MIDGETS HIT PAVEMENT AT ILLIANA, GRUNDY COUNTY;

BELL LEADS 1-2-3 BELLEVILLE SWEEP FOR KUNZ TEAM;

ABREU TAKES PRELIM, BELL WINS AT BELOIT

The Honda USAC National Midget series hits the pavement, “literally,” this week, with races Friday and Saturday nights at Schererville, Ind. and Morris, Ill. Friday’s race at Illiana Motor Speedway is the first at that half-mile oval for the series since Bobby East’s victory there in 2001. Kyle Hamilton won last year’s race at Grundy County Speedway in Morris last year.

Tracy Hines of New Castle, Ind. leads the pavement Midget to this weekend’s races. He has a six-point lead over Darren Hagen, last year’s Midget Pavement titlist.

The Keith Kunz/Curb-Agajanian Motorsports drivers swept Saturday night’s 36th annual “Belleville Midget Nationals” at the famed Belleville (Kans.) High Banks. Christopher Bell led the parade to the checkered flag, followed by teammates Rico Abreu and Tanner Thorson. The 1-2-3 sweep was the first in the National Midgets since last year’s RW Motorsports sweep at Iowa Speedway in Newton, Ia.

Saturday’s race capped a great week for the Kunz team, with Abreu winning Thursday night’s 25-lap Belleville prelim and Bell taking Tuesday night’s “Chad McDaniel Memorial” at Solomon Valley Raceway in Beloit, Kans. Bell’s Saturday night victory came in the 100th USAC event in the state of Kansas!

Bell battled Abreu for the entire 40-lap distance Saturday, leading laps 1-23 and 35-40 in his Toyota TRD Bullet/Speedway Toyota. Abreu led laps 24-34 before yielding to the winner, while Thorson charged to third ahead of Hines and Bryan Clauson.

Abreu and his Toyota TRD Bullet/Speedway Toyota led all 25 laps of Thursday’s Belleville race, beating Hines, Dave Darland, Jerry Coons Jr. and Clauson to the stripe.

Bell led wire-to-wire to capture Tuesday’s Beloit main event, USAC’s first ever at that venue. Abreu was second ahead of Coons, Hines and Darren Hagen.

Caleb Armstrong escaped serious injury in a flip during Thursday’s Belleville feature.

I will be at Illiana...if you want live updates from there follow me @TaskForce91 on twitter

How many midgets do you think will show up tonight?

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since its a co sanction with stars and usac I am going to guess 21

You'll probably be pretty close I'd bet. 15 USAC'rs and 6 Stars +/-

Hope it's a good show. I wish I could be there.

Hopefully both nights get a good showing of cars. I was hoping to win the power ball jackpot so I could run a 5 car team! Might be the only way to save pavement midget racing.

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Will you be posting qualify, scramble & line - up sheet pics?

Only 7 real Usac regulars? Geez looks like pavement is dead. Glad stars helped out with car count. Hope to see a few more at Grundy tomorrow!

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The money is almost gone, the bills need payed, and the last little bit of money is heading to Michigan.

Won't surprise me one little bit when USAC kills the pavement races in this series next season. Just like sprints.
What a SHAME! They should have recognized the issues five years ago and fixed them.

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