[TEI PR]

GRANT ON PROWL FOR SECOND BETTENHAUSEN WIN

By: Jay Hardin - Track Enterprises Staff

Springfield, Illinois (September 18, 2019)………Following a strong run at Du Quoin in the Hemelgarn-NOS Energy Drink DRC powered Ford, 2017 Bettenhausen 100 winner Justin Grant appears poised for a strong run at a second Bettenhausen trophy this Sunday.

Grant gained six spots in four laps during the final ten miles at Du Quoin to finish second behind winner Jacob Wilson and the 28-year-old star looks to advance one more position in the final order at Springfield.

Grant is a terror on the USAC and Indiana sprint car scene with top runs in midget cars as well.* His championship car breakthrough came at the Illinois State Fairgrounds in August of 2017.* After qualifying on the outside of the front row, Grant got the jump on polesitter Jerry Coons, Jr. and led the first 36 miles before being passed by veteran Brian Tyler.

Tyler appeared to have the advantage until Grant caught and re-passed him on a lap 57 restart after a red flag due to a Zach Daum flip on the main chute.* Grant was able to lead the final miles and gain his first, and to date, only 100-mile dirt track victory.

A win at Terre Haute in the Sumar Classic followed in 2018 as did a third at Springfield and a fourth at Du Quoin as Grant chased Kody Swanson for the 2018 title.

This season, Grant is second in points, just 39 behind Swanson entering the Bettenhausen, with only the finale at Eldora to follow.* Grant has made all nine Silver Crown races to date with a 17th at Madison the only time he has finished lower than eighth.* Grant has two thirds and three fourth place finishes in the eight races so far.

Justin Grant continues pursuit of a second Bettenhausen trophy and his first Silver Crown title Sunday, September 22 at the Illinois State Fairgrounds in Springfield with pits opening and registration starting at 7am (Central), the ticket office and grandstands opening at 9am, the drivers meeting at 9:30am, Silver Crown practice from 10am to 11:10am, DIRTcar Modified hot laps/qualifying at 11:15am, Fatheadz Silver Crown Qualifying at 11:35am, Silver Crown Qualifying Race at 12:30pm, Modified feature at 1pm, pre-race ceremonies at 1:30pm and the Bettenhausen 100-mile race at 2pm.

Tickets will be available on raceday or by calling the Track Enterprises at 217-764-3200.* Advance Tickets (Presale) are $25 for adults and $10 for children 11 and under.* On race day, tickets are $30 for adults and $10 for children 11 and under.* Infield tickets are $20 for adults and $5 for children 11 and under.* Pit passes are $35 for adults and $20 for children 11 and under.

This Sunday’s Springfield race can be watched LIVE and on-demand on FloRacing, listened to via live audio on the USAC app as well as live timing and scoring on both the USAC app and the Race-Monitor app.

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BETTENHAUSEN 100 100 ENTRY LIST (38 DRIVERS)

# / DRIVER / HOMETOWN / TEAM

07 JACOB WILSON/Crawfordsville, IN (Wilson Brothers Racing)

08 KYLE STEFFENS/St. Louis, MO (Kyle Steffens)

2 PATRICK LAWSON/Edwardsville, IL (Patrick Lawson)

6 BRADY BACON/Broken Arrow, OK (Klatt Enterprises)

7 KYLE ROBBINS/New Castle, IN (KR Racing)

9 ®TANNER THORSON/Minden, NV (Chris Dyson Racing)

10 C.J. LEARY/Greenfield, IN (DMW Motorsports)

14 A.J. FIKE/Galesburg, IL (Dennis & Dave McQuinn)

15 ®CHAD KEMENAH/Alvada, OH (Hampshire/Kemenah Racing)

16 AUSTIN NEMIRE/Sylvania, OH (Nemire-Lesko Racing)

17 CHRIS WINDOM/Canton, IL (Goodnight-Byrd Racing)

18 TRAVIS WELPOTT/Pendleton, IN (Welpott/Gorman Racing)

20 KODY SWANSON/Kingsburg, CA (Gene Nolen Racing)

21 JEFF SWINDELL/Germantown, TN (Mark Swanson Encore Team)

23 TERRY JAMES/St. Louis, MO (Todd Satterthwaite)

24 MIKE HAGGENBOTTOM/Levittown, PA (John Haggenbottom)

31 ®DAVE BERKHEIMER/Mechanicsburg, PA (Berkheimer Racing)

