South Boston, VA (June 1, 2008): Max Dumarey had hoped to celebrate his first year in the NASCAR Camping World Series East with a solid finish in the Strutmasters.com 150 at South Boston Speedway. Instead, Dumarey got caught up in a 16-car melee at lap 127 and had to park the car before the race’s scheduled conclusion. He ended the day with a 28th place finish.

“They were racing like it was the last lap,” said Dumarey. “People don’t want to come and watch a wreck fest. They want to watch racing. You can’t have that when there are 77 laps of caution.”

Dumarey had the potential for a top-10 finish in the race prior to the incident. He started the #16 BODYCOACH.NET Chevrolet from the 18th position but wasted little time in moving through the field. At the same time, Dumarey knew a little patience was in order.

“Right from the drop of the green you knew it was going to be an aggressive race. There was no give and take, so there were times that I really couldn’t push the issue even though I had a quick car. There were times that I had to give up a spot that I had just worked five or six laps to get just so that I wouldn’t get caught up in these wrecks.”

Dumarey’s defensive driving style in the Strutmasters.com 150 didn’t pay off. On a restart at lap 127, three cars battling for position went three wide. Heading into turn three, the drivers squeezed themselves deep into the corner. Contact was made, and it set off a chain reaction. When the dust settled, sixteen cars – including Dumarey’s Fadden Racing entry – had been collected in the carnage.

“It’s just a shame,” an obviously dejected Dumarey said after the race. “The car was good and we were quicker than a lot of teams out there. Everybody needed to just calm down. This series is all about entertaining the people, but this is not entertaining.”

The team shifts their focus to Watkins Glen International road course. The team tested there last week with very positive results. Dumarey hails from a European road racing background and is anxious to give the 2.45-mile course a try.

“I’m really excited about going to Watkins Glen,” said Dumarey. “It’s easier than the courses I’m used to running (in Europe). There’s really not a lot of shifting you have to do contrary to what a lot of drivers may believe. The shifting is really a lot less than what I’m used to because there are only four gears in these cars. I have high expectations for this team at this track, and I’m going to do everything in my power to fulfill those.”