WIDE OPEN KOKOMO MIDGET GRAND PRIX EXPECTED THIS FRI.-SAT.
This weekend’s “Kokomo Grand Prix” is expected to feature a titanic battle for the USAC National Midget Series point lead.
Shane Golobic, winner of the indoor opener at Du Quoin, Ill. last month, sits atop the standings, but Brady Bacon and a host of challengers are poised to contest that lead when the series visits the Kokomo oval for races Friday and Saturday.
A total of 77 USAC Midget races have been contested at the historic Kokomo track dating back to Forest Parker’s victory in 1956. The fact that the last 10 USAC Midget races there have produced nine different winners attests to the “wide open” expectations for this weekend’s activity. Included in those 10 were a pair of 2011 D1 Midget races.
Darren Hagen won last year’s “Kokomo Grand Prix” over the now-retired Tracy Hines and 2015 USAC “Most Improved” National driver Tanner Thorson. Thorson is currently fourth in the series standings after finishing seventh at Du Quoin. Thorson closed out the 2015 National campaign with an impressive victory in the annual “Turkey Night Grand Prix” at Perris (Calif.) Auto Speedway.
Kokomo has been a staple for USAC participants since the club’s inception and again hosts the popular “Indiana Midget Week” (June), “Indiana Sprint Week” (July) and “Sprint Car Smackdown V” (August) races again this year.
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UPCOMING USAC MIDGET NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP EVENT
DATE: Friday, April 8-9, 2016
SERIES: USAC Midget National Championship
TRACK: Kokomo Speedway (Kokomo, IN) - 1/4-Mile, High-Banked Dirt Oval
EVENT: “Kokomo Grand Prix” featuring the USAC Midget National Championship
STARTING TIMES: Gates open at 4pm. Racing at 7pm.
TICKETS: General Admission: $20.00; Pit Pass (All Ages): $35.00. Kids 10 & Under FREE with Paid Adult (General Admission Only)
TRACK ADDRESS: 2455 N. Davis Rd., Kokomo, IN, 46901
TRACK PHONE: (765) 459-3877
TRACK WEBSITE: http://kokomospeedway.net
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PAST “KOKOMO GRAND PRIX” WINNERS
4/11/2014: Rico Abreu
4/12/2014: Rico Abreu
4/11/2015: Darren Hagen
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2016 USAC MIDGET NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP DRIVER POINT STANDINGS (TOP-10)
1. (70) Shane Golobic (R)
2. (67) Shane Cottle
3. (61) Brady Bacon
4. (55) Spencer Bayston
5. (52) Tanner Thorson
6. (49) David Budres (R)
7. (43) Zach Daum
8. (41) Anton Hernandez (R)
9. (37) Chad Boat
10. (35) Tyler Thomas
**(R) represents a USAC Midget National Championship Rookie Driver
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2016 USAC MIDGET NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP OWNER POINT STANDINGS (TOP-10)
1. (70) Matt Wood Racing #17w
2. (67) 5IVE-6IX, Inc. #56
3. (61) FMR Racing #76m
4. (58) Rich Roney #1T
5. (55) Keith Kunz/Curb-Agajanian #97
6. (52) Keith Kunz/Curb-Agajanian #67
7. (49) Manic Racing #31
8. (43) Dan Daum #5D
9. (41) A.J. Felker #37
10. (37) Tucker-Boat Motorsports #84
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2016 USAC MIDGET NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE & RESULTS
Mar 19: &&& DuQuoin, IL - Southern Illinois Center
WINNER: Shane Golobic
Apr 8: Kokomo, IN - Kokomo Speedway
Apr 9: Kokomo, IN - Kokomo Speedway
May 31: @@@ Montpelier, IN - Montpelier Motor Speedway
Jun 1: @@@ Gas City, IN - Gas City I-69 Speedway
Jun 2: @@@ Putnamville, IN - Lincoln Park Speedway
Jun 3: @@@ Bloomington, IN - Bloomington Speedway
Jun 4: @@@ Lawrenceburg, IN - Lawrenceburg Speedway
Jun 5: @@@ Kokomo, IN - Kokomo Speedway
Jun 17: West Memphis, AR - Riverside International Speedway
Jun 18: West Memphis, AR - Riverside International Speedway
Aug 2: Fairbury, NE – Jefferson County Speedway
Aug 3: Beloit, KS - Solomon Valley Raceway
Aug 5: Belleville, KS - Belleville High Banks
Aug 6: Belleville, KS - Belleville High Banks
Aug 14: *** York Haven, PA - Susquehanna Speedway
Aug 15: *** Spring Run, PA - Path Valley Speedway Park
Aug 16: *** Newmanstown, PA - Lanco’s Clyde Martin Memorial Speedway
Aug 17: *** Abbottstown, PA - Lincoln Speedway
Sep 24: Rossburg, OH - Eldora Speedway
Oct 6: Granite City, IL - Tri-City Speedway
Oct 7: Granite City, IL - Tri-City Speedway
Oct 8: Granite City, IL - Tri-City Speedway
Oct 21: %%% Wayne City, IL - Wayne County Speedway
Nov 24: ### Ventura, CA - Ventura Raceway
------------------------ KEY DEFINITIONS -------------------------
Races noted with &&& represent an indoor race.
