In celebration of the 50th year of USAC Silver Crown Champ Car racing in 2020, we are reviewing the past 49 years of series history.
2003 USAC SILVER CROWN SEASON REVIEW
The imagination of a dream season comes to the minds of every racecar driver heading into a new year. Preparation at its best, equipment that stands the test of time, luck even on off-nights, and numerous celebrations in victory lane and the season ending banquet.
J.J. Yeley didn't have to fantasize about one of those dream seasons in 2003. His dedication, hard work, and skilled driving led him to not one, but three dream seasons as he captured the USAC Weld Racing Silver Crown Series and National Sprint and Midget Series championships, becoming only the fourth Triple Crown winner in USAC national history and second to do it in the same season.
In addition to his championships, Yeley set a USAC single season record for feature wins with 24, and late in 2003, signed with Joe Gibbs Racing for competition in NASCAR and ARCA.
“My main goal is that when we go to the race track, we're going to have fun and be prepared, whether it's mental or equipment, and that I always run the hardest that I can in any of the events that we compete in,” Yeley said.
Yeley, in his Tony Stewart and Bob East-owned No. 9 Silver Crown car, placed second in March’s Copper World Classic Silver Crown event at Phoenix International Raceway and never lost a step. Though Yeley had always been a dirt track racer, he was getting continuously better on the pavement. He had only three total wins in USAC on pavement heading into 2003.
"I had had very limited laps on pavement when coming back to USAC (in 1999)," Yeley said. "It was a matter of just figuring out chassis things to make the car work."
He captured a 100-lap Silver Crown feature on the pavement at Indianapolis Raceway Park with a last lap pass on Dave Steele in May. The next night, Yeley hit a $50,000 jackpot with a wire-to-wire victory in the Hoosier Hundred at the Indiana State Fairgrounds. Both wins, which allowed him to collect more than $70,000 over the course of the two nights, proved to be among Yeley's favorite moments of the year.
"They are always so hard to win even without the bonus," he said.
By early June, Yeley had pushed his USAC National win total to 10, the earliest any USAC driver had won 10 features in a season. By late July, he had tied the record at 19 and it would not be if, but when, Yeley would break the mark.
"There was not a whole lot of pressure," Yeley said. "When it got to the 19-win point, there was a lot of attention."
A packed house at IRP and a national television audience saw what could have been No. 20 during the weekend of the Brickyard 400. Yeley led the first 94 laps, but Jason McCord picked up his first Sliver Crown win while Yeley finished second.
On August 7, during the first night of the Belleville Midget Nationals, Yeley led the final lap of the opening night event to post his record breaking 20th USAC National win.
Yeley sealed the Silver Crown deal by finishing second at Tulsa Fairgrounds Motorplex in September, then wrapped up the year with a win at the New York State Fairgrounds in Syracuse.
Included in Yeley's accomplishments in 2003 were Driver of the Year nominations in the second, third and fourth quarters of the year, and the distinction of being the only driver to compete in every USAC national feature of the year. The constant traveling and work on the car never once took his mind off his driving.
"You have your points, but with the success that we had, things got a lot easier. In 2002, we had to keep digging and sacrifice everything it took. In 2003, we didn't have too many DNF's, and that helped the morale of the team."
Yeley’s second consecutive Silver Crown championship featured a series-high total of four victories while only one other multi-time winner during the season emerged with three veteran drivers recording their first series wins.
Dave Steele opened the season with a convincing victory in the Copper World Classic at Phoenix International Raceway. Driving the Northside Propane Beast, Steele started on the pole and led 85 laps as Tracy Hines, Dave Darland and Yeley chased him across the finish. Steele’s second victory came at Richmond, when he took the lead from Yeley on lap 49.
Six different drivers scored wins before Yeley claimed the finale at Syracuse. Veterans Jason McCord, Rich Tobias Jr. and Bud Kaeding registered first time wins at IRP, Du Quoin and Tulsa, respectively. Darland’s victory at Springfield was his third Tony Bettenhausen Classic win. Jay Drake charged into the lead from ninth in just nine laps at Pikes Peak and Kasey Kahne led 51 laps while winning at Nazareth in his return from stock cars.
With nine top-four finishes in twelve races, Yeley captured his second Silver Crown title. Darland notched one win and seven top-five finishes as the division runner-up. Tracy Hines registered nine top-five finishes and finished third in the standings.
In postseason awards, Tyler Walker earned the Silver Crown Most Improved Driver award with third place finishes at Springfield and Tulsa while Ron Gregory was named series Rookie of the Year.
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STEELE REPEATS AS COPPER WORLD CHAMPION
Avondale, Arizona………Dave Steele of Tampa, Fla. successfully defended his Copper World Classic championship Sunday at Phoenix International Raceway, winning the 100-mile USAC Weld Racing Silver Crown Championship race.
Steele led 85 of the 100 laps in his Northside Propane Gaerte/Beast to beat Tracy Hines and Dave Darland to the checkered flag in a race slowed by four caution periods.
Steele won the pole on Saturday at 138.658 mph and emerged as the series point leader going into a May 10 race at Indianapolis Raceway Park.
“We had a great car,” said Steele in victory lane. “I had to run hard and I could see Tracy’s nose at times, so I knew they were right there. The car started to get a bit loose near the end, so I drove defensively and guarded the bottom of the track. It worked.”
Rounding out the top-10 at the finish were Yeley (4th), Chet Fillip, Jay Drake, Bentley Warren, Paul White, Brian Tyler and Michael Lewis.
Tyler Walker won Saturday’s 15-mile consolation race and Fillip earned the race’s University of Northwestern Ohio Hard Charger Award for advancing 15 positions.
USAC WELD RACING SILVER CROWN SERIES RACE RESULTS: March 21-23, 2003 – Avondale, Arizona – Phoenix International Raceway - Copper World Indy 200
QUALIFYING: (Top-24 locked into the feature) 1. Dave Steele, 19, Gratton-25.963; 2. J.J. Yeley, 9, East/Stewart-25.976; 3. Tracy Hines, 37, Riggs-26.186; 4. Jay Drake, 11, Stewart/Snider-26.211; 5. Brian Tyler, 21, Six-R-26.230; 6. Paul White, 10, Cook-26.285; 7. P.J. Jones, 111, Snider-26.320; 8. Dave Darland, 92, Hoerner-26.328; 9. David Gough, 82, Riverside-26.336; 10. Bobby East, 3, Vance-26.350; 11. Ron Gregory, 48, Irvin-26.351; 12. John Starks, 98, Western-26.372; 13. Ed Carpenter, 39, RFMS-26.432; 14. Brad Noffsinger, 14, Daugherty/Noffsinger-26.462; 15. Bud Kaeding, 2, Vance-26.511; 16. A.J. Fike, 67, Zarounian-26.586; 17. Donny Schatz, 115, RE Technologies-26.591; 18. Michael Lewis, 85, Six-R-26.592; 19. Jason McCord, 4, Contos-26.609; 20. Chet Fillip, 77, Advanced-26.627; 21. Bentley Warren, 29, S & S-26.665; 22. Danny Ebberts, 44, Ebberts/Schlachter-26.687; 23. Jimmy Kite, 5, Westcon-26.707; 24. Russ Gamester, 51, Gamester-26.735; 25. Tyler Walker, 35, RE Technologies/Curb-Agajanian-26.740; 26. Matt Westfall, 25, BWB-26.758; 27. Eric Butze, 09, Butze-26.765; 28. Tyce Carlson, 52, BWB-26.839; 29. Rich Tobias Jr., 17, RW-26.854; 30. Brad Armstrong, 110, Armstrong-26.862; 31. Dane Carter, 7, Carter-26.886; 32. Levi Jones, 18, ITI-27.123; 33. John Heydenreich, 90, Bank-27.170; 34. Aaron Pierce, 26, Pierce-27.269; 35. Jason Fuller, 49, Smith-27.269; 36. Erin Crocker, 16, Woodring-27.333; 37. Jonathan Vennard, 99, Mucci/Matczak-27.488; 38. Teddy Beach, 15, Beach-27.539; 39. Nick Lundgreen, 0, Lundgreen-27.819; 40. Tony Elliott, 20, Nolen-27.833; 41. Murray Erickson, 71, Guardian-27.854; 42. Dan Drinan, 07, JR-27.858; 43. Mike Ford, 57, Dolner-28.604; 44. Roger Rager, 03, TNT-28.950; 45. Dan Drinan, 08, JR-NT; 46. Ed Carpenter, 69, Dynamics-NT; 47. David Bridges, 40, MB-NT; 48. Tony Hunt, 28, Pierson/Nadeau-NT; 49. Lance Kobusch, 23, Logan-NT; 50. Brian Paulus, 22, P & P-NT; 51. Jason Engel, 27, Wallace-NT; 52. Ryan Scott, 72, B & S-NT; 53. #371, Riggs-NT. (NOTE: Damion Gardner also in car #07).
QUALIFYING RACE: (15 laps, top-6 transfer to the feature) 1. Tyler Walker, 2. Eric Butze, 3. Dane Carter, 4. Aaron Pierce, 5. Matt Westfall, 6. Rich Tobias Jr., 7. John Heydenreich, 8. Tyce Carlson, 9. Roger Rager, 10. Murray Erickson, 11. Erin Crocker, 12. Levi Jones, 13. Teddy Beach, 14. Jason Fuller, 15. Jonathan Vennard, 16. Nick Lundgreen, 17. Brad Armstrong, 18. Mike Ford. NT
FEATURE: (100 laps, starting position in parentheses) 1. Dave Steele (1), 2. Tracy Hines (3), 3. Dave Darland (8), 4. J.J. Yeley (2), 5. Chet Fillip (20), 6. Jay Drake (4), 7. Bentley Warren (21), 8. Paul White (6), 9. Brian Tyler (5), 10. Michael Lewis (18), 11. Russ Gamester (24), 12. Ron Gregory (11), 13. Danny Ebberts (22), 14. Jimmy Kite (23), 15. A.J. Fike (16), 16. Tyler Walker (25), 17. Brad Noffsinger (14), 18. Donny Schatz (17), 19. Ed Carpenter (13), 20. Matt Westfall (29), 21. Jason McCord (19), 22. P.J. Jones (7), 23. Tyce Carlson (31), 24. Dane Carter (27), 25. Aaron Pierce (28), 26. Bud Kaeding (15), 27. Rich Tobias Jr. (30), 28. Eric Butze (26), 29. David Gough (9), 30. John Starks (12), 31. Bobby East (10). NT
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-2 J.J. Yeley, Laps 3-20 Dave Steele, Laps 21-33 J.J. Yeley, Laps 34-100 Dave Steele.
