KASEY KAHNE SEEKS 41ST USAC VICTORY AT HICKORY

Kasey Kahne hopes his driver Brad Sweet can continue his 2010 USAC Mopar National Midget success when the series makes its inaugural appearance at Hickory (N.C.) Motor Speedway March 24-25. A win would be Kasey’s 41st in USAC competition as a driver or a car owner.

Sweet, of Grass Valley, Calif., will pilot Kahne’s Oille’s Bargain Outlet/Auto Value Spike/Mopar at the historic .363-mile paved oval after winning two of the first three races of the 2010 season at Tucson, Ariz. and Las Vegas, Nev.

Kahne won 21 USAC features as a driver before his move to NASCAR in 2004. Since his last USAC win as a driver in 2003, he has since earned 19 USAC feature wins as a car owner with victories in all three of USAC’s premier National series as an owner. Victorious drivers in Kahne entries since 2004 have included Sweet, Brady Bacon, Tyler Walker, Kevin Swindell and Ryan Durst, but Sweet leads the list with 11 wins.

Sweet has nine National Midget wins to his credit and has finished third and second in the last two National Midget Championship Series standings. He’d like to move up one notch this year and occupies the number one position heading into the Hickory doubleheader, the first appearance of USAC’s National Midgets in the Tarheel state in two years.

Sweet already owns victories in the prestigious Belleville (Kansas) Nationals and the “Four-Crown Nationals.”

A total of four 30-lap feature events are on tap at Hickory, featuring both the USAC Midgets and the very competitive Ford Focus Midgets.

Race fans can take advantage of a $5 discount by purchasing tickets on line at www.usacracing.com, by calling the USAC Headquarters at 317-247-5151 or by accessing the following link: http://www.usacracing.com/store/hickory-motor-speedway.html. Tickets are priced at $20 each night but a two-night ticket is available at the price of $35.

Fans attending the March 24-25 Hickory races will also have the opportunity to win a free “Richard Petty Driving Experience” in a 600-horsepower NASCAR-style stock car at Charlotte Motor Speedway!

The Hickory races continue a tradition of USAC racing in the Carolinas which stretches back to 1956 when the USAC Championship Cars raced at Darlington, S.C. The Hickory oval hosted Ford Focus races between 2004 and 2006 but the March 24-25 program marks the debut of USAC National racing at the .363-mile paved oval.

Kody Swanson of Kingsburg, Calif. won USAC’s last National Midget race in the Tarheel state, at Kenly in 2008. Previous National Midget winners in the state included Mel Kenyon at Asheville in 1968, Jim Hettinger at the Charlotte Coliseum in 1990, Tony Stewart at Charlotte Motor Speedway in 1998 and Bobby Santos III at Concord in 2006.

VENTURA RACEWAY HOSTS FORD FOCUS & YOUNG GUNS ‘DOUBLEHEADER”

The 2010 USAC Western Ford Focus and Young Guns Series begin Saturday night at the Ventura (Calif.) Raceway.

Ten different USAC feature winners were crowned during 2009 USAC Ford Focus and Young Guns action at the 1/5-mile dirt oval, one of USAC’s most active tracks.

Rains forced cancellation of last Saturday’s scheduled Ventura season opener, so this Saturday’s program opens the campaign for the southern California oval. In addition to the USAC races, competition is also scheduled for VRA Sprints, Senior Sprints and Sport Compacts.

USAC’s 2009 California Dirt Ford Focus and Young Guns champions were Brody Roa and Kyle Edwards respectively. Under restructured guidelines, Saturday’s races will afford points toward both the overall Western Ford Focus and Young Guns championships, as well as 2010 Dirt Ford Focus and Dirt Young Guns titles.

STRATTON, LOYET TAKE COWTOWN; TITLE TO LOYET

Defending USAC/SMRS Great Plains Midget Champion Brad Loyet of Sunset Hills, Mo. is the early leader in the 2010 series standings after winning last week’s City Vending “Cowtown Midget Championships” title at Cowtown Speedway in Kennedale, Texas, near Fort Worth.

Loyet will continue as the point leader while the series takes a hiatus until joining the USAC Mopar National Midget Series for the April 30 race at Tri-City Speedway in Granite City, Ill.

It appeared that Danny Stratton of Fontana, Calif. was going to “sweep” the Cowtown series but his car failed post-race technical inspection Saturday night after he had appeared to have won the 35-lap finale.

Stratton drove Wayne Simmons' Iowa Speedway F5 Twister/Esslinger Ford to victory in Friday's night's race. He battled with Loyet for the early lead and eventually won the 30-lap race over Don Droud Jr., Zach Daum, Loyet and Kevin Bayer. Loyet led the opening lap and Stratton led the rest of the way.

Loyet emerged the winner of Saturday’s race in the Beaver Stripes & Custom Graphics/Bell Helmets Spike/Esslinger Ford. He scored the victory over Chett Gehrke, Daum, Matt Sherrell and Droud Jr. The Stratton disqualification left Loyet as the official leader of all 35 laps.

DISNEY PACKAGES NOW AVAILABLE FOR THE INAUGURAL “MICKYARD”

USAC has partnered with Disney Sports Travel to offer discounted participant packages for the inaugural running of the “Mickyard” at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida June 16-20, 2010 featuring the USAC .25 Midget series.

The event will be held at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World and will feature USAC .25 Midget drivers ranging in age from 5-17 years old. Packages include tickets to the Walt Disney World theme park, credentialed access to the ESPN Wide World of Sports, transportation services as well as hotel and campground accommodations.