33 ®RONNIE WUERDEMAN/Cincinnati, OH (Ronnie Wuerdeman)

34 TERRY BABB/Decatur, IL (Ken Morford)

39 MATT GOODNIGHT/Winchester, IN (Goodnight Racing)

40 DAVID BYRNE/Shullsburg, WI (Byrne Racing)

43 JOHN HEYDENREICH/Bloomsburg, PA (A.J. Felker)

44 DANNY LONG/Bonne Terre, MO (Danny Long)

47 ®AUSTIN MUNDIE/Dallas, TX (Patty Butler)

51 RUSS GAMESTER/Peru, IN (Gamester Racing)

53 STEVE BUCKWALTER/Royersford, PA (Five Three Motorsports)

54 MATT WESTFALL/Pleasant Hill, OH (Westfall Motorsports)

56 KEVIN THOMAS, JR./Cullman, AL (Foxco Racing)

57 ®DALLAS HEWITT/Troy, OH (Dallas Hewitt)

66 BILL ROSE/Plainfield, IN (Bill Rose Racing)

71 SHANE COCKRUM/Benton, IL (Hardy Boys Motorsports)

77 CHRIS URISH/Elkhart, IL (Chris Urish)

78 ERIC GORDON/Fortville, IN (Armstrong/Slinkard Racing)

81 SHANE COTTLE/Kansas, IL (Curtis Williams)

91 JUSTIN GRANT/Ione, CA (Hemelgarn Racing)

97 TYLER COURTNEY/Indianapolis, IN (Hans Lein)

99 ®KOREY WEYANT/Springfield, IL (Scott Weyant)

123 ®JIMMY LIGHT/West Springfield, PA (Two-Three Motorsports)

® = USAC Silver Crown Rookie of the Year contender

[TEI PR]

Be sure to check out the Facebook group Everything Dirt Racing at https://www.facebook.com/groups/1962...7638507278341/. The group has put together lap money for the UMP Modified portion of the racing program.

[TEI PR]

USAC STAT BOOK: SILVER CROWN - 9/17/2019 http://usacracing.com/news/silver-cr...8MAmJkQpq5YwbI

[TEI PR]

https://www.facebook.com/usacracing/...6284819657544/

[TEI PR]

Sunday will mark the return of the UMP Modifieds to the famed Springfield Mile with the running of the Everything Dirt Racing 20!! The 20 lap feature event will pay $2,000 to win and $200 to start, along with a $25 per lap led bonus which could result in a driver taking home an additional $500! On top of that Penske Racing Shocks has donated three product certificates that are valued at $250, $125, and $50 to the top three finishers, we also have Swift Springs who have pitched in two product certificates good for one spring, these will be given out to the 5th and 7th place finishers! Our friends at 357’s World of Dirt have also pitched in $100 to the hard charger of the event!!

If you would like to pitch in more contingency prizes for Sunday please contact Olin Sparks by PM on Facebook.

Here is the current entry list for Sunday!

#4 Brian Heizer , Okawville, IL

#15 Tim Luttrell, Riverton, IL

#7h Brian Higgerson, Oakdale, IL

#95 Josh Sissom, Cape Girirdaeu, MO

#71 Rayce Baker, Pinckneyville, IL

#9z Bobby Regot, St. Peters, MO

#85 Joe Geisler, St. Mary, MO

#7s Ethan Schnapp, Springfield, IL

#82 Jeff Parks, Marion, IL

#MB4 Marty Lindeman, Clay City, IL

#10 Curt Rhodes , Taylorville, IL

#11 Zach Rhodes, Taylorville, IL

#3 Wade Erhart, Taylorville, IL

#89w Rick Weitekamp, Springfield, IL

#87 David Shain, Sullivan, IL

#44 Rich Lentz, Carterville, IL

#84L Jim Farley, Springfield, IL

#1S Brian Shaw, Robinson, IL

[TEI PR]

SWINDELL CAN JOIN LEGENDS LIST AT SPRINGFIELD SUNDAY

*

By Jay Hardin -*Track Enterprises Staff

*

Springfield, Illinois (September 19, 2019).........Germantown, Tennessee veteran race car driver Jeff Swindell has achieved many milestones in his long and storied career.

