USAC SPRINTS TAKE ON NEW TERRITORY THIS WEEKEND AT PLYMOUTH AND MONTPELIER
By: Richie Murray – USAC Media
Both of this upcoming weekend’s USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Car stops take place on a pair of Hoosierland tracks that have been a witness to over a century and a half of auto racing history.
However, Plymouth Speedway and Montpelier Motor Speedway have only played host to a combined one lone USAC Sprint Car event. A new opportunity arises and a there’s new land to claim. It all lies ahead this Friday and Saturday when a new generation of USAC stars including Justin Grant, Chad Boespflug and Chris Windom vie to take their piece of the pie.
First up is Plymouth Speedway this Friday night, April 21st where, in the past, the USAC National Midgets have made their home not only the pavement, but also on the dirt. But this will be the first foray for the USAC Sprint Car division at Plymouth on either surface.
Last June, C.J. Leary picked up the unsanctioned “Tony Elliott Tribute” at Plymouth, defeating a number of USAC regulars who are looking to get off the schneid.
Leary himself set ProSource/B & W Auto Mart Fast Qualifying time last weekend at Bloomington, but the Greenfield, Indiana native is looking to recreate the magic he found last August when he captured night number two in the “Sprint Car Smackdown” at Kokomo Speedway.
Jarett Andretti is one of the few who has past pavement and dirt experience at Plymouth. The Mooresville, North Carolina driver is having a standout 2017 season in which he sits fifth in the series standings and earned his first career fast qualifying time last Saturday night at Tri-State Speedway.
Cullman, Alabama’s Kevin Thomas, Jr. is the most recent winner of a USAC National event at Plymouth when he claimed “Midget Maynia” in May of 2015. KTJ has been solid over the last couple of weeks in a sprint car, including a 20th to 5th place run last Friday night at Bloomington.
Tyler Courtney, out of Indianapolis, Indiana, has yet to crack the top-10 thus far in the early season, but don’t count him out just yet as he and his potent TOPP Motorsports ride hope to hit their stride at Plymouth, which is located just down the road from the team’s headquarters in Rochester.
In his great career, Kokomo, Indiana’s Shane Cottle has been a winner in USAC’s Silver Crown, National Sprint and National Midget divisions. He’s also been a winner the last two seasons when the MSCS Sprints have visited Montpelier Motor Speedway, home of this Saturday’s USAC National Sprint Car stop.
Cottle took fourth in last year’s first USAC appearance at the quarter-mile. Finishing one spot ahead of him in third was USAC’s winningest National Sprint Car driver, Triple Crown champ Dave Darland of Lincoln, Indiana, who seeks to continue his record streak of consecutive years with at least one USAC National win to a quarter century.
Darland led the first 11 laps of the 2016 feature, but in a three-lap stretch, eventual series champion Brady Bacon drove from fourth to the front, resulting in a near dead heat at the start/finish line before claiming the lead from Darland just moments later in turn one.
With seven to go, Cummins got his right front wheel inside of Bacon’s left rear in turn two, nearly making contact, but was unable to make it stick, falling back roughly four car-lengths before a caution came out, providing Cummins with another shot.
Cummins was looking to gain an inch, a yard, anything that would give him an opportunity to gain valuable ground on Bacon at the end, but he was never close enough to mount a serious challenge in the final laps as Bacon never blinked, distancing himself from Cummins to take the victory in front of an electric, standing-room only crowd.
Plymouth’s gates open at 4pm on Friday night with cars set to hit the track at 6pm. Adult General Admission tickets are $25. General admission tickets for children age 6-12 are $10. Children Age 5 and Under are FREE with a paid adult. Pit passes: $35.
The front gates swing open for this Saturday’s event in Montpelier at 3pm with cars set to begin on-track activities at 5pm. Adult general admission tickets are just $20. Children age 12 and under are FREE with a paid adult. Pit passes are $30.
