By Richie Murray
Speedway, Indiana (September 17, 2020)………In USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Car racing, it’s a tough chore just putting 30 laps together to win a feature race. Now, multiply doing that deed year-after-year-after-year. The drivers who’ve done that are amongst the greatest in the sport.
As we enter this weekend’s pair of races in Indiana, Fri., Sept. 18 at the Terre Haute Action Track and Sat., Sept. 19 at Tri-State Speedway, two drivers this year have elevated themselves amongst those greats to reach the top-10 in terms of consecutive seasons with at least one USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Car feature victory: Brady Bacon and Chase Stockon.
Bacon, of Broken Arrow, Okla., has already won five times with the series this year, and with doing so, has now won in 10 consecutive seasons dating back to 2011. He’s one of only five drivers to accomplish the feat with a decade-straight of winning each year, joining the man who tops them all at 13 years, Sheldon Kinser (1974-1986).
The bittersweetness in Kinser’s tale is that the streak very well could’ve extended even further had his 1987 season not been cut short with his cancer diagnosis which resulted in his death a year later in 1988.
Jack Hewitt (1988-1999) and Dave Darland (2005-2016) each earned streaks of 12 consecutive winning USAC Sprint Car seasons. Bacon’s present and active run of 10 years is equaled with Tom Bigelow (1972-1981).
With his victory last Saturday at Lincoln Park Speedway in Putnamville, Ind., Chase Stockon (Fort Branch, Ind.) extended his winning streak with the series to nine years, dating back to the 2012 season, which equaled A.J. Foyt (1959-1967), Steve Butler (1984-1992) and Tracy Hines (1998-2006).
Along with Bacon and Stockon, four more drivers have extended their winning streaks to new heights past the five-year or more club: Justin Grant (2014-Present), Chris Windom (2015-Present), Tyler Courtney (2016-Present) and C.J. Leary (2016-Present).
Six different drivers have recorded two separate streaks of at least five years in length: Gary Bettenhausen (1968-72 & 1974-78), Rich Vogler (1978-83 & 1986-90), Tony Elliott (1991-96 & 1998-2002), Dave Darland (1997-2001 & 2005-16), Tracy Hines (1998-2006 & 2008-14) and Jack Hewitt (1982-86 & 1988-1999), who won in 17 out of 18 seasons during that stretch.
Pits open for Friday’s Jim Hurtubise Classic at Indiana’s Terre Haute Action Track at 3pm Eastern with grandstands opening at 4pm, the drivers meeting at 6pm and hot laps at 6:30pm. Adult grandstand tickets are $25 while adult infield tickets are $15. Kids 11 and under are free when accompanied by a parent. Pit passes are $30 for members, $35 for non-members.
Saturday’s Haubstadt Hustler at Tri-State Speedway in Haubstadt, Ind. is a 50% capacity event. Adult general admission tickets are $25, students (ages 13-18) are $20 and 12 and under are free. Tickets are available at the gates. Pit passes are $35 apiece. Pits open Saturday at 3pm Central, with grandstands opening at 4pm and cars on track at 6pm.
You can watch Friday Hurtubise Classic and Saturday’s Haubstadt Hustler LIVE on FloRacing at https://bit.ly/3frPoW6.
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CONSECUTIVE YEARS WITH A USAC SPRINT CAR FEATURE WIN:
(As of Sept. 17, 2020)
13 YEARS IN A ROW
Sheldon Kinser (1974-1986)
12 YEARS IN A ROW
Jack Hewitt (1988-1999)
Dave Darland (2005-2016)
10 YEARS IN A ROW
Tom Bigelow (1972-1981)
Brady Bacon (2011-Present)
9 YEARS IN A ROW
A.J. Foyt (1959-1967)
Steve Butler (1984-1992)
Tracy Hines (1998-2006)
Chase Stockon (2012-Present)
8 YEARS IN A ROW
Pancho Carter (1973-1980)
Bud Kaeding (2000-2007)
Bryan Clauson (2009-2016)
7 YEARS IN A ROW
Larry Dickson (1966-1972)
Rollie Beale (1970-1976)
Bruce Walkup (1972-1978)
Jay Drake (2000-2006)
Tracy Hines (2008-2014)
Justin Grant (2014-Present)
6 YEARS IN A ROW
Greg Leffler (1975-1980)
Rich Vogler (1978-1983)
Tony Elliott (1991-1996)
Jerry Coons, Jr. (2005-2010)
Levi Jones (2007-2012)
Jon Stanbrough (2009-2014)
Chris Windom (2015-Present)
5 YEARS IN A ROW
Parnelli Jones (1960-1964)
Don Branson (1962-1966)
Gary Bettenhausen (1968-1972)
Sam Sessions (1971-1975)
Gary Bettenhausen (1974-1978)
Jack Hewitt (1982-1986)
Rich Vogler (1986-1990)
Chet Fillip (1994-1998)
Dave Darland (1997-2001)
Tony Elliott (1998-2002)
Dave Steele (2001-2005)
Robert Ballou (2014-2018)
Thomas Meseraull (2015-2019)
Kevin Thomas, Jr. (2015-2019)
Tyler Courtney (2016-Present)
C.J. Leary (2016-Present)