Jake Blackhurst takes championship lead in POWRi National Midgets to Belle-Clair, Peoria

Jake Blackhurst of Mapleton, Ill., leads the championship in the POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series going into events Friday (May 18) at Belle-Clair Speedway in Belleville, Ill., and Saturday (May 19) at Peoria (Ill.) Speedway, his hometown track.

“I never dreamed I’d be in the points lead in my second year in a Midget,” the 16-year-old Blackhurst said. “It’s pretty awesome.”

Blackhurst has a 115-point advantage, 745-630, over second-place Brett Anderson of Belleville, Ill., after six events. He won his first POWRi Midget race at Lucas Oil Speedway on May 5 and also has finishes of fifth at Grain Valley, Mo., sixth at Jacksonville, Ill., eighth at Macon, Ill., and 11th at Cowtown Speedway in Kennedale, Texas.

“We’ve been consistent and had a boost in points with the win,” Blackhurst said. “We want to stay consistent and protect the point lead.”

Blackhurst was the POWRi Midget and the National Midget Rookie of the Year in 2011 in his first season on dirt and in a Midget. He spent the 2009 and 2010 seasons in USAC Ford Focus Midgets, taking the Midwest Pavement championship in 2010 and drove Kenyon Midgets in the previous two seasons.

Blackhurst finished 11th in the 2011 POWRi Midget points. He had five top-10s in 14 features including 10th, 15th, 16th and 18th at one-fifth mile Belle-Clair and 11th at quarter-mile Peoria. He’s excited about returning to Peoria.

“It’s always pretty cool to race in front of friends and family,” Blackhurst said. “It’s nice they don’t have to drive four or five hours to be there.”

Blackhurst drove for Bryan Clauson Racing last year, but the team is being operated by him and father/crew chief Paul Blackhurst this season.

“They (Clauson team) help us, but it’s just me and my dad at the track this year,” Blackhurst said.

Blackhurst is coming off one of his most impressive drives in a Midget. He started 22nd and finished eighth in the feature at one-fifth mile Macon last Saturday (May 12).

“I’m pretty proud of it,” Blackhurst said. “I got caught up in a wreck in my heat and had to go the B-main (where he finished fourth out of 21 cars). I stayed smooth and didn’t overdrive the car in the main. It’s pretty sweet to come from 22nd to eighth.”

POWRi is co-sanctioning Peoria with the Stark Automotive Group/Mid-State Equipment Badger Midget Series.

POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series top-10 points standings (after six of 31 events); 1. Jake Blackhurst 745, 2. Brett Anderson 630, 3. Andrew Felker 610, 4. Chett Gehrke 595, 5. Chris Bell 555, 6. Zach Daum 540, 7. Tyler Thomas 530, 8. Garrett Aitken 515, 9. Tyler Courtney 475, 10. Brad Kuhn 430.

POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series 2012 race winners: Kennedale, Texas—Brady Bacon; Kennedale, Texas—Dave Darland; Jacksonville, Ill.—Mario Clouser; Grain Valley, Mo.—Brett Anderson; Wheatland, Mo.—Jake Blackhurst; Macon, Ill.—Zach Daum.

-end-

Zach Daum wins 1st in POWRi Midgets

MACON, Ill. (May 12, 2012)—Zach Daum drove to his first victory in the POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series and Alex Harris claimed his first triumph in the POWRi Speedway Motors 600cc Outlaw Micro Series Saturday at Macon Speedway.

“It’s nice to get one,” Daum said. “I’ve won in USAC (Midgets), SMRS (Southern Midget Racing Series) and now POWRi and Badget. I’ve won in every (Midwestern) Midget series.”

Daum’s triumph Saturday also counted as a victory in the Stark Automotive Group/Mid-State Equipment Badger Midget Series, which co-sanctioned the event.

Daum led all 30 laps on the one-fifth mile track. The 21-year-old from Pocohontas, Ill., started on the outside of the front row and had to fend off an aggressive mid-race attack by Bubba Altig of Mechanicsburg, Ill.

