By Richie Murray
Bloomington, Indiana (June 1, 2021)………As one of the longest-tenured venues on the Indiana Midget Week schedule over the years, the absence of Bloomington Speedway on last season’s IMW schedule left a void for those who love the high speed thrill show that is synonymous with midget racing on the quarter-mile red clay in southern Indiana.
Both the fastest one-lap qualifying run and the fastest 30-lap feature in Indiana Midget Week history have taken place at Bloomington as well as some of the most memorable finishes in series’ history since its debut on the IMW schedule in 2008.
We will, perhaps, see a new, first-time Bloomington IMW feature winner pull into victory lane this Friday night, June 4, in the second round of the series featuring the USAC NOS Energy Drink Midget National Championship. The question remains, which driver will it be?
Will it be the battle-tested winners of the sprint car wars at Bloomington like Thomas, Windom or Bacon? Is it the rising newcomers who may lack Bloomington experience, but are not lacking in desire and fearlessness like Kofoid or Axsom? Will it be the championship pedigree that elevates one to the top at Bloomington like Grant, Seavey or Thorson? Or will it be none of the above?
The mystery is ours to behold and the list of contenders extends as far as the eye can see.
Kevin Thomas Jr. (Cullman, Ala.) owns three career USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Car victories at Bloomington, including the most recent, in April of this season. Back in 2015, Thomas finished as the runner-up during Indiana Midget Week at Bloomington to winner Christopher Bell.
Chris Windom (Canton, Ill.), likewise, has found a plethora of success at Bloomington in the USAC National Sprint Car division, winning twice in his career. His first USAC National Midget win at Bloomington has eluded him thus far after several close calls during Indiana Midget Week, including a runner-up finish in 2011, in addition to a 4th in 2014 & 2019, a 5th in 2012 and a 10th in 2008. In 2012, the USAC career Triple Crown champion was also the fastest qualifier during IMW at Bloomington.
Brady Bacon (Broken Arrow, Okla.) has posted past successes in USAC Sprint Cars at Bloomington, winning once in 2019. He’ll compete in all eight Indiana Midget Week races this year aboard the TKH Motorsports No. 21H, looking to build upon his past IMW results at Bloomington that consists of a pair of 6th place results in 2017 & 2019, and a 7th in both 2008 & 2016.
Thomas Meseraull (San Jose, Calif.), a USAC National Midget winner earlier this year in Ocala, Fla., has a pair of top-ten IMW finishes at Bloomington, each of which came nearly a decade apart from each other, finishing 9th in 2010 and 8th in 2019.
Justin Grant (Ione, Calif.), second in the standings, finished a best of 2nd during IMW at Bloomington in 2017. The reigning USAC Silver Crown champ also owns the 10-lap track record for USAC National Midgets at Bloomington, a 2:03.18 set in 2019.
Tenth in points is Logan Seavey (Sutter, Calif.), the 2019 Indiana Midget Week champion who used a runner-up finish that same year to elevate himself to IMW champ status. Seavey, the 2018 USAC National Midget titlist, possesses the 12-lap USAC Midget track record at Bloomington of 2:40.02, set in 2019.
Tanner Thorson (Minden, Nev.), the 2016 USAC National Midget champion, earned a best Bloomington IMW result of 5th in 2014. Ethan Mitchell (Mooresville, N.C.) earned his first career fast qualifying time and first career top-five finish during Bloomington IMW in 2019, taking 5th.
Jason McDougal (Broken Arrow, Okla.) and Jake Neuman (New Berlin, Ill.) return to Bloomington IMW after previous starts. McDougal took 17th in 2019 while Neuman was 22nd back in 2015.
New Zealand’s Hayden Williams will return to Indiana Midget Week this year for the first time since 2015, a trip which included a 15th place result at Bloomington. He’ll be joined by fellow Kiwis Travis Buckley and Max Guilford as they make the pilgrimage to the U.S.A.
First-time Bloomington IMW feature starting hopefuls include a number of talented drivers with the ability to win any place, any time. Among them are current USAC National Midget point leader and two-time 2021 winner Buddy Kofoid (Penngrove, Calif.); Kokomo Grand Prix opening night winner Emerson Axsom (Franklin, Ind.); Daison Pursley (Locust Grove, Okla.); Cannon McIntosh (Bixby, Okla.); Kyle Cummins (Princeton, Ind.); and Kaylee Bryson (Muskogee, Okla.).
