shuryan keeping pace in third, all three drivers turning laps within a tenth of one another. Smalley used all his wile to get past Claucherty as the reigning champ pushed up exiting turn four allowing Smalley the inside drive to the front stretch. The pass was not to be however, as the caution flew on the same lap for a spinning Keera Allen dropping her from eighth and a great top ten run.   Inside of five laps to go, Claucherty had settled into a groove putting three truck lengths between himself and Smalley. Claucherty would ride there until the checkers earning the first victory of the 2008 season. The battle for second, though, would not be settled though until the final lap front stretch as Shuryan had caught Smalley. Smalley's Silverado slid sideways exiting turn four as Shuryan steered his F-150 underneath to the make the pass on the way to the checkers. The lapped truck of newcomer Junior Pruitt ran low to avoid the leaders and Smalley did his best to use Pruitt as a pick squeezing Shuryan lower. Shuryan had a great drive and stood and in the throttle edging his nose past Smalley. Just a few yards before the finish line, the battling duo made contact sending Shuryan sideways across the nose of Smalley neither lifting from the throttle. At the line it was the door handle of Shuryan crossing the line for second ahead of the hood of Smalley in third. Paul Schaffer, Keith Wioncek, and Josh Leo all scattered to avoid the tangled twosome rounding out the top six.   Ray Axsom drove hard to finish a close seventh followed by Evan Roberts in eighth. David Stone was the highest finishing Hall Electronics Rookie of the Year contender beating fellow rookie and Allstar Performance Hard Charger of the Race, Johnny Bruno, to the line for ninth. The Engine Pro Lucky Dog award went to Junior Pruitt while a dropped cylinder earned Jason LaDuke the St. Clair Engine Hard Luck Award. Smalley's third place finish made him the highest finishing Speed Pro Masters Division competitor. The series moves next for a Memorial Day weekend double-header at the tight and wild banks of M-40 Speedway on Friday night, May 23rd followed by the Sealed Power 100 at Spartan Speedway on Sunday, May 25th.   The ShortTrackTrucks.com Challenge Series races specially prepared racing trucks at the finest short tracks across the Great Lakes area. The still growing truck racing class offers professional oval track racing in an exciting, fast-paced, fender banging and affordable formula. Drivers from around the country are eligible to compete in Chevrolet Silverado, Ford F-150, Toyota Tundra, and Dodge Ram full-sized racing prepared trucks. The series competes at all major racing venues in the Midwest, including Mansfield Motorsports Park, Berlin Raceway and Kalamazoo Speedway. Information on the ShortTrackTrucks.com Challenge Series events, schedule, and drivers can be found at www.ShortTrackTrucks.com.