NEW SILVER CROWN POINTS: 1-Dave Steele-66; 2-Tracy Hines-57; 3-Dave Darland-54; 4-J.J. Yeley-51; 5-Chet Fillip-48; 6-Jay Drake-45; 7-Bentley Warren-42; 8-Paul White-39; 9-Brian Tyler-36; 10-Michael Lewis-33.
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YELEY USES LAST LAP PASS TO WIN AT IRP
Clermont, Indiana………J.J. Yeley of Phoenix, Ariz. scored a spectacular victory in Thursday night’s Hoosier Twin 50s at Indianapolis Raceway Park, coming from fourth place in the final four laps to win the 100-lap USAC Weld Racing Silver Crown race.
Leading the event at its midway stoppage in the Ford/Power Stroke Diesel Beast/Ford co-owned by NASCAR Winston Cup Champ Tony Stewart and Bob East, Yeley rolled a die to determine an inversion for the second 50 laps and ended up starting fifth. He was running fourth with four laps remaining when a four-car accident brought out the yellow flag.
After the restart he caught Dave Darland and Brian Tyler, then passed leader Dave Steele in the final turn for the last-lap triumph!
“I was surprised how slow everyone was going on the restart after I got past Brian (Tyler),” Yeley said. “I didn’t think I had much of a chance at Steele, but he left me enough room to squeeze by on the bottom and we rubbed just a little in the middle, and that was enough to propel me to the front. I hadn’t had a lot of pavement experience when I first started USAC, and it’s just something where you have to get more and more laps to feel comfortable. This is awesome. I’ve never won a race at IRP. It’s a difficult pavement racetrack, and hopefully when we come back here, we can win some more.”
Steele finished second, about two car lengths back, while Tyler took third and Darland fourth. Tracy Hines rounded out the top-five.
Steele won the pole and led 46 of the 100 laps.
Chet Fillip and Jason McCord won the two 15-lap qualifying races.
USAC WELD RACING SILVER CROWN SERIES RACE RESULTS: May 22, 2003 – Clermont, Indiana – Indianapolis Raceway Park – Hoosier Twin 50s – Kroger Pavement/Dirt Showdown presented by the Dellen Automotive Family
QUALIFYING: (Top-20 locked into the feature) 1. Dave Steele, 19, Gratton-20.660; 2. Tyler Walker, 35, RE Technologies/Curb-Agajanian-20.722; 3. Jason Leffler, 167, Zarounian-20.732; 4. J.J. Yeley, 9, East/Stewart-20.750; 5. Ron Gregory, 48, Irvin-20.781; 6. Tracy Hines, 37, Riggs-20.800; 7. Russ Gamester, 51, Gamester-20.815; 8. Aaron Pierce, 26, Pierce-20.820; 9. Bobby East, 2, Vance-20.825; 10. John Starks, 98, Western-20.832; 11. Brian Tyler, 21, Six-R-20.841; 12. Bud Kaeding, 3, Vance-20.845; 13. Jay Drake, 11, Stewart/Snider-20.894; 14. Lance Kobusch, 23, Logan-20.944; 15. Ed Carpenter, 69, Dynamics-20.986; 16. Donny Schatz, 115, RE Technologies-21.002; 17. Jimmy McCune, 66, McCune-21.005; 18. A.J. Fike, 39, RFMS-21.012; 19. Dave Darland, 92, Hoerner-21.028; 20. Michael Lewis, 85, Six-R-21.030; 21. Matt Westfall, 25, BWB-21.045; 22. Jason McCord, 4, Contos-21.051; 23. Chet Fillip, 77, Advanced-21.053; 24. Aaron Fike, 67, Zarounian-21.065; 25. Levi Jones, 18, ITI-21.095; 26. Teddy Beach, 15, Beach-21.120; 27. Paul White, 10, Cook-21.125; 28. John Heydenreich, 90, Bank-21.148; 29. David Gough, 82, Riverside-21.155; 30. David Bridges, 40, MB-21.180; 31. Bentley Warren, 29, S & S-21.228; 32. Brad Noffsinger, 14, Daugherty/Noffsinger-21.270; 33. Jonathan Vennard, 99, Mucci/Matczak-21.310; 34. Tony Elliott, 20, Nolen-21.320; 35. Tom Capie, 153, Capie-21.342; 36. Danny Ebberts, 44, Ebberts/Schlachter-21.345; 37. Rich Tobias Jr., 17, RW-21.384; 38. Ryan Scott, 72, B & S-21.555; 39. Brad Armstrong, 110, Armstrong-21.567; 40. Dane Carter, 7, Carter-21.570; 41. Mark Smith, 95, Randol-21.651; 42. Dan Drinan, 08, JR-21.762; 43. Eric Butze, 09, Butze-22.226; 44. Erin Crocker, 16, Woodring-22.453; 45. Kevin Newton, 31, Mataka-22.483; 46. Daryl Campbell, 54, Pedersen-22.939; 47. Rod Holshouser, 91, Harris-23.730; 48. Jason Fuller, 49, Smith-NT; 49. Murray Erickson, 71, Guardian-NT.
FIRST QUALIFYING RACE: (15 laps, top-5 transfer to the feature) 1. Chet Fillip, 2. Matt Westfall, 3. Paul White, 4. Levi Jones, 5. Bentley Warren, 6. David Gough, 7. Brad Armstrong, 8. Tom Capie, 9. Rich Tobias Jr., 10. Jonathan Vennard, 11. Mark Smith, 12. Kevin Newton, 13. Eric Butze. 5:16.38
SECOND QUALIFYING RACE: (15 laps, top-5 transfer to the feature) 1. Jason McCord, 2. Aaron Fike, 3. Teddy Beach, 4. Brad Noffsinger, 5. Dane Carter, 6. John Heydenreich, 7. Tony Elliott, 8. Ryan Scott, 9. Dan Drinan, 10. Erin Crocker, 11. David Bridges, 12. Daryl Campbell. 5:24.32
FEATURE: (100 laps, starting position in parentheses) 1. J.J. Yeley (4), 2. Dave Steele (1), 3. Brian Tyler (11), 4. Dave Darland (19), 5. Tracy Hines (6), 6. Chet Fillip (21), 7. A.J. Fike (18), 8. John Starks (10), 9. Tyler Walker (2), 10. Michael Lewis (20), 11. Jason McCord (22), 12. Russ Gamester (7), 13. Bobby East (9), 14. Jay Drake (13), 15. Teddy Beach (26), 16. Paul White (25), 17. Dane Carter (30), 18. Matt Westfall (23), 19. Donny Schatz (16), 20. Ron Gregory (5), 21. Ed Carpenter (15), 22. Aaron Pierce (8), 23. John Heydenreich (31), 24. Levi Jones (27), 25. Brad Noffsinger (28), 26. Lance Kobusch (14), 27. Bentley Warren (29), 28. Jason Leffler (3), 29. Jimmy McCune (17), 30. Aaron Fike (24), 31. Bud Kaeding (12). NT
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-23 Tyler Walker, Laps 24-39 Dave Steele, Laps 40-50 J.J. Yeley, Laps 51-59 Dave Darland, Laps 60-69 J.J. Yeley, Laps 70-99 Dave Steele, Lap 100 J.J. Yeley.
NEW SILVER CROWN POINTS: 1-Dave Steele-129; 2-J.J. Yeley-111; 3-Dave Darland-105; 4-Tracy Hines-105; 5-Chet Fillip-93; 6-Brian Tyler-90; 7-Jay Drake-70; 8-Michael Lewis-66; 9-A.J. Fike-65; 10-Russ Gamester-60.
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YELEY EARNS $50,000 BONUS WITH HOOSIER HUNDRED DOMINATION
Indianapolis, Indiana………J.J. Yeley of Phoenix, Ariz. completed a “sweep” of USAC Weld Racing Silver Crown races with his wire-to-wire victory in Friday night’s 51st “Hoosier Hundred” at the Indiana State Fairgrounds. The win earned him a $50,000 cash bonus, bringing his two-night prize money total to a whopping $70,900!
Yeley won the pole for the second leg of the Kroger Pavement/Dirt Showdown presented by the Dellen Automotive Family, then led every lap of the 100-mile race on the 1-mile dirt oval in his Ford/Power Stroke Diesel Chevy.
“I was worrying about tires and it was a big relief when Darland had his problem. This was a brand-new car and Bob East (car owner with NASCAR Winston Cup Champ Tony Stewart) had it set up great. We changed a tire and dropped in some fuel during the red flag, so that helped. This bonus ($50,000) ranks right up there with making the Indy 500 as far as a career highlight.”
The race was slowed by six cautions and one red flag but there were no driver injuries.
Rich Tobias, Jr. finished second after passing Tracy Hines on lap 90, while Paul White took third, Jerry Coons, Jr. fourth and Hines fifth.
Dave Darland appeared to be Yeley’s strongest challenger until he blew a tire on the 84th lap and was relegated to an 18th-place finish.
Yeley emerged as the new series point leader with a 24-point cushion over Hines going into the June 14 “Sumar Classic” at Terre Haute, Ind.
USAC WELD RACING SILVER CROWN SERIES RACE RESULTS: May 23, 2003 – Indianapolis, Indiana – Indiana State Fairgrounds– 51st Hoosier Hundred – Kroger Pavement/Dirt Showdown presented by the Dellen Automotive Family
QUALIFYING: (Top-21 locked into the feature) 1. J.J. Yeley, 9, East/Stewart-31.966; 2. Dave Darland, 56, Foxco-32.441; 3. Tracy Hines, 37, Riggs-32.453; 4. Rich Tobias Jr., 17, RW-32.471; 5. Teddy Beach, 15, Beach-32.590; 6. Tom Capie, 153, Capie-32.638; 7. Paul White, 10, Cook-32.657; 8. Matt Westfall, 25, BWB-32.666; 9. Jay Drake, 11, Stewart/Snider-32.741; 10. Aaron Fike, 67, Zarounian-32.763; 11. Russ Gamester, 51, Gamester-32.775; 12. Jerry Coons Jr., 53, Fox-32.788; 13. Jason McCord, 4, Contos-32.890; 14. Levi Jones, 18, ITI-32.990; 15. Dane Carter, 7, Carter-33.055; 16. Jonathan Vennard, 99, Mucci/Matczak-33.067; 17. Dave Steele, 19, Gratton-33.110; 18. Kevin Huntley, 97, SC-33.230; 19. David Bridges, 40, MB-33.365; 20. Randy Bateman, 55, Bateman-33.380; 21. Tyler Walker, 35, RE Technologies/Curb-Agajanian-33.403; 22. Tony Elliott, 20, Nolen-33.449; 23. Kenny Jacobs, 64, DePalma-33.536; 24. Johnny Parsons, 43, Nix-33.603; 25. Sport Allen, 89, Moore-33.608; 26. Brian Tyler, 21, Six-R-33.611; 27. John Heydenreich, 90, Bank-33.657; 28. Brad Noffsinger, 14, Daugherty/Noffsinger-33.680; 29. Murray Erickson, 71, Guardian-33.680; 30. Craig Dori, 38, Shoestring-33.812; 31. Dana Laliberte, 04, Laliberte-34.002; 32. George White, 100, Cook-34.080; 33. A.J. Fike, 39, RFMS-34.114; 34. Jerry Nemire, 76, Nemire-34.584; 35. Kevin Newton, 31, Mataka-35.802; 36. Cory Kruseman, 50, Aviators-NT; 37. Erin Crocker, 16, Woodring-NT; 38. Donny Schatz, 115, RE Technologies-NT; 39. Daryl Campbell, 54, Pedersen-NT; 40. Roger Rager, 03, TNT-NT. (NOTE: Jimmy Sills also in car #71).
