TONY STEWART TO BE INDUCTED INTO USAC HOF; NEWMAN TO COMPETE THURSDAY AT LUCAS OIL RACEWAY
Tony Stewart, one of the most legendary names in all of auto racing, will be in attendance as he is inducted into the USAC Hall of Fame during a ceremony at Brownsburg, Indiana’s Lucas Oil Raceway Thursday, July 21, in conjunction with the 100-lap USAC Silver Crown “Rich Vogler Classic.”
Stewart, of Columbus, Ind., became the first driver ever to claim all three of USAC’s National championships in a single season (in 1995) and is one of only six USAC “Triple Crown Champions.” He won the 1994 USAC National Midget title, then added the Midget, Sprint and Silver Crown honors the next season.
Proficient in virtually every form of motorsports, he has earned three NASCAR Cup championships (2002, 2005 and 2011) and a 1997 Indy Racing League title. He has 27 USAC National Midget wins to his credit, as well as 10 wins in the Sprint cars and three in the Silver Crown series.
A member of the National Midget Hall of Fame (2001), his list of impressive motorsports awards and accolades continues to grow. In five Indianapolis 500 appearances, he started first in 1996, finished fifth from the front row in 1997, was ninth in 1999 and sixth in 2001.
His charitable contributions through his Tony Stewart Foundation are endless. In addition to his USAC driving titles, he also has seven Sprint Car Owner championships as well as seven in the Silver Crown Series as an owner.
Thursday’s race honors Vogler, the winningest driver in USAC history and also serves as the backdrop for USAC’s fifth Hall of Fame induction ceremony, which honors a dozen participants from USAC’s past. Along with Stewart, Thursday’s inductees include (in alphabetical order) Steve Butler, Russ Clendenen, Jimmy Davies, Willie Davis, Bob Higman, Tommy Hinnershitz, Dick King, Rick Mears, Pat O’Connor, Kevin Olson and Bob Tattersall.
The ceremony is set to be held at 8pm prior to the Silver Crown main event, which is slated for 8:45pm.
USAC CHAMP, NASCAR VET RYAN NEWMAN TO RACE IN USAC’S “RICH VOGLER CLASSIC” THURSDAY
South Bend, Indiana’s Ryan Newman will be pulling double-duty this weekend. Along with his duties at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for this weekend’s Brickyard 400, the 1999 USAC Silver Crown champion will be competing in the “Rich Vogler Classic” featuring the Silver Crown cars on the .686-mile paved oval at Lucas Oil Raceway in Brownsburg, Indiana.
Newman competed in last July’s LOR race and finished third after starting on the front row. Like last year, Newman will pilot an entry for Bowman/Armstrong Racing of Brownsburg, Ind. and will team with Tanner Swanson, the winner of five of USAC’s last six Silver Crown races at the .686-mile paved oval.
Thursday’s 100-lap race is the sixth in the 2016 Silver Crown series. C.J. Leary (Terre Haute, Ind.), Kody Swanson (Indiana State Fairgrounds, Indianapolis), Chris Windom (Williams Grove, Pa.) and Tanner Swanson (Lucas Oil Raceway and Gateway Motorsports Park) have been this year’s race winners so far.
Pits open at 2:00pm, grandstands at 4:00, Silver Crown practice at 5:30, Silver Crown qualifying at 6:30, the USAC Hall of Fame Induction ceremony begins at 8:00 while the green flag waves for the Silver Crown “Rich Vogler Classic” 100-lap race at 8:45.
Adult general admission is $25. Advance tickets are available at https://usacracing.ticketspice.com/track-enterprises.