THIS DATE IN USAC HISTORY: MAY 16

By: Richie Murray – USAC Media

Speedway, Indiana (May 16, 2020)………Pancho pounces again at the Indy Mile again, Drinan drives to first at IRP and Adams wins first in final USAC start on this day in USAC Silver Crown, National Sprint and National Midget history, May 16.

Pancho Carter won three USAC National Midget feature events on one-mile dirt ovals in his career, twice at the Indiana State Fairgrounds and once at the Du Quoin (Ill.) State Fairgrounds.  The second of those scores at the Indy Mile came on May 16 of 1975.  Pancho and Tom Bigelow are the only two drivers to win USAC National Sprint, Midget and Silver Crown races on the Indy Mile.

Pancho was back in victory lane exactly one year later, this time in USAC Sprint Car feature at Indianapolis Raceway Park, during his second career series championship season.

Dan Drinan became a dominant force on the pavement in the 1990s with his own unique chassis design and driving ability, earning his first career victory on May 16, 1992 on ESPN at IRP, where six of his eight career victories came.

Likewise, Donnie Adams earned victory number one, his only one in the USAC National Sprint Car series, in a somewhat surprising triumph at Anderson (Ind.) Speedway on May 16, his one and only start of the 1997 season with the series and the last of his career.

Even after a championship run in 1995, Tony Stewart remained empty in the win column with the USAC Silver Crown series until the final race of 1997 at The Dirt Track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.  He then proceeded to win two of the first three during the 1998 season with the third coming on May 16 at IRP, just hours after qualifying fourth for the Indianapolis 500.

Tracy Hines doubled up on back-to-back weekends in May of 1999, winning on the dirt one weekend at Terre Haute, then following up a week later with a triumph on the Salem Speedway high banks, on May 16.

Just less than two weeks after reeling off his first career USAC National Sprint Car win at Winchester Speedway, Michael Lewis went back-to-back on pavement with the series at Iowa’s Hawkeye Downs Speedway on May 16, 2003, en route to garnering series’ co-Rookie of the Year with Mat Neely.

It was a doubleheader night at Hawkeye Downs in 2003, and in a year where J.J. Yeley seemingly won everything – a record 24 USAC feature victories in all – he notched the win aboard Steve Lewis’ No. 9.

Speaking of Steve Lewis’ famed 9 cars, Dave Darland scored 25 of his 30 career USAC National Midget victories in his machines, but the final one came on May 16, 2008, in the series’ only ever visit to the LaCrosse Fairgrounds Speedway in West Salem, Wisc.

MAY 16 USAC NATIONAL WINNERS: (Through 2019)

1975: Pancho Carter, USAC Midget at the Indiana State Fairgrounds – Indianapolis, Ind.

1976: Pancho Carter, USAC Sprint at Indianapolis Raceway Park – Clermont, Ind.

1992: Dan Drinan, USAC Midget at Indianapolis Raceway Park – Clermont, Ind.

1997: Donnie Adams, USAC Sprint at Anderson Speedway – Anderson, Ind.

1998: Tony Stewart, USAC Silver Crown at Indianapolis Raceway Park – Clermont, Ind.

1999: Tracy Hines, USAC Sprint at Salem Speedway – Salem, Ind.

2003: J.J. Yeley, USAC Midget at Hawkeye Downs – Cedar Rapids, Iowa

2003: Michael Lewis, USAC Sprint at Hawkeye Downs – Cedar Rapids, Iowa

2008: Dave Darland, USAC Midget at the LaCrosse Fairgrounds Speedway – West Salem, Wisc.