Phillips fends off Ramirez for USMTS triumph at Lake Ozark Speedway

ELDON, Mo. (Aug. 16)–Terry Phillips earned a hard-fought USMTS victory Friday night at the end of the road to redemption, which was about 60 miles long and stretched from Urbana to Eldon in his home state of Missouri.

After leading the first half of Thursday’s main event at the Dallas County Speedway, Phillips collided with a tractor tire after he and eventual winner Ryan Gustin banged wheels in the corner.

Friday’s show, presented by PEM Racing Gears & Drivetrain, offered up a whole new set of challenges with a much larger racetrack and a hammer-down surface made possible by rain that fell on the Lake Ozark Speedway throughout the previous night and into the morning.

Like the night before, Phillips started on the front row for the feature and took the lead at the drop of the green flag, but this time he led the first and second halves of the feature.

Dereck Ramirez, who finished second the previous night by less than a bumper, challenged Phillips throughout the entire 25-lap distance Friday night, but was forced to settle for his sixth runner-up paycheck in the last eight races.

Defending Lake Ozark Speedway USRA Modified track champion Ryan Middaugh came from eighth to finish third right behind the lead duo, while Tyler Wolff bested Joe Duvall after a spirited battle for the fourth spot.

USMTS national points leader Rodney Sanders was running third when a flat left rear tire brought out the race’s only caution flag and sent ‘The Sandman’ to the tail of the field for the restart.

Sanders clawed his way back to a sixth-place finish during the final 16 laps while Hunter Marriott, 11th-starting Terry Schultz, 13th-starting Colson Kirk and 18th-starting Mike Striegel rounded out the top 10.

The Casey’s Hunt for the USMTS National Championship resumes Saturday night at the Salina Highbanks Speedway in Pryor Creek, Okla., for the 7th Annual ARMI Salute To Our Veterans presented by Bryke Racing.

Local favorite and four-time USMTS national champ Jason Hughes possesses a series-best six wins here while Ryan Gustin has recorded three of his 100 victories at the Salina Highbanks Speedway. Terry Phillips, Stormy Scott, Bryan Rowland, Jeremy Payne and Johnny Scott have each won once.

ARMI (Arkansas Myriad, Inc.) of Fayetteville, Ark., is sponsoring FREE admission to veterans and active military. The event will kick off with an exciting pre-race military flyover by Paul Mackey and the Warbirds.

The pit gate opens at 3 p.m., grandstands open at 5, hot laps start at 6:30. Opening ceremonies get underway at 7 p.m. with racing to follow. AmeriFlex B-Mods, Dawson Roofing Super Stocks and S&J Plumbing Pure Stocks will also be on the card.

Coupons good for $2 off adult general admission tickets are available on race day at Casey’s General Store locations in Adair, Chelsea, Claremore, Tahlequah and Wagoner, plus Siloam Springs in Arkansas. To find the location nearest you, visit caseys.com.

Originally built and opened in the 1990s, operations ceased at Salina Highbanks Speedway after the 2006 season. However, Keith Sanders and Dave Bohannan brought new life to the track and racing in Northeast Oklahoma upon re-opening the facility and transforming it into a first-class motorsports venue.

The racetrack is located 7 miles east of Pryor on SR 20 (3164 E Hwy 20, Salina, OK 74361). For more information, visit the website at salinahighbanksspeedway.com.

To connect with the United States Modified Touring Series, visit usmts.com. You can also like us on Facebook, visit us on Instagram, follow us on Twitter, connect with us on LinkedIn and watch us on YouTube. Keep up to speed, get it first and subscribe to USMTS e-News.

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OFFICIAL RESULTS
United States Modified Touring Series
Casey’s General Stores USMTS National Championship
Casey’s Hunt for the USMTS National Championship
2nd Annual Event presented by PEM Racing Gears & Drivetrain
Lake Ozark Speedway, Eldon, Mo.
Friday, Aug. 16, 2019

Showing finishing position, starting position in parentheses, car number, driver, hometown, chassis/engine builder, laps completed and money won. All drivers advance to the Casey’s General Stores “A” Main with the top 8 in passing points redrawing for starting position.