Races noted with @@@ represent Indiana Midget Week.
Races noted with *** represent a Co-Sanctioned race with ARDC.
Races noted with %%% represent a co-sanctioned race with POWRi.
Races noted with ### represent a Co-Sanctioned race with the USAC Western Midget Championship.
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2016 USAC MIDGET NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP STATISTICS
FEATURE WINS:
1. (1) Shane Golobic (Southern Illinois Center on March 19)
FEATURE LAPS LED:
1. (28) Shane Cottle
2. (17) Shane Golobic
3. (5) Bryan Clauson
TOP-FIVE FEATURE FINISHES:
1. (1) Brady Bacon, Shane Cottle, Shane Golobic, Thomas Meseraull & Tony Roney
TOP-TEN FEATURE FINISHES:
1. (1) Brady Bacon, Spencer Bayston, Travis Berryhill, David Budres, Shane Cottle, Zach Daum, Shane Golobic, Thomas Meseraull, Tony Roney & Tanner Thorson
HEAT RACE WINS (Presented by Simpson Race Products, Competition Suspension (CSI), Benic Enterprises & Indy Race Parts):
1. (1) Chase Briscoe, Bryan Clauson, Shane Cottle, Zach Daum, Shane Golobic, Dereck King & Jake Neuman
SEMI WINS:
1. (1) Travis Berryhill & Thomas Meseraull
QUALIFYING RACE WINS:
1. (1) Chad Boat, David Budres, Bryan Clauson & Shane Cottle
C-MAIN WINS:
1. (1) Chris Andrews & Dave Darland
FEATURE STARTS:
1. (1) Terry Babb, Brady Bacon, Spencer Bayston, Travis Berryhill, Chad Boat, David Budres, Bryan Clauson, Shane Cottle, Zach Daum, Michelle Decker, Andrew Felker, Shane Golobic, Anton Hernandez, Dereck King, Thomas Meseraull, Justin Peck, Daniel Robinson, Tony Roney, Holly Shelton, Tyler Thomas, Tanner Thorson and Gage Walker
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KSE RACING PRODUCTS HARD CHARGER OF THE RACE
1. March 19 – Southern Illinois Center: Tanner Thorson (12 positions)
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ALL-TIME USAC MIDGET NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP FEATURE WINS
1. [111 wins] Mel Kenyon
2. [95 wins] Rich Vogler
3. [78 wins] Bob Wente
4. [63 wins] Bob Tattersall
5. [59 wins] Sleepy Tripp
6. [48 wins] Jimmy Davies
7. [36 wins] Bryan Clauson
8. [35 wins] Tracy Hines
9. [31 wins] Gene Hartley & Chuck Rodee
11. [30 wins] Dave Darland, Mike McGreevy & Johnny Parsons
14. [27 wins] Gary Bettenhausen & Tony Stewart
16. [25 wins] Darren Hagen, Parnelli Jones & Dave Strickland
19. [24 wins] Bill Engelhart
20. [23 wins] Tom Bigelow, Pancho Carter, Tommy Copp, Kevin Olson & Billy Vukovich
25. [22 wins] Bobby East & Shorty Templeman
27. [21 wins] Steve Cannon, Jimmy Caruthers, Rex Easton & Ken Schrader
31. [20 wins] A.J. Foyt
32. [19 wins] Jerry Coons Jr., Stan Fox & Jason Leffler
35. [18 wins] Dave Steele
36. [17 wins] Jay Drake & J.J. Yeley
38. [16 wins] George Amick, Christopher Bell, Billy Cantrell, Lee Kunzman, Bobby Olivero & Henry Pens
