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Ken Old a popular IMCA Modified winner at Texas Thunder Speedway

Ken Old and PJ Egbert waged one of those battles that the IMCA Modifieds are famous for Saturday night at Texas Thunder Speedway in Killeen, Texas, with Old taking the win after Egbert pulled into the pits with five laps to go.

Old survived a couple of fierce mid-race charges by Egbert as the two took the green after a pair of lap-10 restarts.

On the first of the two restarts Egbert used the high side after a great jump and cleanly passed Old as the twosome exited turn two. But a caution flag few before the lap was complete, so it was all for naught.

On the next restart the 2008 IMCA Modified National Champion tried the same move, but did not get such a great jump. The pair entered turn one side-by-side with Egbert very high and Old following the same mid-track line he had been running before the caution.

“I had a good run on the outside on the restart,” Egbert said after the race. “But we did make some contact in the turn and we had to slow a bit. I didn’t see what happened behind us, but we did make some contact.”

What happened behind them was a six-car pile-up as the hard-charging pack backed off to avoid Old and Egbert.

With still 10 laps to go, both Old and Egbert were OK to go with Jason Hoffman, who had survived the melee, and Hardy Henderson now lined up behind the leaders.

This time Old got away cleanly and won the drag race to turn one and the duo raced nose-to-tail for the next four laps. But suddenly, with five to go, Egbert slowed dramatically in turn 3-4 and scooted into the pits, done for the night.

“It jumped out of gear,” a subdued Egbert explained later. “I must have broken something when I hit one of those ruts.”

With Egbert gone and with a big lead over Hoffman, attention turned to the battle for second between Hoffman and Henderson, who had not only had survived the “big one,” but seemed to be getting faster as the track matured.

Henderson made the pass with three to go and held on to take the checked almost a quarter-lap behind Old. Hoffman, Mike McCarthy and David Goode rounded out the top five.

Unofficial IMCA Modified results

1. Ken Old #52
2. Hardy Henderson #63
3. Jason Hoffman #00
4. Mike McCarthy #20
5. David Goode #107
6. Jimmy Tidwell #112
7. Brad Smith #88s
8. Bill Lecompte #247
9. George Lamphere, Jr. #19
10. Larry Sanders #742
11. PJ Egbert #555
12. Wayne Walker #35
13. Brad Jordan # 3J
14. Joey Craig, #555x
15. Ben Ketteman #37
16. Rick Green # 82
17. Chris Elliot # 23
18. James Cochran # F5
19. Trevor Egbert # 78

The entertaining IMCA Stocks Cars put on a great show with 17 cars taking the green.

PJ Egbert, doing double duty, and David Dunn lined up in front with Tim Carman, Jr, and Joey Craig in row two.

Egbert got out first but was followed closely by Craig, Eric Jones and Jason Batt with this quartet running as a pack for several laps.

After a caution for debris, Batt jumped down to the low side of Egbert on the restart, but the experienced Egbert was able to get some bite coming off turn two to fend off the determined Batt.

But Batt wasn’t discouraged by any means. For the last eight laps Batt was all over the leader, but never could get enough traction coming off the turns to make a pass stick.

The last two laps had the near-capacity crowd on their feet, but Egbert held on and took the checkered.

Batt, Anthony Otken, Mart Wampler and Jessie James Cox, Jr. finished in that order behind the winner.

David Dunn and Tim Carman, Jr. won their eight-lap heat races.

Unofficial IMCA Stock Car results IMCA Stocks

1 PJ Egbert #707
2 Jason Batt #9
3 Anthony Otken #489
4 Mart Wampler #55
5 Jessie James Cox, Jr. #43
6 Joey Craig $555
7 Colton Monroe #712
8 Chuck Hatfield #31
9 Eric ‘EAZY E’ Jones #84X
10 Trevor Sparkman #20 (R)
11. Mike McCarthy #20M
12. Tim Carman, Jr. #0
13. Willie Free #1
14. Jacob Wininger #42J
15. David Dunn #24D
16. Joseph Charnock #27
17. Robin Rasmussen #3

Robert Garcia and Mike McDougal sat on the front row of the IMCA SportMod feature with Randy Doyle and Brandon Cotton in row two and eventual winner Mitch Tierney and Tim Foster in row three.

McDougal was out first followed by the thundering herd, but McDougal’s engine didn’t sound right as he sputtered a bit down the front straight. Nevertheless, he had all the power the track could handle at that point and he put a little distance on Garcia, who was running in second, with each lap.

With five to go McDougal had almost half a lap lead over Garcia and Cotton, who were enjoying their friendly battle for second. Suddenly, almost out of nowhere, Tierney blasted by both Garcia and Cotton to grab second, but with a lot of real estate between him and the still-sputtering leader.

With just a couple of laps remaining McDougal’s engine finally succumbed and the almost-sure-winner pulled into the pits. That left Mitch Tierney to take the checkered followed by Garcia, Cotton, Joe O’Bryan and Tim Foster. McDougal finished up in sixth.

Unofficial IMCA Sport Mod results

1. Mitch Tierney #48
2. Robert Garcia #331
3. Brandon Cotton #56
4. Joe O’Bryan #44X
5. Tim Foster #36
6. Mike McDougal #224
7. Randy Doyle #65 (R)
8. David Goode, Jr. #88 (r)
9. Sarah Goode #13 (R)
10. Steven Abbey #95

Twenty Street Stocks lined up for their 20-lap feature which was won by pole-sitter Eric Jones. Jason Bernal, Clint Williams, Paul Kohl and Bobby Norton rounded out the top five.

Norton, Kohl and Bernal won their respective heat races.

Unofficial Street Stock results

1. Eric ‘EAZY E’ Jones #84X
2. Jason Bernal #555
3. Clint Williams #3
4. Paul Kohl #96
5. Bobby Norton #30
6. Richard Valentine #96V
7. Chris Florio #21
8. Ken Plonsky #4
9. Robert Roysdon #55
10. Cody Bible #81
11. Kevin Ashley #2
12. Tony McPherson, Jr # 84
13. Ryan Anderson #48
14. Jennifer Silva #19J
15. Jacob Dunn #63X
16. Gene Burnett #43
17. Dennis Simmons #83
18. Albert Wininger, Jr #40
19. Jeff Bauser #B74
20. Jeff Currier #65

In the Dwarf Car feature, Mike Tedford had the car to beat until he pulled into the infield spewing steam from his motorcycle engine. That left Billy White with the lead with Buck McFarlin hot on his heels.

With two to go, McFarlin scooted to the inside and completed the pass for the lead. White tried several times to return the favor, but came up about a car-length short at the checkered flag.

Tony Williams, Tom Tomlin and Donnie Hunt rounded out the top five.

Unofficial Classic Dwarf Car results

1. Buck McFarlin #65
2. Billy White #17
3. Tony Williams #01
4. Tom Tomlin #74
5. Donnie Hunt #8
6. Mike Tedford #35
7. Eazy Casey #2EZ
8. Michael Dion #07
9. Dave Tedford #25
10. Gary White #1

James Herring and Shelby Ellsworth won their respective wild and wooly Twister main events.

Unofficial Twister Results

1st A-Main
1. James Herring #48
2. TJ Yagalla #190
3. Michael Hilliard #23
4. Travis Mendenhall #7D
5. Trent Dalton #15
6. Jason Styczynski #241
7. Steven Crossley #B-52
8. Kim Ramirez #03
9. James Nutterville #751
10. Zacheary Driskell #35

2nd A-Main
1. Michael Hilliard #23
2. Jason Slyczynski #241
3. Brent Dalton #14
4. Steven Crossley #B-52
5. Tony Williams #180
6. Michael Crandall #24K
7. Mike Dzialoski #DZ1
8. Zacheary Driskell #35
9. James Nutterville #751
10. John Femrite #B4U

Staff Report

Jason Johnson wins Devil’s Bowl Spring Nationals; Launches Lucas Oil ASCS title defense

Jason Johnson launched his Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters title defense in strong fashion by emerging atop a hotly-contested 30-lap finale at the 36th Annual Devil’s Bowl Speedway Spring Nationals on Saturday night.