*

From countless sprint car victories, to two Hoosier Hundred wins, to even serving as a member of A.J. Foyt’s pit crew, Jeff has put his name into many racing record books.* He has a chance at history one more time in the rescheduled USAC Silver Crown Bettenhausen 100 presented by Brandt Agricultural Products Sunday at the Illinois State Fairgrounds. *Jeff is the lone driver who can join a list of 14 other racing legends who have won at least one championship dirt car race on the three fairground miles of the Midwest, Indianapolis, Springfield and Du Quoin.

*

Other active drivers have at least two of the three in their pocket.* Russ Gamester, Chris Windom and Brian Tyler have captured the Bettenhausen 100 at Springfield and the Ted Horn 100 at Du Quoin but none were able to win the Hoosier Hundred on what may soon be a defunct Indy mile.*

*

The list of legends who have captured all three starts with the “Arizona Cowboy” Jimmy Bryan, one of four men who can claim they won the “triple crown” in the same season.* In fact, Bryan did so twice, in 1955 and again in 1956.* A.J. Foyt (1964), Al Unser (1970) and Jack Hewitt (1986) are the other same season trifecta winners.* The drivers who won on all three, but not in the same year, are Rodger Ward, Mario Andretti, Tom Bigelow, Pancho Carter, Gary Bettenhausen, George Snider, Chuck Gurney, Jimmy Sills, J.J. Yeley and the last to join the list, Kody Swanson.*

*

Swindell won the prestigious Hoosier Hundred in 1991 driving for car owners Tim Delrose and Dale Holt and chief wrench Bob Galas, repeating again in 1993.* He won the 1990 Ted Horn 100 at DuQuoin driving for the same team and sat on the pole at Springfield for Delorse-Holt with a new world lap record in 1987, yet victory eluded him then at Springfield.*

*

After a long absence Jeff rejoined the series in 2016 for owner Mark Swanson who passed away over the winter.* The team has continued with Jeff racing to a fourth on the Du Quoin mile, his third top five finish in his last four starts at Du Quoin.* Coming from twenty-eighth to third in the 2017 Bettenhausen showed race fans that Swindell can still get the job done in the big cars.

*

Sunday’s Bettenhausen 100 in Springfield gets underway with pits opening and registration starting at 7am (Central), the ticket office and grandstands opening at 9am, the drivers meeting at 9:30am, Silver Crown practice from 10am to 11:10am, DIRTcar Modified hot laps/qualifying at 11:15am, Fatheadz Silver Crown Qualifying at 11:35am, Silver Crown Qualifying Race at 12:30pm, Modified feature at 1pm, pre-race ceremonies at 1:30pm and the Bettenhausen 100-mile race at 2pm.*

Tickets will be available on raceday or by calling the Track Enterprises at 217-764-3200.* Advance Tickets (Presale) are $25 for adults and $10 for children 11 and under.* On race day, tickets are $30 for adults and $10 for children 11 and under.* Infield tickets are $20 for adults and $5 for children 11 and under.* Pit passes are $35 for adults and $20 for children 11 and under.*

This Sunday’s Springfield race can be watched LIVE and on-demand on FloRacing, listened to via live audio on the USAC app as well as live timing and scoring on both the USAC app and the Race-Monitor app.