“Were excited about the opportunity to visit the world’s premier destination for kids,” states USAC Director James Spink. “In addition to the intense racing on the track we have arranged for plenty of downtime for families to enjoy the many attractions Disney has to offer.”

For more information on the event visit usacracing.com or call 317-247-5151. For the participant packages visit: wdw.disney.sports.travel@disneysports.com or call 409-939-7810.

LOYET 1ST AT COWTOWN; TAKES 2-RACE TITLE

Kennedale, Texas…….Brad Loyet of Sunset Hills, Mo. won Saturday night’s 35-lap City vending “Cowtown Midget Championships” USAC/SMRs Great Plains Midget feature at Cowtown Speedway near Fort Worth. He piloted the Beaver Stripes & Custom Graphics/Bell Helmets Spike/Esslinger Ford to the victory over Chett Gehrke, Zach Daum, Matt Sherrell and Don Droud Jr.. A post-race technical inspection resulted in the disqualification of the car driven by Danny Stratton, who had taken the checkered flag first after winning Friday’s night’s 30-lapper as well. Loyet’s victory, officially leading all 35 laps, earned him the 2-race “Cowtown Midget Championship.”

USAC/SMRS GREAT PLAINS MIDGET SERIES RACE RESULTS: March 6, 2010 – Fort Worth, Texas – Cowtown Speedway – 2nd Annual City Vending “Cowtown Midget Championships”

FIRST HEAT: (8 laps) 1. Kevin Bayer (#91k Bayer), 2. Andy Shouse (#27 Bishop), 3. Matt Sherrell (#35 Sherrell), 4. Kevin Ramey (#7m Ramey), 5. Andrew Felker (#11a Felker), 6. Ryan Cole (#11R Cole), 7. Andrew Deal (#15D Deal), 8. Eric Sandage (#60 Sandage), 9. Matt Johnson (#85 Johnson). NT

SECOND HEAT: (8 laps) 1. Chett Gehrke (#11c Matteson), 2. Zach Daum (#5 Daum), 3. Brandon Moeller (#39 Moeller), 4. Rusty Dukes (#88D Dukes), 5. Blake Moeller (#18 Moeller), 6. Ryan Harvey (#93x Harvey), 7. Doug McCune (#9 Urbanosky), 8. Steve Newman (#11x Newman), 9. Roy Larkin (#24L Larkin). NT

THIRD HEAT: (8 laps) 1. Brad Loyet (#05 Loyet), 2. Paul White (#1x White), 3. Don Droud Jr. (#44 Smith), 4. Justin Melton (#11 Melton), 5. Ronnie Burke Jr. (#4B Burke), 6. George White (#10w White), 7. Tyler Thompson (#91T Thompson), 8. Murray Erickson (#8 Guardian), 9. Will Pierce (#10 Pierce). NT

DASH: (4 laps) 1. Gehrke, 2. Loyet, 3. Bayer, 4. Shouse, 5. P.White, 6. Stratton (#5k Simmons). NT

SEMI: (10 laps) 1. Deal, 2. Sandage, 3. Thompson, 4. Pierce, 5. Johnson, 6. McCune, 7. Larkin, 8. Harvey, 9. Newman, 10. Erickson. NT

FEATURE: (35 laps) 1. Brad Loyet, 2. Chett Gehrke, 3. Zach Daum, 4. Matt Sherrell, 5. Don Droud Jr., 6. Ronnie Burke Jr., 7. Rusty Dukes, 8. Paul White, 9. Tyler Thompson, 10. Justin Melton, 11. Matt Johnson, 12. Doug McCune, 13. Andrew Felker, 14. Kevin Bayer, 15. Kevin Ramey, 16. Andrew Deal, 17. Andy Shouse, 18. Eric Sandage, 19. Blake Moeller, 20. Brandon Moeller, 21. George White, 22. Will Pierce, 23. Ryan Cole. (NOTE: Danny Stratton car disqualified after winning race for failure to pass post-race technical inspection).

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FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-35 Loyet.

NEW USAC/SMRS GREAT PLAINS MIDGET POINTS: 1-Loyet-272; 2-Droud-252; 3-Daum-242; 4-Gehrke-228; 5-Bayer-226; 6-Sherrell-218; 7-R.Burke-218; 8-Ramey-214; 9-Dukes-206; 10-Melton-204.

NEXT USAC/SMRS GREAT PLAINS MIDGET RACE: April 30 – Pontoon Beach, IL – Tri-City Speedway

STRATTON TAKES "COWTOWN MIDGET CHAMPIONSHIPS" OPENER

Kennedale, Texas.......Danny Stratton of Fontana, Calif. drove Wayne Simmons' Iowa Speedway F5Twister/Esslinger Ford to victory in Friday's night's opening event of the 2nd Annual City Vending "Cowtown Midget Championships" at Cowtown Speedway near Fort Worth. Stratton battled with Brad Loyet for the early lead and eventually won the 30-lap race over Don Droud Jr., Zach Daum, Loyet and Kevin Bayer. Loyet led lap one and Stratton led the other 29 for the win. The "Cowtown Midget Championships" conclude tonight.

