Contact: DICK JORDAN
STANBROUGH-JONES SPRINT WAR
CONTINUES AUGUST 4 AT VALLEY SPEEDWAY
The torrid duel between five-time USAC National Sprint Car Champion Levi Jones of Olney, Ill. and Jon Stanbrough of Avon, Ind. for the 2012 AMSLOIL USAC National Sprint Car Championship continues August 3-4-5 at three Mid-America ovals.
Eagle (Neb.) Raceway hosts the August 3 race, while Valley Speedway in Grain Valley, Mo. is the August 4 venue and the August 5 race is at US 36 Raceway in Cameron, Mo. The races at Eagle and Cameron are the first for USAC Sprint cars at each track, while Valley Speedway hosted its first USAC Sprint race last year.
Jones emerged as the champion of the recently-completed AMSOIL “Indiana Sprint Week” which spanned seven races at seven different Indiana ovals in 10 nights. He outpointed Stanbrough by just six points to take the title, despite not scoring a feature victory. Jones, however, landed “top-10” finishes in all seven races, while Stanbrough had one victory during the series.
Stanbrough won last year’s USAC debut at Grain Valley, a race in which Jones finished third.
The Grain Valley race marks only the 15th time the powerful USAC Sprint Cars have raced in the “Show-Me” state. Previous events have been held in Odessa, Moberly, Lebanon, Bolivar, Sedalia, Eldon, Wheatland and last year at Grain Valley.
Jones and Stanbrough will face stiff competition in the three-race swing from drivers like USAC Triple Crown Champion Dave Darland, the only two-time Indiana Sprint Week feature winner, plus 2012 USAC Sprint feature winners Tracy Hines, Damion Gardner, Hunter Schuerenberg, Kevin Thomas and two-time USAC National Drivers Champion and Indianapolis 500 veteran Bryan Clauson.
Darland ranks third in the current standings, ahead of fourth-ranking Clauson, Gardner, Hines and Schuerenberg.
The standings may change slightly before the three-race series unfolds, with a race schedule July 28 at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio, but the three races in Mid-America will certainly have a huge impact on the 2012 title chase.
2012 AMSOIL USAC NATIONAL SPRINT CAR POINTS: (Prior to July 28 race at Rossburg, OH)1-Jon Stanbrough-1,138, 2-Levi Jones-1,132; 3-Dave Darland-1,055, 4-Bryan Clauson-952, 5-Damion Gardner-950, 6-Tracy Hines-885, 7-Hunter Schuerenberg-833, 8-Robert Ballou-824, 9-Kevin Thomas Jr.-817, 10-Chase Stockon-816.