by Chris McWilliams on February 10, 2011
On August 14th the Amsoil USAC National Sprint Car Series will hit the track at Valley Speedway in Grain Valley, Missouri. This will be the first appearance of the USAC Sprint Cars in Missouri since 2006 and the first appearance in the Kansas City area since 2001 when two races were held at Lakeside Speedway which were won by Tony Elliott and J.J. Yeley. In 2009, the USAC/SMRS Midget Series made a visit to the one-third mile dirt oval in Grain Valley where Brad Loyet took home the victory. However, the last time the USAC National Sprints saw action in Missouri was five years ago at Lake Ozark Speedway in Eldon and Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland.
For more information on the United States Auto Club (USAC) check out their homepage at www.usacracing.com
2010 USAC National Sprint Car Champion Levi Jones (Image Credit: Chris Pedersen)
Missouri sprint car fans will get their chance to see the exciting 2011 USAC National Points Championship unfold in person as this late season race should be vital for any contender. 2010 champion Levi Jones will look to defend his title against stiff competition from the likes of Damion Gardner and Bryan Clauson. The 2011 points chase will also be interesting as the dirt only schedule opens the door for drivers who did not have pavement rides like Jon Stanbrough and Dave Darland to make a run at the title.
In total there have been 16 USAC Sprint races in Missouri, dating back to Gary Bettenhausen’s 1970 victory at I-70 Speedway in Odessa. Other USAC Sprint race feature winners in Missouri have been Tony Stewart, Rich Vogler, Jack Hewitt, Steve Butler, Jerry Coons Jr., Sheldon Kinser, Jeff Swindell, Bob Cicconi, Gene Lee Gibson, Eric Gordon, Tony Elliott and Josh Wise. Valley Speedway opened in 2004 is located on the Old National Road (U.S. Highway 40) and is currently the only track in the Kansas City area offering weekly open-wheel racing events. For more information on Valley Speedway check out their website at www.valleyspeedway.com.
http://www.onedirt.com/news/usac-national-sprint-car-series-returns-to-missouri-in-2011/
