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DAVE
DARLAND SCORES THIRD TONY BETTENHAUSEN 100 WIN
Dave Darland of Lincoln,
Ind. scored his third "Tony Bettenhausen 100"
triumph in Saturday's 100-mile USAC Weld Racing Silver Crown race
at the
Illinois State Fairgrounds, leading all but one lap in his Foxco/Jarvis
Enterprises Beast/Foxco Chevy.
"This might have been the best car I've ever had," said
the jubilant
Darland in the winner's circle. Dave also won at the Springfield
mile in1997
and 1999 and the win boosted him to second in the new series standings
behind leader J.J. Yeley.
Yeley, leading all three USAC National Series standings, fought
an
ill-handling car and finished 17th, eight laps behind the winner
after
making numerous pit stops for adjustments on yellow flags.
Darland won the pole for the race at 119.047 mph. and was trailed
at the
checkered flag Jerry Coons, Jr., Tyler Walker, Jay Drake and Tracy
Hines.
Coons caught Darland on a restart and led lap 21 but Darland regained
the
lead the next lap and was never again headed.
""It's too bad the day's over," said Darland, who
attributed the win to a
great car. "We weren't good on restarts but once we got the
momentum we were
OK."
The race was halted on lap 90 for a five-car accident at the end
of the
frontstretch but there were no serious injuries. Tom Capie, one
of three
driver who flipped during the melee, was transported to a Springfield
hospital for a precautionary checkup. Brian Tyler and Rich Tobias,
Jr. also
flipped.
Yeley's point lead slipped to just nine over Darland and 13 over
Steele
going into this week's (Aug. 22-24) USAC "tripleheader"
at the Nazareth (PA)
Speedway, involving all three USAC National Racing Series.
RESULTS
Springfield, Ill. - Results
Saturday afternoon (August 16) from the running
of the "Tony Bettenhausen 100" USAC Weld Racing Silver
Crown Series race at
the Illinois State Fairgrounds, with starting position in parentheses,
driver, hometown, laps completed, reason out if any and money won:
1. (1) Dave Darland,
$,9,300, 100.
2. (2) Jerry Coons, Jr., $4,500, 100.
3. (9) Tyler Walker, $3,000, 100.
4. (6) Jay Drake, $2,000, 100.
5. (4) Tracy Hines, $1,800, 100.
6. (18) Paul White, $1,600, 100.
7. (7) Kevin Huntley, $1,400, 100.
8. (11) Donnie Beechler, $1,200, 100.
9. (14) Dave Steele, $1,100, 100.
10. (10) Nick Lundgreen, $1,000, 100.
11. (30) Greg Wilson, $1,200, 100.
12. (5) Tony Elliott, $800, 100.
13. (19) Matt Westfall, $700, 100.
14. (27) Dane Carter, $600, 100.
15. (26) Ron Gregory, $500, 99.
16. (16) Jason McCord, $500, 99.
17. (3) J.J. Yeley, $1,000, 92.
18. (13) Rich Tobias, Jr., $500, Accident, 88.
19. (17) Brian Tyler, $500, Accident, 88.
20. (15) Eric Gordon, $500, Accident, 88.
21. (21) Tom Capie, $400, Accident, 88.
22. (20) A.J. Fike, $400, Accident, 88.
23. (12) Levi Jones, $400, RR Tire, 82.
24. (23) Johnny Parsons, $400, Steering, 79.
25. (24) Brad Noffsinger, $350, Brakes, 70.
26. (8) Teddy Beach, $350, RR Tire, 58.
27. (25) Russ Gamester, $350, Accident, 55.
28. (28) Rod Holshouser, $350, Overheating, 19.
29 (29) Murray Erickson, $350, Clutch, 14.
30. (22) Roger Rager, $350, Steering, 5.
Time of Race: NONE-Red
Flag.
Winner's Average Speed: NONE-Red Flag.
Caution Flags: 4 for 20 laps and a red flag.
Lead Changes: 2 among 2 drivers.
Lap Leaders: Darland 1-20, Coons 21, Darland 22-100.
Fastest Qualifier: Dave Darland - 30.240 seconds - 119.047 mph.
Qualifying Race Winner: (15 laps) .Tom Capie.
Weld Racing Silver Crown Point Standings: 1. Yeley, 383; 2. Darland,
374;
3. Steele, 370; 4. Hines, 330; 5. Drake, 288; 6. White, 269; 7.
Walker, 227;
8. Tyler, 225; 9. McCord, 179; 10. Tobias, 172.
Next Weld Racing Silver Crown Race: August 22-24 - Nazareth (Pa.)
Speedway
TONY
STEWART IMPRESSED BY J.J. YELEY'S SUCCESS
BROWNSBURG, Ind., (Aug.
13, 2003) - Long before Tony Stewart was a NASCAR
Winston Cup Series champion, he was a champion many times over in
the United
States Auto Club (USAC). In 1994 he won the USAC National Midget
championship,
which served as a precursor to his 1995 season, where he became
the only driver
to win the USAC Triple Crown in a single season, taking the National
Midget,
Sprint and Silver Crown titles.
While it's been seven-and-a-half
years since Stewart competed as a full-time
USAC driver, he remains fully immersed in USAC, but now as a car
owner. And
it's in that role of car owner where Stewart is helping another
young and
successful driver make USAC history.
