By Richie Murray
Indianapolis, Indiana (September 11, 2024)………Circle City Raceway never disappoints when the USAC AMSOIL Sprint Car National Championship visits the 1/4-mile dirt oval located on the southeast side of Indianapolis, Indiana.
Time and time again, barnburners have been the name of the game, and this Friday night, September 13, past Circle City Raceway USAC Sprint Car winners Logan Seavey, Kyle Cummins, Brady Bacon, C.J. Leary, Kevin Thomas Jr. and more look to continue that trend, especially after how last September’s final lap ensued with a photo finish decided by a matter of a blink of an eye.
It’s round number 38 of the USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Car season, and here’s six appealing storylines to get you amped up for the weekend.
SEAVEY’S CIRCLE CITY STREAK
In this race last September at Circle City, all Logan Seavey led of the 30-lap feature was about the final 10 feet or so in pulling off an extraordinary victory after passing Shane Cottle around the outside on the last lap.
That finish was the first of Seavey’s three USAC National Sprint Car victories at Circle City, which makes him the winningest series driver in the short history of the track which dates back in this form to 2021. Nonetheless, he has proved dominant of late at Circle City, winning each of the past two series rounds at the track in May and July of this year.
It also just so happens to be the last place Seavey won a USAC National Sprint Car feature at, eight races and a month-and-a-half ago on July 31. His next USAC Sprint win would be historic as it would be number 14, which would tie Tom Bigelow’s all-time record series mark set in 1977.
COUNT ON COTTLE
One name missing thus far from Circle City’s winners list is Shane Cottle. However, when it comes to this place, Cottle doesn’t have very many equals despite the absence of a win for he and his Epperson Racing No. 2E.
He suffered heartbreak on the final lap of the September Circle City race in 2023 when he was passed on the final turn of the final lap by Logan Seavey, finishing second.
Cottle also owns finishes of 3rd twice here of late, including in July, and has started on the front row in all three of his starts at Circle City in 2024. In fact, he was even the fast qualifier for this race last fall. Watch for Cottle to be a contender once more, right around the bottom.
BACON MAKIN’ A PUSH
Brady Bacon is trying one last mad dash in his drive for five career USAC National Sprint Car championships. He enters Circle City on a string of 15 consecutive top-10 finishes with the series, including a victory in the most recent round at Arkansas’ Texarkana 67 Speedway last Saturday night.
Bacon (Broken Arrow, Okla.) now trails Logan Seavey by 75 points in pursuit of the 2024 USAC National Sprint Car driving title and won the first series feature of this year at Circle City back in May of this year.
With 84 points maximum available during a night of racing, every point is critical for Bacon, and he can’t afford to slip now with a razor thin margin for error. After all, Seavey has nearly matched him every step of the way with 16 top-tens in his past 17 starts, thus preventing Bacon from gaining any valuable ground on him.
CUMMINS REACHING FOR REDEMPTION
Kyle Cummins sure sold some t-shirts with last Saturday’s performance at Texarkana’s $10,000-to-win feature. However, while he did unload some merch, he walked away emptyhanded without a trophy in his possession.
Redemption would sure be sweet for Cummins this Friday night at Circle City where he’s seemingly always in contention for the win or for the Mr. Excitement award.
Cummins (Princeton, Ind.) owns a pair of USAC National Sprint Car victories at Circle City, both in 2023, and finished fourth most recently at the track back in July. As the first year Petty Performance Racing team continues to jell, a victory at Circle City would sure be a feather in their cap.
MUSICAL CHAIRS LINED UP IN A CIRCLE
The combinations of victorious drivers and teams in USAC National Sprint Car competition at Circle City runs the gamut. As it turns out, the pieces of the puzzle are everywhere you look and these new-ish combinations now want to amalgamate their winning ways in concert.
Reinbold-Underwood Motorsports scored the first ever USAC National Sprint Car victory at Circle City in 2021. This Friday, RUM’s Mitchel Moles looks to take them back for his personal first score at the track.
C.J. Leary punctuated a victory at Circle City with Michael Motorsports in 2022, just as Kevin Thomas Jr. did with BGE Dougherty Motorsports that same year. Nowadays, Leary is in the BGE Dougherty stable as each party shoots for a return to Circle City’s winners’ circle as a team.
