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Larson Loots $32,000 Payday at Hangtown 100
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The United States Auto Club.
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Contact: Richie Murray - USAC Media / richie@usacracing.com
Kyle Larson holds the distinctive Elk Grove Ford Hangtown 100 trophy following his USAC NOS Energy Drink National and Western States Midget victory Wednesday at California's Placerville Speedway. (Rich Forman Photo)
LARSON LOOTS $32,000 PAYDAY AT HANGTOWN 100
By: Richie Murray - USAC Media
Placerville, California (November 20, 2019).........Placerville Speedway is the home to some of Kyle Larson's most cherished racing moments.
It's the place he made his first sprint car start. It's the place he won his first sprint car race. It's the place he describes as his "home track."
Now, he can chalk up another memorable moment at the northern California 1/4-mile dirt oval and lay claim as the winner of the richest event in USAC NOS Energy Drink National and Western States Midget history, earning $20,000 for the 100-lap feature victory and an extra $12,000 bonus as the overall points champion of the inaugural Elk Grove Ford Hangtown 100 for a whopping $32,000 in total earnings for the evening.
Larson's 17th career USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget win moved into a tie for 37th all-time with Jay Drake and J.J. Yeley, but this was the first in his own Kyle Larson Open Wheel/Lucas Oil - iRacing - Finley Farms/King/Speedway Toyota after winning 15 of his previous 16 for the Keith Kunz Motorsports/Curb-Agajanian team between 2011 June of 2019.
It's a car he shook down in a pair of midget events at Placerville earlier this season, both of which he was victorious in. Wednesday night was just the beginning in one way, but also the culmination of what he and crew chief Paul Silva had their goals set on with the creation of the team to best a field of 56 other determined individuals.
"Paul put a lot of work into this car throughout the last handful of months," Larson explained. "We ran out here a couple times and the car counts haven't been big, so I didn't know how good we were. But I think we proved that we were really, really good, and good in the slick, which was nice."
Larson started 10th in the 28-car field and instantly became a factor, charging to 7th on the initial lap, then into the top-five by the second go-around. Meanwhile, up front, Brady Bacon jetted out to the early lead for the first two circuits before two-time and defending Ollie's Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions titlist Aaron Reutzel blitzed to the lead with a turn three slider on the third lap, making waves in just his second career series start.
On lap five, the first incident of the feature occurred when provisional starter Zeb Wise got upside down in turn one. Damage was minimal and the 2019 BC39 champ ultimately returned to finish 24th.
Tanner Carrick made moves on the 12th lap to slip past Bacon for second and began to close in on leader Reutzel. Carrick's KKM teammate Logan Seavey was on a mission to supplant Bacon from third two laps later, then by Carrick for second on the 17th lap and Reutzel on lap 18 for the lead by utilizing the diamond maneuver from the top of turn three to drive by Reutzel off the bottom of turn four.
A hectic sequence saw Carrick rip second away again, this time from Reutzel, off turn two before finally squeezing by on the bottom for the spot off the fourth turn on lap 20. Seavey amassed control at the head of the field after starting all the way back on the outside of the sixth row and opened up a sizable near one-second advantage a quarter of the way through.
Larson, who was passed early on by Seavey, regained his perspicacity and began trotting a methodical course toward the front, first picking off Reutzel for third on the 24th lap, then snuck under Carrick for second at the exit of turn two within the eye of traffic.
On the 30th lap, Seavey went wide over the cushion between turns three and four. Larson feasted at the opportunity and drastically closed in on Seavey as the two scythed under, between and around the tail end of the field. On the 35th lap, Larson was there to swoop in under Seavey on the bottom of turn three. The two smacked sidewalls at the entrance of turn three and Larson ably ducked under to lead at the stripe with a third of the race in the archives.
Seavey remained within earshot of Larson until the 40th lap when he nearly parked it in between turns one and two, losing three positions in the process and allowing Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. into second before he, himself, dropped out on lap 43.
A hellacious 42-lap green flag run came to a halt when series Rookie Jesse Colwell spun to a stop at the top of turns one and two, thus erasing Larson's 4.318 second lead prior to a lap 50 red flag, where several teams took the opportunity to refuel and readjust for a second half run.
Right off the bat, when racing resumed, a melee ensued between turns three and four with September Placerville World of Outlaws winner and fourth-running Shane Golobic and Rico Abreu contacting each other in the third turn, causing both to flip. Early leaders Seavey and Reutzel were stacked deep on the bottom along with 2019 WoO champ Brad Sweet and 2017 USAC Midget champion Spencer Bayston.
Reutzel's turn of luck took continued on the 52nd lap when he toppled over in turn two but restarted and finished 12th. Kevin Thomas, Jr., took a nasty tumble off turn two following contact with another car. Thomas walked to the ambulance under his own power following the incident.
The storyline of the latter 50 laps was simply the domination displayed by Larson right from the start of the second half when he set the fastest overall lap of the race on lap 51. In fact, his seven fastest laps of the race came in rapid succession between laps 51-57. All the while, everybody else was trying to play catchup with Larson, battling it out amongst themselves for second as Larson slipped into the distance.
Over the final 25-lap sprint, Bell and Carrick swapped the second position five different times before Bell prevailed, albeit a staggering 8.152 seconds behind Larson at the checkered. Carrick took home third while hard-charging Ryan Bernal took fourth after starting 19th, his best run with the series since a 5th place, 16 laps-led run in the most recent 100-lapper in 2012 at Haubstadt, Ind. USAC Triple Crown champ Jerry Coons, Jr. rounded out the top-five.
Interestingly, it's the fifth time that Larson and Bell have finished first and second in a USAC National Midget feature. However, Wednesday at Placerville marked the first occasion in which Larson got the upper hand with a win. Bell won the previous four at Putnamville, Ind. and Kokomo, Ind. in 2013, plus each of the last two years at Ventura, Calif. in 2017 and 2018.
CONTINGENCY AWARD WINNERS WEDNESDAY AT PLACERVILLE SPEEDWAY:
Tyler Courtney (KSE Racing Products/Saldana Racing Products Hard Charger)
Chase Johnson (Simpson Race Products/Extreme Mufflers First Heat Winner)
Tucker Klaasmeyer (Competition Suspension, Inc./Brown & Miller Racing Solutions Second Heat Winner)
Kyle Larson (Indy Race Parts/Ultra Shield Race Products Fourth Heat Winner)
Chris Windom (AutoMeter/Competition Suspension, Inc./Ultra Shield Race Products Third Heat Winner)
Chris Windom (Wilwood Brakes 13th Place Finisher)
Zeb Wise (Saldana Racing Products First Non-Transfer)
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USAC NOS ENERGY DRINK NATIONAL & WESTERN STATES MIDGET RACE RESULTS: November 20, 2019 - Placerville Speedway - Placerville, California - Elk Grove Ford Hangtown 100 - 1/4-Mile Dirt Oval
SIMPSON RACE PRODUCTS/EXTREME MUFFLERS FIRST HEAT: (10 laps, top-20 overall in points after heats transfer to the feature) 1. Chase Johnson (#25x Malloy), 2. Ben Worth (#5G Alexander), 3. Daison Pursley (#9 Kunz/Curb-Agajanian), 4. Logan Seavey (#67 Kunz/Curb-Agajanian), 5. Tanner Carrick (#71K Kunz/Curb-Agajanian), 6. Jake Swanson (#73K Ford), 7. Kevin Thomas, Jr. (#5 Petry), 8. Dave Darland (#71R Morris), 9. Jonathan Beason (#68 Six8), 10. Blake Bower (#10B Boscacci/Walker). 2:03.401 (New Track Record)
COMPETITION SUSPENSION (CSI)/BROWN & MILLER RACING SOLUTIONS SECOND HEAT: (10 laps, top-20 overall in points after heats transfer to the feature) 1. Tucker Klaasmeyer (#27 Kunz/Curb-Agajanian), 2. Michael Pickens (#1NZ RMS), 3. Gio Scelzi (#84 Tucker/Boat), 4. Jerry Coons, Jr. (#25 Petry), 5. Holley Hollan (#67K Kunz/Curb-Agajanian), 6. Jason McDougal (#76m FMR), 7. Cory Elliott (#11E Elliott), 8. Randi Pankratz (#8 Pankratz), 9. Robert Carson (#99x Segur). 2:05.773
AUTOMETER/COMPETITION SUSPENSION (CSI) THIRD HEAT: (10 laps, top-20 overall in points after heats transfer to the feature) 1. Chris Windom (#17BC Clauson/Marshall), 2. Justin Grant (#4A RAMS), 3. Michael Faccinto (#47m Morris), 4. Ryan Bernal (#77w Wood), 5. Spencer Bayston (#19 Hayward), 6. Dillon Welch (#81 Tucker/Boat), 7. Thomas Meseraull (#7x RMS), 8. C.J. Sarna (#20 Sarna), 9. Dylan Ito (#73 Ford). NT
INDY RACE PARTS/ULTRA SHIELD RACE PRODUCTS FOURTH HEAT: (10 laps, top-20 overall in points after heats transfer to the feature) 1. Kyle Larson (#1K Larson), 2. Christopher Bell (#84x Tucker/Boat), 3. Ethan Mitchell (#08m Dave Mac), 4. Colby Copeland (#27w Wood), 5. Jesse Colwell (#71 Kunz/Curb-Agajanian), 6. Zeb Wise (#39BC Clauson/Marshall), 7. Tony Gualda (#18K Kruseman), 8. Kaidon Brown (#97w Wood), 9. Colby Johnson (#71m Morris). NT
NOS ENERGY DRINK/PYROTECT RACING CELLS FIFTH HEAT: (10 laps, top-20 overall in points after heats transfer to the feature) 1. Colton Heath (#99 Stewart), 2. Tyler Courtney (#7BC Clauson/Marshall), 3. Buddy Kofoid (#98 Kunz/Curb-Agajanian), 4. Brad Sweet (#67z Kahne), 5. Rico Abreu (#97 Kunz/Curb-Agajanian), 6. Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. (#17JR Clauson/Marshall), 7. Brady Bacon (#76E FMR), 8. Jake Morgan (#19w Sala), 9. David Prickett (#15DJ Neverlift). 2:04.469
AMSOIL/SALDANA RACING PROUCTS SIXTH HEAT: (10 laps, top-20 overall in points after heats transfer to the feature) 1. Andrew Layser (#47BC Clauson/Marshall), 2. Aaron Reutzel (#87 Tucker/Boat), 3. Kyle Cummins (#2G Yeley/Styres), 4. Shane Golobic (#17w Wood), 5. Cannon McIntosh (#08 Dave Mac), 6. Robert Dalby (#4D Dalby), 7. Gage Rucker (#11K Kruseman), 8. Kiely Ricardo (#3F Finkenbinder), 9. Jake Bubak (#27B Bourke). NT
ALSO AT THE TRACK: Karsyn Elledge (#1 Tucker/Boat)
EXTREME MUFFLERS C-MAIN: (15 laps, top-4 transfer to the semi) 1. Buddy Kofoid, 2. Ben Worth, 3. Ethan Mitchell, 4. Dave Darland, 5. Colby Johnson, 6. C.J. Sarna, 7. Jonathan Beason, 8. Randi Pankratz, Blake Bower, Gage Rucker, Kiely Ricardo, Robert Carson, Tony Gualda, Kaidon Brown, Jake Bubak, Kyle Cummins, Jake Morgan, Dylan Ito, David Prickett. NT
BUTLERBUILT SEATS SEMI: (20 laps, top-4 transfer to the feature) 1. Brad Sweet, 2. Jake Swanson, 3. Chris Windom, 4. Tyler Courtney, 5. Zeb Wise, 6. Cannon McIntosh, 7. Robert Dalby, 8. Daison Pursley, 9. Andrew Layser, 10. Chase Johnson, 11. Michael Faccinto, 12. Colton Heath, 13. Tucker Klaasmeyer, 14. Buddy Kofoid, 15. Holley Hollan, 16. Ben Worth, 17. Ethan Mitchell, 18. Dave Darland, 19. Cory Elliott, 20. Justin Grant. NT
ROYAL TRUCK BODY FEATURE: (100 laps, starting position in parentheses) 1. Kyle Larson (10), 2. Christopher Bell (13), 3. Tanner Carrick (6), 4. Ryan Bernal (19), 5. Jerry Coons, Jr. (14), 6. Dillon Welch (2), 7. Gio Scelzi (11), 8. Tyler Courtney (24), 9. Spencer Bayston (9), 10. Michael Pickens (16), 11. Logan Seavey (12), 12. Aaron Reutzel (4), 13. Chris Windom (23), 14. Colby Copeland (20), 15. Jason McDougal (3), 16. Brady Bacon (1), 17. Thomas Meseraull (17), 18. Buddy Kofoid (28), 19. Jake Swanson (22), 20. Justin Grant (27), 21. Kevin Thomas, Jr. (15), 22. Jesse Colwell (8), 23. Shane Golobic (7), 24. Zeb Wise (25), 25. Brad Sweet (21), 26. Rico Abreu (18), 27. Tucker Klaasmeyer (26), 28. Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. (5). NT
**Jake Morgan flipped during the semi. Zeb Wise flipped on lap 4 of the feature. Rico Abreu and Shane Golobic flipped on lap 51 of the feature. Aaron Reutzel flipped on lap 52 of the feature. Kevin Thomas, Jr. flipped on lap 55 of the feature.
