Jensen shows the way at Chateau Raceway


LANSING, Minn. (Aug. 30) - Joey Jensen took the lead from Stormy Scott with four laps to go and raced to his first United States Modified Touring Series win of the 2013 campaign Friday night as the Hunt for the USMTS Casey's Cup invaded the Chateau Raceway in Lansing, Minn.

Jensen, who rattled off four victories in 2012 including the Featherlite Fall Jamboree finale and a qualifying night win at the World Modified Dirt Track Championship, had to wait nearly a year before registering his fifth career USMTS win.

"Usually we aren't very good here but the track kind of came to us at the end," Jensen said in victory lane, clutching his $3,000 winner's check. "It took a little bit of rubber there up on the top in (turns) one and two, and a just a little bit in three and four, and just cleaned off real nice and got by Stormy with a few to go there."

Fellow front-row starter Mike Sorensen beat Jensen into the first turn at the start of the 40-lap Casey's General Stores "A" Main and led the first nine laps until Jensen got by on lap 6. Jensen remained in control for the next six laps before Scott snagged the top spot using the low line around the 1/4-mile bullring.

Scott built a six-car-length advantage over the field until he saw his cushion evaporate when the caution waved on lap 22. A wild restart saw Ryan Gustin make a charge at the leaders while Todd Scharkey and title contender Rodney Sanders made contact which resulted in Sanders spinning and bringing out another yellow flag.

Back under green, Scharkey stole third from Sorensen on lap 28 while Scott and Jensen raced hard for the lead. As the laps wound down Jensen began to narrow the gap and regained the lead on lap 37.

Before the pack could find the finish line, a multi-car incident occurred on the white flag lap which resulted in Jason Hughes suffering a flat tire.

Jensen, Scott and Sorensen waged a three-car battle during the green-white-checkered finish with Jensen beating Scott to the flagstand by a car length and Sorensen narrowly taking third.

"I was definitely getting going there on the top," Jensen added. "Stormy tried it one time and I thought for sure he was going to be up there on the top and then he went back down to the bottom. I was kind of biting my teeth and ready to go."

Scharkey nipped Gustin for the fourth spot, with Lucas Schott, Dereck Ramirez, Jeremy Payne, Tommy Myer and Zack VanderBeek rounding out the top 10.

Scott blew an engine the previous night and had to swap powerplants with teammate Joey Galloway, who sat out the evening's events so the team's third entrant, Mason Big Eagle, could drive Galloway's #01 GRT Chassis.

After scrambling to get the car ready, Scott's runner-up effort kept him alive and breathing in the points battle as the top three-Johnny Scott, Sanders and Hughes-each had their own struggles during the race. For Johnny Scott and Sanders, it was their first time in 14 'Hunt' races finishing outside of the top 10.

Johnny Scott continues to control his own destiny with a 10-point lead over Sanders and 30 over Hughes with just three shows remaining to crown the 2013 USMTS National Champion. Stormy Scott is a distant fourth and Jeremy Payne sits fifth as the final driver still mathematically alive in the title chase.

Although three races remain in the Hunt for the USMTS Casey's Cup, two other titles found a home Friday night.

In the season-long race for the Rookie of the Year Award, 14-year-old Trevor Hunt clinched the rookie title to become the youngest driver to take the honor in the 15-year history of the series. Galloway and Big Eagle also cemented their second- and third-place rankings in the rookie points.

After a back-and-forth battle between the USMTS power-brokers throughout the 2013 campaign, Pro Power Racing clinched their first-ever COMP Cams Engine Builder of the Year crown Friday night with three-time defending EBotY Mullins Race Engines currently second ahead of Geddes Racing Engines, Roush Yates Engines and Sput's Racing Engines. Just 75 points separate the top 5 engine builders.

On Saturday, the Deer Creek Speedway in Spring Valley, Minn., hosts the 8th Annual BP Labor Day Dual presented by Baudoin Oil. In addition to the high-speed heroics of the USMTS Modifieds, the action on the high-banked 3/8-mile clay oval will also showcase the Iron Man Challenge for USRA Stock Cars plus Wissota Midwest Modifieds and Wissota Street Stocks.

The pit gate opens at 3 p.m. and grandstand gates swing open at 4 with hot laps at 5:30 and racing at 6 p.m. Adult general admission is $20 while kids ages 12 and under get in for $5. Pit passes are $30.
Fans arriving early can catch the Slingshots racing on the Button Buck Speedway from 3-4 p.m. at no charge.

Fans can get their $2 discount coupons at Casey's General Store locations in Preston and Stewartville or Cresco and Riceville in Iowa. Steve Whiteaker Jr. will have his Cheetos ride on display from 11:30 to 1:30 on Saturday at the Casey's General Store located at 605 S. Main St. in Stewartville.

