O'Reilly ASCoT Set for Knoxville This Friday Night!
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
O'Reilly ASCoT Set for Knoxville This Friday Night!
Lonnie Wheatley, TULSA, Okla. (June 16, 2008) - The O'Reilly American Sprint Cars on Tour National series kicks off its three-race Northern Swing with this Friday night's event atop Iowa's ½-mile Knoxville Raceway dirt oval.
Friday's card atop the famed Knoxville Raceway marks the series first event at the Marion County Fairgrounds aside from the track's annual 360 Nationals, which has been sanctioned by the American Sprint Car Series since 1996.
Friday's event opens the three-race Northern Swing for the O'Reilly ASCoT National series, with ensuing events at Hartford, South Dakota's I-90 Speedway on Tuesday, June 24, and then Huron, South Dakota's Dakota State Fair Speedway on Saturday, June 28.
Gary Wright, winner of the Knoxville 360 Nationals ten years ago in 1998, enters Friday's card at Knoxville Raceway with a 38-point lead as he pursues an unprecedented fifth consecutive ASCS National championship, which will once again be worth $50,000.
Louisiana's Jason Johnson enters Friday's card as the only driver to capture more than one ASCoT National feature win this season, as the "Ragin' Cajun" climbed to second in points on the strength of his fourth series win of the year on May 10.
While shut out of victory lane in ASCoT action thus far in 2008, Oklahoma City native Wayne Johnson may enter Friday's event with the upper hand after racing to victory lane at Knoxville Raceway over each of the past two Saturday nights. Now calling Knoxville home, Johnson enters Friday's event just a dozen points behind Jason Johnson and 50 markers off of "The Texan's" lead pace.
Wright and the unrelated Johnson duo lead a loaded contingent of 14 full-time ASCoT National teams that are set for all three Northern Swing events including past ASCS National champions Zach Chappell (Talala, OK), Travis Rilat (Forney, TX) and Garry Lee Maier (Cimarron, KS).
Nick Smith (Broken Arrow, OK), the series' 2006 Rookie of the Year, has climbed to seventh in points with one victory to his credit, with 20-year-old Eric Baldaccini (Keller, TX) this year's leading Rookie of the Year contender over a crop that includes Kenneth Walker (Sapulpa, OK), 17-year-old Kathryne Minter (Bedford, TX) and Chris Tarrant (Greenville, TX).
Jack Dover, the 18-year-old from Springfield, NE, that captured his first ASCoT National win in Oklahoma City just over a month ago to crack the top ten in points, is set for all three Northern Swing events along with 20-year-old Donnie Ray Crawford (Broken Arrow, OK) and the Broken Arrow, OK, combination of Aaron Berryhill and Sean McClelland aboard the No. 97 entry.
Fargo, North Dakota's Natalie Sather, who has posted several recent strong runs at Knoxville, kicks off her ASCS Midwest Region title defense with Friday's card.
Ankeny, Iowa's Matt Moro leads the regular Knoxville contingent into the event by holding a slim lead in track points over South Dakota's Gregg Bakker, with other top track shoes including Brett Mather, Josh Higday and Joe Beaver.
The Series:
O'Reilly American Sprint Cars on Tour (ASCoT)
When & Where:
Friday night - Knoxville Raceway at 7:15 p.m.
Track Information:
Knoxville Raceway (Knoxville, IA) – ½-mile, semi-banked dirt oval located on the north edge of Knoxville on SR 14 at the Marion County Fairgrounds. For more information, contact the track at 641-842-5431.
O'Reilly ASCoT Knoxville Raceway History:
The famed Knoxville oval hosts the ASCS National Tour for the first time outside of the track's annual Knoxville Nationals, which has been sanctioned by ASCS since 1996. Thirty-one features, including preliminaries and championship finales, have been completed over the past 12 years with Nebraska racer Billy Alley reaching victory lane a handful of times.
Knoxville Raceway ASCS National winners include: Billy Alley 5, Wayne Johnson 3, David Hesmer 2, Terry McCarl 2, Dennis Moore, Jr. 2, Shane Stewart 2, Gary Wright 2, Kenny Adams 1, Johnny Anderson 1, Kaley Gharst 1, Jesse Giannetto 1, Josh Higday 1, Jason Johnson 1, John Kearney 1, Matt Moro 1, Jake Peters 1, Roger Rager 1, Jeff Swindell 1, Doug Wolfgang 1, Dusty Zomer 1.
