MARYVILLE, IL – Oct. 1, 2009 – Jason Feger of Bloomington, Ill. (Super Late Models) and Gary Cook Jr. of Deer Creek, Ill. (Modifieds) find themselves on the brink of winning their first career UMP DIRTcar Racing national points titles.
With only this weekend's weekly action and the Oct. 9-10 UMP DIRTcar Nationals at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio, remaining in the circuit's 2009 points season, Feger leads the Super Late Model standings by 27 points and Cook holds a 65-point advantage in the Modified rankings.
Feger, 31, scored a critical victory in a caution-plagued, time-shortened feature on Sept. 25 at Kankakee (Ill.) County Speedway. His 19th win tied him with Steve Sheppard Jr. of New Berlin, Ill., for the most UMP DIRTcar-sanctioned checkered flags this season and also added 20 points to his national points total, which is determined using drivers' 40 best finishes/points nights.
While Feger gained no more points with finishes of seventh on Sept. 26 at Peoria (Ill.) Speedway (after suffering a flat tire while in contention) and ninth on Sept. 27 at Shepp's Speedway in Alexander, Ill. (after being hampered by mechanical trouble), he extended his points lead over two-time and defending national champion Dennis Erb Jr. of Carpentersville, Ill. Erb, who did not compete in a UMP DIRTcar-sanctioned event last weekend, saw his deficit expand from seven points to 27 (2,964-2,937).
Both Feger and Erb had plans to kick off the final weekend of weekly UMP DIRTcar points racing by entering the first leg of a three-night program tonight (Oct. 1) at Tri-City Speedway in Pontoon Beach, Ill., but the event has been postponed by rain to Sunday evening.
Feger's preliminary schedule for the weekend has him slated to chase points in a $2,000-to-win show on Friday (Oct. 2) at Tri-City; a Monster Midwest Tour event on Saturday (Oct. 3) at Lincoln (Ill.) Speedway; and a double-feature program on Sunday (Oct. 4) at Shepp's Speedway.
Erb, meanwhile, currently plans to race for UMP DIRTcar points this weekend in a Northern Allstars Late Model Series event on Friday (Oct. 2) at Paducah (Ky.) International Raceway and the Monster Midwest Tour card on Saturday at Lincoln.
Feger and Erb will conclude their late-season battle for the $20,000 title on Oct. 9-10 at Eldora. A 40-lap A-Main paying $5,000 to win will top the UMP DIRTcar Nationals program.
Cook, 33, inched closer to his first UMP DIRTcar national Modified crown with a spectacular performance at Quad City Raceway in East Moline, Ill., winning a Hall of Fame Classic preliminary feature on Sept. 26 and the $2,000 top prize in the Gary Reinhart Memorial on Sept. 27. The back-to-back triumphs gave him 24 UMP DIRTcar-sanctioned wins this season and added 12 points to his national total, which is determined using Modified drivers' best 30 finishes/points nights.
The victories also helped Cook keep 19-year-old Devin Gilpin of Columbus, Ind., at bay. Gilpin added 15 points to his national total with a victory on Sept. 26 at Soggy Bottom Raceway in Morgantown, Ky., but he shaved only three points off his deficit to Cook (2,422-2,357).
Defending national Modified champion Jeff Leka of Buffalo, Ill., who sits third in the standings, did not collect any points last weekend. He now trails Cook by 84 points and Gilpin by 19 markers.
Defending UMP DIRTcar Pro Late Model national champion Tait Davenport of West Paducah, Ky., leads Bobby Dauderman of Alhambra, Ill., by 12 points in the division's tight championship battle that will be decided this weekend at Tri-City Speedway. Both drivers are expected to enter the three Pro Late Model events that are part of the ‘Modified Mania' weekend, which now runs from Friday to Sunday (Oct. 2-4).
The Pro Late Model championship is one of six divisional points battles that will end this weekend. Other UMP DIRTcar national points leaders entering this weekend's season-ending action include Jimmy Cummins of Waterloo, Ill. (Sportsman), Chad Boone of Owensboro, Ky. (Limited Modifieds), Rick Thomas of Koehler, Ill. (Stock Cars), Bill May of Muskegon, Mich. (Factory Stocks) and Bob Zbinden of Alhambra, Ill. (Sport Compacts).