Altig started fourth and moved into second on the fourth lap. He managed to stay close enough to Daum following a restart on the ninth lap to try a series of slide jobs attempting to pass. It got tricky for Daum trying to maintain the lead when they got into lapped traffic.

“I had to be careful in the traffic and I wanted him (Altig) to either clear me or come up short,” Daum said. “I didn’t want to get wrecked. He got into me pretty good one time in Turns One and Two.”

Altig’s challenge ended on the on the 25th lap when he spun trying a slide job in Turns One and Two. He finished 12th.

Gehrke, of Broken Arrow, Okla., was nearly taken out by Altig’s spin but made it through to finish second. Daniel Robinson of Wayne City., Ill., tapped Gehrke from behind in the same incident, but kept going to take third.

“I thought I was going to get wadded up,” Gehrke said. “When Bubba (Altig) spun, Daniel ran over me, hit my airbox. I stayed on the gas a little and Daniel came off me. I got through, but I’m not sure how.

“Considering the way we started (from pole), second isn’t bad. We were terrible and I was getting passed. I did some shock adjustments that worked and figured it out and we got going pretty good in the middle part of the race.”

Robinson started sixth, jumped up to third on the first lap and never ran lower than fourth.

“Chett was sideways trying to get around Bubba and I got into him,” Robinson said. “The engine in my car died and I was fortunate that it started back up when I rolled down the hill (from Turn Two). If it hadn’t, I would have had to gone to the back.

“The track got tight and I was bound for the fence a couple of times. I’m happy to finish third.”

POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series results (30 laps): 1. Zach Daum, 2. Chett Gehrke, 3. Daniel Robinson, 4. Davey Ray, 5. Andrew Felker, 6. Austin Brown; 7. Shane Cottle, 8. Jake Blackhurst, 9. Brett Anderson, 10. Cameron Hagin, 11. Colten Cottle, 12. Bubba Altig, 13. Dereck King, 14. Chris Bell, 15. John Campbell, 16. Rich Camfield, 17. Jake Neuman, 18. Tyler Robbins, 19. Derrick Myers, 20. Derek Rossio, 21. Nick Knepper, 22. Tyler Thomas.

-end-

Chris Bell bounces back from rough start to season to climb to 5th in POWRi Midgets heading into Macon Speedway

MACON, Ill. (May 8, 2012)—Chris Bell has rebounded from a difficult start to the season in the POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series to climb into fifth in the points heading into Saturday’s (May 12) event at Macon (Ill.) Speedway.

Bell finished fourth Friday (May 4) at Valley Speedway in Grain Valley, Mo., and second Saturday (May 5) at Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland, Mo. They were his two top feature results in 12 career POWRi Midget races. The 17-year-old from Norman, Okla., raced in seven features in 2011, with a best of 10th at Macon on Sept. 24.

“We had DNFs (did not finish) in two of the first three races, but knowing that we have to discard two events under the POWRi rules has encouraged us to keep going for the championship,” Bell said. “We’ll be running a lot of the races and we’re also going after the POWRi West Midget championship.”

Bell’s Mel Mark Pipe/KMK Transportation Eagle-Esslinger had mechanical problems and finished 22nd at Cowtown Speedway in Kennedale, Texas, on March 17 and was 17th at Jacksonville (Ill.) Speedway on April 27. Bell was 10th despite power steering problems in the season opener at Cowtown on March 16.

Bell will also be driving in the POWRi Speedway Motors 600cc Micro Series event at Macon. He pulled double duty at Jacksonville, too, finishing second in the feature to Andrew Felker of Carl Junction, Mo.

Bell isn’t racing for points in the POWRi Micros, which races 16 times with the POWRi Midgets and has seven stand alone events.

“We’re going to bring the Micro along most of the time when they’re with the Midgets,” Bell explained.

Bell took home the largest paycheck of the POWRi Micro season in 2011, $10,000 for winning the 66 Mike Phillips Memorial at Southern Illinois Raceway in Marion on June 25. He plans on racing in this year’s July 19-21 event, too.

Jake Blackhurst’s first victory in the POWRi Midgets last Saturday moved him into championship lead over Tyler Thomas, 615-520. Garrett Aitken is third with 515. Blackhurst, of Mapleton, Ill, Thomas, of Collinsville, Okla., and Aitken, of Paris, Ill., are all 16 years old.