QUALIFYING RACE: (15 laps, top-12 transfer to the feature) 1. Kenny Jacobs, 2. Tony Elliott, 3. Johnny Parsons, 4. John Heydenreich, 5. Brian Tyler, 6. Sport Allen, 7. George White, 8. Brad Noffsinger, 9. A.J. Fike, 10. Kevin Huntley, 11. Jerry Nemire, 12. Kevin Newton, 13. Murray Erickson, 14. Erin Crocker, 15. Craig Dori. 12:24.82
FEATURE: (100 laps, starting position in parentheses) 1. J.J. Yeley (1), 2. Rich Tobias Jr. (4), 3. Paul White (7), 4. Jerry Coons Jr. (12), 5. Tracy Hines (3), 6. Brian Tyler (25), 7. Johnny Parsons (23), 8. Jay Drake (9), 9. Matt Westfall (8), 10. Aaron Fike (10), 11. Kenny Jacobs (21), 12. Dane Carter (15), 13. Levi Jones (14), 14. Kevin Huntley (30), 15. A.J. Fike (29), 16. David Bridges (18), 17. Sport Allen (26), 18. Dave Darland (2), 19. George White (27), 20. Teddy Beach (5), 21. Brad Noffsinger (28), 22. Russ Gamester (11), 23. Tyler Walker (20), 24. Jonathan Vennard (16), 25. Jerry Nemire (31), 26. Tom Capie (6), 27. Jason McCord (13), 28. Tony Elliott (22), 29. Dave Steele (17), 30. John Heydenreich (24), 31. Randy Bateman (19), 32. Kevin Newton (32). NT
**Donny Schatz flipped during practice.
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-100 J.J. Yeley.
NEW SILVER CROWN POINTS: 1-J.J. Yeley-177; 2-Tracy Hines-153; 3-Brian Tyler-135; 4-Dave Steele-133; 5-Dave Darland-122; 6-Paul White-114; 7-Jay Drake-109; 8-Chet Fillip-93; 9-A.J. Fike-88; 10-Russ Gamester-71.
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YELEY ADDS SUMAR CLASSIC TO 2003 WIN LIST
Terre Haute, Indiana………J.J. Yeley of Phoenix, Ariz. extended his lead in the USAC Weld Racing Silver Crown Championship Series standings with his fifth dirt track victory in six starts dating back to 2002, winning Saturday night’s 100-lap Terre Haute First National Bank Sumar Classic at the Terre Haute (Ind.) Action Track.
“My Ford/Power Stroke Diesel Beast/Ford ran well all race,” said Yeley in victory lane after the marathon race, which featured 14 caution periods. “We had an awesome race car those last seven laps. We were really struggling for fuel, and in the corners, it started hiccupping, making it tough to run the top groove.”
Speculation was that Yeley’s car was so short on fuel at the checkered flag that it may have not been able to complete another lap.
Yeley’s victory was his 11th in USAC National competition this season as he chases the single-season USAC mark of 19.
“It’s easier when you run for three great teams, like I do,” said Yeley, whose Silver Crown car is co-owned by NASCAR Winston Cup Champ Tony Stewart and Bob East.
Kevin Huntley, who led lap one and lap 97, finished second, ahead of Dave Darland, Paul White and Matt Westfall, as only nine of the 26 starters made it to the finish.
Jay Drake started on the pole and ran strong until he spun on lap 45. He rejoined the race and came back to fourth place before exiting on lap 76 when he encountered steering problems.
Russ Gamester, winner of the qualifying race, escaped injury in a flip on lap 13.
USAC WELD RACING SILVER CROWN SERIES RACE RESULTS: June 14, 2003 – Terre Haute, Indiana – Terre Haute Action Track– Terre Haute First National Bank Sumar Classic Presented by the Terre Haute Convention & Visitors Bureau
QUALIFYING: (Top-20 locked into the feature) 1. Jay Drake, 11, Stewart/Snider-20.170; 2. Kevin Huntley, 97, SC-20.424; 3. J.J. Yeley, 9, East/Stewart-20.436; 4. Tracy Hines, 37, Riggs-20.490; 5. Eric Gordon, 25, BWB-20.534; 6. Dave Darland, 56, Foxco-20.537; 7. Rich Tobias Jr., 17, RW-20.586; 8. Jerry Coons Jr., 53, Fox-20.601; 9. Levi Jones, 18, ITI-20.623; 10. Donnie Beechler, 45, Freedom-20.651; 11. Teddy Beach, 15, Beach-20.674; 12. Brad Noffsinger, 14, Daugherty/Noffsinger-20.687; 13. Jonathan Vennard, 99, Mucci/Matczak-20.701; 14. John Heydenreich, 90, Bank-20.733; 15. Tyler Walker, 35, RE Technologies-20.756; 16. Brian Tyler, 21, Six-R20.790; 17. Paul White, 10, Cook-20.816; 18. Jason McCord, 4, Contos-20.907; 19. Dave Steele, 19, Gratton-20.929; 20. Matt Westfall, 50, Aviators-20.980; 21. Tom Capie, 153, Capie-21.142; 22. Russ Gamester, 51, Gamester-21.217; 23. Nick Lundgreen, 0, Lundgreen-21.436; 24. Aaron Pierce, 26, Pierce-21.476; 25. Tony Elliott, 20, Nolen-21.486; 26. Murray Erickson, 71, Guardian-21.649; 27. Jerry Nemire, 76, Nemire-21.681; 28. Craig Dori, 38, Shoestring-21.721; 29. Daryl Campbell, 54, Pedersen-22.001; 30. George White, 100, Cook-22.231; 31. David Bridges, 40, MB-22.284; 32. Steve Surniak, 31, Mataka-23.599.
QUALIFYING RACE: (15 laps, top-7 transfer to the feature) 1. Russ Gamester, 2. Nick Lundgreen, 3. Jerry Nemire, 4. Craig Dori, 5. Daryl Campbell, 6. Tony Elliott, 7. David Bridges, 8. Steve Surniak, 9. Murray Erickson, 10. George White, 11. Tom Capie, 12. Aaron Pierce. NT
FEATURE: (100 laps, starting position in parentheses) 1. J.J. Yeley (3), 2. Kevin Huntley (2), 3. Dave Darland (6), 4. Paul White (16), 5. Matt Westfall (19), 6. Dave Steele (18), 7. Brian Tyler (15), 8. Levi Jones (9), 9. Jason McCord (17), 10. Rich Tobias Jr. (7), 11. Tyler Walker (14), 12. Teddy Beach (10), 13. Eric Gordon (5), 14. Jerry Nemire (22), 15. Jay Drake (1), 16. David Bridges (26), 17. Tracy Hines (4), 18. Jerry Coons Jr. (8), 19. Jonathan Vennard (12), 20. Daryl Campbell (24), 21. Craig Dori (23), 22. John Heydenreich (13), 23. Nick Lundgreen (21), 24. Brad Noffsinger (11), 25. Russ Gamester (20), 26. Tony Elliott (25). NT
**Russ Gamester flipped on lap 13 of the feature.
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Lap 1 Kevin Huntley, Laps 2-96 J.J. Yeley, Lap 97 Kevin Huntley, Laps 98-100 J.J. Yeley.
NEW SILVER CROWN POINTS: 1-J.J. Yeley-240; 2-Dave Steele-178; 3-Brian Tyler-177; 4-Dave Darland-176; 5-Tracy Hines-172; 6-Paul White-165; 7-Jay Drake-135; 8-Matt Westfall-114; 9-Tyler Walker-98; 10-Rich Tobias Jr.-96.
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STEELE TAKES DOMINIC'S OF NEW YORK 100 AT RICHMOND
Richmond, Virginia………Dave Steele of Tampa, Fla. repeated as the champion of the Dominic’s of New York 100 on Saturday at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway, the fifth round of this year’s USAC Weld Racing Silver Crown Series.
Steele caught point leader J.J. Yeley on the backstretch of lap 49 and led the final 52 laps in his Northside Propane Beast/Gaerte for his second straight win at Richmond, his second victory of the season, and ninth career Silver Crown victory.
Trailing Steele to the finish line were the last two Infiniti Pro Series winners – 2001 USAC Richmond winner Aaron Fike and 2002 USAC Richmond runner-up Ed Carpenter. Tracy Hines finished fourth, while Tyler Walker scored his best career finish in the series with a fifth place.
Steele’s win helped close a large gap between him and Yeley, whose bid for four straight Silver Crown Series wins was dashed with a sixth-place finish. Yeley led for 36 laps after taking the point from outside polesitter Jason McCord, who led the first 12 laps, and Yeley now leads Steele in the championship race by 41 points.
"Right now, he is carrying the biggest stick in the pits, so we’ll stay after him to chip away a little bit," Steele said of Yeley. "When a driver has that much confidence, he’s hard to stop."
