From Lonnie Wheatley
TUCSON, Ariz. – The final racing weekend of the 2009 racing year for the American Sprint Car Series is here, as the 42nd Annual Kronik Energy Western World Championships presented by Old Tucson Studios is set to kick off after a successful Wednesday night practice.
Approximately half of the 131 entries are set to take to Tucson’s 3/8-mile USA Raceway for Thursday night’s Old Tucson Studios qualifying action.
Currently, 38 of the 79 Lucas Oil Sprint Cars presented by K&N Filters entries are set to battle in out on Thursday night, with 25 of the 52 Discount Tire Co. ASCS Canyon Region competitors set to take to the track in the non-wing portion of the event.
Thursday night’s feature finishes will determine a portion of Saturday night’s Western World Championship feature events, with Friday’s feature finishes completing the picture. Saturday’s Western World final for the Lucas Oil Sprint Cars will pay $15,000 to the winner, with the wingless ASCS Canyon Region winner collecting $5,000.
Among the latest entries are recent Trophy Cup winner Tim Kaeding, who will take on the Lucas Oil Sprint Car ranks, and 2008 Western World champion Kevin Swindell, who fills the previously entered No. 52 non-wing entry.
Also, Lucas Oil contender Tim Crawley has also entered the non-wing portion of the event to run the total of drivers pulling double duty over the course of the weekend to a perfect dozen. Others doubling up in both winged and non-winged ranks include defending ASCS Canyon Region Western World champion Jesse Hockett, Travis Rilat, Brady Bacon, Johnny Herrera, Dustin Morgan, Jerry Coons, Jr., Ronnie Clark, Joshua Hodges, Thomas Ogle, current ASCS Canyon points leader Charles Davis, Jr., and current ASCS Southwest points leader Rick Ziehl.
The tentative schedule of events for both Thursday’s Old Tucson Studios Qualifier and Friday’s Kronik Energy Qualifier is as follows:
ASCS Canyon non-wing hot laps
Lucas Oil Sprint Car winged hot laps
Race Time – 7:00 p.m.
3 ASCS Canyon non-wing Heat Races (8 Laps each)
5 Lucas Oil Sprint Car winged Heat Races (8 Laps each)
1 ASCS Canyon non-wing “B” Main (12 Laps)
2 Lucas Oil Sprint Car winged “B” Mains (12 Laps each)
ASCS Canyon non-wing “A” Main (25 Laps)
Lucas Oil Sprint Car winged “A” Main (25 Laps)
Qualifying night feature finishes will determine the lineups for Saturday night’s championship finale event, with Saturday’s feature events scheduled for 30 laps in each “A” Main, 15 laps in “B” Mains and 12 laps in “C” Mains.
Saturday’s feature lineups will be set in the following manner:
Lucas Oil Sprint Cars:
“A” Feature – Finishers 1-8 from each preliminary main event lined straight-up (Thursday on the inside and Friday on the outside) plus top three from Twin “B” Mains and two Lucas Oil Sprint Car provisionals if necessary.
Twin “B” Mains – Finishers 9-22 from preliminary main events plus top four from twin “C” Mains.
Twin “C” Mains – Finishers 23-24 from preliminary main events plus preliminary night “B” Main non-transfers. Top 4 advance to Saturday “B” Mains.
“D” Mains if necessary.
Discount Tire Co. ASCS Canyon Region:
“A” Feature – Finishers 1-7 from each preliminary main event lined straight-up (Thursday on the inside and Friday on the outside) plus top three from Twin “B” Mains.
Twin “B” Mains – Finishers 8-20 from preliminary main events plus preliminary night “B” Main non-transfers.
“C” Mains if necessary.