Log on to www.dirtcar.com for more information on UMP DIRTcar Racing and to view complete points standings for all divisions.
UMP DIRTcar Racing National Points Standings (as of Sept. 28, 2009):
Super Late Models (driver/points/races counted):
1. Jason Feger 2964 40
2. Dennis Erb Jr. 2937 40
3. Rusty Schlenk 2875 40
4. Randy Korte 2741 40
5. Steve Sheppard Jr. 2738 40
6. Ryan Unzicker 2666 40
7. Jon Henry 2581 40
8. Kevin Weaver 2561 40
9. Michael Kloos 2494 40
10. Brandon Sheppard 2489 40
11. Brian Ruhlman 2484 40
12. Frankie Heckenast 2451 40
13. Eric Smith 2436 40
14. Mike Hammerle 2419 40
15. Ed Dixon 2309 40
16. Kyle Logue 2193 40
17. Joe Harlan 2183 40
18. Shannon Babb 2170 37
19. Daren Friedman 2117 39
20. Dona Marcoullier 2092 32
Modifieds (driver/points/races counted):
1. Gary Cook Jr. 2422 30
2. Devin Gilpin 2357 30
3. Jeff Leka 2338 30
4. John McCaul 2285.5 30
5. Mike Spatola 2281 30
6. Randle Sweeney 2279 30
7. Jeff Babcock 2248 30
8. Kent Robinson 2248 30
9. Todd Sherman 2240 30
10. Tim Hancock 2234 30
11. Lance Dehm 2219 30
12. Nick Allen 2207 30
13. Marc Kurth 2163 30
14. Clayton Miller 2142 30
15. Marty O'Neal 2141 30
16. Vance Wilson 2132 30
17. Doug Adkins 2126 30
18. Clint DeMoss 2098 30
19. Jeremy Nichols 2074 30
20. Vince Cooper 2052 30
Pro Late Models (driver/points/races counted):
1. Tait Davenport 2210 30
2. Bobby Dauderman 2198 30
3. Dustin Griffin 2109 30
4. Nick Bauman 2084 30
5. Caleb Ashby 2066 30
6. Daniel Heck 1917 30
7. Matt Liner 1909 30
8. Josh Harris 1835 30
9. Bobby Martintoni 1824 30
10. Cary King 1775 30
Sportsman (driver/points/races counted):
1. Jimmy Cummins 1848 25
2. Russell Eilers 1837 25
3. Clayton Perry 1832 25
4. Greg Kimmons 1683 25
5. Alan Magner 1677 25
6. Brian Williams 1661 25
7. Troy Clark 1600 25
8. Christy Georges 1533 25
9. Brad Cummings 1514 25
10. Sherman Barnett 1509 25
Limited Modifieds (driver/points/races counted):
1. Chad Boone 1821 25
2. Jonathan Smith 1780 25
3. Scotty Oliver 1594 25
4. Jansen Morris 1580 25
5. Jeff Brooks 1474 25
6. John Paul Talkington 1418 25
7. Josh Tyler 1343 25
8. Chad Sweeney 1342 25
9. Justin Riley 1320 25
10. Kyle Stolzer 1307 20
Stock Cars (driver/points/races counted):
1. Rick Thomas 1964 25
2. David Hurst 1884 25
3. Steve Ewing 1872 25
4. Joel Funk 1871 25
5. Stacy Tretter 1806 25
6. Dave Mannise 1787 25
7. Ron Wadforth 1742 25
8. Larry Russell Jr. 1740 25
9. Mike Welch 1731 25
10. Jerrad Krick 1730 25
Factory Stocks (driver/points/races counted):
1. Bill May 1777 25
2. Justin Schuler 1676 25
3. Dean Rake 1625 25
4. Dan Wilson 1614 25
5. Paul Tenbrink 1526 25
6. Loren Peterson 1503 25
7. Dennis Ponder 1480 23
8. Tony Weinrick 1448 25
9. Jim Scout 1351 20
10. Chuck Smith 1280 25
Sport Compacts (driver/points/races counted):
1. Bob Zbinden 2011 25
2. Joe Reed 1984 25
3. Michael Rittenberry 1791 25
4. Eric Wisher 1790 25
5. Richard Ashby 1745 25
6. C.J. Rector 1713 25
7. Todd Meyer 1675 25
8. Mark Farber 1618 25
9. Justin Suhre 1612 25
10. Evan Taylor 1611 25
With only this weekend's weekly action and the Oct. 9-10 UMP DIRTcar Nationals at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio, remaining in the circuit's 2009 points season, Feger leads the Super Late Model standings by 27 points and Cook holds a 65-point advantage in the Modified rankings.