USAC WELD RACING SILVER CROWN SERIES RACE RESULTS: June 27-28, 2003 – Richmond, Virginia – Richmond International Raceway – Dominic’s of New York 100
QUALIFYING: (Top-24 locked into the feature) 1. Dave Steele, 19, Gratton-20.356; 2. Jason McCord, 4, Contos-20.374; 3. J.J. Yeley, 9, East/Stewart-20.385; 4. Brian Tyler, 21, Six-R-20.511; 5. Dave Darland, 92, Hoerner-20.523; 6. Aaron Fike, 67, Zarounian-20.639; 7. Eric Butze, 09, Butze-20.649; 8. Jonathan Vennard, 99, Mucci/Matczak-20.721; 9. Jay Drake, 11, Stewart/Snider-20.746; 10. Ed Carpenter, 69, Dynamics-20.759; 11. Teddy Beach, 15, Beach-20.767; 12. David Gough, 82, Riverside-20.792; 13. Tyler Walker, 35, RE Technologies-20.812; 14. Brad Noffsinger, 14, Daughery/Noffsinger-20.879; 15. Tony Elliott, 20, Nolen-20.881; 16. Bentley Warren, 29, S & S-20.910; 17. A.J. Fike, 39, RFMS-20.936; 18. Ron Gregory, 48, Irvin-20.944; 19. John Starks, 98, Western-20.956; 20. Eric Gordon, 25, BWB-20.984; 21. Brad Armstrong, 110, Armstrong-21.007; 22. Paul White, 10, Cook-21.016; 23. John Heydenreich, 90, Bank-21.064; 24. Levi Jones, 18, ITI-21.068; 25. Tracy Hines, 37, Riggs-21.070; 26. Tony Hunt, 28, Pierson/Nadeau-21.079; 27. Bobby East, 2, Vance-21.122; 28. Russ Gamester, 51, Gamester-21.145; 29. Jimmy McCune, 66, McCune-21.160; 30. Chet Fillip, 77, Advanced-21.182; 31. Donny Schatz, 115, RE Technologies-21.279; 32. Rich Tobias Jr., 17, RW-21.287; 33. Michael Lewis, 85, Six-R-21.306; 34. Jimmy Kite, 5, Westcon-21.658; 35. Dane Carter, 7, Carter-21.747; 36. Erin Crocker, 16, Woodring-21.862; 37. Nick Lundgreen, 0, Lundgreen-21.872; 38. Jeff Gardner, 47, Paternoster-22.205; 39. Murray Erickson, 71, Guardian-22.439; 40. Shawn Butler, 31, Mataka-NT.
QUALIFYING RACE: (15 laps, top-7 transfer to the feature) 1. Tracy Hines, 2. Tony Hunt, 3. Bobby East, 4. Michael Lewis, 5. Russ Gamester, 6. Jimmy Kite, 7. Rich Tobias Jr., 8. Nick Lundgreen, 9. Jeff Gardner, 10. Erin Crocker, 11. Murray Erickson, 12. Jimmy McCune, 13. Dane Carter, 14. Chet Fillip, 15. Donny Schatz. NT
FEATURE: (100 laps, starting position in parentheses) 1. Dave Steele (1), 2. Aaron Fike (6), 3. Ed Carpenter (10), 4. Tracy Hines (25), 5. Tyler Walker (13), 6. J.J. Yeley (3), 7. Eric Butze (7), 8. Jay Drake (9), 9. A.J. Fike (17), 10. Dave Darland (5), 11. David Gough (12), 12. Bobby East (27), 13. Ron Gregory (18), 14. Teddy Beach (11), 15. John Heydenreich (23), 16. Jonathan Vennard (8), 17. Bentley Warren (16), 18. Paul White (22), 19. Jimmy Kite (30), 20. Brad Armstrong (21), 21. Levi Jones (24), 22. Rich Tobias Jr. (31), 23. Brad Noffsinger (14), 24. Russ Gamester (29), 25. Michael Lewis (28), 26. Eric Gordon (20), 27. Tony Elliott (15), 28. Brian Tyler (4), 29. John Starks (19), 30. Jason McCord (2), 31. Tony Hunt (26). 41:25.453
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-12 Jason McCord, Laps 13-48 J.J. Yeley, Laps 49-100 Dave Steele.
NEW SILVER CROWN POINTS: 1-J.J. Yeley-285; 2-Dave Steele-244; 3-Tracy Hines-223; 4-Dave Darland-209; 5-Paul White-182; 6-Brian Tyler-182; 7-Jay Drake-174; 8-Tyler Walker-146; 9-A.J. Fike-124; 10-Matt Westfall-114.
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ROCKY MOUNTAIN CLASSIC 100-MILER TO DRAKE
Fountain, Colorado………Jay Drake of Val Verde, Calif., who established a new world record for Sprint Cars at Pikes Peak International Raceway on Thursday, came back to win Friday’s 100-mile Rocky Mountain Classic USAC Weld Racing Silver Crown race at the one-mile oval.
Drake took the lead from series point leader J.J. Yeley on the ninth lap and never looked back, giving car owner George Snider a then-record 15th series triumph. Snider and NASCAR Winston Cup Champion Tony Stewart co-own Drake’s winning car.
Yeley began from the pole with a speed of 141.559 mph but lost the early lead to former series champion Paul White at the start. Yeley regained the lead on lap six but yielded to Drake on lap nine. Yeley eventually finished 20th, three laps down after two pit stops. His series point lead slipped to 15 points over runner-up Dave Steele who finished seventh Friday.
Eric Gordon finished second, ahead of Chet Fillip, Tracy Hines and Dave Darland.
Drake’s win was his second in the series and first on pavement.
Drake qualified for Friday’s USAC Sprint Car portion of the Rocky Mountain Classic at a World’s Sprint Car record of 144.950 mph but finished second to Tracy Hines in the 30-lap Sprint feature. Drake also finished third in the 30-lap USAC Midget race behind winner Dave Steele and runner-up J.J. Yeley.
USAC WELD RACING SILVER CROWN SERIES RACE RESULTS: July 3-4, 2003 – Fountain, Colorado – Pikes Peak International Raceway – Rocky Mountain Classic
QUALIFYING: (Top-24 locked into the feature) 1. J.J. Yeley, 9, East/Stewart-25.431; 2. Tracy Hines, 37, Riggs-25.518; 3. Paul White, 10, Cook-25.748; 4. Dave Steele, 19, Gratton-25.774; 5. Aaron Fike, 67, Zarounian-25.790; 6. Eric Gordon, 25, BWB-25.874; 7. Eric Butze, 09, Butze-25.956; 8. Jason McCord, 4, Contos-26.032; 9. Jay Drake, 11, Stewart/Snider-26.033; 10. Dane Carter, 7, Carter-26.065; 11. Bobby East, 2, Vance-26.067; 12. Rich Tobias Jr., 17, RW-26.080; 13. Tyler Walker, 35, RE Technologies-26.083; 14. A.J. Fike, 39, RFMS-26.151; 15. Brad Noffsinger, 14, Daugherty/Noffsinger-26.156; 16. Michael Lewis, 85, Six-R-26.274; 17. John Starks, 98, Western-26.296; 18. Chet Fillip, 77, Advanced-26.303; 19. Donny Schatz, 115, RE Technologies-26.317; 20. David Gough, 82, Riverside-26.347; 21. Brian Tyler, 21, Six-R-26.379; 22. Bud Kaeding, 69, Dynamics-26.389; 23. Ron Gregory, 48, Irvin-26.428; 24. Teddy Beach, 15, Beach-26.453; 25. Jimmy Kite, 5, Westcon-26.465; 26. John Heydenreich, 90, Bank-26.526; 27. Bentley Warren, 29, S & S-26.559; 28. Lance Kobusch, 20, Nolen-26.559; 29. Brad Armstrong, 110, Armstrong-26.594; 30. Jonathan Vennard, 99, Mucci/Matczak-26.644; 31. Dave Darland, 92, Hoerner-26.692; 32. Levi Jones, 18, ITI-26.693; 33. Nick Lundgreen, 0, Lundgreen-27.122; 34. Murray Erickson, 71, Guardian-27.130; 35. Wes Miller, 36, Miller-NT.
QUALIFYING RACE: (15 laps, top-6 transfer to the feature) 1. Dave Darland, 2. Jimmy Kite, 3. John Heydenreich, 4. Bentley Warren, 5. Jonathan Vennard, 6. Lance Kobusch, 7. Nick Lundgreen, 8. Levi Jones, 9. Brad Armstrong, 10. Murray Erickson, 11. Wes Miller. NT
FEATURE: (100 laps, starting position in parentheses) 1. Jay Drake (9), 2. Eric Gordon (6), 3. Chet Fillip (18), 4. Tracy Hines (2), 5. Dave Darland (25), 6. Dane Carter (10), 7. Dave Steele (4), 8. Bentley Warren (28), 9. Aaron Fike (5), 10. Teddy Beach (24), 11. Donny Schatz (19), 12. Ron Gregory (23), 13. Eric Butze (7), 14. Rich Tobias Jr. (12), 15. Jimmy Kite (26), 16. Brian Tyler (21), 17. Lance Kobusch (30), 18. Michael Lewis (16), 19. A.J. Fike (14), 20. J.J. Yeley (1), 21. Bud Kaeding (22), 22. Brad Noffsinger (15), 23. Jason McCord (8), 24. John Heydenreich (27), 25. Tyler Walker (13), 26. Jonathan Vennard (29), 27. David Gough (20), 28. John Starks (17), 29. Bobby East (11), 30. Paul White (3). 52:07.65
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-5 Paul White, Laps 6-8 J.J. Yeley, Laps 9-100 Jay Drake.
NEW SILVER CROWN POINTS: 1-J.J. Yeley-301; 2-Dave Steele-286; 3-Tracy Hines-274; 4-Dave Darland-257; 5-Jay Drake-237; 6-Brian Tyler-203; 7-Paul White-185; 8-Tyler Walker-154; 9-Chet Fillip-147; 10-A.J. Fike-139.
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MCCORD UPSETS YELEY IN IRP'S J.D. BYRIDER 100
Clermont, Ind………Jason McCord of Anderson, Ind. interrupted J.J. Yeley’s bid for USAC racing history Thursday night, winning the J.D. Byrider 100 USAC Weld Racing Silver Crown race at Indianapolis Raceway Park.
McCord’s win in the opening event of IRP’s Kroger SpeedFest weekend kept Yeley from recording a historic all-time USAC single season record 20th feature victory.
Yeley won the pole starting position at 117.600 mph and led the first 93 laps but McCord ran him down in the closing laps and led the final seven circuits in his Hat World/Lids, Top of the World Beast/Pink Ford.
“It’s actually been a really down year,” McCord said. “We had only finished one race before (Thursday), and we’ve dropped out of every other race. As soon as something starts going good, we start wondering what bad is going to happen. That was in the back of my mind after I got Yeley – “what else is going to happen.” Hopefully we finally got the monkey off our back and hopefully we’ll have a good second half of the season.”
“It means a lot,” McCord added. “We were fortunate enough to win twice last year in a sprint car, but what we really wanted was a Silver Crown win. For it to come here in front of all my sponsors, family and friends, it means a lot. I love this racetrack. We were here a couple of weeks ago in the sprint car and we were just awful, and J.J. won that race. It just feels good to bounce back and redeem ourselves a little bit.”
