By Tim Tuttle
BELLEVILLE, Ill. (Sept. 24, 2013)—Zach Daum owns a healthy late-season championship lead over Andrew Felker in the POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series and Cale Thomas and Nathan Benson are neck-and-neck for the title in the POWRi Speedway Motors 600cc Outlaw Micro Series going into the ninth annual Charlene Meents Memorial on Saturday (Sept. 28) at Belle-Clair Speedway.
Daum has built a 270-point advantage, 4,030-3,760, over Felker in the official points with four events, including the Meents, remaining. The 22-year-old from Pocahontas, Ill., loses 90 points of that lead when the POWRi scoring system requirement of tossing out the driver’s two worst finishes is included. Daum was 16th (worth 50 points) in the season opener at Jacksonville (Ill.) Speedway and 15th (worth 60 points) at Jacksonville on June 6. Felker has a pair of 21st-place finishes, worth the maximum low of 10 points each, to eliminate. With the 90-point loss, Daum still leads by 180 points.
“I won’t feel good about the championship until the end, but it’s nice to have a little bit of a barrier,” Daum said.
After opening the season with three top-fives in the initial seven events, Daum has five victories and 14 top-fives in the last 18 in his Toyota-powered Eagle. He’s been most impressive in the stretch run, four wins, three seconds, a third and two fifths in the last 15 events. Daum has eight straight top-fives and 16 consecutive top-10s.
Felker, the 2012 POWRi National Midget champion, also has been consistently strong with 13 top-fives and 23 top-10s. Felker has five second places, but the 20-year-old driver from Carl Junction, Mo., has only one victory in his Fontana-powered Spike.
“We’re still in contention,” Felker said. “We need to keep taking care of our business and get some wins.”
Tyler Thomas of Collinsville, Okla., is third in the championship with 2,555 points and looking for his first win of the year. He had one victory in his rookie season of 2011 and two in 2012.
Brad Kuhn, the POWRi National Midget champion in 2006 and 2009, is fourth in the points with 2,490 despite running a partial season of 17 of 26 events. The 32-year-old from Avon, Ind., has announced this will be his final racing season. He plans on running the Lucas Oil Chili Bowl in January to conclude his career, which includes 22 POWRi wins, four Badger Midget and two USAC National Midget titles.
The POWRi Midgets conclude their season next week with the Gold Crown Midget Nationals, three events from Oct. 3-5 co-sanctioned with the Honda USAC National Midgets at Tri-City Speedway in Pontoon Beach, Ill.
Benson’s victory, his fourth of the season, last Saturday at Macon (Ill.) Speedway vaulted him into the POWRi Micro Outlaw championship lead over Thomas by 40 points officially, 2,390-2,350. The 15-year-old Thomas led by 150 points going into the event, but touched wheels with Aaron Andruskevitch halfway through the feature and flipped, finishing 21st.
When POWRi’s two-worst finish rule is applied, Thomas has a 40-point lead. Thomas has a pair of 21st-place finishes and Benson, a 29-year-old from Concordia, Mo., has 20th and 12th places, a swing of 80 points in the championship.
Saturday’s event at Belle-Clair is the next-to-last of the season for the Micros. They close out 2013 next Saturday (Oct. 5) at Tri-City.
The Meents Memorial honors the long-time officer and race official for the MARA midgets. During the 27 years that Meents was active in MARA, she served in all capacities, including president for many years. During this time, she was instrumental in some keynote races that took place in the 1980s and ‘90s. In addition to great local races at tracks like Little Belleville, Macon, and Pevely, she was also a big factor in MARA’s involvement in races such as the Belleville Nationals, the Wolverine Nationals, and the first running of what is now the Chili Bowl Nationals.
POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series top-10 points standings (after 26 of 30 events): 1. Zach Daum 4,030, 2. Andrew Felker 3,760, 3. Tyler Thomas 2,555, 4. Brad Kuhn 2,490, 5. Jake Blackhurst 2,285, 6. Parker Price-Miller 2,275, 7. Austin Brown 2,235, 8. Garrett Aitken 1,900; 9. Terry Babb 1,255, 10. Colten Cottle 1,110.
POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series feature winners: Jacksonville, Ill.—Shane Cockrum; Belleville, Ill.—Chris Bell; Macon, Ill.—Brady Bacon; Sun Prairie, Wis.—Michael Pickens; Jacksonville, Ill.—Kyle Larson; Lincoln, Ill.—Michael Pickens; Macon, Ill.—Andrew Felker; Sun Prairie, Wis.—Rico Abreu; Bloomington, Ind.—Zach Daum; Belleville, Ill.—Darren Hagen; Belleville, Ill.—Bryan Clauson; Wilmot, Wis.—Brad Kuhn; Sun Prairie, Wis.—Darren Hagen; Pontoon Beach Ill.—Terry Babb; Cameron, Mo.—Austin Brown; Grain Valley, Mo.—Zach Daum; Belleville, Ill.—Bryan Clauson; Lincoln, Ill.—Rico Abreu; Macon, Ill.—Chris Bell; Sun Prairie, Wis.—Bryan Clauson; Wayne City, Ill.—Zach Daum; Sun Prairie, Wis.—Zach Daum; Sun Prairie, Wis.—Zach Daum; Jacksonville, Ill.—Rico Abreu; Canton, Ill.—Chris Bell; Macon, Ill.—Danny Stratton.
POWRi Speedway Motors 600cc Outlaw Micro Series top-10 points standings (after 15 of 17 events): 1. Nathan Benson 2,390, 2. Cale Thomas 2,350, 3. Jeremy Camp 1,865, 4. Aaron Andruskevitch 1,815, 5. Joe B. Miller 1,660; 6. Jake Neuman 1,625, 7. Jason Harms 1,240, 8.Max Pozsgai 1,115, 9. Kyle Schuett 1,135, 10. Dereck King 1,055.
POWRi Speedway Motors 600cc Outlaw Micro Series feature winners: Jacksonville, Ill.—Dereck King; Belleville, Ill.—Joe B. Miller; Macon, Ill.—Dereck King; Jacksonville, Ill.—Mike Dicely; Lincoln, Ill.—Nathan Benson; Macon, Ill.—Cale Thomas; Bloomington, Ind.—Nathan Benson; Belleville, Ill.—Joe B. Miller; Belleville, Ill.—Cale Thomas; Belleville, Ill.—Cale Thomas; Belleville, Ill.—Nathan Benson; Lincoln, Ill.—Joe B. Miller; Macon, Ill.—Cale Thomas; Jacksonville, Ill.—Cale Thomas; Macon, Ill.—Nathan Benson.
For more information, go to www.POWRi.com.