Lonnie Wheatley, TULSA, Okla. (June 18, 2009) – With the 17th Annual F&J Construction ASCS Speedweek successfully in the books, it's back to business for the Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Series presented by K&N Filters.
The $250,000 points chase, including the $60,000 earmarked for the 2009 Lucas Oil Sprint Car champion, resumes with next Saturday night's (June 27) Third Annual Daniel McMillin Memorial at the scenic Lake Ozark Speedway near Eldon, MO.
And with the opening four point events of the season completed, a mere four points separate the top three in championship points with Oklahoma native Shane Stewart just two markers ahead of four-time series champion Gary Wright of Hooks, TX. Defending series champion Jason Johnson of Eunice, LA, is just another two points back in third.
Norman, OK, shoe Danny Wood enters next Saturday's action ranked fourth, with Travis Rilat of Forney, TX, ranked fifth.
Leading a stellar rookie crop, California native Paul McMahan is tied for sixth with Tulsa-area racer Nick Smith, with the balance of the current top ten including Nebraska teen Jack Dover, 2001 series champion Zach Chappell of Talala, OK, and three-time ASCS National champion Tim Crawley of Benton, AR.
Crawley just picked up a $2,000 bonus by earning the 17th Annual ASCS Speedweek championship by a mere eight point margin over McMahan. Johnson, Brady Bacon, Sean McClelland, Wright and Matt Clevenger also picked up bonus money by finishing among the top seven in Speedweek points.
Four different drivers have cracked victory lane in the opening four events of the season including Stewart, Johnson, Rilat and Dover. Add in another five winners during ASCS Speedweek (Crawley, Tony Bruce, Jr., Chappell, Wright and N. Smith) and the total is nine different winners in nine events held under the Lucas Oil Sprint Car Series banner thus far in 2009.
Current series points leader Shane Stewart, gunning for his first ASCS title with car owner Paul Silva, swept a two-night ASCS stand at Lake Ozark in 2004, while local hero Jesse Hockett swept a two-nighter in 2005. Next Saturday's event is held in honor of Hockett's departed cousin Daniel McMillin.
Reigning series champion Jason Johnson has topped both previous editions of the Daniel McMillin Memorial. "The Ragin' Cajun" won the inaugural event at Double X Speedway in California, MO, in 2007, then pulled off the repeat last year when the event shifted to Lake Ozark Speedway. Last year's McMillin triumph also avenged a last-lap Lake Ozark loss several weeks earlier to Aaron Berryhill, who captured his first career series win atop the 1/3-mile clay oval last May.
Sixty-seven drivers competed in the Lucas Oil Sprint Car Series season-opening two-night stand at Texas' Devil's Bowl Speedway in March. Then, after several rainouts, fifty drivers took part in the two-night Steve King Memorial at Kansas' Jetmore Motorplex over the Memorial Day Weekend.
Next Saturday night's Daniel McMillin Memorial at Lake Ozark Speedway kicks off the first of five consecutive weekends of competition for the Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters with ensuing events including the Rock & Roll 50 at Riverside Speedway in West Memphis, AR, on July 3-4, a journey to Hartford, South Dakota's I-90 Speedway on July 11 and then the series first venture to the Northwest for doubles at Elma, Washington's Grays Harbor Raceway Park (July 17-18) and Oregon's Cottage Grove Speedway (July 24-25).
The Series:
Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters
When & Where:
Saturday night, June 27 at 7:00 p.m. – Lake Ozark Speedway
Track Information:
Lake Ozark Speedway (Eldon, MO) – 1/3-mile semi-banked dirt oval located south of Eldon on US 54 to SR 52, then 0.1 miles east on SR 52, then 0.5 miles north on Twiggy Lane (frontage road). For more information, contact the track at 573-392-9977 or check www.lakeozarkspeedway.com.
Lucas Oil ASCS Lake Ozark Speedway History:
The Lucas Oil Sprint Car Series returned to Lake Ozark Speedway last year after a two-year absence with Aaron Berryhill making a last-lap pass of Jason Johnson for his first career series win in May. Johnson got some Lake Ozark redemption by winning the Second Annual Daniel McMillin Memorial in July.
Lake Ozark Speedway ASCS National winners include: Jesse Hockett 2, Shane Stewart 2, Aaron Berryhill 1, Jason Johnson 1.
Lake Ozark Speedway Lucas Oil ASCS Race-by-Race Winners: Shane Stewart (9/4/04), Shane Stewart (9/5/04), Jesse Hockett (9/3/05), Jesse Hockett (9/4/05), Aaron Berryhill (5/3/08), Jason Johnson (7/5/08).