McCord’s margin of victory was about six car lengths and his take from the $57,827 purse was $9,100.
Following McCord and Yeley at the checkered flag were NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series veteran Carl Edwards, Dave Darland and Dave Steele.
NASCAR Busch Series competitors Kasey Kahne and Mike Bliss failed to finish the 100-lapper, Kahne hitting the wall on lap 20 and Bliss encountered mechanical problems. NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series regular Jason Leffler retired after 50 laps with handling problems.
Chet Fillip and Michael Lewis won preliminary qualifying races.
Yeley extended his Weld Racing Silver Crown point lead over Dave Steele to 30 points going into the August 16 Tony Bettenhausen 100 at Springfield, Ill.
Yeley’s next shot at USAC history (20 wins in 2003) comes Saturday night in a USAC Sprint/Midget doubleheader at Mansfield, Ohio.
USAC WELD RACING SILVER CROWN SERIES RACE RESULTS: July 31, 2003 – Clermont, Indiana – Indianapolis Raceway Park – J.D. Byrider 100
QUALIFYING: (Top-20 locked into the feature) 1. J.J. Yeley, 9, East/Stewart-21.000; 2. Dave Steele, 19, Gratton-21.009; 3. Bobby East, 2, Vance-21.145; 4. Carl Edwards, 95, Randol-21.160; 5. Brian Tyler, 21, Six-R-21.172; 6. Tracy Hines, 37, Riggs-21.190; 7. Paul White, 10, Cook-21.207; 8. Jason Leffler, 167, Zarounian-21.217; 9. Mike Bliss, 111, Snider-21.230; 10. Ron Gregory, 48, Irvin-21.259; 11. Eric Butze, 09, Butze-21.274; 12. Dave Darland, 92, Hoerner-21.308; 13. Brad Noffsinger, 14, Daugherty/Noffsinger-21.310; 14. Tyler Walker, 35, RE Technologies-21.315; 15. Jason McCord, 4, Contos-21.317; 16. John Starks, 98, Western-21.328; 17. Jimmy McCune, 66, McCune-21.398; 18. Tony Elliott, 20, Nolen-21.437; 19. John Heydenreich, 90, Bank-21.445; 20. Aaron Fike, 67, Zarounian-21.450; 21. Kasey Kahne, 29, S & S-21.488; 22. Jimmy Kite, 5, Westcon-21.514; 23. Chet Fillip, 77, Advanced-21.521; 24. Jeff Gardner, 47, Paternoster-21.531; 25. Levi Jones, 18, ITI-21.544; 26. Teddy Beach, 15, Beach-21.553; 27. Donny Schatz, 115, RE Technologies-21.564; 28. A.J. Fike, 39, RFMS-21.578; 29. Murray Erickson, 71, Guardian-21.584; 30. Dane Carter, 41, Panther-21.597; 31. David Gough, 82, Riverside-21.628; 32. Michael Lewis, 85, Six-R-21.665; 33. Danny Ebberts, 44, Schlachter/Ebberts-21.700; 34. Jonathan Vennard, 99, Mucci/Matczak-21.742; 35. David Bridges, 40, MB-21.840; 36. Brad Armstrong, 110, Armstrong-21.850; 37. Dan Drinan, 08, Krenn-21.885; 38. Aaron Pierce, 26, Pierce-21.977; 39. Tom Capie, 135, Capie-21.983; 40. Russ Gamester, 51, Gamester-22.095; 41. Rich Tobias Jr., 17, RW-22.095; 42. Ed Carpenter, 69, Dynamics-22.264; 43. Nick Lundgreen, 0, Lundgreen-22.794; 44. Kevin Newton, 31, Mataka-23.275; 45. Eric Gordon, 25, BWB-NT; 46. Daryl Campbell, 54, Pedersen-NT; 47. Jay Drake, 11, Stewart/Snider-NT.
FIRST QUALIFYING RACE: (15 laps, top-5 transfer to the feature) 1. Chet Fillip, 2. Jimmy Kite, 3. Rich Tobias Jr., 4. David Bridges, 5. Levi Jones, 6. Donny Schatz, 7. Tom Capie, 8. Danny Ebberts, 9. Nick Lundgreen, 10. David Gough, 11. Dan Drinan, 12. Murray Erickson. NT
SECOND QUALIFYING RACE: (15 laps, top-5 transfer to the feature) 1. Michael Lewis, 2. Dane Carter, 3. Kasey Kahne, 4. Aaron Pierce, 5. Jonathan Vennard, 6. Russ Gamester, 7. Jeff Gardner, 8. Teddy Beach, 9. Brad Armstrong, 10. Ed Carpenter, 11. A.J. Fike. NT
FEATURE: (100 laps, starting position in parentheses) 1. Jason McCord (15), 2. J.J. Yeley (1), 3. Carl Edwards (4), 4. Dave Darland (12), 5. Dave Steele (2), 6. Bobby East (3), 7. Tony Elliott (18), 8. Paul White (7), 9. Dane Carter (24), 10. Brad Noffsinger (13), 11. Jimmy McCune (17), 12. Jonathan Vennard (30), 13. David Bridges (27), 14. John Starks (16), 15. Rich Tobias Jr. (25), 16. Aaron Pierce (28), 17. Tyler Walker (14), 18. Ron Gregory (10), 19. Jason Leffler (8), 20. John Heydenreich (19), 21. Eric Butze (11), 22. Jimmy Kite (23), 23. Levi Jones (29), 24. Kasey Kahne (26), 25. Tracy Hines (6), 26. Brian Tyler (5), 27. Mike Bliss (9), 28. Michael Lewis (22), 29. Aaron Fike (20), 30. Chet Fillip (21), 31. Eric Gordon (31). NT
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-93 J.J. Yeley, Laps 94-100 Jason McCord.
NEW SILVER CROWN POINTS: 1-J.J. Yeley-364; 2-Dave Steele-334; 3-Dave Darland-308; 4-Tracy Hines-282; 5-Jay Drake-237; 6-Paul White-224; 7-Brian Tyler-210; 8-Tyler Walker-173; 9-Rich Tobias Jr.-155; 10-Chet Fillip-150.
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DARLAND DRIVES TO 3RD SPRINGFIELD WIN
Springfield, Illinois………Dave Darland of Lincoln, Ind. scored his third Tony Bettenhausen 100 triumph in Saturday’s 100-mile USAC Weld Racing Silver Crown race at the Illinois State Fairgrounds, leading all but one lap in his Foxco/Jarvis Enterprises Beast/Foxco Chevy.
“This might have been the best car I’ve ever had,” said the jubilant Darland in the winner’s circle. Dave also won at the Springfield mile in 1997 and 1999 and the win boosted him to second in the new series standings behind leader J.J. Yeley.
Yeley, leading all three USAC National Series standings, fought an ill-handling car and finished 17th, eight laps behind the winner after making numerous pit stops for adjustments on yellow flags.
Darland won the pole for the race at 119.047 mph. and was trailed at the checkered flag Jerry Coons Jr., Tyler Walker, Jay Drake and Tracy Hines. Coons caught Darland on a restart and led lap 21 but Darland regained the lead the next lap and was never again headed.
“It’s too bad the day’s over,” said Darland, who attributed the win to a great car. “We weren’t good on restarts but once we got the momentum, we were okay.”
The race was halted on lap 90 for a five-car accident at the end of the front stretch but there were no serious injuries. Tom Capie, one of three drivers who flipped during the melee, was transported to a Springfield hospital for a precautionary checkup. Brian Tyler and Rich Tobias Jr. also flipped.
USAC WELD RACING SILVER CROWN SERIES RACE RESULTS: August 16, 2003 – Springfield, Illinois – Illinois State Fairgrounds – Tony Bettenhausen 100
QUALIFYING: (Top-20 locked into the feature) 1. Dave Darland, 56, Foxco-30.240; 2. Jerry Coons Jr., 53, Fox-30.358; 3. J.J. Yeley, 9, East/Stewart-30.490; 4. Tracy Hines, 37, Riggs-30.574; 5. Tony Elliott, 20, Nolen-30.656; 6. Jay Drake, 11, Stewart/Snider-30.899; 7. Kevin Huntley, 97, SC-30.961; 8. Teddy Beach, 15, Beach-31.151; 9. Roger Rager, 03, TNT-31.161; 10. Tyler Walker, 35, RE Technologies-31.179; 11. Nick Lundgreen, 0, Lundgreen-31.197; 12. Donnie Beechler, 45, Freedom-31.249; 13. Levi Jones, 18, ITI-31.333; 14. Rich Tobias Jr., 17, RW-31.429; 15. Dave Steele, 19, Gratton-31.595; 16. Eric Gordon, 25, BWB-31.673; 17. Jason McCord, 4, Contos-31.686; 18. Brian Tyler, 21, Six-R-31.779; 19. Paul White, 10, Cook-31.794; 20. Matt Westfall, 50, Aviators-31.806; 21. A.J. Fike, 39, RFMS-31.812; 22. Tom Capie, 153, Capie-31.838; 23. Brad Noffsinger, 14, Daugherty/Noffsinger-31.863; 24. Johnny Parsons, 43, Nix-31.900; 25. Ron Gregory, 48, Irvin-32.045; 26. Dane Carter, 7, Carter-32.063; 27. Russ Gamester, 51, Gamester-32.216; 28. Dana Laliberte, 04, LaLiberte-32.466; 29. Murray Erickson, 71, Guardian-32.602; 30. Greg Wilson, 64, DePalma-32.967; 31. Rod Holshouser, 91, Harris-33.252; 32. Wes Miller, 36, Miller-33.403; 33. David Bridges, 40, MB-33.822; 34. Jonathan Vennard, 99, Mucci/Matczak-34.035; 35. Jerry Nemire, 76, Nemire-34.075; 36. Craig Dori, 38, Shoestring-NT; 37. Terry Babb, 88, Morford-NT; 38. Randy Bateman, 55, Bateman-NT; 39. #115, RE Technologies-NT.