Thursday’s Old Tucson Studio Qualifiers:
Lucas Oil Sprint Cars presented by K&N Filters (wing):
1 Sean McClelland (Tulsa, OK)
1p Curtis Evans (Norburne, MO)
2m Mike Melwicks (Richmond, BC, CAN)
3c Cale Conley (Vienna, WV)
3d Paul McMahan (Hendersonville, TN)
3s John Carney II (El Paso, TX)
5az John Van Horn (Tucson, AZ)
5h Justyn Cox (Clarksburg, CA)
6 Ronnie Clark (Tucson, AZ)
7 Darren Long (Elida, OH)
9 Gary Taylor (Snohomish, WA)
9x Gary Wright (Hooks, TX)
10 Sammy Swindell (Germantown, TN)
10a Ricky Logan (Little Rock, AR)
13 Jesse Hockett (Warsaw, MO)
14aj Wayne Johnson (Oklahoma City, OK)
15 Bud Goodwin (Albuquerque, NM)
15h Sam Hafertepe, Jr. (Sunnyvale, TX)
22 Jesse Baker (Grants, NM)
22b Ben Gregg (Phoenix, AZ)
22j John Gaston (Phoenix, AZ)
23 Seth Bergman (Snohomish, WA)
41w Joshua Williams (Glendale, AZ)
44k Koty McGullam (Marana, AZ)
45 Martin Edwards (Mesquite, TX)
45x Johnny Herrera (Albuquerque, NM)
53 Jack Dover (Springfield, NE)
57 Shane Stewart (Bixby, OK)
57x Lucas Wolfe (Lemogne, PA)
66 Jessica Van Dyke (Tucson, AZ)
71 Bob Schaeffer (New Castle, CO)
77m Billy Chester III (Chino Valley, AZ)
93 Dustin Morgan (Collinsville, OK)
93k Brent Kronfuss (Bozeman, MT)
94 Danny Wood (Norman, OK)
94z Zach Zimmerly (West Linn, OR)
99 Brady Bacon (Broken Arrow, OK)
99j Jake Ossenfort (Rapid City, SD)
Discount Tire Co. ASCS Canyon Region (non-wing):
1 Jon Stanbrough (Brownsburg, IN)
5d Jerry Johnston (Albuquerque, NM)
6c Rex Calderwood (Phoenix, AZ)
7k Bruce St. James (Phoenix, AZ)
8 Daniel Hutto (Tucson, AZ)
8az Jordan Stetson (Tucson, AZ)
11 Seainn Hendricsen (Glendale, AZ)
16b Robert Ballou (Rocklin, CA)
17 Steve Spiak (Albuquerque, NM)
19 Andrew Reinbold (Gilbert, AZ)
27n Nick Aiuto (Camp Verde, AZ)
29 Travis Rilat (Forney, TX)
32 Jerry Coons, Jr. (Tucson, AZ)
41 Rick Ziehl (Las Cruces, NM)
48T Thomas Ogle (Waddell, AZ)
50 Charles Davis, Jr. (Buckeye, AZ)
51 Cody Cambensy (Tucson, AZ)
62 Stevie Sussex (Waddell, AZ)
74x Joshua Hodges (Tijeras, NM)
77 Dalton Gabbard (Peoria, AZ)
77m R.J. Johnson (Phoenix, AZ)
78 Chris Bonneau (Peoria, AZ)
88 Tim Crawley (Benton, AR)
96 Carson Ditsch (Tucson, AZ)
97 Casey Shuman (Tempe, AZ)
Friday’s Kronik Energy Qualifiers:
Lucas Oil Sprint Cars presented by K&N Filters (wing):
01 Kaylene Verville (Avondale, AZ)
1x J.T. Imperial (Mesa, AZ)
2 Kenneth Walker (Sapulpa, OK)
2sb Sean Becker (Carmichael, CA)
4 Eric Baldaccini (Keller, TX)
5a Thomas Ogle (Waddell, AZ)
7d William Riley (Sierra Vista, AZ)
7m Kevin Ramey (Fort Worth, TX)
11 Chad Corken (Highlands Ranch, CO)
11c Roger Crockett (Medford, OR)
11T Steve Lohn (Tucson, AZ)
17 Bruce Griffith, Jr. (Highlands, TX)
18 Tony Bruce, Jr. (Liberal, KS)
20az Steve Martin (Phoenix, AZ)
20ks Kyle Sager (Alto, NM)
20L Andrew Reinbold (Gilbert, AZ)
20z Rick Ziehl (Las Cruces, NM)
21 Brian Brown (Grain Valley, MO)
22 Mason Moore (Priceton, CA)
23n Stephen Allard (Chico, CA)
25c Chad Groves (Bend, OR)
26b Bobby McMahan (Sacramento, CA)
29 Travis Rilat (Forney, TX)
32 Jerry Coons, Jr. (Tucson, AZ)
33 Danny Lasoski (Higginsville, MO)
34 Calvin Landis (Knoxville, IA)
35a Joey Saldana (Brownsburg, IN)