USAC/SMRS GREAT PLAINS MIDGET SERIES RACE RESULTS: March 5, 2010 – Fort Worth, Texas – Cowtown Speedway – 2nd Annual City Vending “Cowtown Midget Championships”

FIRST HEAT: (8 laps) 1. Don Droud Jr. (#44 Smith), 2. Andrew Deal (#15D Deal), 3. Kevin Bayer (#91k Bayer), 4. Ryan Cole (#11R Cole), 5. Ronnie Burke Jr. (#4B Burke), 6. Blake Moeller (#18 Moeller), 7. Brandon Moeller (#39 Moeller), 8. Doug McCune (#9 Urbanosky), 9. Steve Newman (#11x Newman). NT

SECOND HEAT: (8 laps) 1. Brad Loyet (#05 Loyet), 2. Kevin Ramey (#7m Ramey), 3. Zach Daum (#5 Daum), 4. Eric Sandage (#60 Sandage), 5. Chett Gehrke (#11c Matteson), 6. Paul White (#1x White), 7. Rusty Dukes (#88D Dukes), 8. Tyler Thompson (#91T Thompson), 9. Scott Sawyer (#77x Sawyer), 10. Bill Eslick (#24e Eslick). NT

THIRD HEAT: (8 laps) 1. Danny Stratton (#5F Simmons), 2. Matt Sherrell (#35 Sherrell), 3. Andrew Felker (#11a Felker), 4. George White (#10w White), 5. Justin Melton (#11 Melton), 6. Matt Johnson (#85 Johnson), 7. Andy Shouse (#27 Bishop), 8. Murray Erickson (#8 Guardian), 9. Will Pierce (#10 Pierce), 10. Roy Larkin (#24L Larkin). NT

DASH: (4 laps) 1. Loyet, 2. Droud, 3. Deal, 4. Stratton. 5. Ramey, 6. Sherrell. NT

SEMI: (10 laps) 1. Shouse, 2. Brandon Moeller, 3. Dukes, 4. McCune, 5. Thompson, 6. Newman, 7. Erickson, 8. Eslick, 9. Pierce. NT

FEATURE: (30 laps) 1. Danny Stratton, 2. Don Droud Jr., 3. Zach Daum, 4. Brad Loyet, 5. Kevin Bayer, 6. Kevin Ramey, 7. Ronnie Burke Jr., 8. Andy Shouse, 9. Andrew Felker, 10. Eric Sandage, 11. Justin Melton, 12. Rusty Dukes, 13. Tyler Thompson, 14. Doug McCune, 15. Matt Sherrell, 16. Chett Gehrke, 17. Ryan Cole, 18. George White, 19. Brandon Moeller, 20. Andrew Deal, 21. Paul White, 22. Matt Johnson, 23. Blake Moeller, 24. Steve Newman. NT

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**G.White flipped during the feature.

FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Lap 1 Loyet, Laps 2-30 Stratton.

NEW USAC/SMRS GREAT PLAINS MIDGET POINTS: 1-Danny Stratton-136; 2-Don Droud Jr.-136; 3-Brad Loyet-134; 4-Zach Daum-120; 5-Kevin Ramey-120; 6-Kevin Bayer-116; 7-Ronnie Burke-108; 8-Andrew Felker-108; 9-Andy Shouse-104; 10-Eric Sandage-104.

NEXT USAC/SMRS GREAT PLAINS MIDGET RACE: March 6 – Fort Worth, TX – Cowtown Speedway – 2nd Annual City Vending “Cowtown Midget Championships”

2 LUCKY FANS WILL WIN A “RICHARD PETTY DRIVING EXPERIENCE”

Tickets for the March 24-25 USAC Mopar National Midget and Eastern Ford Focus Midget races at the Hickory (N.C.) Motor Speedway are now available and race fans can take advantage of a $5 discount by purchasing tickets on line at www.usacracing.com, by calling the USAC Headquarters at 317-247-5151 or by accessing the following link: http://www.usacracing.com/store/hickory-motor-speedway.html. Tickets are priced at $20 each night but a two-night ticket is available at the price of $35.

Fans attending the March 24-25 Hickory races will also have the opportunity to win a free “Richard Petty Driving Experience” in a 600-horsepower NASCAR-style stock car at Charlotte Motor Speedway!

The Hickory races continue a tradition of USAC racing in the Carolinas which stretches back to 1956 when the USAC Championship Cars raced at Darlington, S.C. The Hickory oval hosted Ford Focus races between 2004 and 2006 but the March 24-25 program marks the debut of USAC National racing at the .363-mile paved oval.

Kody Swanson of Kingsburg, Calif. Won USAC’s last National Midget race in the Tarheel state, at Kenly in 2008. Previous National Midget winners in the state included Mel Kenyon at Asheville in 1968, Jim Hettinger at the Charlotte Coliseum in 1990, Tony Stewart at Charlotte Motor Speedway in 1998 and Bobby Santos III at Concord in 2006.

Each night of racing includes a 40-lap feature for Midgets and a 30-lapper fot the Ford Focus Midgets. Brad Sweet of Grass Valley, Calif., who pilots the Kasey Kahne Midget entry, leads the 2010 USAC Mopar National Midget standings after wins at Tucson, Ariz. And Las Vegas, Nev., while Jeremy Frankoski of Huntersville, N.C. is the defending USAC Carolina Ford Focus Champion.

INTO MOTORSPORTS HALL OF FAME OF AMERICA

Rich Vogler, who compiled more feature victories during his career than any other USAC driver in history, is listed among the 2010 inductees into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America and will be formally inducted during ceremonies at the Fillmore Detroit in Michigan on August 25.

Vogler joins fellow inductees Dale Armstrong, Joie Chitwood, Alan Kulwicki, Jeremy McGrath, Ken Squire and Jerry Titus as 2010 honorees.

In making the announcement of the inductees, Hall of Fame president Ron Watson’s cited Vogler’s true “Hall of Fame” credentials as an all-time leader in Sprint and Midget racing.