Meanwhile, Thomas Jr. is the wheelman for Rock Steady Racing, who twice won with Kyle Cummins at Circle City in 2023. Logan Seavey scored for 2B Racing at September’s Circle City race a year ago, a ride whose seat is now occupied by series Rookie Kale Drake.
The 2B had been driven earlier this season by Swanson at Circle City, after Swanson himself won at Circle City for Team AZ Racing in 2023. Daison Pursley will now try to take the Team AZ machine back to victory lane at Circle City.
Okay, now you can take a breath after reading that. Phew.
FRIDAY THE 13TH
We’d be remiss if we didn’t mention that this weekend’s Circle City date lands on Friday the 13th. This occasion will mark just the eighth USAC National Sprint Car event held on Friday the 13th over the years.
Oddly enough, three of them occurred on Friday, September 13, the same date of this weekend’s show. Jim Mahoney captured the first such event on this date at Kansas City, Kansas’ Lakeside Speedway on 9/13/1991. Billy Pauch answered with his first and only career USAC National Sprint Car victory on 9/13/1996 at Pennsylvania’s Williams Grove Speedway. Justin Grant was the most recent victor on 9/13/2019 at the Terre Haute (Ind.) Action Track.
Additionally, Brian Tyler collected a score on Friday the 13th, 7/13/2001 at Ohio’s Toledo Speedway. Daron Clayton was triumphant at Indiana’s Gas City I-69 Speedway on 7/13/2007 while Bryan Clauson performed likewise on 7/13/2012 and Robert Ballou achieved the same feat on 11/13/2015 at California’s Perris Auto Speedway.
RACE DETAILS:
On Friday, September 13, at Circle City, the program card features the USAC AMSOIL Sprint Car National Championship, plus the USAC Midwest Thunder SpeeD2 Midgets and UMP Modifieds.
General admission tickets will be available at the ticket booth the day of the event. Advance tickets are now on sale at www.circlecityraceway.com. General admission tickets for ages 13-64 are $30. General admission tickets for ages 6-12 are $15. General admission tickets for ages 5 and under are free. General admission tickets for Seniors 65+ & military are $28. Pit passes for ages 11 and older are $45 and two-day pit passes are $80. Pit passes are $45.
Pits open at 4pm Eastern, front gates open at 5:30pm, drivers meeting at 5:45pm & engine heat at 6:15pm, followed by hot laps with qualifying and racing immediately following.
Friday’s Circle City Raceway event can be watched LIVE on FloRacing at https://flosports.link/usac.
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USAC AMSOIL SPRINT CAR NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS: 1-Logan Seavey-2502, 2-Brady Bacon-2427, 3-Daison Pursley-2269, 4-C.J. Leary-2245, 5-Kevin Thomas Jr.-2187, 6-Mitchel Moles-2172, 7-Robert Ballou-2114, 8-Justin Grant-2051, 9-Kyle Cummins-2002, 10-Carson Garrett-1548.
USAC NATIONAL SPRINT CAR WINS AT CIRCLE CITY RACEWAY
3-Logan Seavey
2-Kyle Cummins
1-Brady Bacon, C.J. Leary, Jake Swanson, Kevin Thomas Jr. & Tanner Thorson
USAC NATIONAL SPRINT CAR WINNERS AT CIRCLE CITY RACEWAY
2021: Tanner Thorson (9/17)
2022: C.J. Leary (7/25) & Kevin Thomas Jr. (9/16)
2023: Jake Swanson (5/24), Kyle Cummins (5/25), Kyle Cummins (7/24) & Logan Seavey (9/15)