At 26 years old, J.J.
Yeley holds the USAC single season feature victory
record. His win on Aug. 7 at the 26th annual Belleville (Kan.) Midget
Nationals
was his 20th win in 2003, surpassing the mark of 19 set by A.J.
Foyt in 1961
and tied in 1988 by Sleepy Tripp and in 2000 by Jay Drake.
Eleven of Yeley's wins
have come in Sprint Cars, where Stewart is the owner.
And in the three Silver Crown wins Yeley has earned, Stewart is
co-owners
with Bob East.
"There really haven't
been that many drivers of J.J.'s caliber who can go out
in three different divisions and have the equipment in three different
divisions to reach such a milestone," said Stewart. "He
has three good race
teams
to driver for and he's got a lot of talent. You can have the three
best cars
in three different series but still not get the job done if you
don't know what
to do behind the wheel.
"J.J. is a great
talent who is focused every week at every event - especially
on the dirt. That's his specialty. He's taken full advantage of
every dirt
race he's run this year and been very successful."
The record run with over
20 races still remaining on the USAC schedule makes
Yeley a legitimate threat to join Stewart as a Triple Crown champion.
Going
into a race week that features six races in four days, Yeley leads
the Sprint
standings by 253 points, the Midget standings by 35 points and the
Silver Crown
standings by 30 points.
"I'm behind J.J.
a hundred percent this year and I'd love to share that
record with him," said Stewart, "especially from the standpoint
of being
able to be
a part of it with him as a car owner in two of the three series.
Nothing
would make me prouder for him to tie my record and be beside me
in the record
books."
Stewart's interest in
USAC car ownership is simple. He wants to groom
talent, giving those who grew up like he did on the USAC bullrings
a shot to
win
consistently in top-flight equipment so that they can get noticed
by car owners
within NASCAR and the Indy Racing League (IRL).
"J.J. is the number
one candidate from the USAC series to move up," said
Stewart. "What he can do on dirt tracks is awesome, and he's
gotten better and
better on what he's been able to do on pavement. It's just a matter
of time
before he starts winning as many races on pavement as he does on
dirt. That's
the direction we're working toward with him right now."
When asked if Yeley was
someone IRL car owners should be paying attention to,
as he's an American driver who honed his skills within the ranks
of USAC - a
staple of the IRL's formation - Stewart responded, "All car
owners should be
paying attention to him."
USAC
MIDGET "SILVERDOME SHOOTOUT" NOVEMBER 8
The 2003 USAC National
Midget Car Series schedule was expanded today with
the announcement of the November 8 "Silverdome Shootout"
in Pontiac, Mich.'s
spacious Silverdome.
The race will afford
USAC National Midget Car Championship points and is
being organized by Mark Finnerty and Steve Hahn, whose expertise
has been
evident in the extremely popular "Chili Bowl" events staged
each January in
Tulsa, Okla. In that vein, the surface for the "Silverdome
Shootout" will be
dirt!
A 1/5-mile clay oval
will be constructed on the floor of the stadium which
for years hosted the NFL's Detroit Lions football team. The distance
for the
feature event is among items yet to be finalized.
Indoor Midget Car racing
is not new to USAC or the Silverdome or for that
matter, the Detroit area. Since USAC's inception in 1956, a total
of 153
indoor events have been held, with dirt-track races being staged
in Oklahoma
City, Okla., the Houston, Tex. Astrodome and in Reno, Nev. The last
USAC
indoor dirt-track event was in 1988 at the Livestock Events Center
in Reno,
won by Sleepy Tripp. The last USAC indoor Midget race was at the
RCA Dome in
Indianapolis, Ind. in January, 2001, won by Jim Hettinger.
The Silverdome hosted
special-event Midget races in the 1980s and a
late-1990s Midget race was held at the Detroit State Fairgrounds,
won by Jim
Sawyer. The inaugural Silverdome Midget race was held in December
6, 1980 on
a dirt surface and was won by Gene Gennetten, with 7-time USAC National
Midget Champion Mel Kenyon second.
Other USAC indoor venues
have been in Indianapolis and Fort Wayne, Ind.;
Chicago, Peoria, Rockford and Springfield, Ill.; Cincinnati and
Dayton,
Ohio; San Francisco, Fresno and Sacramento, Calif.; Louisville,
Ky.; Salt
Lake City, Utah; Seattle, Wash.; Grand Rapids, Mich.; Richmond,
Va.;
Nashville, Tenn.; Milwaukee, Wisc.; Charlotte, N.C.; and Toronto,
Canada.
USAC's initial racing event ever was an indoor Midget race at the
Coliseum
in Fort Wayne, Ind. on January 8, 1956, won by Gene Hartley.
Tickets for the November
8 "Silverdome Shootout" will be available through
Ticket Master at (248) 645-6666 and are priced at $18 plus convenience
charge for adults, with children 12 and under priced at $10 plus
convenience
charge.