Vogler excelled in the 1980s, winning 134 USAC races and leading yearly USAC victory charts every year except 1987 and 1988. His 134 total USAC National victories (second only to A.J. Foyt’s 159) included 95 in Midgets, 35 in Sprints and four in championship cars. Including regional wins, his USAC victory total reached 171, nine more than Foyt’s 162 and his nine USAC championships are second only to Foyt’s 13. Rich won the National Midget title five times, the Sprint title twice and add two Indianapolis Speedrome Midget crowns.

His five Indianapolis 500 starts included an eighth-place finish in 1989. In 1980 Rich became the first driver to win the USAC Sprint and Midget titles in the same year. Major race victories in eight wins in the prestigious “Hut Hundred” Midget race and in 1987 he won the inaugural Chili Bowl Midget Nationals in Tulsa, Okla. In 1988 Rich finished 17th in his only NASCAR start at Rockingham, N.C. He tragically lost his life during a USAC Sprint race in 1990 at the Salem, Ind. Speedway, a race at which ironically he was posthumously proclaimed the winner!

ENCOMPASSES A TRIO OF USAC .25 EVENTS AT I-96 SPEEDWAY

The inaugural “Great Lakes” Dirt Challenge will feature a trio of dirt events for USAC’s .25 Midget participants at the I-96 Speedway in Lake Odessa, Mich.

Debuting on June 13, the .25 Midgets will return to the track on July 18 and August 8 and the overall point champion will earn the “Great Lakes” Dirt Challenge crown.

I-96 race organizer Mike Mouch believes in the development of young racers and anticipates these events to be a great benefit to his track. “It’s exciting to begin this relationship with USAC,” he says.. I-96 has hosted eight previous USAC events, including five Sprint races and a Midget race in the 1990s and Ford Focus events in 2006 and 2007. Support programs on all three 2010 dates will include mini-sprints and go-karts.

“Michigan has always been a hotbed of racing and has hosted some memorable USAC events,” added USAC Developmental Racing Director James Spink. “I expect the competition on the dirt in these three races to be keen and we look forward to returning to one of Michigan’s great short dirt tracks.”

The track is located in Lake Odessa, at exit 64 from Interstate 96. The track office can be reached at 616-642-0555. Gate times and pricing will be released at a later time.

OVER 230 ENTRIES COMPETE IN 53RD COLUMBUS INDOOR WINTERNATIONALS

Drivers from Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan, North Carolina, Connecticut and even Colorado posted A Main victories in last weekend’s 53rd Annual Columbus Indoor WinterNationals USAC .25 Midget racing events at the O’Neill Exposition Center in Columbus, Ohio.

A total of 236 cars were on hand for the event, the first of 2010’s USAC Midwest Thunder series. The series will continue May 29-30 at the Mac-O-Chee Club’s Bullring in West Liberty, Ohio and encompasses seven events.

Columbus A Main champions included Ohio’s Kyle Tooker (Miamisburg) in Junior Rookie, Daylan Karnes (Columbus) in Senior Rookie, Tyler Garner (Westerville) in Junior Honda, Caleb Cagle (Galena) in Heavy Honda, Andrew Blakely (Holland) in Heavy 160, Cooper Clouse (Ohio City) in Heavy World Formula, Logan McPherson (Bellefontaine) in Heavy AA, Frankie Nervo (Stow) in Light AA, Ethan Mullet (Hilliard) in Half and Ross Rankine (Willard) in Senior Animal; Michigan’s Cason Konzer (Holly) in Senior Honda and Hayden Sprague (Livonia) in Junior Stock; North Carolina’s Tyler Shullick (Concord) in Light 160; Colorado’s Ty Fiser (Denver) in Light Mod; and Pennsylvania’s Tyler Reeser (Orwigsburg) in Light World Formula and Light B. Connecticut’s Andrew Molleur was the winner in Junior Animal.

The Senior and Junior Animal events, won by Ross Rankine and Andrew Molleur respectively marked the debut under USAC sanction for the new Briggs & Stratton Animal Class.

The Columbus .25 races were also streamed live to a worldwide audience on the USAC website at www.usacracing.com.

EAST WIRE-TO-WIRE IN “SOKOLA SHOOTOUT” AT PERRIS

Brad Sweet of Grass Valley, Calif. continues as the early leader in the 2010 USAC Mopar National and Western Midget Series following his 30-lap feature victory at Las Vegas Motor Speedway’s dirt track Thursday night and subsequent second place finish at Perris (Calif.) Auto Speedway Sunday night. The National Series resumes March 23-24 at the Hickory (NC) Motor Speedway, while the Western Series resumes April 1 at the Ventura (Calif.) Raceway.

Sweet led the first six laps at Las Vegas, then trailed Chad Boat until the white-flag lap when he regained the top spot in his Kasey Kahne Racing Ollie’s Bargain Outlet/Auto Value Spike/Mopar to win the Las Vegas Super Sprint Classic race. Boat took second after leading 22 laps, finishing ahead of Brad Loyet, Darren Hagen and Tracy Hines. Driver Alex Bowman of Tucson, Ariz. flipped during the second heat race and was transported to University Medical Center in Las Vegas for treatment of a broken collar bone, fractured rib, bruises and swelling.

Bobby East of Brownsburg, Ind. led all 30 laps of Sunday night’s “Sokola Shootout” USAC Mopar National/Western Midget race at the Perris Auto Speedway after starting from the front row in his Ford Racing Beast/Esslinger Ford. The victory halted Sweet’s winning streak at two as Sweet took second ahead of Boat, Bryan Clauson and Jerry Coons Jr. Hagen was the fastest qualifier.