QUALIFYING RACE: (15 laps, top-10 transfer to the feature) 1. Tom Capie. 2. Johnny Parsons, 3. Roger Rager, 4. Brad Noffsinger, 5. Russ Gamester, 6. Ron Gregory, 7. Dane Carter, 8. Rod Holshouser, 9. Murray Erickson, 10. Greg Wilson, 11. Wes Miller, 12. Jerry Nemire, 13. Dana Laliberte, 14. David Bridges, 15. Jonathan Vennard. NT
FEATURE: (100 laps, starting position in parentheses) 1. Dave Darland (1), 2. Jerry Coons Jr. (2), 3. Tyler Walker (9), 4. Jay Drake (6), 5. Tracy Hines (4), 6. Paul White (18), 7. Kevin Huntley (7), 8. Donnie Beechler (11), 9. Dave Steele (14), 10. Nick Lundgreen (10), 11. Greg Wilson (30), 12. Tony Elliott (5), 13. Matt Westfall (19), 14. Dane Carter (27), 15. Ron Gregory (26), 16. Jason McCord (16), 17. J.J. Yeley (3), 18. Rich Tobias Jr. (13), 19. Brian Tyler (17), 20. Eric Gordon (15), 21. Tom Capie (21), 22. A.J. Fike (20), 23. Levi Jones (12), 24. Johnny Parsons (23), 25. Brad Noffsinger (24), 26. Teddy Beach (8), 27. Russ Gamester (25), 28. Rod Holshouser (28), 29. Murray Erickson (29), 30. Roger Rager (22). NT
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-20 Dave Darland, Lap 21 Jerry Coons Jr., Laps 22-100 Dave Darland.
NEW SILVER CROWN POINTS: 1-J.J. Yeley-383; 2-Dave Darland-374; 3-Dave Steele-370; 4-Tracy Hines-330; 5-Jay Drake-288; 6-Paul White-269; 7-Tyler Walker-227; 8-Brian Tyler-225; 9-Jason McCord-179; 10-Rich Tobias Jr.-172.
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KAHNE RETURNS AND WINS NAZARETH 100
Nazareth, Pennsylvania………Kasey Kahne of Enumclaw, Wash. scored his third career USAC Weld Racing Silver Crown Series victory in Sunday’s Nazareth 100 at Nazareth (Pa.) Speedway, leading the final 42 miles of the 100-mile race in his Team ASE/Carquest Beast/Wesmar.
Kahne, a NASCAR Busch Series regular, averaged 95.074 mph and earned $17,100 from the total purse of $90,810.
“I only got in about 10 laps before this race,” admitted Kahne in victory lane. “My crew did an awesome job to get this car ready. It’s definitely an adjustment to come back to these cars (from stock cars) but it’s a lot of fun. I got three cars on the start and lapped traffic opened up some holes for me, which let me move to the front.”
Series point leader J.J. Yeley finished second after winning the pole position Saturday at a speed of 134.103 mph. Yeley led seven laps of Sunday’s race but finished nearly a second behind at the checkered flag.
Rounding out the top-10 were Tracy Hines, Dave Steele, Aaron Fike, Brian Tyler, Dane Carter, Tyler Walker, Dave Darland and Eric Gordon.
Teddy Beach brought out the race’s final caution flag when he hit the wall in the tunnel turn. He was treated for a bruised knee and released from the track medical facility.
Ed Carpenter won Saturday’s 10-mile qualifying race.
USAC WELD RACING SILVER CROWN SERIES RACE RESULTS: August 24, 2003 – Nazareth, Pennsylvania – Nazareth Speedway
QUALIFYING: (Top-24 locked into the feature) 1. J.J. Yeley, 9, East/Stewart-26.845; 2. Dave Steele, 19, Gratton-26.961; 3. Tracy Hines, 37, Riggs-27.007; 4. Dane Carter, 41, Panther-27.134; 5. Jay Drake, 11, Stewart/Snider-27.148; 6. Jason McCord, 4, Contos-27.174; 7. Aaron Fike, 67, Zarounian-27.206; 8. Kasey Kahne, 167, Zarounian-27.249; 9. John Starks, 98, Western-27.266; 10. Tyler Walker, 35, RE Technologies-27.290; 11. Rich Tobias Jr., 17, RW-27.333; 12. Dave Darland, 92, Hoerner-27.338; 13. Brian Tyler, 21, Six-R-27.401; 14. Jeff Gardner, 47, Paternoster-27.402; 15. Eric Gordon, 25, BWB-27.434; 16. Michael Lewis, 85, Six-R-27.513; 17. John Heydenreich, 90, Bank-27.522; 18. David Gough, 82, Riverside-27.535; 19. Jimmy Kite, 5, Westcon-27.564; 20. Teddy Beach, 15, Beach-27.583; 21. Jonathan Vennard, 99, Mucci/Matczak-27.609; 22. Ron Gregory, 48, Irvin-27.673; 23. A.J. Fike, 39, RFMS-27.674; 24. Mark Smith, 95, Randol-27.715; 25. Aaron Pierce, 26, Pierce-27.776; 26. Ed Carpenter, 69, Dynamics-27.837; 27. Brad Armstrong, 110, Armstrong-27.887; 28. Russ Gamester, 51, Gamester-27.914; 29. Brad Noffsinger, 14, Daugherty/Noffsinger-28.119; 30. Chet Fillip, 77, Advanced-28.288; 31. Tony Elliott, 20, Nolen-28.407; 32. Bobby East, 2, Vance-NT; 33. #115, RE Technologies-NT; 34. #31, Mataka-NT.
QUALIFYING RACE: (15 laps, all transfer to the feature) 1. Ed Carpenter, 2. Aaron Pierce, 3. Chet Fillip, 4. Brad Noffsinger, 5. Brad Armstrong, 6. Tony Elliott. NT
FEATURE: (100 laps, starting position in parentheses) 1. Kasey Kahne (8), 2. J.J. Yeley (1), 3. Tracy Hines (3), 4. Dave Steele (2), 5. Aaron Fike (7), 6. Brian Tyler (13), 7. Dane Carter (4), 8. Tyler Walker (10), 9. Dave Darland (12), 10. Eric Gordon (15), 11. Jason McCord (6), 12. Chet Fillip (27), 13. Bobby East (31), 14. Jonathan Vennard (21), 15. Jimmy Kite (19), 16. Brad Noffsinger (28), 17. Jay Drake (5), 18. Rich Tobias Jr. (11), 19. A.J. Fike (23), 20. David Gough (18), 21. Ron Gregory (22), 22. Tony Elliott (30), 23. Teddy Beach (20), 24. Jeff Gardner (14), 25. John Heydenreich (17), 26. Aaron Pierce (26), 27. Brad Armstrong (29), 28. Russ Gamester (32), 29. Ed Carpenter (25), 30. Michael Lewis (16), 31. Mark Smith (24), 32. John Starks (9). 1:03:06.52
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-3 J.J. Yeley, Laps 4-44 Dave Steele, Lap 45 J.J. Yeley, Laps 46-55 Dave Steele, Laps 56-58 J.J. Yeley, Laps 59-100 Kasey Kahne.
NEW SILVER CROWN POINTS: 1-J.J. Yeley-440; 2-Dave Steele-424; 3-Dave Darland-410; 4-Tracy Hines-384; 5-Jay Drake-307; 6-Brian Tyler-270; 7-Paul White-269; 8-Tyler Walker-266; 9-Jason McCord-210; 10-Dane Carter-205.
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TOBIAS CHARGES FROM 25TH TO 1ST TO WIN AT Du QUOIN
Du Quoin, Illinois………Rich Tobias Jr. of Annville, Pa. finally shed his bridesmaid tag in the USAC Weld Racing Silver Crown Series on Saturday night, winning the Ted Horn 100 at the Du Quoin (Ill.) State Fairgrounds.
The race, rained out a week earlier, was held under the lights for the first time in its 55-year history.
Tobias started 25th in the 30-car field but quickly worked his way to the front of the pack and overhauled series point leader J.J. Yeley for the lead on the 76th lap around the 1-mile oval. He led the final 25 miles in his dynamicresource.com/accufax.cc Tobias/Chevy to beat a fast-closing Donnie Beechler by a half car-length at the checkered flag.
Yeley slipped to third at the finish, ahead of Kevin Huntley and Tracy Hines, but emerged with a 45-point lead over Dave Darland in the series standings.
Darland was running third on lap 12 when he was involved in a four-car tangle in turn three which forced point challenger Dave Steele from competition. Darland restarted 24th and was second on a restart at lap 93 but ran short of fuel while mounting a charge on Tobias. He was seventh at the checkered flag.
“This means the world to me,” said Tobias in victory lane. “It’s among the high points of my career. Any time you can beat J.J. (Yeley) you’re doing something. My car got better later in the race and I knew we were good at the end.”
Teddy Beach of Donnelsville, Ohio earned his initial pole position with a lap at 120.212 mph., the fastest in series history on a mile dirt oval. He ran second for many laps, but engine problems late relegated him to 16th at the finish.
Kevin Huntley won the 15-mile qualifying race which preceded the 100-mile feature.
USAC WELD RACING SILVER CROWN SERIES RACE RESULTS: September 6, 2003 – Du Quoin, Illinois – Du Quoin State Fairgrounds – Ted Horn 100
QUALIFYING: (Top-22 locked into the feature) 1. Teddy Beach, 15, Beach-29.947; 2. J.J. Yeley, 9, East/Stewart-30.297; 3. Roger Rager, 03, TNT-30.388; 4. Dave Darland, 56, Foxco-30.584; 5. Dave Steele, 19, Gratton-30.826; 6. John Heydenreich, 90, Bank-30.969; 7. Jerry Coons Jr., 53, Fox-31.065; 8. Tracy Hines, 37, Riggs-31.180; 9. Kevin Huntley, 97, SC-31.218; 10. Aaron Fike, 67, Zarounian-31.294; 11. Brad Noffsinger, 14, Daugherty/Noffsinger-31.381; 12. Tyler Walker, 35, RE Technologies-31.479; 13. A.J. Fike, 39, RFMS-31.677; 14. Tony Elliott, 20, Nolen-31.734; 15. Ron Gregory, 48, Irvin-31.790; 16. Johnny Parsons, 43, Nix-31.843; 17. Donnie Beechler, 45, Freedom-31.853; 18. Levi Jones, 18, ITI-32.031; 19. Russ Gamester, 51, Gamester-32.076; 20. Jonathan Vennard, 99, Mucci/Matczak-32.094; 21. Matt Westfall, 50, Aviators-32.129; 22. Dane Carter, 7, Carter-32.172; 23. David Bridges, 40, MB-32.200; 24. Nick Lundgreen, 0, Lundgreen-32.417; 25. Jason McCord, 4, Contos-32.508; 26. Wes Miller, 36, Miller-32.597; 27. Wayne Reutimann Jr., 00, Snyder-32.957; 28. Tom Capie, 153, Capie-33.090; 29. Rod Holshouser, 91, Harris-33.407; 30. Randy Bateman, 55, Bateman-33.519; 31. Terry Babb, 88, Morford-33.618; 32. Dana Laliberte, 04, Laliberte-34.036; 33. Jerry Nemire, 76, Nemire-34.102; 34. Brian Tyler, 12, Galas-NT; 35. Paul White, 10, Cook-NT; 36. Mike Hess, 59, S & R-NT; 37. Craig Dori, 38, Shoestring-NT; 38. Larry Neighbors, 129, Neighbors-NT; 39. Rich Tobias Jr., 17, RW-NT; 40. Jay Drake, 11, Stewart/Snider-NT; 41. Eric Gordon, 25, BWB-NT.
