LA SALLE, IL - Sept. 18, 2009 - La Salle Speedway will be swirling with points-title drama on Sunday night (Sept. 20) during the 18th annual Best Western Illinois Fall Nationals.
From the two-driver face-offs for the World of Outlaws Late Model Series and UMP DIRTcar Racing national Super Late Model championships to the battle for the UMP DIRTcar national Modified crown, the quarter-mile oval's season-ending event promises to be a crucial big-picture evening for several competitors.
The evening's headline 40-lap, $7,000-to-win World of Outlaws Late Model Series A-Main will have two points-race storylines spinning simultaneously – Steve Francis and Josh Richards are locked in a neck-and-neck stretch run for the $100,000 Outlaw title, while homestate stars Jason Feger and Dennis Erb Jr. are rolling toward the end of a memorable struggle for a UMP DIRTcar national championship worth $20,000.
What's more, UMP DIRTcar Modified national points leader Gary Cook Jr. of Deer Creek, Ill., and defending national champion Jeff Leka of Buffalo, Ill., who won the 2007 Illinois Fall Nationals Modified event at La Salle, are among the title contenders expected to compete in the division's supporting 25-lap, $1,000-to-win feature.
Get out the calculators – the Best Western Illinois Fall Nationals promise to be exciting for more than the night's first-place prizes.
“I think it's great for the fans to have an opportunity to see this many different points battles play out at one facility on a single night,” said veteran Midwestern promoter Bob Sargent, whose Track Enterprises, Inc. is presenting the Illinois Fall Nationals for the second time at La Salle after a 17-year run on the Springfield Mile at the Illinois State Fairgrounds. “There's a lot on the line for the championship contenders. Every position will count, so fans are going to have plenty to watch.”
Highlighting the program will be the Francis-Richards war for 2009 WoO LMS supremacy. With the two drivers having distanced themselves from defending champion Darrell Lanigan of Union, Ky., in the points standings, it appears they will decide the title between themselves.
Francis, 42, of Ashland, Ky., leads Richards, a 21-year-old sensation from Shinnston, W.Va., who drives the Rocket Chassis house car that is fielded by his father Mark and was campaigned by Francis earlier this decade, by a mere four points entering this weekend's WoO LMS Midwest doubleheader at I-55 Raceway in Pevely, Mo. (the Pepsi Nationals on Sat., Sept. 20) and La Salle. A WoO LMS champion in 2007 and runner-up on three previous occasions, Francis grabbed the points lead from Richards in the last tour event, on Sept. 6 at Tri-City Speedway in Franklin, Pa.
Richards, who is gunning for his first-ever WoO LMS title after finishing second last season, is hoping for better luck at La Salle than he experienced in the last Outlaw event there on Sept. 16, 2007. In an Illinois Fall Nationals 40-lapper that saw Jeep VanWormer of Pinconning, Mich., emerge victorious and Francis finish fifth after running as high as second, Richards had to pit on the opening lap due to nosepiece damage from hitting an inside tractor tire and could only manage a 13th-place finish.
Just three events remain on the WoO LMS schedule after this weekend's shows – and all three are at The Dirt Track @ Lowe's Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C.
With La Salle's WoO LMS action carrying a UMP DIRTcar co-sanction and being run under UMP DIRTcar's Hoosier LM20, LM30 and LM40 tire-compound rule, the event is a full UMP DIRTcar points race. Feger, 31, of Bloomington, Ill., holds a slim 10-point lead over Carpentersville, Ill.'s Erb in the national standings with just three weekends of weekly racing and the Oct. 9-10 UMP DIRTcar Nationals at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio, remaining in the circuit's points season.
The UMP DIRTcar national Super Late Model standings are determined using drivers' best 40 finishes/points nights and include bonus points for car count, so with a strong field expected on Sunday both Feger and Erb will have an opportunity to gain points with a finish near the front of the pack. They figure to be serious contenders in the event, considering that both drivers have turned many laps at La Salle and have proven their ability to win on the WoO LMS.
Feger, who is shooting for his UMP DIRTcar national championship and also to end Erb's two-year run as the national titlist, captured his first career WoO LMS A-Main earlier this year at Charter Raceway Park in Beaver Dam, Wis. A winner of 18 features at 13 different tracks this season, Feger finished 17th in the 2007 WoO LMS event at La Salle and two months ago raced to a 13th-place finish in the track's UMP DIRTcar Summer Nationals program.
Erb, meanwhile, owns two career WoO LMS A-Mains victories, with both coming in 2007. He finished sixth in the 2007 Illinois Fall Nationals at La Salle and scored a third-place finish in this year's UMP DIRTcar Summer Nationals show at the track.
The WoO LMS and UMP DIRTcar title contenders will headline a star-studded field of dirt Late Model drivers expected to invade La Salle.