*

BETTENHAUSEN 100 100 ENTRY LIST (38 DRIVERS)

# / DRIVER / HOMETOWN / TEAM

07 JACOB WILSON/Crawfordsville, IN (Wilson Brothers Racing)

08 KYLE STEFFENS/St. Louis, MO (Kyle Steffens)

2 PATRICK LAWSON/Edwardsville, IL (Patrick Lawson)

6 BRADY BACON/Broken Arrow, OK (Klatt Enterprises)

7 KYLE ROBBINS/New Castle, IN (KR Racing)

9 ®TANNER THORSON/Minden, NV (Chris Dyson Racing)

10 C.J. LEARY/Greenfield, IN (DMW Motorsports)

14 A.J. FIKE/Galesburg, IL (Dennis & Dave McQuinn)

15 ®CHAD KEMENAH/Alvada, OH (Hampshire/Kemenah Racing)

16 AUSTIN NEMIRE/Sylvania, OH (Nemire-Lesko Racing)

17 CHRIS WINDOM/Canton, IL (Goodnight-Byrd Racing)

18 TRAVIS WELPOTT/Pendleton, IN (Welpott/Gorman Racing)

20 KODY SWANSON/Kingsburg, CA (Gene Nolen Racing)

21 JEFF SWINDELL/Germantown, TN (Mark Swanson Encore Team)

23 TERRY JAMES/St. Louis, MO (Todd Satterthwaite)

24 MIKE HAGGENBOTTOM/Levittown, PA (John Haggenbottom)

31 ®DAVE BERKHEIMER/Mechanicsburg, PA (Berkheimer Racing)

33 ®RONNIE WUERDEMAN/Cincinnati, OH (Ronnie Wuerdeman)

34 TERRY BABB/Decatur, IL (Ken Morford)

39 MATT GOODNIGHT/Winchester, IN (Goodnight Racing)

40 DAVID BYRNE/Shullsburg, WI (Byrne Racing)

43 JOHN HEYDENREICH/Bloomsburg, PA (A.J. Felker)

44 DANNY LONG/Bonne Terre, MO (Danny Long)

47 ®AUSTIN MUNDIE/Dallas, TX (Patty Butler)

51 RUSS GAMESTER/Peru, IN (Gamester Racing)

53 STEVE BUCKWALTER/Royersford, PA (Five Three Motorsports)

54 MATT WESTFALL/Pleasant Hill, OH (Westfall Motorsports)

56 KEVIN THOMAS, JR./Cullman, AL (Foxco Racing)

57 ®DALLAS HEWITT/Troy, OH (Dallas Hewitt)

66 BILL ROSE/Plainfield, IN (Bill Rose Racing)

71 SHANE COCKRUM/Benton, IL (Hardy Boys Motorsports)

77 CHRIS URISH/Elkhart, IL (Chris Urish)

78 ERIC GORDON/Fortville, IN (Armstrong/Slinkard Racing)

81 SHANE COTTLE/Kansas, IL (Curtis Williams)

91 JUSTIN GRANT/Ione, CA (Hemelgarn Racing)

97 TYLER COURTNEY/Indianapolis, IN (Hans Lein)

99 ®KOREY WEYANT/Springfield, IL (Scott Weyant)

123 ®JIMMY LIGHT/West Springfield, PA (Two-Three Motorsports)

® = USAC Silver Crown Rookie of the Year contender

[TEI PR]

FATHERS AND SONS PART OF THE FABRIC OF SPRINGFIELD HISTORY

By: Richie Murray – USAC Media

Springfield, Illinois (September 19, 2019)………The lineage of father/son duos who’ve competed in AAA/USAC Championship Dirt Car racing at the Illinois State Fairgrounds for the past eight decades is right there in the name of this Sunday’s race, the Bettenhausen 100.

The family patriarch, 1951 AAA and 1958 USAC National Champion Tony Bettenhausen, won the pole twice at the Springfield Mile, both in 1950, and won three times in 10 starts in 1947-50-51.* Tony’s son Gary followed in a similar path, winning the race named for his father twice, in 1978 and 1983, in 19 starts at the one-mile dirt oval.

Racing is an endeavor with names and venues that connect the past to the current; not many places still in existence have as much overflowing history as does the Springfield Mile.

On this Sunday's driver entry list, Greenfield, Indiana’s C.J. Leary is the lone son of a father who competed in a USAC Silver Crown car at Springfield.* His father Chuck, the 1995 series Rookie of the Year, made three starts, finishing a best of 7th in 1999.* C.J., a 2015 series Rookie of the Year himself, has a best finish of 6th in the first of his three Springfield starts in 2015.* They remain the only father/son to date to both win at least one Silver Crown main event.