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-2 Brady Bacon, Laps 3-17 Aaron Reutzel, Laps 18-34 Logan Seavey, Laps 35-100 Kyle Larson.
KSE RACING PRODUCTS/SALDANA RACING PRODUCTS HARD CHARGER: Tyler Courtney (24th to 8th)
WILWOOD BRAKES 13TH PLACE FINISHER: Chris Windom
SALDANA RACING PRODUCTS FIRST NON-TRANSFER: Zeb Wise
NEW USAC NOS ENERGY DRINK MIDGET NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS: 1-Tyler Courtney-1,951, 2-Logan Seavey-1,780, 3-Chris Windom-1,779, 4-Kevin Thomas, Jr.-1,719, 5-Zeb Wise-1,679, 6-Tanner Carrick-1,506, 7-Jerry Coons, Jr.-1,484, 8-Jason McDougal-1,409, 9-Tucker Klaasmeyer-1,363, 10-Chad Boat-1,255.
NEW USAC WESTERN STATES MIDGET POINTS: 1-Robert Dalby-747, 2-Cory Elliott-718, 3-David Prickett-566, 4-Ben Worth-550, 5-C.J. Sarna-533, 6-Shannon McQueen-524, 7-Austin Liggett-458, 8-Jake Swanson-448, 9-Randi Pankratz-428, 10-Kyle Beilman-372.
FINAL HANGTOWN 100 POINTS: 1-Logan Seavey-161, 2-Gio Scelzi-157, 3-Spencer Bayston-154, 4-Jesse Colwell-153, 5-Ricky Stenhouse, Jr.-150, 6-Shane Golobic-149, 7-Tanner Carrick-149, 8-Jason McDougal-147, 9-Dillon Welch-146, 10-Kyle Larson-142.
NEXT USAC NOS ENERGY DRINK NATIONAL & WESTERN STATES MIDGET RACE: November 23, 2019 - Bakersfield Speedway - Bakersfield, California - November Classic - 1/3-mile dirt oval
Kyle Larson's 17th career USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget win moved into a tie for 37th all-time with Jay Drake and J.J. Yeley, but this was the first in his own car after winning 15 of his previous 16 for the Keith Kunz Motorsports/Curb-Agajanian team between 2011 June of 2019.
(Rich Forman Photo)
Gio Cashes in on Night #1 of Hangtown 100
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Contact: Richie Murray - USAC Media / richie@usacracing.com
Gio Scelzi celebrates his first career USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget feature victory Tuesday on night one of the Elk Grove Ford Hangtown 100 at California's Placerville Speedway. (DB3 Inc. Photo)
GIO CASHES IN ON NIGHT #1 OF HANGTOWN 100
By: Richie Murray - USAC Media
Placerville, California (November 19, 2019).........It was easy to see the strides Gio Scelzi had made in his recent outings aboard a USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget.
Just last weekend, the Fresno, Calif. native broke into the top-10 for the first time with the series in his fifth start, a ninth-place finish, and admitted that it's a different kind racing than he's used to and that it will take time to compete with the best drivers of this discipline.
In his sixth start Tuesday night at California's Placerville Speedway, Scelzi took a giant step up in his midget game, leading all 30 laps en route to victory on night one of the Elk Grove Ford Hangtown 100 in the series debut at the 1/4-mile dirt oval.
It was just four races ago that Scelzi assumed the seat of the potent Tucker-Boat Motorsports/PristineAuction.com - K & C Drywall/Spike/Speedway Toyota that had been a front runner on the USAC Midget trail for the past four seasons with Chad Boat at the controls before he stepped out of the seat and into the role of mechanic and car owner.
It appears Scelzi had finally found the comfort zone in a midget, joining Cannon McIntosh, Chris Windom, Jason McDougal and Tanner Carrick to become the fifth first-time USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget winner of 2019, the most in a single season since 2008 when there were six.
Scelzi also became the 14th different series winner of the season, the most in a year since that same 2008 season.
"It's pretty humbling to run just a handful of these races and win," Scelzi said. "It's taken awhile to get comfortable in these cars and I'm still not very comfortable."
Scelzi is used to being ahead of the curve. At the age of 17, he's already become the youngest sprint car winner in the history of the World of Outlaws, Williams Grove Speedway and Knoxville Raceway. Two years ago, in 2017, he became the youngest winner in King of the West/NARC history right at Placerville.
Scelzi seemed at home right from the start as he took control from the onset of the feature event from his outside front row starting position. Meanwhile, nearing midway, a two-pack of Keith Kunz/Curb-Agajanian pilots, Jesse Colwell and eighth-starting Logan Seavey tussled for second as Scelzi held strong up front.
On a lap 14 restart, Seavey was in a hurry to get things done as he hounded Colwell, trying everything in the book to get a run on Colwell to no avail until lap 19 when Seavey slipped by his teammate for the runner-up spot with full intentions now set on reeling Scelzi in. Seavey sought avenues high, low and middle to find his way by Scelzi, but the son of the four-time NHRA champ was smooth as silk on the top side.
A number of cautions slowed the activity down the stretch, including a four-car incident that found Cannon McIntosh tipped on his side on the 21st lap. Following the incident, Scelzi blitzed away from Seavey on the ensuing restart to construct a half-straightaway lead of more than eight-tenths of a second with a surefire victory within his grasp until Michael Pickens' car came to a rest backwards in turn one.
In turn, that bunched up the field and allowed Seavey, a driver with a year's worth of past sprint car racing experience at Placerville under his belt, a few more shots at the race leader. Three perfect laps were all that it was going to take for Scelzi to defeat the 2018 series champ.
Seavey tried with all his might a slider into the first turn on Scelzi without success but found a diamond in the rough in turn three. Seavey drove it high to the top of three, then turned down toward the bottom of turn four to "diamond" the corner and gain ground on Scelzi to help propel him past in turn one.
"I was kind of searching all race," Seavey admitted. "I started on the top, then went to the bottom in one and two. I kind of found that the diamond off four was good. I just tried everything I could, but I think I needed a little bit of a longer run there. Our cars normally get better and better as they go. We never really got a run longer than three or four laps."
On the 30th and final circuit, Seavey fired his last Bullet by Spike in the chamber toward Scelzi, coming up short, and allowing Scelzi to break away for good to score a 0.647 second victory over Seavey, Colwell, KSE Racing Products Hard Charger Kyle Larson (from 23rd) with Shane Golobic rounding out the top-five.
"Track position was big for me," Scelzi explained. "Seavey's really good and all the guys behind me were really good. I made so many mistakes off four, I saw someone on the bottom and I just didn't know where to go. I just tried to keep doing what I was doing."
Though Seavey came up just a tad short in the winner's column, he leads the overall Hangtown 100 standings heading into Wednesday's $20,000-to-win finale at Placerville, which also pays $12,000 to the driver who accumulates the most points over the two nights. For Seavey, Tuesday's run was just setting up for Wednesday.
"Overall, a good night," Seavey said. "I would've loved to win this thing, but at the end of the day, this race is about tomorrow and that's our goal."
Contingency award winners Tuesday night at Placerville Speedway were:
Brady Bacon (Simpson Race Products/Extreme Mufflers First Heat Winner & Wilwood Brakes 13th Place Finisher)
Tyler Courtney (Saldana Racing Products First Non-Transfer)
Cory Elliott (Saldana Racing Products First Non-Transfer)
Kyle Larson (KSE Racing Products/Saldana Racing Products Hard Charger)
Thomas Meseraull (Indy Race Parts/Ultra Shield Race Products Fourth Heat Winner)
Jake Swanson (AutoMeter/Competition Suspension, Inc./Ultra Shield Race Products Third Heat Winner)
Kevin Thomas, Jr. (Competition Suspension, Inc./Brown & Miller Racing Solutions Second Heat Winner)
Dillon Welch (Fatheadz Eyewear Fast Qualifier)
Zeb Wise (Saldana Racing Products First Non-Transfer)
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USAC NOS ENERGY DRINK NATIONAL & WESTERN STATES MIDGET RACE RESULTS: November 19, 2019 - Placerville Speedway - Placerville, California - Elk Grove Ford Hangtown 100 - 1/4-Mile Dirt Oval
FATHEADZ EYEWEAR/WOODLAND AUTO DISPLAY QUALIFYING: 1. Dillon Welch, 81, Tucker/Boat-11.979 (New Track Record); 2. Zeb Wise, 39BC, Clauson/Marshall-11.998; 3. Kyle Larson, 1K, Larson-12.028; 4. Logan Seavey, 67, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-12.064; 5. Gio Scelzi, 84, Tucker/Boat-12.078; 6. Spencer Bayston, 19, Hayward-12.120; 7. Christopher Bell, 84x, Tucker/Boat-12.162; 8. Rico Abreu, 97, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-12.165; 9. Brady Bacon, 76E, FMR-12.178; 10. Ryan Bernal, 77w, Wood-12.212; 11. Jason McDougal, 76m, FMR-12.232; 12. Shane Golobic, 17w, Wood-12.244; 13. Kevin Thomas, Jr., 5, Petry-12.254; 14. Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., 17JR, Clauson/Marshall-12.269; 15. Chase Johnson, 25x, Malloy-12.270; 16. Aaron Reutzel, 87, Tucker/Boat-12.279; 17. Brad Sweet, 67z, Kahne-12.285; 18. Tanner Carrick, 71K, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-12.289; 19. Tucker Klaasmeyer, 27, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-12.297; 20. Andrew Layser, 47BC, Clauson/Marshall-12.302; 21. Cannon McIntosh, 08, Dave Mac-12.336; 22. Michael Pickens, 1NZ, RMS-12.338; 23. Buddy Kofoid, 98, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-12.366; 24. Colton Heath, 99, Stewart-12.377; 25. Chris Windom, 17BC, Clauson/Marshall-12.380; 26. Daison Pursley, 9, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-12.389; 27. Jesse Colwell, 71, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-12.401; 28. Michael Faccinto, 47m, Morris-12.403; 29. Holley Hollan, 67K, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-12.416; 30. Jerry Coons, Jr., 25, Petry-12.421; 31. Ben Worth, 5G, Alexander-12.428; 32. Maria Cofer, 57, Cofer-12.481; 33. Thomas Meseraull, 7x, RMS-12.488; 34. Jake Bubak, 27B, Bourke-12.507; 35. Robert Dalby, 4D, Dalby-12.510; 36. Cory Elliott, 11E, Elliott-12.520; 37. Kaidon Brown, 97w, Wood-12.527; 38. Jake Morgan, 19w, Sala-12.540; 39. Kyle Cummins, 2G, Styres/Yeley-12.564; 40. Colby Copeland, 27w, Wood-12.571; 41. Jake Swanson, 73K, Ford-12.579; 42. Dave Darland, 71R, Morris-12.589; 43. C.J. Sarna, 20, Sarna-12.675; 44. Colby Johnson, 71m, Morris-12.687; 45. Ethan Mitchell, 08m, Dave Mac-12.688; 46. Gage Rucker, 11K, Kruseman-12.768; 47. Jonathan Beason, 68, Six8-12.779; 48. David Prickett, 15DJ, Neverlift-12.829; 49. Dylan Ito, 73, Ford-12.915; 50. Randi Pankratz, 8, Pankratz-12.946; 51. Tony Gualda, 18K, Kruseman-12.996; 52. Tyler Courtney, 7BC, Clauson/Marshall-13.145; 53. Kiely Ricardo, 3F, Finkenbinder-13.447; 54. Robert Carson, 99x, Segur-13.520; 55. Justin Grant, 4A, RAMS-NT; 56. Blake Bower, 10B, Boscacci/Walker-NT; 57. Karsyn Elledge, 1, Tucker/Boat-NT.
