POST FALLS - Gary Lewis, the three-time defending Idaho 200 champion, could see first place late Sunday afternoon with just a handful of laps to go. He had come from the back twice in the race but getting that last position proved to be quite another issue.

Standing in the way of Lewis' 4-peat at Stateline Speedway was John Dillon, the Rocky Mountain Challenge Series driver from Eagle. He was able to hold off Lewis during the last 30 laps and win Sunday's Idaho 200, becoming the first Rocky Mountain Challenge Series driver to win the event in the three years they have competed at Stateline Speedway.

Lewis, who had spun out trying to clear lapped traffic while in second place on lap 67, made his way back to the front after losing eight spots after his spin.

Dillon came from the ninth starting spot and steadily worked his way to the lead, falling back as far as 12th in the first half of the race before rallying to fifth at the 100-lap mark, when the caution flag was shown and cars were allowed to go to the pits, change tires and minor car setups if needed.

"We didn't change anything at the break," Dillon said. "We just made sure everything was good and came back out."

Dillon said the team had a rough day on Saturday during the RMCS Duel 100-lap event, when a spring collapsed.

"Luckily the crew hustled and worked really hard to get the car together and ready to run today," he said. "It's a great win and they (the crew) deserve this."

Lewis fell in behind Dillon at lap 170, when Dave Garber of Spokane, who had led the majority of the race, got together

with third-place driver Zan Sharp of Wellsville, Utah, just after Dillon squirted past Garber a few laps before.

Garber and Sharp pitted, moving Lewis up behind Dillon. But Lewis, from Snohomish, Wash., couldn't make any headway on Dillon in the remaining laps. Lewis tried some different lines late, but nothing got him closer than two car lengths to Dillon under green-flag racing. Lewis passed cars high and low all day, but also thought he might have done a little damage to his drivetrain after that early spin, which may have hurt his chances of gaining on Dillon late in the running.

"I spun my tires after that spin (on lap 67), and it may have been the difference right there," Lewis said. "In the end, I was searching - just trying to find something that worked and get me closer to (Dillon).

"This is a good win for John," Lewis said while watching Dillon pose with the first-place trophy, "He runs clean and really deserves this."

Dave Rhodes, an ASA Northwest Late Model competitor like Lewis, came home third, just over six seconds behind.

Rhodes, of Yelm, Wash., said he had a good car all weekend. "We got tangled up in some stuff the first 100 laps," said Rhodes, who started 12th and was in the same position at the half, "but we made some repairs and had some clean runs in the second half."

Rhodes said they, too, didn't make any handling changes at the halfway point, just made sure the toe was set. He couldn't wait to get back out and keep moving forward.

"People were driving real clean and we were able to pass some cars and bring home a great finish," he said.

Rhodes said it was a privilege to be on the podium with Dillon and Lewis. "To be standing up here with them is just great - good racers."

Dave Garber parked his car after a few efforts to get it racy again, and ended up 17th. Dave's brother Dan, also of Spokane, stayed on the lead lap all day and would up eighth.

Craig Bell, the RMCS regular who decided to take a year off, chose to run only the Idaho 200 this year. His chances looked good for a win after lining up second after the break. Bell couldn't gain ground on Garber, and settled for fourth place. Jonathan Gomez, who started 13th, worked his way into a fifth-place finish, to give the RMCS drivers three of the top five places.

Blake Williams of Spokane, a 16-year-old teammate of 2006 200 champion Kevin Richards, raced with the leaders after going down a lap early and came home in ninth, one lap down.

Richards, from Newman Lake, led at lap 21, cut a tire on lap 72 and then had many battles with leaders before finishing 12th, five laps down.

Dover's Jeff Little has mechanical issues early after starting 18th, and wound up 20th.

Amanda MacDonald had a frustrating weekend. She lost a motor during the INSSA Duel race Friday, then fought drivetrain gremlins throughout Sunday. Due to the 16-car invert after qualifying, she started in third, but was on and off the track for most of the race after heading for the pits on lap 3. MacDonald, from Ephrata, Wash., wound up 22nd.

Brothers Braeden and Todd Havens, both of Spokane, wound up 10th and 21st, respectively.

2010 Idaho 200

At Stateline Speedway

Place Driver Laps

1. John Dillon 200

2. Gary Lewis 200

3. Dan Rhodes 200

4. Craig Bell 200

5. Jonathan Gomez 200

6. John Newhouse 200

7. Dave Minegar 200

8. Dan Garber 200

9. Blake Williams 199

10. Braeden Havens 198

11. Jason O'Neal 197

12. Kevin Richards 196

13. Ross Cooper 190

14. Mark Sundberg 183

15. Chris Hart 180

16. Andy Brown 175

17. Dave Garber 173

18. Dylan Caldwell 172

19. Zan Sharp 170

20. Jeff Little 157

21. Todd Havens 97

22. Amanda MacDonald 48