POWRi is co-sanctioning one-fifth mile Macon with the Stark Automotive Group/Mid-State Equipment Badger Midget Series. There were 53 entries at the previous event co-sanctioned by POWRi and Badger this season at Jacksonville.

POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series top-10 points standings (after five of 31 events); 1. Jake Blackhurst 615, 2. Tyler Thomas 520, 3. Garrett Aitken 515, 4. Brett Anderson 510, 5. Chris Bell 485, 6. Tyler Courtney 475, 7. Andrew Felker 450, 8. Brad Kuhn 430, 9. Chett Gehrke 405, 10. Zach Daum 340.

POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series 2012 race winners: Kennedale, Texas—Brady Bacon; Kennedale, Texas—Dave Darland; Jacksonville, Ill.—Mario Clouser; Grain Valley, Mo.—Brett Anderson; Wheatland, Mo.—Jake Blackhurst.

For more information, go to www.POWRi.com.

-end-

Jake Blackhurst, 16, wins 1st feature in POWRi National Midgets at Lucas Oil Speedway

WHEATLAND, Mo. (May 5, 2012)—Sixteen-year-old Jake Blackhurst of Mapleton, Ill., drove to his first victory in the POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series in runaway fashion Saturday at Lucas Oil Speedway.

Blackhurst passed Tyler Thomas of Collinsville, Okla., on the outside exiting Turn Two on the 11th lap for the lead and had it firmly in his grasp in the 30-lap feature to the checkered flag. He finished 2.8 seconds—a straightaway on the fast three-eighths mile track--in front of Chris Bell of Norman, Okla.

“It’s probably the most memorable race I’ve ever had,” Blackhurst said.

Blackhurst’s breakthrough win came in his 22nd POWRi Midget event. He was the POWRi Rookie of the Year and the National Midget Rookie of the Year in 2011, his first season racing a Midget on dirt. Blackhurst finished a then-career best fifth Friday night in POWRi’s feature at Valley Speedway in Grain Valley, Mo., and was sixth in the previous feature at Jacksonville (Ill.) Speedway on April 27.

Blackhurst had two anxious moments, one before the feature and one during it.

“I saw we had a broken brake caliper about five minutes before the race and didn’t think we were going to make it,” Backhurst said. “My dad (Paul Blackhurst) fixed it.”

Blackhurst’s family-owned-and-prepared Kitchen Cooked Spike-Esslinger had pulled away to a commanding lead when a caution came out on the 22nd lap.

“The restart made me nervous,” Blackhurst said. “I had started to go through traffic and was going to have cars between me and Bell.”

Blackhurst rocketed away from Bell on the restart.

“The car was perfect from the start,” Blackhurst said.

The 17-year-old Bell, driving an Eagle-Esslinger, thought he had regained a chance to pass Blackhurst when the caution came out.

“I thought I had something for him, but he just pulled away,” Bell said. “He just checked out. He was on his game tonight. I really want to get my first win in a Midget, but this is my best finish in POWRi.”

Veteran Scott Hatton drove his Stealth-Esslinger to third after starting fifth.

“It was slow going to pass many cars because the track was really fast,” Hatton said. “I was tight early and was able to make some adjustments during the red (on the fifth lap). We got going pretty good under the long green run and were catching second (Bell) until that caution (22nd lap). We had soft right rear tire at the end and the tire pressure didn’t come up for a few laps and we lost our chance to catch him.”

The 49-year-old from Roscoe, Ill., who has four championships in the Badger Midget Auto Racing Association, was racing at Lucas Oil Speedway for the first time. It impressed him.

“It’s a beautiful facility, an awesome place,” Hatton said. “It’s the nicest facility I’ve ever raced at and I’ve raced at a lot of them.”

Brett Anderson of Belleville, Ill., finished fourth and Austin Brown of Millstadt, Ill., was fifth, his season-best finish.

POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series results (30 laps): 1. Jake Blackhurst, 2. Chris Bell, 3. Scott Hatton, 4. Brett Anderson, 5. Austin Brown, 6. Garrett Aitken, 7. Andrew Felker, 8 Colton Cottle, 9. Tyler Courtney, 10. Tyler Robbins, 11. Andy Malpocker, 12. Daniel Robinson, 13. Chett Gehrke, 14. Eric Todd, 15. Darren Kingston, 16. Pat Schudy, 17. Jake Neuman, 18. Tyler Thomas, 19. Matt Sherrell, 20. Andrew Deal, 21. Tim Siner, 22. Gavin Galbraith.

-end-

Chett Gehrke looking to repeat successful runs in POWRi Midgets at Valley Speedway, Lucas Oil Speedway

Chett Gehrke’s fourth-place finish in the POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series at Valley Speedway in Grain Valley, Mo., changed the course of his 2011 season. He’ll be trying to alter it again when the series returns to the one-third mile track near Kansas City on Friday (May 4), but in a different way.

The event at Valley was the second of the POWRi Midget season and Gehrke and car owner Skip Matteson of Salina, Kan., decided to turn his performance into a springboard to attempt to win the championship. Gehrke’s season-high second place the next night at Lucas Oil Raceway in Wheatland, Mo., where POWRi races Saturday (May 5) in the Missouri Mid-State Midget Nationals, solidified their decision.

“I didn’t expect to run the whole series and I don’t think Skip (Matteson) did either, but after Grain Valley, we were up in points and decided to run the whole season,” Gehrke said.

The 27-year-old from Broken Arrow, Okla., finished fifth in the 23-event POWRi Midget championship. He had three top-fives and 11 top-10s and made the feature in 21 of the 22 events he entered.

“The season went pretty good,” Gehrke said.

Gehrke has raced in the three POWRi Midget events this season, finishing 13th and 16th in the features at Cowtown Speedway in Kennedale, Texas, and falling out of the B Main at Jacksonville (Ill.) last Friday (April 27). He’s tied for ninth in the points.

“It hasn’t been as good as we’d hoped for, but not too bad,” Gehrke said. “I didn’t have any brakes on the first night at Cowtown and we just weren’t very good on the second. We had motor problems at Jacksonville. I didn’t get to do any hot laps because of a broken rocker arm and finished fourth in the heat and I had to pull off with a broken oil pump in the B main.”

Gehrke arrives to Valley Speedway and Lucas Oil Speedway this year wanting to get his season moving in an upward direction in the points. It may determine which POWRi championship he’ll pursue. The two events are also in the inaugural season of the  POWRi Lucas Oil West Series, a 14-race championship that includes four races in Gehrke’s home state of Oklahoma. Gehrke is third in the West points.

“We were thinking about running for both championships, but we haven’t gotten off to a very good start in the National series,” Gehrke said. “We’ll run at least for the West championship. It’s good to be able to run around home more. I’m 45 minutes from Will Rogers Raceway in Claremore and an hour and a half from I-44 Speedway in Oklahoma City.”

Gehrke, the Southern Midget Racing Series champion in 2010, likes racing at Valley and three-eighths mile Lucas Oil.

“I’m ready to go,” Gehrke said. “They’re bigger tracks than most of the POWRi drivers are used to and I have experience at Valley and bigger tracks.”

POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series top-10 points standings (after 3 of 31 events); 1. Brad Kuhn 430, 2. Zach Daum 340, 3. Tyler Thomas 310, 4. Tyler Courtney 305, 5. (tie) Garrett Aitken, Jake Blackhurst 255, 7. Andrew Felker 170, 8. Brett Anderson 140, 9. (tie) Chett Gehrke, Levi Roberts 135.

POWRi Lucas Oil West Series (after two of 14 events): 1. Tyler Thomas 200, 2. Andrew Felker 160, 3. Chett Gehrke 130, 4. Chris Bell 120, 5. Garrett Aitken 95, 6. Cameron Hagin 10, 7. (tie) Brunson Behning, Ryan Beechler 0.

POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series 2012 race winners: Kennedale, Texas—Brady Bacon; Kennedale, Texas—Dave Darland; Jacksonville, Ill.—Mario Clouser.

