WESTOVER RACES TO 2023 USAC ROCKY MOUNTAIN RADICAL TITLE IN MEMORY OF FALLEN DRIVER
By: Richie Murray – USAC Media
Speedway, Indiana (October 19, 2023)………Devin Westover’s USAC Rocky Mountain Radical Focus Midget championship in 2023 was truly special in so many ways.
After 17-year-old Chaz Groat passed away from injuries sustained in a 2021 highway accident, Chuck and Julie Groat made the decision to race on in their son’s memory. Westover was handpicked by the family to drive Chaz’s Lucky #13 midget moving forward.
Westover succeeded in 2023, and the Saratoga Springs, Utah driver was able to edge teammate A.J. Luttmer in the final tally to score the crown by a narrow four-point margin, the closest in series history.
On his path to the title, Westover won on four occasions, most in the series. He won once at Arizona’s Havasu 95 Speedway and three times at Idaho’s Magic Valley Speedway, where he won a recent track championship in the midgets for the Groat family. In the end, Westover became the first Utah native to capture a USAC driving championship since Jimmy Waters 12 years earlier in 2011.
It was a season of change for the series, which combined both the USAC Radical Focus Midget and Rocky Mountain Focus Midget series under one banner with a boosted schedule featuring 13 rounds, which shifted the series’ focus to the states of Arizona and Idaho.
All seven victorious drivers with the series in 2023 also became first-time USAC winners in the process. Out of the Groat Racing stable, A.J. Luttmer (West Jordan, Utah) won thrice, once in the season opener at Havasu 95 and twice at Magic Valley.
Anthony Quintana (Riverton, Utah) picked up a pair of early season wins at Idaho’s Meridian Speedway in April and at Magic Valley in May. Chuck Groat, the father of Chaz Groat, captured an emotional victory on the opening night of the Chaz Groat Memorial at Meridian in September.
Meanwhile, three women were series winners during the season, including Salt Lake City, Utah sisters Cheyenne Merrill (June 17 at Meridian Speedway) and River Merrill (August 12 at Magic Valley Speedway) as well as Ashlynn Powell (West Valley, Utah), a softball player for Southeast Arkansas College away from the track, who collected the season finale Chaz Groat Memorial at Meridian.
Westover topped all drivers with 79 laps led while Luttmer finished inside the top-five in all 13 of his starts. Luttmer and Westover grabbed top-10 results in all 13 starts while Luttmer was the fastest qualifier on a series-leading six occasions.
River Merrill and Anthony Quintana showed their prowess by winning a series-high four heat races apiece. Three drivers started all 13 events during the 2023 campaign, including Westover, Luttmer and River Merrill.
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2023 USAC ROCKY MOUNTAIN RADICAL MIDGET STAT LEADERS:
Driver Champion: Devin Westover
Most Feature Wins: 4-Devin Westover
Feature Laps Led: 79-Devin Westover
Top-Fives: 13-A.J. Luttmer
Top-Tens: 13-A.J. Luttmer & Devin Westover
Fast Qualifying Times: 6-A.J. Luttmer
Heat Race Wins: 4-River Merrill & Anthony Quintana
Feature Starts: 13-A.J. Luttmer, River Merrill & Devin Westover
2023 USAC ROCKY MOUNTAIN RADICAL MIDGET DRIVER POINT STANDINGS:
POS. PTS. DRIVER, HOMETOWN
1. 995 Devin Westover, Saratoga Springs, Utah
2. 991 A.J. Luttmer, West Jordan, Utah
3. 903 River Merrill, Salt Lake City, Utah
4. 683 Cheyenne Merrill, Salt Lake City, Utah
5. 541 Anthony Quintana, Riverton, Utah
6. 322 Nick Escobedo, Kuna, Idaho
7. 302 Aiden Parker, Salt Lake City, Utah
8. 279 Ashlyn Powell, West Valley, Utah
9. 217 Chuck Groat, West Valley, Utah
10. 146 William Ginn, Boise, Idaho
11. 117 Keith Davidson, Princeton, B.C.
