SCOUTING REPORT: Jeff Babcock

OVERVIEW:  Jeff Babcock is good ... let's go ahead and get that out of the way.  He comes from the old school way of racing, working his way up from the Stocks, then Modifieds, and now Late Models.  Basically, he's a guy who will race anything with four wheels ... and he does, racing a Late Model and Mod full-time while still dabbling in the Stocks when the opportunity presents itself.  Once the Halcomb Racing team finally got rolling in 2012, Babcock shrugged off a somewhat sluggish start to become one of the fastest drivers by the end of the season.  In the Best Performace Motorsports UMP Modified, Babcock was a legit contender in every single race.

WHAT WE KNOW:  The Wayne, Ohio driver plans on doing even more racing in 2013 with a highly ambitious schedule mapped out.  Halcomb Racing is joining forces with Best Performance Motorsports to form one powerhouse operation which will kick off with Babcock in the team's Modified at North Florida Speedway in February.  The newly combined program will hit every Mod show at Ocala and Volusia and, from there, will drag out the Late Model for a March swing that's likely to include Clarksville, TN's Toilet Bowl Classic and Florence, KY's Spring 50.  During the summer months, look for "The Wayne Hurricane" to run select UMP SummerNationals events with the Late Model and Modified as well as some USMTS Modified shows in the midwest.  Aside from the traveling more and hitting some bigger shows, Babcock's number one priority is a track championship at Eldora with both the Late Model and the Modified.  Oh, then there's that NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Eldora.  He's running that too.

WHERE HE'S GOOD:  Babcock is an excellent driver and has solid equipment under him.  All the ingredients are there to make him of the the region's top drivers to watch this season, in what could certainly prove to be a breakout year for the 32-year-old.  He's a hard driver and usually rises to the level of his competition if given the opportunity.

WHERE TO IMPROVE:  As mentioned above, Babcock is a throttle-stomper and, as we all know, that can occasionally get a driver in trouble.  A little more seat time against varying levels of competition and on different track surfaces should help sharpen his program.  Jeff's a smart driver and adjusts well to most situations presented to him.  If he doesn't lose sight of that ability, 2013 will be the year Jeff Babcock picks up some pretty big wins.

DRIVER'S THOUGHTS:  "Best Performance Motorsports has really stepped up and I'm hoping to do the same in return!"