Wolff draws first blood, opens USMTS Hunt for the Casey's Cup with career-first win

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (Aug. 3)--The first feature race in the USMTS Hunt for the Casey's Cup belongs to a first-time winner after Tyler Wolff laid down a dominating wire-to-wire win in Thursday's caution-free 40-lapper at the Springfield Raceway.

Wolff, a Grant Junghans Rookie of the Year contender, was the class of the 45-car field from the first green to the final checkered flag of the night.

The 32-year-old from Fayetteville, Ark., earn the most passing points during qualifying heats, racing from seventh to finish a close second behind Rodney Sanders in Edelbrock Heat Race #3.

He was the first to redraw, drew the number one starting spot and then ran away and hid from the field to claim his first United States Modified Touring Series main event win-and effort worthy of $4,500.

"The car was awesome," Wolff said. "We've been working on the car the last few weeks trying to get it honed in. We've been pretty close, but we're pretty excited with the way the car handled."

Jake Timm started the feature on Wolff's right and kept pace for the first eight laps, but Wolff slowly began to distance himself from the field.

Wolff caught the back of the pack with a dozen laps in the books, and quickly disposed of two back-markers in his path to enlarge his advantage over Timm to more than a straight-away.

In addition to the normal $3,000 winner's share of the prize money, Wolff added another $1,500 as part of the Rancho Milagro Bonus Bucks program.

Drivers qualifying for The Hunt through one of three regions will get a $1,000 bonus for winning a race during The Hunt (that's $4,000 to win). If you qualify through two regions, the Rancho Milagro Bonus Bucks climb to $1,500 ($4,500 to win), and qualifying through all three regions earns you a $2,000 bonus, making a win during The Hunt worth $5,000.


With 12 laps remaining, Sanders eventually got by Timm for second but Wolff was long gone and took the checkered flag with Sanders following behind by more than five seconds on the Springfield, Mo., clay oval.

Ryan Gustin started 18th and found his rhythm halfway through the feature. He got around Timm with eight laps to go and settled for third behind Sanders at the finish line.

Jackie Dalton, the track's points leader, claimed the fifth spot after starting 12th. Johnny Bone Jr., Dereck Ramirez, Chris Brown, Cade Dillard and Joe Duvall rounded out the top 10.

Zack VanderBeek, who came into the race as the USMTS points leader and had not finished outside of the top four in more than 20 races, struggled to a 13th-place finish.

The series moves to the Humboldt Speedway in Humboldt, Kan., on Friday. B-Modifieds, Street Stocks and Factory Stocks will also be running with gates opening at 5 p.m. and hot laps at 7:30. The green flag waves at 8 p.m.

Adult general admission tickets are $20, but fans can save $2 by picking up a coupon at Casey's Geneal Stores locations in Chanute, Fredonia, Iola, Neodesha and Yates Center. Admission for kids ages 11-15 are $10 and children ages 10 and under get in for free. Pit passes are $35.

Curt Myers of Cameron, Wis., and his No. 1M Snickers machine will be at the Casey's General Store at 712 East Madison Ave. in Iola from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Fans can get special "Hot Ticket" worth $5 off adult general admission directly from the Myers during his appearance.

The Humboldt Speedway is a located 0.1 mile west of US 169 at the Humboldt Exit, then 0.5 mile south, then 0.9 mile east on Georgia Rd. For more information, call (620) 431-2470 or visit humboldtspeedway.com.

It's on to the state-of-the-art Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland, Mo., on Saturday before wrapping up the weekend on Sunday at the Monett Motor Speedway in Monett, Mo.

To learn more about the United States Modified Touring Series, visit www.usmts.com online or call 515-832-7944. You can also like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/usmts, follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/usmts and Instagram at www.instagram.com/usmts or subscribe to our YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/usmtstv. Keep up to speed with everything USMTS by joining our email list at www.usmts.com/subscribe.

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OFFICIAL RESULTS
United States Modified Touring Series
USMTS Hunt for the Casey's Cup powered by S&S Fishing & Rental
Springfield Raceway, Springfield, Mo.
Thursday, Aug. 3, 2017

Showing finishing position, starting position in parentheses, car number, driver, hometown, chassis/engine builder, laps completed and money won.

SIMPSON PERFORMANCE PRODUCTS HEAT RACE #1 (8 laps):
1. (2) 49jr Jake Timm, Winona, Minn.
2. (1) 21 Austin Bonner, Elk City, Okla.
3. (4) 21 Chris Brown, Spring, Texas.
4. (6) 1s Travis Saurer (R), Elizabeth, Minn.
5. (5) 49 Bob Timm, Winona, Minn.
6. (7) 52m Jared Monger, Clever, Mo.
7. (3) 1 Tony Fincher, Lebanon, Mo.