41 Jason Johnson (Eunice, LA)
42 Rick Boughan (Lima, OH)
44w Austen Wheatley (Lake Stevens, WA)
45k Kolt Walker (Graham, TX)
55 TBA
71 Channin Tankersley (Highlands, TX)
74x Joshua Hodges (Tijeras, NM)
77 Colt Treharn (Los Lunas, NM)
77e William Eggimann (San Ysidro, CA)
83 Tim Kaeding (Chico, CA)
88 Tim Crawley (Benton, AR)
94j Charles Davis, Jr. (Buckeye, AZ)
95 Matt Covington (Glenpool, OK)
99d Rickey Hood (Millington, TN)
Discount Tire Co. ASCS Canyon Region (non-wing):
2az Jesse Hockett (Warsaw, MO)
3 Harris Brooks (Phoenix, AZ)
3x Jimmy Crawford (Newberry Park, CA)
5m Brian O’Donnell (Glendale, AZ)
6 Ronnie Clark (Tucson, AZ)
6s Bryan Swinehart (Prescott Valley, AZ)
7 Mike Leslie (Litchfield Park, AZ)
7az Brian Hosford (Gilbert, AZ)
9 Brandon Lane (Gilbert, AZ)
12 Nathan High (Goodyear, AZ)
16 Mike Martin (Yuma, AZ)
19x Chuck Jackson (Albuquerque, NM)
21 Johnathon Henry (Stockton, CA)
26az Bobby Taylor (Oro Valley, AZ)
27h Jeremy Huebner (Tucson, AZ)
36 Dave Darland (Lincoln, IN)
37 David Bezio (El Cajon, CA)
44 Jeremy Sherman (Surprise, AZ)
45x Johnny Herrera (Albuquerque, NM)
52 Kevin Swindell (Germantown, TN)
55 Tony Everhart (El Cajon, CA)
61x Bo Baker (Grants, NM)
77s Brian Schuler (El Cajon, CA)
82 Sean Teeters (Tucson, AZ)
93 Dustin Morgan (Collinsville, OK)
99 Brady Bacon (Broken Arrow, OK)
XXX Zach Sawyers (Gilbert, AZ)
The Series:
Lucas Oil Sprint Car Series presented by K&N Filters ($15,000-to-win winged portion)
Discount Tire Co. ASCS Canyon Region ($5,000-to-win non-wing portion)
When & Where – USA Raceway’s Western World Championships:
Thursday, November 19 at 7:00 p.m. – 42nd Annual Western World Championships Old Tucson Studios Qualifying Night
Friday, November 20 at 7:00 p.m. – 42nd Annual Western World Championships Kronik Energy Qualifying Night
Saturday, November 21 at 7:00 p.m. – 42nd Annual Kronik Energy Western World Championships presented by Old Tucson Studios championship features
Sunday, November 22 at 12:00 p.m. – 18th Annual ASCS Awards Banquet presented by Brodix at Old Tucson Studios
Track Information:
USA Raceway (Tucson, AZ) – 3/8-mile, clay oval located east of Tucson off I-10 Exit 268, then 1.6 mile south on Craycroft Road, which turns into Los Reales. Track phone: 520-574-8515.
Past Western World Winners:
Tennessee’s Kevin Swindell became the 25th different winner of the Western World by topping the 2008 edition of the event last November, adding his name to a prestigious list of past winners that includes his father Sammy Swindell, who won the event in both 1980 and 1989.
Steve Kinser has claimed the most Western World titles with seven triumphs including wingless wins in 1982 and 1983 followed by winged wins in 1985, 1987, 1990, 1992 and 1996.
Ron Shuman is next on the list with five Western World triumphs, all of the wingless variety, with other drivers posting multiple Western World wins including Lealand McSpadden (3), Bud Kaeding (2), Mark Kinser (2), Jan Opperman (2) and Sammy Swindell (2).
The Western World has been run as a winged event on a dozen previous occasions, most recently in 1999.