-end-

Clouser & Abreu Carry Momentum into Dodge City USAC Midget Double
 
Lonnie Wheatley, DODGE CITY, Kan. (April 30, 2012) – At least a pair of top contenders are riding a wave of momentum as the USAC Mopar National Midget series takes to the dirt for the first time this year with two nights of action atop the 3/8-mile Dodge City Raceway Park clay oval this Friday and Saturday.

Current USAC Midget points leader Mario Clouser and Rookie of the Year contender Rico Abreu both enter the weekend double coming off landmark triumphs this past weekend.

Clouser, the native of Auburn, IL, who emerged from the opening weekend of USAC National Midget action on asphalt in March atop the point charts in the RW Motorsports No. 27 entry, captured his first career Midget win on dirt this past Friday night in POWRi action at Jacksonville Speedway in Illinois.

Soon after and nearly 2,000 miles to the west in California, 20-year-old Abreu of Rutherford, CA, snared his first Sprint Car feature win by cracking victory lane at Chico’s Silver Dollar Speedway.

Clouser, who drove his own mount to victory lane this past weekend, holds a slim USAC National Midget points lead over Bobby East and Darren Hagen, who split victory honors at Ace Speedway in late March.

Abreu, aboard one of the potent Keith Kunz Motorsports entries for this weekend, made the cut for his first Chili Bowl main event to start the 2012 year and was a podium contender in both nights of Cowtown POWRi action in March before the USAC asphalt opener in North Carolina.

Clouser and Abreu will be among a stout field of entries this weekend vying to knock Bryan Clauson off the top step of the podium after the Noblesville, IN, shoe swept through both nights of USAC Midget action at Dodge City Raceway Park last year.

Clauson was joined on the podium by Bobby East and Brady Bacon on both nights last year, with all three expected for this weekend’s action.

The USAC Mopar National Midgets will be joined on both nights by the IMCA Modifieds and United Wireless IMCA Sport Modifieds.  The Poor Boy Kustomz Thunder Cars will round out Friday’s card, with the IMCA Stock Cars filling out Saturday’s action.

Racing action is set to get under way at 7:30 p.m. on both Friday and Saturday nights.

Tickets are $20 for adults each night.  Seniors and Military receive a $5 discount, with children 11 and under admitted free if accompanied by an adult.  Pit passes are $30.

Dodge City Raceway Park is located on the south edge of Dodge City, KS, on US 283, then 0.9 miles west on US 56, then 0.1 miles south.  For more information, contact the track at 620-225-3277 or check www.dodgecityraceway.com.

-end-

POWRi Midgets, Micros, UMP Modifieds at Belle-Clair cancelled due to rain

BELLEVILLE, Ill. (March 24, 2012)— POWRi’s Lucas Oil National Midget Series and Speedway Motors 600cc Outlaw Micro Series and UMP Modifieds event scheduled for Saturday night (March 24) at Belle-Clair Speedway has been cancelled due to rain. 

Organizers are working to reschedule the Open Wheel Mania Bullring 30s, featuring 30-lap features for all three series.

POWRi’s next scheduled events for Midgets and Micros are April 27 at Jacksonville (Ill.) Speedway and April 28 at Macon (Ill.) Speedway.

For more information on POWRi Racing, go to www.POWRi.com.

-end-

Dave Darland earns $5,000 for victory in POWRi Midget Stampede finale at Cowtown Speedway

KENNEDALE, Texas (March 17, 2012)—Dave Darland passed Rico Abreu for the lead on the opening lap and never relinquished it Saturday, earning $5,000 for his victory in the POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series’ Midget Stampede at quarter-mile Cowtown Speedway.

It was the third POWRi victory of Darland’s illustrious career, which includes multiple national championships and wins in prestigious open-wheel, short-track events.

Darland started on the outside of the front row next to Abreu. The 45-year-old from Lincoln, Ind., overtook Abreu on the inside exiting Turn 4 with a classic crossover maneuver.

“That kid (Abreu) did a good job on the start,” Darland said. “We had a lot of restarts (three to begin the 30-lap feature) and we finally got a lap completed. He slid (in front) of me in Turn 2 and I was able to cross over underneath him in Turn 4.”