SIMPSON PERFORMANCE PRODUCTS HEAT RACE #1 (8 laps):
1. (3) 21 Ryan Middaugh (R), Fulton, Mo.
2. (5) 4w Tyler Wolff, Fayetteville, Ark.
3. (2) 16 Austin Siebert, Grandview, Mo.
4. (1) 9 Jimmy Ray, Las Cruces, N.M.
5. (7) 90 Terry Schultz, Sedalia, Mo.
6. (7) D25 David Tanner, Wichita Falls, Texas.
7. (4) 0 Jake O’Neil, Tucson, Ariz.
DNS – 19r Ryan Gustin, Marshalltown, Iowa.

FAST SHAFTS HEAT RACE #2 (8 laps):
1. (1) 91 Greg Skaggs, Broken Arrow, Okla.
2. (5) 75 Terry Phillips, Springfield, Mo.
3. (6) 91 Joe Duvall, Claremore, Okla.
4. (4) 21x Travis Saurer, Elizabeth, Minn.
5. (3) 53r Ronnie Woods (R), Mexico, Mo.
6. (2) 8c Chris Clark, Jackson, Wyo.
7. (7) 27t Bob Test (R), Jefferson City, Mo.
DNS – 23 Adam Kates, Tonganoxie, Kan.

EDELBROCK HEAT RACE #3 (8 laps):
1. (1) 62 Hunter Marriott (R), Brookfield, Mo.
2. (6) 20 Rodney Sanders, Happy, Texas.
3. (4) 4r Dereck Ramirez, Woodward, Okla.
4. (2) 5 Colson Kirk (R), Urbana, Mo.
5. (3) 19sb Lance Mari, Imperial, Calif.
6. (5) 17 Mike Striegel (R), Wheatland, Mo.
7. (7) 22h Dustin Hodges (R), Centralia, Mo.

CASEY’S GENERAL STORES “A” MAIN (25 laps):
1. (2) 75 Terry Phillips, Springfield, Mo., GRT/Durham, 25, $3000.
2. (1) 4r Dereck Ramirez, Woodward, Okla., Hughes/Cornett, 25, $1700.
3. (8) 21 Ryan Middaugh (R), Fulton, Mo., GRT/Creason, 25, $1000.
4. (7) 4w Tyler Wolff, Fayetteville, Ark., MBCustoms/Hill, 25, $800.
5. (5) 91 Joe Duvall, Claremore, Okla., MBCustoms/Hill, 25, $700.
6. (6) 20 Rodney Sanders, Happy, Texas, MBCustoms/Hatfield, 25, $650.
7. (3) 62 Hunter Marriott (R), Brookfield, Mo., Rage/KSE, 25, $600.
8. (11) 90 Terry Schultz, Sedalia, Mo., Hughes/Mullins, 25, $375.
9. (13) 5 Colson Kirk (R), Urbana, Mo., Hughes/Dickens, 25, $350.
10. (18) 17 Mike Striegel (R), Wheatland, Mo., GRT/Eagle, 25, $450.
11. (20) 0 Jake O’Neil, Tucson, Ariz., LG2/Cornett, 25, $525.
12. (15) 19sb Lance Mari, Imperial, Calif., MRT/Yeoman, 25, $400.
13. (9) 16 Austin Siebert, Grandview, Mo., MBCustoms/Durham, 25, $375.
14. (12) 9 Jimmy Ray, Las Cruces, N.M., AOS/AOS, 25, $350.
15. (21) 22h Dustin Hodges (R), Centralia, Mo., VanderBuilt/Crane, 25, $325.
16. (10) 21x Travis Saurer, Elizabeth, Minn., MBCustoms/ChevPerf, 25, $300.
17. (14) 53r Ronnie Woods (R), Mexico, Mo., GRT/Creason, 25, $225.
18. (16) D25 David Tanner, Wichita Falls, Texas, WFRC/KPE, 24, $225.
19. (17) 8c Chris Clark, Jackson, Wyo., GRT/Cornett, 24, $300.
20. (4) 91 Greg Skaggs, Broken Arrow, Okla., Rage/ChevPerf, 14, $225.
21. (19) 27t Bob Test (R), Jefferson City, Mo., Shaw/Creason, 14, $225.
DNS – 19r Ryan Gustin, Marshalltown, Iowa, Hughes/TriStar, 0, $90.
DNS – 23 Adam Kates, Tonganoxie, Kan., Jet/Speedway, 0, $90.

