DANVILLE , IL – June 22, 2008 – Jeep VanWormer of Pinconning , Mich. , broke through for his first victory of the 2008 UMP DIRTcar Summer Nationals, capturing Sunday night’s 40-lap tour A-Main at Vermilion County Speedway.
VanWormer, a 33-year-old who is chasing the Summer Nationals points crown for the fourth consecutive season, passed Scott Bull of Fairbury , Ill. , for the lead on a lap-seven restart and never looked back. He picked up a $6,000 check in RacingJunk.com Victory Lane .
Summer Nationals points leader Brian Shirley of Chatham , Ill. , advanced from the eighth starting spot to second by lap 16 and was able to quickly run down VanWormer’s familiar spider-webbed No. 55. But the 27-year-old Shirley was unable to overtake VanWormer, who made all the right moves through late-race lapped traffic to preserve his seventh career Summer Nationals triumph.
Shirley settled for second place in the Petroff Towing mount. Summer Nationals rookie Will Vaught of Crane, Mo. , enjoyed another strong outing with a third-place finish, while defending tour champion Dennis Erb Jr. of Carpentersville , Ill. , placed fourth and Bull took fifth after leading the race’s early circuits.
With 43 cars signed in for the eighth stop of the 2008 Summer Nationals, Erb was the overall fastest qualifier in the group time-trial session with a lap of 13.634 seconds.
Heat winners were Randy Korte of Highland , Ill. , Bull, Erb and VanWormer. The C-Main was captured by Derek Fisher of Columbus , Ind. , and Brandon Sheppard of New Berlin , Ill. , and Ryan Dauber of Tonica , Ill. , topped the B-Main.
The UMP DIRTcar Summer Nationals takes a scheduled night off on Monday (June 23) before returning to action on Tuesday night (June 24) at Sedalia ( Mo. ) State Fair Speedway.
For more information on the UMP DIRTcar Summer Nationals, visit www.dirtcar.com.
UMP DIRTcar Summer Nationals A-Main Finish (40 laps):
1. Jeep Van Wormer,
2. Brian Shirley
3. Will Vaught
4. Dennis Erb Jr.
5. Scott Bull
6. Randy Korte
7. Kevin Claycomb
8. Terry Casey
9. Ryan Dauber
10. Wes Steidinger
11. Joe Harlan
12. Steve Sheppard Jr.
13. Terry English
14. Jason Feger
15. Patrick Sheltra
16. Frank Heckenast Jr.
17. Kevin Weaver
18. Ryan Unzicker
19. Mike Petersak
20. Dewayne Kiefer
21. Donny Walden
B-Main Finish: Ryan Dauber, Donny Walden, Terry English, Ryan Unzicker, Patrick Sheltra, Frank Heckneast Jr., Don O'Neal, Mike Mataragas, Derek Fisher, Tim Lance, Kevin Weaver, Dan Walden, Mike Petersak, Brandon Sheppard, B.J. McCammon, Justin Shaw
First C-Main Finish: Derek Fisher, Tim Lance, Richie Hedrick, Jason McBride, Jammie Wilson, Toby Hallett, Aaron Ricketts, Sam Epling
Second C-Main Finish: Brandon Sheppard, Mike Petersak, Jordan Bland, Brian Diveley, Jimmy Dehm, Jim Moon, Dewayne Kiefer
UMP DIRTcar Summer Nationals Points Standings (after 8 events):
1. Brian Shirley 616
2. Dennis Erb Jr. 602
3. Will Vaught 567
4. Jeep VanWormer 544
5. Wes Steidinger 542
6. Jason Feger 474
7. Randy Korte 468
8. Steve Sheppard Jr. 445
9. Kevin Claycomb 372
10. Dewayne Keifer 358
11. Kevin Weaver 350
12. Darren Miller 348
13. Billy Moyer 315
14. Terry English 295
15. Rodney Melvin 259
2008 UMP DIRTcar Racing Summer Nationals Schedule (Date/Day/Track/Location/To Win/Winner – Car Count):
June 12 – Thurs. - Kentucky Lake Motor Speedway/Calvert City, KY - $7,500 (Brad Neat - 40)
June 13 – Fri. - Brownstown (IN) Speedway - $10,000 (Rain – postponed to July 11)