Current Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters Points:
Top Twenty: 1. Shane Stewart (Bixby, OK) 578, 2. Gary Wright (Hooks, TX) 576, 3. Jason Johnson (Eunice, LA) 574, 4. Danny Wood (Norman, OK) 520, 5. Travis Rilat (Forney, TX) 509, 6. (tie) Nick Smith (Broken Arrow, OK) and Paul McMahan (Hendersonville, TN) 506, 8. Jack Dover (Springfield, NE) 501, 9. Zach Chappell (Talala, OK) 469, 10. Tim Crawley (Benton, AR) 459, 11. Tony Bruce, Jr. (Liberal, KS) 447, 12. Eric Baldaccini (Keller, TX) 430, 13. Sean McClelland (Tulsa, OK) 427, 14. Joe Wood, Jr. (Oklahoma City, OK) 422, 15. Trey Robb (Newcastle, OK) 407, 16. Brady Bacon (Broken Arrow, OK) 398, 17. Brian Brown (Grain Valley, MO) 370, 18. Kenneth Walker (Sapulpa, OK) 368, 19. Jesse Hockett (Warsaw, MO) 365, 20. Matt Covington (Glenpool, OK) 357.
Brodix Rookie of the Year Points (Top Five): 1. Paul McMahan (Hendersonville, TN) 506, 2. Jack Dover (Springfield, NE) 501, 3. Joe Wood, Jr. (Oklahoma City, OK) 422, 4. Brady Bacon (Broken Arrow, OK) 398, 5. Matt Covington (Glenpool, OK) 357.
2009 Lucas Oil ASCS Feature Winners:
Jack Dover 1, Jason Johnson 1, Travis Rilat 1, Shane Stewart 1.
Lucas Oil ASCS presented by K&N Filters – A Look Ahead:
July 3/4 – Riverside International Speedway (West Memphis, AR)
July 11 – I-90 Speedway (Hartford, SD)
July 17/18 – Grays Harbor Raceway Park (Elma, WA)
July 24/25 – Cottage Grove Speedway (Cottage Grove, OR)
Lucas Oil ASCS on the Web:
Those unable to catch all the action in person can listen to every Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters live at www.racinboys.com.
Also, the Lucas Oil ASCS Show airs on www.racinboys.com each Tuesday night at 8:00 p.m. ET, recapping the previous week's events while also previewing upcoming action.
Official results, championship point updates, photos and race notes will be available at www.ascsracing.com.
Lucas Oil ASCS on TV:
The Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters will be featured in ten one-hour shows broadcast on a tape-delayed basis on the VERSUS Network
Events to be aired on VERSUS include the following:
The revised schedule of Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters events to be aired on VERSUS is as follows:
Event Date – Track (Location) – Air Date & Re-Air Date (All Times Eastern)
Mar. 20 – Devil's Bowl Speedway (Mesquite, TX) – 5/2/09 @ 5:00 p.m. & 5/7/09 @ 5:00 p.m.
Mar. 21 – Devil's Bowl Speedway (Mesquite, TX) – 5/23/09 @ 4:00 p.m. & 5/27/09 @ 5:00 p.m.
May 23 – Jetmore Motorplex (Jetmore, KS) – 8/1/09 @ 4:00 p.m. & 8/5/09 @ 5:00 p.m.
May 24 – Jetmore Motorplex (Jetmore, KS) – 8/1/09 @ 5:00 p.m. & 8/6/09 @ 5:00 p.m.
July 3 – Riverside Speedway (W. Memphis, AR) – 8/8/09 @ 5:00 p.m. & 8/13/09 @ 5:00 p.m.
July 4 – Riverside Speedway (W. Memphis, AR) – 9/20/09 @ 4:00 p.m. & 9/24/09 @ 5:00 p.m.
Aug. 6 – Knoxville Raceway (Knoxville, IA) – 10/1/09 @ 5:00 p.m. & 10/10/09 @ 3:00 p.m.
Aug. 7 – Knoxville Raceway (Knoxville, IA) – 10/18/09 @ 5:00 p.m. & 10/22/09 @ 5:00 p.m.
Aug. 8 – Knoxville Raceway (Knoxville, IA) – 11/15/09 @ 5:00 p.m. & 11/19/09 @ 5:00 p.m.
Sept. 26 – Lucas Oil Speedway (Wheatland, MO) – 11/29/09 @ 4:00 p.m. & 12/3/09 @ 4:00 p.m.
The Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters is currently slated for approximately 33 nights of racing action at 17 different tracks throughout the nation, with the country's top Sprint Car drivers set to battle it out for their share of the $250,000 points fund.
The American Sprint Car Series, in its 18th year of sanctioning Sprint Car racing events, brings the best of Sprint Car racing to nearly 100 different tracks throughout 25 states and Canada in 2009. Anchored by the Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters, ASCS also consists of a dozen different Regions throughout the nation.