Chris Gansen of San Bernardino, Calif. flipped on lap six of the feature and was transported to a local hospital for a precautionary checkup.

SMRS MIDGETS DEBUT FRIDAY-SATURDAY AT COWTOWN

The 2nd Annual City Vending “Cowtown Midget Championships” are scheduled Friday and Saturday at Cowtown Speedway in Kennedale, Texas, opening the 2010 USAC/SMRS “Great Plains” Midget Series.

Brad Loyet of Sunset Hills, Mo. Is the defending series champion and is coming off “top-10” finishes in all three 2010 USAC Mopar National Midget races already this season.

Brady Bacon and Bryan Clauson won last year’s “Cowtown Midget Championship” features at the quarter-mile dirt oval.

Friday’s races begin at 6 pm and a 30-lap feature is on tap. A 35-lap feature is scheduled Saturday, with racing set to begin at 4. Saturday’s events include a “fan-fest” from noon until 1:15 pm for race fans to enter the pits and get autographs, pictures and apparel.

EAST STOPS SWEET’S MIDGET STREAK AT PERRIS IN “SOKOLA SHOOTOUT”

Perris, CA……..Bobby East of Brownsburg, Ind. led all 30 laps of Sunday night’s “Sokola Shootout” USAC Mopar National/Western Midget race at the Perris Auto Speedway after starting from the front row in his Ford Racing Beast/Esslinger Ford. The victory halted Brad Sweet’s streak at two wins as Sweet took second ahead of Chad Boat, Bryan Clauson and Jerry Coons Jr. Darren Hagen was the fastest qualifier. Chris Gansen of San Bernardino, Calif. flipped on lap six of the feature and was transported to a local hospital for a precautionary checkup. Sweet leads both the National and Western Midget standings. The next National races are March 23 and 24 at the Hickory (N.C.) Motor Speedway and the next Western race is April 1 at Ventura (Calif.) Raceway.

MOPAR USAC NATIONAL & WESTERN MIDGET RACE RESULTS: February 28, 2010 – Perris, California – Perris Auto Speedway - “Sokola Shootout”

QUALIFICATIONS: 1. Darren Hagen, 3, RFMS-17.701; 2. Bryan Clauson, 39, Tucker/BCI-17.830; 3. Chad Boat, 30, Boat-17.851; 4. Brad Sweet, 49, Kahne-17.871; 5. Zach Daum, 5, Daum-17.873; 6. Bobby East, 4, Klatt-17.942; 7. Henry Clarke, 67, Kunz-17.942; 8. Brad Loyet, 05, Loyet-18.091; 9. Shannon McQueen, 7, McQueen-18.097; 10. Dave Darland, 71, Kunz-18.144; 11. Levi Jones, 38, Crossno-18.155; 12. Mike Hess, 51, Hess-18.171; 13. Cory Kruseman, 21k, Kruseman-18.260; 14. Jerry Coons Jr., 11, Wilke-Pak-18.267; 15. Josh Lakatos, 4x, Bristing-18.316; 16. Brad Kuhn, 17B, RW-18.345; 17. Randi Pankratz, 8x, Pankratz-18.384; 18. Murray Erickson, 8, Guardian-18.562; 19. R.J. Johnson, 51s, Martin-18.571; 20. Alex Schutte, 25, Rodela-18.579; 21. Scott Pierovich, 35, Pierovich-18.607; 22. Austin Mero, 17k, Kruseman-18.623; 23. Jake Swanson, 05x, Swanson-18.634; 24. Erine Bartley III, 74, Bartley-18.823; 25. Chris Gansen, 04, Gansen-19.092; 26. Tracy Hines, 8E, Guardian-19.169; 27. Robby Josett, 2, Josett-19.309; 28. Buddy Lowther, 31, Lowther-19.341; 29. Kenny Warren, 78, Burggraf-23.371; 30. Dennis Carrier, 2D, Carrier-NT.

FIRST HEAT: (10 laps) 1. Hagen, 2. Kruseman, 3. Daum, 4. Pierovich, 5. Pankratz, 6. McQueen, 7. Gansen. 3:01.29

SECOND HEAT: (10 laps) 1. Coons, 2. East, 3. Hines, 4. Mero, 5. Darland, 6. Erickson, 7. Clauson. 3:00.82

THIRD HEAT: (10 laps) 1. Johnson, 2. Clarke, 3. Boat, 4. Lakatos, 5. J.Swanson, 6. Josett, 7. Jones. NT

FOURTH HEAT: (10 laps) 1. Sweet, 2. Hess, 3. Kuhn, 4. Loyet, 5. Schutte, 6. Bartley, 7. Lowther. 3:01.29

SEMI: (12 laps) 1. Clauson, 2. Darland, 3. Schutte, 4. Josett, 5. Gansen, 6. Bartley, 7. Erickson, 8. Lowther, 9. Pankratz, 10. McQueen, 11. J.Swanson. NT

FEATURE: (30 laps) 1. Bobby East, 2. Brad Sweet, 3. Chad Boat, 4. Bryan Clauson, 5. Jerry Coons Jr., 6. Zach Daum, 7. Henry Clarke, 8. Dave Darland, 9. Brad Loyet, 10. Darren Hagen, 11. Tracy Hines, 12. Brad Kuhn, 13. Mike Hess, 14. R.J. Johnson, 15. Scott Pierovich, 16. Robby Josett, 17. Josh Lakatos, 18. Cory Kruseman, 19. Austin Mero, 20. Alex Schutte, 21. Chris Gansen, 22. Ernie Bartley III. NT
 

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**McQueen flipped during the semi. Gansen flipped on lap 6 of the feature.

FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-30 East.

NEW MOPAR NATIONAL MIDGET POINTS: 1-Sweet-207; 2-East-169; 3-Loyet-155; 4-Hagen-155; 5-Hines-155; 6-Clauson-149; 7-Darland-148; 8-Boat-139; 9-Coons-136; 10-Hess-117.
 

NEW WESTERN MIDGET POINTS: 1-Sweet-207; 2-East-169; 3-Loyet-155; 4-Hagen-155; 5-Hines-155; 6-Clauson-149; 7-Darland-148; 8-Boat-139; 9-Coons-136; 10-Hess-117.

NEXT MOPAR NATIONAL MIDGET RACE: March 24 & 25 – Hickory (NC) Motor Speedway
 

NEXT WESTERN MIDGET RACE: April 1 – Ventura (CA) Raceway 

ALEX BOWMAN CONDITION UPDATE

Las Vegas, NV.......Alex Bowman of Tucson, Ariz., who was injured during Thursday night's "Las Vegas Super Sprint Classic" USAC Midget program at the Las Vegas Motor Speeway dirt track, remains in University Medical Center in Las Vegas after suffering a broken clavicle, fractured rib, bruises and swelling. He is under doctors' obervation and will undergo further tests but it is expected he will make a full recovery.

"SOKOLA SHOOTOUT" AT PERRIS POSTPONED TO SUNDAY DUE TO FORECASTED RAIN

Due to the forecasted rain in Perris, Calif., track officials have postponed Saturday's "Sokola Shootout" Amsoil Sprint and Mopar Midget races until Sunday, February 28. Gates will open on Sunday at 10 am.

HAGEN LOOKING FOR PERRIS MIDGET REPEAT IN “SOKOLA CLASSIC”

Darren Hagen of Riverside, Calif. came from the back of the pack to annex last year’s “Sokola Shootout” USAC Mopar National/Western Midget race at the Perris (Calif.) Auto Speedway, He hopes he doesn’t have to work so hard to repeat in this year’s event, scheduled this Saturday night at the half-mile dirt California oval.

Hagen finished eighth in this year’s National/Western debut at Tucson, Ariz. Sunday and is competing in Thursday night’s “Las Vegas Super Sprint Classic” at the Las Vegas (Nev.) Motor Speedway dirt track before heading to Perris Saturday.

Saturday’s program, honoring the memory of former CRA President & USAC official Gary Sokola and his son Mark, begins with qualifying at 3 pm and racing gets under way at 5:45.

Brad Sweet of Grass Valley, Calif. leads the 2010 standings entering Thursday’s races at Las Vegas. He finished fourth in last year’s “Sokola Shootout” and is expected to pilot a Kasey Kahne entry in Saturday’s event.

Tracy Hines of New Castle, Ind., who flirted with victory in last year’s “Sokola Shootout,” losing the lead to Hagen on the white-flag lap, hopes to be among challengers again this year. Sunday at Tucson Hines nearly won, leading several laps late, only to slip to third in the closing laps behind Sweet and Bobby East.

2009 FQ SWEET HEADS FOR LAS VEGAS AFTER TUCSON VICTORY

Brad Sweet, the fastest qualifier for last year’s USAC Midget race at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway dirt track, is headed back to the 1/2-mile dirt oval for Thursday night’s “Las Vegas Super Sprint Classic.” Sunday he won the 30-lap Rosemont Copper “Copper on Dirt” USAC Mopar National/Western Midget race at USA Raceway in Tucson, Ariz.

Sweet finished 14th at LVMS last year and hopes to improve on that as he comes to Las Vegas as the 2010 USAC Mopar National and Western Midget point leader. He led 24 of the 30 laps at Tucson in his Kasey Kahne Racing Ollie’s Bargain Outlets/Auto Value Spike/Mopar, including the last three after passing Tracy Hines on lap 28. Hines slipped to third at the finish behind Bobby East, as Dave Darland and defending USAC National Midget Champion Brad Kuhn rounded out the “top-five” at the checkered flag.

Sweet was Friday’s fastest Midget qualifier at Tucson but rains forced postponement of Saturday’s scheduled events to Sunday.

Thursday’s “Las Vegas Super Sprint Classic” which also feature the USAC Amsoil National/CRA Sprint Cars, gets under way with practice at 3 pm. Fans are encouraged to meet their favorite USAC stars during the autograph session on the Dirt Track’s midway from 5:15-6:15 p.m.

Two-time USAC National Midget Champ and “Triple Crown” titlist Jerry Coons Jr. of Tucson, Ariz. is the defending winner of the Las Vegas Midget feature. He finished ninth at Tucson.

The USAC Amsoil National/CRA Sprint Cars and USAC Mopar National/Western Midgets will also compete Saturday at Perris (Calif.) Auto Speedway in the "Sokola Shootout." A 30-lap feature event is on tap for each series at the half-mile dirt oval.

JONES EARNS #1 FOR HIMSELF & #23 FOR STEWART AT TUCSON

Iowa Speedway in Newton, Iowa hosts the next outing for the USAC Silver Crown Championship Series and Levi Jones of Olney, Ill., fresh from his initial series victory, will lead the series to the 7/8-mile paved oval May 22.

