Thunder Hill preview

"LONE STAR" DOES NOT APPLY TO NATIONAL MIDGET SERIES

A number of stars are expected to shine in Texas this weekend as the USAC National Midget Series convenes at Thunder Hill Raceway south of Austin for Saturday night and Sunday twilight races.

USAC National Driving Champions Bobby East, Dave Darland, Tracy Hines, Josh Wise, Levi Jones, Paul White, Dave Steele and Jay Drake are all among the pre-entries for the first USAC Midget race in Texas in 34 years! Five of those are ranked in the "top-10" in the current USAC standings.

Jerry Coons Jr. of Tucson, Ariz. leads the point chase in search of his first-ever USAC National title, but he's closely pursued by Drake (30 behind), Wise (59 behind) and Darland (77 behind) with 148 total points available in the two Texas programs. A 40-lap feature is scheduled on the 3/8-mile paved oval Saturday and a 100-lap finale is set for Sunday.

East is making a rare USAC appearance in a season in which he has started 18 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series races. He was the 2004 USAC National Midget Champion and has more than a dozen career feature wins to his credit.

Darland is one of only four "Triple Crown Champions" in USAC history, having won titles in all three USAC National Series. His 58 career victories include 25 in the Midgets. Hines, with a total of 23 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series starts on his resume, has 61 career USAC wins, including 22 in the Midgets.

Wise won last year's National Midget title and leads this year's Sprint Car standings. Jones is the defending National Sprint Car Champion, while White, a Texas native, won USAC's Silver Crown title in 2001. Steele is a two-time Silver Crown Champ and Drake won the 2004 Sprint Car crown.

Wise and Hines are the only drivers to win in all three USAC National Series this year. Wise won the prestigious Belleville Midget Nationals in Kansas and Hines won the recent Mopar Thunder @ The "4-Crown Nationals" in Rossburg, Ohio.

-credit: usac