In the opening laps, Zach Daum paced the field from the second position over Logan Seavey as the track stayed hammer-down. As the track widened out and became abrasive, Clauson-Marshall driver Zeb Wise took over the top point on lap 14, just before the halfway mark.

19 laps in the yellow was displayed as Wise lost a left rear tire while the track began to show signs of rubber. Wise was able to get a new tire bolted on during the yellow and re-fired at the tail.

Inheriting the lead, Logan Seavey held the top position while Klaasmeyer had only moved into the top five to this point. Seavey held the lead until lap 25 when Clauson-Marshal driver Tyler Courtney overcame him for the top position.

With three laps to go, Courtney suffered a flat tire, relinquishing the lead back to Seavey. In the final laps, Klaasmeyer capitalized on Seavey’s misfortune as the #67 machine appeared to be in the process of having a tire go down.

Seavey was able to hang on to get a top three, but only after Brady Bacon was able to sneak into the second position. Zeb Wise rallied to the fourth position, while Ryan Robinson rounded out the top five.

“I’ve been waiting for a streak for a long time,” stated Tucker Klaasmeyer. “One was good, two is great. I knew coming here this place owed me something. I just tried cooling the tires up top under the yellows. There was still good moisture down low with rubber right above it, so I figured if I stayed in the wet moisture, maybe the tires would last a little longer. I just want to win races, that’s all it boils down to and we’re off to a good start. Hopefully we keep it going.”

Midgets
Speedway Motors Heat Race Winners: Heat 1: 39BC – ZEB WISE, Heat 2: 67 – LOGAN SEAVEY, Heat 3: 7BC – TYLER COURTNEY, Heat 4: 5D – ZACH DAUM, Heat 5: 76M – BRADY BACON

Toyota Semi Feature Winners: 77 – PAYTON PIERCE, 79 – BLAKE CARRICK

Mesilla Valley Transportation Feature Winner: 27 – TUCKER KLAASMEYER
POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget League Feature Results (30 laps): 1. 27 – TUCKER KLAASMEYER 2. 76M – BRADY BACON 3. 67 – LOGAN SEAVEY 4. 39BC – ZEB WISE 5. 71 – RYAN ROBINSON 6. 25 – JERRY COONS JR 7. 71K – TANNER CARRICK 8. 9K – KYLE SCHUETT 9. 79 – BLAKE CARRICK 10. 76E – KYLE CRAKER 11. 32 – TREY MARCHAM 12. 67K – HOLLY SHELTON 13. 51B – JOE B MILLER 14. 77 – PAYTON PIERCE 15. 21KS – KARTER SARFF 16. 7BC – TYLER COURTNEY 17. 5D – ZACH DAUM 18. 28M – ACE MCCARTHY 19. 7F – ANDREW FELKER 20. 14JR – HOLLEY HOLLAN 21. 21 – RICO ABREU 22. 1K – BRAYTON LYNCH

For further information, visit www.powri.com, “Like” POWRi on Facebook and follow @POWRi_Racing on Twitter.

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INDIANAPOLIS, IN (April 21, 2018) – Missouri native, Wesley Smith earned his first POWRi Lucas Oil WAR Sprint League win Saturday night at Springfield Raceway in Springfield, Missouri over Ty Hulsey and JD Black. Smith was driving for the long-time WAR driver turned car owner, John Helm.

The WAR season opener seemed to have been plagued after multiple rain outs hindered the season from kicking off and the weather remained a factor throughout Saturday night’s event. Light rain sprinkles fell from the sky as the A-Main pushed off for 25 laps of action. Luckily the rainfall held off just long enough for the main event to be completed.

Smith ran a smooth and smart race starting on the pole and holding onto the lead all 25 laps capitalizing on the bottom groove of the racetrack. Ty Hulsey tried his best to pressure Smith for a pass, but could not get by.

The POWRi Lucas Oil WAR Sprints are back in action Saturday, April 28 at Lake Ozark Speedway.