FAST SHAFTS HEAT RACE #2 (8 laps):
1. (3) 97 Cade Dillard, Robeline, La.
2. (1) 17 Mike Striegel, Wheatland, Mo.
3. (2) 33z Zack VanderBeek, New Sharon, Iowa.
4. (4) 23 Adam Kates (R), Tonganoxie, Kan.
5. (7) 2s Stormy Scott, Las Cruces, N.M.
6. (6) 07 Cory Crapser, Chippewa Falls, Wis.
7. (5) 91 Scott Drake, Joplin, Mo.
8. (8) 40 Jessy Willard, Prescott, Kan.

EDELBROCK HEAT RACE #3 (8 laps):
1. (3) 20 Rodney Sanders, Happy, Texas.
2. (7) 4w Tyler Wolff (R), Fayetteville, Ark.
3. (2) 20rt Ricky Thornton Jr., Chandler, Ariz.
4. (1) 40 Brian Green, Pierce City, Mo.
5. (8) 19r Ryan Gustin, Marshalltown, Iowa.
6. (6) 2t Jake O'Neil (R), Tucson, Ariz.
7. (4) 75 Terry Phillips, Springfield, Mo.
8. (5) 292 Kyle Thompson, Joplin, Mo.

THE JOIE OF SEATING HEAT RACE #4 (8 laps):
1. (2) 12 Jason Hughes, Watts, Okla.
2. (1) 12b Johnny Bone Jr., Pea Ridge, Ark.
3. (4) 16 Austin Siebert, Grandview, Mo.
4. (3) 86 Kyle Beard (R), Truman, Ark.
5. (5) 73 Mickey Burrell, Fair Grove, Mo.
6. (6) 15b Bobby Mayfield, Elk City, Okla.
7. (7) 611 Steve McLaughlin, Joplin, Mo.

VP RACING FUELS HEAT RACE #5 (8 laps):
1. (2) 4r Dereck Ramirez, Woodward, Okla.
2. (6) 84 John Yeoman, Joplin, Mo.
3. (1) 1m Curt Myers, Cameron, Wis.
4. (7) 81 Mike Densberger, Lincoln, Neb.
5. (3) 85 Thomas Tillison Jr., Wellston, Okla.
6. (4) 35 Jody Tillman, Branson West, Mo.
7. (5) 8c Chris Clark (R), Jackson, Wyo.

CP-CARRILLO HEAT RACE #6 (8 laps):
1. (1) 91 Joe Duvall, Claremore, Okla.
2. (2) 21 Jackie Dalton, Carthage, Mo.
3. (5) 96 R.C. Whitwell (R), Tucson, Ariz.
4. (7) 88 Chad Wheeler, Muskogee, Okla.
5. (6) 19sb Lance Mari (R), Imperial, Calif.
6. (3) 71 Jim Body, Diamond, Mo.
7. (4) 35 Chris Cole (R), Cache, Okla.
DNS - Zane DeVilbiss (R), Farmington, N.M.

REAL RACING WHEELS "B" MAIN #1 (15 laps, top 6 advance):
1. (1) 96 R.C. Whitwell (R), Tucson, Ariz.
2. (5) 1s Travis Saurer (R), Elizabeth, Minn.
3. (4) 20rt Ricky Thornton Jr., Chandler, Ariz.
4. (3) 88 Chad Wheeler, Muskogee, Okla.
5. (11) 2t Jake O'Neil (R), Tucson, Ariz.
6. (14) 75 Terry Phillips, Springfield, Mo.
7. (2) 16 Austin Siebert, Grandview, Mo., MBCustom/Durham, $90.
8. (8) 49 Bob Timm, Winona, Minn., LG2/BuckBuilt, $75.
9. (7) 86 Kyle Beard (R), Truman, Ark., GRT/Kuntz, $90.
10. (12) 35 Jody Tillman, Branson West, Mo., MBCustom/Yeoman, $75.
11. (9) 73 Mickey Burrell, Fair Grove, Mo., Shaw/BMS, $75.
12. (16) 40 Jessy Willard, Prescott, Kan., MBCustom/Willard, $75.
13. (6) 23 Adam Kates (R), Tonganoxie, Kan.
14. (13) 1 Tony Fincher, Lebanon, Mo., Allen/Richmont, $75.
15. (10) 52m Jared Monger, Clever, Mo., BMS/, $75.
16. (15) 8c Chris Clark (R), Jackson, Wyo., GRT/CNC, $90.
17. (17) 18z Zane DeVilbiss (R), Farmington, N.M., DeVilbiss/DeVilbiss, $90.

