HomeIllinoisDuQuoin State FairgroundsNo Clear Favorite For Ted Horn 100 Sunday at DuQuoin

No Clear Favorite For Ted Horn 100 Sunday at DuQuoin

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DuQuoin State FairBy Jay Hardin Track Enterprises Staff
(August 24, 2014)-No one, not even a Vegas odds maker would be able to select a clear favorite for Sunday’s Ted Horn 100 at the DuQuoin State Fair. Rain fell on the field for the Tony Bettenhausen 100 at Springfield last weekend as the green flag was about to drop, with at least ten cars at or near the front of the pack among the favorites to take the win. Nothing less is expected Sunday night as a revitalized USAC Traxxas Silver Crown Series takes center stage at the 92nd DuQuoin State Fair.

“Illini Pride” could be the theme for the 62nd running of the Ted Horn 100 at DuQuoin, well over a third of the entrants were either behind the wheel of one of the big cars or held title to one of the championship machines and the same holds true for DuQuoin. Defending winner Chris Urish of Elkhart looks to repeat his 2013 upset victory but faces stiff competition from the home state as well as the USAC series regulars.

Galesburg’s A.J. Fike, Canton’s Chris Windom, Benton’s Shane Cockrum and Pocahontas’ Zach Daum are four Illini drivers who may have a shot at victory Sunday night. Fike is a two-time winner of the Bettenhausen 100 at Springfield while Windom got his first Silver Crown win at Eldora last year and led until the 97th lap of the 2013 Ted Horn 100. Cockrum is a second generation driver just 20 minutes from the fairgrounds who was in contention last year until fuel issues slowed his pace. Daum is the defending Powri midget champion and 2009 Silver Crown Rookie of the Year.

Murphysboro’s Randy Batemen is the elder statesman of the series, a fact not lost on the sanctioning body nor the race promoter. Bateman began in the big cars in September of 1982 driving for the Harris Racing Team of nearby Vergennes but was unable to make the starting lineup. Since then Bateman has made 24 more appearances at DuQuoin with his first start coming in 1983. In 2008 he rocked the grandstand by setting second fast time in qualifications.

Other Illini entrants include drivers Patrick Lawson of Edwardsville, Dave Ray of Loves Park and third generation driver Steven Russell of Springfield. The seventeen year old Russell raced in micro sprints at the Southern Illinois Raceway in Marion and is teamed with Oklahoma standout Brady Bacon on the Springfield based McQuinn Motorsports team.

Former winners Russ Gamester (1997), Tracy Hines (2005-06) and Kody Swanson (2010) are likely entrants. Swanson is the current USAC Silver Crown point leader having won all the dirt events on the schedule to date, including the May Hoosier Hundred at the Indiana State Fairgrounds. Hines set quick time before the rains came at Springfield.

Dave Darland continues to be in search of an elusive DuQuoin win. The Lincoln, Indiana driver won the 1997 USAC Silver Crown title and could be the 14th driver in history to win in dirt championship cars on all three of the dirt miles. He recently passed Tom Bigelow as the all-time feature winner in USAC Sprint Car history with 53 victories. Jon Stanbrough nearly beat Swanson at DuQuoin in 2010 and he now occupies the Foxco entry formerly driven by Darland.

Indy 500 starter Bryan Clauson of Noblesville, Indiana is teamed with car owner Gene Nolen in a machine purchased from 2011 DuQuoin winning car owner Keith Kunz who is serving as chief mechanic. He is one of many young drivers in the series, including two-time defending Silver Crown champ Bobby East and Indiana’s Caleb Armstrong.

2008 USAC Silver Crown champ and DuQuoin polesitter Jerry Coons, Jr. is also expected to be part of the starting field.

Practice for the Ted Horn 100 begins at 5 p.m. Sunday night with racing slated for around 8 p.m.

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