Feger, 31, scored a critical victory in a caution-plagued, time-shortened feature on Sept. 25 at Kankakee (Ill.) County Speedway. His 19th win tied him with Steve Sheppard Jr. of New Berlin, Ill., for the most UMP DIRTcar-sanctioned checkered flags this season and also added 20 points to his national points total, which is determined using drivers' 40 best finishes/points nights.
While Feger gained no more points with finishes of seventh on Sept. 26 at Peoria (Ill.) Speedway (after suffering a flat tire while in contention) and ninth on Sept. 27 at Shepp's Speedway in Alexander, Ill. (after being hampered by mechanical trouble), he extended his points lead over two-time and defending national champion Dennis Erb Jr. of Carpentersville, Ill. Erb, who did not compete in a UMP DIRTcar-sanctioned event last weekend, saw his deficit expand from seven points to 27 (2,964-2,937).
Both Feger and Erb had plans to kick off the final weekend of weekly UMP DIRTcar points racing by entering the first leg of a three-night program tonight (Oct. 1) at Tri-City Speedway in Pontoon Beach, Ill., but the event has been postponed by rain to Sunday evening.
Feger's preliminary schedule for the weekend has him slated to chase points in a $2,000-to-win show on Friday (Oct. 2) at Tri-City; a Monster Midwest Tour event on Saturday (Oct. 3) at Lincoln (Ill.) Speedway; and a double-feature program on Sunday (Oct. 4) at Shepp's Speedway.
Erb, meanwhile, currently plans to race for UMP DIRTcar points this weekend in a Northern Allstars Late Model Series event on Friday (Oct. 2) at Paducah (Ky.) International Raceway and the Monster Midwest Tour card on Saturday at Lincoln.
Feger and Erb will conclude their late-season battle for the $20,000 title on Oct. 9-10 at Eldora. A 40-lap A-Main paying $5,000 to win will top the UMP DIRTcar Nationals program.
Cook, 33, inched closer to his first UMP DIRTcar national Modified crown with a spectacular performance at Quad City Raceway in East Moline, Ill., winning a Hall of Fame Classic preliminary feature on Sept. 26 and the $2,000 top prize in the Gary Reinhart Memorial on Sept. 27. The back-to-back triumphs gave him 24 UMP DIRTcar-sanctioned wins this season and added 12 points to his national total, which is determined using Modified drivers' best 30 finishes/points nights.
The victories also helped Cook keep 19-year-old Devin Gilpin of Columbus, Ind., at bay. Gilpin added 15 points to his national total with a victory on Sept. 26 at Soggy Bottom Raceway in Morgantown, Ky., but he shaved only three points off his deficit to Cook (2,422-2,357).
Defending national Modified champion Jeff Leka of Buffalo, Ill., who sits third in the standings, did not collect any points last weekend. He now trails Cook by 84 points and Gilpin by 19 markers.
Defending UMP DIRTcar Pro Late Model national champion Tait Davenport of West Paducah, Ky., leads Bobby Dauderman of Alhambra, Ill., by 12 points in the division's tight championship battle that will be decided this weekend at Tri-City Speedway. Both drivers are expected to enter the three Pro Late Model events that are part of the ‘Modified Mania' weekend, which now runs from Friday to Sunday (Oct. 2-4).
The Pro Late Model championship is one of six divisional points battles that will end this weekend. Other UMP DIRTcar national points leaders entering this weekend's season-ending action include Jimmy Cummins of Waterloo, Ill. (Sportsman), Chad Boone of Owensboro, Ky. (Limited Modifieds), Rick Thomas of Koehler, Ill. (Stock Cars), Bill May of Muskegon, Mich. (Factory Stocks) and Bob Zbinden of Alhambra, Ill. (Sport Compacts).
Log on to www.dirtcar.com for more information on UMP DIRTcar Racing and to view complete points standings for all divisions.
