Sammy Swindell and Kraig Kinser set the tone from the drop of the green flag as lightning descended around the area midway through the main event. The duo battled neck and neck – even side by side at times – with Swindell crossing the finish line first by a car length.

“I seen him drive in there real hard a few times,” he said. “I was hoping that maybe he would see the carrot out there real close and try to run a little hard. I was just running my line and trying to keep up with the race track as it was changing. It’s a lot easier to control the race sometimes when you’re in front.”

It was his series-best sixth victory of the season and it moved him back into the World of Outlaws championship standings lead for the first time since he and Steve Kinser left Orange County Fair Speedway tied for the points lead on May 19.

Kinser, who won the previous two years at Lakeside Speedway, was involved in the first caution of the race. Brian Brown jumped to the early lead only to smack the wall in turn three on the opening lap. Kinser had nowhere to go and collided with Brown’s stalled car, which was compounded when Patrick Stasa slid into the crash.

Brown and Stasa went to the trailer, while Kinser’s team was unable to make the necessary repairs before the race restarted.

His son, Kraig, who entered the event with three World of Outlaws victories in the past eight events, capitalized on the complete restart by pulling into a comfortable lead. In fact, he held nearly a straightaway advantage before the second-and-final caution on lap seven for Donny Schatz, whose car caught on fire.

After parking it in the infield near turn one and hoping out of the car, which was met with fire extinguishers, Schatz climbed back into his race car and his team fixed the problem. Kinser also rejoined the field – six laps down. He finished 14th and is nine points behind Swindell in the championship standings.

Swindell, who won a pair of Outlaws races on pavement at Lakeside Speedway in 1991 and 1992, rocketed by Kraig Kinser for the lead on the restart as bolts of lightning began to appear in the distance off turn four. Kinser maintained a close second – and even pulled side by side with him on lap 12 – but was unable to regain the lead.

“I got on the gas and spun (the tires) a little bit, just enough for Sammy to get an edge and pull back in front of me,” Kinser said. “That was it. I hounded him so hard at the end of the race. He just never really slipped up at all. He’s hard to pass when he gets out front.”

Cody Darrah also took advantage of the restart and worked his way from sixth to third, where he also finished last year at Lakeside Speedway.

“The first stages of that race I screwed up on those starts,” he said. “Then we had a restart where I kind of got everything back together and ended up pulling from sixth to third. I wish we got through lapped traffic a little bit better, but that’s part of it.”

Lucas Wolfe drove from 10th to fourth and Kerry Madsen was fifth. Chad Kemenah earned the KSE Hard Charger Award after maneuvering from 19    th to sixth. Danny Lasoski finished seventh, Craig Dollansky eighth, Tim Kaeding ninth and Schatz rounded out the top 10.