TULSA, Okla. (September 15, 2014) - While Mother Nature tried her best to keep the ASCS Nation down, only one event fell to the unstoppable forces of nature as the Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series presented by MAVTV American Real headlined the Port-a-Cool U.S. Dirt Track National Championships at the Texas Motor Speedway along with the American Bank of Oklahoma ASCS Sooner and Smiley's Racing Products Lone Star Regions.
The ASCS Frontier Region took to the Billings Motorsports Park for the season's last dance in the Dan Laber Memorial this past weekend as well. The Speedway Motors Warrior Region was scheduled to compete at the U.S. 36 Raceway, but unfortunately saw the event called due to heavy rain fall.
Working out of the hot summer months and into the fall racing season, a total of 140 nights of racing making 165 ASCS events have been contested in across the ASCS Nation. Going into November, 27 nights of racing remain on the year.
The Winners:
Friday, September 12, 2014
• Sam Hafertepe, Jr. (National / Lone Star / Sooner) - For the fourth time in 2014, Sam Hafertepe, Jr. topped action with the Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series presented by MAVTV American Real. The win was Sam's sixth overall with the National Tour.
• J.J. Hickle (Frontier) - The Washington driver hopped behind the wheel of the Peterson Racing No. 23n for his second Frontier Regional score of the season and third overall ASCS win in 2014.
Saturday, September 13, 2014
• Seth Bergman (National / Lone Star / Sooner) - Another point for the state of Washington came in the "Lone Star State" as Seth Bergman raced to his second National Tour victory of the season in the Sprint Car portion of the Port-a-Cool U.S. Dirt Track National Championships.
• D.J. Brink (Frontier) - Traveling from Sturgis, D.J. Brink raced the Vision Express No. 90, normally driven by Randi Miller, to victory for the first time in ASCS competition on the second night of the Dan Laber Memorial at the Billings Motorsports Park.
News, notes, and more from the weekend:
• First Timers at TMS - For the past two years, Jason Johnson was the only name on the check at the Texas Motor Speedway Dirt Track but that all changed this past weekend as Sam Hafertepe, Jr. picked up the preliminary night victory while Seth Bergman topped action the following night in the Port-a-Cool U.S. Dirt Track Nationals. The win for Sam was somewhat of a hometown victory, as he resides about an hour away from the Ft. Worth oval in Sunnyvale, Texas.
• First for Brink - Sturgis, S.D. driver J.D. Brink picked up his first ASCS sanctioned victory with the Frontier Region at the BMP Speedway on Saturday night. He joins his Father, Darrell Brink, as an ASCS victor, having won with the former Rocky Mountain Region on August 7, 2009 at the Black Hills Speedway in Rapid City, S.D.
• Pre Victory Doughnut? - Well not exactly. As reported by Andrew Kunas, events at the BMP Speedway on Friday night got interesting as J.J. Hickle went for the lead on Joe Ramaker near the races mid-point, only to snag an infield tire. Sending the car spinning, Hickle recovered without further incident despite dropping from second to fourth. With Ramaker losing a cylinder and finding traffic in the closing laps, Hickle was able to race by for the win.
• Hard Hits - Friday night at the Texas Motor Speedway saw several hard hits. In Heat Races, Brad Queen and Michael Lang each went over in turn two with both drivers calling it quits for the rest of the weekend. In the A-Feature, Johnny Herrera ended up on his side against the wall in turn four. All drivers were okay and Herrera returned Saturday to finish fourth.
• 39 Hours - That's how long it took Roger Crockett from Medford, Ore. to Ft. Worth, Texas to compete at the Texas Motor Speedway. Unfortunately, Roger's weekend didn't go so swell with B-Feature finishes both nights.
• Hard Chargers - Both nights of the Port -a-Cool U.S. Dirt Track Championship saw the night's KSE Hard Charger turning in double-digit performances. Friday night was Brad Loyet with a 14 spot advance through the field. Saturday saw Travis Rilat and Zach Chappell each work past 10 drivers with Rilat getting the nod.
• On Fire - The most impressive, but probably most expensive, fireworks display over the weekend came from Blake Hahn. While leading a B-Feature on Saturday, the engine let out a cloud of smoke before finally igniting into a ball of fire. Report from the Pits was the oil filter had stripped, causing oil to spray all over the car. Blake was unharmed.
• Joe Ramaker - Two ASCS Regions saw their 2014 seasons come to an end over the weekend. Joe Ramaker picked up his third Montana Sprint Car title, and first with the Frontier Region by 83 over Kelly Miller.
• Dustin Morgan - For the driver known as "Full Blow Chaos", it's his first time with the label of Champion with the American Sprint Car Series as the Oklahoma native secured his first Sooner Region Championship by 514 point this past weekend as the region capped off its 2014 season at the Texas Motor Speedway Dirt Track.
• Other Points - The top five with the Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour still has the same players, but almost none in the same position they started before this past weekend. Brad Loyet stayed constant as the leader, but a win followed by a runner-up was enough to shoot Sam Hafertepe, Jr. to second from fifth. Jeff Swindell fell from second to third with Jason Johnson from third to fourth, and Johnny Herrera from fourth to fifth.
Coming Up:
One of the biggest events of the season for the Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour is finally upon us as the Casey's General Store Midwest Fall Brawl III takes place at the I-80 Speedway in Greenwood, Neb. this Friday September 19 and Saturday, September 20. The event will be preceded by an open practice on Thursday, September 18 along with complete program for 305cid Sprint Cars. The event in co-sanctioned with the Speedway Motors Midwest Region.
The Northwest Region brings their 2014 season to a close this Friday and Saturday night at the Yakima Speedway in Yakima, Wash. Updates can be found on the Region's Facebook page throughout the weekend.
The Southwest Region returns to action this Saturday, September 20 at the Tucson International Speedway and the West Texas 305cid Region is in action on Saturday as well as the Southern New Mexico Speedway in Las Cruces.
For a complete listing of ASCS events in 2014, log onto http://www.ascsracing.com.
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 Sep 15, 2014
- Article Date: 9/15/2014