2024: Brady Bacon (5/22), Logan Seavey (5/23) & Logan Seavey (7/31)
TRACK RECORDS FOR USAC NATIONAL SPRINT CARS AT CIRCLE CITY RACEWAY:
1 Lap – 9/16/2022 – Mitchel Moles – 11.819 – 76.149 mph
10 Laps – 9/16/2022 – Jadon Rogers – 2:04.23 – 72.446 mph
12 Laps – 9/16/2022 – Jake Swanson – 2:39.26 – 67.814 mph
PAST USAC NATIONAL SPRINT CAR RESULTS AT CIRCLE CITY RACEWAY:
SEPTEMBER 2021 FEATURE: (30 laps, starting positions in parentheses) 1. Tanner Thorson (2), 2. Chris Windom (1), 3. Jake Swanson (10), 4. Brady Bacon (6), 5. C.J. Leary (3), 6. Shane Cottle (5), 7. Emerson Axsom (9), 8. Kevin Thomas Jr. (4), 9. Justin Grant (11), 10. Chase Stockon (12), 11. Jason McDougal (13), 12. Robert Ballou (20), 13. Koby Barksdale (14), 14. Matt Westfall (16), 15. Jadon Rogers (22), 16. Max Adams (7), 17. Brent Beauchamp (17), 18. Thomas Meseraull (8), 19. Brandon Mattox (21), 20. J.J. Hughes (15), 21. Ricky Lewis (18), 22. Travis Berryhill (19). NT
JULY 2022 FEATURE: (30 laps, starting positions in parentheses) 1. C.J. Leary (8), 2. Justin Grant (12), 3. Brady Bacon (4), 4. Chase Stockon (7), 5. Jason McDougal (3), 6. Matt Westfall (16), 7. Shane Cottle (22), 8. Jake Swanson (5), 9. Robert Ballou (10), 10. Ryan Timms (6), 11. Dave Darland (18), 12. Matt McDonald (20), 13. Brandon Mattox (P-23), 14. Briggs Danner (2), 15. Kevin Thomas Jr. (1), 16. Emerson Axsom (9), 17. Brent Beauchamp (14), 18. Logan Seavey (19), 19. Brody Roa (21), 20. Dalton Stevens (17), 21. Mitchel Moles (11), 22. Kyle Cummins (13), 23. Scotty Weir (15). NT
SEPTEMBER 2022 FEATURE: (30 laps, starting positions in parentheses) 1. Kevin Thomas Jr. (2), 2. Brady Bacon (4), 3. Thomas Meseraull (8), 4. C.J. Leary (3), 5. Matt Westfall (1), 6. Robert Ballou (15), 7. Mitchel Moles (6), 8. Emerson Axsom (5), 9. Jadon Rogers (9), 10. Jason McDougal (14), 11. Jake Swanson (13), 12. Logan Seavey (10), 13. Daison Pursley (19), 14. Koby Barksdale (16), 15. Max Adams (12), 16. Chase Stockon (21), 17. Anton Hernandez (7), 18. Kyle Shipley (17), 19. Brandon Mattox (23-P), 20. Matt McDonald (22), 21. J.J. Hughes (18), 22. Geoff Ensign (20), 23. Justin Grant (11). NT
MAY 24, 2023 FEATURE: (30 laps, starting positions in parentheses) 1. Jake Swanson (4), 2. Kyle Cummins (3), 3. Brady Bacon (5), 4. Justin Grant (6), 5. Robert Ballou (1), 6. Mitchel Moles (8), 7. C.J. Leary (12), 8. Chase Stockon (10), 9. Daison Pursley (16), 10. Carson Garrett (7), 11. Emerson Axsom (17), 12. Rylan Gray (2), 13. Logan Seavey (9), 14. Charles Davis Jr. (14), 15. Scotty Weir (18), 16. Thomas Meseraull (19), 17. Jadon Rogers (15), 18. Matt Westfall (11), 19. Kevin Thomas Jr. (13), 20. Tye Mihocko (20), 21. Tyler Hewitt (22), 22. Ricky Lewis (21). NT
MAY 25, 2023 FEATURE: (40 laps, starting positions in parentheses) 1. Kyle Cummins (2), 2. Jake Swanson (3), 3. Brady Bacon (8), 4. Emerson Axsom (7), 5. Matt Westfall (9), 6. Daison Pursley (14), 7. Chase Stockon (18), 8. Thomas Meseraull (5), 9. C.J. Leary (17), 10. Mitchel Moles (15), 11. Logan Seavey (19), 12. Tye Mihocko (12), 13. Justin Grant (6), 14. Robert Ballou (1), 15. Rylan Gray (13), 16. Kevin Thomas Jr. (11), 17. Jadon Rogers (21), 18. Dave Darland (20), 19. Carson Garrett (4), 20. Charles Davis Jr. (10), 21. Jake Scott (16), 22. Sterling Cling (22). NT