The traveling Outlaw roster will also include Lanigan, who finished second in the 2007 Illinois Fall Nationals; the red-hot Tim Fuller of Watertown, N.Y., who has won seven of the last 11 tour events and placed fourth in '07 at La Salle; Chub Frank of Bear Lake, Pa., who ran La Salle's cushion hard to finish third in '07; Shane Clanton of Locust Grove, Ga.; Clint Smith of Senoia, Ga.; Rick Eckert of York, Pa.; Brady Smith of Solon Springs, Wis.; and Rookie of the Year contenders Russell King of Bristolville, Ohio, Jordan Bland of Campbellsville, Ky., Brent Robinson of Smithfield, Va., Dustin Hapka of Grand Forks, N.D., and 14-year-old Tyler Reddick of Corning, Calif.
Other drivers planning to enter the Illinois Fall Nationals include Jimmy Mars of Menomonie, Wis., Shannon Babb of Moweaqua, Ill., and Terry Casey of New London, Wis.
Last year's Illinois Fall Nationals at La Salle was rained out and not rescheduled, so this will mark the track's first WoO LMS event in two years.
Pit gates will open at 2 p.m. and the grandstand gates will be unlocked at 4 p.m. on Sun., Sept. 20. Practice is scheduled to begin at 5 p.m., followed by time trials at 5:30 p.m. and racing at 6 p.m.
Adult grandstand admission is $25 with children 11-and-under $5. All pit passes will cost $35.
La Salle Speedway is centrally located in Illinois, sitting 60 miles west of Joliet, 80 miles east of the Quad Cities, 70 miles south of Rockford and 60 miles north of Bloomington.
For additional information or to purchase advanced general admission tickets, visit www.lasallespeedway.com; www.trackenterprises.com; or contact Track Enterprises at 217-764-3200 or La Salle Speedway at 815-223-6939.
For more information on the WoO LMS, visit www.worldofoutlaws.com.
The World of Outlaws Late Model Series is brought to fans across the country by many important sponsors and partners, including Arizona Sport Shirts (Official Apparel Company), Armor All (Official Car Care Products), Crane Cams (Official Valvetrain), Hoosier Racing Tires (Official Racing Tires), Fusion Energy Boost (Official Energy Boost), SuperClean (Official Cleaner-Degreaser) and VP Racing (Official Racing Fuel); in addition to contingency sponsors Champ Pans, Eibach Springs, Hoosier Tires, Integra Shocks, Jake's Custom Golf Carts, Ohlins Shocks, Racing Electronics, Quarter Master and Wrisco Aluminum; Crane Cams Engine Builder's Challenge participants Cornett Racing Engines, Custom Race Engines and Pro Power Racing Engines; and Chassis Builder Challenge participants Rocket Chassis and Team Zero by Bloomquist.
From the two-driver face-offs for the World of Outlaws Late Model Series and UMP DIRTcar Racing national Super Late Model championships to the battle for the UMP DIRTcar national Modified crown, the quarter-mile oval's season-ending event promises to be a crucial big-picture evening for several competitors.
The evening's headline 40-lap, $7,000-to-win World of Outlaws Late Model Series A-Main will have two points-race storylines spinning simultaneously – Steve Francis and Josh Richards are locked in a neck-and-neck stretch run for the $100,000 Outlaw title, while homestate stars Jason Feger and Dennis Erb Jr. are rolling toward the end of a memorable struggle for a UMP DIRTcar national championship worth $20,000.
What's more, UMP DIRTcar Modified national points leader Gary Cook Jr. of Deer Creek, Ill., and defending national champion Jeff Leka of Buffalo, Ill., who won the 2007 Illinois Fall Nationals Modified event at La Salle, are among the title contenders expected to compete in the division's supporting 25-lap, $1,000-to-win feature.
Get out the calculators – the Best Western Illinois Fall Nationals promise to be exciting for more than the night's first-place prizes.
“I think it's great for the fans to have an opportunity to see this many different points battles play out at one facility on a single night,” said veteran Midwestern promoter Bob Sargent, whose Track Enterprises, Inc. is presenting the Illinois Fall Nationals for the second time at La Salle after a 17-year run on the Springfield Mile at the Illinois State Fairgrounds. “There's a lot on the line for the championship contenders. Every position will count, so fans are going to have plenty to watch.”
Highlighting the program will be the Francis-Richards war for 2009 WoO LMS supremacy. With the two drivers having distanced themselves from defending champion Darrell Lanigan of Union, Ky., in the points standings, it appears they will decide the title between themselves.
Francis, 42, of Ashland, Ky., leads Richards, a 21-year-old sensation from Shinnston, W.Va., who drives the Rocket Chassis house car that is fielded by his father Mark and was campaigned by Francis earlier this decade, by a mere four points entering this weekend's WoO LMS Midwest doubleheader at I-55 Raceway in Pevely, Mo. (the Pepsi Nationals on Sat., Sept. 20) and La Salle. A WoO LMS champion in 2007 and runner-up on three previous occasions, Francis grabbed the points lead from Richards in the last tour event, on Sept. 6 at Tri-City Speedway in Franklin, Pa.
