From Lonnie Wheatley
TULSA, Okla. (January 24, 2017) – Race fans in and around Oklahoma and Kansas will once again get their annual serving of premier wingless Sprint Car racing as the slate has been set for the USAC Southwest Sprint Cars “Freedom Tour”.
For the fifth consecutive year, the stars of the Arizona-based USAC Southwest Sprint Car series will storm through Oklahoma and Kansas in August, taking on the best the region has to offer up.
This year’s “Freedom Tour” once again consists of four nights of competition, with the four-race set of $2,500-to-win, $250-to-start events kicking off Wednesday night, August 16. Creek County Speedway, 81 Speedway and Caney Valley Speedway will host this year’s action. Creek County Speedway and 81 Speedway have been a part of the “Freedom Tour” since its inaugural season in 2013 with Caney Valley Speedway a new addition to the popular series in 2017.
This year’s “Freedom Tour” kicks off at Creek County Speedway near Tulsa, OK, on August 16. The ¼-mile bullring has offered up four winners in four previous years of “Freedom Tour” competition including local shoe Danny Smith in the inaugural tour event in 2013 along with fellow area representatives Brady Bacon and Blake Hahn in 2014 and 2015 before reigning USAC Southwest champ R.J. Johnson broke the Oklahoma stranglehold on victory lane last August.
From there, the tour moves on to 81 Speedway near Wichita, KS, for two nights of action on Thursday and Friday, August 17-18. After New Mexico’s Rick Ziehl won the initial “Freedom Tour” event at 81 Speedway in 2013, Yuma, Arizona’s “Magic Man” Mike Martin made it two in a row atop the 3/8-mile clay oval in 2014 and 2015 before last year’s round fell victim to heavy rain.
This year’s final round of “Freedom Tour” action brings a change of scenery with the racy, ¼-mile Caney Valley Speedway near the Oklahoma-Kansas state line on Saturday night, August 19.
In four previous years of USAC Southwest Sprint Cars “Freedom Tour” competition, nine different drivers have earned feature wins in 15 events. R.J. Johnson leads the way with four triumphs, including two of three last year. Rick Ziehl, Charles Davis, Jr., and Mike Martin each have two wins, will single “Freedom Tour” wins have gone to Danny Smith, Brady Bacon, Mike Bonneau, Blake Hahn and Josh Hodges.
2017 USAC Southwest Sprint Cars “Freedom Tour” Schedule:
August 16 – Creek County Speedway (Sapulpa, OK)
August 17 – 81 Speedway (Park City, KS)
August 18 – 81 Speedway (Park City, KS)
August 19 – Caney Valley Speedway (Caney, KS)
Additional information regarding the USAC Southwest Sprint Car series is available at http://www.southwestsprintcars.com/.
Information regarding each of the Fifth Annual Freedom Tour tracks is available at:
Creek County Speedway – http://www.creekcountyspeedway.co/
81 Speedway – http://www.race81speedway.com
Caney Valley Speedway – http://www.caneyvalleyspeedway.net/