Sports and Outdoors

Tuesday, May 31, 2011

WINDOM WINS 63RD PAY LESS LITTLE 500

ANDERSON, Ind. (May 29, 2011) – Illinois driver Chris Windom passed Eric Gordon with five laps remaining to capture the rain-delayed 63rd running of the Pay Less Little 500 at Anderson Speedway on Sunday.

Windom wins the Pay Less Little 500 for the first time in only his third career start.

It appeared that Gordon was on his way to a record tenth victory when the caution flag waved on lap 486 for debris on the track.

On the restart Windom with an obviously faster car than Gordon made the crucial pass on lap 495 by diving inside entering turn three.

Windom had to overcome a penalty for passing the pace car late in the race, but things fell his way over the final 50 laps.

“This is unreal,” Windom said. “This is the biggest accomplishment of my career. I don’t have that much experience here, to beat a driver like Eric Gordon is unbelievable.”

Windom said he knew he had to go as fast as he could on the final restart.

“His (Gordon) car was going away and mine was getting better,” he said.

In the chess match that has become the Pay Less Little 500, it appeared pole sitter Aaron Pierce used the right strategy to record his first ever win, but it all went haywire with 68 laps remaining.

At the time Pierce had Gordon and Chris Windom down a lap when the caution flag waved on lap 432 when Kyle Wiegand spun on the back straight after a green flag run of 153 laps.

On the restart Pierce had a noticeable mechanical problem, and after getting loose once on the front straight, Gordon and Windom to return to the lead serial.

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