“The Ragin’ Cajun” battled into the lead on the 20th circuit and then outdueled Tony Bruce, Jr., over the final circuits to secure the win in a rousing finale to the series’ opening weekend of competition that attracted 67 competitors from 17 different states.

“This thing is tough, there’s so much competition here I’m having to work way too hard,” Johnson quipped after his first series win of the season aboard Lanny Row’s Wesmar-powered The Shop Motorsports/Custom Equipment Design No. 41 Eagle.

Advancing from the sixth position, Johnson raced around Bruce for the lead on a lap 20 restart. But, the race was far from being over, as Bruce battled back in his Rider-powered No. 18 Maxim.

After crossing the stripe in full throttle, wheel-to-wheel formation to complete the 26th lap, the pair locked horns for the $6,000 winner’s share with Johnson on the low side and Bruce up high. Johnson drifted up the track exiting turn two on the 27th round and muscled back into the lead as Bruce was forced into uncharted territory beyond the traditional Devil’s Bowl backstretch racing surface.

“I apologize if I used up too much track there, I try to race everyone the way they would race me,” Johnson explained in victory lane. “I had to what I could though because this is where I want to be standing after the checkered flag flies.”

As if coming out on the short end of the lead battle weren’t enough, insult was added to injury when Bruce weighed in just five pounds below the required minimum of 1,475 pounds. Bruce was relegated to a 24th place finish following the disqualification, with Shane Stewart escaping the weekend with the series’ early points lead after assuming runner-up honors. Gary Wright picked up three positions over the final ten rounds to claim the show position, with Johnny Herrera and Travis Rilat rounding out the top five.

After drawing the pole position for the main event, Bruce outgunned Friday night winner Shane Stewart for the lead at the drop of the green flag and paced the early circuits with Johnson taking third away from Wright by the sixth round.

A three-way scrum for the point between Bruce, Stewart and Johnson was about to fully erupt as traffic came into play, only to have the race’s first caution fly after eleven laps when Brian Brown came to a stop on the frontstretch. At the same time, Travis Rilat slid to a stop off the top of turn two. Rilat tagged the tail of the field, while Brown retired to the pit area after attempted repairs.

Back under way, Stewart shot into the lead on the 12th circuit. It was short-lived however, as Bruce returned the favor on the 14th round. Bruce turned up the wick in the ensuing circuits and opened a half straightaway lead as Stewart and Johnson battled for second.

Johnson finally disposed of Stewart for second on the 17th round and was reeling in the leader when action was interrupted with 19 laps in the books after Dustin Morgan came to a stop on the frontstretch following contact with Danny Wood.

Johnson rallied by Bruce on the high side of turns one and two on the restart, setting the stage for the intense final rounds in which Johnson ultimately outlasted Bruce to take the checkered flag with a 0.518-second advantage.

Running among the top three throughout, Stewart assumed runner-up honors aboard Paul Silva’s Wesmar-powered ProBilt Construction No. 57 A.R.T. in the final rundown.

Slipping from his third-starting position to as far back as sixth on the 19th round, four-time series champion Gary Wright worked back up to third by race’s end in Scott Brown’s ASI-powered Lubbock Wrecker Service No. 9x Maxim.

New Mexico’s Johnny Herrera posted his second top-five finish in as many nights by crossing the stripe fourth in the No. 45x entry, while 18th-starter Rilat raced back from his early miscue to round out the top five in the Shark-powered F&J Construction No. 29 Triple-X.

Eric Baldaccini, the 2008 Brodix Rookie of the Year, earned KSE Hard Charger honors by racing from 20th to sixth. After surrendering the fourth position due to a flat left rear tire on the 23rd lap, Joe Wood, Jr., raced back through the field in the final circuits to salvage a solid seventh-place showing.

Zach Chappell raced from 22nd to eighth, with Nick Smith and Tim Crawley completing the top ten.

Koby Barksdale, Smith, Wood, Morgan, Andy Shouse, Sean McClelland and Rilat topped Saturday night’s heat races. Barksdale made an early exit from the main event with engine woes.

Wood wired the field in the first “B” Main with ninth-starter Baldaccini making a late move around Brad Welborn for the second and final transfer.

Rilat paced the opening eleven laps of the second “B” Main before Brady Bacon finally made the top side of turns three and four work to his advantage. Bacon spun out of the lead a lap later however, leaving Rilat to take the win in front of Mike Chadd.

McMahan paced the entire distance in the third “B” Main, with Chappell taking advantage of a late caution to overtake Trevor Lewis for the final transfer.

Michael Dupuy ran among the top five much of the way in the main event before fading and then exiting just a few laps shy of the checkered flag.

Sixteen-year-old Trey Robb had climbed from 12th to sixth only to spin off the top of turn two on the 27th round to bring out the race’s final caution.

Darren Long got upside down on the opening lap of the second heat race, with Glenn Martin also tumbling entering turn one in the fifth heat. Both drivers were done for the night.

Derrik Ortega tagged the frontstretch wall exiting turn four and got upside down on the initial start of the second “B” Main, with Jerry Bell and Kenneth Walker both tumbling in the same place on the ensuing restart. Walker made repairs in time to use a provisional for the main event as the others watched on.

Action for the Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters resumes with next weekend’s State Fair Speedway Spring Nationals in Oklahoma City, OK.

36th Annual Devil’s Bowl Spring Nationals Finale Results:

Locked in From Friday’s Preliminary Feature:
57-Shane Stewart, 9x-Gary Wright, 41-Jason Johnson, 21-Brian Brown.

Heat Races (Top 12 in Passing Points to “A” Main; Balance to 3 “B” Mains):

Heat One (8 Laps): 1. 22-Koby Barksdale, 2. 4J-Lee Grosz, 3. 3d-Paul McMahan, 4. e85-Zach Chappell, 5. 1a-Robby Wolfgang, 6. 86-Josh Fisher, 7. 97-Aaron Berryhill, 8. 11-Chad Corken, 9. 50-Stephanie Chappell.

Heat Two (8 Laps): 1. 15s-Nick Smith, 2. 7m-Kevin Ramey, 3. 12-Trey Robb, 4. 88-Tim Crawley, 5. 4-Eric Baldaccini, 6. 2-Kenneth Walker, 7. 13k-Kathryne Minter, 8. 9-Brian Parker, 9. 7-Darren Long.

Heat Three (8 Laps): 1. 94-Danny Wood, 2. 17w-Brad Welborn, 3. 45x-Johnny Herrera, 4. 9jr-Derek Hagar, 5. 53-Jack Dover, 6. 91-Gary Taylor, 7. 14k-Kyle Bellm, 8. 74e-Claud Estes, 9. 35-Derrik Ortega.

Heat Four (8 Laps): 1. 93-Dustin Morgan, 2. 18-Tony Bruce, Jr., 3. 81au-Gavin Punch, 4. 55-Donnie Ray Crawford, 5. 21L-Trevor Lewis, 6. 15-Kerry McAlister, 7. 65-Skip Wilson, 8. 3-Mark Shirshekan.

Heat Five (8 Laps): 1. 27-Andy Shouse, 2. 00-Michael Dupuy, 3. 10-Bryan Dobesh, 4. 95-Matt Covington, 5. 11F-Foster Landon, 6. 51-Jimmy Brooks, 7. 5m-Glenn Martin, 8. 96-Bronson Maeschen.

Heat Six (8 Laps): 1. 1-Sean McClelland, 2. 99-Brady Bacon, 3. 03-Joe Wood, Jr., 4. 23-Seth Bergman, 5. 87-Billy Melton, 6. 45k-Kolt Walker, 7. 12w-Dale Wester, 8. 13-Jesse Hockett.