YELEY
FAVORED TO WIN BETTENHAUSEN MEMORIAL
Springfield, IL-August
12, 2003-J.J. Yeley enters the 43rd running of the prestigious Tony
Bettenhausen Memorial 100 as the overwhelming favorite to win his
second consecutive Bettenhausen crown when the championship cars
of the United States Auto Club Weld Racing Silver Crown Series enter
the Illinois State Fairgrounds on Saturday August 16th. Not only
is Yeley the favorite, he has a unique chance to make auto racing
history when the championship dirt cars come to town. However, to
put that mark in the history page, he will have to best a stellar
field of Indianapolis 500 veterans, former Bettenhausen winners,
local favorites, plus current contenders for the USAC Silver Crown
title and a large crop of up and coming chauffeurs. Around 40 drivers
and cars are expected to compete for over $40,000 in prizes and
awards for the Bettenhausen 100, now in it’s tenth season under
promoter Bob Sargent of Track Enterprises.
Yeley, a rookie at the
1998 Indianapolis 500, enters the eighth stop in the twelve race
series as the current USAC Silver Crown point leader with three
wins and three other top ten finishes. Yeley recently broke the
record for USAC wins in one season by netting his 20th USAC win
of the year. That broke the record held by Jay Drake and four-time
Indianapolis 500 winner A.J. Foyt. A win at Springfield would be
his twelfth career win in the series, putting him in a tie for third
with three-time USAC Silver Crown champ Jimmy Sills, and could vault
the Phoenix, Arizona shoe to his second consecutive Silver Crown
title. Currently first in the USAC national Sprint Car points and
the national Midget Series standings as well, Yeley is seeking to
become just the second driver in USAC history to win all three titles
in the same season. The other driver is pretty successful in his
own right, that being defending NASCAR Winston Cup Champion and
former Indy Racing League champ Tony Stewart.
Yeley began marking history
pages in championship car racing last year with a dominating performance
in the Tony Bettenhausen 100 at Springfield. J.J. captured the pole
position, then became just the 13th driver since 1934 to lead all
100-miles at Springfield as he raced a talented field and an approaching
storm front to the checkered flag. Yeley also gave a Ford powered
championship dirt car it’s first win on the Springfield Mile
since 1976! While Yeley’s first champ car win on a dirt mile
was an accomplishment that previous Silver Crown champs Mike Bliss,
Ken Schrader and Stewart were unable to attain, his second mile
track victory at DuQuoin two weeks later in the Ted Horn Memorial
made J.J. just the 12th driver since 1948 to take both races in
the same season. Adding further to his resume, J.J. won at the Syracuse
Mile in October as well.
Yeley is the only driver
coming to Springfield with a chance to win the USAC dirt track “Triple
Crown” (the Hoosier Hundred at the Indiana State Fair, the
Bettenhausen Memorial at Springfield and the Ted Horn Memorial at
DuQuoin) in the same season. Yeley put on a dominating performance
at the Hoosier Hundred in May, first as the fast qualifier and then
leading all 100 miles. If he can repeat his sweep of the Illinois
dirt tracks, he will join legends Jimmy Bryan, A.J. Foyt and Jack
Hewitt as the only drivers who have taken all three races in the
same year, Hewitt being the last seventeen years ago. With his Hoosier
Hundred win, Yeley became just the 13th championship driver in 50
years to post a win on each of the “Big 3”, the fairground
dirt miles of Illinois and Indiana.
Repeating last year’s
dominant win in the Bettenhausen Memorial won’t be an easy
task for the driver of the Bob East-Tony Stewart owned Ford. A star
studded field of drivers is expected to pass through the gates on
the 16th in search of a Bettenhausen trophy and attempting to derail
the Yeley express.
All of the top ten pilots
in the current USAC Weld Racing Silver Crown point standings are
expected to compete at Springfield, including Tampa, Florida resident
Dave Steele. A two-time winner on the tour, Steele is currently
second in the Weld Racing Silver Crown Points, thirty points behind
the leader. The driver of Bob Gratton’s Northside Propane Beast
is better known for his pavement exploits, but his dirt racing has
improved to the point he is a threat on the clay.
Third now in the points
is two-time (1997 &1999) Bettenhausen champion Dave Darland
of Lincoln, Indiana. The popular driver has been using two different
rides this year, driving on the pavement for Bob Hoerner of Illinois,
and reuniting with Galen Fox in his familiar number 56 for the dirt
events. Darland was chasing down Yeley at the Indiana State Fairgrounds
in May, but a blown right rear tire ended his hopes of victory fifteen
laps from the end.
Fourth in the points
is Tracy Hines of New Castle, Indiana. The 2000 USAC Silver Crown
champ is 82 markers out of the lead, and has an excellent mount
in the Indiana Underground-MoPar powered Beast.
Sittting fifth in the
standings is Jay Drake, whose 2000 USAC season will go down as one
of the best in history. Drake, fully recovered from a vicious Terre
Haute midget crash two years ago, won the race at Pikes Peak in
July behind the wheel of his MoPar sponsored machine. Drake drives
for a familiar figure to Springfield fans, his owner George Snider
was the first Silver Crown titlist in 1971, and won the 1981 Bettenhausen
Memorial.
Sixth in the standings
is 2001 Bettenhausen winner Paul White of Temple, Texas. White’s
luck changed dramatically in 2002, mechanical woes kept White out
of victory lane but his fortune seems to have turned again and good
finishes on the dirt could move him up in the title chase. Former
USAC Sprint Car champion and former Indy Racing League driver Brian
Tyler of Parma, Michigan is now seventh in the Silver Crown points,
driving the Print Express.
