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10/18/2013 |
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FLEMING
CLAIMS NASCAR WHELEN SOUTHERN MODIFIED TOUR
SUNOCO ROOKIE OF THE YEAR AWARD |
 After
kicking off his NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour
career with a bang in 2009, Luke Fleming completed
his first full season of competition this year as
the Sunoco Rookie of the Year.
Fleming, 26, outdistanced Jeremy Gerstner for the
honor and was the top-finishing rookie on four
occasions this year. Overall, he finished eighth in
the championship point standings with one top-five
and five top-10 finishes behind the wheel of his No.
40 Koma Unwind Relaxation Drink/AutosByNelson.com
Ford. He scored a season-best finish of fifth on
Oct. 5 at Southern National Motorsports Park in
Kenly, N.C.
“It’s what we set out to do at the start of the
season and we’re really proud that we could see it
through,” said Fleming. “With the point structure
it’s difficult to build a lead. It made it
exciting.”
The Mount Airy, N.C., driver made his tour debut in
2009 at his home track of Bowman Gray Stadium in
Winston-Salem, N.C., and collected the victory at
the historic venue. He again competed in the Bowman
Gray event in 2010, but did not return to the
Southern Modified Tour until the start of the 2013
campaign.
Fleming stepped into the seat vacated by his uncle,
Frank Fleming, at the close of last season. The
elder Fleming’s NASCAR career began in 1986 in the
NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour and he became a Southern
Tour fixture when it began in 2005 in which he
scored 25 top fives and 59 top 10s in 96 starts. He
also made 10 NASCAR Nationwide Series starts along
the way.
“Frank is and was a great resource. He has a wealth
of racing knowledge,” he said. “Beyond his knowledge
of the sport the biggest thing he did for me was
keep me calm during the races, which was a huge
help.”
Gerstner, from Wesley Chapel, Fla., finished 11th in
the final overall standings with three top-10
finishes.
The Sunoco Rookie of the Year standings are
determined by a driver’s finishing position versus
other rookies in the race. The top-finishing rookie
in a race receives 10 points, second receives nine
and so forth. The Sunoco Rookie of the Year honor
goes to the driver with the most rookie points on
the year.
Fleming finished the season with 109 rookie points
while Gerstner scored 101. David Calabrese followed
in third with 82.
The official presentation of the 2013 NASCAR Whelen
Southern Modified Tour Sunoco Rookie of the Year
Award will take place at the NASCAR Touring Series
Awards on Saturday, Dec. 14 in the Crown Ballroom of
the Charlotte (N.C.) Convention Center at the NASCAR
Hall of Fame along with the top rookie drivers from
NASCAR’s other touring series. |
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Source: Shon Sbarra / NASCAR
Posted: October
18, 2013 |
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