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UPCOMING USAC AMSOIL SPRINT CAR NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP EVENT
DATE: Friday, April 21, 2017
SERIES: USAC AMSOIL Sprint Car National Championship
TRACK: Plymouth Speedway (Plymouth, Indiana) – 3/8-Mile, Dirt Oval
EVENT: USAC AMSOIL Sprint Car National Championship, UMP Modifieds and Mod Lites
STARTING TIMES: Gates Open: 4pm. Hot Laps: 6pm.
TICKETS: Adult General Admission: $25. Children Age 6-12 General Admission: $10. Children Age 5 and Under: FREE with Paid Adult. Pit Pass: $35.
TRACK ADDRESS: 11631 12th Rd, Plymouth, IN 46563
TRACK PHONE: (574) 936-0900
TRACK WEBSITE: http://www.plymouthspeedway.net/
MEDIA COVERAGE: Live updates on https://www.facebook.com/usacracing/ and https://twitter.com/USACNation, plus available on the Race Monitor app on your phone. Watch the race one-day later at http://www.Loudpedal.TV/.
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UPCOMING USAC AMSOIL SPRINT CAR NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP EVENT
DATE: Saturday, April 22, 2017
SERIES: USAC AMSOIL Sprint Car National Championship
TRACK: Montpelier Motor Speedway (Montpelier, Indiana) – ¼-mile dirt oval
EVENT: USAC AMSOIL Sprint Car National Championship
STARTING TIMES: Gates Open: 3pm. Hot Laps: 5pm.
TICKETS: Adult General Admission: $20, Children Age 12 and Under: FREE with Paid Adult. Pit Pass: $30.
TRACK ADDRESS: 700 S Jefferson St, Montpelier, IN 47359
TRACK PHONE: (765) 728-8210
TRACK WEBSITE: http://www.montpeliermotorspeedway.com/
MEDIA COVERAGE: Live updates on https://www.facebook.com/usacracing/ and https://twitter.com/USACNation, plus available on the Race Monitor app on your phone. Watch the race one-day later at http://www.Loudpedal.TV/.
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2017 USAC AMSOIL SPRINT CAR NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE & RESULTS:
Feb 23: Ocala, FL - Bubba Raceway Park
WINNER: Rained Out
Feb 24: Ocala, FL - Bubba Raceway Park
WINNER: Justin Grant
Feb 25: Ocala, FL - Bubba Raceway Park
WINNER: Hunter Schuerenberg
Apr 1: Lawrenceburg, IN - Lawrenceburg Speedway
WINNER: Chris Windom
Apr 14: Bloomington, IN - Bloomington Speedway
WINNER: Chad Boespflug
Apr 15: Haubstadt, IN - Tri-State Speedway
WINNER: Chris Windom
Apr 21: Plymouth, IN – Plymouth Speedway
Apr 22: Montpelier, IN - Montpelier Motor Speedway
May 12: Rossburg, OH - Eldora Speedway
May 13: Rossburg, OH - Eldora Speedway
May 19: Granite City, IL – Tri-City Speedway
May 20: Pevely, MO – Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55
May 24: Terre Haute, IN - Terre Haute Action Track
Jun 2: Greenwood, NE – I-80 Speedway
Jun 3: Knoxville, IA – Knoxville Raceway
Jun 13: %%% Bechtelsville, PA - Grandview Speedway
Jun 14: %%% Abbottstown, PA - Lincoln Speedway
Jun 15: %%% Mechanicsburg, PA – Williams Grove Speedway
Jun 17: %%% Port Royal, PA – Port Royal Speedway
Jun 18: %%% York Haven, PA - Susquehanna Speedway
Jun 30: Putnamville, IN - Lincoln Park Speedway
Jul 7: *** Gas City, IN - Gas City I-69 Speedway
Jul 8: *** Kokomo, IN - Kokomo Speedway
Jul 9: *** Lawrenceburg, IN - Lawrenceburg Speedway
Jul 12: *** Terre Haute, IN - Terre Haute Action Track
Jul 13: *** Putnamville, IN - Lincoln Park Speedway
Jul 14: *** Bloomington, IN - Bloomington Speedway
Jul 15: *** Haubstadt, IN - Tri-State Speedway
Jul 28: TBA - TBA
Jul 29: Kansas City, KS – Lakeside Speedway