Jones won Sunday afternoon’s 50-lap Rosemont Copper “Copper on Dirt” feature at USA Raceway in Tucson, Ariz., passing defending three-time series champion Bud Kaeding on the final lap. The victory in the Tony Stewart Racing Bass Pro Shops/Chevy Maxim/Kistler Chevy was Jones’ first in series competition and a record-tying 23rd for his team, which now stands tied with Team 6R.

Three times previously a runner-up but never a feature winner in Silver Crown, Jones, who earned his third USAC National Sprint Car title last year, finished second to Cameron Dodson in last year’s 100-lap race at Iowa Speedway.

Jones paced Friday’s Silver Crown qualifying at Tucson, then won the “dash” to earn the pole starting position for Sunday’s 50-lap race, which had been postponed from Saturday due to rain. Kaeding led the first 49 laps before Jones made his winning move. Kaeding finished second ahead of Bobby East, Jerry Coons Jr. and Tracy Hines. Coleman Gulick won Sunday’s 12-lap “qualifying race.”

JONES TAKES “COPPER” SILVER, GIVES STEWART RECORD-TYING VICTORY

Tucson, AZ…….Levi Jones of Olney, Ill. caught Bud Kaeding on the final lap of Sunday’s Rosemont Copper “Copper on Dirt” 50-lap USAC Silver Crown race at USA Raceway and beat him to the checkered flag. The win in the Tony Stewart Racing Bass Pro Shops/Chevy Maxim Kistler/Chevy was Jones’ first in the series and gave Stewart a record-tying 23rd career Silver Crown win as an owner, tying him with Team 6R. Kaeding led the first 49 laps of Sunday’s race until Jones’ last-lap charge and finished second ahead of Bobby East, Jerry Coons Jr. and Tracy Hines. Jones was also Friday’s fastest Silver Crown qualifier and won Friday’s “dash” to earn the pole starting spot for the 50-lap finale. Saturday’s scheduled events at Tucson were rained out and moved to Sunday. The series now prepares for a May 22 race at Iowa Speedway in Newton, Iowa.

USAC SILVER CROWN CHAMPIONSHIP RACE RESULTS: February 19-21, 2010 – Tucson, Arizona – USA Race Park - Rosemont Copper “Copper on Dirt”

QUALIFICATIONS: (Held Feb. 19) 1. Levi Jones, 10, Stewart/Curb Agajanian-17.016; 2. Bryan Clauson, 22, Stewart/Curb Agajanian-17.157; 3. Jerry Coons Jr., 27, RW-17.337; 4. Shane Hmiel, 17, RW-17.469; 5. Derek Hagar, 91, Hagar-17.574; 6. Brian Tyler, 21, Team 6R-17.610; 7. Bobby East, 6, Klatt-17.642; 8. Tracy Hines, 16, Lightfoot-17.668; 9. Bud Kaeding, 29, BK-17.695; 10. A.J. Fike, 3, RFMS-17.849; 11. Shane Hollingsworth, 20, Nolen-17.963; 12. Coleman Gulick, 14, Gulick-18.061; 13. Justin Carver, 991, Edwards/RE-18.128; 14. Russ Gamester, 51, Gamester-18.138; 15. Tanner Swanson, 23, Team 6R/TK-18.177; 16. Kody Swanson, 19, Team 6R-18.324; 17. Zach Daum, 50, Daum-18.525; 18. Mike Martin, 116, Racing Associates-18.539; 19. Bobby Santos III, 199, Edwards/RE-19.273; 20. Murray Erickson, 8, Guardian-19.856.

DASH: (8 laps – Held Feb. 19) 1. Jones, 2. Clauson, 3. Hmiel, 4. Hagar, 5. Coons, 6. Tyler. NT

QUALIFYING RACE: (12 laps – Held Feb. 21) 1. Gulick, 2. Hollingsworth, 3. Gamester, 4. Carver, 5. T.Swanson, 6. Santos, 7. Daum, 8. K.Swanson, 9. Martin, 10. Erickson. NT

FEATURE: (50 laps – Held Feb. 21) 1. Levi Jones, 2. Bud Kaeding, 3. Bobby East, 4. Jerry Coons Jr., 5. Tracy Hines, 6. Shane Hollingsworth, 7. A.J. Fike, 8. Derek Hagar, 9. Brian Tyler, 10. Russ Gamester, 11. Bryan Clauson, 12. Justin Carver, 13. Tanner Swanson, 14. Kody Swanson, 15. Bobby Santos III, 16. Murray Erickson, 17. Coleman Gulick, 18. Shane Hmiel, 19. Mike Martin, 20. Zach Daum. NT

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**K.Swanson flipped during the semi.

FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-49 Kaeding, Lap 50 Jones.

NEW SILVER CROWN POINTS: 1-Jones-63; 2-Kaeding-60; 3-East-54; 4-Coons-51; 5-Hines-48; 6-Hollingsworth-45; 7-Fike-42; 8-Hagar-39; 9-Tyler-36; 10-Gamester-33.

NEXT SILVER CROWN RACE: May 22 – Newton, Iowa – Iowa Speedway

“SWEET” VICTORY IN “COPPER ON DIRT” MIDGETS

Tucson, AZ…….Brad Sweet of Grass Valley, Calif. captured Sunday’s 30-lap Rosemont Copper “Copper on Dirt” USAC Mopar National/Western Midget race at USA Raceway. He led the first 21 laps and the last three in his Kasey Kahne Racing Ollie’s Bargain Outlet/Auto Value Spike/Mopar after passing Tracy Hines on lap 28. Bobby East took second ahead of Hines, Dave Darland and Brad Kuhn in the 2010 series opener. Sweet, Friday’s fastest Midget qualifier, becomes the early point leader in both the National and Western Midget series heading into Thursday night’s “Las Vegas Super Sprint Classic” events in Nevada. Saturday’s scheduled events at Tucson were rained out and delayed until Sunday.