After a glace at the history of AAA/USAC Champ Car racing at the Illinois State Fairgrounds, which dates back to 1934, we’ve found no less than 21 sons who’ve joined their fathers as Champ Car starters at Springfield.

Johnnie Parsons, the 1950 Indianapolis 500 winner, was impressive at Springfield where he finished in the top-five on four occasions, winning the 1949 100-miler en route to the AAA title.* Son Johnny made 27 starts at Springfield in a Champ Car, second only to George Snider.* While Johnny never won, he was a three-time pole starter in 1975-94-95 and finished in the runner-up position behind Tom Bigelow.

The Carter family is the only three consecutive generation family of racers at Springfield in a Champ Car.* Duane Carter started six, finishing a best of 7th in 1949.* Duane’s son Pancho made nine starts at Springfield, winning in his final appearance in 1980.* Pancho’s brother Dana was 12th in 1982, tops among his three starts.* Pancho’s two sons Dane and Cole each notched starts at Springfield.* Dane made four with a 14th place result in 2003 while Cole started 3rd and finished 30th in his only appearance in 2005, his day ending early following a hard crash early on.

Two-time Indianapolis winner Bill Vukovich started 6th and finished 15th in his one Springfield start in 1951.* Son Billy was a more frequent visitor, carving out 14 starts and a 3rd place finish in 1969.

Chuck Weyant was an 11th place finisher in both of his Springfield starts in 1954-59.* Chuck’s son Tony Weyant made a pair of starts, topping out with a 13th in 1980.* Chuck is the great uncle of Springfield native Korey Weyant who will be in competition in his green/white No. 99 this Sunday at Springfield.

Eddie Sachs, a two-time Indianapolis 500 pole winner and the 1958 USAC Midwest Sprint Car champion, finished as the runner-up at Springfield in 1960, was 3rd in 1956 and 7th in 1959.* Son Eddie Sachs, Jr., made a single appearance in 1991, finishing 35th in the Bettenhausen 100.

Parnelli Jones, the 1963 Indianapolis 500 winner, won the pole at Springfield in 1961 and finished in the runner-up spot in 1962.* Son Page’s career was tragically cut short due to injury, but he did make one start at Springfield in 1994, starting 19th and finishing 28th, bowing out with an oil tank issue just 16 laps into the 100-lap race.

Texan Jim McElreath made 18 Springfield starts between 1962 and 1992.* He won the pole for the race in 1965 and finished inside the top-five on six occasions with a best of 2nd in 1978.* Son James made just three starts, starting 6th and finishing 4th during his best performance less than two months before his death in a sprint car crash at Winchester (Ind.) Speedway.* Jim and James remain the only father/son to compete in the same Champ Car race at Springfield, something they did twice in 1976-77.

In 11 Springfield starts, 1975 Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year Bill Puterbaugh finished in the top-five twice, 5th in 1972 followed up by a best of 3rd in 1973.* Son Billy Puterbaugh, Jr. was a top-five runner himself in 1998, finishing 5th, the best performance in his three starts.

Mike Mosely, a three-time Milwaukee Indy Car winner, started in the top-ten in both of his Springfield appearances with a best finish of 10th in 1970.* His son, Mike Mosley, Jr. took home a 27th place result in his first and only Bettenhausen 100 run in 1998.

Eastern superstar Dick “Toby” Tobias came west to Springfield twice in the early 1970s, finishing 12th in 1972.* His son, Rich Tobias, Jr., started the 100-miler seven times, finishing in the runner-up spot in 2004.

Arizonian Ron Shuman had three top-fives in his Springfield career, including a second-place result in 1983.* Son Casey Shuman, the 2016 USAC Silver Crown Rookie of the Year, has made two starts with a best result of 7th in 2015.

Shorty Templeman, who won the first three National Midget driving titles under the USAC banner in 1956-57-58, appeared twice at Springfield in a Champ Car, taking a 5th in 1961.* Shorty’s son Clark Templeman crossed the stripe in 8th in 1978 for his best run at the Illinois State Fairgrounds.