Jul 30: Moberly, MO – Randolph County Raceway
Aug 23: (SE) Kokomo, IN - Kokomo Speedway
Aug 24: Kokomo, IN - Kokomo Speedway
Aug 25: Kokomo, IN - Kokomo Speedway
Aug 26: Kokomo, IN - Kokomo Speedway
Sep 15: Terre Haute, IN - Terre Haute Action Track
Sep 16: Haubstadt, IN - Tri-State Speedway
Sep 23: Rossburg, OH - Eldora Speedway
Sep 30: Lawrenceburg, IN - Lawrenceburg Speedway
Oct 6: TBA – TBA
Oct 7: TBA – TBA
Nov 3: ### Queen Creek, AZ - Arizona Speedway
Nov 4: ### Queen Creek, AZ - Arizona Speedway
Nov 9: ### Perris, CA - Perris Auto Speedway
Nov 10: ### Perris, CA - Perris Auto Speedway
Nov 11: ### Perris, CA - Perris Auto Speedway
Races noted with (SE) represent a non-points-paying "Special Event"
Races noted with %%% represent Eastern Storm
Races noted with @@@ represent California Sprint Week.
Races noted with *** represent Indiana Sprint Week
Races noted with ### represent a race with the USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Car Series.
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2017 USAC AMSOIL SPRINT CAR NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP DRIVER POINT STANDINGS (TOP-10):
1. (369) Justin Grant (Ione, CA)
2. (367) Chad Boespflug (Hanford, CA)
3. (330) Chris Windom (Canton, IL)
4. (295) Chase Stockon (Fort Branch, IN)
5. (259) Jarett Andretti (Mooresville, NC)
6. (230) Hunter Schuerenberg (Sikeston, MO)
7. (212) Josh Hodges (Tijeras, NM)
8. (208) Tyler Courtney (Indianapolis, IN)
9. (206) C.J. Leary (Greenfield, IN)
10. (191) Kyle Cummins (Princeton, IN)
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2017 USAC AMSOIL SPRINT CAR NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP OWNER POINT STANDINGS (TOP-10):
1. (369) Sam McGhee Motorsports #11
2. (367) Dynamics, Inc. #69
3. (330) Baldwin Brothers Racing #5
4. (295) 32 TBI Racing #32
5. (259) Andretti Autosport Short Track #18
6. (253) Pace Racing #44
7. (230) Seth Motsinger Motorsports #2
8. (212) Hodges Racing #74x
9. (208) TOPP Motorsports #23c
10. (206) Leary Racing #30
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2017 USAC AMSOIL SPRINT CAR NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP ROOKIE DRIVER POINT STANDINGS (TOP-10):
1. (59) Shawn Westerfeld (Guilford, IN)
2. (53) Clinton Boyles (Greenwood, MO)
3. (42) Joe Liguori (Tampa, FL)
4. (40) Aric Gentry (Robards, KY)
5. (34) Rob Caho, Jr. (Wyoming, MN)
6. (20) Robert Bell (Colfax, IA), Cooper Clouse (Ohio City, OH) & Kent Schmidt (Owensville, IN)
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2017 USAC AMSOIL SPRINT CAR NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP STATISTICS:
FEATURE WINS:
1. (2) Chris Windom (Apr. 1 at Lawrenceburg Speedway & Apr. 15 at Tri-State Speedway)
2. (1) Chad Boespflug (Apr. 14 at Bloomington Speedway)
(1) Justin Grant (Feb. 24 at Bubba Raceway Park)
(1) Hunter Schuerenberg (Feb. 25 at Bubba Raceway Park)
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FEATURE LAPS LED:
1. (85) Chris Windom
2. (26) Chad Boespflug
3. (21) Justin Grant
4. (9) Dave Darland
5. (7) Hunter Schuerenberg
6. (2) Thomas Meseraull
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TOP-FIVE FEATURE FINISHES:
1. (5) Chad Boespflug & Justin Grant
3. (3) Chris Windom
4. (2) Brady Bacon & Chase Stockon
6. (1) C.J. Leary, Thomas Meseraull, Hunter Schuerenberg, Brady Short, Carson Short, Landon Simon, Jon Stanbrough & Kevin Thomas, Jr.