(R) = Grant Junghans USMTS Rookie of the Year contender

Lap Leader: Phillips 1-25.
Total Laps Led: Phillips 25.
Margin of Victory: 0.328 second.
Time of Race: 9 minutes, 18.129 seconds (1 caution).
Provisional Starters: none.
Eibach Spring Forward Award: Middaugh (advanced 7 positions).
FK Rod Ends Hard Charger: O’Neil (started 20th, finished 11th).
Entries: 23.
Next Race: Saturday, Aug. 17, Salina Highbanks Speedway, Pryor Creek, Okla.
Casey’s General Stores USMTS National Championship Points: Sanders 2631, Ramirez 2452, Marriott 2321, Gustin 2142, Phillips 2139, O’Neil 2011, Zack VanderBeek 1712, Striegel 1656, Kates 1632, Duvall 1405.
Casey’s Hunt for the USMTS National Championship Points: Sanders 749, Ramirez 747, Marriott 690, Phillips 688, Striegel 494, Saurer 487, Kates 468, Gustin 455, O’Neil 441, Mari 434.
Grant Junghans USMTS Rookie of the Year Points: Marriott 2029, Striegel 1566, Hodges 584, Carlos Ahumada Jr. 549, Nathan Hagar 415.
USMTS Manufacturers Championship Points: MBCustoms 240, Hughes 237, GRT 180, Rage 177, LG2 163.
USMTS Engine Builder of the Year Points: Hatfield 214, Cornett 203, KSE 154, Durham 147, Stoen 120.

Contingency Awards:
American Racer – Clark.
Beyea Custom Headers – Wolff.
Bryke Racing – Hodges.
BSB Manufacturing – Test.
Casey’s General Stores – Woods.
Champ Pans – Duvall.
Deatherage Opticians – Mari.
E3 Spark Plugs – Middaugh.
Edelbrock – Marriott.
Eibach – Middaugh.
Fast Shafts – Skaggs.
FK Rod Ends – O’Neil.
Hooker Harness – Siebert.
Integra Racing Shocks & Springs – Tanner.
Jerovetz Motorsports Racing Parts – Woods.
K1 RaceGear by Ryan Bowers Motorsports – Test.
Keyser Manufacturing – Striegel.
KSE Racing Products – Kirk.
Maxima Racing Oils – Phillips.
Out-Pace Racing Products – Saurer.
PEM Racing Gears & Drivetrain – Tanner.
QA1 – Middaugh.
RacerWebsite.com – Hodges.
Simpson Performance Products – Middaugh.
Swift Springs – Phillips, Middaugh.
Sybesma Graphics – Ramirez.
Tire Demon – O’Neil.
VP Racing Fuels – Phillips.
Wilwood Disc Brakes – Marriott.

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USMTS OFFICIAL SPONSORS: American Racer Racing Tires, Casey’s General Stores, Chevrolet Performance, CP-Carrillo, Deatherage Opticians, Eibach Springs, Fast Shafts, FK Rod Ends, Intercomp, Jerovetz Motorsports Racing Parts, K1 RaceGear by Ryan Bowers Motorsports, KSE Racing Products, Malvern Bank, Mesilla Valley Transportation, MSD, MyRacePass, Nitroquest Media, Pace Performance, PEM Racing Gears & Drivetrain, RacinDirt.com, RacingJunk.com, Snickers, Spike Hardcore Energy, Summit Racing Equipment, VP Racing Fuels, Wrisco Industries.

USMTS PARTICIPATING SPONSORS: Arizona Sport Shirts, ASi Racewear, Boubin Tire & Automotive, Brodix Cylinder Heads, Duvall Electric, Eagle Moon Farm, Impact RaceGear, PBM Performance Products, RACEceiver, Rancho Milagro Racing, River’s Edge Scrap Management, Tony Moro Powder Coat, Top of the World Ranch, YouDirt.com.

USMTS CONTINGENCY SPONSORS: 905 Ink, AFCO Racing Products, Allstar Performance, Beyea Custom Headers, Brown & Miller Racing Solutions, Bryke Racing, BSB Manufacturing, Champ Pans, E3 Spark Plugs, Edelbrock, Forty9 Designs, Genesis Racing Shocks, Hooker Harness, Hyperco, Integra Racing Shocks and Springs, Keyser Manufacturing, Maxima Racing Oils, Out-Pace Racing Products, QA1, RacerWebsite.com, Real Racing Wheels, Simpson Performance Products, Swift Springs, Sybesma Graphics, Tire Demon, Wilwood Racing.

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Contact Info:

Jeff Nun