An Indy 500 veteran who
is a three-time Springfield pole sitter and the man who has led
the most laps at Springfield without a win is also slated to return.
Fifty-eight year old Johnny Parsons, of Speedway Indiana drives
for Benton, Illinois owner Ricky Nix and is seeking his first Springfield
victory. Other veterans slated for the entry list include 1998 Bettenhausen
winner Russ Gamester of Peru, Indiana, Greenfield, Indiana’s
Eric Gordon, Californian Brad Noffsinger, former USAC Sprint champ
Tony Elliot, second generation driver Rich Tobias, Jr.(tenth in
the standings) and Pennsylvania driver John “Hot Rod”
Heydenreich.
USAC’s new motto
is the “Starting Line of Champions”, and that statement
is reflected in the strong group of young drivers now moving into
the Silver Crown series.
Slated to oppose the
veteran drivers is a batch of youthful frivers drawing a lot of
attention. Leading that group is Galesburg, Illinois resident A.J.
Fike, currently tenth in the Silver Crown point standings. In his
first full season in the big cars, young A.J. has two top ten finishes.
His older brother Aaron, currently the driver of the car fielded
by 1996 Indy 500 winning car owner Ron Hemelgarn in the Indy Racing
Infiniti Pro Series, has moved from the family operation into a
machine fielded by long time Silver Crown owner George Zarounian.
Aaron Fike is a former winner in the Silver Crown and Infiniti Pro
Series, and is looking to move to the Indy Racing League. Aaron
does not appear on the preliminary entry list, as he is scheduled
to race in the IRL Infiniti Pro Series event at Kentucky this weekend.
Other young guns include
Ohio’s Teddy Beach, a midget driver in his first season in
the big machines, fellow Ohio driver and last year’s Rookie
of the Year Matt Westfall, Dane Carter, son of 1980 Bettenhausen
winner Pancho Carter, Anderson, Indiana’s Jason McCord (8th
in the standings) and Vincennes, Indiana driver Jonathan Vennard.
A couple of “Outlaws”
form a potent combination on the Kele Racing team, as Tyler Walker
and Donny Schatz prepare to make their Springfield Silver Crown
debut. Both drivers have several World of Outlaw sprint car feature
victories to their credit. Walker had a ride a couple of seasons
ago with Johnny Vance’s famed team out of Ohio, with help from
Dodge and NASCAR owner Ray Evernham. He returned to the World of
Outlaws after his ride in that car ended, and has re-entered Silver
Crown competition as a replacement for Jerry Coons, Jr. Walker has
adapted very well to running without a wing, he currently sits eighth
in the point standings and led part of the event at Terre Haute
in June. Walker will be attempting to become the first man in history
to win both the Bettenhausen 100 and the Knoxville Nationals.
Schatz, from Minot, South
Dakota is in his rookie year in the Silver Crown cars and has encountered
a steep learning curve. He flipped the RE technologies car at the
Indiana State Fairgrounds in practice ending his mile dirt track
debut uninjured, but with a wrecked car. Scahtz has elected to pass
on the Springfield event, concentrating on the race at Knoxville.
Several Illinois drivers
will be attempting to become the first home state pilot in twenty
years to claim a Bettenhausen trophy, with at least one hometown
driver sure to add local fans to the stands. Returning to the cockpit
of a championship dirt car at Springfield for the first time in
two years, Springfield’s Donnie Beechler is an outside favorite
to be the first Central Illinois driver to win the Bettenhausen
since Champaign’s Don Branson pulled into victory lane in 1966.
Donnie, a veteran of the Indianapolis 500 and the Indy Racing League,
has teamed with long time Springfield chief mechanic Dennis McQuinn
and several investors to form Freedom Motorsports with the goal
of running four dirt races on the schedule. The team purchased the
former Gary Stanton Chrysler powered car that Donnie ran in 2001,
but missed the race at Terre Haute. This race could mark the return
of Beechler to the Silver Crown winners circle, the veteran sprint
car driver has four wins in Silver Crown competition, three on dirt
miles and one at Terre Haute.
In addition to Beechler
and A.J. Fike brothers, Murphysboro’s Randy Bateman returns
in his own Beast chassis. Olney native Levi Jones has a ride with
a new team that made it's debut at the Indiana State Fairgrounds
in may. The young pilot was impressive in his Springfield debut
for long time car owner Gus Sohm of St. Louis. Jones was a starting
guard on the Olney High School basketball team that reached the
sectional a few years ago. Decatur's Terry Babb returns driving
a car owned by Carterville's Ken Morford, while an Illinois car
owner who has a win as a chief mechanic could also field an entry.
O’Fallon’s Bob Galas was chief wrench on the cars Gary
Bettenhausen piloted to several wins, but Galas’ orange and
white machine has yet to make an appearance this year.
One interesting Illinois
entry that is sure to draw attention is that of Petersburg's Mike
Hess. The Hess family owns the Dairy Queen in the small Illinois
community, and Hess is quickly becoming one of the better known
midget pilots in the country, having won the prestigious Hut Hundred
in 2002. The Tony Bettenhausen 100 marks the Silver Crown debut
for Hess.
