Lonnie Wheatley, TULSA, Okla. (June 2, 2010) – Following on the heels of this past weekend’s hotly-contested Steve King Memorial at the Jetmore Motorplex, the Lucas Oil ASCS National Series presented by K&N Filters picks right back up with action this Saturday night at I-30 Speedway in Little Rock, AR.
Leading the way into the second of three-one night Lucas Oil ASCS stands atop the high-banked, ¼-mile I-30 Speedway is Oklahoma’s Brady Bacon after sweeping through Jetmore for his initial pair of ASCS National wins.
After checking out for a convincing win in Saturday’s prelim, the 20-year-old from Broken Arrow fought off past National champs Tim Crawley and Jason Johnson to top Sunday’s Jetmore finale and moved atop the series $60,000 championship chase by a 31-point margin over reigning series champion Shane Stewart.
While Bacon, a runner-up to Zach Chappell in April’s non-stop Lucas Oil ASCS 35-lapper at I-30 Speedway, guns for a rare three-peat in series competition on Saturday night, his top rivals from this past weekend both try to break into National victory lane for the first time in 2010.
Louisiana’s Johnson, “The Ragin’ Cajun”, has climbed to third in points behind Bacon and Stewart, while I-30 ace Crawley jumped from 11th to fifth in points after posting a pair of podium finishes in Jetmore. Crawley is two-for-two in I-30 Speedway Sprint Car competition since the last Lucas Oil Sprint Car visit in April, besting the wingless Sprint Bandits TNT ranks in May and then winning the only weekly card completed thus far in 2010.
Liberal, KS, shoe Tony Bruce, Jr., escaped his TBJ promoted Jetmore double ranked fourth in points after using a provisional in the prelim, with Nebraska shoe Jack Dover up to sixth in points.
Leading Brodix Rookie of the Year contenders Kyle Hirst of Loomis, CA, and Matt Covington of Glenpool, OK, are ranked seventh and eighth, respectively, with Oklahoma’s Danny Wood and the resurgent “Texan” Gary Wright rounding out the current top ten.
Other series title contenders expected to be on hand Saturday night include April 10 winner at I-30 Speedway, Zach Chappell, Little Rock native Ricky Logan, 2003 National champion Travis Rilat, Ohio’s Darren Long and the balance of the Rookie crop that includes Oklahoma’s Dustin Morgan, Texas’ Channin Tankersley, Washington’s Austen Wheatley, California’s Justyn Cox, New Mexico’s Joshua Hodges and Tennessee’s Don Young.
Saturday’s card at I-30 Speedway, which fires off at 7:30 p.m. is the second in three consecutive weekends of competition for the Lucas Oil National Sprint Cars, with Nebraska’s Eagle Nationals to follow on June 11-12. The event originally scheduled for Friday night at Outlaw Motor Speedway near Muskogee, OK, has been postponed.
The Series:
Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Series presented by K&N Filters
When & Where:
Saturday night, June 5 at 7:30 p.m. – I-30 Speedway
Track Information:
I-30 Speedway (Little Rock, AR) – ¼-mile high-banked clay oval located seven miles southwest of Little Rock off I-30 Exit 126 (Alexander Rd.), then south to frontage road, then east. For more information, contact the track at 501-455-4567.
Lucas Oil ASCS I-30 Speedway History:
A staple of the ASCS National Series, I-30 Speedway hosted the first official ASCS National event on May 15, 1993, with Memphis shoe Mike Ward dropping in on victory lane. Since that time, 17 different drivers have posted at least one ASCS National win in the 45 events contested at I-30.
Gary Wright has enjoyed the most success at I-30 with a dozen triumphs, with his most recent Little Rock success including Speedweek and Short Track Nationals prelim wins in 2008.
Tony Bruce, Jr., has enjoyed the most success recently at I-30 Speedway, topping the last two editions of the track’s prestigious Short Track Nationals while also capturing the 2009 leg of ASCS Speedweek, which didn’t count as an official National win. Both STN triumphs were worth $15,000 to the Liberal shoe.
Zach Chappell topped a non-stop 35-lap Lucas Oil ASCS feature at I-30 Speedway in April, the first of three one-night stands for the series in Little Rock before October’s Short Track Nationals.
I-30 Speedway Lucas Oil ASCS National winners include: Gary Wright 12, Tim Crawley 4, Garry Lee Maier 4, Terry Gray 3, Jason Johnson 3, Wayne Johnson 3, Mike Ward 3, Tony Bruce, Jr. 2, Travis Rilat 2, Shane Stewart 2, Pete Butler 1, Zach Chappell 1, Ricky Logan 1, Jason Meyers 1, Eric Sandage 1, Tim Shaffer 1, Nick Smith 1.