REAL RACING WHEELS "B" MAIN #2 (15 laps, top 6 advance):
1. (1) 21 Chris Brown, Spring, Texas.
2. (3) 33z Zack VanderBeek, New Sharon, Iowa.
3. (5) 19r Ryan Gustin, Marshalltown, Iowa.
4. (8) 2s Stormy Scott, Las Cruces, N.M.
5. (6) 40 Brian Green, Pierce City, Mo.
6. (2) 81 Mike Densberger, Lincoln, Neb.
7. (4) 1m Curt Myers, Cameron, Wis.
8. (10) 07 Cory Crapser, Chippewa Falls, Wis., MBCustom/Troys, $90.
9. (13) 91 Scott Drake, Joplin, Mo., MBCustom/BMS, $90.
10. (12) 71 Jim Body, Diamond, Mo., Shaw/Yeoman, $75.
11. (9) 85 Thomas Tillison Jr., Wellston, Okla., Hughes/Geddes, $90.
12. (7) 19sb Lance Mari (R), Imperial, Calif., MRT/Yeoman, $90.
13. (16) 292 Kyle Thompson, Joplin, Mo., Hoffman/GMPP, $75.
14. (15) 35 Chris Cole (R), Cache, Okla., MBCustom/Yeoman, $90.
15. (14) 611 Steve McLaughlin, Joplin, Mo., DirtWorks/Yeoman, $75.
16. (11) 15b Bobby Mayfield, Elk City, Okla., Hughes/Shinook, $75.

CASEY'S GENERAL STORES "A" MAIN (40 laps):
1. (1) 4w Tyler Wolff (R), Fayetteville, Ark., MBCustom/Hatfield, $4500.
2. (5) 20 Rodney Sanders, Happy, Texas, MBCustom/Hatfield, $1700.
3. (18) 19r Ryan Gustin, Marshalltown, Iowa, Hughes/Mullins, $1200.
4. (2) 49jr Jake Timm, Winona, Minn., MBCustom/Sput's, $1000.
5. (12) 21 Jackie Dalton, Carthage, Mo., Hoffman/Garrison, $800.
6. (11) 12b Johnny Bone Jr., Pea Ridge, Ark., Shaw/Yeoman, $800.
7. (3) 4r Dereck Ramirez, Woodward, Okla., LG2/Cornett, $700.
8. (14) 21 Chris Brown, Spring, Texas, MBCustom/Knowles, $650.
9. (6) 97 Cade Dillard, Robeline, La., MBCustom/ASI, $600.
10. (7) 91 Joe Duvall, Claremore, Okla., MBCustom/Hatfield, $550.
11. (4) 12 Jason Hughes, Watts, Okla., Hughes/Mullins, $500.
12. (13) 96 R.C. Whitwell (R), Tucson, Ariz., MBCustom/Hatfield, $450.
13. (16) 33z Zack VanderBeek, New Sharon, Iowa, VanderBuilt/Sput's, $425.
14. (17) 20rt Ricky Thornton Jr., Chandler, Ariz., Shaw/Mullins, $400.
15. (20) 2s Stormy Scott, Las Cruces, N.M., VanderBuilt/Mullins, $400.
16. (23) 75 Terry Phillips, Springfield, Mo., GRT/Durham, $350.
17. (15) 1s Travis Saurer (R), Elizabeth, Minn., MBCustom/Dakota, $325.
18. (21) 2t Jake O'Neil (R), Tucson, Ariz., Hughes/Mullins, $300.
19. (19) 88 Chad Wheeler, Muskogee, Okla., MBCustom/Durham, $300.
20. (10) 17 Mike Striegel, Wheatland, Mo., GRT/ChevPerf, $300.
21. (22) 40 Brian Green, Pierce City, Mo., MBR/Marti, $250.
22. (24) 81 Mike Densberger, Lincoln, Neb., Jet/Speedway, $300.
23. (26) 1m Curt Myers, Cameron, Wis., LG2/Sput's, $300.
24. (8) 84 John Yeoman, Joplin, Mo., Hoffman/Yeoman, $250.
25. (25) 23 Adam Kates (R), Tonganoxie, Kan., LG2/Speedway, $400.
26. (9) 21 Austin Bonner, Elk City, Okla., GRT/Knowles, $300.

(R) = Grant Junghans Rookie of the Year contender

Lap Leader: Wolff 1-40.
Total Laps Led: Wolff 40.
Margin of Victory: 5.393 seconds.
Time of Race: 10 minutes, 30.525 seconds (no cautions).
Provisional Starters: Kates, Myers.
KSE Racing Products Hard Charger: Gustin (started 18th, finished 3rd).
Entries: 45.
Next Race: Friday, Aug. 4, Humboldt Speedway, Humboldt, Kan.
Hunt for the Casey's Cup Points: .
Grant Junghans Rookie of the Year Points: Whitwell 1904, Saurer 1768, Wolff 1742, Kates 1375, Billy Vogel 982.
Engine Builder of the Year Points: Mullins 356, Sput's 307, ASI 293, Durham 213, Hatfield 204.
Manufacturers Championship Points: MBCustoms 359, Hughes 353, VanderBuilt 309, GRT 299, LG2 246.