Knoxville Raceway O'Reilly ASCoT Race-by-race Winners: Doug Wolfgang (7/26/96), Terry McCarl (7/27/96), David Hesmer (7/12/97), David Hesmer (7/30/98), Gary Wright (7/31/98), Gary Wright (8/1/98), Dennis Moore, Jr. (6/12/99), Roger Rager (6/15/00), Matt Moro (6/16/00), Wayne Johnson (6/17/00), John Kearney (6/14/01), Wayne Johnson (6/15/01), Terry McCarl (6/16/01), Jake Peters (6/13/02), Wayne Johnson (6/14/02), Jeff Swindell (6/15/02), Josh Higday (6/13/03), Kenny Adams (6/13/03), Dennis Moore, Jr. (6/14/03), Jason Johnson (6/11/04), Billy Alley (6/12/04), Billy Alley (8/6/04), Dusty Zomer (8/4/05), Billy Alley (8/4/05), Billy Alley (8/5/05), Johnny Anderson (8/3/06), Billy Alley (8/4/06), Jesse Giannetto (8/5/06), Kaley Gharst (8/2/07), Shane Stewart (8/3/07), Shane Stewart (8/4/07).
Current O'Reilly ASCoT Points (After 13 of 42 Nights):
Drivers:
Top Fifteen: 1. Gary Wright (Hooks, TX) 1,549, 2. Jason Johnson (Oklahoma City, OK) 1,511, 3. Wayne Johnson (Oklahoma City, OK) 1,499, 4. Zach Chappell (Talala, OK) 1,407, 5. Travis Rilat (Forney, TX) 1,364, 6. Garry Lee Maier (Cimarron, KS) 1,344, 7. Eric Baldaccini (Keller, TX) 1,222, 8. Nick Smith (Broken Arrow, OK) 1,170, 9. Kenneth Walker (Sapulpa, OK) 1,136, 10. Jack Dover (Springfield, NE) 1,039, 11. Jason Sides (Bartlett, TN) 1,002, 12. Gary Taylor (Sapulpa, OK) 967, 13. Kathryne Minter (Bedford, TX) 933, 14. Chris Tarrant (Greenville, TX) 861, 15. Don Droud, Jr. (Lincoln, NE) 827.
Owners:
Top Fifteen: 1. Wright-Cooper Motorsports 9 / 01 - 1,549, 2. Lanny Row 41 - 1,511, 3. Mike Hammers 94 - 1,499, 4. David Chappell 50z - 1,407, 5. Travis Rilat 29 - 1,364, 6. Scott Brown 11x - 1,344, 7. Harry Baldaccini B4 - 1,222, 8. Bobby Sparks 91 - 1,207, 9. Kip Smith 15s - 1,170, 10. Sandra Walker 2 - 1,136, 11. Lori Dover 53 - 1,039, 12. Sides Motorsports 7s - 1,002, 13. Mike Eubanks 5* - 967, 14. Tracy Minter 13 - 933, 15. Scotty Dobbs 71 - 861.
2008 O'Reilly ASCoT Feature Winners:
Jason Johnson 4, Kenny Adams 1, Aaron Berryhill 1, Tony Bruce, Jr. 1, Jack Dover 1, Danny Lasoski 1, Terry McCarl 1, Nick Smith 1, Skip Wilson 1, Gary Wright 1.
O'Reilly ASCoT – A Look Ahead:
June 24 I-90 Speedway (Hartford, SD)
June 28 Dakota State Fair Speedway (Huron, SD)
July 4 Lakeside Speedway (Kansas City, KS)
July 5 Lake Ozark Speedway (Eldon, MO)
July 11 67 Speedway (Texarkana, AR) – ASCS Speedweek
July 12 I-30 Speedway (Little Rock, AR) – ASCS Speedweek
July 14 Creek County Speedway (Sapulpa, OK) – ASCS Speedweek
July 17 Devil's Bowl Speedway (Mesquite, TX) – ASCS Speedweek
July 18 State Fair Speedway (Oklahoma City, OK) – ASCS Speedweek
July 19 Lawton Speedway (Lawton, OK) – ASCS Speedweek
The O'Reilly American Sprint Cars on Tour National series is currently slated for 42 nights of racing action at 22 different tracks throughout a dozen different states, with more than $1,000,000 in purse money and point fund to be distributed during the 2008 season.
The nation's most prominent Sprint Car sanctioning body with a dozen different Regions throughout the United States in addition to the O'Reilly American Sprint Cars on Tour National series, the American Sprint Car Series' (ASCS) 17th year of activity will include approximately 250 nights of racing at more than 100 different race tracks throughout 28 different states and Canada.
Additional information regarding the American Sprint Car Series is available at www.ascsracing.com.
(Pictured): Gary Wright comes in as the ASCoT point leader
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