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Stage is Set for Final Three Rounds of ASCS Speedweek
TULSA, Okla. (June 10, 2009) – Three nights down and three to go. That's the current status of the 17th Annual F&J Construction ASCS Speedweek featuring the Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters.
And with stops at Devil's Bowl Speedway (Mesquite, TX), State Fair Speedway (Oklahoma City, OK) and Lawton (OK) Speedway on consecutive nights from Thursday to Saturday, the Speedweek title chase isn't much clearer than it was one week ago before the first race at Texarkana.
Unpredictability has been the theme of the week, with three different drivers in as many races. Tim Crawley kicked off the week Friday night with a Texarkana score, Tony Bruce, Jr., topped I-30 Speedway's 40 car field in Little Rock the next night and then Zach Chappell won a wild one at Creek County Speedway on Tuesday night.
With fourth (Texarkana) and sixth (Creek County) place finishes to go along with his I-30 win, Tony Bruce, Jr., would appear to have the upper hand with a 20-point advantage. However, previous commitments that will force his absence on Friday and Saturday result in what currently appears to be ASCS Speedweek championship chaos.
With Bruce out of the mix, Benton, AR, ace Crawley holds the slightest of edges as he heads to three tracks that haven't necessarily been among his best in past years. His advantage is a slim one at just four points over Tulsa's Sean McClelland, whose consistency (5th, 9th and 8th) has thrust him into the heart of the Speedweek championship battle.
California native Paul McMahan (8th, 11th and 5th) is just another four points back, with winged rookie contender Brady Bacon (12th, 10th and 4th) of Broken Arrow, OK, just another four points behind and only 12 points behind Crawley.
Another pair of past Speedweek champions, Jason Johnson and Shane Stewart, are both well in contention for the top spot after encountering difficulties over the first half of Speedweek. Johnson, the defending Speedweek champ and reigning Lucas Oil ASCS National champ, is just 20 points behind Crawley with current Lucas Oil points leader Stewart within 24 markers.
After three consecutive bullrings to open Speedweek, a change of pace is in order with the ½-mile Devil's Bowl Speedway on Thursday night where Gary Wright has reached victory lane for three consecutive years in Speedweek competition. "The Texan" will be eager to erase the memories of a bizarre Tuesday night at Creek County Speedway.
From there, it's on to the 3/8-mile State Fair Speedway in Oklahoma City on Friday night, where five different drivers have reached Speedweek victory lane in as many events.
It all wraps up on Saturday night at the ¼-mile Lawton Speedway, where Gary Wright has topped three of six previous Speedweek events. Jason Johnson iced his second Speedweek crown at Lawton last year.
A $10,000 ASCS Speedweek points fund is in place, with each individual night's feature winner pocketing $3,000.
As per tradition, a bare set of ASCS Brodix cylinder heads will be awarded to a driver that has competed in all six rounds of ASCS Speedweek via a draw during Saturday's opening ceremonies.
ASCS Speedweek Particulars:
17th Annual ASCS Sizzlin' Summer Speedweek featuring the Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters
When & Where:
ROUND ONE: Friday night, June 5 at 7:30 p.m. – Texarkana 67 Speedway (winner: Tim Crawley)
ROUND TWO: Saturday night, June 6 at 7:30 p.m. – I-30 Speedway (winner: Tony Bruce, Jr.)
ROUND THREE: Tuesday night, June 9 at 7:00 p.m. – Creek County Speedway (winner: Zach Chappell)
ROUND FOUR: Thursday night, June 11 at 8:00 p.m. – Devil's Bowl Speedway
ROUND FIVE: Friday night, June 12 at 7:30 p.m. – State Fair Speedway
ROUND SIX: Saturday night, June 13 at 8:00 p.m. – Lawton Speedway
ASCS Speedweek Point Fund:
The top seven in final ASCS Speedweek points, "The Magnificent Seven", will divvy up the $10,000 point fund in the following manner:
Champion - $2,000
2nd - $1,600
3rd - $1,500
4th - $1,400
5th - $1,300
6th - $1,200
7th - $1,000
Current ASCS Speedweek Points:
Top Twenty (Through Round Three of Six): 1. Tony Bruce, Jr. (Liberal, KS) 430, 2. Tim Crawley (Benton, AR) 410, 3. Sean McClelland (Tulsa, OK) 406, 4. Paul McMahan (Hendersonville, TN) 402, 5. Brady Bacon (Broken Arrow, OK) 398, 6. Jason Johnson (Eunice, LA) 390, 7. (tie) Shane Stewart (Bixby, OK) and Zach Chappell (Talala, OK) 386, 9. Matt Clevenger (Flower Mound, TX) 382, 10. Dustin Morgan (Collinsville, OK) 380, 11. Gary Wright (Hooks, TX) 368, 12. Kenneth Walker (Sapulpa, OK) 362, 13. (tie) Donnie Ray Crawford (Tulsa, OK) and Danny Wood (Norman, OK) 352, 15. Nick Smith (Broken Arrow, OK) 351, 16. Seth Bergman (Snohomish, WA) 339, 17. Eric Baldaccini (Keller, TX) 338, 18. Matt Covington (Glenpool, OK) 317, 19. Gary Taylor (Snohomish, WA) 299, 20. Claud Estes (Godley, TX) 295.
Track Information:
Devil's Bowl Speedway (Mesquite, TX) – ½-mile high-banked clay oval located six miles east of Dallas' I-635 on US 80, then three miles south on Lawson Road. For more information, contact the track at 972-222-2421.
State Fair Speedway (Oklahoma City, OK) – 3/8-mile slightly-banked dirt oval located at Oklahoma City's Oklahoma State Fairgrounds near the intersection of N.W. 10th and May Avenue, one-half mile north of I-40 off Exit 147-C. For more information, contact the track at 405-948-6796.
Lawton Speedway (Lawton, OK) – ¼-mile semi-banked clay oval located off I-44 Exit 36, then 2.5 miles west on Lee Boulevard, then 1.4 miles south on Sheridan Road. For more information, contact the track at 580-355-6417.
ASCS Speedweek Past Winners by Track:
Texarkana 67 Speedway (Fourth time to host ASCS Speedweek) - Gary Wright (2000), Tim Crawley (2005), Gary Taylor (2008), Tim Crawley (2009)
I-30 Speedway (Eleventh time to host ASCS Speedweek) - Tim Crawley (1993), Garry Lee Maier (1994), Gary Wright (1995), Garry Lee Maier (1996), Gary Wright (1997), Terry Gray (1998), Travis Rilat (2004), Tim Crawley (2005), Gary Wright (2007), Gary Wright (2008), Tony Bruce, Jr. (2009)
Creek County Speedway (Twelfth time to host ASCS Speedweek) - Mike Ward (1993), John Hunt (1993), Garry Lee Maier (1994), Gary Wright (1995), Wayne Johnson (1996), Phil Gressman (1998), Tim Crawley (1999), Tim Crawley (2000), Jason Johnson (2006), Darren Stewart (2007), Jason Johnson (2008), Zach Chappell (2009)
Devil's Bowl Speedway (Fourteenth time to host ASCS Speedweek) - Shane Carson (1994), Mike Ward (1995), Wayne Johnson (1996), Wayne Johnson (1997), Gary Wright (1998), Garry Lee Maier (1999), Gary Wright (2000), Gary Wright (2001), Jason Johnson (2002), Danny Jennings (2005), Gary Wright (2006), Gary Wright (2007), Gary Wright (2008)
State Fair Speedway (Sixth time to host ASCS Speedweek) - Zach Chappell (2001), Shane Stewart (2003), Jason Johnson (2006), Gary Wright (2007), Gary Taylor (2008)
Lawton Speedway (Sixth time to host ASCS Speedweek) - Gary Wright (2002), Gary Wright (2003), Kevin Ramey (2006), Gary Wright (2007), Jason Johnson (2008)
Past ASCS Speedweek Champions:
2008 – Jason Johnson
2007 – Gary Wright
2006 – Jason Johnson
2005 – Darren Stewart
2004 – Tim Crawley
2003 – Shane Stewart
2002 – Gary Wright
2001 – Kevin Ramey
2000 – Gary Wright
1999 – Gary Wright
1998 – Terry Gray
1997 – Gary Wright
1996 – Terry Gray
1995 – Terry Gray
1994 – Gary Wright
1993 – Terry Gray
Career ASCS Speedweek Feature Wins (32 Different Winners in 109 Features – Through 6/9/09):
Gary Wright 29, Tim Crawley 13, Jason Johnson 9, Terry Gray 7, Garry Lee Maier 5, Mike Ward 5, Wayne Johnson 4, Darren Stewart 4, Travis Rilat 3, Zach Chappell 2, Eddie Gallagher 2, Kevin Ramey 2, Shane Stewart 2, Gary Taylor 2, Tony Bruce, Jr. 1, Pete Butler 1, Shane Carson 1, Roger Crockett 1, Michael Dupuy 1, Phil Gressman 1, Rickey Hood 1, Jan Howard 1, John Hunt 1, Danny Jennings 1, Tim Montgomery 1, Larry Neighbors 1, Alan Payne 1, A.G. Rains 1, Eric Sandage 1, Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. 1, Billy Wilburn 1, Danny Wood 1.
ASCS Speedweek on the Web:
Those unable to catch all the action in person can listen to every ASCS Speedweek event featuring the Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters live at www.racinboys.com.
Official results, Speedweek championship point updates, photos and race notes will be available at www.ascsracing.com.
The Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters is currently slated for approximately 33 nights of racing action at 16 different tracks throughout the nation, with the country's top Sprint Car drivers set to battle it out for their share of the $250,000 points fund.
The American Sprint Car Series, in its 18th year of sanctioning Sprint Car racing events, brings the best of Sprint Car racing to nearly 100 different tracks throughout 25 states and Canada in 2009. Anchored by the Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Car Dirt Series presented by K&N Filters, ASCS also consists of a dozen different Regions throughout the nation.
Additional information regarding the American Sprint Car Series is available at www.ascsracing.com.
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