June 14 – Sat. - Kamp Motor Speedway/Boswell, IN - $10,000 (Wes Steidinger - 36)
June 15 – Sun. – Tri-State Speedway /Haubstadt, IN - $6,000 (Dennis Erb Jr. – 39)
June 16 – Mon - OFF
June 17 – Tues. – Highland Speedway/Highland, IL - $6,000 (Terry English – 47)
June 18 – Wed. – Belle Clair Speedway/Belleville, IL - $6,000 (Will Vaught – 41)
June 19 – Thurs. – I-57/I-64 Raceway/Mt. Vernon , IL - $6,000 (Darren Miller – 37)
June 20 – Fri. – Farmer City Raceway/Farmer City, IL - $10,000 (Darren Miller – 50)
June 21 – Sat. – I-55 Raceway/ Pevely , MO - $10,000 (CANCELED – flooding)
June 22 – Sun. – Vermilion Co. Speedway/Danville, IL - $6,000 (Jeep VanWormer – 43)
June 23 – Mon. - OFF
June 24 – Tue. – Sedalia State Fair Speedway/Sedalia, MO - $6,000
June 25 – Wed. – Lake Ozark Speedway / Eldon , MO - $6,000
June 26 – Thurs. – Paducah Int’l Raceway/ Paducah , KY - $6,000
June 27 – Fri. – Lawrenceburg Speedway/Lawrenceburg, IN - $10,000
June 28 – Sat. – Clarksville Speedway/Clarksville, TN - $10,000
June 29 – Sun. – Lincoln Speedway/Lincoln, IL - $6,000
June 30 – Mon. - OFF
July 1 – Tue. – Peoria Speedway/Peoria, IL - $6,000
July 2 – Wed. – Morgan Co. Speedway/Jacksonville, IL - $6,000
July 3 – Thurs. – Macon Speedway/Macon, IL - $6,000
July 4 – Fri. – Tri-City Speedway/Pontoon Beach, IL - $10,000
July 5 – Sat. – Fairbury American Legion Speedway/Fairbury, IL -$10,000
July 6 – Sun. – Quad City Raceway/East Moline , IL - $6,000
July 7 – Mon. - OFF
July 8 – Tue. – Quincy (IL) Speedway - $6,000
July 9 – Wed. – Spoon River Speedway/Canton, IL - $6,000
July 10 – Thurs. – La Salle Speedway / La Salle , IL - $6,000
July 11 – Fri. – Brownstown (IN) Speedway - $10,000 (Rescheduled date)
July 12 – Sat. – Oakshade Raceway/Wauseon, OH - $10,000
VanWormer, a 33-year-old who is chasing the Summer Nationals points crown for the fourth consecutive season, passed Scott Bull of Fairbury , Ill. , for the lead on a lap-seven restart and never looked back. He picked up a $6,000 check in RacingJunk.com Victory Lane .
Summer Nationals points leader Brian Shirley of Chatham , Ill. , advanced from the eighth starting spot to second by lap 16 and was able to quickly run down VanWormer’s familiar spider-webbed No. 55. But the 27-year-old Shirley was unable to overtake VanWormer, who made all the right moves through late-race lapped traffic to preserve his seventh career Summer Nationals triumph.
Shirley settled for second place in the Petroff Towing mount. Summer Nationals rookie Will Vaught of Crane, Mo. , enjoyed another strong outing with a third-place finish, while defending tour champion Dennis Erb Jr. of Carpentersville , Ill. , placed fourth and Bull took fifth after leading the race’s early circuits.
With 43 cars signed in for the eighth stop of the 2008 Summer Nationals, Erb was the overall fastest qualifier in the group time-trial session with a lap of 13.634 seconds.
Heat winners were Randy Korte of Highland , Ill. , Bull, Erb and VanWormer. The C-Main was captured by Derek Fisher of Columbus , Ind. , and Brandon Sheppard of New Berlin , Ill. , and Ryan Dauber of Tonica , Ill. , topped the B-Main.
The UMP DIRTcar Summer Nationals takes a scheduled night off on Monday (June 23) before returning to action on Tuesday night (June 24) at Sedalia ( Mo. ) State Fair Speedway.
For more information on the UMP DIRTcar Summer Nationals, visit www.dirtcar.com.