The race’s fourth caution came out on the second lap, leaving the veteran Darland in front for the nine remaining single-file restarts. The 20-year-old Abeu, driving in the third Midget event of his career, ran second until attempting to slide past Darland’s Spike-Esslinger in Turns 1 and 2 on the final lap. The driver of Keith Kunz Motorsports’ Bullet-Toyota didn’t make it and fell back, finishing 14th after contact left him in Turn 4.

Tyler Thomas, a 16-year-old from Colllinsville, Okla., finished second. He started on the inside of the second row in his XXX-Esslinger and ran strongly throughout the race.

“I feel ecstatic about it,” Thomas said. “Our goal was to get a top-five. I couldn’t have asked for a better car.”

Brad Kuhn of Avon, Ind., finished third. He started from the outside of the second row, but was involved in a four-car crash on the second double-file restart to begin the race and fell to the back of the 25-car field.

“Darland hit the holes in the track and started bouncing around and I had to slow down,” Kuhn said. “Somebody hit me in the back and spun me out. I lost a good starting position. It’s third place.”

It was POWRi’s first visit to Texas. There were 66 cars competing in Friday’s opening event won by Brady Bacon of Broken Arrow, Okla., and 64 on Saturday. The Rocky Mountain Midget Racing Association co-sanctioned the event and it was also the initial two events for the POWRi Lucas Oil West Midget Series.

POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series feature results (30 laps): 1. Dave Darland, 2. Tyler Thomas, 3. Brad Kuhn, 4. Darren Hagen, 5. Zach Daum, 6. Andrew Felker, 7. Caleb Armstrong, 8. Levi Roberts, 9. Jonathan Beason, 10. Jerry Coons Jr., 11. Jake Blackhurst, 12. Garrett Aitken, 13. George White, 14. Rico Abreu, 15. Casey Shuman, 16. Chett Gehrke, 17. Don Droud Jr., 18. Austin Brown, 19. Billy Lawhead, 20. Kevin Ramey, 21. Brady Bacon, 22. Chris Bell, 23. Daniel Robinson, 24. Danny Stratton, 25. Cole Carter.

-end-

Brady Bacon wins POWRi Midget Stampede opening night at Cowtown Speedway

KENNEDALE, Texas (March 16, 2012)—Brady Bacon led all 30 laps to win the Midget Stampede on Friday at quarter-mile Cowtown Speedway, earning $3,000 in the season-opening event for the POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series.

Bacon, who started on pole, fended off several determined challenges from Tyler Courtney, who was never more than a few car lengths behind from the opening lap to the middle of the 29th. Courtney tried to pass with a slide job that began in Turn 1 but went in too fast and was forced to lift exiting Turn 2 to avoid the wall. The 17-year-old from Indianapolis regained control of his Spike-Esslinger to finish fourth.

“He (Courtney) made a really bold move at the end,” Bacon said. “I was cruising at the start, but we got tight at the end. He slid us a couple of times. I felt the longer we ran, the better we ran.”

Bacon, driving a Toyota-powered Spike for famed Wilke-PAK Racing, won in a field of 66 drivers, which was pared to 24 starters in the feature by seven heat races, a C main and two B mains.

“That kind of field is a lot for a Midget race,” the 22-year-old from Broken Arrow, Okla., said. “It’s good to see. Midgets have been having trouble the past couple of years attracting cars.”

Casey Shuman of Tempe, Ariz., finished second in a Spike-Esslinger. He started on the inside of the third row and was up to second by a second-lap restart.

“We were a third-place car,” Shuman said. “The right rear tire started losing air early in the race and at that point all I was trying to do is finish and playing defense. It stayed up to the end and we got a good finish.”

Rico Abreu climbed from 12th starting position to take third in the second Midget race of his five-year career. The 20-year-old from Rutherford, Calif., was sixth at halfway and fourth with 10 laps remaining. He drove a Bullet-Toyota for Keith Kunz Motorsports.

“We got going in the middle of the track and let everyone make mistakes and started picking them off,” Abreu said. “We got better and better as the race went on.”

