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USAC Sprint Car Series Makes ‘Wingless’ Debut At Canandaigua Speedway Canandaigua, NY – April 27, 2006 – By Tom Skibinski, DIRT NorthEast PR Director The party is about to begin as Canandaigua Speedway joins the United States Auto Club in celebration of it’s 'Golden Anniversary' by hosting USAC’s first-ever visit to the Ontario County Fairgrounds on May 6. Canandaigua is set to stage round number eight ---concluding with a $4,000-to-win 30-lapper--- in the current 2006 USAC National Sprint Car Series schedule currently inked from April through November. Joining the wingless USAC Sprint Cars at the "Land of Legends" will be a DIRT doubleheader featuring a full show of big-block Modified and Sportsman action. Adult general admission tickets for the national points event are $25 each with $27 reserved seats also available by contacting the DIRT MotorSports NorthEast office at 315/834-6606. Gates open at 5 p.m., Sprint Car time trials start at 6:15 and racing begins promptly at 7 o’clock. In addition, fans can join in a special Meet & Greet session with USAC drivers scheduled for 5:30 p.m. behind the main grandstand. “It's certainly fitting that Canandaigua will be part of USAC's 50th Anniversary festivities as both share a great amount of racing history in New York State,” said track GM Jeff Farney. Canandaigua Speedway has been active almost every year since first opening in 1953 while USAC was established in 1956. The NYS Fairgrounds staged the initial USAC Championship event in the Empire State that same year and Canandaigua will be the 16th track in New York to host a USAC race in the past half-century. The last appearance came in 1978 when Greg Leffler won a 40-lap feature event at the Erie County Fairgrounds in Hamburg. The list of USAC winners in New York reads like a who’s who of sprint car racing: A.J. Foyt, Mario Andretti, Jim Hurtubise, Mike Mosley, Sammy Sessions, Johnny Capels, Gary Bettenhausen, Bill Puterbaugh, Rollie Beale, Tommy Astone and Leffler. The USAC Sprint division has also helped to develop the racing careers of current NASCAR stars Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart, Ryan Newman, Kasey Kahne and J.J. Yeley. Stewart was the first driver in USAC history to win championships in all three of USAC’s three main divisions ---Midget, Sprint, Silver Crown--- in the same year. The USAC Sprint Car Series encompasses 44 races, with 37 offering points. Canandaigua's inaugural event runs in conjunction with a rare USAC appearance at Lernerville Speedway in Sarver, Pa. on May 5. Levi Jones from Olney, Ill. is the defending National Champion and this season he will be a teammate of USAC Midget Champion Josh Wise of Riverside, Calif., with both drivers competing in open-cockpit entries fielded by former USAC Triple Crown and two-time Nextel Cup points champion Stewart. Wise and Jones currently run one-two in USAC Sprint Car points heading to Gas City (Ind.) I-69 Speedway on April 28, followed by Jay Drake, Bud Kaeding, Tracy Hines, Bryan Clauson, Dave Darland, Mat Neely, Dave Steele and Jerry Coons Jr. Date Track/Winner USAC NATIONAL SPRINT CAR SERIES CAR # DRIVER/HOMETOWN ENTRANT/SPONSOR/CHASSIS/ENGINE Canandaigua Speedway is located on County Road10 at the Ontario County Fairgrounds, just 1-1/2-miles north of Routes 5&20, and is easily accessible from the NYS Thruway (I-90), taking Exit 43 from the west or Exit 44 from the east. Additional information can be obtained by calling 585/394-0961 on raceday or during the week by dialing General Manager Jeff Farney () at the track office 315/730-4345. Log into on the internet any time for the most updated rosters, results, point standings and race reports as the season swings into high gear. The DIRT MotorSports™ Advance Auto Parts Modified Series is brought to fans across the Northeast by several sponsors and partners, including series sponsors Advance Auto Parts, Hoosier Racing Tire and Sunoco Race Fuels. Promotional partners include AMB i.t., F.X. Caprara Car Companies and the University of Northwestern Ohio and the contingency sponsors are Bert Transmission, Bicknell Racing Products, Bilstein Shocks, Brodix Cylinder Heads, DART Machinery, Holley HP Carburetors, Integra Shocks, MSD Ignitions, Miller Electric Manufacturing Company, Penske Shocks and Wrisco Industries. |