2014 TM Lights - Race 2 @ Carbondale

What you were expecting a bombshell? Sorry, this peepshow ain't free.

Luke Ocean, pushed it as far as it could go, and gets 2nd. Very happy with that

"Most of the time, people would be mad if they had the lead and lost it with such little time to go but you know what I couldn't be more happy with the podium result we got today. We pushed it hard at the end and hit the wall, but this is surely a great morale boost moving forward". - Luke Ocean

Ecstatic Cranston captures elusive first TM Lights Series victory with late-race charge

Lane Cranston had come close to winning in the TM Lights Series in 2013 on more than one occasion, but he never had the car when it mattered most.

But finally, in the second race of the 2014 Lights season, Cranston had the car to win, and the race came to him.

Cranston captured his long-awaited first TM Lights Series victory on Saturday, taking the lead from Luke Ocean with just six laps to go, and holding on through a one-lap shootout at the end of the race when Brad Dwyer broke down on Lap 95, invoking the new rule that TM Lights races must finish under green.

The final lap, however, was not without its scares. Cranston got a good restart, and drove well until the exit of the final corner, when he drifted up the track, and smacked the wall. Luckily, he had a big enough gap over Ocean, who had hit the wall coming out of Turn 2, to take the checkered flag first.

"Yeah, the car got away from me coming out of 3," the Clarksville, Tennessee native said. "I was probably doing too much mirror-driving, as well. I should've just focused on me, not on Luke, and that probably wouldn't have happened. But I'm not used to winning, so, baby steps.

"The guys did a great job in the pits. We started toward the back, and most of us pitted during the first caution, and, my crew got me out pretty quick, and we managed to make up track position that we were able to hold on to."

Much of the race was dominated by Melrose Racing's Friedrich Jaeger, but the later the race got, the more Jaeger's car began to slow. Ocean passed Jaeger and began to pull away from everyone else, until Cranston freed himself from lapped traffic and passed the German for second, then quickly hunted down and made fast work of Ocean on Lap 94.

"The car was good the whole race," Cranston said. "When I got out of lapped traffic, I caught Friedrich pretty quick. It took a little while to pass him, but once I did, I knew I could catch Luke."

Lapped traffic was an issue for the leaders the whole race. Eight cautions made sure of that.

This is MT Motorsports' first year with sponsorship from worldwide food conglomerate Yum! Brands. Cranston's car carries Pizza Hut and WingStreet colors. MT Motorsports owner Fred Caldwell says this win is a result of that sponsorship, and the freedom it's given the team to make their cars better.

"In our early years, we had to pinch pennies," Caldwell said. "We had to be careful as to what we bought for our cars, because we wanted to stay in business, and turn into a success. This deal with Yum! allows us to get the best parts for our cars, and give Lane confidence that he is driving a reliable car that can also win races."

Caldwell had nothing but praise for Cranston's performance on Saturday.

"He did a great job. He deserves it. He got close a couple of times last year, so, everybody knows he's capable. This'll be the first of many wins this season for him and the team. It's all coming together at the right time."

This is MT Motorsports' third win in TM Lights. Canadian Brian Morris, who is now sharing the team's TM Master Cup Series car with Kraig Mummert, won twice in 2012, at Las Vegas and Fontana.