USAC Hall of Famer Bob East made a pair of starts during his driving career with a 15th in 1978 as his top result.* Son Bobby East went on to become a USAC National Midget champ in 2004 and twice a Silver Crown titlist in 2012-13.* In four Springfield Champ Car starts, Bobby was at his best in his final start there, a 3rd, in 2014.

An 8th was Illinoisan Jerry Russell’s best in eight Springfield starts, which came in his first try in 1984.* Son Steven Russell took his shot at the Mile twice, earning a 14th in 2014.

Indy Car, NASCAR and drag racing veteran John Andretti had a solid debut in his lone Springfield start in 1985, scoring a 7th place finish.* Jarett Andretti joined his father as a Springfield starter in 2013, racing home to a 12th place result.

West Coast Sprint Car racing legend Brent Kaeding came to the Midwest to tackle the Springfield Mile on three different occasions, taking 7th in 1986.* His son, Bud Kaeding, was excellent in the Crown cars during his career, winning the series title in 2007.* The Californian’s best afternoon at Springfield came in the first of his nine starts, starting 4th and finishing 2nd in 2000.

Blake Hollingsworth made a pair of starts at Springfield, his 12th place start and 22nd place finish in 1993 was the better of the two.* Son Shane Hollingsworth, the 2009 Hoosier Hundred victor, entered his name into the Bettenhausen 100 record book, winning the pole for the 2008 race and finishing 3rd.

Not often does the son make his debut at a racetrack before his father, but that’s just the case with three-time NASCAR champ and four-time USAC National titlist Tony Stewart.* Tony made four Springfield Silver Crown starts with a finish of 10th serving as his best, which came during his 1995 Triple Crown season.* Tony’s father Nelson Stewart dabbled in Silver Crown racing beginning in 2004, failing to qualify for the big show after missing the transfer in the qualifying race.

Sunday’s Bettenhausen 100 in Springfield gets underway with pits opening and registration starting at 7am (Central), the ticket office and grandstands opening at 9am, the drivers meeting at 9:30am, Silver Crown practice from 10am to 11:10am, DIRTcar Modified hot laps at 11:15am, Fatheadz Silver Crown Qualifying at 11:35am, Silver Crown Qualifying Race at 12:30pm, Modified feature at 1pm, pre-race ceremonies at 1:30pm and the Bettenhausen 100-mile race at 2pm.

Tickets will be available on raceday or by calling the State Fair office at 217-782-1979. Info and tickets can also be obtained by calling the Track Enterprises office at 217-764-3200.* Advance Tickets (Presale) are $25 for adults and $10 for children 11 and under.* On race day, tickets are $30 for adults and $10 for children 11 and under.* Infield tickets are $20 for adults and $5 for children 11 and under.* Pit passes are $35 for adults and $20 for children 11 and under.

This Sunday’s Springfield race can be watched LIVE and on-demand on FloRacing, listened to via live audio on the USAC app as well as live timing and scoring on both the USAC app and the Race-Monitor app.

*

FATHER AND SONS TO COMPETE IN A AAA/USAC CHAMP CAR EVENT AT THE ILLINOIS STATE FAIRGROUNDS:

John & Jarett Andretti

Tony & Gary Bettenhausen

Duane & Pancho/Dana Carter

Pancho Carter & Dane/Cole Carter

Bob & Bobby East

Blake & Shane Hollingsworth

Parnelli & Page Jones

Brent & Bud Kaeding

Chuck & C.J. Leary

Jim & James McElreath

Mike Sr. & Mike Mosley, Jr.

Johnnie & Johnny Parsons

Bill Sr. & Billy Puterbaugh, Jr.

Jerry & Steven Russell

Eddie & Eddie Sachs, Jr.

Ron & Casey Shuman

Nelson & Tony Stewart

Shorty & Clark Templeman

Dick & Rich Tobias, Jr.

Bill & Billy Vukovich

Chuck & Tony Weyant

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[dkdorkboy]

Pulled the plug again.