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TOP-TEN FEATURE FINISHES:
1. (5) Chad Boespflug & Justin Grant
3. (4) Chris Windom
4. (3) Jarett Andretti, Chase Stockon & Kevin Thomas, Jr.
7. (2) Brady Bacon, Kyle Cummins, Josh Hodges, C.J. Leary, Thomas Meseraull, Hunter Schuerenberg, Brady Short & Carson Short
15. (1) Brent Beauchamp, Nick Bilbee, Jeff Bland, Jr., Jerry Coons, Jr., Shane Cottle, Dave Darland, Aaron Farney, Max McGhee, Landon Simon, Jon Stanbrough & Shawn Westerfeld
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PROSOURCE FAST QUALIFYING TIMES:
1. (2) Justin Grant
2. (1) Jarett Andretti, C.J. Leary & Carson Short
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HEAT RACE WINS (Presented by Simpson Race Products, Competition Suspension (CSI), Chalk Stix & Indy Race Parts):
1. (4) Chase Stockon
2. (2) Chris Windom
3. (1) Brent Beauchamp, Nick Bilbee, Jeff Bland, Jr., Chad Boespflug, Shane Cottle, Tyler Courtney, C.J. Leary, Max McGhee, Landon Simon, Carson Short, Kevin Thomas, Jr. & Tyler Thomas
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SEMI WINS:
1. (1) Tyler Courtney, Kyle Cummins, Dave Darland, Max McGhee & Chase Stockon
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FEATURE STARTS:
1. (5) Jarett Andretti, Chad Boespflug, Isaac Chapple, Tyler Courtney, Dave Darland, Justin Grant, Josh Hodges, Max McGhee, Hunter Schuerenberg, Landon Simon, Chase Stockon & Chris Windom
13. (4) Jeff Bland, Jr., Shane Cottle, Kyle Cummins, C.J. Leary & Carson Short
18. (3) Jerry Coons, Jr., Aaron Farney & Kevin Thomas, Jr.
21. (2) Brady Bacon, Nick Bilbee, Clinton Boyles, Dallas Hewitt, Thomas Meseraull, Brady Short, Jon Stanbrough & Tyler Thomas
29. (1) Brent Beauchamp, Donny Brackett, Rob Caho, Jr., Aric Gentry, Dakota Jackson, Joe Liguori, Brandon Morin, Corey Smith, Stevie Sussex, Kody Swanson, Shawn Westerfeld & Chet Williams
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KSE RACING PRODUCTS “HARD CHARGER” OF THE RACE:
2/24: Bubba Raceway Park – Brady Bacon (16th to 4th)
2/25: Bubba Raceway Park – Brady Bacon (13th to 5th)
4/1: Lawrenceburg Speedway – Shane Cottle (21st to 10th)
4/14: Bloomington Speedway – Kevin Thomas, Jr. (20th to 5th)
4/15: Tri-State Speedway – Brady Short (20th to 4th)
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WILWOOD BRAKES 13TH PLACE FINISHERS:
2/24: Bubba Raceway Park – Tyler Courtney
2/25: Bubba Raceway Park – Tyler Courtney
4/1: Lawrenceburg Speedway – Tyler Thomas
4/14: Bloomington Speedway – C.J. Leary
4/15: Tri-State Speedway – Tyler Courtney
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ALL-TIME USAC NATIONAL SPRINT CAR DRIVER FEATURE WINS:
1. [59 wins] Dave Darland
2. [52 wins] Tom Bigelow
3. [47 wins] Tracy Hines
4. [46 wins] Jack Hewitt
5. [45 wins] Larry Dickson
6. [42 wins] Pancho Carter
7. [41 wins] Bryan Clauson
8. [40 wins] Gary Bettenhausen
9. [37 wins] Sheldon Kinser
10. [35 wins] Jon Stanbrough & Rich Vogler
12. [32 wins] Rollie Beale
13. [28 wins] Levi Jones & J.J. Yeley
15. [26 wins] Robert Ballou, Tony Elliott & Dave Steele
18. [25 wins] Steve Butler & Jay Drake
20. [23 wins] A.J. Foyt & Roger McCluskey
22. [22 wins] Rick Hood, Bubby Jones & Sam Sessions
25. [21 wins] Greg Weld
26. [17 wins] Brady Bacon, Jerry Coons, Jr., Parnelli Jones & Bud Kaeding
30. [16 wins] Damion Gardner & Chris Windom
32. [15 wins] Bobby East, Cory Kruseman, Jud Larson & Brian Tyler
36. [14 wins] Billy Cassella, Jim Hurtubise, Lee Kunzman & Bruce Walkup
40. [13 wins] Don Branson & Steve Chassey
42. [12 wins] Eric Gordon & Kevin Thomas Jr.
