By Rich Murray
Round one of the Safety-Kleen โTriple Crownโ kicks off this Saturday night, July 12th at Grundy County Speedway where the stars and cars of the DโArcy GMC STARS National Midgets will compete in the Illinois State Championship presented by Chicagoland Speedway.
Just one week ago at Grundy County, Danville, Indianaโs Kyle Hamilton made an inside pass on Mario Clouser for the lead in turn four on lap 11 and was able to pace the field for the remaining 40 laps to take the victory in the โFreedom 50.โ It was Hamiltonโs first STARS National Midget win of the season and second career โFreedom 50โ win.
Hamilton, the 22-year-old Purdue University student, was making his first appearance in STARS National Midget action since his crash on โOpening Nightโ on May 31st when his night came to an end upside down against the turn one wall. Hamilton currently stands 10th in the STARS point standings and is not currently in the thick of the points race. As a result, his main focus is on winning, not โpoints racing.โ
โMy viewpoint has always been wins first and points second, so I’m always entering every race going hard for the win,โ Hamilton said. โThere won’t be any conserving going on.โ
Local fan favorite and Channahon, Illinois resident, Brad Greenup, picked up a very popular victory in last yearโs edition of the โIllinois State Championship.โ It was the 23-year-old Minooka Community High School graduateโs only victory in 2013 after a two-year winless drought. The win was special to him not only because of what his team had overcome to get to victory lane, but also the historical significance of his win.
โLast yearโs ‘Illinois State Championship’ victory was pretty special to me,โ Greenup said. Last year, we had a year similar to what we’re suffering through this year. We had multiple mechanical issues in the beginning of the year and the โIllinois State Championshipโ was actually the first race of the year that we finished and we won it. We had a lot of speed early last year; I really had something to prove and everything fell into place for us.โ
โThe list of winners of this race is filled with the names of the greatest midget drivers who have ever raced in our area and it’s special to have my name on that list,โ Greenup continued. โHopefully I can put another tally next to my name after this weekend.โ
Greenup, who currently sits second in STARS National Midget point standings, leads a contingent of Illinois drivers that include Streatorโs Tyler Trainor, Channahonโs Billy Hulbert, New Lenoxโs Ryan Probst, and Auburnโs Mario Clouser. These Illinoisans undoubtedly want to keep the โIllinois State Championshipโ trophy within the confines of the Land of Lincoln. However, top contenders from outside of Illinois, such as Indianaโs Austin Prock and Kyle Hamilton, are each gunning to take the trophy across the border back to the Hoosier state.
โI am proudly from Indiana,โ Hamilton said. โI even have an Indiana sticker on my car, so I’d like to bring the โIllinois State Championshipโ back home to Indiana.โ
Greenup contends that he is not going to let the trophy travel outside of Illinois without putting up a fight.
โ(Indiana) is the heart and soul of midget racing. They have so many big historical races held there,โ Greenup said. โThis is one of the few races of some significance that Illinois has. Of course, we want to keep the trophy in Illinois for as long as we can.โ
Not only are state bragging rights on the line in this Saturdayโs race, the โIllinois State Championshipโ is also a part of the Safety-Kleen โTriple Crown.โ The three-race series consists of a trio of STARS National Midget races at Grundy County Speedway: Saturdayโs โIllinois State Championship,โ August 23rdโs โDโArcy GMC Pavement Nationals presented by Bell Helmets,โ and September 27thโs โAlex Pruett Memorial.โ If a driver is able to win all three legs of the โTriple Crown,โ that driver will pocket a $2000 bonus. If nobody is able to win all three of the races, a $750 prize will go to the driver who earned the most points in each of the โTriple Crownโ races.
After last weekendโs third place finish in the backup car of Ryan Probst in the โFreedom 50,โ Prock was able to extend his lead in the STARS National Midget point standings to an 87-point advantage over Greenup. Trainor, Hulbert, and Probst stand third through fifth, respectively. Clouser, Jimmy Anderson, Kyle Kettmann, Travis Young, and Hamilton round out the top-10.
Along with the STARS National Midgets, the Illinois State Championship presented by Chicagoland Speedway features the CSR Super Cups, INEX Legends, Classic Modifieds, and Midwest Legacy Series. Adult tickets are just $12. Kids age 5-12 get in for $2. Children age 4 and under are free! Grandstands open up at 5 p.m. Racing starts at 6:30 p.m. Grundy County Speedway is located one mile north of I-80 on Route 47 in Morris, Illinois.