By Steve Pados, GA Motorsports Media
Washington State driving star Brea Lopez and her team made a big decision together towards the latter stages of the 2008 racing season. Despite enjoying great success while competing with the Washington Midget Racing Assciation for the past four years, collectively Brea and the Team decided it was time to make a big change for 2009 and that decision led to the disposal of all of the Midget racing equipment and to make the transition into the Late Model divisions of racing. The spirited Lopez has been quick all season with her race car but has at times found making the transition into the full-fendered divisions of racing to be sometimes frustrating. After a third place finish a few weeks ago, Lopez was confident she could put her race car into victory lane before the season ended. Little did she know, the victory would be forthcoming at her very next race at the South Sound Speedway..

Lopez began last Saturday evening by timing third fastest in qualifying. Starting the feature event from third place, Lopez was on the mark early on and quickly took control of the point before turn-2 of the 50-lap feature event for the Late Models. Lopez set a quick pace and was hitting her marks on the speedway as she sped away to a safe distance in the event. West Coast racing legend and NASCAR veteran Dirk Stephens was on hand for the event and would soon become a player in the event. Stephens, with many laps under his belt at South Sound, ate up the asphalt real estate between he and Lopez and would soon challenge the 20-year old lady racer for the lead. The veteran campaigner Stephens made a move for the lead towards the end of the event and briefly took over the lead but the determined Lopez would not be denied in this outing and quickly regained control of the lead and with it the win as she captured her first ever win in the Late Model ranks.The victory lane celebration for the team was pure pandemonium as a very jubilant Lopez and crew took advantage of the spotlight after securing her first win in hte late model ranks.

The veteran Stephens was in for the runnerup slot with his protege Jon Hubberts behind him for third place. Fast timer of the evening Ron Wolf was fourth in the event and continues to hold down the points lead in the season battle for the championship. Devin Eierman completed the top five running order with Jeremy Richardson, Tyler Allen, Steve Woods, Mark Johnson and Rod Schultz Jr completing the top ten. Wolf was within very close range of establishing a new track record at theSpeedway in qualifying as he timed in at 13.786 seconds just short of the track record established by Billy Weber at 13.714.

In the latest point rankings at the speedway, Ron Wolf leads the point standings with 346 points. Jeremy Richardson is second with 294 tallies. Brea Lopez moves up to third place in points on the strength of her win and has tallied 272 points thus far and Tyler Allen completes the top five with 242 markers.

Lopez is a rookie in 2009 with the Late Model division after completing a successful four year run with the Washington Midget Racing Association. Lopez is no stranger to the facility at South Sound as she has competed at the speedway many times with her association in the WMRA. Lopez is hoping her knowledge of the South Sound racing facility will assist her immensely as she embarks onto the next phase of her racing career. Citing the fact there is quite a bit difference between the new division she is competing with versus her past racing efforts in the open wheel ranks, Lopez has always been a quick study with her racing activity and the time to adapt to the new division will come quickly for the 20-year old real estate agent.

This week it was a jubilant Lopez chatting on the phone as she stated, "I feel like a big weight has been lifted from me with the win. Grandpa has the car working perfectly and all I had to do was to steer the car and oh yes, make it exciting. To battle with one of the true West Coast legends in Dirk Stephens was indeed a fitting way to capture the first one. We knew the transition would be challenging at times but we have a great team, they give me a great car and all I have to do is to put it up front". Lopez further added, "That victory lane stuff is quite addicting. I would love to be there every week. Since we have now succeeded in meeting one of our goals in 2009, we have to now raise the bar a bit and see what we can do the next time we go racing".

Brea's Grandfather, West Coast racing legend Dan Press, continues to work his magic with the race car as he is accustomed to working on this type of racing equipment. The team is utilizing a Victory Circle race chassis and the racer has been fitted it with a GM Crate motor for competition with the Limited Late Model division at the South Sound Speedway located in Rochester, Washington. The track will be a familiar and a good starting point for Lopez as she has always enjoyed great success while running her Midget on the fastest 3/8 mile raceway on the West Coast. While Lopez has cast her hat into the ring for a run at the Rookie of the Year award, she would like nothing better than to win a few races in her rookie season with the Late Model division.

While the Brea Lopez Motorsports Team is ready for the team's foray into the late model competition, the search to add additional sponsors to the fold continues on a daily basis. The downturn in the National economy has become a difficult challenge for all racers trying to find glory and success in a racing environment. Anyone who would like to lend support to the Brea Lopez Motorsports Team efforts should contact her through her website for further information.

Brea Lopez would like to thank all of her sponsors and supporters for their efforts in helping the team prepare for the 2009 racing season. Redline Oil, Finish Line Racing Equipment and new sponosr Joe's Racing Products, Nex-Gen Motorsports and GA Motorsports Media have all played a major role in the success of the team.

A complete revamping of the website is due shortly. For more information regarding the latest in updated news and information for the talented racer Brea Lopez, log on to her website at: http://www.brealopez.com