44. [11 wins] Daron Clayton & Greg Leffler
46. [10 wins] Tony Stewart
47. [9 wins] Mario Andretti, Hunter Schuerenberg & Robbie Stanley
50. [8 wins] Mike Bliss, Chet Fillip, Johnny Rutherford, Joe Saldana, & Chase Stockon
55. [7 wins] Kevin Doty, Darren Hagen, Kenny Irwin, Jr., Doug Kalitta, Jim Keeker, Bobby Santos, Brady Short, Kevin Thomas, Bobby Unser & Josh Wise
65. [6 wins] Chad Boespflug, Kevin Briscoe, Jac Haudenschild, Jason McCord, Jan Opperman, Tom Sneva, George Snider & Dick Tobias
73. [5 wins] Larry Cannon, Dana Carter, Derek Davidson, Gene Lee Gibson, Jeff Gordon, Justin Grant, Chuck Gurney, Shane Hmiel, Kevin Huntley, Frankie Kerr, Kelly Kinser, Eddie Leavitt, Jim Mahoney, Andy Michner, Johnny Parsons, Bill Puterbaugh & Cole Whitt
90. [4 wins] Rob Chaney, Cary Faas, Jesse Hockett, Steve Kinser, Michael Lewis, Thomas Meseraull, Don Nordhorn, Lee Osborne, Red Riegel, Ken Schrader, Al Smith & Danny Smith
102. [3 wins] Chuck Amati, Sonny Ates, Jeff Bloom, Mark Cassella, Shane Cottle, Jerry Daniels, Bob East, Bob Frey, Dickie Gaines, Wayne Hammond, Tray House, Kenny Jacobs, Tony Jones, Kyle Larson, Ralph Liguori, Charlie Masters, Mike Mosley, Larry Rice, Ron Shuman, Mitch Smith & Doug Wolfgang
123. [2 wins] Chad Boat, Marvin Carman, Ed Carpenter, Kyle Cummins, Brad Doty, Nic Faas, Cy Fairchild, Brad Fox, Arnie Knepper, Danny Lasoski, Mack McClellan, James McElreath, Lealand McSpadden, Danny Milburn, Mat Neely, Ryan Newman, Jerry Poland, Casey Riggs, Bill Rose, Mickey Shaw, Terry Shepherd, Dean Shirley, Brad Sweet, Kevin Swindell, Sammy Swindell, Mike Spencer, Bud Tingelstad, Billy Vukovich, Mike Ward & Carl Williams
153. [1 win] Donnie Adams, A.J. Anderson, Brad Armstrong, Tony Armstrong, Tommy Astone, Dick Atkins, Brent Beauchamp, Jeff Bland Jr., Stan Bowman, Alan Brown, Karl Busson, Johnny Capels, David Cardey, Bob Cicconi, Henry Clarke, Troy Cline, Duke Cook, Mel Cornett, Tyler Courtney, Allen Crowe, Bill Engelhart, Cotton Farmer, Aaron Farney, Gary Fedewa, Blake Fitzpatrick, Joe Gaerte, Russ Gamester, Rickie Gaunt, Elmer George, Brian Gerster, Todd Gibson, Ron Gregory, Richard Griffin, Garrett Hansen, Jerry Hansen, Jim Hemmings, Josh Hodges, Bob Hogle, Jackie Howerton, Chuck Hulse, Logan Jarrett, Marc Jessup, Gordon Johncock, Chet Johnson, Page Jones, Bob Kinser, Mike Kirby, C.J. Leary, Fred