Series Rookies eying first career Bloomington Speedway feature starts in a midget include top-ranking Rookie Bryant Wiedeman (Colby, Kan.), Chase Randall (Waco, Texas), Brenham Crouch (Lubbock, Texas), Hayden Reinbold (Gilbert, Ariz.) and Brian Carber (Pipersville, Pa.).
Bloomington’s Indiana Midget Week round will feature the USAC NOS Energy Drink Midget National Championship and Bloomington Sprint Cars.
Save $5 with purchase of advance tickets at www.TracPass.com. Tickets and pit passes will also be sold at the gate. Adult general admission tickets at the gate are $30 with ages 10 and under free. Pit passes are $35 for adults with ages 10 and under $15.
On Friday, the pits open at 4pm EDT with grandstands opening at 5pm, drivers meeting at 5:30 and hot laps at 6pm.
Every Indiana Midget Week event will be streamed LIVE on FloRacing at https://bit.ly/3dgONXz.
2021 INDIANA MIDGET WEEK SCHEDULE:
Jun 3: Paragon Speedway – Paragon, IN
Jun 4: Bloomington Speedway – Bloomington, IN
Jun 5: Lawrenceburg Speedway – Lawrenceburg, IN
Jun 6: Tri-State Speedway – Haubstadt, IN
Jun 9: Circle City Raceway – Indianapolis, IN
Jun 10: Lincoln Park Speedway – Putnamville, IN
Jun 11: Gas City I-69 Speedway – Gas City, IN
Jun 12: Kokomo Speedway – Kokomo, IN
BLOOMINGTON INDIANA MIDGET WEEK WINS:
3-Christopher Bell
2-Tyler Courtney
1-Bryan Clauson, Shane Cottle, Levi Jones, Brad Kuhn, Kyle Larson & Davey Ray
BLOOMINGTON INDIANA MIDGET WEEK WINNERS:
2008: Davey Ray (8/8)
2009: Brad Kuhn (6/12)
2010: Shane Cottle (6/18)
2011: Kyle Larson (6/10)
2012: Levi Jones (6/15)
2013: Bryan Clauson (6/14)
2014: Christopher Bell (6/13)
2015: Christopher Bell (6/12)
2016: Christopher Bell (6/3)
2017: Tyler Courtney (6/9)
2019: Tyler Courtney (6/7)
BLOOMINGTON USAC NATIONAL MIDGET WINS:
3-Christopher Bell
2-Tyler Courtney & Russ Gamester
1-Bryan Clauson, Shane Cottle, Tony Elliott, Levi Jones, Brad Kuhn, Kyle Larson, Davey Ray, Stevie Reeves, Tony Stewart & Bob Tattersall
BLOOMINGTON USAC NATIONAL MIDGET WINNERS:
1970: Bob Tattersall (10/3)
1992: Russ Gamester (6/26)
1993: Tony Elliott (6/18) & Stevie Reeves (8/27)
1994: Russ Gamester (6/24) & Tony Stewart (8/19)
2008: Davey Ray (8/8)
2009: Brad Kuhn (6/12)
2010: Shane Cottle (6/18)
2011: Kyle Larson (6/10)
2012: Levi Jones (6/15)
2013: Bryan Clauson (6/14)
2014: Christopher Bell (6/13)
2015: Christopher Bell (6/12)
2016: Christopher Bell (6/3)
2017: Tyler Courtney (6/9)
2019: Tyler Courtney (6/7)
TRACK RECORDS FOR USAC NATIONAL MIDGETS AT BLOOMINGTON SPEEDWAY:
1 Lap – 6/3/2016 – Christopher Bell – 11.301 – 79.639 mph
8 Laps – 6/18/2010 – Dave Darland – 1:36.17 – 74.867 mph
10 Laps – 6/7/2019 – Justin Grant – 2:03.18 – 73.064 mph
12 Laps – 6/7/2019 – Logan Seavey – 2:40.02 – 67.492 mph
30 Laps – 6/9/2017 – Tyler Courtney – 6:57.95 – 64.601 mph
PAST INDIANA MIDGET WEEK FEATURE RESULTS AT BLOOMINGTON SPEEDWAY:
2008 FEATURE: (30 laps) 1. Davey Ray, 2. Brad Sweet, 3. Cole Whitt, 4. Tracy Hines, 5. Gary Altig, 6. Brad Kuhn, 7. Brady Bacon, 8. Dave Darland, 9. Levi Jones, 10. Chris Windom, 11. Thomas Meseraull, 12. Jeff Bland Jr., 13. Shane Cottle, 14. Steve Buckwalter, 15. Bobby East, 16. Bradley Galedrige, 17. Dakoda Armstrong,18. Danny Stratton, 19. Brad Loyet, 20. Todd Wanless, 21. Josh Ford, 22. Chad Boat, 23. Bryan Clauson, 24. Dustin Morgan. NT
2009 FEATURE: (30 laps) 1. Brad Kuhn, 2. Brad Sweet, 3. Josh Wise, 4. Tracy Hines, 5. Bryan Clauson, 6. Steve Buckwalter, 7. Chad Boat, 8. Jerry Coons Jr., 9. Brent Beauchamp, 10. Shane Hmiel, 11. Thomas Meseraull, 12. Darren Hagen, 13. Cole Whitt, 14. Kevin Swindell, 15. Nathan High, 16. Kody Swanson, 17. Ryan Kaplan, 18. Levi Jones, 19. Cole Carter, 20. Dakoda Armstrong, 21. Zach Daum, 22. Matt Sherrell, 23. Brad Loyet, 24. Bobby East. NT
2010 FEATURE: (30 laps) 1. Shane Cottle, 2. Tracy Hines, 3. Bryan Clauson, 4. Brad Sweet, 5. Steve Buckwalter, 6. Dave Darland, 7. Jerry Coons Jr., 8. Brent Beauchamp, 9. Thomas Meseraull, 10. Brad Kuhn, 11. Levi Jones, 12. Brad Loyet, 13. Matt Smith, 14. Billy Pauch, Jr., 15. Shane Hmiel, 16. Don Droud Jr., 17. Henry Clarke, 18. Darren Hagen, 19. Matt Westfall, 20. Bobby East, 21. Davey Ray, 22. Caleb Armstrong. NT
2011 FEATURE: (30 laps) 1. Kyle Larson, 2. Chris Windom, 3. Shane Cottle, 4. Caleb Armstrong, 5. Bobby East, 6. Bryan Clauson, 7. Tracy Hines, 8. Michael Pickens, 9. Levi Jones, 10. Steve Buckwalter, 11. Darren Hagen, 12. Hunter Schuerenberg, 13. Brad Kuhn, 14. Nick Wean, 15. Davey Ray, 16. Trevor Kobylarz, 17. Tanner Swanson, 18. Matt Smith, 19. Kellen Conover, 20. Jerry Coons Jr., 21. Alex Bright, 22. Zach Daum, 23. Billy Pauch Jr., 24. Levi Roberts, NT
2012 FEATURE: (30 laps) 1. Levi Jones, 2. Jerry Coons, Jr., 3. Shane Cottle, 4. Darren Hagen, 5. Chris Windom, 6. Brad Kuhn, 7. Bobby East, 8. Tracy Hines, 9. Rico Abreu, 10. Steve Buckwalter, 11. Mario Clouser, 12. Alex Bright, 13. Davey Ray, 14. Chris Bell, 15. Trevor Kobylarz, 16. Nick Wean, 17. Nathan Smee, 18. Scott Hatton, 19. Caleb Armstrong, 20. Dillon Welch, 21. Zach Daum, 22. Michael Pickens, 23. Chase Barber, 24. C.J. Leary. NT
2013 FEATURE: (30 laps) 1. Bryan Clauson, 2. Christopher Bell, 3. Rico Abreu, 4. Davey Ray, 5. Jerry Coons Jr., 6. Michael Pickens, 7. Darren Hagen, 8. Caleb Armstrong, 9. Alex Bright, 10. Austin Brown, 11. Levi Jones, 12. Tanner Thorson, 13. Brad Kuhn, 14. Brady Bacon, 15. Ryan Criswell, 16. Dalton Armstrong, 17. Andrew Felker, 18. Dave Darland, 19. Dillon Welch, 20. Tracy Hines, 21. Zach Daum, 22. Shane Cockrum. NT
2014 FEATURE: (30 laps) 1. Christopher Bell, 2. Rico Abreu, 3. Bryan Clauson, 4. Chris Windom, 5. Tanner Thorson, 6. Zach Daum, 7. Michael Pickens, 8. Damion Gardner, 9. Parker Price-Miller, 10. Tracy Hines, 11. Kevin Thomas, Jr., 12. Nathan Smee, 13. Trey Marcham, 14. Dave Darland, 15. Tyler Thomas, 16. Steve Buckwalter, 17. Seth Motsinger, 18. Justin Grant, 19. Brock Maskovich, 20. Alex Bright, 21. Tyler Courtney, 22. Brady Bacon, 23. Andrew Felker. NT