MOPAR USAC NATIONAL & WESTERN MIDGET RACE RESULTS: February 19-21, 2010 – Tucson, Arizona – USA Race Park - Rosemont Copper “Copper on Dirt”

QUALIFICATIONS: (Held Feb. 19) 1. Brad Sweet, 49, Kahne-16.606; 2. Alex Bowman, 55, Cline-16.649; 3. Gary Taylor, 12, Allen-16.798; 4. Tracy Hines, 8x, Guardian-16.851; 5. Dave Darland, 71, Kunz-`6.872; 6. Bryan Clauson, 39, Tucker/BCI-16 .916; 7. Bobby East, 4, Klatt-16.927; 8. Zach Daum, 5, Daum-16.929; 9. Darren Hagen, 3, RFMS-16.958; 02. Josh Pelkey, 12jr, Allen-17.000; 11. Jerry Coons Jr., 11, Wilke-Pak-17.047; 12. Brad Loyet, 05, Loyet-17.054; 13. Brad Kuhn, 17B, RW-17.066; 14. Chad Boat, 30, Boat-17.090; 15. Mike Hess, 51, Hess-17.184; 16. Tanner Swanson, 23, Team 6R/TK-17.217; 17. Kody Swanson, 19k, Team 6R/TK-17.257; 18. Henry Clarke, 67, Kunz-17.297; 19. R.J. Johnson, 51s, Martin-17.350; 20. Matt Rossi, 02, Rossi-17.366; 21. Alex Schutte, 25, Rodela-17.429; 22. Robby Josett, 2 Josett-17.540; 23. Brian Postle, 22, Postle-17.790; 24. Terry Goodwin, 2G, Goodwin-17.808; 25. Mario Clouser, 06, Clouser-17.905; 26. Dennis Carrier Jr., 2D, Carrier-18.246; 27. Kenny Warren, 78, Warren-20.020; 28. Buddy Lowther, 31, Lowther-NT; 29. Jake Swanson,. 05x, Swanson-NT; 30. Murray Erickson, 8, Guardian-NT.

FIRST HEAT: (10 laps – Held Feb. 19) 1. Hagen, 2. Sweet, 3. Schutte, 4. Darland, 5. Kuhn, 6. Clouser, 7. K.Swanson. NT

SECOND HEAT: (10 laps – Held Feb. 19) 1. Clarke, 2. Bowman, 3. Clauson, 4. Pelkey, 5. Boat, 6. Josett, 7. Carrier, 8. Erickson. NT

THIRD HEAT: (10 laps – Held Feb. 19) 1. Coons, 2. Johnson, 3. East, 4. Taylor, 5. Hess, 6. Postle, 7. Warren. NT

FOURTH HEAT: (10 laps – Held Feb. 19) 1. T.Swanson, 2. Loyet, 3. Hines, 4. Goodwin, 5. Rossi, 6. Daum, 7. Lowther. NT

DASH: (8 laps – Held Feb. 19) 1. Clauson, 2. Hines, 3. Sweet, 4. Taylor, 5. Darland, 6. Bowman. NT

SEMI: (12 laps – Held Feb. 21) 1. Kuhn, 2. Hess, 3. Postle, 4. Erickson, 5. Carrier, 6. Warren, 7. Boat, 8. Josett, 9. Daum, 10. Rossi, 11. Clouser, 12. K.Swanson. NT

FEATURE: (30 laps – Held Feb. 21) 1. Brad Sweet, 2. Bobby East, 3. Tracy Hines, 4. Dave Darland, 5. Brad Kuhn, 6. Bryan Clauson, 7. Brad Loyet, 8. Darren Hagen, 9. Jerry Coons Jr., 10. Mike Hess, 11. Tanner Swanson, 12. Henry Clarke, 13. Alex Schutte, 14. Dennis Carrier, 15. Josh Pelkey, 16. Murray Erickson, 17. Brian Postle, 18. Terry Goodwin, 19. R.J. Johnson, 20. Zach Daum, 21. Robby Josett, 22. Alex Bowman, 23. Kody Swanson, 24. Gary Taylor, 25. Chad Boat, 26. Kenny Warren. NT

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FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-21 Sweet, Laps 22-27 Hines, Laps 28-30 Sweet.

NEW MOPAR NATIONAL MIDGET POINTS: 1-Sweet-73; 2-East-63; 3-Hines-63; 4-Darland-58; 5-Kuhn-52; 6-Clauson-52; 7-Loyet-49; 8-Hagen-47; 9-Coons-44; 10-T.Swanson-39.

NEW WESTERN MIDGET POINTS: 1-Sweet-73; 2-East-63; 3-Hines-64; 4-Darland-58; 5-Kuhn-52; 6-Clauson-52; 7-Loyet-49; 8-Hagen-47; 9-Coons-44; 10-T.Swanson-39.

NEXT MOPAR NATIONAL MIDGET RACE: February 25 – Las Vegas (NV) Motor Speedway Dirt Track – “Las Vegas Super Sprint Classic”

NEXT WESTERN MIDGET RACE: February 25 – Las Vegas (NV) Motor Speedway Dirt Track – “Las Vegas Super Sprint Classic”