TULSA, Okla. (April 28, 2014) - This edition of the American Sprint Car Series' Weekly Rewind focuses on the Smiley's Racing Products Lone Star Region. The third and fourth rounds of competition for the Texas based region focused on West Texas with Friday night in Lubbock and Saturday in Abilene.
This past weekend's events bring the total number of ASCS races to 21, accounting for 27 ASCS sanctioned events in 2014 with sixteen different winners.
The Winners
Patrick Stasa - Getting his first ASCS National and Lone Star Regional win in one shot on March 29 at the Devil's Bowl Speedway, Patrick Stasa rolled out of the Lubbock Speedway with $2,000 in his pocket, leading start to finish at the three-eighths mile oval.
Johnny Herrera - The first ASCS victory of the 2014 season for Johnny Herrera, the Albuquerque native led every lap he turned at the quarter mile Abilene Speedway on Saturday night. The victory is Herrera's second with the Smiley's Racing Products Lone Star Region.
The rest of the weekend:
• A Whole Lot of "Oh No" - That might be close to what Patrick Stasa was thinking on Friday night when trying to outrun Blake Hahn in slower traffic. Working on Lap 8, Stasa dove for a gap in traffic but instead made contact with John James. Narrowly escaping, the now spinning No. 4j left Hahn with nowhere to hide. Slamming into the left side of James, the pair spun off the top of turn three. Gunning the throttle, Hahn was able to keep the car rolling and was given his spot back. James re-fired and tore from the back to sixth before it was all said and done.
• Problems in Four - Exiting turn four at the Lubbock Speedway is tricky, and a couple drivers found out what happens when you miss. In Hot Laps, Dustin McCarty slipped off the top and pounded the wall, ending his night early. On the opening lap of the A-Feature, Jake Martens missed the line and found the same spot on the wall. Both drivers were okay. Martens was able to make repairs on his No. 48 and ran to a third place finish the following night in Abilene.
• Windy in West Texas - That may be hard to believe, but the wind was certainly a factor of the weekend. A steady 20MPH, gusting to 35MPH, wind in Lubbock reduced the track to rubber during before the final Heat Race. In Abilene, the wind was blowing but the track kept fairly well all night. It didn't seem to bother the fans as both tracks had near capacity crowds.
• "It's alright, I can fix it." - At least that's what John Carney II was saying as the "Sawzall" was brought out of the trailer on Saturday after spinning in his Heat Race and collecting Joe Wood, Jr. Unfortunately, the hit to Wood's No. 03 was too much to recover from. For Carney, getting back on the track meant a rebuild of the front suspension and cutting chunks from the front tubes that house the Torsion Bars. Giving plenty of room for the bars to twist, Carney powered from sixteenth to fifth in the Coyote Candle Co. No. 74b.
• Podiums - Two drivers found podium steps both nights this past weekend. Johnny Herrera finished third Friday in Lubbock, and won Saturday in Abilene. Blake Hahn finished runner up both nights. Hahn and Herrera have each graced the podium in ASCS competition three times in 2014. Aaron Reutzel has the most podiums so far in 2014 with five to his credit. A total of 38 drivers have at least one finish inside the top-three so far this year.
• Good Car Count - Both nights of racing saw full field for the Smiley's Racing Products Lone Star Region. Friday brought 22 drivers to Lubbock, with 20 making the trip to Abilene.
On Deck: Things are about to get very busy for the ASCS Nation, as the coming weekend brings nine ASCS events to the table. The Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series presented by MAVTV American Real returns to action after a slow April, with the National Tour's first visit to Oklahoma in 2014 on Friday, May 2 at the Outlaw Motorsports Park. Saturday, May 3 will see the National Tour at the Riverside International Speedway for the Rock 'N Roll 50. Tickets for the Riverside event are on sale at http://www.tbjpromotions.com.
The Griffith Truck and Equipment Gulf South Region heads to the Golden Triangle Raceway Park on May 2, followed by the Battleground Speedway on May 3.
The American Bank of Oklahoma ASCS Sooner Region will join the National Tour on Friday before jumping down to the Lawton Speedway for the first time in 2014 on Saturday.
Lucas Oil Speedway will host the Speedway Motors ASCS Warrior Region on Saturday, May 3 with the Impact4800.com Open Wheel Showdown.
Tucson is the place to be for the ASCS Southwest Region on Saturday, May 3 for the series second visit of the season.
Finally, the West Texas ASCS 305 Region begins their bi-weekly schedule on Friday at the El Paso Speedway Park, then the Southern New Mexico Speedway on Saturday.
The 2014 season marks the twenty-third year of sanctioning Sprint Car racing for the American Sprint Car Series, which brings the best of Sprint Car racing to dozens of different tracks throughout the nation. Anchored by the Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series, ASCS also consists of ten different Regions throughout the nation.
Lucas Oil Products is the title sponsor of the American Sprint Car Series. More information can be found on Lucas Oil Products at www.lucasoil.com. MAVTV is the presenting sponsor of the American Sprint Car Series. Log onto www.mavtv.com for information regarding availability and listings in your area.
Associate sponsors for the Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series presented by MAVTV include: Hoosier Racing Tire and Brodix.
Team Lucas Sponsors for the American Sprint Car Series consist of Protect the Harvest, iON Camera, Smokey Mountain Moonshine, C&R Radiator, Hawk Performance Products, Geico, E3 Spark Plugs, and General Tire.
Product and Contingency Sponsorship provided by: K&N Filters, KSE Racing Products, SpeedMart, Competition Suspension, Engler Machine and Tool, FSR Radiator and Racing Products, Schoenfeld Headers, Driverwebsites.com, Weld Wheels, Saldana Racing Products, Maxwell Industries, Print Place, Simpson, The Joie of Seating, Wesmar Racing Engines, Hinchman Indy Racewear, Rod End Supply, Smiley's Racing Products, Speedway Motors, and Hilborn Injection Systems.
Additional information regarding the American Sprint Car Series is available at www.ascsracing.com as well as Twitter (@LucasOilASCS) and Facebook. News and information can also be sent to you with the ASCS E-News by texting ASCS to 22828 with any mobile device.
- Bryan Hulbert on Apr 27, 2014
- Article Date: 4/27/2014