JULY 24, 2023 FEATURE: (30 laps, starting positions in parentheses) 1. Kyle Cummins (4), 2. Logan Seavey (3), 3. Shane Cottle (12), 4. Emerson Axsom (8), 5. Xavier Doney (1), 6. Carson Garrett (2), 7. Robert Ballou (10), 8. Jake Swanson (5), 9. C.J. Leary (9), 10. Daison Pursley (16), 11. Justin Grant (11), 12. Chase Stockon (13), 13. Joey Amantea (21), 14. Matt Westfall (22), 15. Brent Beauchamp (17), 16. Brady Bacon (6), 17. Brandon Mattox (15), 18. Braxton Cummings (19), 19. Kevin Thomas Jr. (20), 20. Sterling Cling (18), 21. Charles Davis Jr. (14), 22. Mitchel Moles (7). NT
SEPTEMBER 15, 2023 FEATURE: (30 laps, starting positions in parentheses) 1. Logan Seavey (2), 2. Shane Cottle (6), 3. Robert Ballou (14), 4. Kyle Cummins (4), 5. Brady Bacon (11), 6. Matt Westfall (7), 7. Justin Grant (5), 8. Mitchel Moles (15), 9. Emerson Axsom (19), 10. C.J. Leary (3), 11. Thomas Meseraull (20), 12. Brent Beauchamp (9), 13. Chance Crum (22), 14. Jake Swanson (10), 15. Daison Pursley (12), 16. Chase Stockon (17), 17. Brandon Mattox (16), 18. Jack Hoyer (21), 19. Kody Swanson (18), 20. Trey Osborne (13), 21. Jadon Rogers (8), 22. Carson Garrett (1). NT
MAY 22, 2024 FEATURE: (30 laps, starting positions in parentheses) 1. Brady Bacon (5), 2. Kevin Thomas Jr. (3), 3. Daison Pursley (14), 4. Robert Ballou (6), 5. Chase Stockon (9), 6. Mitchel Moles (8), 7. Jadon Rogers (11), 8. Ricky Lewis (10), 9. Chance Crum (20), 10. Matt Westfall (13), 11. Logan Seavey (21), 12. Carson Garrett (24), 13. Hunter Maddox (22), 14. Joey Amantea (18), 15. Justin Grant (4), 16. Jake Swanson (12), 17. Anton Hernandez (15), 18. Shane Cottle (1), 19. C.J. Leary (16), 20. Matt Goodnight (19), 21. Charles Davis Jr. (17), 22. Kyle Cummins (7), 23. Brent Beauchamp (23), 24. Harley Burns (2). NT
MAY 24, 2024 FEATURE: (40 laps, starting positions in parentheses) 1. Logan Seavey (3), 2. Brady Bacon (5), 3. Daison Pursley (7), 4. Ricky Lewis (9), 5. Robert Ballou (8), 6. Kyle Cummins (1), 7. C.J. Leary (6), 8. Chase Stockon (10), 9. Carson Garrett (4), 10. Mitchel Moles (13), 11. Shane Cottle (2), 12. Kevin Thomas Jr. (11), 13. Justin Grant (12), 14. Chance Crum (23), 15. Jake Swanson (18), 16. Jadon Rogers (14), 17. Matt Westfall (16), 18. Brent Beauchamp (20), 19. Brandon Mattox (17), 20. Joey Amantea (21), 21. Harley Burns (24), 22. Anton Hernandez (15), 23. Charles Davis Jr. (19), 24. Frankie Guerrini (22). NT
JULY 31, 2024 FEATURE: (30 laps, starting positions in parentheses) 1. Logan Seavey (2), 2. Kevin Thomas Jr. (5), 3. Shane Cottle (1), 4. Kyle Cummins (3), 5. Briggs Danner (12), 6. Brady Bacon (11), 7. Ricky Lewis (4), 8. Robert Ballou (10), 9. Carson Garrett (8), 10. Anton Hernandez (15), 11. Daison Pursley (9), 12. Matt Westfall (18), 13. Mitchel Moles (7), 14. Jake Swanson (19), 15. Chance Crum (21), 16. Todd Hobson (17), 17. Brayden Fox (14), 18. Chase Stockon (23), 19. Hunter Maddox (26-P), 20. Evan Mosley (22), 21. Joey Amantea (25-P), 22. Harley Burns (20), 23. Kale Drake (24), 24. Justin Grant (13), 25. Kyle Shipley (16), 26. C.J. Leary (6). NT