Heat Seven (8 Laps): 1. 29-Travis Rilat, 2. 4c-Mike Chadd, 3. 85-Jerry Bell, 4. 12J-Jared Ridge, 5. 10a-Ricky Logan, 6. 31m-Matt Clevenger, 7. 65g-Jordan Goldesberry, 8. 14e-Justin Spoerl.

“B” Mains (Top 2 From Each Advance to “A” Main):

First “B” Feature (15 Laps): 1. 94-Danny Wood, 2. 4-Eric Baldaccini, 3. 17w-Brad Welborn, 4. 4J-Lee Grosz, 5. 11F-Foster Landon, 6. 55-Donnie Ray Crawford, 7. 81au-Gavin Punch, 8. 96-Bronson Maeschen, 9. 9jr-Derek Hagar, 10. 10-Bryan Dobesh, 11. 14k-Kyle Bellm, 12. 12w-Dale Wester, 13. 51-Jimmy Brooks, 14. 50-Stephanie Chappell, 15. 14e-Justin Spoerl, 16. 97-Aaron Berryhill

Second “B” Feature (15 Laps): 1. 29-Travis Rilat, 2. 4c-Mike Chadd, 3. 10a-Ricky Logan, 4. 23-Seth Bergman, 5. 53-Jack Dover, 6. 65-Skip Wilson, 7. 11-Chad Corken, 8. 74e-Claud Estes, 9. 15-Kerry McAlister, 10. 99-Brady Bacon, 11. 13k-Kathryne Minter, 12. 1a-Robby Wolfgang, 13. 85-Jerry Bell, 14. 2-Kenneth Walker, 15. 35-Derrik Ortega. DNS: 7-Darren Long.

Third “B” Feature (15 Laps): 1. 3d-Paul McMahan, 2. e85-Zach Chappell, 3. 21L-Trevor Lewis, 4. 13-Jesse Hockett, 5. 91-Gary Taylor, 6. 3-Mark Shirshekan, 7. 45k-Kolt Walker, 8. 87-Billy Melton, 9. 95-Matt Covington, 10. 12J-Jared Ridge, 11. 9-Brian Parker, 12. 65g-Jordan Goldesberry, 13. 31m-Matt Clevenger, 14. 86-Josh Fisher. DNS: 5m-Glenn Martin.

36th Annual Devil’s Bowl Spring Nationals Championship “A” Main Event:

“A” Feature (30 Laps): 1. 41-Jason Johnson, 2. 57-Shane Stewart, 3. 9x-Gary Wright, 4. 45x-Johnny Herrera, 5. 29-Travis Rilat, 6. 4-Eric Baldaccini, 7. 03-Joe Wood, Jr., 8. e85-Zach Chappell, 9. 15s-Nick Smith, 10. 88-Tim Crawley, 11. 94-Danny Wood, 12. 12-Trey Robb, 13. 27-Andy Shouse, 14. 4c-Mike Chadd, 15. 3d-Paul McMahan, 16. 2-Kenneth Walker, 17. 00-Michael Dupuy, 18. 7m-Kevin Ramey, 19. 1-Sean McClelland, 20. 93-Dustin Morgan, 21. 50-Stephanie Chappell, 22. 21-Brian Brown, 23. 22-Koby Barksdale, 24. 18-Tony Bruce, Jr. (Disqualified; weighed in below the minimum required weight after finishing second).

Lap Leaders: Tony Bruce, Jr. 1-11, Shane Stewart 12-13, Tony Bruce, Jr. 14-19, Jason Johnson 20-30.

Note: Stephanie Chappell and Kenneth Walker utilized provisionals based on 2008 owner’s points to start the “A” Main.

Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters Points (Top 15): 1. Shane Stewart 296, 2. Jason Johnson 294, 3. Gary Wright 290, 4. Johnny Herrera 282, 5. (tie) Danny Wood and Nick Smith 260, 7. Paul McMahan 258, 8. (tie) Brian Brown and Eric Baldaccini 248, 10. Michael Dupuy 240, 11. Tony Bruce, Jr. 238, 12. Sean McClelland 232, 13. Mike Chadd 226, 14. Dustin Morgan 222, 15. Travis Rilat 215.

by Lonnie Wheatley

Birkhofer Sets Fast Time, Wins Heat On Opening Night Of Lone Star 100 Weekend At Battleground Speedway

Brian Birkhofer was perfect during Friday night’s Lone Star 100 qualifying program at Battleground Speedway.

But the Muscatine, Iowa, standout knows that his Ohlins Shocks Fast Time Award and heat-race victory will become a moot point if he can’t back up his performance with a $20,000 triumph on Saturday night in the three-eighths-mile oval’s inaugural World of Outlaws Late Model Series event.

“I felt pretty good tonight,” said Birkhofer, who established a new dirt Late Model track record of 15.471 seconds in time trials and led the first 10-lap heat from flag-to-flag. “But tomorrow night will be a new night. I think the track will be a little bit different.”

Birkhofer, 37, appeared to have no trouble adjusting his Birkhofer-Mars Chassis machine to Friday night’s tacky, fast conditions after practicing on a hard, slick surface the previous evening. He’s ready to refine his setup again for the Lone Star 100.

“They got more water down in the track tonight and I think tomorrow night’s feature will be better because of it,” said Birkhofer. “Tonight the track was sticky and you could drive the hell out of it, but I think it will slick up more tomorrow and slow down. One-hundred laps ought to be a lot of fun.”

Joining Birkhofer on Friday night’s list of heat winners was WoO LMS points leader Steve Francis of Ashland, Ky., defending tour champion Darrell Lanigan of Union, Ky., and Shannon Babb of Moweaqua, Ill., who hustled his Sheltra Motorsports car around the outside of Caledonia, N.Y.’s Vic Coffey to capture the final prelim.

The top-two finishers in each of Friday night’s heat races will redraw on Saturday for positions 1-8 in the Lone Star 100.

The fourth heat was rough for Shane Clanton of Locust Grove, Ga., who enters the weekend ranked fourth in the WoO LMS points standings. He was battling for the lead with Coffey on the first lap when the right side of his car dug into the track surface entering turn one, sending the machine bicycling on two wheels before coming back to earth and nosing into the outside wall.

“I thought I was going over,” said Clanton, whose car was towed to the pit area. “I thought it was gonna be a good one.”

Clanton and his crew pulled the thoroughly crunched nosepiece off the car and immediately started working to repair it for Saturday night’s action. Several WoO LMS travelers came over to help Clanton, including Chub Frank, team owner/chassis builder Mark Richards and car owner Dale Beitler.

Thirty-three cars were signed in for the first WoO LMS event in Texas since 2004.

Saturday’s program will kick off with a driver autograph session in the grandstand area at 5 p.m., followed by a B-Main and the Lone Star 100. Action is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.

The Lone Star 100 will conclude with perhaps the most unique Victory Lane ceremony in WoO LMS history. Hondo, a 1,300-pound Texas Longhorn with a six-and-a-half-foot horn spread, is being brought in from the LaBuff Bucking Bulls ranch in nearby Ames, Texas, to lend a Lone Star State accent to the Victory Lane proceedings. The race winner will pose for photos with Hondo – maybe even while sitting on the steer’s back.

For ticket information, visit www.battlegroundspeedway.net.