Unfortunately, one driver
who will be missing is four-time Bettenhausen winner Jack Hewitt,
the oldest winner of the race at age 49. Hewitt, now 52, is still
recovering from injuries in a sprint car crash last summer and had
hoped to back in a Silver Crown car by now.
A diverse field is in
search of one of the more prestigious trophies in motorsports, one
representing a famous name in motorsports and continuing a tradition
that began in 1934.
Competitive motor racing
at the Illinois State Fairgrounds actually pre-dates World War I,
with the first actual competition during the fair taking place in
1910. Auto racing continued during the fair until just before the
stock market crash of 1929, and was discontinued due to an accident
which claimed the life of a spectator.
In 1933, Promoter Ralph
Hankinson began to lobby the national championship sanctioning body
at the time, the American Automobile Association, for a national
championship event at Springfield, Illinois. His perseverance was
rewarded with an August date during the 1934 fair, a race won by
Billy Winn. That race began a tradition of 100-mile championship
races that is celebrating it’s 69th anniversary and shows no
sign of stopping in the near future.
Legendary figures such
as Wilbur Shaw, Rex Mays, Mauri Rose and the great Ted Horn all
competed at Springfield during the thirties and forties as massive
crowds watched racing heroes in the making. During the fifties,
Jimmy Bryan, Rodger Ward, Johnny Thomson and Jud Larson all added
to their status by competing on the mile ribbon of gumbo clay.
However, it would be
a farmer from the northern part of the Prairie State who would capture
the hearts of racing fans at the Illinois State Fairgrounds. Tony
Bettenhausen, from Tinley Park, Illinois came to Springfield after
World War II and captured the 100-miler in 1947. Taking the reins
of Murrell Belanger’s little blue jewel, Bettenhausen and car
“99” terrorized championship tracks all over the country,
including Springfield. Tony’s subsequent wins in 1950 and 1951
made him the first three-time winner at Springfield.
Sadly, the man dubbed
the “Tinley Park Express” and “Der Panzer” would
never be able to capture the one race that eluded him, his beloved
Indianapolis 500. A crowd favorite everywhere he went, Tony Bettenhausen
was contracted to drive another race car in 1951 while Lee Wallard
took “99” to victory lane at the Indianapolis 500. Bettenhausen
ran the car the rest of the year to capture a national championship,
and repeated as national champion in 1958 at age 41 without the
benefit of a victory.
One of the favorites
at Indianapolis in 1961, to break the magical 150 mile an hour barrier
and to win the race, Tony took a test drive in the Stearly Motor
Freight Special at Indianapolis at the request of good friend and
fellow Illinois resident Paul Russo. A mechanical part in the steering
broke as Bettenhausen came down the front straightaway, sending
the car into a series of flips, and the great racing champion was
gone.
It didn’t take long
for the tributes to start, one coming directly from the Illinois
State Fair. A decision was made to re-name the Illinois State Fair
championship event in honor of Illinois’ native son. When fans
bought the 1961 race program, on the cover in bold, black letters
read the solemn phrase, “Tony Bettenhausen Memorial”.
Since 1961, the race
has become not only a perpetual tribute but a celebration of the
life and career of Tony Bettenhausen, as well as a celebration of
traditional motor sports. Many great racing drivers have come to
Springfield and left as a Bettenhausen Memorial winner, drivers
such as Mario Andretti, Al Unser, A.J. Foyt and Jim Hurtubise all
won national championship on the Springfield Mile.
After the dirt tracks
were separated from the national championship in 1970, it was Foyt
who took the first Silver Crown race at Springfield in 1971, and
in the process became the first four-time winner of the Bettenhausen
Memorial. Other famous names who captured a Bettenhausen win include
seven-time winner Chuck Gurney, Larry Rice, Kenny Irwin, Jimmy Sills
and Bobby Olivero, while an emotional Gary Bettenhausen won his
father’s event in 1978 and again in 1983.
The next American racing
legend could add his name to the honor roll list of Bettenhausen
winners when the track opens for the 69th national championship
race in Springfield, Illinois. Practice for the USAC Weld Racing
Silver Crown Series is slated to begin at 9 a.m., with qualifying
for one of the top twenty starting slots at 10:25. Drivers will
be taking aim in qualifications at the one-lap track record for
the “World’s Fastest One Mile Dirt Track”, currently
held by Californian Robby Flock at 29.988, or 120.048 miles and
hour. The last chance race to fill the thirty-car field is scheduled
for 12:45, with a field of the fastest and finest dirt track drivers
rolling off for the 43rd Tony Bettenhausen Memorial 100 at approximately
1:30. A top prize of over $9,000 is up for grabs, as is Jack Hewitt’s
seventeen year old 100-mile track record of 56:07.00, 106.920 miles
an hour for the race distance.
Tickets are available
at the Illinois State Fair Box Office or by calling Track Enterprises
at 217-764-3200.
WISE
TAKES TOP BELLEVILLE $$$, HINES, YELEY & EAST ALSO WIN THURS.
