Thompson Finally Breaks Through at Gateway

Rick Thompson had already experienced what it felt like to have an MLSR victory within reach.

At Iowa, the No. 76 controlled much of the night and built a commanding advantage before a caution erased it, allowing James Beard to steal the show on the final run. Thompson said after Thursday night's race that he had also been in contention at Darlington before another late caution changed the equation.

At World Wide Technology Raceway, the opportunity came again.

This time, Thompson finished it.

Thompson took advantage of a race-changing mistake by early dominator Jamel Love, survived a difficult night of restarts and attrition, and ultimately pulled away from Zack Domer to capture his first Major League Sim Racing victory in the MLSR B-Open Series presented by Ideal Family, LLC.

It wasn't Thompson who initially looked destined for Victory Lane.

That distinction belonged to Love.

Starting from the pole, Love quickly established the No. 3 as the car everyone else would have to beat. He controlled the opening portion of the race and accumulated a race-high 55 laps led, while Thompson worked his way forward from sixth and Ethan Thompson remained firmly in the battle.

Rick Thompson wasn't running away with the race, but he wasn't letting Love disappear either.

Afterward, Thompson said he had been watching the interval between himself and Love during the opening run and felt their pace was surprisingly close despite Love having the advantage of starting at the front and Thompson having to navigate more traffic. He wanted to see how that comparison would develop deeper into the race.

He never got the opportunity.

Love's night unraveled when he was caught speeding entering pit road. The penalty stripped away the advantage he had built and completely changed the complexion of the race. Love eventually retired after completing 64 laps, turning a race that had largely revolved around the No. 3 into a fight between the remaining contenders.

Thompson knew exactly what the mistake meant.

“I'll take a little bit of luck, I guess.”

But luck only opened the door.

Winning still required Thompson to walk through it.

With Love out of the picture, Rick Thompson, Ethan Thompson and Zack Domer emerged at the center of the fight. Passing was exceptionally difficult at Gateway, making track position and execution increasingly valuable as the race progressed.

Ethan Thompson had been one of the strongest cars throughout the night and led 35 laps, second only to Love. But his own setback came during the final pit sequence. When the jack dropped, Ethan attempted to accelerate away and the car simply didn't respond as he expected. He initially thought he had accidentally selected neutral, only to look down and find the car still in first gear.

“I couldn't tell you what happened,” Ethan said afterward.

Whatever the cause, the hesitation cost him valuable track position and forced him to fight his way back through traffic during a portion of the race when passing had become increasingly difficult.

Meanwhile, the race around the leaders was becoming increasingly unforgiving.

A late restart produced one of the night's biggest accidents, damaging multiple cars and thinning a field that had already endured considerable attrition. Jacob Durbin was among those left with significant damage, while James Beard compounded his night with a pit-road speeding penalty.

Even when the race stayed green, trouble continued.

Chris Cornett, who had been trying to recover after previously being trapped a lap down, tangled with Shawn Hook during a side-by-side battle. Hook saved his car, but Cornett went sliding through the infield grass. The race remained green, leaving Cornett to recover without the benefit of a caution.

Through all of it, Thompson kept the No. 76 where it needed to be.

The race eventually settled into a six-car fight at the front featuring Thompson, Domer, Dustin Coggin, Blake Hauschild, Ethan Thompson and Brandon Hunsinger. With passing at a premium, Thompson's ability to control the race from the front became increasingly important.

And unlike Iowa, there would be no late twist waiting to take this one away.

Thompson led 38 laps and opened enough breathing room over Domer in the closing stages to finally enjoy the moment he had been chasing. When the checkered flag fell after 130 laps, Thompson held a 3.782-second advantage over Domer.

Ethan Thompson recovered from his pit-road setback to finish just 0.351 seconds behind Domer in third. Dustin Coggin turned in one of the strongest recovery drives of the night, climbing from 15th to fourth, while Brandon Hunsinger completed the top five.

For Rick Thompson, though, the numbers told only part of the story.

The victory represented redemption for Iowa, another missed opportunity at Darlington and every previous occasion when Thompson had been fast enough to contend but hadn't been able to close the deal.

The broadcast crew even pointed back to Iowa after the finish, describing Gateway as a measure of redemption for a driver who had led the most laps there only to watch Beard take the victory away on the final stint.

This time, nobody took it away.

“It's huge,” Thompson said of finally earning the victory. “Until you get that first win, you kind of are always feeling a little snake bit.”

Gateway ended that feeling.

After several races of knocking on the door, Rick Thompson finally kicked it open.