POWRi Luas Oil WAR Sprint League
4/21/18
Springfield Raceway – 21 cars

Hinchman Racewear Heat 1 – 8 laps
1. 24H-Ty Hulsey, Owasso, OK (5); 2. 90-Riley Kreisel, Warsaw, MO (2); 3. 93-Steve Mahannah, Springfield, MO (4); 4. 2-Zach Clark, Olathe, KS (3); 5. 73-Samuel Wagner, Lone Jack, MO (1); 6. 77-Samuel Wagner, Lone Jack, MO (6); 7. 22S-Slater Helt, Harrisonville, MO (7)

Bell Racing USA Heat 2 – 8 laps
1. 7R-JD Black, Grain Valley, MO (1); 2. 12-Wesley Smith, Nixa, MO (3); 3. 99-Korey Weyant, Springfield, IL (7); 4. 41-Brad Wyatt, Kearney, MO (6); 5. 30-Ryan Kent, Blue Springs, MO (4); 6. 2H-Luke Howard, Overland Park, KS (2); 7. 13W-Grant Wresche, Kellyville, OK (5)

Schure Built Suspension Heat 3 – 8 laps
1. 15B-Quinton Benson, Emma, MO (4); 2. 16-Anthony Nicholson, Bartlett, TN (1); 3. 24C-Craig Carroll, Collinsville, OK (2); 4. 65-Chris Parkinson, Gladstone, MO (3); 5. 77K-Katlynn Leer, Moulton, IA (5); 6. 57-TJ Artz, Lincoln, NE (6); 7. 82-Vinny Ward, Warrenton, MO (7)

POWRi Lucas Oil WAR Sprints A-Main – 25 laps
1. 12-Wesley Smith (1); 2. 24H-Ty Hulsey (4); 3. 7R-JD Black (2); 4. 16-Anthony Nicholson (7); 5. 93-Steve Mahannah (8); 6. 90-Riley Kreisel (6); 7. 24C-Craig Carroll (10); 8. 2H-Luke Howard (18); 9. 77-Jack Wagner (16); 10. 30-Ryan Kent (14); 11. 2-Zach Clark (11); 12. 22S-Slater Helt (20); 13. 99-Korey Weyant (5); 14. 73-Samuel Wagner (15); 15. 13W-Grant Wresche (21); 16. 41-Brad Wyatt (9); 17. 15B-Quinton Benson (3); 18. 65-Chris Parkinson (12); 19. 77K-Katlynn Leer (13); 20. 82-Vinny Ward (19); 21. 57-TJ Artz (17)

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Starting outside row two, Klaasmeyer immediately jumped into the second position behind Andrew Felker on the initial lap. In what was a marathon of cautions, Klaasmeyer eventually picked off Felker on the restart following the red flag on lap nine. Enduring pressure from teammates Logan Seavey and Ryan Robinson, Klaasmeyer felt Seavey’s pressure mid-way. Challenging for the lead on 20, Seavey almost had the lead going into lap 22, only to be caught up with lap car and Keith Kunz/Curb-Agajanian Motorsports teammate Sam Johnson, ending his bid for the lead.

In the final laps, Keith Kunz/Curb-Agajanian Motorsports teammate Ryan Robinson closely followed Klaasmeyer as Andrew Felker applied pressure from the third position. Joe B. Miller charged from the 11th starting position to fourth, while Grady Chandler came from deep in the field at the 18th starting position to close out the top five.

“It took me way too long to get this,” commented Tucker Klaasmeyer. “A lot of nights we came close. A lot of hard work has gone into it and to finally pull it off feels amazing. I really think a lot of it was confidence and these guys have a lot of confidence in the team and they put good racecars together so that’s helped a lot.”

“The track was super tricky tonight,” stated Ryan Robinson. “There were holes all over the place. It was just treacherous. I tried to find my way around there, but wasn’t quite as good as Tucker. But, tomorrow’s a different night, a lot bigger track. Really looking forward to I-55 tomorrow.”