2015 FEATURE: (30 laps) 1. Christopher Bell, 2. Kevin Thomas Jr., 3. Bryan Clauson, 4. Rico Abreu, 5. Jerry Coons Jr., 6. Spencer Bayston, 7. Tyler Thomas, 8. Tracy Hines, 9. Chase Stockon, 10. Brad Mosen, 11. Davey Ray, 12. Brenden Bright, 13. Nathan Smee, 14. C.J. Leary, 15. Hayden Williams, 16. Tyler Courtney, 17. Ryan Bernal, 18. Gage Walker, 19. Chett Gehrke, 20. Darren Hagen, 21. Ronnie Gardner, 22. Jake Neuman, 23. Alex Bright, 24. Isaac Chapple. NT
2016 FEATURE: (30 laps) 1. Christopher Bell, 2. Dave Darland, 3. Bryan Clauson, 4. Shane Golobic, 5. Spencer Bayston, 6. Carson Macedo, 7. Brady Bacon, 8. Chad Boat, 9. Tyler Thomas, 10. Rico Abreu, 11. Tanner Thorson, 12. Steve Buckwalter, 13. Garrett Aitken, 14. Davey Ray, 15. Ryan Greth, 16. Gage Walker, 17. Austin Brown, 18. Jimi Quin, 19. Tucker Klaasmeyer, 20. David Budres, 21. Jerry Coons Jr., 22. Dayne Kingshott, 23. Zach Daum, 24. Holly Shelton. NT
2017 FEATURE: (30 laps) 1. Tyler Courtney, 2. Justin Grant, 3. Shane Golobic, 4. Jerry Coons, Jr., 5. Chad Boat, 6. Brady Bacon, 7. Gage Walker, 8. Rico Abreu, 9. Michael Pickens, 10. Zach Daum, 11. Holly Shelton, 12. Tyler Thomas, 13. Ronnie Gardner, 14. Ryan Robinson, 15. Tanner Thorson, 16. Spencer Bayston, 17. Dave Darland, 18. Trey Marcham, 19. Tanner Carrick, 20. Alex Bright, 21. Tyler Nelson, 22. Davey Ray. 6:57.95 (New Track Record)
2019 FEATURE: (30 laps, starting position in parentheses) 1. Tyler Courtney (4), 2. Logan Seavey (8), 3. Chad Boat (5), 4. Chris Windom (22), 5. Ethan Mitchell (7), 6. Brady Bacon (9), 7. Michael Pickens (6), 8. Thomas Meseraull (2), 9. Andrew Layser (10), 10. Shane Golobic (18), 11. Zach Daum (24), 12. Zeb Wise (23), 13. Jerry Coons, Jr. (12), 14. Tanner Carrick (11), 15. Tucker Klaasmeyer (13), 16. Jesse Colwell (21), 17. Jason McDougal (19), 18. Dave Darland (20), 19. Holley Hollan (16), 20. Justin Grant (1), 21. Kevin Thomas, Jr. (15), 22. Karsyn Elledge (3), 23. Noah Gass (17), 24. Tanner Thorson (14). NT
INDIANA MIDGET WEEK CHAMPIONS: (2005-2020)
2005: Shane Cottle
2006: Shane Cottle
2007: Jerry Coons Jr.
2008: Tracy Hines
2009: Bryan Clauson
2010: Tracy Hines & Brad Kuhn
2011: Bryan Clauson
2012: Darren Hagen
2013: Christopher Bell
2014: Rico Abreu
2015: Rico Abreu
2016: Bryan Clauson
2017: Shane Golobic
2018: Spencer Bayston
2019: Logan Seavey
2020: Kyle Larson
ALL-TIME INDIANA MIDGET WEEK WINS: (2005-2020)
9-Bryan Clauson & Kyle Larson
5-Christopher Bell
4-Rico Abreu & Tanner Thorson
3-Spencer Bayston, Shane Cottle, Tyler Courtney, Darren Hagen, Brad Kuhn, Michael Pickens
2-Jerry Coons Jr., Davey Ray, Brad Sweet & Chris Windom
1-Brady Bacon, Chad Boat, Steve Buckwalter, Dave Darland, Zach Daum, Jay Drake, Justin Grant, Tracy Hines, Levi Jones, Johnny Rodriguez, Logan Seavey, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Kevin Swindell & Kevin Thomas Jr.