SIMPSON RACE PRODUCTS/EXTREME MUFFLERS FIRST HEAT: (10 laps, winner plus top-2 in points transfer to the feature, * represents a transfer) 1. *Brady Bacon, 2. Daison Pursley, 3. *Dillon Welch, 4. Tyler Courtney, 5. Colton Heath, 6. *Rico Abreu, 7. Ryan Bernal, 8. Dylan Ito, 9. Gage Rucker. NT
COMPETITION SUSPENSION (CSI)/BROWN & MILLER RACING SOLUTIONS SECOND HEAT: (10 laps, winner plus top-2 in points transfer to the feature) 1. *Kevin Thomas, Jr., 2. Kaidon Brown, 3. *Jason McDougal, 4. *Cannon McIntosh, 5. Randi Pankratz, 6. C.J. Sarna, 7. Jake Morgan, 8. Ben Worth, 9. Chase Johnson, 10. Zeb Wise. NT
AUTOMETER/COMPETITION SUSPENSION (CSI) THIRD HEAT: (10 laps, winner plus top-2 in points transfer to the feature) 1. *Jake Swanson, 2. Dave Darland, 3. *Tanner Carrick, 4. Cory Elliott, 5. *Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., 6. Jonathan Beason, 7. Kyle Cummins, 8. Kiely Ricardo, 9. Maria Cofer, 10. Tucker Klaasmeyer. NT
INDY RACE PARTS/ULTRA SHIELD RACE PRODUCTS FOURTH HEAT: (10 laps, winner plus top-2 in points transfer to the feature) 1. *Thomas Meseraull, 2. Jake Bubak, 3. Jerry Coons, Jr., 4. *Jesse Colwell, 5. *Shane Golobic, 6. Michael Faccinto, 7. Christopher Bell, 8. David Prickett, 9. Tony Gualda. 2:08.680 (New Track Record)
NOS ENERGY DRINK/PYROTECT RACING CELLS FIFTH HEAT: (10 laps, winner plus top-2 in points transfer to the feature) 1. *Robert Dalby, 2. *Spencer Bayston, 3. Justin Grant, 4. Holley Hollan, 5. *Aaron Reutzel, 6. Robert Carson, 7. Colby Johnson, 8. Andrew Layser, 9. Kyle Larson. NT
AMSOIL/SALDANA RACING PROUCTS SIXTH HEAT: (10 laps, winner plus top-2 in points transfer to the feature) 1. *Colby Copeland, 2. *Michael Pickens, 3. Ethan Mitchell, 4. *Logan Seavey, 5. Gio Scelzi, 6. Brad Sweet, 7. Chris Windom, 8. Buddy Kofoid, 9. Blake Bower. NT
BUTLERBUILT SEATS FIRST LAST CHANCE QUALIFIER: (12 laps, top-2 transfer to the feature) 1. Gio Scelzi, 2. Kyle Larson, 3. Tyler Courtney, 4. Daison Pursley, 5. Tucker Klaasmeyer, 6. Dave Darland, 7. Buddy Kofoid, 8. Holley Hollan, 9. Ethan Mitchell, 10. Robert Carson, 11. Dylan Ito, 12. Jonathan Beason, 13. Blake Bower. NT
EXTREME MUFFLERS SECOND LAST CHANCE QUALIFIER: (12 laps, top-2 transfer to the feature) 1. Christopher Bell, 2. Brad Sweet, 3. Zeb Wise, 4. Michael Faccinto, 5. Chase Johnson, 6. Andrew Layser, 7. Kyle Cummins, 8. Ben Worth, 9. Kaidon Brown, 10. Kiely Ricardo, 11. Jake Morgan, 12. Randi Pankratz, 13. David Prickett. NT
PYROTECT RACING CELLS THIRD LAST CHANCE QUALIFIER: (12 laps, top-2 transfer to the feature) 1. Jerry Coons, Jr., 2. Ryan Bernal, 3. Cory Elliott, 4. Justin Grant, 5. Colton Heath, 6. Chris Windom, 7. Jake Bubak, 8. Tony Gualda, 9. C.J. Sarna, 10. Gage Rucker, 11. Colby Johnson, 12. Maria Cofer. NT
PURE CROP 1 FEATURE: (30 laps, starting position in parentheses) 1. Gio Scelzi (2), 2. Logan Seavey (8), 3. Jesse Colwell (1), 4. Kyle Larson (23), 5. Shane Golobic (3), 6. Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. (5), 7. Spencer Bayston (11), 8. Tanner Carrick (6), 9. Jason McDougal (7), 10. Aaron Reutzel (17), 11. Dillon Welch (12), 12. Jerry Coons, Jr. (18), 13. Brady Bacon (10), 14. Thomas Meseraull (13), 15. Christopher Bell (15), 16. Ryan Bernal (24), 17. Rico Abreu (16), 18. Dave Darland (25), 19. Kevin Thomas, Jr. (9), 20. Jake Swanson (19), 21. Robert Dalby (14), 22. Colby Copeland (20), 23. Brad Sweet (21), 24. Michael Pickens (4), 25. Justin Grant (26), 26. Cannon McIntosh (22). NT
**Justin Grant flipped during qualifying. Jason McDougal, Zeb Wise and C.J. Sarna flipped during the second heat. Mario Cofer flipped during the third heat. Colby Johnson flipped during the fifth heat. Buddy Kofoid flipped during the fifth heat. Randi Pankratz and David Prickett flipped during the second last chance qualifier. Cannon McIntosh flipped on lap 21 of the feature.
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-30 Gio Scelzi.
KSE RACING PRODUCTS/SALDANA RACING PRODUCTS HARD CHARGER: Kyle Larson (23rd to 4th)
WILWOOD BRAKES 13TH PLACE FINISHER: Brady Bacon
SALDANA RACING PRODUCTS FIRST NON-TRANSFERS: Tyler Courtney, Zeb Wise & Cory Elliott
NEW USAC NOS ENERGY DRINK MIDGET NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS: 1-Tyler Courtney-1,901, 2-Logan Seavey-1,730, 3-Chris Windom-1,729, 4-Kevin Thomas, Jr.-1,669, 5-Zeb Wise-1,629, 6-Tanner Carrick-1,456, 7-Jerry Coons, Jr.-1,434, 8-Jason McDougal-1,359, 9-Tucker Klaasmeyer-1,313, 10-Chad Boat-1,255.
NEW USAC WESTERN STATES MIDGET POINTS: 1-Robert Dalby-697, 2-Cory Elliott-668, 3-Shannon McQueen-524, 4-David Prickett-516, 5-Ben Worth-500, 6-C.J. Sarna-483, 5-Austin Liggett-458, 8-Jake Swanson-398, 9-Randi Pankratz-378, 10-Kyle Beilman-372.
NEW HANGTOWN 100 POINTS: 1-Logan Seavey-161, 2-Gio Scelzi-157, 3-Spencer Bayston-154, 4-Jesse Colwell-153, 5-Ricky Stenhouse, Jr.-150, 6-Shane Golobic-149, 7-Tanner Carrick-149, 8-Jason McDougal-147, 9-Dillon Welch-146, 10-Kyle Larson-142.
NEXT USAC NOS ENERGY DRINK NATIONAL & WESTERN STATES MIDGET RACE: November 20, 2019 - Placerville Speedway - Placerville, California - Elk Grove Ford Hangtown 100 - 1/4-mile dirt oval
Gio Scelzi joined Cannon McIntosh, Chris Windom, Jason McDougal and Tanner Carrick to become the fifth first-time USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget winner of 2019, the most in a single season since 2008 when there were six. Scelzi also became the 14th different series winner of the season, the most in a year since that same 2008 season. (Rich Forman Photo)
Courtney Sprints to Back-to-Back Western World Wins
Posted by: | Comments- The United States Auto Club.
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Contact: Richie Murray - USAC Media / richie@usacracing.com
Tyler Courtney won his second-straight Western World USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Car feature Saturday at Arizona Speedway. (Rich Forman Photo)
COURTNEY SPRINTS TO BACK-TO-BACK WESTERN WORLD WINS
By: Richie Murray - USAC Media
San Tan Valley, Arizona (November 16, 2019).........One year ago, Tyler Courtney had a view from the other side of the spectrum at the season finale. There, his nearest combatant in the title chase collected a feature win while he celebrated a USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Car championship.
Saturday's 2019 season finale at Arizona Speedway found the Indianapolis, Ind. in the polar opposite position where he was the one standing in victory lane with a tinge of bittersweetness surrounding him. He earned a second-straight Western World Championships Sprint Car crown, and second victory in as many nights, but in the end, came up 18 points shy of a second-straight series crown behind C.J. Leary.
While Courtney was elated in one sense by picking up his series-leading ninth victory of the 2019 season and the 26th of his USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Car career, tying him with Tony Elliott and Dave Steele for 18th all-time, he couldn't help but have the end result of the championship weigh on his mind before a celebration of victory came to mind.
"What's going through my mind is that we lost the championship," Courtney said. "These guys worked their tails off all year to put us in contention for it. For the year, we just didn't get it there. We know what it's like to be the champions and especially for the first time, it's truly something special and I hope they get to enjoy it."
Entering the 30-lap feature, that landscape had been laid out. If Leary finished 11th or better, the championship would be his regardless of where Courtney finished. With that on his mind, Courtney took care of the aspect he was fully in control of.
"I told (the crew) before the feature pushed off that I was going to bring back either the trophy or the steering wheel," Courtney explained. "We brought home the trophy. To sweep the weekend in a sprint car is really cool. To win Western World in back-to-back years is pretty cool too. But second in the championship sucks. We did all we could do. We came out here and we won the race tonight. That's nothing to hang our head on. For the season, nine wins on the year is pretty special. Winning any USAC race is tough with the competition we have year-in and year-out. It's incredible."
Courtney started fifth and worked his way into third by the opening lap and into the runner-up spot by lap five while pole sitter Josh Hodges, then the evening's midget feature winner Brady Bacon, exchanged control at the front of the field.
On the 13th lap, Bacon ripped into traffic, threading needles as he scooted around the outside of Chris Gansen off turn four to escape a rapidly closing Courtney who, just moments before, had trailed by 1.5 sec., but had whittled it down to breadcrumbs by the halfway mark.
Courtney ran down Bacon in traffic, sliding underneath the two-time series champ between turns three and four to nab the position. Bacon immediately went back to work on the bottom of turn one under Courtney and emerged as the new leader at the exit of turn two.
Courtney had momentum in his back pocket, catching up to race side-by-side with Bacon into turn three on lap 17 where the two touched wheels - Bacon's right rear and Courtney's left rear - popping Courtney airborne before landing on all fours and continuing on, albeit while watching Bacon drive back by to the lead.
Courtney immediately jumped back on the bull and made a beeline from the top of turn four to the middle of turn one where the two nearly made contact again as Bacon slid above the cushion. However, Bacon made a quick recovery and turned down off two to dart back under Courtney and into the lead by turn three. The following lap was a rinse and repeat situation as Courtney slid Bacon in one while Bacon ducked back under and reassumed the top spot off two.
On the 20th lap, Bacon raced into one with Courtney a half car length behind. This time, the last car on the lead lap, Charles Davis, Jr., was to the outside of Bacon between turns one and two. As Bacon drifted to the inside of Davis, he wasn't able to slide all the way to the curb in order to propel him down the back straightaway. As Bacon slid through the middle, Courtney stuck the line under Bacon and opened up an eight-car-length advantage with ten laps remaining.
By lap 25, however, Bacon had reeled in Courtney to within a couple car lengths distance when Justin Grant and Jason McDougal found trouble in turn two. Grant landed upside down and walked to the ambulance under his own power for further observation.
During the red flag period, steam began to pour from Courtney's resting car, which was revealed to be a result of a hole in the radiator. Earlier in the night, Courtney and the team qualified fourth, but were forced to swap out the engine before their heat race in the Clauson-Marshall-Newman Racing/NOS Energy Drink - Competition Suspension, Inc./Spike/Rider Chevy.
Friday night's Western World midget winner Kevin Thomas, Jr. was the man on the move on the lap 25 restart, sliding past Bacon in turn one for the second position as Bacon faded into a distant third. Meanwhile, Courtney had gapped Thomas and Bacon to the tune of two seconds until a last lap yellow for a flat left rear tire on Chase Stockon necessitated a yellow flag.
A green-white-checkered finish wasn't enough to knock Courtney off his game as he utilized a solid restart to distance himself from the pack once and for all, taking the checkered by a 1.299 sec. margin over Thomas, Bacon, Chris Windom and C.J. Leary, whose fifth place finish secured himself a USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Car driver championship.
Tyler Courtney's 26th career USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Car win tied him with Tony Elliott and Dave Steele for 18th all-time. (Rich Forman Photo)
Contingency award winners Saturday night at Arizona Speedway were:
Brady Bacon (Indy Race Parts/Brown & Miller Racing Solutions/Sway-a-Way Racing Fourth Heat Winner)
Dustin Clark (Competition Suspension, Inc./Circle Track Performance/Ultra Shield Second Heat Winner)
Dennis Gile (Saldana Racing Products First Non-Transfer)
R.J. Johnson (AutoMeter/Saldana Racing Products/Butlerbuilt Seats Third Heat Winner)
C.J. Leary (Fatheadz Eyewear/Woodland Auto Display/Beaver Stripes Fast Qualifier & Simpson Race Products/Extreme Mufflers/Brown & Miller Racing Solutions First Heat Winner)
Jason McDougal (Roger & Barb Tapy 13th Fastest Qualifier)
Brody Roa (KSE Racing Products/Specialty Fasteners/Saldana Racing Products Hard Charger)
Jake Swanson (Competition Suspension, Inc./Pyrotect Racing Cells Semi Winner)
Austin Williams (Wilwood Brakes 13th Place Finisher)
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USAC AMSOIL NATIONAL, CRA & SANDS CHEVROLET SOUTHWEST SPRINT CAR RACE RESULTS: November 16, 2019 - Arizona Speedway - San Tan Valley, Arizona - 52nd Western World Championships presented by San Tan Ford - 1/3-Mile Dirt Oval
FATHEADZ EYEWEAR/WOODLAND AUTO DISPLAY/BEAVER STRIPES QUALIFYING: 1. C.J. Leary, 19AZ, Reinbold/Underwood-15.007; 2. Tommy Malcolm, 5x, Napier-15.007; 3. Justin Grant, 4, TOPP-15.010; 4. Tyler Courtney, 7BC, Clauson/Marshall/Newman-15.020; 5. Damion Gardner, 4x, Alexander-15.073; 6. Jake Swanson, 34AZ, Grau/Burkhart-15.079; 7. Kevin Thomas, Jr., 19, Hayward/Thomas-15.089; 8. Brady Bacon, 69, Dynamics-15.093; 9. Josh Hodges, 74x, Hodges-15.100; 10. Logan Seavey, 19L, Reinbold/Underwood-15.105; 11. Chris Windom, 5G, Parallax/Goacher-15.153; 12. Eric Wilkins, 34w, Grau/Burkhart-15.182; 13. Jason McDougal, 34, Grau-15.233; 14. Hunter Schuerenberg, 19s, Reinbold/Underwood-15.271; 15. Chase Stockon, 32, 32 TBI-15.290; 16. Chris Gansen, 4G, Gansen-15.329; 17. Eddie Tafoya, Jr., 51T, Tafoya-15.366; 18. Dustin Clark, 75, Clark-15.378; 19. R.J. Johnson, 51, Martin-15.420; 20. Chris Bonneau, 15, Bonneau-15.422; 21. Austin Williams, 92, Sertich-15.440; 22. Thomas Meseraull, 13m, Gile-15.502; 23. Brody Roa, 91R, BR-15.502; 24. Kyle Shipley, 0G, Shipley-15.543; 25. Charles Davis, Jr., 47, Davis-15.596; 26. Zack Madrid, 51m, Johnson-15.607; 27. Stevie Sussex, 12, Allen-15.610; 28. Dennis Gile, 13G, Gile-15.721; 29. Michael Curtis, 11c, Turner/Wheeler-15.744; 30. Tanner Carrick, 83T, Carrick-15.795; 31. Noah Gass, 20G, Gass-16.014; 32. Frank Rodgers III, 6R, Rodgers-16.472.
SIMPSON RACE PRODUCTS/EXTREME MUFFLERS/BROWN & MILLER RACING SOLUTIONS FIRST HEAT: (8 laps, top-4 transfer to the feature) 1. C.J. Leary, 2. Austin Williams, 3. Damion Gardner, 4. Josh Hodges, 5. Charles Davis, Jr., 6. Jason McDougal, 7. Eddie Tafoya, Jr., 8. Michael Curtis. NT
COMPETITION SUSPENSION (CSI)/CIRCLE TRACK PERFORMANCE/ULTRA SHIELD RACE PRODUCTS SECOND HEAT: (8 laps, top-4 transfer to the feature) 1. Dustin Clark, 2. Logan Seavey, 3. Hunter Schuerenberg, 4. Thomas Meseraull, 5. Jake Swanson, 6. Tommy Malcolm, 7. Zack Madrid. 8. Tanner Carrick. 2:07.366
AUTOMETER/SALDANA RACING PRODUCTS/BUTLERBUILT SEATS THIRD HEAT: (8 laps, top-4 transfer to the feature) 1. R.J. Johnson, 2. Kevin Thomas, Jr., 3. Chris Windom, 4. Chase Stockon, 5. Justin Grant, 6. Brody Roa, 7. Stevie Sussex, 8. Noah Gass. 2:07.655
INDY RACE PARTS/BROWN & MILLER RACING SOLUTIONS/SWAY-A-WAY RACING FOURTH HEAT: (8 laps, top-4 transfer to the feature) 1. Brady Bacon, 2. Tyler Courtney, 3. Eric Wilkins, 4. Chris Bonneau, 5. Chris Gansen, 6. Kyle Shipley, 7. Dennis Gile, 8. Frank Rodgers III. 2:08.698
COMPETITION SUSPENSION (CSI)/PYROTECT RACING CELLS SEMI: (12 laps, top-6 transfer to the feature) 1. Jake Swanson, 2. Justin Grant, 3. Brody Roa, 4. Eddie Tafoya, Jr., 5. Jason McDougal, 6. Chris Gansen, 7. Dennis Gile, 8. Charles Davis, Jr., 9. Zack Madrid, 10. Tanner Carrick, 11. Tommy Malcolm, 12. Kyle Shipley, 13. Noah Gass, 14. Michael Curtis, 15. Frank Rodgers III, 16. Stevie Sussex. NT
FEATURE: (30 laps, starting position in parentheses) 1. Tyler Courtney (5), 2. Kevin Thomas, Jr. (3), 3. Brady Bacon (2), 4. Chris Windom (10), 5. C.J. Leary (6), 6. Damion Gardner (4), 7. Josh Hodges (1), 8. Jake Swanson (8), 9. Logan Seavey (9), 10. Brody Roa (22), 11. Stevie Sussex (23), 12. R.J. Johnson (18), 13. Austin Williams (20), 14. Chase Stockon (13), 15. Thomas Meseraull (21), 16. Eric Wilkins (11), 17. Dustin Clark (17), 18. Chris Gansen (14), 19. Chris Bonneau (19), 20. Eddie Tafoya, Jr. (15), 21. Justin Grant (7), 22. Jason McDougal (16), 23. Charles Davis, Jr. (24), 24. Hunter Schuerenberg (12). NT
**Justin Grant flipped on lap 25 of the feature.
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Lap 1 Josh Hodges, Laps 2-15 Brady Bacon, Lap 16 Tyler Courtney, Laps 17-19 Brady Bacon, Laps 20-30 Tyler Courtney.
KSE RACING PRODUCTS/SPECIALTY FASTENERS/SALDANA RACING PRODUCTS HARD CHARGER: Brody Roa (22nd to 10th)
WILWOOD BRAKES 13TH PLACE FINISHER: Austin Williams
SALDANA RACING PRODUCTS FIRST NON-TRANSFER: Dennis Gile
ROGER & BARB TAPY 13TH FASTEST QUALIFIER: Jason McDougal
FINAL USAC AMSOIL SPRINT CAR NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS: 1-C.J. Leary-2,327, 2-Tyler Courtney-2,309, 3-Brady Bacon-2,136, 4-Kevin Thomas, Jr.-2,136, 5-Justin Grant-2,116, 6-Chris Windom-2,115, 7-Chase Stockon-2,032, 8-Jason McDougal-1,588, 9-Carson Short-1,361, 10-Isaac Chapple-1,193.
FINAL AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CAR POINTS: 1-Damion Gardner-1,489, 2-Austin Williams-1,418, 3-Brody Roa-1,302, 4-Jake Swanson-1,234, 5-Chris Gansen-911, 6-Tommy Malcolm-887, 7-Charles Davis, Jr.-837, 8-R.J. Johnson-753, 9-Eddie Tafoya, Jr.-706, 10-Richard Vander Weerd-683.
FINAL SANDS CHEVROLET USAC SOUTHWEST SPRINT CAR POINTS: 1-Brody Roa-1,083, 2-R.J. Johnson-1,065, 3-Stevie Sussex-1018, 4-Charles Davis, Jr.-976, 5-Jake Swanson-800, 6-Austin Williams-659, 7-Mike Martin-655, 8-Damion Gardner-616, 9-Chris Bonneau-517, 10-Matt Lundy-500.
Bacon is Western World Midget King
Posted by: | Comments- The United States Auto Club.
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Contact: Richie Murray - USAC Media / richie@usacracing.com
Brady Bacon captured his fifth career Western World win Saturday night in the USAC NOS Energy Drink National and Western States Midget portion of the event at Arizona Speedway.
(Rich Forman Photo)
BACON IS WESTERN WORLD MIDGET KING
By: Richie Murray - USAC Media
San Tan Valley, Arizona (November 16, 2019).........Regardless of the type of car or the venue, Brady Bacon has a knack for winning at the Western World Championships.
Entering Saturday night's 52nd Western World finale at Arizona Speedway, the Broken Arrow, Okla. native had previously earned four final night victories in a 360 c.i. sprint car, first in 2009 and 2010 in Tucson, then again in 2016 and 2018 at Arizona.
Now you can add a victory in a midget to his Western World resume after leading all 30 laps of the feature to earn his fifth overall final night win in the event and his first USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget victory since the inaugural BC39 in Indianapolis during the 2018 season.
While waiting to be pushed off for the feature, Bacon did a last-minute check of his surroundings and keyed in on some of the tire setups he saw on the competitors around him. The observation gave him a second thought and an 11th hour decision was made and put into action just prior to the start.
"The guys gave me a good car," Bacon praised. "We made a last-minute decision there in staging. I was checking everybody else's tires out and I'm like, I got to make a change here because they didn't quite do as much track work as we were expecting. Western World has always been good to me at several different racetracks. It was good to me again tonight."
Bacon launched from the outside of the front row in his FMR Racing/TRD - Black Watch Farms - Mobil 1/Beast/Speedway Toyota, taking the lead on the opening lap while a scramble for position ensued among the balance of the top-five.
Outside second row starter Logan Seavey slotted into second on the first lap and engaged in his race-long pursuit of Bacon. Seavey trekked through the middle in one and two and the top side of three and four in his chase toward Bacon. Seavey attempted to slide Bacon multiple times in turn one during the first third of the race to no avail as Bacon smoothly rode the cushion to fend off the Seavey challenge.
Just before midway, the top-four of Bacon, Seavey, Zeb Wise and Tyler Courtney ran in close-quarters nose-to-tail when a series of accidents slowed the action. Series Rookie Jesse Colwell was the first to take a tumble in turn two on the 15th lap. On the ensuing restart, Colwell's Keith Kunz Motorsports/Curb-Agajanian teammate Tucker Klaasmeyer was the next to find trouble, flipping in the same area of the second turn.
Rookie Karsyn Elledge took the most serious spill of the event, flipping high and violently down the front straightway several times on the 17th lap. Colwell, Klaasmeyer and Elledge all walked away from their respective incidents under their own power.
The cushion was building up, and the path to victory was narrowing with rubber on the entry into the corners. Seavey consistently cut through the middle and was able to steer his car up to the cushion where it worked just as well. Seavey was able to drive up right to the tail of Bacon but was unable to faze the two-time USAC National Sprint Car champion.
"We biked up a couple times," Bacon recalled. "That cushion was getting really big. It was so slick up to it, you could hit it really easy, then I almost didn't catch the rubber there at the end. I moved down, I think, just in time. I don't know how close he was getting to me, but if he found it first, he was probably catching me pretty quickly."
Seavey needed either a really good run into the corner or needed Bacon to make a mistake, both of which seemed to be just out of reach. Bacon held smooth and steady and closed out his first series victory of the year to become just the second driver in 2019 to win main events in all three of USAC's National series, joining Tyler Courtney.
Bacon triumphed with a 0.482 sec. margin at the checkered over Seavey, Wise, Courtney and KSE Racing Products Hard Charger Rico Abreu who started 18th.
Bacon's eighth career USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget win tied him for 79th all-time alongside Merle Bettenhausen, Tony Bettenhausen, Hank Butcher, Kevin Doty, Dan Drinan, Ronnie Duman, Brian Gerster, Kenny Irwin Jr, Eddie Johnson, Michael Lewis, Andy Michner and Josh Wise.
(Rich Forman Photo)
Bacon's eighth career USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget win tied him for 79th all-time alongside Merle Bettenhausen, Tony Bettenhausen, Hank Butcher, Kevin Doty, Dan Drinan, Ronnie Duman, Brian Gerster, Kenny Irwin Jr, Eddie Johnson, Michael Lewis, Andy Michner and Josh Wise.
Contingency award winners Friday night at Arizona Speedway were:
Rico Abreu (KSE Racing Products/Saldana Racing Products Hard Charger)
Jerry Coons, Jr. (AutoMeter/Competition Suspension, Inc./Ultra Shield Race Products Third Heat Winner)
Tyler Courtney (Fatheadz Eyewear Fast Qualifier)
Robert Dalby (Saldana Racing Products First Non-Transfer)
Shannon McQueen (Wilwood Brakes 13th Place Finisher)
Daison Pursley (Competition Suspension, Inc./Brown & Miller Racing Solutions Second Heat Winner)
Chris Windom (Indy Race Parts/Butlerbuilt Seats Semi Winner)
Zeb Wise (Simpson Race Products/Extreme Mufflers First Heat Winner)
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USAC NOS ENERGY DRINK NATIONAL & WESTERN STATES MIDGET RACE RESULTS: November 16, 2019 - Arizona Speedway - San Tan Valley, Arizona - 52nd Western World Championships presented by San Tan Ford - 1/3-Mile Dirt Oval
FATHEADZ EYEWEAR/WOODLAND AUTO DISPLAY QUALIFYING: 1. Tyler Courtney, 7BC, Clauson/Marshall-15.725; 2. Carson Macedo, 21, Tarlton-15.742; 3. Kevin Thomas, Jr., 5, Petry-15.751; 4. Karsyn Elledge, 1, Tucker/Boat-15.765; 5. Logan Seavey, 67, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-15.771; 6. Gio Scelzi, 84, Tucker/Boat-15.776; 7. Chris Windom, 17BC, Clauson/Marshall-15.780; 8. Jesse Colwell, 71, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-15.783; 9. Brady Bacon, 76E, FMR-15.811; 10. Zeb Wise, 39BC, Clauson/Marshall-15.821; 11. Tucker Klaasmeyer, 27, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-15.823; 12. Andrew Layser, 47BC, Clauson/Marshall-15.853; 13. Buddy Kofoid, 98, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-15.864; 14. Tanner Carrick, 71K, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-15.871; 15. Jerry Coons, Jr., 25, Petry-15.899; 16. Jason McDougal, 76m, FMR-15.914; 17. Daison Pursley, 9, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-15.932; 18. Kyle Cummins, 2G, Styres/Yeley-15.943; 19. Rico Abreu, 97, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-15.974; 20. Holley Hollan, 67K, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-16.007; 21. Noah Gass, 20G, Gass-16.016; 22. Robert Dalby, 4D, Dalby-16.025; 23. Conor Daly, 15, Petry-16.065; 24. Shannon McQueen, 7, McQueen-16.072; 25. Thomas Meseraull, 13, Gile-16.177; 26. Cory Elliott, 11E, Elliott-16.352; 27. C.J. Sarna, 20, Sarna-16.535; 28. Brett Becker, 2B, Becker-NT.
SIMPSON RACE PRODUCTS/EXTREME MUFFLERS FIRST HEAT: (8 laps, top-5 transfer to the feature) 1. Zeb Wise, 2. Jason McDougal, 3. Buddy Kofoid, 4. Tyler Courtney, 5. Rico Abreu, 6. Thomas Meseraull, 7. Karsyn Elledge, 8. Robert Dalby, 9. Brett Becker, 10. Chris Windom. NT
COMPETITION SUSPENSION (CSI)/BROWN & MILLER RACING SOLUTIONS SECOND HEAT: (8 laps, top-5 transfer to the feature) 1. Daison Pursley, 2. Jesse Colwell, 3. Tucker Klaasmeyer, 4. Logan Seavey, 5. Tanner Carrick, 6. Carson Macedo, 7. Cory Elliott, 8. Conor Daly, 9. Holley Hollan. NT
AUTOMETER/COMPETITION SUSPENSION (CSI)/ULTRA SHIELD RACE PRODUCTS THIRD HEAT: (8 laps, top-5 transfer to the feature) 1. Jerry Coons, Jr., 2. Kyle Cummins, 3. Kevin Thomas, Jr., 4. Brady Bacon, 5. Andrew Layser, 6. Gio Scelzi, 7. Noah Gass, 8. Shannon McQueen, 9. C.J. Sarna. 2:10.938
INDY RACE PARTS/BUTLERBUILT SEATS SEMI: (12 laps, top-7 transfer to the feature) 1. Chris Windom, 2. Gio Scelzi, 3. Carson Macedo, 4. Holley Hollan, 5. Thomas Meseraull, 6. Conor Daly, 7. Karsyn Elledge, 8. Robert Dalby, 9. Cory Elliott, 10. Noah Gass, 11. Brett Becker, 12. C.J. Sarna, 13. Shannon McQueen. NT
FEATURE: (30 laps, starting position in parentheses) 1. Brady Bacon (2), 2. Logan Seavey (4), 3. Zeb Wise (1), 4. Tyler Courtney (6), 5. Rico Abreu (18), 6. Kevin Thomas, Jr. (5), 7. Chris Windom (9), 8. Jerry Coons, Jr. (14), 9. Gio Scelzi (8), 10. Tanner Carrick (13), 11. Andrew Layser (11), 12. Daison Pursley (16), 13. Shannon McQueen (22), 14. Holley Hollan (19), 15. Kyle Cummins (17), 16. Noah Gass (23), 17. Conor Daly (20), 18. Karsyn Elledge (7), 19. Jason McDougal (15), 20. Tucker Klaasmeyer (10), 21. Jesse Colwell (3), 22. Buddy Kofoid (12), 23. Thomas Meseraull (21). NT
**Holley Hollan flipped during the second heat. Jesse Colwell flipped on lap 15 of the feature. Tucker Klaasmeyer flipped on the lap 15 restart. Karsyn Elledge flipped on lap 17 of the feature.
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-30 Brady Bacon.
KSE RACING PRODUCTS/SALDANA RACING PRODUCTS HARD CHARGER: Rico Abreu (18th to 5th)
WILWOOD BRAKES 13TH PLACE FINISHER: Shannon McQueen
SALDANA RACING PRODUCTS FIRST NON-TRANSFER: Robert Dalby
NEW USAC NOS ENERGY DRINK MIDGET NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS: 1-Tyler Courtney-1,851, 2-Logan Seavey-1,680, 3-Chris Windom-1,679, 4-Kevin Thomas, Jr.-1,619, 5-Zeb Wise-1,579, 6-Tanner Carrick-1,406, 7-Jerry Coons, Jr.-1,384, 8-Jason McDougal-1,309, 9-Tucker Klaasmeyer-1,263, 10-Chad Boat-1,255.
NEW USAC WESTERN STATES MIDGET POINTS: 1-Robert Dalby-647, 2-Cory Elliott-618, 3-Shannon McQueen-524, 4-David Prickett-466, 5-Austin Liggett-458, 6-Ben Worth-450, 7-C.J. Sarna-433, 8-Kyle Beilman-372, 9-Marvin Mitchell-370, 10-Jake Swanson-348.
NEXT USAC NOS ENERGY DRINK NATIONAL & WESTERN STATES MIDGET RACES: November 19-20, 2019 - Placerville Speedway - Placerville, California - Elk Grove Ford Hangtown 100 - 1/4-mile dirt oval
Sunshine Survives and Thrives in Western World Sprint Opener
Posted by: | Comments- The United States Auto Club.
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Contact: Richie Murray - USAC Media / richie@usacracing.com
Tyler Courtney captured Friday night's USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Car victory on night #1 of the Western World Championships at Arizona Speedway.
(Rich Forman Photo)
SUNSHINE SURVIVES AND THRIVES IN WESTERN WORLD SPRINT OPENER
By: Richie Murray - USAC Media
San Tan Valley, Arizona (November 15, 2019).........Entering the final weekend of the year trailing by 44 points in the USAC AMSOIL National standings, Tyler Courtney's goal was simple. Win a championship.
Simple enough. But to do that, you've got to persevere under pressure and tense situations that may arise around you. You've also got to avoid catastrophe whether it's by your own doing or avoiding the calamities around you in order to maximize your points.
Courtney checked all those boxes on Friday night in the opener for the 52nd annual Western World Championships presented by San Tan Ford at Arizona Speedway to win his eighth series feature of 2019 and the 25th of his career, tying him with Steve Butler, Jay Drake and Chris Windom for 20th all-time.
"We came here this weekend to do one thing, and that's win a championship," Courtney reiterated. "You've got to do that by winning races. We may have fallen into one a little bit here, but you've got to be lucky just as much as you've got to be good."
Courtney, the defending Western World champion, started the feature from 5th, where he had a front row seat for a 30-lap war of attrition that plagued many of the front runners for a variety of reasons.
Chris Windom mostly dominated from the pole position for much of the first half of the event following a lap one stoppage for fast qualifier and heat race one winner Logan Seavey who slowed with a mechanical issue on the opening circuit and was sidelined for the remainder of the evening.
In reverse of the midget race that proceeded the sprint feature, the groove was up on the fence where Windom led the charge around the 1/3-mile dirt oval while National championship contenders Courtney and point leader C.J. Leary ran 6th and 11th, respectively, with Courtney throwing a shower of sparks from brakes in the turns for the time being.
Just before midway, second-running Justin Grant had caught Windom, taking a peek underneath Windom on both ends of the track just as the ring of rubber began to take hold on the top side.
Grant successfully made the pass of Windom stick in turn one on the 17th lap with the two making contact, Grant's rear to Windom's front bumper. Windom fell back behind Grant, but it didn't take long for him to fire his next shot in turn one two laps later to reclaim the lead.
On the 21st lap, Grant brought the heat once again with a turn one slider across the nose of Windom to secure the top spot with less than 10 to go. Grant became the locomotive pulling the train with Windom and midget feature winner Kevin Thomas, Jr. now closing in rapidly in third.
On the very next lap, the unthinkable happened. As the top-three entered the middle of turns one and two, they approached the lapped car of Kyle Shipley, whose right rear tire was pouring smoke off the corners. As Shipley rounded turn two, he drifted high off the rubber, half-spinning right into the path of not only Grant, but also second-running Windom, third-place Thomas and fourth place Schuerenberg, who all plowed into Shipley's stopped car.
Just behind, resting near the outside turn two wall was 10th running Chase Stockon and point leader Leary. With only nine laps remaining, Leary's pursuit of a championship seemed to be in peril. However, he restarted and managed to wheel back to 6th at the checkered following a slew of attrition and tire wear that developed down the stretch.
Windom and Schuerenberg were out, and Thomas dropped out a few laps later, while Grant, Leary, Stockon rejoined the fray. USAC/CRA Sprint standout Austin Williams inherited the lead with Brady Bacon and Courtney now residing in his shadow.
However, Williams bid for a first career USAC National feature win came to a bitter end with just five laps to go as his right rear tire gave way in turn 4 while a melee involving the cars of Jake Swanson, Thomas Meseraull, Max Adams, Brody Roa and a helicoptering R.J. Johnson ensued behind him.
The restart put Bacon up front ahead of Courtney. Bacon assumed control, setting the pace until three laps to go when 19th running Chris Gansen slowed to a stop in turn four with a flat right rear of his own. When racing resumed, 4th running Damion Gardner and 12th place Kevin Thomas, Jr. were the next to fall to the wayside with flat tires. Under caution, the cords on Bacon's right rear became readily apparent, thus placing him in the unenviable role of sitting duck on the lap 29 restart.
Courtney smelled blood in the water and went on the offensive, sliding underneath Bacon in turn one to grab the lead. Just mere moments later, Bacon slowed to a crawl with the plodding sound of flat right rear rubber entering his ear.
Courtney was now in his Shangri-La for the final restart and where he'd stay for good, encountering no trouble at the end en route to victory over a hard-charging Justin Grant, who returned from the earlier incident to finish 2nd. Jason McDougal was 3rd ahead of KSE Racing Products Hard Charger Charles Davis, Jr. in 4th (from 16th) and Stevie Sussex rounding out the top-five.
Tyler Courtney's eighth USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Car feature win of 2019 on Friday night was the 25th of his career, tying him with Steve Butler, Jay Drake and Chris Windom for 20th all-time. (Rich Forman Photo)
With the victory, Courtney has now closed the gap to 26 entering Saturday's finale in the race for the 2019 USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Car championship.
"Our team hasn't given up all year," Courtney praised the crew of his Clauson-Marshall-Newman Racing/NOS Energy Drink - Competition Suspension, Inc./Spike/Rider Chevy. "We've been behind the eight ball ever since the first race in Florida when we ran 18th, but these guys never give up and they gave me a great racecar again. One more night to try and seal this deal up and we're just excited about the momentum we've got."
Contingency award winners Friday night at Arizona Speedway were:
Chris Bonneau (Saldana Racing Products First Non-Transfer)
Tyler Courtney (Indy Race Parts/Brown & Miller Racing Solutions/Sway-a-Way Racing Fourth Heat Winner)
Charles Davis, Jr. (Competition Suspension, Inc./Circle Track Performance/Ultra Shield Second Heat Winner & KSE Racing Products/Specialty Fasteners/Saldana Racing Products Hard Charger)
Damion Gardner (Wilwood Brakes 13th Place Finisher)
C.J. Leary (AutoMeter/Saldana Racing Products/Butlerbuilt Seats Third Heat Winner)
Logan Seavey (Fatheadz Eyewear/Woodland Auto Display/Beaver Stripes Fast Qualifier & Simpson Race Products/Extreme Mufflers/Brown & Miller Racing Solutions First Heat Winner)
Eddie Tafoya, Jr. (Roger & Barb Tapy 13th Fastest Qualifier)
Kevin Thomas, Jr. (Competition Suspension, Inc./Pyrotect Racing Cells Semi Winner)
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USAC AMSOIL NATIONAL, CRA & SANDS CHEVROLET SOUTHWEST SPRINT CAR RACE RESULTS: November 15, 2019 - Arizona Speedway - San Tan Valley, Arizona - 52nd Western World Championships presented by San Tan Ford - 1/3-Mile Dirt Oval
FATHEADZ EYEWEAR/WOODLAND AUTO DISPLAY/BEAVER STRIPES QUALIFYING: 1. Logan Seavey, 19L, Reinbold/Underwood-14.763; 2. Hunter Schuerenberg, 19s, Reinbold/Underwood-14.881; 3. Kevin Thomas, Jr., 19, Hayward/Thomas-14.960; 4. Tyler Courtney, 7BC, Clauson/Marshall/Newman-14.967; 5. Justin Grant, 4, TOPP-15.008; 6. Chase Stockon, 32, 32 TBI-15.057; 7. Austin Williams, 92, Sertich-15.064; 8. Chris Windom, 5G, Parallax/Goacher-15.072; 9. Jason McDougal, 34, Grau-15.105; 10. Jake Swanson, 34AZ, Grau/Burkhart-15.113; 11. C.J. Leary, 19AZ, Reinbold/Underwood-15.157; 12. Brady Bacon, 69, Dynamics-15.182; 13. Eddie Tafoya, Jr., 51T, Tafoya-15.191; 14. Josh Hodges, 74x, Hodges-15.205; 15. Damion Gardner, 4x, Alexander-15.217; 16. R.J. Johnson, 51, Martin-15.252; 17. Stevie Sussex, 12, Allen-15.259; 18. Charles Davis, Jr., 47, Davis-15.266; 19. Dustin Clark, 75, Clark-15.266; 20. Thomas Meseraull, 13m, Gile-15.281; 21. Chris Gansen, 4G, Gansen-15.286; 22. Brody Roa, 91R, BR-15.332; 23. Max Adams, 42, Cheney-15.339; 24. Tanner Carrick, 83T, Carrick-15.446; 25. Chris Bonneau, 15, Bonneau-15.447; 26. Dennis Gile, 13G, Gile-15.540; 27. Sterling Cling, 34c, Cling-15.541; 28. Tommy Malcolm, 5x, Napier-15.628; 29. Matt Rossi, 02, Rossi-15.696; 30. Kyle Shipley, 0G, Shipley-15.698; 31. Tye Mihocko, 5, Mihocko-15.816; 32. Michael Curtis, 11c, Turner/Wheeler-15.867; 33. Frank Rodgers III, 6R, Rodgers-16.957; 34. Noah Gass, 20G, Gass-NT; 35. Zack Madrid, 15m, Madrid-NT.
SIMPSON RACE PRODUCTS/EXTREME MUFFLERS/BROWN & MILLER RACING SOLUTIONS FIRST HEAT: (8 laps, top-4 transfer to the feature) 1. Logan Seavey, 2. Jason McDougal, 3. Chris Gansen, 4. Justin Grant, 5. Stevie Sussex, 6. Chris Bonneau, 7. Frank Rodgers III, 8. Eddie Tafoya, Jr. NT
COMPETITION SUSPENSION (CSI)/CIRCLE TRACK PERFORMANCE/ULTRA SHIELD RACE PRODUCTS SECOND HEAT: (8 laps, top-4 transfer to the feature) 1. Charles Davis, Jr., 2. Chase Stockon, 3. Jake Swanson, 4. Brody Roa, 5. Hunter Schuerenberg, 6. Josh Hodges, 7. Kyle Shipley, 8. Dennis Gile, 9. Noah Gass. 2:06.413
AUTOMETER/SALDANA RACING PRODUCTS/BUTLERBUILT SEATS THIRD HEAT: (8 laps, top-4 transfer to the feature) 1. C.J. Leary, 2. Damion Gardner, 3. Max Adams, 4. Austin Williams, 5. Kevin Thomas, Jr., 6. Dustin Clark, 7. Sterling Cling, 8. Tye Mihocko. 2:04.285 (New Track Record)
INDY RACE PARTS/BROWN & MILLER RACING SOLUTIONS/SWAY-A-WAY RACING FOURTH HEAT: (8 laps, top-4 transfer to the feature) 1. Tyler Courtney, 2. Thomas Meseraull, 3. Brady Bacon, 4. Chris Windom, 5. R.J. Johnson, 6. Tommy Malcolm, 7. Tanner Carrick, 8. Michael Curtis. 2:05.195
COMPETITION SUSPENSION (CSI)/PYROTECT RACING CELLS SEMI: (12 laps, top-6 transfer to the feature) 1. Kevin Thomas, Jr., 2. Josh Hodges, 3. Hunter Schuerenberg, 4. R.J. Johnson, 5. Dustin Clark, 6. Kyle Shipley, 7. Chris Bonneau, 8. Stevie Sussex, 9. Dennis Gile, 10. Tanner Carrick, 11. Michael Curtis, 12. Tye Mihocko, 13. Noah Gass, 14. Frank Rodgers III, 15. Tommy Malcolm, 16. Sterling Cling, 17. Eddie Tafoya, Jr. NT
FEATURE: (30 laps, starting position in parentheses) 1. Tyler Courtney (5), 2. Justin Grant (4), 3. Jason McDougal (9), 4. Charles Davis, Jr. (16), 5. Stevie Sussex (24), 6. C.J. Leary (11), 7. Josh Hodges (13), 8. Chase Stockon (3), 9. Austin Williams (2), 10. Tommy Malcolm (23), 11. Jake Swanson (10), 12. Thomas Meseraull (18), 13. Damion Gardner (14), 14. R.J. Johnson (15), 15. Max Adams (21), 16. Chris Gansen (19), 17. Brady Bacon (12), 18. Kevin Thomas, Jr. (8), 19. Brody Roa (20), 20. Chris Windom (1), 21. Hunter Schuerenberg (7), 22. Kyle Shipley (22), 23. Dustin Clark (17), 24. Logan Seavey (6). NT
**Justin Grant flipped during the first heat. Sterling Cling flipped during the semi.
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-16 Chris Windom, Laps 17-18 Justin Grant, Laps 19-20 Chris Windom, Lap 21 Justin Grant, Laps 22-25 Austin Williams, Laps 26-28 Brady Bacon, Laps 29-30 Tyler Courtney.
KSE RACING PRODUCTS/SPECIALTY FASTENERS/SALDANA RACING PRODUCTS HARD CHARGER: Charles Davis, Jr. (16th to 4th)
WILWOOD BRAKES 13TH PLACE FINISHER: Damion Gardner
SALDANA RACING PRODUCTS FIRST NON-TRANSFER: Chris Bonneau
ROGER & BARB TAPY 13TH FASTEST QUALIFIER: Eddie Tafoya, Jr.
NEW USAC AMSOIL SPRINT CAR NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS: 1-C.J. Leary-2,255, 2-Tyler Courtney-2,229, 3-Justin Grant-2,086, 4-Brady Bacon-2,064, 5-Kevin Thomas, Jr.-2,062, 6-Chris Windom-2,048, 7-Chase Stockon-1,992, 8-Jason McDougal-1,564, 9-Carson Short-1,361, 10-Isaac Chapple-1,193.
NEW AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CAR POINTS: 1-Damion Gardner-1,426. 2-Austin Williams-1,374, 3-Brody Roa-1,257, 4-Jake Swanson-1,180, 5-Chris Gansen-883, 6-Tommy Malcolm-872, 7-Charles Davis, Jr.-814, 8-R.J. Johnson-706, 9-Richard Vander Weerd-683, 10-Eddie Tafoya, Jr.-682.
NEW SANDS CHEVROLET USAC SOUTHWEST SPRINT CAR POINTS: 1-Brody Roa-1,038, 2-R.J. Johnson-1,018, 3-Stevie Sussex-977, 4-Charles Davis, Jr.-953, 5-Jake Swanson-746, 6-Mike Martin-655, 7-Austin Williams-615, 8-Damion Gardner-553, 9-Matt Lundy-500, 10-Chris Bonneau-487.
NEXT USAC AMSOIL NATIONAL, CRA & SANDS CHEVROLET SOUTHWEST SPRINT CAR RACE: November 16, 2019 - Arizona Speedway - San Tan Valley, Arizona - 52nd Western World Championships presented by San Tan Ford
Thomas Steers to Western World Night #1 Midget Score
Posted by: | Comments- The United States Auto Club.
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Contact: Richie Murray - USAC Media / richie@usacracing.com
Kevin Thomas, Jr. rides away in style after picking up Friday's USAC NOS Energy Drink National and Western States Midget victory on night #1 of the Western World Championships at Arizona Speedway. (Rich Forman Photo)
THOMAS STEERS TO WESTERN WORLD NIGHT #1 MIDGET SCORE
By: Richie Murray - USAC Media
San Tan Valley, Arizona (November 15, 2019).........Since his car first rolled off the trailer for practice one night earlier, Kevin Thomas, Jr. has had the propensity to be quick in a midget around Arizona Speedway.
That tendency carried into Friday night's Western World Championships presented by San Tan Ford where Thomas led all 30 laps and fought off a hard-charging Zeb Wise who nearly ripped away the victory in the final laps of first ever visit for the USAC NOS Energy Drink National and Western States Midgets to the 1/3-mile dirt oval.
Thomas (Cullman, Ala.) found the groove to become the fastest driver in practice on Thursday, then admits his lackluster (by his standards) qualifying run put him in position to capitalize for his second series victory of the year and the sixth of his career in his Petry Motorsports/FK Rod Ends - McDonald's - Dr. Pepper/Bullet/Speedway Toyota.
"We've been working so hard with our team all year. Everything kind of aligned tonight," Thomas explained. "We've been fast right out of the box, but I screwed up there in qualifying. I screwed up just good enough to get us on the front row."
Thomas was 10th quickest in qualifying, and by virtue of four different drivers missing the transfer through their heat races, that moved Thomas up to the pole position for the 30-lap A-Main, a fortuitous circumstance that Thomas took full advantage of.
From the get-go, Thomas utilized the bottom to lead early while Wise, celebrating his 17th birthday on this day, drove under outside front row starter Gio Scelzi on the bottom of turn two to take second. All the while, Thomas had constructed a one-plus second lead, which he had to rebuild no less than four times in the first half of the race following a bevy of yellows.
Thomas commanded the race for the bottom with much of the top-five aligned in formation behind him while a couple of takers at the back end of the top-ten took the high road to no avail.
The lead for Thomas had grown to 1.438 seconds with 10 laps remaining when traffic loomed on the bottom, creating a possible scenario which could've forced the leaders off the bottom and into the unknown during the latter stages of the race.
The possible consternation subsided as 21st running Thomas Meseraull slowed to bring about a caution, erasing Thomas' advantage, but put him in position with the lead, a clear track and the lapped car of C.J. Sarna between he and second-running Zeb Wise for the lap 21 restart.
Wise disposed of Sarna and quickly went to work on Thomas, this time sticking with and roping in the leader with the laps waning. Wise was just a half car length back and to the left of Thomas as the two raced side-by-side across the stripe on lap 28. Thomas zipped back to the bottom line to slam the door on Wise entering turn one.
September's BC39 winner, Wise, stayed right within touch of Thomas, quite literally, with Wise's front bumper making slight contact with the left side of Thomas' rear bumper at the exit of two.
On the final lap, Wise entered the first turn right on the rear chrome of Thomas. However, at the exit of the second turn, Thomas found the grip to propel away from Wise by roughly four car lengths getting into turn three. Thomas rounded the corner and headed for home with a 0.656 second victory in hand over Wise while Tanner Carrick, Logan Seavey and Carson Macedo occupied the remainder of the top-five.
Friday's victory was the sixth of Kevin Thomas, Jr.'s USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget career, tying him for 101st all-time with Donnie Beechler, George Benson, Dana Carter, Bob Cicconi, Robby Flock, Nick Fornoro, Jr., Arnie Knepper, Logan Seavey, Ricky Shelton, Mike Streicher, Dave Strickland, Jr. & Roger West. (Rich Forman Photo)
In victory lane, Thomas was greeted by a steer, and eagerly accepted a ride from the animal in victory lane to the delight of the sizable crowd on hand.
"I know Zeb wanted to win on his birthday," Thomas admitted. "But he raced me clean and he had a chance right there to probably stuff it in on me getting into one, I think. It was just good hard racing by everybody."
For Wise, it was a valiant effort that saw him come just shy of picking up his fourth series win of the year.
"We'd been about the same speed the whole race," Wise said. "There at the end, I tried some stuff with my shocks. We were good enough; I just think I showed him the line in three and four and he moved down. I had a chance there, but Kevin and I always race each other clean, so I wasn't going to try anything there."
Contingency award winners Friday night at Arizona Speedway were:
Brady Bacon (AutoMeter/Competition Suspension, Inc./Ultra Shield Race Products Third Heat Winner)
Jesse Colwell (Competition Suspension, Inc./Brown & Miller Racing Solutions Second Heat Winner)
Kyle Cummins (KSE Racing Products/Saldana Racing Products Hard Charger)
Tucker Klaasmeyer (Wilwood Brakes 13th Place Finisher)
Andrew Layser (Simpson Race Products/Extreme Mufflers First Heat Winner)
Carson Macedo (Butlerbuilt Seats Semi Winner)
Shannon McQueen (Saldana Racing Products First Non-Transfer)
Daison Pursley (Indy Race Parts/Pyrotech Racing Cells Fourth Heat Winner)
Logan Seavey (Fatheadz Eyewear Fast Qualifier)
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USAC NOS ENERGY DRINK NATIONAL & WESTERN STATES MIDGET RACE RESULTS: November 15, 2019 - Arizona Speedway - San Tan Valley, Arizona - 52nd Western World Championships presented by San Tan Ford - 1/3-Mile Dirt Oval
FATHEADZ EYEWEAR/WOODLAND AUTO DISPLAY QUALIFYING: 1. Logan Seavey, 67, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-15.426 (New Track Record); 2. Tyler Courtney, 7BC, Clauson/Marshall-15.456; 3. Tucker Klaasmeyer, 27, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-15.472; 4. Rico Abreu, 97, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-15.543; 5. Tanner Carrick, 71K, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-15.549; 6. Carson Macedo, 21, Tarlton-15.556; 7. Zeb Wise, 39BC, Clauson/Marshall-15.578; 8. Gio Scelzi, 84, Tucker/Boat-15.605; 9. Robert Dalby, 4D, Dalby-15.628; 10. Kevin Thomas, Jr., 5, Petry-15.643; 11. Brady Bacon, 76E, FMR-15.656; 12. Chris Windom, 17BC, Clauson/Marshall-15.680; 13. Andrew Layser, 47BC, Clauson/Marshall-15.692; 14. Karsyn Elledge, 1, Tucker/Boat-15.692; 15. Jerry Coons, Jr., 25, Petry-15.706; 16. Buddy Kofoid, 97K, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-15.707; 17. Jason McDougal, 76m, FMR-15.772; 18. Shannon McQueen, 7, McQueen-15.837; 19. Conor Daly, 15, Petry-15.879; 20. Daison Pursley, 9, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-15.898; 21. Thomas Meseraull, 13, Gile-15.944; 22. Jesse Colwell, 71, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-16.005; 23. Noah Gass, 20G, Gass-16.058; 24. Holley Hollan, 67K, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-16.112; 25. C.J. Sarna, 20, Sarna-16.286; 26. Kyle Cummins, 2G, Styres/Yeley-16.334; 27. Cory Elliott, 11E, Elliott-16.454; 28. Ron Hazelton, 15H, Hazelton-16.748; 29. Marvin Mitchell, 78, Mitchell-21.095; 30. Brett Becker, 2B, Becker-NT.
SIMPSON RACE PRODUCTS/EXTREME MUFFLERS FIRST HEAT: (8 laps, top-4 transfer to the feature) 1. Andrew Layser, 2. Jason McDougal, 3. Tanner Carrick, 4. Logan Seavey, 5. Thomas Meseraull, 6. Robert Dalby, 7. C.J. Sarna, 8. Marvin Mitchell. NT
COMPETITION SUSPENSION (CSI)/BROWN & MILLER RACING SOLUTIONS SECOND HEAT: (8 laps, top-4 transfer to the feature) 1. Jesse Colwell, 2. Tyler Courtney, 3. Kevin Thomas, Jr., 4. Karsyn Elledge, 5. Carson Macedo, 6. Kyle Cummins, 7. Shannon McQueen, 8. Brett Becker. 2:07.777 (New Track Record)
AUTOMETER/COMPETITION SUSPENSION (CSI)/ULTRA SHIELD RACE PRODUCTS THIRD HEAT: (8 laps, top-4 transfer to the feature) 1. Brady Bacon, 2. Jerry Coons, Jr., 3. Conor Daly, 4. Zeb Wise, 5. Noah Gass, 6. Cory Elliott, 7. Tucker Klaasmeyer. NT
INDY RACE PARTS/PYROTECT RACING CELLS FOURTH HEAT: (8 laps, top-4 transfer to the feature) 1. Daison Pursley, 2. Chris Windom, 3. Gio Scelzi, 4. Holley Hollan, 5. Buddy Kofoid, 6. Rico Abreu, 7. Ron Hazelton. NT
BUTLERBUILT SEATS SEMI: (10 laps, top-6 transfer to the feature) 1. Carson Macedo, 2. Rico Abreu, 3. Cory Elliott, 4. Robert Dalby, 5. Thomas Meseraull, 6. Kyle Cummins, 7. Shannon McQueen, 8. C.J. Sarna, 9. Marvin Mitchell, 10. Ron Hazelton. NT
FEATURE: (30 laps, starting position in parentheses) 1. Kevin Thomas, Jr. (1), 2. Zeb Wise (3), 3. Tanner Carrick (4), 4. Logan Seavey (6), 5. Carson Macedo (8), 6. Rico Abreu (7), 7. Chris Windom (11), 8. Tyler Courtney (5), 9. Jerry Coons, Jr. (14), 10. Brady Bacon (10), 11. Jason McDougal (15), 12. Gio Scelzi (2), 13. Tucker Klaasmeyer (23), 14. Kyle Cummins (21), 15. Jesse Colwell (19), 16. Cory Elliott (22), 17. Andrew Layser (12), 18. Holley Hollan (20), 19. Robert Dalby (9), 20. Daison Pursley (17), 21. Conor Daly (16), 22. C.J. Sarna (24), 23. Thomas Meseraull (18), 24. Karsyn Elledge (13), 25. Marvin Mitchell (23). NT
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-30 Kevin Thomas, Jr.
KSE RACING PRODUCTS/SALDANA RACING PRODUCTS HARD CHARGER: Kyle Cummins (21st to 14th)
WILWOOD BRAKES 13TH PLACE FINISHER: Tucker Klaasmeyer
SALDANA RACING PRODUCTS FIRST NON-TRANSFER: Shannon McQueen
NEW USAC NOS ENERGY DRINK MIDGET NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS: 1-Tyler Courtney-1,779, 2-Chris Windom-1,623, 3-Logan Seavey-1,606, 4-Kevin Thomas, Jr.-1,554, 5-Zeb Wise-1,507, 6-Tanner Carrick-1,359, 7-Jerry Coons, Jr.-1,327, 8-Jason McDougal-1,277, 9-Chad Boat-1,255, 10-Tucker Klaasmeyer-1,234.
NEW USAC WESTERN STATES MIDGET POINTS: 1-Robert Dalby-637, 2-Cory Elliott-608, 3-Shannon McQueen-487, 4-David Prickett-466, 5-Austin Liggett-458, 6-Ben Worth-450, 7-C.J. Sarna-423, 8-Kyle Beilman-372, 9-Marvin Mitchell-370, 10-Jake Swanson-348
NEXT USAC NOS ENERGY DRINK NATIONAL & WESTERN STATES MIDGET RACE: November 16, 2019 - Arizona Speedway - San Tan Valley, Arizona - 52nd Western World Championships presented by San Tan Ford
Massive Turkey Night Midget Lineup Awaits Ventura
Posted by: | Comments- The United States Auto Club.
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Contact: Richie Murray - USAC Media / richie@usacracing.com
Kevin Thomas, Jr. (#5) and Zeb Wise (#39BC) race side-by-side earlier during the 2019 USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget season.
(Lee Greenawalt Photo)
MASSIVE TURKEY NIGHT MIDGET ENTRY LIST AWAITS VENTURA
By: Richie Murray - USAC Media
Ventura, California (November 13, 2019).........As it stands now, the entry list for the 79th running of the Turkey Night Grand Prix is stacked to the gills with the number of cars, drivers and the amount of talent that will be on display for the prestigious event on Thanksgiving Night, November 28, at California's Ventura Raceway.
Entries are still rolling in at press time, but at the moment, the lone past Turkey Night Midget winner in the field is 2012 and 2016 victor Kyle Larson (Elk Grove, Calif.). He's joined by a slew of USAC National champions who have filed their entries, including Tyler Courtney (Indianapolis, Ind.), Chris Windom (Canton, Ill.), Spencer Bayston (Lebanon, Ind.), Jerry Coons, Jr. (Tucson, Ariz.), Logan Seavey (Sutter, Calif.), Brady Bacon (Broken Arrow, Okla.) and Rico Abreu (St. Helena, Calif.).
In addition to that bunch, a number of recent winners on the USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget and AMSOIL National Sprint Car trails are gunning for glory at Ventura: Cannon McIntosh (Bixby, Okla.), Kevin Thomas, Jr. (Cullman, Ala.), Justin Grant (Ione, Calif.), Thomas Meseraull (San Jose, Calif.), Zeb Wise (Angola, Ind.), Tanner Carrick (Lincoln, Calif.) and Jason McDougal (Broken Arrow, Okla.).
Shane Golobic (Fremont, Calif.), Carson Macedo (Lemoore, Calif.), Gio Scelzi (Fresno, Calif.) and Aaron Reutzel (Clute, Texas) have all won on the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series campaign in 2019.
Leading the USAC Western contingent in the event are Western States Midget point leader Robert Dalby (Anaheim, Calif.), plus 2019 series winners Ben Worth (Coalinga, Calif.), Chase Johnson (Penngrove, Calif.) and Maria Cofer (Macdoel, Calif.) as well as USAC Western Regional champions Ronnie Gardner (Riverside, Calif.), David Prickett (Fresno, Calif.), Jake Swanson (Anaheim, Calif.), Ryan Bernal (Hollister, Calif.) and Austin Liggett (Tracy, Calif.).
Thirteen states are represented thus far with Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas, Washington and Wyoming presenting drivers. Three different countries are represented so far with Michael Pickens (New Zealand) and Kaidon Brown (Australia) making the trip to the states for the event.
USAC Midget practice and USAC West Coast/VRA Sprint Cars will kick off the Turkey Night festivities on Wednesday, November 27 and conclude Thursday night, November 28 with the finales for the West Coast/VRA Sprints and the 98-lap main event for the midgets.
Advance tickets for the "79th Running of the Turkey Night Grand Prix" are available online through www.venturaraceway.com or by calling 805.648.7223. Ventura Raceway is located on the Ventura County Fairgrounds at 10 West Harbor Blvd. in Ventura, California.
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TURKEY NIGHT GRAND PRIX USAC MIDGET ENTRY LIST:
(Updated November 13, 2019)
07x Troy Morris III/Bakersfield, CA (Trinity Motorsports)
08 Cannon McIntosh/Bixby, OK (Dave Mac Motorsports)
1 Karsyn Elledge/Mooresville, NC (Tucker-Boat Motorsports)
1K Kyle Larson/Elk Grove, CA (Kyle Larson Open Wheel)
1NP TBA (Kelly Nichols)
1NZ Michael Pickens/Auckland, NZ (RMS LLC)
1p Terry Nichols/Delano, CA (Kelly Nichols)
1x Johnathon Henry/Stockton, CA (LKK Racing)
3F TBA (Ted Finkenbinder)
4A Justin Grant/Ione, CA (RAMS Racing)
4D Robert Dalby/Anaheim, CA (Ken Dalby)
5 Kevin Thomas, Jr./Cullman, AL (Petry Motorsports)
5G Ben Worth/Coalinga, CA (Dean Alexander)
7BC Tyler Courtney/Indianapolis, IN (Clauson-Marshall Racing)
7x Thomas Meseraull/San Jose, CA (RMS LLC)
8 Randi Pankratz/Atascadero, CA (Wally Pankratz)
9 Daison Pursley/Locust Grove, OK (Keith Kunz-Curb-Agajanian)
11E Cory Elliott/Bakersfield, CA (Mitch Elliott)
15 Ron Hazelton/Chatsworth, CA (Ron Hazelton)
15DJ David Prickett/Fresno, CA (Neverlift Motorsports)
15x Carson Garrett/Littleton, CO (Broc Garrett)
17BC Chris Windom/Canton, IL (Clauson-Marshall Racing)
17w Shane Golobic/Fremont, CA (Matt Wood Racing)
19 Spencer Bayston/Lebanon, IN (Brodie Hayward)
19w Jake Morgan/Fair Oaks, CA (Mike Sala)
20 C.J. Sarna/Palm Desert, CA (C.J. Sarna)
20AZ Shon Deskins/Waddell, AZ (Shon Deskins Racing)
21 Carson Macedo/Lemoore, CA (Tarlton Motorsports)
25 Jerry Coons, Jr./Tucson, AZ (Petry Motorsports)
25x Chase Johnson/Penngrove, CA (Tom Malloy)
27 Tucker Klaasmeyer/Paola, KS (Keith Kunz-Curb-Agajanian)
27B Jake Bubak/Arvada, CO (Patrick Bourke)
27w Colby Copeland/Roseville, CA (Matt Wood Racing)
27x Clint Wilson/Paradise, CA (Mounce Motorsports)
31B Kyle Beilman/Mar Vista, CA (Beilman Motorsports)
33p Mike Leach, Jr./Orange, CA (Mike Leach, Sr.)
39BC Zeb Wise/Angola, IN (Clauson-Marshall Racing)
47BC Andrew Layser/Collegeville, PA (Clauson-Marshall Racing)
55 Nick Drake/Mooresville, NC (Troy Cline)
55T Tony Everhart/El Cajon, CA (Tony Everhart)
56x Mark Chisholm/Cheyenne, WY (Mark Chisholm)
57 Maria Cofer/Macdoel, CA (Johnny Cofer)
57D Daniel Robinson/Ewing, IL (McCreery Motorsports)
67 Logan Seavey/Sutter, CA (Keith Kunz-Curb-Agajanian)
67K Holley Hollan/Broken Arrow, OK (Keith Kunz-Curb-Agajanian)
67x Britton Bock/Fresno, CA (Mike Bock)
68 Ronnie Gardner/Riverside, CA (Six8 Motorsports)
71 Jesse Colwell/Red Bluff, CA (Keith Kunz-Curb-Agajanian)
71D Bryan Drollinger/San Pedro, CA (Drollinger Bros. Racing)
71K Tanner Carrick/Lincoln, CA (Keith Kunz-Curb-Agajanian)
71s Cody Swanson/Norco, CA (Marcie Campbell)
73 Dylan Ito/Ventura, CA (Keith Ford)
73K Jake Swanson/Anaheim, CA (Keith Ford)
73x Brady Bacon/Broken Arrow, OK (Keith Ford)
76m Jason McDougal/Broken Arrow, OK (FMR Racing)
77w Ryan Bernal/Hollister, CA (Matt Wood Racing)
78 Marvin Mitchell/Madera, CA (Marvin Mitchell)
81 Dillon Welch/Carmel, IN (Tucker-Boat Motorsports)
83 Austin Liggett/Tracy, CA (Mona Liggett)
84 Gio Scelzi/Fresno, CA (Tucker-Boat Motorsports)
85 Aaron Reutzel/Clute, TX (Tucker-Boat Motorsports)
91 Chris Sheil/Aurora, CO (Cappy Mason)
97 Rico Abreu/St. Helena, CA (Keith Kunz-Curb-Agajanian)
97K Buddy Kofoid/Penngrove, CA (Keith Kunz-Curb-Agajanian)
97w Kaidon Brown/Sydney, AU (Matt Wood Racing)
99 Colton Heath/Marysville, WA (Carla & Gaylon Stewart)