BELLEVILLE VICTORY GIVES YELEY ALL-TIME USAC MARK
MIDGETS RETURN TO MANSFIELD SUNDAY FOR "DOUBLEHEADER"
Josh Wise, J.J. Yeley,
Tracy Hines and Bobby East all tasted the spoils of
victory in USAC National Midget racing last week. The series continues
with
this Sunday's "twilight" return to Mansfield (Ohio) Motorsports
Speedway
where racing starts at 5 pm and includes the USAC Midgets and Sprint
Cars on
the 1/2-mile paved oval.
Yeley's victory in Thursday
night's 25-lap feature at the Belleville
(Kans.) High Banks established a new all-time USAC single-season
feature
victory record of 20 as he came from behind on the white-flag lap
to pass
Jerry Coons, Jr. and put his Steve Lewis ASE/Ford Beast/Pink Ford
in the
winner's circle. The win eclipsed A.J. Foyt's 1961 total of 19 wins,
which
was tied by Sleepy Tripp in 1988 and Jay Drake in 2000. Coons, Drake,
Scott
Hatton and Brian Gerster followed Yeley to the line.
Josh Wise of Riverside,
Calif. won Saturday night's 40-lap finale of the
26th "Belleville Midget Nationals" presented by Budweiser
and Kansas
Touchstone Energy, leading every lap in his Dino Tomassi Mopar Parts/Finish
Line Towing Beast/Mopar. He was trailed at the checkered flag by
Yeley,
Drake, Alex Harris and Brian Gerster. The win was worth $12,500
and matching
Budweiser Cups to him and his team.
Bobby East of Brownsburg,
Ind. won Friday night's 25-lap feature at
Belleville, passing Tracy Hines on lap 11 and leading the rest of
the way in
his Klatt Motorsports Ford/Power Stroke Beast/Pink Ford. Mike Hess,
Wise,
Steve Paden and A.J. Fike grabbed the next four spots in the official
finish.
Hines, of New Castle,
Ind., led all but the first three laps of Tuesday
night's 40-lap Pepsi "Mid-Summer Classic" at Eagle Raceway
in Lincoln, Neb.
after passing early leader Greg Lueckert. Following Hines' Wilke-Pak
Oxi-Clean/Team Mopar Stealth/Mopar were Dave Darland, Yeley, A.J.
Fike and
Cory Kruseman.
USAC NATIONAL MIDGET
CAR SERIES STANDINGS
1. J.J. Yeley 1,032
2. Tracy Hines 993
3. Bobby East 986
4. Jay Drake 826
5. A.J. Fike 805
6. Teddy Beach 598
7. Dave Darland 597
8. Aaron Fike 547
9. Tom Hessert 471
10. Ryan Durst 418
EARL'S
POINTS FEATURE 4 DIFFERENT LEADERS!
Four different drivers
now lead Earl's Plumbing Fast Qualifier Championship
standings after last week's USAC racing events!
J.J. Yeley of Phoenix,
Ariz. continues to lead the Weld Racing Silver Crown
and Western Midget Car FQ standings, but Jay Drake, Tracy Hines
and Tony
Hunt also find themselves atop Earl's rankings this week.
Hines vaulted to the
top of the National Midget Car FQ standings after
posting the fastest qualifying time at Lincoln, Neb. Tuesday and
Belleville,
Kans. Friday. Thursday's fastest Belleville qualifier was Alex Harris.
Drake sits atop the
National Sprint Car Earl's points, although Hines was
Sunday's fastest qualifier at Salem, Ind.
Earl's points will be
distributed to fast qualifiers this week at
Springfield, Ill. (Weld Racing Silver Crown Series, Saturday) and
Mansfield,
Ohio (National Sprint Cars and Midgets, Sunday).
This year, each USAC
National and Western Series qualifying champion will
receive a $5,000 bonus from Earl's in recognition of their accomplishment.
Points are earned at each USAC event based on an international system
awarding the top-six qualifiers with points in the following scale:
1st-9.
2nd-6, 3rd-4, 4th-3, 5th-2, 6th-1.
The current Earl's Plumbing
Fast Qualifier standings for each series are as
follows:
Weld Racing Silver Crown:
1-J.J. Yeley-44; 2-Dave Steele-36; 3-Tracy
Hines-19; 4-Jay Drake-12; 5-Dave Darland-9.
National Sprint Car: 1-Jay Drake-110; 2-J.J. Yeley-107; 3-Tracy
Hines-103;
4-Boston Reid-50; 5-Jon Stanbrough-26.
National Midget Car: 1-Tracy Hines-75; 2-J.J. Yeley-60; 3-Bobby
East-52;
4-Jay Drake-19; 5-Dave Steele-18.
Western Sprint Car: 1-Tony Hunt-38; 2-Michael Lewis-36; 3-Rick Hendrix-34;
4-Jeff Gardner-20; 5-Jim Waters-11.
Western Midget Car: 1-J.J. Yeley-37; 2-Josh Wise-27; 3-Bobby East-22;
4-Dave
Steele-18; 5-Rick Hendrix-16.
EARL'S
POINTS FEATURE 4 DIFFERENT LEADERS!
Four different drivers
now lead Earl's Plumbing Fast Qualifier Championship
standings after last week's USAC racing events!
J.J. Yeley of Phoenix,
Ariz. continues to lead the Weld Racing Silver Crown
and Western Midget Car FQ standings, but Jay Drake, Tracy Hines
and Tony
Hunt also find themselves atop Earl's rankings this week.