Courtney risked second by taking his shot to win, but had no regrets.

“We were good enough to win if we got by him (Bacon),” Courtney said. “We had a run and we took it and it didn’t happen. It was all-or-nothing. We didn’t want to be first loser. It was my sixth race in a Midget and one of my stronger performances.”

Shuman had the best view in the house of Courtney challenging Bacon.

“He (Courtney) was probably faster, but he’s younger and less experienced,” Shuman said. “He was really good. He’s going to win races this year.”

The Midget Sampede at Cowtown, which is co-sactioned by the Rocky Mountain Midget Racing Association, concludes tonight (Saturday) with a first-place purse of $5,000 and $500 to start the feature.

POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series feature results (30 laps): 1. Brady Bacon, 2. Casey Shuman, 3. Rico Abreu, 4. Tyler Courtney, 5. Danny Stratton, 6. Dave Darland, 7. Darren Hagen, 8. Caleb Armstrong, 9. Kevin Ramey, 10. Chris Bell, 11. Jerry Coons Jr., 12. Jonathan Beason, 13. Chett Gehrke, 14. Brad Kuhn, 15. Mike Hess, 16. Andrew Deal, 17. Matt Sherrell, 18. Don Droud Jr., 19. Austin Brown, 20. Zach Daum, 21. Luke Icke, 22. Tyler Thomas, 23. Andrew Felker, 24. Colton Cottle.

-end-

Star-studded Texas-sized field expected at Cowtown Speedway for POWRi National/West Midget Stampede March 16-17

KENNEDALE, Texas (March 5, 2012)—Cowtown Speedway promoter Jeff Martinez expects a Texas-sized entry list with a star-studded cast of drivers for the Midget Stampede when the POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series visits the quarter-mile track on March 16-17.

Bryan Clauson, Brad Loyet, Brad Kuhn, Jerry Coons Jr. and Brady Bacon have committed to the event, which has a purse exceeding $40,000.

There also is strong local interest. Texans entered include Kevin Ramey of Fort Worth, Justin Melton of Flower Mound, George White of Fort Worth, Bobby Ruffin of Crandall and Paul White of Waco.

Clauson, of Noblesville, Ind., has been the National Driver of the Year in the past three seasons. He won three POWRi Midget features in five starts in 2011.

Loyet, of Sunset Hills, Mo., has been POWRi National Midget champion the past two years and earned his first in 2007. He had four feature victories in the series last year. Loyet also won the American Sprint Car Series Warrior Region championship in 2011.

Kuhn was the POWRi champion in 2006 and 2009. The 30-year-old from Avon, Ind., is a two-time National Midget Driver of the Year. He won five POWRi races and was third in the championship in 2011.

Coons Jr. is a multi-time national champion in different types of open-wheel cars. The 39-year-old from Tucson, Ariz., was the National Midget Driver of the Year in 2007.

Bacon has won national races in several divisions. The 22-year-old from Broken Arrow, Okla., is focusing on the Lucas Oil ASCS National Sprint Car Series this season.

The Midget Stampede is also the inaugural event for the POWRi Lucas Oil West Midget Series, a 15-race season that takes the sanctioning body into Texas and Oklahoma and runs with the National Series in Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska and Illinois.

The Rocky Mountain Midget Racing Association is co-sanctioning the Midget Stamped, bringing drivers from even farther west to it.

“We could have 60 to 70 cars,” Martinez said. “I’ve had calls from California and Arizona, the Rocky Mountain Association will bring about 15 cars and I made hotel reservations for four drivers from Wyoming.

“POWRi has a strong and large group of drivers. The opportunity arose to bring POWRi here and we took it. We haven’t had Midgets in two years. We’re open-wheel fans in Texas and the fans like coming here to watch whatever we’re running. POWRi will be a special show.”

The purse is substantial. Friday’s feature pays $3,000 to win and $300 to start. Saturday’s feature pays $5,000 to win and $500 to start. $100 in tow money will be paid each night for the entrants not making the feature.

For more information on POWRi Racing, go to www.POWRi.com.

-end-