“I got out of the car pretty full tonight; I got fed a bunch of right rears,” Andrew Felker said. “We definitely weren’t our best. We kind of survived. Got stuffed plenty of times and let them wreck themselves plenty of times. Overall, we’ll take a third place finish for the night. To end up on the podium, that gets us good momentum and headed in the right direction.”

Midgets
Speedway Motors Heat Race Winners: Heat 1: 71 – RYAN ROBINSON, Heat 2: 27 – TUCKER KLAASMEYER, Heat 3: 9K – KYLE SCHUETT, Heat 4: 39BC – ZEB WISE, Heat 5: 71K – TANNER CARRICK

Toyota Semi Feature Winners: 76E – KYLE CRACKER, 00 – GRADY CHANDLER

Mesilla Valley Transportation Feature Winner: 1. 27 – TUCKER KLAASMEYER

POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget League Feature Results (30 laps): 1. 27 – TUCKER KLAASMEYER 2. 71 – RYAN ROBINSON 3. 7F – ANDREW FELKER 4. 51B – JOE B MILLER 5. 00 – GRADY CHANDLER 6. 39BC – ZEB WISE 7. 67K – HOLLY SHELTON 8. 67 – LOGAN SEAVEY 9. 76E – KYLE CRACKER 10. 5D – ZACH DAUM 11. 3N – JAKE NEUMAN 12. 91 – TYLER NELSON 13. 28M – ACE MCCARTHY 14. 71K – TANNER CARRICK 15. 72 – SAM JOHNSON 16. 57D – DANIEL ROBINSON 17. 7 – AUSTIN BROWN 18. 77 – PAYTON PIERCE 19. 21KS – KARTER SARFF 20. 16C – DAVID CAMFIELD JR 21. 32 – TREY MARCHAM 22. 9K – KYLE SCHUETT

For further information, visit www.powri.com, “Like” POWRi on Facebook and follow @POWRi_Racing on Twitter.

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Starting 2018, the POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget League will head to Ocala, Florida for the season opener at Bubba Raceway Park for the Inaugural Toyota Sunshine State Midget Challenge. This will be POWRi’s maiden voyage to Florida and an exciting new crown jewel in POWRi’s history with a two-day show on Friday, February 9th and Saturday, February 10th.

In March, POWRi will return to I-44 Riverside Speedway for the Fifth Annual Turnpike Challenge. Reminiscent of the inaugural Turnpike Challenge, Christopher Bell dominated the 2017 Turnpike Challenge, sweeping both nights for a powerful showing at the event joined by the POWRi Lucas Oil West Midget League.

New to 2018, Jacksonville Speedway hosts the Inaugural Midget Gold Cup on Friday, April 6th and Saturday, April 7th showcasing the POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget League. Two weeks later POWRi heads to Belle-Clair Speedway before taking to Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 on Saturday alongside the World of Outlaws.

The Missouri Mid-State Midget Nationals, a fan-favorite doubleheader weekend, will kick off the month of May at Valley Speedway on May 4th and round out the weekend with the annual appearance at the title-sponsor owned Lucas Oil Speedway, labeled the “Diamond of Dirt Tracks,” on May 5th. The Missouri Mid-State Midget Nationals will be tri-sanctioned with the POWRi Lucas Oil West Midget League, and the POWRi Lucas Oil Allstar Midget League.

After a wild inaugural showcasing in late September 2017 at Southern Illinois Raceway for the POWRi Lucas Oil National Midgets, which saw Christopher Bell take the checkers, the League is set to return on Saturday, May 19th for the Second Annual Southern Illinois Shootout.

The Seventh Annual Illinois SPEED Week, will host five consecutive nights of racing. Belle-Clair Speedway returns and will anchor the opening night of Illinois SPEED Week on Wednesday, June 6th. The League will then head to Fayette County Speedway for night two on Thursday, June 7th and then to Jacksonville Speedway on Friday, June 8th before Macon Speedway on Saturday, June 9th. Illinois SPEED Week will conclude on Sunday, June 10th at Lincoln Speedway.Saturday, June 30th at Macon Speedway and Sunday, July 1st POWRi will be run alongside the UMP Summer Nationals “Hell Tour.”

