SEVIERVILLE, TN — The 2011 Championship Auto Racing Series Pro Cup banquet was held this past Saturday night in Mooresville, N.C., and Sevier County High School freshman Blake Jones wrote his name in the series’ record book as the youngest driver to ever win rookie of the year.
In the Pro Cup season finale last fall at Rockingham (N.C.) Speedway, all 14-year-old Jones had to do was start the race to clinch rookie of the year title. Jones quickly wrapped the rookie award up and set his sights on winning the race.
Early on and during the middle stages of the event it looked like the talented teenager just might record his first Pro Cup victory, as he led many laps and ran solidly inside the top-five. Finding himself in a three-car battle up front for the lead, unfortunately Jones and Brad Rogers both got taken out of the race in a questionable move by fellow competitor Ryan Heavner.
Jones began the 2011 campaign chauffeuring cars from his family’s Teddy Jones Racing operation nestled in the foothills of the Smoky Mountains, but midway through the season he moved into the seat to drive for Athens, Ga.-based Kirk May Racing.
Even though Jones missed a mid-summer race last July at Shenandoah (Va.) Speedway, competing in 12 of the 13 series events and on the strength of four top-five and seven top-10 finishes during the season, he finished seventh in CARS Pro Cup points.
Jones recorded a personal best runner-up finish at Hickory (N.C.) Motor Speedway, along with third-place runs at both Dillon (S.C.) Motor Speedway and Lonesome Pine Raceway in Coeburn, Va., plus a fourth-place effort at Ace Speedway located in Altamahaw, N.C.
“Overall I guess you could say we had a good season in 2011, because we led races and placed ourselves in contention to visit victory lane and just in general at each event we showed up at we ran well,” said Jones following the CARS Pro Cup banquet as he reflected on last season. “I’m a racer and each time I strap in the car I do so hoping to pull into victory lane following the conclusion of the event, and really what was disappointing last year is we could have won three or four races if things had just worked out better for us. You kind of hate thinking back and looking at how things could’ve turned out better, but I know for certain we (as a team) gave a couple of races away and then we got wrecked and knocked out of contention of winning a couple of more races.
“The CARS Pro Cup tour is tough, with several veteran drivers, and I guess what’s really gratifying for me is knowing that during my rookie season as we showed up at tracks for the first time I’d ever laid eyes on them, is just how well we ran. I have to give a lot of credit for us running so good to my crew chief Wade Day, because there’s no doubting that he believes in me as a race car driver and in turn that really gives me a boost of confidence. Wade and I really communicate well, I can tell him how the car’s driving and he knows what adjustments to make on the chassis. We’d have a good qualifying run and then back it up and have a strong run during the race. Hey, we didn’t get that elusive first win in 2011, but all the veteran series drivers grew to respect my abilities as a racer and they knew that I wasn’t just some kid out on the track riding around. I’ve won in every level of racing since I began in go-karts, then into Bandolero and Legends cars and then into asphalt Late Models. We didn’t get that Pro Cup win in 2011, but there’s always the upcoming racing season. Finishing seventh in CARS Pro Cup points and earning ‘Rookie of the Year’ honors meant a lot to me.”
Supporters for the Teddy Jones Racing CARS Pro Cup No. 80 Dodge Charger efforts during the 2011 racing season: Baker’s Wrecker Service, Breeden Paving, Chambers Market & Grill, Colonial Loan, NAPA Auto Parts of Sevierville, Sevierville Import & Truck Center, WD Performance, Fast Cash Pawn, St. Baldrick’s Foundation, eXlander Designs, with special thanks to W.C. and Tracy Mills of Old Town, Fla.
During the winter offseason Blake and family have been busy preparing a new business venture for the teenager to be hands-on in operating. To quench that “need for speed” be sure to stop by Blake Jones Racing Center - Indoor Go-Karts in Pigeon Forge and talk racing with Blake and his family.
The start to the 2012 racing season is quickly approaching. Tentative plans call for Blake to compete in selected NASCAR K&N Pro Series East events, along with CARS Pro Cup races and also competing in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series sanctioned Late Model Stock shows at Kingsport Speedway.
To learn more about Blake Jones, visit his Web site at www.BlakeJonesRacing.com … and contact Teddy Jones Racing at (865) 388-2795. You can follow Blake Jones on social media via Twitter at http://twitter.com/#!/80BlakeJones and on Facebook at Blake Jones Racing.
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