Ohlins Shocks Time Trial Results (Position/No./Driver/Hometown/Best Lap):

1. 15b-Brian Birkhofer/Muscatine, IA 15.471 (NTR)
2. 19-Steve Francis/Ashland, KY 15.543
3. 29-Darrell Lanigan/Union, KY 15.559
4. 32c-Vic Coffey/Caledonia, NY 15.582
5. 71-Chris Wall/Holden, LA 15.586
6. 28M-Jimmy Mars/Menomonie, WI 15.595
7. 1-Josh Richards/Shinnston, WV 15.604
8. 25-Shane Clanton/Locust Grove, GA 15.610
9. 23-Howard Willis/Dayton, TX 15.727
10. 1*-Chub Frank/Bear Lake, PA 15.791
11. 24-Rick Eckert/York, PA 15.805
12. 18b-Shannon Babb/Moweaqua, IL 15.806
13. 12-Jordan Bland/Campbellsville, KY 15.865
14. 19T-Tim Fuller/Watertown, NY 15.882
15. 2-Brady Smith/Solon Springs, WI 15.926
16. 44-Clint Smith/Senoia, GA 16.024
17. 33-Al Purkey/Coffeyville, KS 16.112
18. 20-Kevin Sitton/Baytown, TX 16.160
19. w3-James Ward/Lettsworth, LA 16.163
20. 68-Rob Litton/Alexandria, LA 16.214
21. 6R-Robbie Stuart/DeRidder, LA 16.231
22. 18H-Dustin Hapka/Grand Forks, ND 16.232
23. 56K-Russell King/Bristolville, OH 16.262
24. 93-Ray Moore/Shreveport, LA 16.270
25. A1-Duke Whiseant/Texarkana, AR 16.278
26. 29K-Bill Koons/Omaha, NE 16.307
27. 5c-Michael Coleman/Tyler, TX
28. 11-Tyler Reddick/Corning, CA 16.596
29. 25H-Chuck Hummer/Ottawa Lake, MI 16.670
30. 5M-Jon Mitchell/Greenbrier, AR 17.564
31. 3R-Brent Robinson/Smithfield, VA N/T
32. 21-Chris Brown/Cleveland, TX N/T
33. 56s-Chas Shellenberger/Winfield, PA N/T

Heat No. 1 (10 laps – Top 4 Transfer): Birkhofer, Wall, Willis, Purkey, Bland, Stuart, Hummer, Whiseant (DNS) Shellenberger

Heat No. 2 (10 laps – Top 4 Transfer): Francis, Mars, Frank, Fuller, Sitton, Mitchell, Hapka, Koons

Heat No. 3 (10 laps – Top 4 Transfer): Lanigan, Eckert, B. Smith, Richards, King, Ward, Coleman, Robinson

Heat No. 4 (10 laps – Top 4 Transfer): Babb, Coffey, C. Smith, Moore, Reddick, Brown, Clanton, Litton

By Kevin Kovac, WoO LMS P.R. Director

Shane Stewart Wins Lucas Oil ASCS Opener at Devil’s Bowl Spring Nationals

A new era in Sprint Car racing kicked off with the opening night of the 36th Annual Devil’s Bowl Speedway Spring Nationals as Oklahoma native Shane Stewart raced to victory lane in the season opening 25-lap feature event for the Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters.

Stewart raced around early leader Paul McMahan on the tenth round and later held off the closing duo of Gary Wright and Jason Johnson to strike the winning blow in the opening salvo of the Lucas Oil ASCS $60,000 championship points chase.

“This has got to be one of my biggest wins,” were the first words out of Stewart’s mouth after climbing from Paul Silva’s Wesmar-powered ProBilt Construction No. 57 ART-chassis. “Paul and his guys did an unbelievable job, just four days ago the trailer was completely empty and now it’s got about all we could need.”

Stewart beat four-time series champion Gary Wright to the stripe by two car-lengths, with defending series champion Jason Johnson claiming the show position. Brian Brown snared the fourth and final lock-in position to Saturday night’s 30-lap Devil’s Bowl Spring Nationals championship feature event by crossing the stripe in fourth.

After starting the feature from the second row inside, Stewart spent the early rounds chasing McMahan, who had outgunned Brown for the lead at the drop of the green.

But, after three quick cautions in the opening handful of laps, Stewart began pressuring McMahan for the point before diving into the lead in turn three on the tenth lap.

“I thought he (McMahan) would be a little stronger than what he was,” Stewart explained afterward. “We were just a little tight early, so I knew we’d probably get better as the race went on.”

Out front, Stewart worked through traffic adeptly to keep Wright and Johnson at bay in the final rounds en route to his 16th career ASCS National triumph.

“We just need a backup motor and then I’m sure we can stay out here all year and try to keep racking up the points,” Stewart commented of his Lucas Oil ASCS title aspirations.

Just as Stewart took command on the tenth circuit, the action immediately behind him for position was intense between McMahan, Wright and Johnson. Wright finally battled into the second position on the 15th round with Johnson following suit. A lap later, McMahan bicycled in turn two and lost three more positions.

Wright, who surrendered the second starting position and was shuffled back to 14th in the grid (last among heat race transfers to the “A” Main) after swapping out powerplants, had wasted little time racing into contention by cracking the top five in Scott Brown’s ASI-powered Lubbock Wrecker Service No. 9x Maxim after just five laps.

Wright then took fourth from Brown by the ninth round before surging past both Johnson and McMahan in traffic. Wright closed in on Stewart in the closing circuits before settling for runner-up honors and locking into Saturday’s feature in his bid for back-to-back Devil’s Bowl Spring Nationals honors.

Working forward from seventh, Johnson kicked off his title defense with a close third-place run in the Wesmar-powered The Shop Motorsports No. 41 Eagle, while Brown took advantage of McMahan’s lap 16 slip to snare fourth in the Super Clean No. 21 Maxim.

Riding a wave of 15 consecutive ASCS Regional feature wins into the weekend, New Mexico’s Johnny Herrera rounded out the top five just a couple of car lengths behind Brown.

McMahan settled for sixth, with Tony Bruce, Jr., earning KSE Hard Charger honors by racing from 20th to seventh. Jack Dover bounced back from an early stop to snare eighth after starting 18th, while Danny Wood recovered from an early foray off of turn two to claim ninth. After running among the top five in the early stages, Pennsylvania’s Trevor Lewis completed the top ten.

Stewart, Wright, Kyle Bellm, Nick Smith, Herrera, Lewis, Aaron Berryhill and Wood topped heat race action for the 65-car field, with Michael Dupuy, Skip Wilson, Dustin Morgan and Dover victorious in the 12-lap “B” Mains.

The red flag flew on the opening lap of the night’s eighth and final heat race when Minnesota’s Neil Stevens and Nebraska’s Mark Pace both flipped wildly in the opening pair of corners after contact. Both drivers emerged relatively unscathed.

36th Annual Devil’s Bowl Spring Nationals Preliminary Results:

Heat Races (Top 14 in Passing Points to “A” Main; Balance to 4 “B” Mains):

Heat One (8 Laps): 1. 57-Shane Stewart, 2. 93-Dustin Morgan, 3. 1-Sean McClelland, 4. 03-Joe Wood, Jr., 5. 31m-Matt Clevenger, 6. 22-Koby Barksdale, 7. 2-Kenneth Walker, 8. 50-Stephanie Chappell, 9. 12w-Dale Wester.

Heat Two (8 Laps): 1. 9x-Gary Wright, 2. 13k-Kathryne Minter, 3. 7m-Kevin Ramey, 4. 88-Tim Crawley, 5. 29-Travis Rilat, 6. 9jr-Derek Hagar, 7. 12-Trey Robb, 8. 9-Brian Parker.

Heat Three (8 Laps): 1. 14k-Kyle Bellm, 2. 4c-Mike Chadd, 3. 13-Jesse Hockett, 4. 18-Tony Bruce, Jr., 5. 53-Jack Dover, 6. 96-Bronson Maeschen, 7. 55-Donnie Ray Crawford, 8. 5m-Glenn Martin.

