COLUMBUS, Miss. — When Josh Richards overtook Jimmy Owens with six laps remaining Friday at Magnolia Motor Speedway, it appeared he might have found a way to beat the red-hot Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series points leader.

But when Richards left the middle lane open on the next lap, Owens raced back past to grab a $5,000 payday and his third series race of the season in the General Tire Clash at the Mag 25-lap prelim.

“I just wish I’d done one little move a little bit differently,” Richards lamented after the race, “but hopefully we’ll be there tomorrow.”

Indeeds, Richards along with Owens and Thursday winner Bobby Pierce will be chasing the weekend’s biggest payday in Saturday’s 100-lap finale with the first nine rows of the feature based on points accrued in prelims. Owens will unofficially be on the pole position after adding Friday’s victory to his runner-up finish Thursday.

“A hundred laps is a long way to go,” he said. "I don’t know what we’re going to get with the track. They’re doing a great job prepping it. You don’t know where to run, that makes it real tough, especially if you’re up front.”

Richards finished 1.021 seconds behind Owens on Friday while Tyler Erb of New Waverly, Texas, posted a third-place finish. Frank Heckenast Jr. of Frankfort, Ill., improved three spots to finish fourth and Michael Page of Douglasville, Ga., charged from his 17th starting spot to round out the top five.

Owens was glad he had room to regain the lead from Richards as he led every lap except the 19th, the circuit Richards briefly slipped ahead.

“The track, with them prepping the track and stuff, you didn’t know whether to go high, low or middle,” Owens said. “I knew the middle of the track was going to be pretty good there. But you know, Josh was behind me and he had a great car and was able to surge here and there, and whenever he passed me there, he kind of scooted up and left the bottom back open for me, and we were able to capitalize on it.

“Right now everything’s really good, and like I said, we just can’t get enough. Maybe it’ll keep rolling for us.”

Richards, who won a Clash at the Mag prelim last season, immediately regretted the move he made after taking the lead.

“I moved up there and got the lead on Jimmy in (turns) three and four, and I should’ve rolled the middle in one and two, but by the time I went back to the top, the track was done. It had died,” Richards said. “Once we got (back) to him, we just rode the middle and rode it out. Jimmy’s been great, those guys have done a great job this year.”

He’ll go back to work in Saturday’s long-distance affair at the 3/8-mile oval.

“I think it was good for us last night to start in the back, and I could maneuver and really see what the car had and what it would do … the track was a lot different tonight, it was a lot slower, and kind of laned up there the last five or six laps. I’m sure they’re going to work (hard on the track) and hopefully we’ll have a good race. I know we have a really solid piece and hopefully we can keep it intact and get a win tomorrow.”

Erb, whose third-place finish on Friday was two slots better than Thursday’s performance, couldn’t quite get into the lead battle up front.

“Jimmy, he’s one of the best cars around right now, and Josh, he’s not no slouch. I thought the top would be a little bit better, like it was last night, it really wasn’t,” Erb said. “The track, it raced all right there and kinda locked down at the end. If we’re a little bit better tomorrow, that’d be good.”

Crediting his Best Performance Motorsports crew for making him “really fast,” Erb knows he needs to be “a little bit better,” Saturday. “I think the best car won tonight. Josh got by him there and just slipped up and Jimmy got right back by him. I hope they get it a little bit wetter tomorrow so it’s a good race for all the fans.”

Four cautions in the first half of the race slowed the action.

On the fourth lap, Morgan Bagley of Longview, Texas, slowed on the frontstretch and pulled pitside after apparently getting into the outside wall. Two laps later, another yellow appeared when Scott Dedwylder spun in turn three, collecting fellow home-state driver Michael Arnold, who spun again on the 10th lap. The final yellow appeared when Devin Gilpin lost fire on the 12th lap.

Notes: Jimmy Owens has finished in the top-five in 11 straight series starts. …. Ninth-starting Devin Moran of Dresden, Ohio, got up to fourth, but he faded to eighth in the second half of the race. … Thursday’s winner Bobby Pierce of Oakwood, Ill., made a 21st-to-10th charge in the 25-lapper. … Promoter Johnny Stokes took time for an extensive reworking of the track before the main event, which started about 12:20 a.m. and concluded about 12:35 a.m. … Kyle Beard made his way into the feature by nipping Shanon Buckingham for the final transfer spot in heat action. A tire change in the main event dropped him from contention … Jesse Stovall is guaranteed a Comp Cams provisional Saturday, but he's looking for a car to drive after having problems in his No 00. ... Luke Bennett of Ethel, La., broke a motor Thursdays and plans to drop to the Crate division. … Doug Sanchagrin couldn’t compete because his car’s lift gate broke.

Preliminary results: