5/9/2017
RacinBoys
USMTS set for sweep through Texas
By USMTS PR (Waco, TX) -- The mud-chucking modified maniacs of the United States Modified Touring Series will embark on a four-night, four-track swing through Texas this Wednesday through Saturday, May 10-13, to wrap up this year's campaign in the Summit Racing Equipment USMTS Southern Region presented by Production Jars.
PHOTO CREDIT: Joe Orth Photo
Action kicks off on Wednesday at the Heart O' Texas Speedway in Elm Mott, followed by a Thursday night gig at the Superbowl Speedway in Greenville. Friday takes the rugged USMTS road warriors to the Kennedale Speedway Park and the curtain closes on Saturday at the Lonestar Speedway in Kilgore.
Each of the four events will pay $3,000 to win and no less than $250 to take the green flag in the main event all four nights.
The Summit Racing Equipment USMTS Southern Region champion will earn $10,000 while all drivers ranked among the top 15 in points-along with any others with perfect attendance in the region-are locked in for this year's Hunt for the Casey's USMTS National Championship powered by S&S Fishing & Rental which carries a $25,000 payoff for the 2017 titlist.
Last year's runner-up in the national points chase, Cade Dillard, has a series-best five victories this season and is in the driver's seat to claim the Summit Racing Equipment USMTS Southern Region crown, but several others may have plans of their own.
Three-time USMTS national champ Jason Hughes-the man who nipped Dillard by three points to take last year's title-rides in second place with a surmountable 47-points deficit while his teammate, Ryan Gustin, is just two more markers back in third.
Not far behind 'The Reaper' is the top Texan in the region, Chris Brown, whose lone win this season came three months ago down the road at the Cotton Bowl Speedway in Paige. Stormy Scott, Zack VanderBeek and Dereck Ramirez are the last remaining pilots with a mathematical shot at the regional points title.
Holding down the eighth and ninth positions, respectively, are Minnesota's Travis Saurer and Arizona's R.C. Whitwell. Both are also at the top of the rankings in the race for the 2017 Grant Junghans USMTS Rookie of the Year Award.
Summit Racing Equipment USMTS Southern Region points standings:
- 97 Cade Dillard, Robeline, La. ... 1554 (5 wins)
- 12 Jason Hughes, Watts, Okla. ... 1507 (3 wins)
- 19r Ryan Gustin, Marshalltown, Iowa ... 1505 (2 wins)
- 21 Chris Brown, Spring, Texas ... 1487 (1 win)
- 2s Stormy Scott, Las Cruces, N.M. ... 1408 (1 win)
- 33z Zack VanderBeek, New Sharon, Iowa ... 1386
- 4r Dereck Ramirez, Woodward, Okla. ... 1342
- 1s Travis Saurer (r), Elizabeth, Minn. ... 1281
- 96 R.C. Whitwell (r), Tucson, Ariz. ... 1270
- 20rt Ricky Thornton Jr., Chandler, Ariz. ... 1264 (3 wins)
- 91 Joe Duvall, Claremore, Okla. ... 1234
- 1st Johnny Scott, Las Cruces, N.M. ... 1121 (2 wins)
- 4w Tyler Wolff (r), Fayetteville, Ark. ... 1117
- 78 Trevor Egbert, Salado, Texas ... 1025
- 4v Billy Vogel (r), Fargo, N.D. ... 871
On Wednesday, May 10, at the Heart O' Texas Speedway, pit gates open at 4 p.m., grandstands open at 5 and hot laps begin at 7:15 with racing to follow. Limited Mods and Factory Stocks will also be in action and each racing for $500 to win.
Zack VanderBeek snagged two of the three main events here last year and Ryan Gustin grabbed the other one-his second career win at the semi-banked 1/3-mile clay oval. Other former winners here include Rodney Sanders, Johnny Scott and Mike Sorensen.
The Heart O' Texas Speedway is located just off of I-35 at exit 343 (FM 308), then 0.6 mile north on east frontage road. For more information, call 254-829-2294 or check out http://www.heartotexspeedway.com online.
On Thursday, May 11, at the Superbowl Speedway, pit and grandstands open at 5 p.m. with hot laps at 7:15 and racing to follow. Limited Mods will be racing for $1,000 to win and $75 to start. Factory Stocks will also pay $1,000 to win with $60 to start.
The last trip to the semi-banked quarter-mile dirt oval last May saw Cade Dillard take the feature win. Two shows were staged here in 2014 with the wins going to Johnny Scott and Stormy Scott.
The Superbowl Speedway is located 5.0 miles south of Greenville on SR 34, then west on FM 1903. For more information, call (903) 883-2504 or check out http://www.superbowlspeedway.com online.
On Friday, May 12, at the Kennedale Speedway Park, pit gates open at 4 p.m., grandstands open at 5 and hot laps begin at 7:15 with racing to follow. Like the previous night, Limited Mods will be racing for $1,000 to win and $75 to start. Factory Stocks will also pay $1,000 to win with $60 to start.
In the two previous visits here during the 2013 campaign, Johnny Scott picked up the win at the semi-banked quarter-mile dirt oval.
The Kennedale Speedway Park is a located off of I-20 at exit 442-A, then 1.7 miles southeast on Mansfield Hwy., then 1.6 miles southwest on New Hope Rd., then 0.3 mile east on Hudson Village Creek Rd. For more information, call (817) 988-7433 or (817) 478-7223 or visit them online at http://www.raceksp.com.
On Saturday, May 13, at the Lonestar Speedway, pit gates open at 3 p.m., grandstands open at 5 and hot laps begin at 6:45 with racing to follow. Limited Mods will be racing for $700 to win and Factory Stocks will race for a $500 top prize. FWD Four-Cylinders will also compete.
This is the first USMTS event at the Lonestar Speedway in six years. The past three scheduled events were rained out, including last year's race. It's also going to be the first time the USMTS will compete on the high-banked 1/3-mile oval configuration. It was a big 3/8-mile oval when Johnny Scott and Ryan Gustin got their wins here in 2010 and 2011, respectively.
The Lonestar Speedway is located off I-20 at exit 583, then 0.5 mile north on SR 135, then 1.0 mile east on FM 1252, then 0.5 mile south. For more information, call (903) 986-9731 or go to http://www.lonestarspeedway.com on the World Wide Web.
To learn more about the United States Modified Touring Series, visit http://www.usmts.com online or call 515-832-7944. You can also like us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/usmts, follow us on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/usmts and Instagram at http://www.instagram.com/usmts or subscribe to our YouTube channel at http://www.youtube.com/usmtstv. Keep up to speed with everything USMTS by joining our email list at http://www.usmts.com/subscribe.
Submitted By: Kirk Elliott