Heat Four (8 Laps): 1. 15s-Nick Smith, 2. 00-Michael Dupuy, 3. 41-Jason Johnson, 4. 15-Kerry McAlister, 5. 23-Seth Bergman, 6. e85-Zach Chappell, 7. 17w-Brad Welborn, 8. 91-Gary Taylor.

Heat Five (8 Laps): 1. 45x-Johnny Herrera, 2. 21-Brian Brown, 3. 81au-Gavin Punch, 4. 12J-Jared Ridge, 5. 7-Darren Long, 6. 87-Billy Melton, 7. 51-Jimmy Brooks, 8. 99-Brady Bacon.

Heat Six (8 Laps): 1. 21L-Trevor Lewis, 2. 11F-Foster Landon, 3. 4-Eric Baldaccini, 4. 27-Andy Shouse, 5. 10a-Ricky Logan, 6. 11-Chad Corken, 7. 14e-Justin Spoerl, 8. 85-Jerry Bell.

Heat Seven (8 Laps): 1. 97-Aaron Berryhill, 2. 3-Mark Shirshekan, 3. 65-Skip Wilson, 4. 10-Bryan Dobesh, 5. 95-Matt Covington, 6. 35-Derrik Ortega, 7. 65g-Jordan Goldesberry, 8. 45-Martin Edwards.

Heat Eight (8 Laps): 1. 94-Danny Wood, 2. 3d-Paul McMahan, 3. 86-Josh Fisher, 4. 4x-Jamie Passmore, 5. 4J-Lee Grosz, 6. 1a-Robby Wolfgang, 7. 2x-Neil Stevens, 8. 31-Mark Pace.

“B” Mains (Top 2 From Each Advance to “A” Main):

First “B” Feature (12 Laps): 1. 00-Michael Dupuy, 2. 1-Sean McClelland, 3. 13-Jesse Hockett, 4. 22-Koby Barksdale, 5. 4J-Lee Grosz, 6. 96-Bronson Maeschen, 7. 15-Kerry McAlister, 8. 1a-Robby Wolfgang, 9. 12-Trey Robb, 10. 12J-Jared Ridge, 11. 65g-Jordan Goldesberry, 12. 9-Brian Parker. DNS: 91-Gary Taylor.

Second “B” Feature (12 Laps): 1. 65-Skip Wilson, 2. 18-Tony Bruce, Jr., 3. e85-Zach Chappell, 4. 88-Tim Crawley, 5. 23-Seth Bergman, 6. 99-Brady Bacon, 7. 55-Donnie Ray Crawford, 8. 7m-Kevin Ramey, 9. 31m-Matt Clevenger, 10. 3-Mark Shirshekan, 11. 9jr-Derek Hagar. DNS: 2x-Neil Stevens, 31-Mark Pace.

Third “B” Feature (12 Laps): 1. 93-Dustin Morgan, 2. 81au-Gavin Punch, 3. 86-Josh Fisher, 4. 4x-Jamie Passmore, 5. 11-Chad Corken, 6. 7-Darren Long, 7. 10a-Ricky Logan, 8. 27-Andy Shouse, 9. 17w-Brad Welborn, 10. 85-Jerry Bell, 11. 12w-Dale Wester, 12. 45-Martin Edwards. DNS: 51-Jimmy Brooks.

Fourth “B” Feature (12 Laps): 1. 53-Jack Dover, 2. 11F-Foster Landon, 3. 29-Travis Rilat, 4. 03-Joe Wood, Jr., 5. 95-Matt Covington, 6. 14e-Justin Spoerl, 7. 2-Kenneth Walker, 8. 87-Billy Melton, 9. 35-Derrik Ortega, 10. 5m-Glenn Martin 11. 4-Eric Baldaccini, 12. 50-Stephanie Chappell.

36th Annual Devil’s Bowl Spring Nationals Preliminary “A” Main Event:

“A” Feature (25 Laps): 1. 57-Shane Stewart, 2. 9x-Gary Wright, 3. 41-Jason Johnson, 4. 21-Brian Brown, 5. 45x-Johnny Herrera, 6. 3d-Paul McMahan, 7. 18-Tony Bruce, Jr., 8. 53-Jack Dover, 9. 94-Danny Wood, 10. 21L-Trevor Lewis, 11. 15s-Nick Smith, 12. 97-Aaron Berryhill, 13. 00-Michael Dupuy, 14. 10-Bryan Dobesh, 15. 1-Sean McClelland, 16. 81au-Gavin Punch, 17. 11F-Foster Landon, 18. 14k-Kyle Bellm, 19. 93-Dustin Morgan, 20. 4-Eric Baldaccini, 21. 65-Skip Wilson, 22. 50-Stephanie Chappell, 23. 4c-Mike Chadd, 24. 13k-Kathryne Minter.

Lap Leaders: Paul McMahan 1-9, Shane Stewart 10-25.

Note: Stephanie Chappell and Eric Baldaccini utilized provisionals based on 2008 owner’s points to start the “A” Main.

Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters Points (Top 15): 1. Shane Stewart 150, 2. Gary Wright 146, 3. Jason Johnson 144, 4. Brian Brown 142, 5. Johnny Herrera 140, 6. Paul McMahan 138, 7. Tony Bruce, Jr. 136, 8. Jack Dover 134, 9. Danny Wood 132, 10. Trevor Lewis 130, 11. Nick Smith 128, 12. Aaron Berryhill 126, 13. Michael Dupuy 124, 14. Bryan Dobesh 122, 15. Sean McClelland 120.

by Lonnie Wheatley

Kerrville’s Greg Dinsmore dominates I-37 Raceway Opening Night with a big Outlaw Modified win

Outlaw Modified driver Greg Dinsmore dominated the racing action Saturday at I-37 Raceway’s opening night. The Kerrville dirt track ace had it all his way as he made a shambles of both his heat race and the 15-lap Modified feature at the Pleasanton, Texas, quarter-mile.

Despite the cool temperatures, a good crowd was on hand to enjoy the many improvements to the facility that were made during the off season and watch five action-packed feature events.

Dale Flanagan and Greg Dinsmore started up on the front row of the Modified feature with Johnny Torres and Jeffrey Nix in row two. There was, however, a tense moment in the Dinsmore camp before the race was even under way as sparks were visible coming from under Dismore’s new Modified during the warm up laps.

As the green flag waved Dinsmore screamed into turn one, got the car completely sideways, lifted the left front tire off the track as he got back on the throttle and shot down the back straight already several car lengths in front of Flanagan.

After that it was simply a question of who would finish second. And the battle for second turned out to be the show.

Torres quickly went to work on Flanagan while Flanagan went to work trying to figure out a way to hold off the determined youngster. The pair went side-by-side for a lap or two, but Torres wisely didn’t force the issue and settled back into third, waiting for the right moment to make his move. Sure enough, a couple of laps later Torres made a clean pass just before Chris Swenson caught up with the duo.

Meanwhile, Dinsmore was nowhere in sight with almost a half-lap lead over Torres.

After several laps, Swenson finally found a way around Flanagan to claim third and took off in pursuit of Torres, but the laps ran out before he could catch him.

Dinsmore, who never even remotely challenged, won by half a lap over Torres, Swenson, Flanagan, Jeff Nix and Arlan Schult. Dinsmore also won his heat race convincingly.

Unofficial Outlaw Modified results
1. 8g Greg Dinsmore
2. 66 Johnny Torres
3. 48 Chris Swenson
4. 57 Dale Flanagan
5. 85 Jeff Nix
6. 19 Arlan Schult
7. c31 Marlin Samford - DNSM

Chris Swenson had much better luck in the IMCA SportMod feature, though, proving once again that experience is hard to beat on the dirt as he worked his way up through an 11-car field to take a well-deserved win.

Teammates Mark McGahey and Doug Livingston set the early pace with Pat Lyon and Chris Rye not far behind battling for third.

