By Pete Walton
The United Sprint Car Series (USCS) presented by Goodyear www.uscsracing.com Outlaw Thunder Tour invades Malden Speedway this Saturday night as headliners of the Malden Speedway 6th Annual “Bootheel 200”. The event serves as the season-opener for the speedway. The special event is expected to bring top winged Outlaw style sprint car drivers from at least seven states to the track. The USCS winged sprint car race will award USCS presented by Goodyear National Championship points as well as USCS Mid-South Thunder regional series Championship points. The USCS Mid-South Thunder regional series primarily consists of races in Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi, Missouri and West Tennessee
The Bootheel 200 weekend’s USCS presented by Goodyear sprint car racing program will include several test and tune/hot lap sessions during the Friday night portion of the two-day racing event where as many as half of the field of entries are expected to practice for the following night’s season opener. On Saturday night the USCS Outlaw style sprint cars join the action packed program with a full racing card for a 120 mile per hour speedway assault. Saturday evening’s first sprint car race, the Goodyear Speed Dash will showcase the top six cars from the previous USCS main event in an edge-of-your-seat six-car shootout. The dash will be followed by a series qualifying heat races and a Last Chance/B-Main race(s). The evening’s sprint car grand finale will be the USCS 30-lap A-main event.
Drivers expected to compete include several who have been honored as National Sprint Car Hall of Fame Drivers of the Year. The ten-time USCS National Champion, Terry Gray headlines the entry list. 2008 USCS Mid South Thunder regional Champion, Tim Crawley from Benton, Arkansas who has won over twenty-five USCS main events over the last three seasons is entered. Three-time Midwest All-Star Champion and three-time 2011 USCS feature winner, Jerrod Hull from Sikeston, Missouri is also entered.
Additionally, the 2010 USCS Rookie of the Year 18 year-old female sprint car hot shoe, Morgan Turpen will also be in the field. Turpen, who won two times in 2011 USCS competition finished in second place in the 2010 and the 2011 National point standings. She additionally finished in second position behind Gray in the USCS Southern Thunder regional series and fourth in the potent Mid South Thunder division.
Several other USCS young guns (drivers under 25 years old) will join Turpen in the field including 2011 USCS Rookie of the Year Jordon Mallett from Greenbrier, Arkansas, the 2010 USCS Southern Thunder regional series Rookie of the Year, Eric Riggins from Charlotte, North Carolina who finished in the third position in the National point standings behind Gray and Turpen the last two seasons. Also entered is the 2006 Rookie of the Year, Derek Hagar from Marion, Arkansas, 2008 USCS Rookie of the Year, Anthony Nicholson from Bartlett, Tennessee who finished third in the 2011 USCS Mid South Thunder regional standings and the 2009 Rookie of the Year, Justin Carver from Drummonds, Tennessee.
Additionally entries include 2010 USCS Mid South Rookie of the Year, Jerod Roller from Olive Branch, Mississippi, past USCS Champion Marshall Skinner from West Memphis, Arkansas and previous Southern Thunder regional Champion, Johnny Bridges from Cherryville, North Carolina plus 2011 USCS feature winner, Brian Bell from Cordova, Tennessee.
Other expected sprint car entries include; Ageless veteran, Ray Bugg, from Iuka, Mississippi, Dalton Davis from Millington, Tennessee, Kevin Kilpatrick from Walls, Mississippi, Wade Oliver from Southaven, Mississippi and Jeff Willingham are expected.
Also entered are three young drivers who expect to contend for the 2012 Rookie of the Year honors; Nathan Cook from Oakland, Tennessee, Tristan Tidmore from Hernando, Mississippi, Justin Webb from Drummonds, Tennessee and Brandon Hanks from Burleson, Tennessee.
Also featured on the racing program at are the mighty open wheel modified cars of the K&N Filters USCS Modified Touring Series. Drivers expected to compete in that division include many of the best modified drivers in the South and Mid South over the two nights of action in their division.
The racing card also includes the USCS 600 Sprint Car Series for winged mini sprints. Bobby Zaiontz from Columbus, Mississippi was that series National Champion in 2011 which was the inaugural season for the USCS series. Zaiontz kicked off the 2012 season with a USCS 600 Sprint Car Series feature win at Magnolia Motor Speedway on March 3rd. That division will contest a full racing card each night as well.
Also on both the Friday and Saturday night racing cards for some door-to door racing action are all of the Malden Speedway weekly racing series divisions. Those include the Nesmith Dirt Late Models, Hobby Stock, E-MOD, Street Stock and Mini Stock divisions who will contest their Pole Qualifying rounds on Friday night. On Saturday night, those divisions contest the Championship finals in their divisions.
For more information on the USCS presented by Goodyear including the full 2012 schedule of events and /or rules, please visit www.uscsracing.com or call 770-460-7223. For information on Malden Speedway visit www.maldenspeedway.com or call the track office at 573-276-6265. For rules specific questions for the Malden Speedway classes call Phil Santie at 573-281-0116.
USCS presented by Goodyear pre-entry list for (as of Monday, 3/12/12) :
Malden Speedway Bootheel 200 event – Saturday, March 17, 2012
No..Car#…Driver/Hometown
1. 1m Jim Moughan, Springfield, IL
2. 4 Nathan Cook, Oakland, TN
3. 5 Jerod Roller, Olive Branch, MS
4. 7x David DeJournett, Essex, MO
5. 7D Dylan DeJournett, Essex, MO
6. 07 Johnny Bridges, Cherryville, NC
7. 10 Terry Gray, Bartlett, TN
8. 12 Jerrod Hull, Sikeston, MO
9. 12D Dalton Davis, Millington, TN
10. 13 Tristan Tidmore, Hernando, MS
11. 14 Jordon Mallett, Greenbrier, AR
12. 16 Anthony Nicholson, Bartlett, TN
13. 22 Dustin Barks, Farmington, MO
14. 22 Kevin Kilpatrick, Walls, MS
15. 23 Brian Bell, Cordova, TN
16. 25 Ray Bugg, Iuka, MS
17. 26 Marshall Skinner, West Memphis, AR
18. 31 Justin Webb, Drummonds, TN
19. 47 Eric Riggins, Charlotte, NC
20. 58 Wade Oliver, Southaven, MS
21. 80 Morgan Turpen, Oakland, TN
22. 87 Justin Carver, Drummonds, TN
23. 88 Tim Crawley, Benton, AR
24. 94 Derek Hagar, Marion, AR
25. 99 Jimmy Davies, Oquawka, IL