From Lonnie Wheatley, TULSA, Okla. (July 12, 2010) – After a quick Saturday night outing in South Dakota, the Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Cars presented by K&N Filters National series moves on to the Northwest for the second year in a row with this weekend’s Fourth Annual Fred Brownfield Memorial at Grays Harbor Raceway in Elma, WA.
Following a full card of racing action on Friday night, a whopping $10,092 awaits the winner of Saturday night’s Brownfield Memorial championship main event atop the 3/8-mile Grays Harbor dirt oval.
The middle portion of the North by Northwest Swing, which is followed by Oregon’s Cottage Grove Double on July 23-24, marks the first of four Lucas Oil ASCS National events that will feature a winner’s share of $10,000 or more in 2010.
After Saturday’s $10,092 to win title, other five-figure events include the $10,000-to-win ASCS Knoxville Nationals finale in Iowa on August 7, Little Rock’s 23rd Annual Short Track Nationals $15,000 to-win-finale on October 30 and USA Raceways’ $15,000-to-win 43rd Annual Western World Championships finale in Tucson on November 20.
The question is, will this weekend’s winner’s share stay in the northwest or will one of the invading forces take the big money, as has been the case in the first three editions of the Brownfield Memorial.
Reigning Lucas Oil ASCS National champion Shane Stewart of Bixby, OK, topped the initial two editions of the Fred Brownfield Memorial, while Travis Rilat of Forney, TX, topped the first Memorial event under the ASCS banner last year after Oregon’s Roger Crockett rolled across the scales seven pounds below the required minimum.
Louisiana’s Jason Johnson, the 2008 ASCS National champion, leads a full contingent of 18 Lucas Oil ASCS title contenders to the Northwest after taking over the top spot on the point charts on Saturday night when Broken Arrow, Oklahoma’s Brady Bacon was collected in Austen Wheatley’s flip while running fourth.
Johnson posted a fifth-place finish to jump to 28-point lead over the 20-year-old Bacon, who escaped the night just two points ahead of third-ranked Stewart, who collected his first Lucas Oil ASCS National win of the year.
Lanky 20-year-old Nebraska shoe Jack Dover has climbed to fourth in points on the strength of three consecutive runner-up feature finishes, with Kansan Tony Bruce, Jr., just one point ahead of Oklahoma’s Zach Chappell in fifth.
Collected in the Wheatley crash as well, three-time ASCS National champion Tim Crawley of Benton, AR, slipped to seventh in points, with veteran Oklahoma shoe Danny Wood in eighth.
California’s Kyle Hirst leads the Brodix Rookie of the Year contenders with a ranking of ninth, just 63 points ahead of fellow rookie contender Matt Covington of Glenpool, OK.
Past ASCS National champ and defending Fred Brownfield Memorial winner Travis Rilat is just outside the top ten in points, with other Lucas Oil National contenders including the likes of Little Rock native Ricky Logan and Ohio’s Darren Long along with the rest of the rookie crop that includes Dustin Morgan (Tulsa, OK), 17-year-old Austen Wheatley (Lake Stevens, WA), 16-year-old Justyn Cox (Clarksburg, CA), 19-year-old Channin Tankersley (Highlands, TX) and Andrew Marshala (Shawnee, OK).
Coming off a recent Cottage Grove sweep of ASCS Northwest action, Roger Crockett leads the Northwest forces into Grays Harbor. Crockett currently holds a 42-point lead over Jason Solwold in Northwest points, with Seth Bergman, Brock Lemley and Mitch Olson rounding out the current top five. The ASCS Northwest Region is in action this week with the initial three rounds of ASCS Northwest Speedweek in Oregon leading into the Fred Brownfield Memorial.
The Series:
Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Series presented by K&N Filters
When & Where:
Friday night, July 16 at 6:30 p.m. – Grays Harbor Raceway
Saturday night, July 17 at 6:30 p.m. – Grays Harbor Raceway
Track Information:
Grays Harbor Raceway (Elma, WA) – 3/8-mile, high-banked clay oval located 21 miles west of US 101 on SR 8 to the junction of US 12, then 0.2miles north, then 0.6 miles east on Elma-McCleary Road. For more information, contact the track at 360-482-4374 or check http://www.graysharborraceway.net/.
Lucas Oil ASCS Grays Harbor Raceway History:
The Lucas Oil Sprint Cars made a Washington debut last year and after Oregon’s Roger Crockett topped the preliminary event, it was Texas shoe Travis Rilat pocketing $10,092 in the Third Annual Fred Brownfield Memorial.
Grays Harbor Raceway Lucas Oil ASCS National winners include: Roger Crockett 1, Travis Rilat 1.
Grays Harbor Raceway Lucas Oil ASCS Race-by-Race Winners: Roger Crockett (7/17/09), Travis Rilat (7/18/09).
Current Lucas Oil Sprint Car Series presented by K&N Filters Points:
Top Twenty: 1. Jason Johnson (Eunice, LA) 1,253, 2. Brady Bacon (Broken Arrow, OK) 1,225, 3. Shane Stewart (Bixby, OK) 1,223, 4. Jack Dover (Springfield, NE) 1,184, 5. Tony Bruce, Jr. (Liberal, KS) 1,159, 6. Zach Chappell (Talala, OK) 1,158, 7. Tim Crawley (Benton, AR) 1,122, 8. Danny Wood (Norman, OK) 1,107, 9. Kyle Hirst (Loomis, CA) 1,105, 10. Matt Covington (Glenpool, OK) 1,042, 11. Travis Rilat (Forney, TX) 998, 12. Ricky Logan (Little Rock, AR) 994, 13. Darren Long (Elida, OH) 916, 14. Gary Wright (Hooks, TX) 911, 15. Dustin Morgan (Tulsa, OK) 841, 16. Austen Wheatley (Lake Stevens, WA) 834, 17. Justyn Cox (Clarksburg, CA) 826, 18. Channin Tankersley (Highlands, TX) 821, 19. Andrew Marshala (Shawnee, OK) 693, 20. Johnny Herrera (Albuquerque, NM) 501.
Brodix Rookie of the Year Points: 1. Kyle Hirst (Loomis, CA) 1,105, 2. Matt Covington (Glenpool, OK) 1,042, 3. Dustin Morgan (Tulsa, OK) 841, 4. Austen Wheatley (Lake Stevens, WA) 834, 5. Justyn Cox (Clarksburg, CA) 826, 6. Channin Tankersley (Highlands, TX) 821, 7. Andrew Marshala (Shawnee, OK) 693.
2010 Lucas Oil Sprint Car Feature Winners:
Brady Bacon 3, Zach Chappell 2, Matt Covington 1, Jason Johnson 1, Shane Stewart 1, Sammy Swindell 1, Danny Wood 1.
Lucas Oil Sprint Cars presented by K&N Filters – A Look Ahead:
July 23-24 – Cottage Grove Speedway (Cottage Grove, OR)
July 30 – LA Raceway (La Monte, MO)
August 5-7 – ASCS Knoxville Nationals (Knoxville, IA)
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.