Linder, Steve Long, Hank Lower, Brett Mann, Bobby Marshman, Larry Martin, Mike Martin, Brad Marvel, Justin Marvel, Rusty McClure, Bob McCoy, Jim McElreath, Bobby Olivero, Gary Patterson, Billy Pauch, Dave Peperak, Jiggs Peters, Aaron Pierce, Paul Pitzer, Terry Pletch, Billy Puterbaugh Jr., Bud Randall, Byron Reed, Boston Reid, Rodney Ritter, Jr., David Roahrig, Carson Short, Billy Shuman, Jimmy Sills, Smokey Snellbaker, Wib Spalding, Greg Staab, Randy Standridge, Ron Standridge, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Kody Swanson, Tanner Swanson, Mike Sweeney, Jeff Swindell, Clark Templeman, Bill Tyler, Rick Ungar, Lennie Waldo, Tyler Walker, Scotty Weir, Kenny Weld, Bob Wente, Matt Westfall, Johnny White, Rip Williams, Jacob Wilson & Eddie Wirth
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ALL-TIME USAC SPRINT CAR DRIVER CHAMPIONS:
1956: Pat O'Connor (Midwest) & Tommy Hinnershitz (Eastern); 1957: Elmer George (Midwest) & Bill Randall (Eastern); 1958: Eddie Sachs (Midwest) & Johnny Thomson (Eastern); 1959: Don Branson (Midwest) & Tommy Hinnershitz (Eastern); 1960: Parnelli Jones (Midwest) & A.J. Foyt (Eastern); 1961: Parnelli Jones; 1962: Parnelli Jones; 1963: Roger McCluskey; 1964: Don Branson; 1965: Johnny Rutherford; 1966: Roger McCluskey; 1967: Greg Weld; 1968: Larry Dickson; 1969: Gary Bettenhausen; 1970: Larry Dickson; 1971: Gary Bettenhausen; 1972: Sam Sessions; 1973: Rollie Beale; 1974: Pancho Carter; 1975: Larry Dickson; 1976: Pancho Carter; 1977: Sheldon Kinser; 1978: Tom Bigelow; 1979: Greg Leffler; 1980: Rich Vogler; 1981: Sheldon Kinser; 1982: Sheldon Kinser; 1983: Ken Schrader; 1984: Rick Hood; 1985: Rick Hood; 1986: Steve Butler; 1987: Steve Butler; 1988: Steve Butler; 1989: Rich Vogler; 1990: Steve Butler; 1991: Robbie Stanley; 1992: Robbie Stanley; 1993: Robbie Stanley; 1994: Doug Kalitta; 1995: Tony Stewart; 1996: Brian Tyler; 1997: Brian Tyler; 1998: Tony Elliott; 1999: Dave Darland; 2000: Tony Elliott; 2001: J.J. Yeley; 2002: Tracy Hines; 2003: J.J. Yeley; 2004: Jay Drake; 2005: Levi Jones; 2006: Josh Wise; 2007: Levi Jones; 2008: Jerry Coons, Jr.; 2009: Levi Jones; 2010: Levi Jones (Dirt) & Shane Hmiel (Pavement); 2011: Levi Jones (Dirt) & Bobby Santos (Pavement); 2012: Bryan Clauson; 2013: Bryan Clauson; 2014: Brady Bacon; 2015: Robert Ballou; 2016: Brady Bacon