Richards, who is gunning for his first-ever WoO LMS title after finishing second last season, is hoping for better luck at La Salle than he experienced in the last Outlaw event there on Sept. 16, 2007. In an Illinois Fall Nationals 40-lapper that saw Jeep VanWormer of Pinconning, Mich., emerge victorious and Francis finish fifth after running as high as second, Richards had to pit on the opening lap due to nosepiece damage from hitting an inside tractor tire and could only manage a 13th-place finish.
Just three events remain on the WoO LMS schedule after this weekend's shows – and all three are at The Dirt Track @ Lowe's Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C.
With La Salle's WoO LMS action carrying a UMP DIRTcar co-sanction and being run under UMP DIRTcar's Hoosier LM20, LM30 and LM40 tire-compound rule, the event is a full UMP DIRTcar points race. Feger, 31, of Bloomington, Ill., holds a slim 10-point lead over Carpentersville, Ill.'s Erb in the national standings with just three weekends of weekly racing and the Oct. 9-10 UMP DIRTcar Nationals at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio, remaining in the circuit's points season.
The UMP DIRTcar national Super Late Model standings are determined using drivers' best 40 finishes/points nights and include bonus points for car count, so with a strong field expected on Sunday both Feger and Erb will have an opportunity to gain points with a finish near the front of the pack. They figure to be serious contenders in the event, considering that both drivers have turned many laps at La Salle and have proven their ability to win on the WoO LMS.
Feger, who is shooting for his UMP DIRTcar national championship and also to end Erb's two-year run as the national titlist, captured his first career WoO LMS A-Main earlier this year at Charter Raceway Park in Beaver Dam, Wis. A winner of 18 features at 13 different tracks this season, Feger finished 17th in the 2007 WoO LMS event at La Salle and two months ago raced to a 13th-place finish in the track's UMP DIRTcar Summer Nationals program.
Erb, meanwhile, owns two career WoO LMS A-Mains victories, with both coming in 2007. He finished sixth in the 2007 Illinois Fall Nationals at La Salle and scored a third-place finish in this year's UMP DIRTcar Summer Nationals show at the track.
The WoO LMS and UMP DIRTcar title contenders will headline a star-studded field of dirt Late Model drivers expected to invade La Salle.
The traveling Outlaw roster will also include Lanigan, who finished second in the 2007 Illinois Fall Nationals; the red-hot Tim Fuller of Watertown, N.Y., who has won seven of the last 11 tour events and placed fourth in '07 at La Salle; Chub Frank of Bear Lake, Pa., who ran La Salle's cushion hard to finish third in '07; Shane Clanton of Locust Grove, Ga.; Clint Smith of Senoia, Ga.; Rick Eckert of York, Pa.; Brady Smith of Solon Springs, Wis.; and Rookie of the Year contenders Russell King of Bristolville, Ohio, Jordan Bland of Campbellsville, Ky., Brent Robinson of Smithfield, Va., Dustin Hapka of Grand Forks, N.D., and 14-year-old Tyler Reddick of Corning, Calif.
Other drivers planning to enter the Illinois Fall Nationals include Jimmy Mars of Menomonie, Wis., Shannon Babb of Moweaqua, Ill., and Terry Casey of New London, Wis.
Last year's Illinois Fall Nationals at La Salle was rained out and not rescheduled, so this will mark the track's first WoO LMS event in two years.
Pit gates will open at 2 p.m. and the grandstand gates will be unlocked at 4 p.m. on Sun., Sept. 20. Practice is scheduled to begin at 5 p.m., followed by time trials at 5:30 p.m. and racing at 6 p.m.
Adult grandstand admission is $25 with children 11-and-under $5. All pit passes will cost $35.
La Salle Speedway is centrally located in Illinois, sitting 60 miles west of Joliet, 80 miles east of the Quad Cities, 70 miles south of Rockford and 60 miles north of Bloomington.
For additional information or to purchase advanced general admission tickets, visit www.lasallespeedway.com; www.trackenterprises.com; or contact Track Enterprises at 217-764-3200 or La Salle Speedway at 815-223-6939.
For more information on the WoO LMS, visit www.worldofoutlaws.com.
The World of Outlaws Late Model Series is brought to fans across the country by many important sponsors and partners, including Arizona Sport Shirts (Official Apparel Company), Armor All (Official Car Care Products), Crane Cams (Official Valvetrain), Hoosier Racing Tires (Official Racing Tires), Fusion Energy Boost (Official Energy Boost), SuperClean (Official Cleaner-Degreaser) and VP Racing (Official Racing Fuel); in addition to contingency sponsors Champ Pans, Eibach Springs, Hoosier Tires, Integra Shocks, Jake's Custom Golf Carts, Ohlins Shocks, Racing Electronics, Quarter Master and Wrisco Aluminum; Crane Cams Engine Builder's Challenge participants Cornett Racing Engines, Custom Race Engines and Pro Power Racing Engines; and Chassis Builder Challenge participants Rocket Chassis and Team Zero by Bloomquist.