I-30 Speedway Lucas Oil ASCS Race-by-Race Winners: Mike Ward (5/15/93), Tim Crawley (6/24/93), Terry Gray (7/17/93), Garry Lee Maier (6/18/94), Garry Lee Maier (8/13/94), Terry Gray (5/20/95), Ricky Logan (6/24/95), Gary Wright (7/15/95), Mike Ward (5/18/96), Garry Lee Maier (6/15/96), Garry Lee Maier (8/3/96), Mike Ward (5/17/97), Gary Wright (6/14/97), Wayne Johnson (9/26/97), Wayne Johnson (9/27/97), Gary Wright (5/16/98), Terry Gray (6/13/98), Eric Sandage (8/25/01), Pete Butler (6/22/02), Gary Wright (7/13/02), Gary Wright (9/21/02), Gary Wright (6/21/03), Tim Crawley (7/12/03), Shane Stewart (9/6/03), Gary Wright (6/5/04), Travis Rilat (7/10/04), Gary Wright (8/28/04), Tim Crawley (6/11/05), Gary Wright (7/9/05), Travis Rilat (10/1/05), Jason Johnson (7/29/06), Jason Johnson (4/28/07), Gary Wright (7/14/07), Shane Stewart (10/25/07), Tim Shaffer (10/26/07), Jason Meyers (10/27/07), Nick Smith (4/26/08), Gary Wright (7/12/08), Gary Wright (10/23/08), Tim Crawley (10/24/08), Tony Bruce, Jr. (10/25/08), Wayne Johnson (11/5/09), Jason Johnson (11/6/09), Tony Bruce, Jr. (11/7/09), Zach Chappell (4/10/10).
Current Lucas Oil Sprint Car Series presented by K&N Filters Points:
Top Twenty: 1. Brady Bacon (Broken Arrow, OK) 642, 2. Shane Stewart (Bixby, OK) 611, 3. Jason Johnson (Eunice, LA) 604, 4. Tony Bruce, Jr. (Liberal, KS) 584, 5. Tim Crawley (Benton, AR) 578, 6. Jack Dover (Springfield, NE) 558, 7. Kyle Hirst (Loomis, CA) 544, 8. Matt Covington (Glenpool, OK) 527, 9. Danny Wood (Norman, OK) 526, 10. Gary Wright (Hooks, TX) 504, 11. Johnny Herrera (Albuquerque, NM) 501, 12. Ricky Logan (Little Rock, AR) 482, 13. Zach Chappell (Talala, OK) 479, 14. Travis Rilat (Forney, TX) 449, 15. Darren Long (Elida, OH) 446, 16. Sean McClelland (Tulsa, OK) 406, (tie) 17. Dustin Morgan (Tulsa, OK) and Channin Tankersley (Highlands, TX) 405, 19. Austen Wheatley (Lake Stevens, WA) 392, 20. Justyn Cox (Clarksburg, CA) 391.
Brodix Rookie of the Year Points: 1. Kyle Hirst (Loomis, CA) 544, 2. Matt Covington (Glenpool, OK) 527, 3. (tie) Dustin Morgan (Tulsa, OK) and Channin Tankersley (Highlands, TX) 405, 5. Austen Wheatley (Lake Stevens, WA) 392, 6. Justyn Cox (Clarksburg, CA) 391, 7. Joshua Hodges (Tijeras, NM) 350, 10. Don Young (Bartlett, TN) 325.
2010 Lucas Oil Sprint Car Feature Winners:
Brady Bacon 2, Zach Chappell 1, Matt Covington 1, Sammy Swindell 1.
Lucas Oil Sprint Cars presented by K&N Filters – A Look Ahead:
June 11/12 – Eagle Raceway (Eagle, NE) – VERSUS/MavTV
June 26 – Lake Ozark Speedway (Eldon, MO)
Lucas Oil Sprint Cars on the Web:
Those unable to catch all the action in person can listen to every Lucas Oil Sprint Car Series presented by K&N Filters live at www.racinboys.com.
Also, the Lucas Oil ASCS Show airs on www.racinboys.com each Tuesday night at 8:00 p.m. ET, recapping the previous week's events while also previewing upcoming action.
Official results, championship point updates, photos and race notes will be available at www.ascsracing.com.
Lucas Oil Sprint Cars on TV:
The Lucas Oil Sprint Car Series presented by K&N Filters will be featured in ten one-hour shows broadcast on a tape-delayed basis on the VERSUS Network and MavTV.
Events to be aired on VERSUS and MavTV include the following:
Event Date – Track (Location) – VERSUS Air Date & Time (All Times Eastern & Subject to Change):
March 19 – Devil's Bowl Speedway (Mesquite, TX) – 6/6/10 @ 6:00 p.m.
March 20 – Devil's Bowl Speedway (Mesquite, TX) – Rained Out
June 11 – Eagle Raceway (Eagle, NE) – 11/21/10 @ 4:00 p.m.
June 12 – Eagle Raceway (Eagle, NE) – 11/21/10 @ 5:00 p.m.
September 25 – Lucas Oil Speedway (Wheatland, MO) – 11/28/10 @ 6:00 p.m.
October 1 – Riverside Speedway (W. Memphis, AR) – TBD
October 2 – Riverside Speedway (W. Memphis, AR) – TBD
October 28 - I-30 Speedway (Little Rock, AR) – 12/5/10 @ 5:00 p.m.
October 29 – I-30 Speedway (Little Rock, AR) – 12/5/10 @ 6:00 p.m.
October 30 – I-30 Speedway (Little Rock, AR) – 12/19/10 @ 4:00 p.m.
The Lucas Oil Sprint Car Series presented by K&N Filters is currently slated for 36 nights of racing action at 18 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.
In its 19th year of sanctioning Sprint Car racing, the American Sprint Car Series brings the best of Sprint Car racing to approximately 100 different tracks throughout 30 states and Canada. Anchored by the Lucas Oil Sprint Car Series presented by K&N Filters, ASCS also consists of ten different Regions throughout the nation.
Additional information regarding the American Sprint Car Series is available at www.ascsracing.com.