Located 11.3 miles south of I-90 (exit 209) on SR 16, then 0.7 mile north on US 63, the Deer Creek Speedway sits on 60 acres of scenic rural rolling hills with one of America's most popular state-of-the-art racing complexes and a busy modern campground, and more USMTS events have been staged here than anywhere else in the world. For more information call 507-754-6107 or visit www.deercreekspeedway.com.

Sunday will find the mud-slinging USMTS Modifieds at the Cresco Speedway in Cresco, Iowa, for the next-to-last race in the Hunt for the USMTS Casey's Cup.

The final USMTS points race during 'The Hunt' will take place on the first night of the 15th Annual Featherlite Fall Jamboree on Thursday, Sept. 19, back at the Deer Creek Speedway.

To learn more about the United States Modified Touring Series, visit www.usmts.com online or call 515-832-7944. You can also like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/usmts, follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/usmts or check out our YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/usmtstv.

= = = = = = = = = = = = = = =

OFFICIAL RESULTS
United States Modified Touring Series
The Hunt for the USMTS Casey's Cup - Round 14 of 17
Chateau Raceway, Lansing, Minn.
Friday, Aug. 30, 2013

Showing finishing position, starting position in parentheses, car number, driver, hometown, chassis/engine builder, laps completed and money won. The top 12 drivers in passing points accumulated in the heat races are locked into the "A" Main, with the top 8 re-drawing for starting positions 1-8.

BEYEA CUSTOM HEADERS HEAT RACE #1 (8 laps):
1. (2) V2 Joey Jensen, Forest Lake, Minn.
2. (1) 20 Rodney Sanders, Happy, Texas.
3. (4) 12 Jason Hughes, Watts, Okla.
4. (3) 186 Jeremy Payne, Springfield, Mo.
5. (5) 89 Steve Whiteaker Jr., Corpus Christi, Texas.
6. (6) 45 Todd Scharkey, Kasson, Minn.
7. (7) 02 Jacob Dahle, Morristown, Minn.
8. (8) 72 Doug Hillson, Blooming Prairie, Minn.
9. (9) 96 Greg Jensen, Albert Lea, Minn.

JRi SHOCKS HEAT RACE #2 (8 laps):
1. (2) 3 Kelly Shryock, Fertile, Iowa.
2. (3) 19 Mike Sorensen, Rochester, Minn.
3. (1) 65 Tommy Myer, Blooming Prairie, Minn.
4. (7) 31 Corey Dripps, Waterloo, Iowa.
5. (6) 1k Pat Graham, Ames, Iowa.
6. (8) 99 Martin Bennett, Ankeny, Iowa.
7. (5) R Ron Ver Beek, Oskaloosa, Iowa.
8. (4) 1st Johnny Scott, Las Cruces, N.M.

EIBACH SPRINGS HEAT RACE #3 (8 laps):
1. (1) 69 Lucas Schott, Chatfield, Minn.
2. (3) 99h Trevor Hunt (R), Kearney, Mo.
3. (2) 7k Jason Krohn, Slayton, Minn.
4. (5) 33z Zack VanderBeek, New Sharon, Iowa.
5. (4) 29h Joe Horgdal, Kasson, Minn.
6. (8) 36 Jeff Conner (R), Panora, Iowa.
7. (6) 23k Darwin Karau, Kasson, Minn.
8. (7) 14 Scott Gronvold, Grand Meadow, Minn.

PBM PERFORMANCE PRODUCTS HEAT RACE #4 (8 laps):
1. (2) 4r Dereck Ramirez, Woodward, Okla.
2. (4) 2s Stormy Scott, Las Cruces, N.M.
3. (3) 19r Ryan Gustin, Marshalltown, Iowa.
4. (1) 4a Joel Alberts, Mantorville, Minn.
5. (5) 4 Bill Byholm (R), Glidden, Wis.
6. (7) 22d Daniel Hilsabeck, Adel, Iowa.
7. (6) 01 Masen Big Eagle (R), Manor, Sask., Canada.
8. (8) 4 Craig Shaw, Dexter, Minn.

REAL RACING WHEELS "B" MAIN #1 (12 laps, top 5 advance):
1. (1) 19r Ryan Gustin, Marshalltown, Iowa.
2. (2) 186 Jeremy Payne, Springfield, Mo.
3. (4) 29h Joe Horgdal, Kasson, Minn.
4. (3) 1k Pat Graham, Ames, Iowa.
5. (9) 72 Doug Hillson, Blooming Prairie, Minn.
6. (8) 23k Darwin Karau, Kasson, Minn., Killer/Flyin'J, $100.
7. (6) 22d Daniel Hilsabeck, Adel, Iowa, Hughes/Mullins, $100.
8. (7) 02 Jacob Dahle, Morristown, Minn., Hughes/Sput's, $100.
9. (11) 96 Greg Jensen, Albert Lea, Minn.
10. (5) 99 Martin Bennett, Ankeny, Iowa, Skyrocket/Sput's, $100.
11. (10) 14 Scott Gronvold, Grand Meadow, Minn., FRC/, $80.