44. [15 wins] Don Branson & Larry Rice
46. [14 wins] Chuck Arnold, Jack Turner & Leroy Warriner
49. [13 wins] Rico Abreu, Steve Knepper, Don Meacham, Ryan Newman & Stevie Reeves
54. [12 wins] Danny Caruthers, Gene Force, Russ Gamester, Jeff Gordon, Bobby Grim, Kyle Larson & Ron Shuman
61. [11 wins] Kasey Kahne, Jimmy Knight, Bob McLean, Johnny Moorhouse, Bobby Santos & Brad Sweet
67. [10 wins] Allen Heath, Doug Kalitta, Brad Kuhn, Steve Lotshaw, Jerry McClung & Chuck Weyant
73. [9 wins] Billy Boat, Tony Elliott & Chuck Gurney
76. [8 wins] Merle Bettenhausen, Tony Bettenhausen, Hank Butcher, Kevin Doty, Dan Drinan, Ronnie Duman, Brian Gerster, Kenny Irwin Jr, Eddie Johnson, Michael Lewis, Andy Michner & Josh Wise
88. [7 wins] Tommy Astone, Jack Hewitt, Don Horvath, Page Jones, Kenneth Nichols, Larry Patton, Les Scott, Len Sutton & Johnnie Tolan
97. [6 wins] Donnie Beechler, George Benson, Dana Carter, Bob Cicconi, Robby Flock, Nick Fornoro Jr., Arnie Knepper, Ricky Shelton, Mike Streicher, Dave Strickland, Jr., & Roger West
108. [5 wins] Mike Bliss, Lonnie Caruthers, Larry Dickson, Mike Fedorcak, Burt Foland, Mack McClellan, Danny McKnight, Cliff Spalding, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., & Jerry Weeks
119. [4 wins] Caleb Armstrong, Teddy Beach, Johnny Boyd, Frank Burany, Russ Congdon, Ray Elliott, Aaron Fike, Danny Frye, Billy Garrett, Mike Gregg, Jim Hettinger, John Heydenreich, Bubby Jones, Levi Jones, Andy Linden, Bobby Marshman, Roger McCluskey, Billy Mehner, Ken Nichols, Jeff Nuckles, Jan Opperman, Gary Ponzini, Davey Ray, Eddie Sachs, Don Schilling, Sam Sessions, George Snider, Dale Swaim, Kevin Swindell, Tanner Thorson & Rodger Ward
149. [3 wins] John Batts, Gays Biro, Shane Cottle, Allen Crowe, Zach Daum, Bruce Field, A.J. Fike, Drew Fornoro, Gene Gennetten, Rick Goudy, Bob Hare, Bob Hauck, Jeff Heywood, Bill Homeier, Sam Isenhower, Jim Keeker, Jim McClean, Warren Mockler, Dave Moses, Earl Motter, Jerry Nuckles, Danny Oakes, Johnnie Parsons, Porky Rachwitz, Johnny Riva, Johnny Roberts, Lowell Sachs, Billy Shuman, Tom Steiner, Bobby Unser & Billy Wease
180. [2 wins] Al Alpern, Sonny Ates, Brady Bacon, Johnny Baldwin, Jim Beckley, Dean Billings, Alan Brown, Jack Calabrase, Johnny Cofer, Mel Cornett, Cotton Farmer, Terry Farrar, Joe Garson, Chuck Gurney, Jr., Kyle Hamilton, Bob Hogle, Rick Hood, P.J. Jones, Critter Malone, Jimmy McCune, Michael Pickens, Aaron Pollock, Barry Reed, Lloyd Ruby, Joe Saldana, Tom Sellberg, Tony Simon, Danny Stratton, Kody Swanson, Kevin Thomas, Jr., Steve Troxell, Don Vogler, Bruce Walkup, Terry Wente, Johnny White, Tommy White & Cole Whitt