After two nights of incredible racing in 2017, Valley Speedway hosts the Second Annual Thunder in the Valley on July 13th and 14th. Again tri-sanctioned for 2018, fans can expect to see excellent racing after Tanner Thorson won the opening night, with Spencer Bayston rounding out the weekend for a Keith Kunz Motorsports sweep of the Inaugural “Thunder in the Valley.”

The POWRi Lucas Oil National and West Midget Leagues will return to Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 on Friday and Saturday, August 3rd and 4th to run alongside the World of Outlaws for the Iron Man weekend. 2017’s Ironman weekend produced a first-time winner with the League, as Kyle Schuett took the Prelude to the Ironman before rain claimed night two.

Rich in heritage and tradition, Angell Park Speedway will host two showings of the POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget League in 2018. The first, coming on Sunday, July 8th will be the 37th Annual Pepsi Nationals. Saturday, July 7th the League will run at Fairbury American Legion Speedway before making the drive north to “The Prairie.” The League will then return to Angell Park on Sunday, August 20th for the Sun Prairie Cornfest.

2018 will continue to be dotted with key events of the League’s traditional schedule, including the Camfield Memorial at Macon Speedway on Saturday, August 19th, the Herb Barlow Memorial on Friday, September 7th at Jacksonville Speedway, and the Charlene Meents Memorial on Saturday, September 29th.

New for 2018, the POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget League will head to Lake Ozark Speedway in Eldon, Missouri for Labor Day weekend. Wrapping up the 2018 National tour, Kennedale Speedway Park in Kennedale, Texas will host the Season Championship. This event will be joined by the POWRi Lucas Oil West Midget League to round out 2018.

For further information, visit www.powri.com, “Like” POWRi on Facebook and follow @POWRi_Racing on Twitter.

2018 – POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Schedule

Fri, Feb 9 Bubba Raceway Park – Sunshine State Midget Challenge
Sat, Feb 10 Bubba Raceway Park – Sunshine State Midget Challenge
Fri, March 23* I-44 Speedway – Turnpike Challenge
Sat, March 24* I-44 Speedway – Turnpike Challenge
Fri, April 6 Jacksonville Speedway – Midget Gold Cup
Sat April 7 Jacksonville Speedway – Midget Gold Cup
Fri, April 20 Belle-Clair Speedway – Knepper Memorial
Sat, April 21 I-55 Raceway – With the World of Outlaws
Fri, May 4*+ Valley Speedway – MO Mid-State Midget Nationals
Sat, May 5*+ Lucas Oil Speedway – MO Mid-State Midget Nationals
Fri, May 11 Jacksonville Speedway – Midwest Season Opener
Sat, May 12 Macon Speedway – Midwest Season Opener
Fri, May 18 Belle-Clair Speedway – Southern Illinois Shootout
Sat, May 19 Southern Illinois Raceway – Southern Illinois Shootout
Wed, June 6 Belle-Clair Speedway – Illinois SPEED Week
Thur, June 7 Fayette County Speedway – Illinois SPEED Week
Fri, June 8 Jacksonville Speedway – Illinois SPEED Week
Sat, June 9 Macon Speedway – SPEED Week Sun, June 10 Lincoln Speedway – SPEED Week Sat, June 30 Macon Speedway
Sun, July 1 Lincoln Speedway
Sat, July 7 Fairbury Speedway
Sun, July 8 Angell Park Speedway – Pepsi Nationals
Fri, July 13*+ Valley Speedway – Thunder In the Valley
Sat, July 14*+ Valley Speedway – Thunder In the Valley
Fri, Aug 3 * I-55 Raceway – Iron Man 55
Sat, Aug 4 * I-55 Raceway – Iron Man 55
Sat, Aug 19 Macon Speedway – Camfield Memorial
Sun, Aug 20 Angell Park Speedway – Cornfest
Sat, Sept 1 Lake Ozarks Speedway
Sun, Sept 2 Lake Ozarks Speedway
Fri, Sept 7 Jacksonville Speedway – Herb Barlow Memorial
Sat, Sept 8 Spoon River Speedway – Tom Knowles Memorial
Sat, Sept 29 Belle-Clair Speedway – Meents Memorial
Fri, Oct 12 Jacksonville Speedway
Sat, Oct 13 Belle-Clair Speedway – Battle at the Bullring
Fri, Nov 9* Kennedale Speedway Park – Season Championship
Sat, Nov 10* Kennedale Speedway Park – Season Championship
Co-Sanction – *POWRi West, +Outlaw,

