Bryan Hulbert
HUMBOLDT, Kan. (June 16, 2023) Setting the track record, going high point on the night, then leading start to finish Friday night, Matt Covington dominated the American Sprint Car Series at Humboldt Speedway.
Covington’s third win of the season it’s his first with the American Sprint Car Series National Tour in 2023 and the 17th of his career. Humboldt Speedway is the 16th track Covington has claimed a victory at.
A rebound night for Covington after getting tangled up Thursday at Creek County Speedway, Matt talked about that in Victory Lane, “It’s no different than any other year. You have to work through the hardships and learn to enjoy it somehow because that’s what keeps you going and pushes you and allows you to enjoy a night like this. The track was cowboy up a little bit, you know, popping wheelies, having to run the curb, but I had a good time out front with it.”
Getting the point over Tanner Conn at the start, the South Plains Towing/Reece Construction No. 95 wasted no time pulling away as Jordon Mallett worked his way to second on Lap 2. Into traffic quickly, Covington made quick work of the back markers, while Mallett found his rounds blocked.
Caution on Lap 19 for Landon Britt, who rolled to a stop in the third and fourth turns; Covington picked up right where he left off and pulled away to 0.999-seconds at the finish. Jordon Mallett held onto second. Posting his first career National Tour podium, 16-year-old Christopher Townsend held off the charge of Sean McClelland for third. From seventh, McClelland crossed fourth, with Kyler Johnson winning the drag race to the line for fifth.
Finding a line just off the high side on the restart, Jeremy Campbell began picking off cars quickly to grab sixth. Fred Mattox was seventh, followed by Tanner Conn. Suffering an engine change that put Brandon Anderson to the rear of the field, the No. 55b made it back to ninth with Jason Martin going 15th to tenth.
Jason will leave as the point’s leader as Seth Bergman was forced to miss Humboldt to tend to the business that he and his wife own. While his hometown is Snohomish, Wash., Seth and his family reside in Owasso, Okla., and own the Evergreen Coffee, Co. Opening their fourth location, that required Seth’s attention. He plans to continue racing with the American Sprint Car Series as much as possible.
The 19-car field at Humboldt Speedway was topped in The Driver’s Project Qualifying by Matt Covington at 12.076-seconds. AR Dyno Specialty Heat Race wins went to Tanner Conn, Kyler Johnson, and Chris Morgan. The KSE Hard Charger was Jeremy Campbell.
The American Sprint Car Series rolls north to 81-Speedway on Saturday, June 17. Gates open at 3:00 P.M. for the pits and 5:00 P.M. for the stands. Hot Laps are at 6:00 P.M., with racing at 7:00 P.M. (CDT). Tickets are $25 for adults, $20 for seniors and military, and free for kids 10 and under. Other divisions include the JLR Property Management USRA A-Mods, AutoTech Service Super Stocks, and Primal Jerky Mini Stocks.
81-Speedway is located at 7700 N Broadway in Park City, Kan. More information can be found online at https://www.81speedway.com.
The 2023 season will mark the 32nd year of competition for the American Sprint Car Series. Spearheaded by the American Sprint Car Series National Tour, the ASCS Nation includes Regional Tours that encompass both wing and non-wing competition.
Live coverage of the American Sprint Car Series can be found at http://www.racindirt.com.
For other news, notes, and information on any of the tours under the ASCS banner, log onto http://www.ascsracing.com, follow on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter (@ASCSRacing).
Race Results:
ASCS National
Humboldt Speedway (Humboldt, Kan)
Friday, June 16, 2023
Car Count: 19
The Driver’s Project Group Qualifying (Top 4 in each group invert into Heat Races)
The Drivers Project Qualifying 1 (3 Laps): 1. 14-Jordon Mallett, 12.333[7]; 2. 10-Landon Britt, 12.389[2]; 3. 3X-Tanner Conn, 12.413[3]; 4. 10C-Jeremy Campbell, 12.485[1]; 5. 36-Jason Martin, 12.500[6]; 6. 13-Elijah Gile, 12.583[5]; 7. 31-Casey Wills, 12.667[4]
The Drivers Project Qualifying 2 (3 Laps): 1. 95-Matt Covington, 12.076[1]; 2. 3-Howard Moore, 12.374[6]; 3. 2-Chase Porter, 12.411[4]; 4. 45X-Kyler Johnson, 12.421[2]; 5. 11-Austin O’Neal, 12.577[5]; 6. 938-Bradley Fezard, 12.888[3]
The Drivers Project Qualifying 3 (3 Laps): 1. 6-Christopher Townsend, 12.441[4]; 2. 55B-Brandon Anderson, 12.460[6]; 3. 1-Sean McClelland, 12.482[5]; 4. 7C-Chris Morgan, 12.530[2]; 5. 26M-Fred Mattox, 12.648[1]; 6. 91-Michael Day, 12.799[3]
AR Dyno Specialty Heat Races (All drivers advance to the A-Feature)
AR Dyno Specialty Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 3X-Tanner Conn[2]; 2. 10C-Jeremy Campbell[1]; 3. 10-Landon Britt[3]; 4. 14-Jordon Mallett[4]; 5. 36-Jason Martin[5]; 6. 31-Casey Wills[7]; 7. 13-Elijah Gile[6]
AR Dyno Specialty Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 45X-Kyler Johnson[1]; 2. 2-Chase Porter[2]; 3. 95-Matt Covington[4]; 4. 938-Bradley Fezard[6]; 5. 3-Howard Moore[3]; 6. 11-Austin O’Neal[5]
AR Dyno Specialty Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 7C-Chris Morgan[1]; 2. 1-Sean McClelland[2]; 3. 26M-Fred Mattox[5]; 4. 6-Christopher Townsend[4]; 5. 91-Michael Day[6]; 6. 55B-Brandon Anderson[3]
A-Feature
RacinDirt A-Main (30 Laps): 1. 95-Matt Covington[1]; 2. 14-Jordon Mallett[3]; 3. 6-Christopher Townsend[4]; 4. 1-Sean McClelland[7]; 5. 45X-Kyler Johnson[8]; 6. 10C-Jeremy Campbell[12]; 7. 26M-Fred Mattox[10]; 8. 3X-Tanner Conn[2]; 9. 55B-Brandon Anderson[16]; 10. 36-Jason Martin[15]; 11. 938-Bradley Fezard[11]; 12. 7C-Chris Morgan[9]; 13. 91-Michael Day[14]; 14. 13-Elijah Gile[19]; 15. 10-Landon Britt[5]; 16. 2-Chase Porter[6]; 17. 31-Casey Wills[17]; 18. 3-Howard Moore[13]; 19. 11-Austin O’Neal[18]
Lap Leader(s): Matt Covington 1-30
KSE Hard Charger: Jeremy Campbell +6
Driver’s Project Quick Time: Matt Covington 12.076-seconds (NTR)
High Point Driver: Matt Covington
Provisional(s): N/A