QUALIFYING RACE: (15 laps, top-10 transfer to the feature) 1. Kevin Huntley, 2. Jason McCord, 3. Nick Lundgreen, 4. Tom Capie, 5. Rich Tobias Jr., 6. Wayne Reutimann Jr., 7. Rod Holshouser, 8. Wes Miller, 9. Randy Bateman, 10. Jerry Nemire, 11. Dana Laliberte, 12. Terry Babb, 13. David Bridges. 8:09.75
FEATURE: (100 laps, starting position in parentheses) 1. Rich Tobias Jr. (25), 2. Donnie Beechler (16), 3. J.J. Yeley (2), 4. Kevin Huntley (21), 5. Tracy Hines (8), 6. Jerry Coons Jr. (7), 7. Dave Darland (4), 8. Ron Gregory (14), 9. Russ Gamester (18), 10. Johnny Parsons (15), 11. Jason McCord (22), 12. A.J. Fike (12), 13. Dane Carter (20), 14. Rod Holshouser (27), 15. Brad Noffsinger (10), 16. Teddy Beach (1), 17. Tyler Walker (11), 18. Aaron Fike (9), 19. Matt Westfall (19), 20. Nick Lundgreen (23), 21. Tony Elliott (13), 22. Wayne Reutimann Jr. (26), 23. Randy Bateman (29), 24. Jerry Nemire (30), 25. Dave Steele (5), 26. John Heydenreich (6), 27. Wes Miller (28), 28. Tom Capie (24), 29. Roger Rager (3), 30. Levi Jones (17). NT
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-75 J.J. Yeley, Laps 76-100 Rich Tobias Jr.
NEW SILVER CROWN POINTS: 1-J.J. Yeley-500; 2-Dave Darland-452; 3-Tracy Hines-432; 4-Dave Steele-432; 5-Jay Drake-307; 6-Tyler Walker-285; 7-Brian Tyler-270; 8-Paul White-269; 9-Rich Tobias Jr.-249; 10-Jason McCord-241.
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BUD KAEDING WINS SHORTENED TULSA RACE
Tulsa, Oklahoma………Bud Kaeding of Campbell, Calif. recorded his initial USAC Weld Racing Silver Crown race victory in Sunday’s O’Reilly Tulsa 100 at the Tulsa Fairgrounds Motorplex in Tulsa, Okla.
Kaeding was leading when the race was halted for the second time due to track conditions and checkered flagged after 77 of the scheduled 100 laps. The race had been halted 24 laps earlier for track conditions and maintenance.
J.J. Yeley finished second and emerged with a 72-point lead in the series standings.
“I had the dominant car today,” admitted a happy Kaeding in victory lane. “We gambled with softer tires at the start and I was worried about them in the later laps, but we never got to where I had to abuse them. We were lucky when the red came out at lap 53 because I had broken a shock and we were able to fix that. It’s been a while since I’ve run these cars on dirt and we were really confident, so I don’t think things would have changed if we’d run the full 100.”
Tyler Walker, after leading the first seven laps, finished third ahead of Aaron Fike and Tracy Hines. The race was the first for the series at the reconfigured 3/4-mile dirt oval since 1980.
Yeley won the pole at 108.342 mph but slipped at the start and never got back to the front.
Mike Hess won the 15-lap “qualifying race” which preceded the feature event.
USAC WELD RACING SILVER CROWN SERIES RACE RESULTS: September 14, 2003 – Tulsa, Oklahoma – Tulsa Fairgrounds Motorplex – O’Reilly Tulsa 100
QUALIFYING: (Top-21 locked into the feature) 1. J.J. Yeley, 9, East/Stewart-24.921; 2. Tyler Walker, 35, RE Technologies-25.290; 3. Bud Kaeding, 167, Zarounian-25.383; 4. Aaron Fike, 67, Zarounian-25.430; 5. Dave Darland, 56, Foxco-25.459; 6. Tracy Hines, 37, Riggs-25.544; 7. Paul White, 10, Cook-25.743; 8. Matt Westfall, 50, Aviators-25.786; 9. Jay Drake, 11, Stewart/Snider-25.866; 10. Teddy Beach, 15, Beach-25.922; 11. Jason McCord, 4, Contos-26.027; 12. Rich Tobias Jr., 17, RW-26.099; 13. Dane Carter, 7, Carter-26.234; 14. A.J. Fike, 39, RFMS-26.340; 15. Roger Rager, 03, TNT-26.494; 16. Donny Schatz, 115, RE Technologies-26.572; 17. Larry Neighbors, 129, Neighbors-26.866; 18. Russ Gamester, 51, Gamester-27.013; 19. Donnie Beechler, 45, Freedom-27.086; 20. Johnny Parsons, 43, Nix-27.413; 21. Ron Gregory, 48, Irvin-27.478; 22. Mike Hess, 59, S & R-27.875; 23. Rodney Stone, 72, B & S-28.141; 24. Murray Erickson, 71, Guardian-28.673; 25. Brad Noffsinger, 14, Daugherty/Noffsinger-29.089; 26. Craig Dori, 38, Shoestring-29.283; 27. Jackie Burke, 86, Burke-29.341; 28. Wes Miller, 36, Miller-32.206; 29. Brian Tyler, 12, Galas-NT; 30. Randy Bateman, 55, Bateman-NT; 31. Jonathan Vennard, 99, Mucci/Matczak-NT.
QUALIFYING RACE: (15 laps, all transfer to the feature) 1. Mike Hess, 2. Roger Rager, 3. Jonathan Vennard, 4. Brad Noffsinger, 5. Rodney Stone, 6. Murray Erickson, 7. Jackie Burke, 8. Craig Dori, 9. Wes Miller. NT
FEATURE: (77 laps, starting position in parentheses) 1. Bud Kaeding (3), 2. J.J. Yeley (1), 3. Tyler Walker (2), 4. Aaron Fike (4), 5. Tracy Hines (6), 6. Paul White (7), 7. Jay Drake (9), 8. Matt Westfall (8), 9. Russ Gamester (17), 10. Dave Darland (5), 11. Donny Schatz (15), 12. Mike Hess (21), 13. Rich Tobias Jr. (12), 14. Johnny Parsons (19), 15. A.J. Fike (14), 16. Jonathan Vennard (23), 17. Ron Gregory (20), 18. Murray Erickson (26), 19. Larry Neighbors (16), 20. Jackie Burke (27), 21. Donnie Beechler (18), 22. Dane Carter (13), 23. Roger Rager (22), 24. Brad Noffsinger (24), 25. Jason McCord (11), 26. Teddy Beach (10), 27. Craig Dori (28), 28. Rodney Stone (25), 29. Wes Miller (29). NT
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-7 Tyler Walker, Laps 8-77 Bud Kaeding.
NEW SILVER CROWN POINTS: 1-J.J. Yeley-560; 2-Dave Darland-485; 3-Tracy Hines-480; 4-Dave Steele-432; 5-Jay Drake-349; 6-Tyler Walker-339; 7-Paul White-314; 8-Rich Tobias Jr.-276; 9-Brian Tyler-270; 10-Aaron Fike-249.
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YELEY CAPS SILVER CROWN TITLE WITH SYRACUSE VICTORY
Syracuse, New York………J.J. Yeley of Phoenix, Ariz. put the lid on his tremendous 2003 USAC racing season Saturday afternoon, winning the USAC Weld Racing Silver Crown Series finale at the New York State Fairgrounds in Syracuse.
Yeley led the final 76 miles of the Ferris Salt City 100 to solidify his series title as he continues his pursuit of the USAC Triple Crown.
Yeley’s record 24th USAC feature victory of the year (fourth in Silver Crown), came in a spirited drive from the 12th starting spot to the lead in just 25 laps. He was third at the end of just four laps and caught pole starter Dave Darland for second on lap 11. He trailed Rich Tobias Jr. until the 25th lap, then pulled away to a 10-second advantage. That advantage was erased by late cautions and he ultimately won by 1.2 seconds.
NASCAR Winston Cup Champion Tony Stewart and USAC car owner Bob East earned the USAC Silver Crown owner’s title as the owners of Yeley’s EMP Stewart Components/Power Stroke Diesel Beast/Ford.
Tobias was second and was followed by Darland, Kevin Huntley and Tyler Walker as 11 of the 24 starters were still running at the checkered flag.
“It was an awesome day, awesome weather and an awesome crowd,” said Yeley in victory lane after winning the Syracuse Silver Crown race for a second consecutive season. “There was a second groove this year. That allowed us to run outside while most everyone else was running down low where it was slippery. That was fun. I knew Tobias was close at the end and he has a lot of experience on this track, so I didn’t want to give up the lead.”
Yeley averaged 95.042 mph. for the 100 miles, interrupted five times by cautions for 22 laps.
USAC WELD RACING SILVER CROWN SERIES RACE RESULTS: October 10-11, 2003 – Syracuse, New York – New York State Fairgrounds – Ferris Salt City 100
QUALIFYING: (All locked into the feature) 1. Dave Darland, 56, Foxco-30.072; 2. Rich Tobias Jr., 17, RW-30.338; 3. Russ Gamester, 51, Gamester-30.447; 4. Jason McCord, 4, Contos-30.528; 5. Jonathan Vennard, 99, Mucci/Matczak-30.721; 6. John Heydenreich, 90, Bank-30.758; 7. Kevin Huntley, 97, SC-30.769; 8. Teddy Beach, 15, Beach-30.856; 9. A.J. Fike, 39, RFMS-30.930; 10. Jerry Coons Jr., 115, RE Technologies-31.127; 11. J.J. Yeley, 9, East/Stewart-31.136; 12. Jay Drake, 11, Stewart/Snider-31.150; 13. Mike Hess, 59, S & R-31.176; 14. Brian Tyler, 20, Nolen-31.178; 15. Roger Rager, 03, TNT-31.182; 16. Matt Westfall, 50, Aviators-31.421; 17. Ron Gregory, 48, Irvin-31.507; 18. Tom Capie, 153, Capie-31.733; 19. Tyler Walker, 35, RE Technologies-31.740; 20. Hud Cone, 31, Mataka-32.167; 21. Wayne Reutimann Jr., 00, Snyder-32.227; 22. Rodney Stone, 72, B & S-33.840; 23. Wes Miller, 36, Miller-33.893; 24. Mike Woodring, 16, Woodring-36.488.