After a brief caution period for a spin, Swenson had worked his way up to fourth and started to work on Rye for third. It only took two laps for Swenson to figure out a safe way by Rye and he set sail for the two leaders, who were still bumper to bumper.

Swenson squeezed by Livingston at the halfway point and five laps later had McGahey in his mirror. Swenson then cruised off leaving McGahey and Livingston to resume their race-long battle, but this time for second place.

At the finish it was Swenson, McGahey with Livingston glued to his bumper, Kris Rye a distant third, and Patrick Lyon.

Doug Livingston and Kris Rye won the SportMod heat races.

Unofficial IMCA Southern SportMod results
1. 48 Chris Swenson
2. 88 Mark McGahey
3. 89 Doug Livingston
4. 4$ Kris Rye
5. 60 Patrick Lyon
6. 2x Dennis Hilla
7. 11 Chris McLendon
8. 09 David Routon Jr.
9. 4r Unk
10. 771 Wesley
11. 18 Larry Jerryman

In the Street Stock 15-lap feature Justin Henley came from deep in the 13-car field to notch his first victory of the new season.

For a while it looked like Tommy Casey would take the win, but as the laps wound down Casey and A.J Wernette, who ran a strong race to celebrate his seventeenth birthday, were both passed by a surging Henley on the 12th circuit.

Two laps later the group dicing for second place got into a free-for-all in turns three and four and suddenly Wernette was sitting in the infield as Henley motored off to take the win.

Casey, Chico Cox, who had started on the pole, Wes Werts, who had started beside Cox, and Wade Jones rounded out the top five.

In the first Street Stock heat race Chris Brock made the highlight footage as he went flying – literally - out of the park in turn three and completed a four-point landing safely in the pit area.

Rene Mares and Wade Jones won the Street Stock heat races.

Unofficial Street Stock results
1. 99 Justin Henley
2. 42 Tommy Casey
3. 21 Chico Cox
4. 77 Wes Werts
5. 41 Wade Jones
6. 01 Bijah Fowler
7. 55 Cody Clark
8. 37 AJ Wernette
9. 68 William Johnson III
10. 33 Frederick Gierisch
11. 51Don Lewis
12. 08 Rene Mares
13. 88 Chris Brock

Moe VanKirk picked up right where he left off last season, taking a convincing win in the 15-lap Limited Late Model main event.

Howie Marcx and Richard Bartosh started on the front row and they raced side-by-side down the back straight. But Bartosh got two wheels up on the tire wall in turn 3-4 and almost became the second car to exit the track unexpectedly. Bartosh somehow managed to get down off the tires and back onto the track and continued to race, eventually finishing fourth.

But it was a VanKirk show once he got by Marcx in the early going.

Patrick Kelly had an excellent race, showing patience and skill as he found a way around Marcx at mid-race to eventually earn a second-place finish.

Meanwhile Bartosh, none the worse for his on-the-tire-wall adventure, worked his way back into fourth as the top four cars separated themselves from the rest of the eight-car field for the remainder of the race.

Kelly tried to make up ground on VanKirk as the laps clicked off, but without much success. At the checkered it was VanKirk, Kelly, Marcx and Bartosh, all separated by a car length or two.

Van Kirk and Patrick Kelly won their respective Limited Late Model heat races.

Unofficial Limited Late Model results
1. 58 Moe VanKirk
2. 84 Patrick Kelly
3. 13 Howie Marcx
4. 7 Richard Bartosh
5. 5-0 Jerry Neal
6. 14 Gary Hunter
7. 1x Andrew Hesler
8. 21 Chris Snocker

In easily the most entertaining race of the night, asphalt ace John Heil worked and bumped his way through the field to win the Pure Stock 20-lap main event.

Janel Hilla started on the front row of the 16-car field and led for the first six laps over Sonny Jones and Adam Torres, who gave her all she could handle until Jones scooted by to take the lead on lap six.

Mike Brown and Danny Kasprowicz weren’t far behind

Back in the pack Heil and another asphalt specialist, Mark Chrudimsky, were running wild as they picked off one car after another.

After a caution for a minor spin, it was Jones, Hilla, Torres, Brown and Kasprowicz the top five as the green flew.

Kasprowicz makes a gutsy, three-wide outside move going into turn one and came out of turn two in second place as Hilla,Torres and Brown were beating and banging below him.

But at the other end of the track, Kasprowicz got way wide allowing Mike Brown to take back second. As Kasprowicz tried to recover that spot, he exited turn four too near the wall and suddenly darted down across the bunched up field dicing for position behind the lead group. With nowhere to go, William Sanders and Mark Chrudimsky crashed hard with Kasprowicz and the threesome ended up trying to knock down the front straight wall.

By now Heil had worked his way up to fourth.

At the restart Heil got a huge jump on the outside and roared into second place behind Jones.

A lap later Hilla spun in turn four, but no caution was needed as she ended up in the infield. This moved Brandon Eure into fourth.

With five to go Heil got around Jones who seemed to slow a bit as the laps clicked off. Torres soon caught Jones as well and was about to complete a pass when he pulled into the infield with flames in the engine compartment.

On the restart it was Heil, Jones, Eure and a surprisingly-fast Marc Roy in fourth, Jake Kruger in fifth, William Cavender in sixth and Hilla back up to seventh. Heil jumped out first with the next few cars in line going three-wide into the first turn with Eure coming out of turn two in second with Roy on his bumper.

Eure, however, had nothing for Heil and at the finish it was Heil, Eure, Roy, Krueger, Cavender and Hilla.

Kasprowicz and Denis Jasik won the Pure Stock heat races.

Unofficial Pure Stock results
1. 30 John Heil
2. 4 Brandon Eure
3. 24 Marc Roy
4. 13 Jake Kruger
5. 15 William Cavender
6.7x Janel Hilla
7. 555 Sonny Jones
8. 9 Phillip Haywood
9. 8 Dennis Jasik
10. 66 Adam Torres
11. 39 Mark Chrudimsky
12. 01 Mike Brown
13. 74k Danny Kasprowicz
14. 98 William Souder
15. 79 George Long
16. 14 Mark Pivarnik

Les Bettis outclassed the five-car Front Runner field taking both the heat race and the 10-lap main event.

Bettis’only real challenger, Greg Mares, gave it all he had but ended up a couple of car-lengths short at the finish.

Unofficial Front Runner results
1. 57 Les Bettis
2. 14 Greg Mares
3. 8jr Alec Jasik
4. 35 James Sanford
5. 41 Amber Helton

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Devil’s Bowl hosts the Lucas Oil ASCS “Spring Nationals” this weekend

After months of anticipation, it’s just about here as the quest for the 2009 Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters championship kicks off with this weekend’s 36th Annual Devil’s Bowl Speedway Spring Nationals in Mesquite, TX.

A staggering field of approximately 70 or so entries is expected for the two-night stand atop the famed Devil’s Bowl clay on Friday and Saturday as the VERSUS Network cameras take in all the action for a tape-delayed telecast.

This weekend’s event kicks off a new era of Sprint Car racing, launching a much-anticipated season under the Lucas Oil banner that was announced last August. A whopping $250,000 point fund is in place, with $60,000 earmarked for the series 2009 champion.

Gunning for a second consecutive title is Louisiana’s Jason Johnson, who held off four-time series king Gary Wright to take top honors in 2008. The duo of Johnson and Wright has combined to win nine of the last ten ASCS National feature events at Devil’s Bowl Speedway.

They’ll have their hands full this weekend with a pit area that will be overflowing with top talent from throughout the nation, including another 25 or so competitors that have stated intentions of taking in the full Lucas Oil ASCS slate in 2009.

Those ready for Lucas Oil ASCS title consideration in 2009 include the following:

1 Sean McClelland (Tulsa, OK) – The former ASCS Sooner Region champ ranked sixth in 2006 National points. Sean is ready for his second full National effort after working the bugs out during a Gulf South double a couple of weeks ago.