Past Western World Championship Winners (Wing / Non-Wing)
2008 – Kevin Swindell (nw)
2007 – Jerry Coons, Jr. (nw)
2006 – Josh Wise (nw)
2005 – Dave Darland (nw)
2004 – Bud Kaeding (nw)
2003 – Tony Elliott (nw)
2002 – Bud Kaeding (nw)
2001 – Jeremy Sherman (nw)
2000 – Jay Drake (nw)
1999 – Donny Schatz (w)
1998 – Tyler Walker (w)
1997 – Mark Kinser (w)
1996 – Steve Kinser (w)
1995 – Lealand McSpadden (nw)
1994 – Ron Shuman (nw)
1993 – Lealand McSpadden (nw)
1992 – Steve Kinser (w)
1991 – Danny Lasoski (w)
1990 – Steve Kinser (w)
1989 – Sammy Swindell (w)
1988 – Mark Kinser (w)
1987 – Steve Kinser (w)
1986 – Bobby Davis, Jr. (w)
1985 – Steve Kinser (w)
1984 – Ron Shuman (nw)
1983 – Steve Kinser (nw)
1982 – Steve Kinser (nw)
1981 – Ron Shuman (nw)
1980 – Sammy Swindell (nw)
1979 – Tim Green (nw)
1978 – Lealand McSpadden (nw)
1977 – Ron Shuman (nw)
1976 – Bubby Jones (nw)
1975 – Ron Shuman (nw)
1974 – Rick Ferkel (nw)
1973 – Earl Wagner (nw)
1972 – Jan Opperman (nw)
1971 – Jan Opperman (nw)
1970 – Jerry McClung (nw)
1969 – Bob Huebner (nw)
1968 – Bob Cleberg (nw)
Lucas Oil Sprint Cars USA Raceway History:
None – This will mark the series first visit to Tucson’s USA Raceway, which serves as the home facility to both the winged ASCS Southwest and non-wing ASCS Canyon Regions.
Current Points:
Lucas Oil Sprint Car Series presented by K&N Filters Driver Points:
Top Twenty: 1. Shane Stewart (Bixby, OK) 2,428, 2. Jason Johnson (Eunice, LA) 2,404, 3. Gary Wright (Hooks, TX) 2,378, 4. Travis Rilat (Forney, TX) 2,267, 5. Paul McMahan (Hendersonville, TN) 2,216, 6. Tim Crawley (Benton, AR) 2,193, 7. Danny Wood (Norman, OK) 2,170, 8. Tony Bruce, Jr. (Liberal, KS) 2,132, 9. Jack Dover (Springfield, NE) 2,113, 10. Jesse Hockett (Warsaw, MO) 2,111, 11. Sean McClelland (Tulsa, OK) 1,834, 12. Kenneth Walker (Sapulpa, OK) 1,768, 13. Darren Long (Elida, OH) 1,659, 14. Chad Corken (Highlands Ranch, CO) 1,627, 15. Gary Taylor (Snohomish, WA) 1,611, 16. Seth Bergman (Snohomish, WA) 1,537, 17. Brady Bacon (Broken Arrow, OK) 1,355, 18. Gavin Punch (Collinsville, OK) 1,344, 19. Wayne Johnson (Oklahoma City, OK) 1,268, 20. Ricky Logan (Little Rock, AR) 1,124.
Lucas Oil Sprint Car Series presented by K&N Filters Owner Points:
Top Twenty: 1. #57-Paul Silva 2,428, 2. #41-Lanny Row 2,404, 3. #9x-Scott Brown 2,378, 4. #29-Travis Rilat 2,267, 5. #3d-Dennis & Jeri Benjamin 2,216, 6. #88-Mike Ward 2,193, 7. #94-Mike Hammers 2,170, 8. #18-Tony Bruce, Jr. 2,132, 9. #53-Lori Dover 2,113, 10. #13-VKCC Motorsports/Tom Buch 2,111, 11. #1-Sean McClelland 1,834, 12. #2-Kenneth Walker 1,768, 13. #91-Bobby Sparks 1,695, 14. #7-Darren Long 1,659, 15. #11-Chadco Racing 1,627, 16. #23-Steven Bergman 1,537, 17. #99-Mike & Megan Eubanks 1,355, 18. #81au-Gavin Punch 1,344, 19. #10a-Ricky Logan 1,262, 20. #97-Aaron Berryhill 1,074.
Brodix Rookie of the Year Points (Top Five): 1. Paul McMahan (Hendersonville, TN) 2,216, 2. Jack Dover (Springfield, NE) 2,113, 3. Darren Long (Elida, OH) 1,659, 4. Chad Corken (Highlands Ranch, CO) 1,627, 5. Seth Bergman (Snohomish, WA) 1,537.
ASCS Southwest Region Driver Points (Top Ten): 1. Rick Ziehl (Las Cruces, NM) 1,118, 2. Ben Gregg (Phoenix, AZ) 1,106, 3. Joshua Hodges (Tijeras, NM) 1,078, 4. John Gaston (Phoenix, AZ) 1,070, 5. Ronnie Clark (Tucson, AZ) 1,062, 6. Mike Martin (Yuma, AZ) 1,023, 7. Charles Davis, Jr. (Buckeye, AZ) 985, 8. John Van Horn (Tucson, AZ) 931, 9. Jessica Van Dyke (Tucson, AZ) 927, 10. Cody Cambensy (Tucson, AZ) 857.