12. 58 Monty Bergener, Saratoga Springs, Utah
2023 USAC ROCKY MOUNTAIN RADICAL MIDGET FEATURE WINNERS:
Mar 24: Havasu 95 Speedway - Lake Havasu, AZ
WINNER: A.J. Luttmer (Chuck Groat #31)
Mar 25: Havasu 95 Speedway - Lake Havasu, AZ
WINNER: Devin Westover (Chuck Groat #13)
Apr 15: Meridian Speedway - Meridian, ID
WINNER: Anthony Quintana (Jimmy Waters #02)
Apr 29: Magic Valley Speedway - Twin Falls, ID
WINNER: A.J. Luttmer (Chuck Groat #31)
May 20: Magic Valley Speedway - Twin Falls, ID
WINNER: Anthony Quintana (Jimmy Waters #02)
Jun 3: Magic Valley Speedway - Twin Falls, ID
WINNER: Devin Westover (Chuck Groat #13)
Jun 16: Meridian Speedway - Meridian, ID
WINNER: Devin Westover (Chuck Groat #13)
Jun 17: Meridian Speedway - Meridian, ID
WINNER: Cheyenne Merrill (Rodney Merrill #8)
Jul 8: Magic Valley Speedway - Twin Falls, ID
WINNER: Devin Westover (Chuck Groat #13)
Aug 12: Magic Valley Speedway - Twin Falls, ID
WINNER: River Merrill (Rodney Merrill #9)
Sep 9: Magic Valley Speedway - Twin Falls, ID
WINNER: A.J. Luttmer (Chuck Groat #31)
Sep 22: Meridian Speedway - Meridian, ID
WINNER: Chuck Groat (Chuck Groat #14)
Sep 23: Meridian Speedway - Meridian, ID
WINNER: Ashlyn Powell (Tim Powell #25)
2023 USAC ROCKY MOUNTAIN RADICAL MIDGET FEATURE WINS:
4-Devin Westover (Mar 25 at Havasu 95 Speedway, Jun 3 at Magic Valley Speedway, Jun 16 at Meridian Speedway & Jul 8 at Magic Valley Speedway)
3-A.J. Luttmer (Mar 24 at Havasu 95 Speedway, Apr 29 at Magic Valley Speedway & Sep 9 at Magic Valley Speedway)
2-Anthony Quintana (Apr 15 at Meridian Speedway & May 20: Magic Valley Speedway)
1-Chuck Groat (Sep 22 at Meridian Speedway)
1-Cheyenne Merrill (Jun 17 at Meridian Speedway)
1-River Merrill (Aug 12 at Magic Valley Speedway)
1-Ashlyn Powell (Sep 23 at Meridian Speedway)
2023 USAC ROCKY MOUNTAIN RADICAL MIDGET FEATURE LAPS LED:
79-Devin Westover
58-Anthony Quintana
44-A.J. Luttmer
39-Cheyenne Merrill & River Merrill
32-Ashlynn Powell
30-Chuck Groat
9-Nick Escobedo
2023 USAC ROCKY MOUNTAIN RADICAL MIDGET TOP-5 FEATURE FINISHES:
13-A.J. Luttmer
12-Devin Westover
10-River Merrill
8-Cheyenne Merrill
4-Anthony Quintana
3-Chuck Groat & Ashlyn Powell
2-Nick Escobedo, William Ginn, Aiden Parker & Tyler West
2023 USAC ROCKY MOUNTAIN RADICAL MIDGET TOP-10 FEATURE FINISHES:
13-A.J. Luttmer & Devin Westover
12-River Merrill
9-Cheyenne Merrill
7-Anthony Quintana
5-Aiden Parker
4-Nick Escobedo & Ashlyn Powell
3-Chuck Groat
2-Robert Clark, Drew Crenshaw, Keith Davidson, William Ginn, Brian Hayes & Tyler West
1-Trevor Anderson & Monty Bergener
2023 USAC ROCKY MOUNTAIN RADICAL MIDGET FEATURE STARTS:
13-A.J. Luttmer, River Merrill & Devin Westover
10-Cheyenne Merrill
8-Anthony Quintana
5-Nick Escobedo & Aiden Parker
4-Ashlyn Powell
3-Chuck Groat
2-Trevor Anderson, Robert Clark, Drew Crenshaw, Keith Davidson, William Ginn, Brian Hayes, Duane Swanson & Tyler West
1-Monty Bergener
2023 USAC ROCKY MOUNTAIN RADICAL MIDGET FAST QUALIFYING TIMES:
6-A.J. Luttmer
5-Devin Westover
1-Cheyenne Merrill & River Merrill
2023 USAC ROCKY MOUNTAIN RADICAL MIDGET HEAT RACE WINS:
4-River Merrill & Anthony Quintana
3-A.J. Luttmer & Devin Westover
2-Ashlyn Powell
1-Nick Escobedo, William Ginn, Cheyenne Merrill & Tyler West
ALL-TIME USAC ROCKY MOUNTAIN RADICAL MIDGET FEATURE WINS: (FULL POINTS EVENTS)
7-Jessica Bean
4-Devin Westover
3-Chris Lamb, A.J. Luttmer & Kyle Tellstrom
2-Joseph Holiday & Anthony Quintana
1-Brady Allum, Dakoda Armstrong, Chuck Groat, Cheyenne Merrill, River Merrill, Ashlyn Powell, Randy Schaaf, Casey Tillman & Hunter Wise
ALL-TIME USAC ROCKY MOUNTAIN RADICAL MIDGET FEATURE WINS: (NON-POINTS SPECIAL EVENTS)
1-Jessica Bean & Bradley Swift
USAC ROCKY MOUNTAIN RADICAL MIDGET DRIVER CHAMPIONS:
2020: Joseph Holiday, Madera, Calif.
2021: Jessica Bean, Farmland, Ind.
2022: Kyle Tellstrom, Boise, Idaho
2023: Devin Westover, Saratoga Springs, Utah