REAL RACING WHEELS "B" MAIN #2 (12 laps, top 5 advance):
1. (1) 33z Zack VanderBeek, New Sharon, Iowa.
2. (6) 45 Todd Scharkey, Kasson, Minn.
3. (3) 89 Steve Whiteaker Jr., Corpus Christi, Texas.
4. (2) 4a Joel Alberts, Mantorville, Minn.
5. (9) 1st Johnny Scott, Las Cruces, N.M.
6. (4) 4 Bill Byholm (R), Glidden, Wis., MBCustom/Koch, $100.
7. (7) R Ron Ver Beek, Oskaloosa, Iowa, Skyrocket/Midstate, $80.
8. (8) 01 Masen Big Eagle (R), Manor, Sask., Canada.
9. (5) 36 Jeff Conner (R), Panora, Iowa.
10. (10) 4 Craig Shaw, Dexter, Minn., Harris/KSE, $80.

CASEY'S GENERAL STORES "A" MAIN (40 laps):
1. (2) V2 Joey Jensen, Forest Lake, Minn., GRT/Tim's, 40, $3000.
2. (4) 2s Stormy Scott, Las Cruces, N.M., GRT/Tim's, 40, $2000.
3. (1) 19 Mike Sorensen, Rochester, Minn., Hughes/Action, 40, $1500.
4. (16) 45 Todd Scharkey, Kasson, Minn., Skyrocket/Sput's, 40, $1000.
5. (13) 19r Ryan Gustin, Marshalltown, Iowa, Hughes/Mullins, 40, $900.
6. (3) 69 Lucas Schott, Chatfield, Minn., Hughes/Sput's, 40, $800.
7. (7) 4r Dereck Ramirez, Woodward, Okla., Hughes/ProPower, 40, $700.
8. (15) 186 Jeremy Payne, Springfield, Mo., GRT/RoushYates, 40, $650.
9. (11) 65 Tommy Myer, Blooming Prairie, Minn., Skyrocket/Sput's, 40, $600.
10. (14) 33z Zack VanderBeek, New Sharon, Iowa, Hughes/Sput's, 40, $650.
11. (22) 1st Johnny Scott, Las Cruces, N.M., GRT/ProPower, 40, $600.
12. (5) 3 Kelly Shryock, Fertile, Iowa, Skyrocket/ProPower, 40, $550.
13. (6) 20 Rodney Sanders, Happy, Texas, MBCustom/Geddes, 40, $425.
14. (21) 72 Doug Hillson, Blooming Prairie, Minn., Skyrocket/Sput's, 40, $400.
15. (17) 29h Joe Horgdal, Kasson, Minn., Killer/Flyin'J, 40, $275.
16. (23) 01 Masen Big Eagle (R), Manor, Sask., Canada, GRT/Tim's, 40, $450.
17. (20) 4a Joel Alberts, Mantorville, Minn., GRT/Action, 40, $325.
18. (8) 99h Trevor Hunt (R), Kearney, Mo., GRT/Geddes, 40, $500.
19. (9) 12 Jason Hughes, Watts, Okla., Hughes/Mullins, 40, $500.
20. (24) 36 Jeff Conner (R), Panora, Iowa, Skyrocket/RoushYates, 38, $300.
21. (18) 89 Steve Whiteaker Jr., Corpus Christi, Texas, Hughes/Mullins, 33, $300.
22. (19) 1k Pat Graham, Ames, Iowa, Skyrocket/Karl, 32, $300.
23. (10) 31 Corey Dripps, Waterloo, Iowa, Rage/RoushYates, 22, $300.
24. (11) 96 Greg Jensen, Albert Lea, Minn., BC/KSE, 21, $100.
25. (12) 7k Jason Krohn, Slayton, Minn., MBCustom/Sput's, 15, $300.

(R) = Rookie of the Year contender.

Lap Leaders: Sorensen 1-5, J. Jensen 6-11. S. Scott 12-36, J. Jensen 37-40.
Total Laps Led: S. Scott 25, J. Jensen 10, Sorensen 5.
Margin of Victory: 0.338 second.
Provisional Starters: Big Eagle, Conner, G. Jensen (track).
Mesilla Valley Transportation Hard Charger: Scharkey (started 16th, finished 4th).
Next Race: Saturday, Aug. 31, Deer Creek Speedway, Spring Valley, Minn.
Points Standings: J. Scott 1286, Sanders 1276, Hughes 1236, S. Scott 1180, Payne 1142, VanderBeek 1085, Shryock 1018, Ramirez 985, Schott 972, Gustin 971.
Rookie of the Year Points: Hunt 1689, Joey Galloway 1547, Big Eagle 1317, Conner 1059, Adam Penn 598.
COMP Cams Engine Builder of the Year Points: ProPower 399, Mullins 369, Geddes 346, RoushYates 346, Sput's 324.
Tiger Rear Ends Manufacturers Championship Points: Hughes 441, GRT 417, MBCustom 381, Skyrocket 298, LG2 221.