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Millstadt, IL – The POWRi Lucas Oil National Midgets and POWRi West Midgets will meet for the Missouri Mid-State Midget Nationals at Valley Speedway Friday, May 1st and Lucas Oil Speedway on Saturday, May 2nd.  Valley Speedway in Grain Valley, MO will host Friday night’s event, and although POWRi is only scheduled to visit the 1/3rd mile Valley Speedway once, the event is the first half of one of the most highly anticipated weekends of the season.  Previous winners at Valley Speedway include Darren Hagen, Zach Daum, Michael Pickens, and Brett Anderson.

Night two of the Missouri Mid-State Midget Nationals will take place on Saturday at the incredible “Diamond of Dirt Tracks,” Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland, MO.  Lucas Oil Speedway was established in 2008 and has been a POWRi favorite ever since.  If the unbelievable racing on the 3/8th mile semi-banked oval is not enough, Lucas Oil Speedway also boasts numerous amenities including a car wash and parts store for the race teams and a slick track and the Diamond Bar for spectators.  Defending POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series Champion Zach Daum took the 2014 event after a fierce battle throughout a majority of the race with Daniel Robinson coming down to the last lap, last corner.  Past winners at Lucas Oil Speedway also include Jake Blackhurst, Brad Loyet, and Casey Shuman   A POWRi event on the “Diamond of Dirt Tracks” is an experience that cannot be missed, as Lucas Oil Speedway is the unchallenged standout of the POWRi season.

***This weekend only, POWRi will add an additional $100 to each position of payout as tow money for POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series members and POWRi Lucas Oil West Midget Series members.  This is a $100 for each night, for a total of $200 for the weekend.  We would like to thank our sponsors for their continued support, especially for those teams that are traveling a long distance for this weekend.***

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

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The 2015 season starts off at Belle-Clair Speedway on April 10th and will conclude at Jacksonville Speedway on October 10th.  The schedule includes the four-event POWRi Illinois SPEED Week as well as a visit to Fayette County Speedway on May 15th, Wayne County Speedway on June 12th, and Southern Illinois Raceway on June 13th.

Three days of racing in a row will be specifically devoted to the POWRi Speedway Motors 600cc Outlaw Micro Series starting at Wayne County Speedway for the 2nd annual Cornhusker Nationals presented by Great Clips Racing for $5000-to-win on Friday, June 12th.  Saturday, June 13th will be at Southern Illinois Raceway and Belle-Clair Speedway on Sunday, June 14th.

POWRi Illinois SPEED Week will again be included within the season championship and will run in conjunction with the POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series.  The four-day event will commence on June 4th at Quincy Speedway, followed by events at Jacksonville Speedway on June 5th, and Macon Speedway on June 6th.  The finale of POWRi Illinois SPEED Week will take place at Belle-Clair Speedway on June 7th.

With 9 events scheduled, Belle-Clair Speedway will be the POWRi Speedway Motors 600cc Outlaw Micro’s most visited track.  Macon Speedway and Jacksonville Speedway will also be frequently visited as 6 events and 4 events are scheduled at each, respectively.  Two of the six Macon Speedway events will be held July 3rd and 4th.

22 events are scheduled alongside the POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series.  1 event at Wayne County Speedway, 1 event at Southern Illinois Raceway, and 1 event at Belle-Clair Speedway will feature only the POWRi Speedway Motors 600cc Outlaw Micro Series.

POWRi Speedway Motors 600cc Outlaw Micro Series 2015 schedule:

For more information, visit www.powri.com.