1a Robby Wolfgang (Sioux Falls, SD) – Going Scruffy style by tagging an “a” to the number 1, the 16-year-old will see one new track after another in his first year on the National trail.

2 Kenneth Walker (Sapulpa, OK) – Set for his second year on Tour after ranking eighth last year.

3d Paul McMahan (Nashville, TN) – The 2002 STN winner makes his first start in the No. 3d entry this weekend as he kicks off his title pursuit.

4 Eric Baldaccini (Keller, TX) – A top-five Gulf South finisher at Cleveland, Eric needs a strong start to stay on the road after ranking sixth and picking up Rookie of the Year honors last year.

7 Darren Long (Elida, OH) – Kicks off his Rookie of the Year campaign with his first visit to Devil’s Bowl.

9x Gary Wright (Hooks, TX) – A sweep of the Gulf South opening weekend on March 6-7 just serves notice that “The Texan” will be hard to top in his bid for an unprecedented fifth series championship. Races under the Lubbock Wrecker Service banner in 2009.

10a Ricky Logan (Little Rock, AR) – Breaks away from the Saturday Knoxville routine to take on the road.

11 Chad Corken (Highlands Ranch, CO) – Ready to contend for Rookie of the Year honors after ranking fourth in ASCS Rocky Mountain points last year.

12 Trey Robb (Newcastle, OK) – The 16-year-old makes his second full National effort, now teamed with past Gulf South champ Jerry Bell.

13 Jesse Hockett (Warsaw, MO) – Staying sharp by staying busy, “The Rocket” already has a $13,000 ASCS Rebel win in Florida and a non-wing Canyon win at Manzanita.

13m Kathryne Minter (Bedford, TX) – With past East Bay champ R.J. Johnson spinning the wrenches, the 18-year-old gears up for her second year of National competition.

15s Nick Smith (Broken Arrow, OK) – Looks for a fourth-consecutive top-ten series ranking after becoming just the 23rd driver in series history to top the 100-features started mark last season.

18 Tony Bruce, Jr. (Liberal, KS) – The reigning Short Track Nationals champion guns for the series title in 2009, finished second behind Gary Wright in Gulf South events on March 6-7.

21 Brian Brown (Grain Valley, MO) – A strong start over the next couple of weeks could force the defending Knoxville Raceway champion’s hand. Opened the 2009 season with a Sunday win at Springfield to bring the curtain down on an event that only took four months to get in the books.

23 Seth Bergman (Snohomish, WA) – The first Washington-based team to tackle the Lucas Oil ASCS Series, Seth has ranked among the best of the Northwest over the past three seasons.

29 Travis Rilat (Forney, TX) – Just 14 features away from becoming the third driver in series history to reach the 300 mark, a deflating left rear cost the 2003 champion a possible Gulf South win at Beaumont on March 6.

41 Jason Johnson (Eunice, LA) – With fifty-one overall ASCS feature wins over the past three years, the reigning series champion posted a pair of fourth-place finishes in Gulf South action on March 6-7.

53 Jack Dover (Springfield, NE) – Back from New Zealand to pursue Rookie of the Year honors after earning the Midwest Region championship and National Newcomer of the Year honors in 2008.

55 Donnie Ray Crawford (Tulsa, OK) – The 2008 SMRS Midget runner-up hooks up with Wade Wiseley’s A&W Motorsports team for a run at the Lucas Oil ASCS title in 2009.

57 Shane Stewart (Bixby, OK) – Shane can shine, especially when teamed with Paul Silva. They’ll have things ready to roll just in time.

86 Josh Fisher (Smithton, MO) – Takes to the Lucas Oil ASCS trail after capturing the Lake Ozark championship in 2008 and National Rookie of the Year honors in 2007.

91 Gary Taylor (Snohomish, WA) – GT makes his debut aboard the Sparks entry at Devil’s Bowl.

93 Dustin Morgan (Collinsville, OK) – After working out some bugs at Springfield, Dustin is set for his first full winged campaign after several seasons of primarily topless action.

94 Danny Wood (Norman, OK) – A three-time series runner-up tries for the top spot aboard the familiar H&H entry.

95 Matt Covington (Glenpool, OK) – The fourth-place Sooner finisher last year goes National in 2009.

97 Aaron Berryhill (Broken Arrow, OK) – Providing last-lap dramatics at Lake Ozark last year much to Jason Johnson’s chagrin, Berryhill is set for his first full Lucas Oil ASCS effort.

99 Brady Bacon (Broken Arrow, OK) – An STN feature starter, Bacon should show Devil’s Bowl improvement with functional steering and brakes.

And those are just the likely series championship contenders.

Another 30-40 are likely for this weekend’s competition including Zach Chappell, two-time ASCS Northern Plains champion Lee Grosz, two-time ASCS Sooner Region champion Kevin Ramey, ASCS Rocky Mountain Region champion Derrik Ortega and past ASCS Sooner Region champion Danny Jennings among others.

The top four finishers in Friday night’s 25-lap preliminary feature will be locked into Saturday night’s 30-lap finale, with the balance of the field battling through another full card of heats and “B” Mains to fill out the Devil’s Bowl Spring Nationals championship feature event.

The Series:

Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters

When & Where:

Friday night, March 20 at 8:00 p.m. – 36th Annual Devil’s Bowl Spring Nationals prelim
Saturday night, March 21 at 8:00 p.m. – 36th Annual Devil’s Bowl Spring Nationals finale

Track Information:

Devil’s Bowl Speedway (Mesquite, TX) – ½-mile, high-banked clay oval located six miles east of Dallas’ I-635 on US 80, then three miles south on Lawson Road. Track phone: 972-222-2421.

Lucas Oil ASCS Devil’s Bowl History:

Devil’s Bowl Speedway has been hosting the Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Series since 1994, with 20 different drivers scoring at least one victory in 56 feature events. Gary Wright has claimed 19 of his 124 career ASCS National wins at Devil’s Bowl, including his first Spring Nationals triumph last year along with a July Speedweek win and then another Winter Nationals triumph in October.

Wright and Jason Johnson have had somewhat of a stranglehold on victory lane at Devil’s Bowl over the past couple of seasons, combining to win nine of the last ten features atop the storied clay oval. Only Tony Bruce, Jr., a Spring Nationals preliminary winner last year, has interrupted the Wright-Johnson reign of terror at Da’ Bowl.

While Wright is the reigning Spring Nationals champion, other recent Spring Nationals winners include Jake Peters (2007), Kevin Ramey (2006) and Danny Jennings (2005).

Devil’s Bowl Lucas Oil ASCS winners include: Gary Wright 19, Jason Johnson 6, Wayne Johnson 4, Danny Jennings 3, Kevin Ramey 3, Shane Carson 2, Terry Gray 2, Garry Lee Maier 2, Mike Peters 2, Travis Rilat 2, Sammy Swindell 2, Tony Bruce, Jr. 1, Tim Crawley 1, Edd French 1, Johnny Herrera 1, Larry Neighbors 1, Alan Payne 1, Jake Peters 1, Shane Stewart 1, Mike Ward 1.