217. [1 win] John Andretti, Mario Andretti, Mike Appio, Dick Atkins, Paul Bates, Harry Beck, Bud Bogard, Tony Bonadies, Dan Boorse, Don Boorse, Dwight Brown, Steve Buckwalter, Barry Butterworth, Gary Byers, Larry Cannon, Tyce Carlson, Ed Carpenter, Dane Carter, Billy Cassella, Bill Chennault, Bill Clemons, Roy Cook, Jr., Ryan Durst, Edgar Elder, Todd Forbes, Joe Gaerte, Bradley Galedrige, Steve Gennetten, Elmer George, Potsy Goacher, Shane Golobic, David Gough, Ron Gregory, Norm Hall, Bob Harkey, Vern Harriman, Scott Hatton, Al Herman, Jordan Hermansader, Mike Hess, Jim Hines, Ted Hines, Shane Hmiel, Dean Holden, Blake Hollingsworth, Chuck Hulse, Buddy Irwin, Eddie Jackson, Van Johnson, Brent Kaeding, Bud Kaeding, Jimmy Kirk, Kevin Koch, Randy Koch, Bill Kollman, Cory Kruseman, Michael Lang, Greg Leffler, Larry McCloskey, Jim McElreath, Mel McGaughy, John Meyers, J.R. Miller, Travis Miniea, Russ Moynagh, Richard Myhre, Dick Northam, Hank Nykaza, Brian Olson, Danny O'Neill, Jim Packard, Wally Pankratz, Forrest Parker, Gene Pastor, Gary Patterson, Danny Pens, Jiggs Peters, Dick Pole, Richard Powell, Buddy Rackley, Keith Rauch, Dave Ray, Jimmy Reece, Bob Richards, Bruce Robey, Johnny Rodriguez, Gene Roehl, Jack Runyon, Sam Sauer, Dutch Schaefer, Ryan Scott, Frank Secrist, Jimmy Sills, Jigger Sirois, Lee Smith, Ron Smoker, Ned Spath, J.P. Standley, Graham Standring, Jerry Stone, Tanner Swanson, Buddy Taylor, Randy Tolsma, Leo Tucker, Bob Veith, Joe Walter, Eric Wilkins, Mauri Wilson, Doug Wolfgang & Billy Wood
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ALL-TIME USAC NATIONAL MIDGET CHAMPIONS
1956: Shorty Templeman; 1957: Shorty Templeman; 1958: Shorty Templeman; 1959: Gene Hartley; 1960: Jimmy Davies; 1961: Jimmy Davies; 1962: Jimmy Davies; 1963: Bob Wente; 1964: Mel Kenyon; 1965: Mike McGreevy; 1966: Mike McGreevy; 1967: Mel Kenyon; 1968: Mel Kenyon; 1969: Bob Tattersall; 1970: Jimmy Caruthers; 1971: Danny Caruthers; 1972: Pancho Carter; 1973: Larry Rice; 1974: Mel Kenyon; 1975: Sleepy Tripp; 1976: Sleepy Tripp; 1977: Mel Kenyon; 1978: Rich Vogler; 1979: Steve Lotshaw; 1980: Rich Vogler; 1981: Mel Kenyon; 1982: Kevin Olson; 1983: Rich Vogler; 1984: Tom Bigelow; 1985: Mel Kenyon; 1986: Rich Vogler; 1987: Kevin Olson; 1988: Rich Vogler; 1989: Russ Gamester; 1990: Jeff Gordon; 1991: Mike Streicher; 1992: Stevie Reeves; 1993: Stevie Reeves; 1994: Tony Stewart; 1995: Tony Stewart; 1996: Kenny Irwin Jr.; 1997: Jason Leffler; 1998: Jason Leffler; 1999: Jason Leffler; 2000: Kasey Kahne; 2001: Dave Darland; 2002: Dave Darland; 2003: J.J. Yeley; 2004: Bobby East; 2005: Josh Wise; 2006: Jerry Coons, Jr.; 2007: Jerry Coons, Jr.; 2008: Cole Whitt; 2009: Brad Kuhn; 2010: Bryan Clauson (Overall) & Darren Hagen (Pavement); 2011: Bryan Clauson (Overall) & Darren Hagen (Pavement); 2012: Darren Hagen (Overall), Darren Hagen (Pavement) & Darren Hagen (Dirt); 2013: Darren Hagen (Pavement) & Christopher Bell (Dirt); 2014: Rico Abreu; 2015: Tracy Hines