FEATURE: (100 laps, starting position in parentheses) 1. J.J. Yeley (12), 2. Rich Tobias Jr. (2), 3. Dave Darland (1), 4. Kevin Huntley (7), 5. Tyler Walker (14), 6. A.J. Fike (9), 7. Teddy Beach (8), 8. Matt Westfall (17), 9. Roger Rager (15), 10. Ron Gregory (16), 11. John Heydenreich (6), 12. Rodney Stone (20), 13. Jerry Coons Jr. (10), 14. Wayne Reutimann Jr. (21), 15. Tony Elliott (#20) (24), 16. Russ Gamester (3), 17. Wes Miller (23), 18. Mike Hess (13), 19. Hud Cone (18), 20. Jason McCord (4), 21. Mike Woodring (22), 22. Jonathan Vennard (5), 23. Tom Capie (19), 24. Jay Drake (11). 1:03:07.79
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-24 Rich Tobias Jr., Laps 25-100 J.J. Yeley.
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2003 USAC SILVER CROWN DRIVER POINTS
1. (623) J.J. Yeley, Phoenix, Ariz.
2. (542) Dave Darland, Lincoln, Ind.
3. (480) Tracy Hines, New Castle, Ind.
4. (432) Dave Steele, Tampa, Fla.
5. (387) Tyler Walker, Los Angeles, Calif.
6. (358) Jay Drake, Val Verde, Calif.
7. (333) Rich Tobias Jr., Annville, Pa.
8. (314) Paul White, Temple, Texas
9. (270) Brian Tyler, Parma, Mich.
10. (262) A.J. Fike, Galesburg, Ill.
11. (262) Jason McCord, Anderson, Ind.
12. (249) Aaron Fike, Galesburg, Ill.
13. (243) Dane Carter, Brownsburg, Ind.
14. (241) Ron Gregory, Noblesville, Ind.
15. (234) Matt Westfall, Pleasant Hill, Ohio
16. (226) Kevin Huntley, Bloomington, Ind.
17. (213) Teddy Beach, Donnelsville, Ohio
18. (197) Jerry Coons Jr., Tucson, Ariz.
19. (192) Russ Gamester, Peru, Ind.
20. (179) Chet Fillip, San Angelo, Texas
21. (163) Brad Noffsinger, Huntington Beach, Calif.
22. (140) Eric Gordon, Greenfield, Ind.
23. (138) Jonathan Vennard, Vincennes, Ind.
24. (135) Bobby East, Brownsburg, Ind.
25. (135) Tony Elliott, Kokomo, Ind.
26. (115) John Heydenreich, Bloomsburg, Pa.
27. (110) Levi Jones, Olney, Ill.
28. (109) Johnny Parsons, Indianapolis, Ind.
29. (108) Donnie Beechler, Springfield, Ill.
30. (106) Bentley Warren, Kennebunkport, Maine
31. (99) Michael Lewis, Noblesville, Ind.
32. (97) Jimmy Kite, Stockbridge, Ga.
33. (94) Donny Schatz, Fargo, N.D.
34. (86) Eric Butze, Memphis, Tenn.
35. (85) Ed Carpenter, Indianapolis, Ind.
36. (85) Bud Kaeding, Campbell, Calif.
37. (79) John Starks, Edgewood, Wash.
38. (69) David Bridges, Speedway, Ind.
39. (69) Kasey Kahne, Enumclaw, Wash.
40. (56) Nick Lundgreen, New Berlin, Wisc.
41. (54) David Gough, Machesney Park, Ill.
42. (53) Roger Rager, Pequot Lakes, Minn.
43. (47) Aaron Pierce, Muncie, Ind.
44. (46) Mike Hess, Petersburg, Ill.
45. (42) Jerry Nemire, Erie, Mich.
46. (36) Wayne Reutimann Jr., Zephyrhills, Fla.
47. (35) Jimmy McCune, Sylvania, Ohio
48. (34) Tom Capie, Trevose, Pa.
49. (31) Kenny Jacobs, Holmesville, Ohio
50. (31) Greg Wilson, Benton Ridge, Ohio
51. (30) Rod Holshouser, Cape Girardeau, Mo.
52. (29) Wes Miller, Seabrook, Texas
53. (29) Rodney Stone, Charlestown, Ind.
54. (27) Danny Ebberts, Canyon Lake, Calif.
55. (26) Lance Kobusch, New Florence, Mo.
56. (21) Murray Erickson, Odessa, Texas
57. (20) Jason Leffler, Long Beach, Calif.
58. (19) Brad Armstrong, New Palestine, Ind.
59. (18) Craig Dori, Chicago, Ill.
60. (15) George White, Fort Worth, Texas
61. (15) Larry Neighbors, Oklahoma City, Okla.
62. (13) Daryl Campbell, Carmel, Ind.
63. (13) Randy Bateman, Murphysboro, Ill.
64. (13) Jackie Burke, Houston, Texas
65. (11) P.J. Jones, Torrance, Calif.
66. (10) Tyce Carlson, Indianapolis, Ind.
67. (9) Jeff Gardner, Fresno, Calif.
68. (6) Mike Bliss, Milwaukie, Ore.
69. (3) Kevin Newton, Terre Haute, Ind.
70. (3) Tony Hunt, Fair Oaks, Calif.
71. (3) Mark Smith, Camp Hill, Pa.
2003 USAC SILVER CROWN ENTRANT POINTS
1. (623) Bob East & Tony Stewart, Indianapolis, Ind. (#9)
2. (480) Indiana Underground Construction (Terry Riggs), Shelbyville, Ind. (#37)
3. (432) Bob Gratton Racing, Homosassa, Fla. (#19)
4. (387) RE Technologies/Curb-Agajanian, Bartlett, Tenn. (#35)
5. (358) Stewart-Snider Racing, Bakersfield, Calif. (#11)
6. (333) RW Motorsports, Lederach, Pa. (#17)
7. (314) Paul Cook Racing, Mansfield, Texas (#10)
8. (273) Bob Hoerner, Crest Hill, Ill. (#92)
9. (272) Zarounian Motorsports, Visalia, Calif. (#67)
10. (270) Team Six-R, Zionsville, Ind. (#21)
11. (269) Foxco Engineering, Avon, Ind. (#56)
12. (262) Contos Racing, Anderson, Ind. (#4)
13. (254) RFMS Racing, Galesburg, Ill. (#39)
14. (241) Irvin Motorsports, Noblesville, Ind. (#48)
15. (226) SC Racing, Carey, Ohio (#97)
16. (213) Beach Boys Motorsports, Donnelsville, Ohio (#15)
17. (206) BWB Racing, Terre Haute, Ind. (#25)
18. (187) Gamester Racing, Peru, Ind. (#51)
19. (179) Advanced Racing Suspensions, Indianapolis, Ind. (#77)
20. (170) Fox Racing, Avon, Ind. (#53)
21. (168) Aviators Racing, Chicago, Ill. (#50)
22. (165) Carter Racing, Brownsburg, Ind. (#7)
23. (163) Daugherty-Noffsinger, Concord, N.C. (#14)
24. (154) Nolen Racing, Greenwood, Ind. (#20)
25. (143) Zarounian Motorsports, Visalia, Calif. (#167)
26. (139) Johnny Vance Racing Team, Dayton, Ohio (#2)
27. (138) Mucci-Matczak Racing, Liverpool, N.Y. (#99)
28. (121) RE Technologies, Bartlett, Tenn. (#115)
29. (115) S & S Racing, Marlboro, Mass. (#29)
30. (115) Bank Racing, Sewickley, Pa. (#90)
31. (110) ITI Performance Racing, Alta Loma, Calif. (#18)
32. (109) Ricky Nix, Benton, Ill. (#43)
33. (108) Freedom Motorsports, Sherman, Ill. (#45)
34. (99) Team Six-R, Zionsville, Ind. (#85)
35. (97) Westcon Racing, Lebanon, Ohio (#5)
36. (86) Butze Racing, Memphis, Tenn. (#09)
37. (82) Dynamics, Inc., Milford, Ohio (#69)
38. (79) Western Racing, Portland, Ore. (#98)
39. (78) Panther Racing, Indianapolis, Ind. (#41)
40. (69) MB Racing, Indianapolis, Ind. (#40)
41. (62) DePalma Motorsports, Lima, Ohio (#64)
42. (57) Randol Motorsports, York, Pa. (#95)
43. (56) Dean Lundgreen, Franklin, Wisc. (#0)
44. (54) Riverside Associates, Riverside, Ill. (#82)
45. (53) TNT Motorsports, Maple Grove, Minn. (#03)
46. (47) Sam Pierce, Muncie, Ind. (#26)
47. (46) S & R Racing, Springfield, Ill. (#59)
48. (42) Jerry Nemire, Erie, Mich. (#76)
49. (36) Snyder Enterprises, Danville, Ind. (#00)
50. (35) Jimmy McCune, Sylvania, Ohio (#66)
51. (34) Capie Racing, Indianapolis, Ind. (#153)
52. (34) B & S Racing, New Washington, Ind. (#72)
53. (30) Harris Racing, Vergennes, Ill. (#91)
54. (29) Dodie Miller, Seabrook, Texas (#36)
55. (27) Schlachter-Ebberts, Canyon Lake, Calif. (#44)
56. (21) Guardian Racing, Odessa, Texas (#71)
57. (19) Moore Racing, Clearwater, Fla. (#89)
58. (19) Armstrong Racing, New Palestine, Ind. (#110)
59. (18) Shoestring Racing, Speedway, Ind. (#38)
60. (18) Mataka Motorsports, Lebanon, N.J. (#31)
61. (17) Debbie Snider, Bakersfield, Calif. (#111)
62. (15) Paul Cook Racing, Mansfield, Texas (#100)
63. (15) Neighbors Racing, Oklahoma City, Okla. (#129)
64. (13) Miner (Red) Pedersen, Indianapolis, Ind. (#54)
65. (13) Randy Bateman, Murphysboro, Ill. (#55)
66. (13) Jackie Burke, Houston, Texas (#86)
67. (12) Woodring Racing, Eden, N.Y. (#16)
68. (10) BWB Racing, Terre Haute, Ind. (#52)
69. (9) JP Autosport (Jim Paternoster), Oswego, N.Y. (#47)
70. (7) Dr. Jim Logan, St. Louis, Mo. (#23)
71. (6) Johnny Vance Racing Team, Dayton, Ohio (#3)
72. (5) Bob Hoerner, Crest Hill, Ill. (#192)
73. (3) Pierson-Nadeau Racing, Elk Grove, Calif. (#28)