Devil’s Bowl Lucas Oil ASCS Race-by-race Winners: Shane Carson (6/21/94), Alan Payne (5/12/95), Mike Ward (7/23/95), Mike Peters (9/1/95), Sammy Swindell (9/2/95), Sammy Swindell (9/3/95), Wayne Johnson (6/18/96), Terry Gray (7/6/96), Terry Gray (11/1/96), Johnny Herrera (11/2/96), Shane Carson (4/5/97), Wayne Johnson (6/18/97), Edd French (10/31/97), Mike Peters (11/1/97), Gary Wright (6/19/98), Gary Wright (10/3/98), Garry Lee Maier (10/4/98), Gary Wright (7/8/99), Garry Lee Maier (7/30/99), Gary Wright (10/1/99), Gary Wright (10/2/99), Gary Wright (7/21/00), Gary Wright (10/6/00), Larry Neighbors (4/20/01), Gary Wright (7/20/01), Gary Wright (10/6/01), Travis Rilat (4/19/02), Jason Johnson (6/7/02), Wayne Johnson (10/4/02), Gary Wright (10/5/02), Kevin Ramey (4/18/03), Tim Crawley (10/17/03), Gary Wright (10/18/03), Shane Stewart (10/23/04), Danny Jennings (3/18/05), Danny Jennings (3/19/05), Danny Jennings (6/9/05), Gary Wright (10/21/05), Gary Wright (10/22/05), Kevin Ramey (6/24/06 – Spring Nationals makeup feature), Kevin Ramey (6/24/06 – Summer Nationals), Gary Wright (7/13/06), Jason Johnson (10/13/06), Travis Rilat (10/14/06), Wayne Johnson (3/16/07), Jake Peters (3/17/07), Gary Wright (5/12/07), Gary Wright (7/19/07), Jason Johnson (10/12/07), Jason Johnson (10/13/07), Tony Bruce, Jr. (3/14/08), Gary Wright (3/15/08), Jason Johnson (5/10/08), Gary Wright (7/17/08), Jason Johnson (10/17/08), Gary Wright (10/18/08).

2009 Lucas Oil ASCS Feature Winners:

None – Season Opener.

Lucas Oil ASCS presented by K&N Filters – A Look Ahead:

March 27 – State Fair Speedway (Oklahoma City, OK)
March 28 – State Fair Speedway (Oklahoma City, OK)
April 18 – I-30 Speedway (Little Rock, AR)
May 1 – Tri-City Speedway (Granite City, IL)

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.

Official results, championship point updates, photos and race notes will be available at www.ascsracing.com.

Lucas Oil ASCS on TV:

The Devil’s Bowl Spring Nationals will be the first two of ten Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters events scheduled to be broadcast on a tape delayed basis on the VERSUS Network.

Events to be aired on VERSUS include the following:
March 20 – Devil’s Bowl Speedway (Mesquite, TX)
March 21 – Devil’s Bowl Speedway (Mesquite, TX)
May 23 – Jetmore Motorplex (Jetmore, KS)
May 24 – Jetmore Motorplex (Jetmore, KS)
July 3 – Presleyland Motorsports Park (Chandler, IN)
July 4 – Presleyland Motorsports Park (Chandler, IN)
August 6 – Knoxville Raceway (Knoxville, IA)
August 7 – Knoxville Raceway (Knoxville, IA)
August 8 – Knoxville Raceway (Knoxville, IA)
September 26 – Lucas Oil Speedway (Wheatland, MO)

The Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters is currently slated for 34 nights of racing action at 16 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.
Posted 3/16/2009

Battleground Speedway’s Lone Star 100 Winner Will Receive Victory Lane Visit From 1,300-Pound Texas Longhorn

The winner of the inaugural Lone Star 100 on March 21 at Battleground Speedway will partake in the usual Victory Lane dance of interviews, hugs, handshakes and photos.

And then the champion of the three-eighths-mile oval’s first-ever World of Outlaws Late Model Series event will meet Hondo.

Odds are good that the triumphant driver will have never celebrated with a post-race visitor quite like Hondo, an impressive brown-and-white Texas Longhorn steer who weighs in at over 1,300 pounds. The 14-year-old animal is being brought in from the LaBuff Bucking Bulls ranch in nearby Ames, Texas, to add an interesting bit of Texas flavor to arguably the biggest dirt Late Model show ever contested in the Continental U.S.’s largest state.

A $20,000 top prize from a total purse of $100,000 will be on the line in the Lone Star 100, which begins with time trials and heat races on Fri., March 20, and concludes with a driver autograph session, last-chance races and the extra-distance headliner on Sat., March 21.

“This is going to be a huge weekend that really puts Battleground Speedway back on the map,” said promoter/general manager Mike Walling, who purchased the complex in September 2008 and recently reopened the speedway for its first action since 2006. “We wanted to do something to entertain the fans and make the event even more memorable. Having the winner of the Lone Star 100 pose for pictures with a genuine Longhorn seemed to be a perfect way to blend a slice of Texas history into the post-race celebration.

“We’re definitely going to get some unique Victory Lane photos. Maybe the winner will even be happy enough to climb on Hondo’s back!”

Despite the steer’s intimidating six-and-a-half-foot horn spread and ring-pierced nose, Hondo will be more than willing to let the victorious driver hop on him for a photo opp. Texas Longhorns are known for their innate gentle dispositions and intelligence and Hondo fits that description. The animal’s owner, Twila Strickland, takes him to rodeos and fairs across the region, where kids and adults alike enjoy having their pictures taken while sitting on a saddle placed on his back.

“He’s very used to people,” said Strickland, who will haul Hondo to a racetrack for the first time. “He’s been going to rodeos and fairs all over since he was two years old, so crowds don’t bother him at all.”

The question is – which expected entrant in the Lone Star 100 should fans root for to win the race and meet Hondo? Who would relish an up-close-and-personal encounter with a Texas Longhorn?

“This will be a driver’s chance to really play up the moment and have some fun,” said WoO LMS director Tim Christman. “Whoever wins $20,000 is going to be pumped up, but will they get the crowd going by hopping up on Hondo in Victory Lane? We’ll see if the winner of the Lone Star 100 will be a showman.”

Would normally reserved celebrators like defending WoO LMS champion Darrell Lanigan of Union, Ky., ’07 titlist Steve Francis of Ashland, Ky., and red-hot 20-year-old Josh Richards of Shinnston, W.Va., warm up to Hondo? Would outgoing Outlaws like Chub Frank of Bear Lake, Pa., Rick Eckert of York, Pa., Shane Clanton of Locust Grove, Ga., and 2008 Rookie of the Year Vic Coffey of Caledonia, N.Y., frolic with the Longhorn? Would cool-customer tour regulars like Clint Smith of Senoia, Ga., and Tim Fuller of Watertown, N.Y., smile through a photo shoot with Hondo? How would even-keeled new WoO LMS regular Brady Smith of Solon Springs, Wis., handle the situation?

And what about the famously affable Brian Birkhofer of Muscatine, Iowa, a jokester who has actually worn an Elvis mask to a WoO LMS driver’s meeting – would he jump on Hondo and try to ride him around the track? Would focused standouts like Shannon Babb of Moweaqua, Ill., and Jimmy Mars of Menomonie, Wis., let loose in the presence of the beast? What kind of interaction with Hondo would fans see from Chris (‘The Intimagator’) Wall of Holden, La., who has been known to climb catch fences to celebrate victories? Or local favorites like Kevin Sitton and Chris Brown, two drivers from Baytown, Texas, who, if either happened to pull off an upset win, would already have brought down the house before even reaching Hondo?

The Lone Star 100 weekend – the first WoO LMS event in Texas since 2004 – will kick off on Thurs., March 19, with an open practice session from 6-9 p.m. Fans can enter the grandstands free of charge to get a preview of the action, while pit admission will be $20.

Gates will open at 3 p.m. on both Fri., March 20, and Sat., March 21, with practice scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. each day.

Saturday’s schedule will include a driver autograph session in the grandstand area from 4-5 p.m.

For ticket information and other info on the Lone Star 100, visit www.battlegroundspeedway.net or call 832-421-RACE.

Battleground Speedway is located 12 miles east of Houston, just four miles north of Interstate 10 Exit 787 on FM 2100.

By Kevin Kovac
Longhorn Photo courtesy of World of Outlaws
Clanton Photo by Danny Prince

Lone Star Speedzone Video Extra - USAC Midgets Race at the Allstate Texas Racefest

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Stay tuned to Lone Star Speedzone for the best coverage of Texas auto racing!

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