Hines vaulted to the
top of the National Midget Car FQ standings after
posting the fastest qualifying time at Lincoln, Neb. Tuesday and
Belleville,
Kans. Friday. Thursday's fastest Belleville qualifier was Alex Harris.
Drake sits atop the
National Sprint Car Earl's points, although Hines was
Sunday's fastest qualifier at Salem, Ind.
Earl's points will be
distributed to fast qualifiers this week at
Springfield, Ill. (Weld Racing Silver Crown Series, Saturday) and
Mansfield,
Ohio (National Sprint Cars and Midgets, Sunday).
This year, each USAC
National and Western Series qualifying champion will
receive a $5,000 bonus from Earl's in recognition of their accomplishment.
Points are earned at each USAC event based on an international system
awarding the top-six qualifiers with points in the following scale:
1st-9.
2nd-6, 3rd-4, 4th-3, 5th-2, 6th-1.
The current Earl's Plumbing
Fast Qualifier standings for each series are as
follows:
Weld Racing Silver Crown:
1-J.J. Yeley-44; 2-Dave Steele-36; 3-Tracy
Hines-19; 4-Jay Drake-12; 5-Dave Darland-9.
National Sprint Car: 1-Jay Drake-110; 2-J.J. Yeley-107; 3-Tracy
Hines-103;
4-Boston Reid-50; 5-Jon Stanbrough-26.
National Midget Car: 1-Tracy Hines-75; 2-J.J. Yeley-60; 3-Bobby
East-52;
4-Jay Drake-19; 5-Dave Steele-18.
Western Sprint Car: 1-Tony Hunt-38; 2-Michael Lewis-36; 3-Rick Hendrix-34;
4-Jeff Gardner-20; 5-Jim Waters-11.
Western Midget Car: 1-J.J. Yeley-37; 2-Josh Wise-27; 3-Bobby East-22;
4-Dave
Steele-18; 5-Rick Hendrix-16.
KAPLAN
TAKES PETALUMA; FOCUSES HEAD FOR MADERA
Ryan Kaplan of Chico,
Calif. scored his second consecutive USAC Ford Focus
Midget Car feature victory in Saturday night's 20-lap race at the
Sonoma-Marin Fairgrounds in Petaluma, Calif.
Kaplan passed Thomas
Meseraull on the fourth lap and led the rest of the
way in his Whit Church Trucking/Hoserville.com Stealth to beat Garratt
Boyden, Bradley Galedrige, Ashley Walker and Jeff Gregory to the
checkered flag.
The victory vaulted
Kaplan into second place in the California North
standings in what has become one of the most hotly-contested USAC
point
races of the year. He trails Boyden in the new standings by just
two points,
with Josh Lakatos, the former series leader, now seven out of the
lead in
third! Lakatos finished eighth at Petaluma.
A 20-lap feature event
is slated this Saturday night at the 1/3-mile paved
Madera (Calif.) Speedway where the series competed in April and
June.
Defending series champion Todd Hunsaker won in April and Meseraull
won in June.
USAC CALIFORNIA FORD
FOCUS MIDGET CAR SERIES STANDINGS
SOUTH SERIES
1. Todd Hunsaker 597
2. Josh Lakatos 559
3. Bobby McGowan 484
4. Ryan Kaplan 476
5. Garratt Boyden 428
NORTH SERIES
1. Garratt Boyden 400
2. Ryan Kaplan 398
3. Josh Lakatos 393
4. Bradley Galedrige 298
5. Todd Hunsaker 261
RAY
#1 AGAIN IN BLOOMINGTON FOCUS DEBUT
INDIANA SERIES RETURNS TO SOUTH BEND FRIDAY
Indiana Ford Focus Midget
Car Series point leader Robbie Ray of Davenport,
Iowa recorded his fourth victory of the 2003 season in Friday night's
20-lap
feature at the Bloomington Speedway. The race was the first for
the new
series at the 1/4-mile banked dirt track.
Ray trailed Ronnie Wuerdeman
for the first seven laps, then moved to the
front in his Ray Racing Beast. Rex Norris III posted his best series
finish
to date as the race runner-up and he was followed by Derek Crasi,
Ryan Litt
and Jim Mills. Mills and Crasi won the preliminary heat races.
Ray leads Trenton Darland
by a comfortable margin going into this Friday's
race at the South Bend Motor Speedway in South Bend, Ind. A 20-lap
feature
is again on tap and Tate Martz was the feature winner when the series
made
its initial South Bend appearance in June.
Darland and Martz were
15th and 16th in Saturday's Bloomington feature.
USAC INDIANA FORD FOCUS
MIDGET SERIES STANDINGS
1. Robbie Ray 722
2. Trenton Darland 597
3. Tate Martz 568
4. Brice Kenyon 566
5. Ryan Litt 531
6. Derek Crasi 522
7. Jim Mills 493
8. Mike Palmer 396
9. Samantha Weakley 353
10. Brent Berry 331
LEWIS
TAKES SALEM'S "JAMES/O'CONNOR CLASSIC" SPRINT CARS EYE
4 RACES IN FOUR DAYS
J.J. Yeley of Phoenix,
Ariz. has numerous opportunities this week to
increase his all-time USAC single-season victory record total. His
opportunities will include four USAC Sprint car races, the last
of which
afford National points.
