USCS Outlaw Thunder Tour at Carolina Speedway Friday

By Pete Walton

Atlanta, GA – July 19, 2016 – The 20th Anniversary United Sprint Car Series Outlaw Thunder Tour presented by K&N Filters winged sprint cars invade Carolina Speedway on Friday night (July 22nd) at 8 pm. The track has been a USCS driver and fan favorite over the past 10 seasons. The USCS Sprint Car Series portion of the event entitled the 3rd annual Joe and Jim Summer Sprint Classic that honors the memory of twin brothers Joe and Jim McLain from Indian Trail, North Carolina.

This event is especially important to two other McLain brothers from Indian Trail, North Carolina who are United Sprint Car Series regulars. The brothers, Brandon and Jake are the Grandsons of Joe McLain and Great Nephews of Jim McLain. Both of these third-generation racing brothers are entered for Friday night’s event. Brandon McLain was the 2014 USCS Rookie of the Year. Jake McLain is a former Carolina Racesaver 305 sprint car series Champion. The two USCS sprint car racers and their Dad, Doug McLain, also of Indian Trail, North Carolina, created the event two years ago to honor Joe and Jim McLain who were both former racers and the mentors for the younger two McLain generations.

The United Sprint Car Series presented by K&N Filters last visited Carolina Speedway on April 8, 2016 when sprint car racing veteran and Hall of Famer Danny Smith from Chillicothe, Ohio was the first to reach the finish line and parked his mount in the www.rockauto.com USCS Victory Lane after the USCS main event to garner his first ever USCS career win.

A previous Carolina Speedway USCS sprint car winner and entry is the current USCS National point’s leader Morgan Turpen from Cordova, Tennessee, like Smith, got her career-first USCS Outlaw Thunder Tour victory at Carolina Speedway near the end of the 2011 season. Turpen made sprint car racing history as the first woman to ever win a major sprint car series Championship during the 2015 season. Not only did Turpen top the 2015 National Championship standings, but, she also swept the series trophy table by capturing the title in both USCS regional series as well.

Turpen will top a list of other entries for the Joe and Jim Summer Classic Round #1 event that also includes several multi-time winners at the track. Those include local fan favorite Eric Riggins, Jr. from Charlotte, North Carolina, who was a five-time 2015 USCS winner at different tracks. Riggins is expected to be locked and loaded for this event at what he considers his home track. Johnny Bridges from Cherryville, North Carolina is entered. He was the April 2015 USCS Outlaw Thunder Tour winner at Carolina Speedway, adding to his win total at the410 mile clay oval track. Bridges also claims Carolina Speedway as his home turf as well.

Entries also include eleven-time series Champion, Terry Gray from Bartlett, Tennessee who is also a previous multi-time winner at Carolina Speedway. Gray is currently in second position in the USCS National point standings, just three points behind his team-mate Morgan Turpen. Gray has 89 career USCS feature wins on his resume. Turpen who was the 2010 USCS Rookie of the Year, has a career USCS total of nine including two this season.

Another expected potent USCS sprint car driver entries include Lance Moss from Cherryville, North Carolina. These seven drivers lead a strong contingent of drivers from at least six states into Friday’s speed contest at the famed Northeast Carolina vall looking for a chance to park in the www.rockauto.com USCS Victory Lane.

A trio of teenage sensations also top the entry list including seventeen year-old, 2015 USCS Rookie of the Year, Nick Snyder from Marco Island, Florida. Also entered is current USC Rookie of the Year points leader for the 2016 season sixteen year-old Brandon Taylor from Cumming, Georgia. The third teenager who has shown some outstanding performances as well is fourteen year-old Danny Sams III from Englewood, Florida.

In addition to the 130 mile per hour USCS winged sprint cars five of the speedway’s divisions will be joining the USCS sprint cars at Carolina Speedway on Friday night’s busy racing card. Those divisions will be the Street Stock, Renegades,SECA Modified, Pure Street and Hornets.

For info on Carolina Speedway please visit their website at www.carolinaspeedway.net or call the track at 704-869-0313. For information on the event you may also call the USCS series office at 770-460-7223 or 770-865-6097. For USCS rules, info and updated schedules please visit www.uscsracing.com

USCS Outlaw Thunder Tour sprint pre-entry list for:

Carolina Speedway event – Friday, July 22, 2016

No….Car#…Driver / Hometown

1. 0x Clint Weiss, Ocala, FL

2. 07 Johnny Bridges, Cherryville, NC

3. 07t Brandon Taylor, Cumming, GA

4. 10 Terry Gray, Bartlett, TN

5. 10m Morgan Turpen, Cordova, TN

6. 13 Bobby Komasarski, Clover, SC

7. 21B Brandon McLain, Indian Trail, NC

8. 21s Greg Smyre, Hickory, NC

9. 23 Lance Moss, Cherryville, NC