Additional information regarding the American Sprint Car Series is available at www.ascsracing.com.
The $250,000 points chase, including the $60,000 earmarked for the 2009 Lucas Oil Sprint Car champion, resumes with next Saturday night's (June 27) Third Annual Daniel McMillin Memorial at the scenic Lake Ozark Speedway near Eldon, MO.
And with the opening four point events of the season completed, a mere four points separate the top three in championship points with Oklahoma native Shane Stewart just two markers ahead of four-time series champion Gary Wright of Hooks, TX. Defending series champion Jason Johnson of Eunice, LA, is just another two points back in third.
Norman, OK, shoe Danny Wood enters next Saturday's action ranked fourth, with Travis Rilat of Forney, TX, ranked fifth.
Leading a stellar rookie crop, California native Paul McMahan is tied for sixth with Tulsa-area racer Nick Smith, with the balance of the current top ten including Nebraska teen Jack Dover, 2001 series champion Zach Chappell of Talala, OK, and three-time ASCS National champion Tim Crawley of Benton, AR.
Crawley just picked up a $2,000 bonus by earning the 17th Annual ASCS Speedweek championship by a mere eight point margin over McMahan. Johnson, Brady Bacon, Sean McClelland, Wright and Matt Clevenger also picked up bonus money by finishing among the top seven in Speedweek points.
Four different drivers have cracked victory lane in the opening four events of the season including Stewart, Johnson, Rilat and Dover. Add in another five winners during ASCS Speedweek (Crawley, Tony Bruce, Jr., Chappell, Wright and N. Smith) and the total is nine different winners in nine events held under the Lucas Oil Sprint Car Series banner thus far in 2009.
Current series points leader Shane Stewart, gunning for his first ASCS title with car owner Paul Silva, swept a two-night ASCS stand at Lake Ozark in 2004, while local hero Jesse Hockett swept a two-nighter in 2005. Next Saturday's event is held in honor of Hockett's departed cousin Daniel McMillin.
Reigning series champion Jason Johnson has topped both previous editions of the Daniel McMillin Memorial. "The Ragin' Cajun" won the inaugural event at Double X Speedway in California, MO, in 2007, then pulled off the repeat last year when the event shifted to Lake Ozark Speedway. Last year's McMillin triumph also avenged a last-lap Lake Ozark loss several weeks earlier to Aaron Berryhill, who captured his first career series win atop the 1/3-mile clay oval last May.
Sixty-seven drivers competed in the Lucas Oil Sprint Car Series season-opening two-night stand at Texas' Devil's Bowl Speedway in March. Then, after several rainouts, fifty drivers took part in the two-night Steve King Memorial at Kansas' Jetmore Motorplex over the Memorial Day Weekend.
Next Saturday night's Daniel McMillin Memorial at Lake Ozark Speedway kicks off the first of five consecutive weekends of competition for the Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters with ensuing events including the Rock & Roll 50 at Riverside Speedway in West Memphis, AR, on July 3-4, a journey to Hartford, South Dakota's I-90 Speedway on July 11 and then the series first venture to the Northwest for doubles at Elma, Washington's Grays Harbor Raceway Park (July 17-18) and Oregon's Cottage Grove Speedway (July 24-25).
The Series:
Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters
When & Where:
Saturday night, June 27 at 7:00 p.m. – Lake Ozark Speedway
Track Information:
Lake Ozark Speedway (Eldon, MO) – 1/3-mile semi-banked dirt oval located south of Eldon on US 54 to SR 52, then 0.1 miles east on SR 52, then 0.5 miles north on Twiggy Lane (frontage road). For more information, contact the track at 573-392-9977 or check www.lakeozarkspeedway.com.
Lucas Oil ASCS Lake Ozark Speedway History:
The Lucas Oil Sprint Car Series returned to Lake Ozark Speedway last year after a two-year absence with Aaron Berryhill making a last-lap pass of Jason Johnson for his first career series win in May. Johnson got some Lake Ozark redemption by winning the Second Annual Daniel McMillin Memorial in July.
Lake Ozark Speedway ASCS National winners include: Jesse Hockett 2, Shane Stewart 2, Aaron Berryhill 1, Jason Johnson 1.
Lake Ozark Speedway Lucas Oil ASCS Race-by-Race Winners: Shane Stewart (9/4/04), Shane Stewart (9/5/04), Jesse Hockett (9/3/05), Jesse Hockett (9/4/05), Aaron Berryhill (5/3/08), Jason Johnson (7/5/08).