UMP DIRTcar Summer Nationals A-Main Finish (40 laps):
1. Jeep Van Wormer,
2. Brian Shirley
3. Will Vaught
4. Dennis Erb Jr.
5. Scott Bull
6. Randy Korte
7. Kevin Claycomb
8. Terry Casey
9. Ryan Dauber
10. Wes Steidinger
11. Joe Harlan
12. Steve Sheppard Jr.
13. Terry English
14. Jason Feger
15. Patrick Sheltra
16. Frank Heckenast Jr.
17. Kevin Weaver
18. Ryan Unzicker
19. Mike Petersak
20. Dewayne Kiefer
21. Donny Walden
B-Main Finish: Ryan Dauber, Donny Walden, Terry English, Ryan Unzicker, Patrick Sheltra, Frank Heckneast Jr., Don O'Neal, Mike Mataragas, Derek Fisher, Tim Lance, Kevin Weaver, Dan Walden, Mike Petersak, Brandon Sheppard, B.J. McCammon, Justin Shaw
First C-Main Finish: Derek Fisher, Tim Lance, Richie Hedrick, Jason McBride, Jammie Wilson, Toby Hallett, Aaron Ricketts, Sam Epling
Second C-Main Finish: Brandon Sheppard, Mike Petersak, Jordan Bland, Brian Diveley, Jimmy Dehm, Jim Moon, Dewayne Kiefer
UMP DIRTcar Summer Nationals Points Standings (after 8 events):
1. Brian Shirley 616
2. Dennis Erb Jr. 602
3. Will Vaught 567
4. Jeep VanWormer 544
5. Wes Steidinger 542
6. Jason Feger 474
7. Randy Korte 468
8. Steve Sheppard Jr. 445
9. Kevin Claycomb 372
10. Dewayne Keifer 358
11. Kevin Weaver 350
12. Darren Miller 348
13. Billy Moyer 315
14. Terry English 295
15. Rodney Melvin 259
2008 UMP DIRTcar Racing Summer Nationals Schedule (Date/Day/Track/Location/To Win/Winner – Car Count):
June 12 – Thurs. - Kentucky Lake Motor Speedway/Calvert City, KY - $7,500 (Brad Neat - 40)
June 13 – Fri. - Brownstown (IN) Speedway - $10,000 (Rain – postponed to July 11)
June 14 – Sat. - Kamp Motor Speedway/Boswell, IN - $10,000 (Wes Steidinger - 36)
June 15 – Sun. – Tri-State Speedway /Haubstadt, IN - $6,000 (Dennis Erb Jr. – 39)
June 16 – Mon - OFF
June 17 – Tues. – Highland Speedway/Highland, IL - $6,000 (Terry English – 47)
June 18 – Wed. – Belle Clair Speedway/Belleville, IL - $6,000 (Will Vaught – 41)
June 19 – Thurs. – I-57/I-64 Raceway/Mt. Vernon , IL - $6,000 (Darren Miller – 37)
June 20 – Fri. – Farmer City Raceway/Farmer City, IL - $10,000 (Darren Miller – 50)
June 21 – Sat. – I-55 Raceway/ Pevely , MO - $10,000 (CANCELED – flooding)
June 22 – Sun. – Vermilion Co. Speedway/Danville, IL - $6,000 (Jeep VanWormer – 43)
June 23 – Mon. - OFF
June 24 – Tue. – Sedalia State Fair Speedway/Sedalia, MO - $6,000
June 25 – Wed. – Lake Ozark Speedway / Eldon , MO - $6,000
June 26 – Thurs. – Paducah Int’l Raceway/ Paducah , KY - $6,000
June 27 – Fri. – Lawrenceburg Speedway/Lawrenceburg, IN - $10,000
June 28 – Sat. – Clarksville Speedway/Clarksville, TN - $10,000
June 29 – Sun. – Lincoln Speedway/Lincoln, IL - $6,000
June 30 – Mon. - OFF
July 1 – Tue. – Peoria Speedway/Peoria, IL - $6,000
July 2 – Wed. – Morgan Co. Speedway/Jacksonville, IL - $6,000
July 3 – Thurs. – Macon Speedway/Macon, IL - $6,000
July 4 – Fri. – Tri-City Speedway/Pontoon Beach, IL - $10,000
July 5 – Sat. – Fairbury American Legion Speedway/Fairbury, IL -$10,000
July 6 – Sun. – Quad City Raceway/East Moline , IL - $6,000
July 7 – Mon. - OFF
July 8 – Tue. – Quincy (IL) Speedway - $6,000
July 9 – Wed. – Spoon River Speedway/Canton, IL - $6,000
July 10 – Thurs. – La Salle Speedway / La Salle , IL - $6,000
July 11 – Fri. – Brownstown (IN) Speedway - $10,000 (Rescheduled date)
July 12 – Sat. – Oakshade Raceway/Wauseon, OH - $10,000