UMP DIRTcar Racing National Points Standings (as of Sept. 28, 2009):
Super Late Models (driver/points/races counted):
1. Jason Feger 2964 40
2. Dennis Erb Jr. 2937 40
3. Rusty Schlenk 2875 40
4. Randy Korte 2741 40
5. Steve Sheppard Jr. 2738 40
6. Ryan Unzicker 2666 40
7. Jon Henry 2581 40
8. Kevin Weaver 2561 40
9. Michael Kloos 2494 40
10. Brandon Sheppard 2489 40
11. Brian Ruhlman 2484 40
12. Frankie Heckenast 2451 40
13. Eric Smith 2436 40
14. Mike Hammerle 2419 40
15. Ed Dixon 2309 40
16. Kyle Logue 2193 40
17. Joe Harlan 2183 40
18. Shannon Babb 2170 37
19. Daren Friedman 2117 39
20. Dona Marcoullier 2092 32
Modifieds (driver/points/races counted):
1. Gary Cook Jr. 2422 30
2. Devin Gilpin 2357 30
3. Jeff Leka 2338 30
4. John McCaul 2285.5 30
5. Mike Spatola 2281 30
6. Randle Sweeney 2279 30
7. Jeff Babcock 2248 30
8. Kent Robinson 2248 30
9. Todd Sherman 2240 30
10. Tim Hancock 2234 30
11. Lance Dehm 2219 30
12. Nick Allen 2207 30
13. Marc Kurth 2163 30
14. Clayton Miller 2142 30
15. Marty O'Neal 2141 30
16. Vance Wilson 2132 30
17. Doug Adkins 2126 30
18. Clint DeMoss 2098 30
19. Jeremy Nichols 2074 30
20. Vince Cooper 2052 30
Pro Late Models (driver/points/races counted):
1. Tait Davenport 2210 30
2. Bobby Dauderman 2198 30
3. Dustin Griffin 2109 30
4. Nick Bauman 2084 30
5. Caleb Ashby 2066 30
6. Daniel Heck 1917 30
7. Matt Liner 1909 30
8. Josh Harris 1835 30
9. Bobby Martintoni 1824 30
10. Cary King 1775 30
Sportsman (driver/points/races counted):
1. Jimmy Cummins 1848 25
2. Russell Eilers 1837 25
3. Clayton Perry 1832 25
4. Greg Kimmons 1683 25
5. Alan Magner 1677 25
6. Brian Williams 1661 25
7. Troy Clark 1600 25
8. Christy Georges 1533 25
9. Brad Cummings 1514 25
10. Sherman Barnett 1509 25
Limited Modifieds (driver/points/races counted):
1. Chad Boone 1821 25
2. Jonathan Smith 1780 25
3. Scotty Oliver 1594 25
4. Jansen Morris 1580 25
5. Jeff Brooks 1474 25
6. John Paul Talkington 1418 25
7. Josh Tyler 1343 25
8. Chad Sweeney 1342 25
9. Justin Riley 1320 25
10. Kyle Stolzer 1307 20
Stock Cars (driver/points/races counted):
1. Rick Thomas 1964 25
2. David Hurst 1884 25
3. Steve Ewing 1872 25
4. Joel Funk 1871 25
5. Stacy Tretter 1806 25
6. Dave Mannise 1787 25
7. Ron Wadforth 1742 25
8. Larry Russell Jr. 1740 25
9. Mike Welch 1731 25
10. Jerrad Krick 1730 25
Factory Stocks (driver/points/races counted):
1. Bill May 1777 25
2. Justin Schuler 1676 25
3. Dean Rake 1625 25
4. Dan Wilson 1614 25
5. Paul Tenbrink 1526 25
6. Loren Peterson 1503 25
7. Dennis Ponder 1480 23
8. Tony Weinrick 1448 25
9. Jim Scout 1351 20
10. Chuck Smith 1280 25
Sport Compacts (driver/points/races counted):
1. Bob Zbinden 2011 25
2. Joe Reed 1984 25
3. Michael Rittenberry 1791 25
4. Eric Wisher 1790 25
5. Richard Ashby 1745 25
6. C.J. Rector 1713 25
7. Todd Meyer 1675 25
8. Mark Farber 1618 25
9. Justin Suhre 1612 25
10. Evan Taylor 1611 25