Current Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters Points:
Top Twenty: 1. Shane Stewart (Bixby, OK) 578, 2. Gary Wright (Hooks, TX) 576, 3. Jason Johnson (Eunice, LA) 574, 4. Danny Wood (Norman, OK) 520, 5. Travis Rilat (Forney, TX) 509, 6. (tie) Nick Smith (Broken Arrow, OK) and Paul McMahan (Hendersonville, TN) 506, 8. Jack Dover (Springfield, NE) 501, 9. Zach Chappell (Talala, OK) 469, 10. Tim Crawley (Benton, AR) 459, 11. Tony Bruce, Jr. (Liberal, KS) 447, 12. Eric Baldaccini (Keller, TX) 430, 13. Sean McClelland (Tulsa, OK) 427, 14. Joe Wood, Jr. (Oklahoma City, OK) 422, 15. Trey Robb (Newcastle, OK) 407, 16. Brady Bacon (Broken Arrow, OK) 398, 17. Brian Brown (Grain Valley, MO) 370, 18. Kenneth Walker (Sapulpa, OK) 368, 19. Jesse Hockett (Warsaw, MO) 365, 20. Matt Covington (Glenpool, OK) 357.
Brodix Rookie of the Year Points (Top Five): 1. Paul McMahan (Hendersonville, TN) 506, 2. Jack Dover (Springfield, NE) 501, 3. Joe Wood, Jr. (Oklahoma City, OK) 422, 4. Brady Bacon (Broken Arrow, OK) 398, 5. Matt Covington (Glenpool, OK) 357.
2009 Lucas Oil ASCS Feature Winners:
Jack Dover 1, Jason Johnson 1, Travis Rilat 1, Shane Stewart 1.
Lucas Oil ASCS presented by K&N Filters – A Look Ahead:
July 3/4 – Riverside International Speedway (West Memphis, AR)
July 11 – I-90 Speedway (Hartford, SD)
July 17/18 – Grays Harbor Raceway Park (Elma, WA)
July 24/25 – Cottage Grove Speedway (Cottage Grove, OR)
Lucas Oil ASCS on the Web:
Those unable to catch all the action in person can listen to every Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters live at www.racinboys.com.
Also, the Lucas Oil ASCS Show airs on www.racinboys.com each Tuesday night at 8:00 p.m. ET, recapping the previous week's events while also previewing upcoming action.
Official results, championship point updates, photos and race notes will be available at www.ascsracing.com.
Lucas Oil ASCS on TV:
The Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters will be featured in ten one-hour shows broadcast on a tape-delayed basis on the VERSUS Network
Events to be aired on VERSUS include the following:
The revised schedule of Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters events to be aired on VERSUS is as follows:
Event Date – Track (Location) – Air Date & Re-Air Date (All Times Eastern)
Mar. 20 – Devil's Bowl Speedway (Mesquite, TX) – 5/2/09 @ 5:00 p.m. & 5/7/09 @ 5:00 p.m.
Mar. 21 – Devil's Bowl Speedway (Mesquite, TX) – 5/23/09 @ 4:00 p.m. & 5/27/09 @ 5:00 p.m.
May 23 – Jetmore Motorplex (Jetmore, KS) – 8/1/09 @ 4:00 p.m. & 8/5/09 @ 5:00 p.m.
May 24 – Jetmore Motorplex (Jetmore, KS) – 8/1/09 @ 5:00 p.m. & 8/6/09 @ 5:00 p.m.
July 3 – Riverside Speedway (W. Memphis, AR) – 8/8/09 @ 5:00 p.m. & 8/13/09 @ 5:00 p.m.
July 4 – Riverside Speedway (W. Memphis, AR) – 9/20/09 @ 4:00 p.m. & 9/24/09 @ 5:00 p.m.
Aug. 6 – Knoxville Raceway (Knoxville, IA) – 10/1/09 @ 5:00 p.m. & 10/10/09 @ 3:00 p.m.
Aug. 7 – Knoxville Raceway (Knoxville, IA) – 10/18/09 @ 5:00 p.m. & 10/22/09 @ 5:00 p.m.
Aug. 8 – Knoxville Raceway (Knoxville, IA) – 11/15/09 @ 5:00 p.m. & 11/19/09 @ 5:00 p.m.
Sept. 26 – Lucas Oil Speedway (Wheatland, MO) – 11/29/09 @ 4:00 p.m. & 12/3/09 @ 4:00 p.m.
The Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters is currently slated for approximately 33 nights of racing action at 17 different tracks throughout the nation, with the country's top Sprint Car drivers set to battle it out for their share of the $250,000 points fund.
The American Sprint Car Series, in its 18th year of sanctioning Sprint Car racing events, brings the best of Sprint Car racing to nearly 100 different tracks throughout 25 states and Canada in 2009. Anchored by the Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters, ASCS also consists of a dozen different Regions throughout the nation.
Additional information regarding the American Sprint Car Series is available at www.ascsracing.com.
