Chris Eggleston wins NASCAR K&N Pro Series West race at Orange Show Speedway

Chris Eggleston does a burnout after winning the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West race at Orange Show Speedway in San Bernardino, California.

It took four NASCAR K&N Pro Series West races but Chris Eggleston found the checkered flag. The reigning NASCAR K&N Pro Series West champion won his first race of the season, taking the lead before a green-white-checkered finish at the Orange Show Speedway in San Bernardino, California. He passed Ryan Partridge for the lead on lap 142 of the Sunrise Ford 150 and held the lead for the last nine laps of the race. The green-white-checkered flag finish extended the length of the race to 151 laps.

Chris Eggleston, the reigning NASCAR K&N Pro Series West champion, won the race at Orange Show Speedway in San Bernardino, California. It was his first win of the season.

“It was a battle all night,” Eggleston said. “This quarter mile Orange Show Speedway is a tricky little place.”

Rookie Todd Gilliland, one of the drivers selected to the NASCAR Next class, won the first two NASCAR K&N Pro Series West races of the season. He won four K&N Pro Series races in row, including the season finale in 2015 at Phoenix International Raceway and the K&N Pro Series East opener in Florida. Ryan Partridge snapped Gilliland’s winning streak by taking the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West race at Tucson Speedway in Arizona.

It looked like Partridge had the car to beat again at the Orange Show. He won the pole and led the first 105 laps of the race. But Partridge spun out trying to pass lapped cars in traffic. Eggleston and Partridge fought for the lead until lap 141. Partridge and Rich DeLong tangled on lap 143. Eggleston finally passed Partridge and held on until the end.

“I feel it is as sweet as the first one last year and the year before,” Eggleston said. “Any time you can get in victory lane in the K&N Pro Series is really special, near and dear to my heart. It’s really cool to get our first win of the season and hopefully we can gain some momentum, keep clicking them off.”

Chris Eggleston celebrates after winning the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West race at Orange Show Speedway in San Bernardino, California. He led for 11 laps including the last nine laps of the race.

Gracin Raz was the runner-up at the Orange Show. It was his first top-five finish in four races.

“It came down to who wanted it more,” Raz said. “It was a really, really rough race. Restarting on the outside was definitely where we were most of the night.”

Noah Gragson, another driver in the NASCAR Next class, was third and posted his second top-five finish in four K&N Pro Series West races. The drivers in the NASCAR Next class are considered to be the rising stars of stock car racing. Industry executives, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Drivers Council, and media select who becomes part of each NASCAR Next class.

“We definitely have speed,” Gragson said. “We came up a little bit short. Definitely have speed to work with. Hopefully we’ll get more checkered flags here in the future.”

Gilliland was fourth and maintained his lead in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West standings. He has a four-point lead over Partridge. Partridge recovered after spinning out late in the race and crossed the finish line in sixth place.

Rookie Julia Landauer, who was also selected as a driver in the NASCAR Next class, was fifth, her second top-five finish in four K&N Pro Series West races.

The next race for the K&N Pro Series West drivers is the Toyota/NAPA Auto Parts 150 at Colorado National Speedway on June 11.