Discount Tire Co. ASCS Canyon Region Non-Wing Points (Top Ten): 1. Charles Davis, Jr. (Buckeye, AZ) 1,024, 2. R.J. Johnson (Phoenix, AZ) 984, 3. Nathan High (Goodyear, AZ) 962, 4. Johnathon Henry (Stockton, CA) 890, 5. Stevie Sussex (Laveen, AZ) 889, 6. Ronnie Clark (Tucson, AZ) 885, 7. Andrew Reinbold (Gilbert, AZ) 859, 8. Mike Martin (Yuma, AZ) 835, 9. Bruce St. James (Phoenix, AZ) 782, 10. Jeremy Sherman (Surprise, AZ) 758.
2009 Feature Winners:
Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Series: Jason Johnson 4, Shane Stewart 3, Tim Crawley 2, Wayne Johnson 2, Terry McCarl 2, Travis Rilat 2, Gary Wright 2, Tony Bruce, Jr. 1, Roger Crockett 1, Jack Dover 1, Kevin Ramey 1. Speedweek winners; Tony Bruce, Jr., Zach Chappell, Tim Crawley, Nick Smith and Gary Wright.
ASCS Southwest Region: Johnny Herrera 3, Rickey Hood 2, John Gaston 1, Ben Gregg 1, Rick Ziehl 1.
Discount Tire Co. ASCS Canyon Region Non-Wing: Charles Davis, Jr. 3, Jesse Hockett 2, R.J. Johnson 1, Rick Ziehl 1.
Tickets:
Ticket pricing, seating charts and purchasing information can be found online at www.usaraceway.net/Uploads/WesternWorldTickets.pdf or by calling the USA Raceway office at 520-574-8515.
The Brodix ASCS Awards Banquet:
The 18th Annual American Sprint Car Series Awards Banquet presented by Brodix will follow directly on the heels of USA Raceway’s 42nd Annual KRONIK Energy Western World Championships presented by Old Tucson Studios.
Open to all racers, teams and fans, tickets are available for just $20 and may be obtained by calling USA Raceway at 520-574-8515. Tickets must be ordered by Tuesday, November 17.
More information regarding Old Tucson Studios is available at www.oldtucson.com
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
Events to be aired on VERSUS include the following:
Event Date – Track (Location) – Air Date & Re-Air Date (All Times Eastern)
Mar. 20 – Devil’s Bowl Speedway (Mesquite, TX) – 5/2/09 @ 5:00 p.m. & 5/7/09 @ 5:00 p.m.
Mar. 21 – Devil’s Bowl Speedway (Mesquite, TX) – 5/23/09 @ 4:00 p.m. & 5/27/09 @ 5:00 p.m.
May 23 – Jetmore Motorplex (Jetmore, KS) – 8/8/09 @ 5:00 p.m. & 8/13/09 @ 5:00 p.m.
May 24 – Jetmore Motorplex (Jetmore, KS) – 8/15/09 @ 5:00 p.m. & 8/20/09 @ 5:00 p.m.
July 3 – Riverside Speedway (W. Memphis, AR) – 9/13/09 @ 4:00 p.m. & 9/17/09 @ 5:00 p.m.
July 4 – Riverside Speedway (W. Memphis, AR) – 9/20/09 @ 4:00 p.m. & 9/24/09 @ 5:00 p.m.
Aug. 6 – Knoxville Raceway (Knoxville, IA) – 10/18/09 @ 6:00 p.m. & 10/22/09 @ 5:00 p.m.
Aug. 7 – Knoxville Raceway (Knoxville, IA) – 11/1/09 @ 5:00 p.m. & 11/5/09 @ 6:00 p.m.
Aug. 8 – Knoxville Raceway (Knoxville, IA) – 11/22/09 @ 6:00 p.m. & 11/25/09 @ 6:00 p.m.
Sept. 26 – Lucas Oil Speedway (Wheatland, MO) – 11/29/09 @ 6:00 p.m. & 12/3/09 @ 5:00 p.m.
The Lucas Oil Sprint Car Series presented by K&N Filters is currently slated for approximately 30 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.