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Bryan Clauson of Noblesville, Indiana started on the outside front row in the Rusty Kunz Racing/Curb-Agajanian, Esslinger-powered Spike Chassis and lurched into the lead at the drop of the green flag with 2013 POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series Rookie of the Year, Parker Price-Miller in tow.  As Clauson checked out and started working his way towards lap traffic, Andrew Felker’s Fontana-powered Boss Chassis would slow entering turn three, while simultaneously Spencer Bayston’s Esslinger-powered Spike would slow on the high-side entering turn three, bringing out the caution and momentarily cooling off the Great Clips Battle at the Center presented by K & N Filters.

With 20 laps down, Clauson would lead the field back to green, and after quickly dispatching the lap car in between himself and Clauson, Saldana would attempt to reel in Clauson with no avail.  With Clauson comfortably out front, Christopher Bell of Norman, Oklahoma would pick up momentum and reel in Saldana, overtaking the second position on lap 26 and setting his sights on Clauson for the lead.  As Bell’s Keith Kunz/Curb-Agajanian Motorsports’ Toyota-powered Bullet had closed in on Clauson enough to be positioned to challenge for the lead, 2012 POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series Champion Andrew Felker and NASCAR Sprint Cup driver Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. would tangle in turns one and two, collecting Clauson and Bell, bringing out the second caution of the feature.  Damage sustained to Bell’s machine would be enough to end his bid for the win.

Capitalizing on Clauson and Bell’s misfortune, “The Brownsburg Bullet,” Joey Saldana would inherit control on lap 35.  Also gaining ground from the caution was Dereck King of Vienna, Illinois and Nick Knepper of Belleville, Illinois as both drivers moved into the top three.  When Saldana led the field back to green, Clauson would begin the daunting task of working his way back towards the front with 5 laps left.  With Saldana out front, Knepper would close on King and start working him over for the second position.  As Knepper was positioned to strike, King would loop it entering turns one and two, collecting Knepper, Ryan Criswell, Seth Motsinger, Kevin Ramey and NASCAR Sprint Cup driver Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., bringing out the caution and slowing the action for the final time on lap 37.

With three laps left, it would be a shootout to the finish between Saldana, Justin Peck of Monrovia, Indiana and Bryan Clauson, who worked all the way back up to the third positon.  When the field resumed green flag racing, Saldana would take off as Clauson relentlessly put pressure on Peck for second.  On lap 39, Bryan Clauson would overtake Peck, but time would run out as Saldana would take the checkers first, followed by Bryan Clauson and Justin Peck.  Coming in fourth was 2014 POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series Rookie of the Year, Spencer Bayston and rounding out the top five was Daniel Robinson.

“We got so many people that helped us get this car together,” explained a victorious Saldana.  “It’s just the coolest thing to be able to race and stay home with my family for Christmas.  I’ve been gone for like 13 years going to Australia, so I figured I better find another thing to do to stay home and enjoy the parts of life that fade away really fast.  I wish my kids could have been here; they would have loved this, but my son had basketball last night and he’s got to do what he loves to do and hopefully  I can do something that he’s proud of.  We had a good car.  It just goes to show, if you surround yourself with great people, great things can happen.  And tonight it was just a blessing, just right place at the right time.  I wasn’t fast enough to get caught up in what Bryan and Christopher got caught up in, but I was fast enough to win the race, so that’s what counts in the end.”

“It’s a bummer,” said second place finisher Bryan Clauson.  “You don’t get many racecars that dominant.  Just wrong place, wrong time, I guess.  It was just one of those deals.  It was a bummer; you hate to lose big races especially with a dominant car.  I guarantee you, they roll this thing off as good as they did this weekend, the golden driller is going to have to go through us, not the Swindells.

“I was going to try to wait until the last lap to throw a big slider on Joey if I had gotten close enough, but Bryan snuck in there and made it a little fun,” explained third place finisher Justin Peck.  “It was a good race, had me scared a couple times, thought we were going to get caught up in a wreck.”

POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series feature Results (40 laps):  1. 21 – Joey Saldana  2. 63 – Bryan Clauson  3. 5X – Justin Peck  4. 39 – Spencer Bayston  5. 57D – Daniel Robinson  6. 11A – Andrew Felker  7. 7M – Kevin Ramey  8. 17 – Ricky Stenhouse  9. 15 – Tim Siner  10. 14R – Jody Rosenboom  11. 31 – Kyle Schuett  12. 91 – Dereck King  13. 55 – Nick Knepper  14. 2 – Seth Motsinger  15. 11R – Ryan Criswell  16. 71 – Christopher Bell  17. 66 – Shane Cockrum  18. 9P – Parker Price-Miller  19. 14W – Matt Wesfall  20. 1T – Tony Roney  21. 99P – Dillon Welch

For more information, visit www.powri.com.

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DU QUOIN, Ill. (Dec. 16, 2014)—NASCAR Sprint Cup driver Rickey Stenhouse Jr. will return to his short-track, open-wheel roots Saturday to race in the fifth annual Great Clips Battle at the Center presented by K & N Filers on the one-sixth Mini-Magic Mile at the Southern Illinois Center on the grounds of the De Quoin State Fair.

It will be the second Battle of the Center, a non-points all-star-type event organized by the POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Series. The 27-year-old from Olive Branch, Miss., finished second at Du Quoin to Casey Shuman in 2010.

Stenhouse will drive for Bryan Clauson Racing to prepare him for the Lucas Oil Chili Bowl in Tulsa, Okla., held from Jan. 12-17. Stenhouse finished ninth in the championship feature in 2012, but failed to make it out of the B feature last year.

“We’re always trying to get him up here for the Battle at the Center to get him in the car and get him in the car before Tulsa (Chili Bowl) and hit the ground running,” Clauson said. “He needs to get the rust off in a midget. This year, his schedule allowed him to do it.”

Stenhouse drove sprint cars in his native Mississippi before Tony Stewart hired him in drive for his USAC teams in 2007. Stenhouse had five Honda USAC National Midget victories and to USAC National Sprint Car wins that season and it led to opportunities in stock cars in 2008. Stenhouse became NASCAR’s Nationwide champion in 2011 and 2012 with Roush Fenway Racing, which promoted him to its Sprint Cup operation the next season. Stenhouse was NASCAR’s Sunoco Rookie of the Year in 2013 and spent another full season in Cup with Roush Fenway in 2014.

Clauson, a two-time USAC National Midget and Sprint Car champion from Noblesville, Ind. , will be competing against Stenhouse at the Battle at the Center. Other entries include World of Outlaws STP Sprint Car star Joey Saldana of Brownsburg, Ind., 2014 National Midget Driver of the Year Chris Bell of Norman, Okla. and 2012 POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget champion Andrew Felker of Carl Junction, Mo.

Saturday’s general admission tickets are $20 and children ages 12-and-under are free. Tickets will be sold only on the day of the event. Spectator doors open at 3:00 p.m., hot laps begin at 5 with racing immediately following. The feature will be 40 laps.

Entries as of Dec. 15 for the fifth annual Great Clips Battle at the Center presented by K & N Filters: Seth Motsinger, Stratton Briggs, Colten Cottle, Justin Peck, Matt Ponder, Sean Murphy, Lucas Schott, Anton Julian, Austin Brown, Parker Price-Miller, Patrick Bruns, Andrew Felker, Chett Gehrke, Ryan Criswell, Jody Rosenboom, Matt Westfall, Tim Siner, Duke Nalon, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Robert Ballou, Joey Saldana, Justin Dickerson, Jimmy Light, Dylan Peterson, Matt Juhl, David Hair, Kyle Schuett, Payton Pierce, Spencer Bayston, Trey Marcham, Isaac Chappell, Aaron Schuck, Matt Harms, Bryan Clauson, Christopher Bell, Jacob Patton, Terry Babb, Dereck King, Tyler Thomas, Darren Kingston, Dillon Welch, Bubba Altig and David McKay.