"Special Events"
under co-sanction by USAC and SCRA are slated on dirt
tracks Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights respectively at Terre
Haute,
Ind., Farmer City, Ill. and Granite City, Ill. and Sunday's "twilight"
doubleheader with USAC Sprint Cars and Midgets at Mansfield (OH)
Motorsports
Speedway replaces the rained-out August 2 event at that 1/2-mile
paved oval.
Thursday night's event
is at the Terre Haute Action Track, while Friday's
race marks USAC's debut at the 1/4-mile Farmer City Raceway, the
night
before the "Tony Bettenhausen 100" USAC Silver Crown race
at nearby
Springfield. Saturday night's event is at the 1/2-mile dirt Tri-City
Speedway. Feature events at the three dirt-track "special events"
are 30 laps.
Sunday's Mansfield,
Ohio program features racing at 5 pm and each series
has a 30-lap feature event on tap.
Michael Lewis of Noblesville,
Ind. captured Sunday afternoon's 44th "Joe
James/Pat O'Connor Classic" 50-lapper at the Salem (Ind.) Speedway,
leading
the final 15 laps at the 1/2-mile paved oval after J.J. Yeley spun
while
leading. Yeley appeared on his way to a new all-time USAC record
21st
victory of 2003 until his misfortune on lap 36. He rejoined the
race, worked
his way back to challenge Jay Drake for third before spinning again,
then
ended up seventh at the checkered flag! He continues to enjoy a
big point
lead going into Sunday's race at Mansfield.
Lewis and his Jeff Walker
Racing Hoosier Tire/Weld Wheels Beast/Claxton
were followed at Salem by Eric Gordon, Jay Drake, Bud Kaeding and
Aaron
Pierce. Tracy Hines failed to finish the 50-lap race and Drake moved
to
second in the new series standings as a result of his third-place
finish.
USAC NATIONAL SPRINT
CAR SERIES STANDINGS
1. J.J. Yeley 1,614
2. Jay Drake 1,361
3. Tracy Hines 1,347
4. Bud Kaeding 1,195
5. Boston Reid 993
6. Cory Kruseman 917
7. Levi Jones 906
8. Dave Darland 787
9. Jon Stanbrough 694
10. Brian Tyler 599
6
"INDY CAR" VETS ENTERED
FOR SATURDAY'S "TONY BETTENHAUSEN 100" AT SPRINGFIELD
At least a half-dozen
drivers with Indy Car racing experience, plus a
handful with Indy Car tests under their belts, will compete in this
Saturday
afternoon's "Tony Bettenhausen 100" at the Illinois State
Fairgrounds. The
race is round eight of this year's USAC Weld Racing Silver Crown
championship.
Silver Crown point leader
J.J. Yeley is one of four entered drivers with
Indianapolis 500 career starts to their credit. Yeley finished ninth
in the
1998 "500," while Johnny Parsons has a dozen Indy starts,
Donnie Beechler
has four and Roger Rager competed in the 1980 "500." Dave
Steele and Brian
Tyler also have competed in "Indy Car" races and numerous
other entered
drivers have passed "Indy Car" driver tests.
Yeley, of Phoenix, Ariz.,
is the defending champion of the race and the
series and is in the midst of a record-breaking USAC season. He
has 20
feature victories in USAC competition, including three in the Silver
Crown
series so far. The 20 wins established a new all-time USAC single-season
record, breaking A.J. Foyt's 1961 record of 19 which was subsequently
tied
in 1988 by Sleepy Tripp and 2000 by Jay Drake.
Steele, of Tampa, Fla.,
also owns a pair of 2003 Silver Crown triumphs and
trails Yeley by 30 points going into Saturday's competition. Dave
Darland, a
two-time "Bettenhausen" winner, ranks third in the standings,
56 back with
66 available Saturday.
Practice is slated to
start at 9 am, with qualifying at 10:30 and a 15-mile
"qualifying race" at noon. The "Tony Bettenhausen
100" gets the green flag
at 1:30 pm.
Beechler will certainly
command much of the Springfield attention this
weekend, competing in his hometown for a race victory which has
eluded him.
He will pilot the #45 RTD Motorsports/NAPA Auto Parts Stanton/Mopar
entered
by Freedom Motorsports of Sherman, Ill. In seven previous "Tony
Bettenhausen
100" starts Donnie's best finish has been third in 1997.
Formers race winners
Paul White (2001) and Russ Gamester (1998) are also
entered for Saturday's "Tony Bettenhausen 100."
Drivers will be aiming
for Robby Flock's 1-lap qualifying mark of 120.048
mph, established in 1996, and Jack Hewitt's 100-mile race record
of 106.920
mph, set in 1987.
USAC WELD RACING SILVER
CROWN SERIES STANDINGS
1. J.J. Yeley 364
2. Dave Steele 334
3. Dave Darland 308
4. Tracy Hines 282
5. Jay Drake 237
6. Paul White 224
7. Brian Tyler 210
8. Tyler Walker 173
9. Jason McCord 158
10. Rich Tobias, Jr. 155
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