USAC

JONES EYES RETURN TO SPRINT POINT LEAD

AS USAC SPRINTS FACE 60-LAP RICHMOND TEST

Levi Jones of Avon, Ind. trails Cole Whitt of Alpine, Calif. by 19 points in his bid for a third USAC National Sprint Car Championship heading into this Friday’s race at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway.

Jones and teammate Tracy Hines of New Castle, Ind. compete for Tony Stewart Racing and they have won four of the 11 races contested so far this year. Hines, who ranks fourth in the current standings, won the most recent race, at Stewart’s Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio, his second victory there in 2008. Jones’ 2008 wins came at Brownstown, Ind. and Terre Haute, Ind., the latter race being the famed “Tony Hulman Classic.”

Friday’s race, part of RIR’s weekend which includes Saturday’s SunTrust Indy Challenge Indy Car Series race and the “James River Grounds 100” USAC K & N Silver Crown race, presents a 60-lap challenge for the Sprint cars at one of the fastest tracks on the schedule. The 60-lap race will split into two segments of 31 and 29 laps respectively, with a pit stop in between.

Bobby East of Brownsburg, Ind., who established the one-lap USAC Sprint Car track record of 139.911 mph in 2005, won last year’s 60-lapper. The 60-lap track record of 124.231 mph was set by the current USAC Sprint Car Series coordinator Jason McCord in 2004.

The USAC National Sprint Cars are making their fifth appearance at RIR. In addition to East and McCord, race winners at the 3/4-mile paved oval have been Brian Tyler (2006) and Ron Gregory (2005). Tyler will be trying to win a USAC race for the third consecutive year at RIR, having won last year’s Silver Crown 100-miler.

Youth has ruled supreme in recent USAC National Sprint races. A new all-time record has been established in the last two outings as Cole Whitt won at Minersville, Pa. on June 5 and Chad Boat won at Hagerstown, Md. on June 7. Both are 16 years old.

USAC NATIONAL SPRINT CAR SERIES POINT STANDINGS

1.	Cole Whitt	523	6.	Darren Hagen	426
2.	Levi Jones	504	7.	Dave Darland	413
3.	Jerry Coons Jr.	463	8.	Shane Cottle	382
4.	Tracy Hines	437	9.	Damion Gardner	372
5.	Brady Bacon	435	10.	Brad Sweet	364

TOYOTA CHALLENGE RESUMES JULY 24 AT ORP;

SWEET “SWEEPS” KNOXVILLE MIDGET NATIONALS

Round two of this year’s “Toyota Challenge” is set for July 24 ay O’Reilly Raceway Park in Indianapolis, Ind. and Tracy Hines of New Castle, Ind. will lead the series into that event following his back-to-back “top-10” finishes at Knoxville, Iowa over the weekend.

Brad Sweet of Grass Valley, Calif. completed a clean sweep of this year’s 7^th Annual Pepsi/Mountain Dew “Knoxville Midget Nationals” Saturday night, leading all but two laps of the 25-lap finale at the 1/2-mile dirt Knoxville Raceway in Iowa. Piloting the Kasey Kahne Racing Mopar/Team ASE Spike/Speedway Mopar, Sweet led the first 17 laps from the pole, then trailed Jerry Coons Jr. for two laps after a restart. On lap 20 he regained the lead and led to the checkered flag. Coons took second ahead of Brad Bacon, Michael Pickens and Darren Hagen. Sweet also won Friday night’s 20-lap “King Doodlebug Classic.”

Sweet led the final four laps of Friday’s “King Doodlebug Classic” to record his initial USAC Mopar National Midget feature victory. Sweet started on the pole and trailed Cole Whitt for 16 laps before taking the lead on a restart. Whitt finished second and was followed by Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Coons, Bobby East and Pickens, the top-six all clinching berths in Saturday night’s 30-lap 7^th Annual Pepsi/Mt. Dew “Knoxville Midget Nationals” main event presented by Telecom. Darren Hagen and Brady Bacon escaped injury in feature flips on Friday.

USAC MOPAR NATIONAL MIDGET CAR SERIES POINT STANDINGS

1.	Tracy Hines	468	6.	Jerry Coons Jr.	346
2.	Bobby East	465	7.	Darren Hagen	346
3.	Cole Whitt	423	8.	Brady Bacon	336
4.	Kody Swanson	403	9.	Dave Darland	333
5.	Brad Sweet	397	10.	Levi Jones	322

SWANSON LEADS WESTERN SPRINTS TO ALTAMONT SATURDAY

Tanner Swanson of Kingsburg, Calif. is continuing his quest to become the second member of his family to claim the USAC Western Sprint Car Championship. His brother Kody won the 2005 title.

The series returns to Altamont Raceway Park in Tracy, Calif. this Saturday, a track where Tanner has posted fast qualifying time in both previous 2008 outings. He won the feature on May 17 and was third on April 19.

A victory Saturday would make him the first series driver to win three consecutive series races since Tony Hunt turned the trick in 2006. Swanson’s most recent victory came at Roseville, Calif. May 31.

Swanson leads Nick Rescino Jr. by 14 points in the latest standings, with Eric Humphries just 26 back. A feature win Saturday is worth 60. Rescino has recorded “top-five” finishes in all five events so far this season, while Humphries has finished no worse that sixth.

USAC WESTERN SPRINT CAR SERIES POINT STANDINGS

1.	Tanner Swanson