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

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“I’m out of my element, but I’m looking forward to it,” the 42-year-old from Brownsburg, Ind., said. “I’ve never been there, but it seemed like a good idea before I go to the Chili Bowl.”

Saldana has had distinguished career in Sprint Cars. He has 91 career wins in the World of Outlaws including seven last season driving for Motter Equipment teams, the team he’ll return with in 2015. He was fifth in the WoO championship and third in laps led with 336. in 2014. Saldana’s career-best season in WoO was 21 victories in 2009.

“We had a good year,” he said. “We had 24 fast times (best in series) in qualifying, We definitely had the speed. We just need to win more races.”

Saldana made his Midget debut in a USAC National at Bloomington (Ind.) Speedway in 1991, finishing fourth. He’s also raced in the Chili Bowl, midget racing’s most prestigious event held in Tulsa, Okla., four times. Saldana finished 16th in the C Main at the Chili Bowl, which had nearly 300 entries, last year. It will be held Jan. 12-18 next year.

Saldana has purchased a new Spike and will have Esslinger power at Du Quoin and the Chili Bowl. He is preparing it with the help of Bryan Clauson Racing and Spike manufacturer John Godfrey.

“We’ve got a lot of work to do,” Saldana said. “We’re working with Big Al at Clauson and John Godfrey, who helped me get the engine from Esslinger. It will be fun to Du Quoin and the Chili Bowl, but we’re also serious about it.”

General admission tickets are $20 and children ages 12-and-under are free. Tickets will be sold only on the day of the event. Spectator doors open at 3:00 p.m., hot laps begin at 5 with racing immediately following. The feature will be 40 laps.

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

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Both the Lincoln, Illinois and Jacksonville, Illinois tracks have previously hosted POWRi events this year. Tanner Thorson, Chett Gehrke, and Bryan Clauson have taken home feature wins at Lincoln Speedway in the midgets while Aaron Andruskevitch and Jeremy Camp have claimed victory lane in the micros. At Jacksonville Speedway, Christopher Bell found victory in the midgets while Joe B. Miller was the winner in the micros.

Even with two races left this year, the 2013 POWRi Lucas Oil Midget Champion Zach Daum has repeated his success and already clinched the 2014 points championship. Current second place driver, Darren Hagen, stands 715 points behind Daum. Hagen will not be able to pass for first in the points race, as the maximum possible number of points to accumulate over two races is 400. In addition, while it is possible for current third place driver, Andrew Felker, to pass Hagen for second place in points, Hagen has a comfortable 380 point lead over Felker. However, the points race is much closer rounding out the top five. Felker, Tyler Thomas, and Christopher Bell are all within 55 points of each other going into the final weekend of the 2014 season.

While the 2014 midget champion has already been decided, the micro points race is still very much on. 2013 POWRi Speedway Motors 600cc Outlaw Micro Champion Nathan Benson leads Aaron Andruskevitch by only 165 points. Current third place driver, Jeremy Camp, trails Andruskevitch by a mere 5 points. The micro points race will make for an exciting end to the 2014 season, as it will all come down to the very last checkered flag.

Current 2014 POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget Point Standings (Top 10): 1. Zach Daum (4130) 2. Darren Hagen (3415) 3. Andrew Felker (3035) 4. Tyler Thomas (2970) 5. Christopher Bell (2930) 6. Tanner Thorson (2650) 7. Parker Price-Miller (2580) 8. Austin Brown (2525) 9. Daniel Robinson (2420) 10. Jake Blackhurst (2305)

Current 2014 POWRi Speedway Motors 600cc Outlaw Micro Point Standings (Top 10): 1. Nathan Benson (2380) 2. Aaron Andruskevitch (2215) 3. Jeremy Camp (2210) 4. Joe B. Miller (1970) 5. Joey Wirth (1690) 6. Jason Harms (1595) 7. Kyle Schuett (1415) 8. Jake Neuman (1370) 9. Matt Ponder (1320) 10. Dereck King (1040)

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

RacingNation Crew

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