USMTS set to invade Kennedale for Summit Southern Nationals


KENNEDALE, Texas (Oct. 15)--As summer begins to fade and autumn begins to slither in, the United States Modified Touring Series is readying for final points race of the season at the Summit USMTS Southern Nationals.

Set for October 30 through November 2 at the Kennedale Speedway Park in Kennedale, Texas, the event will kick off with an open practice for all competitors on Wednesday, followed by three complete blockbuster shows on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

The tough-as-nails touring titans of the USMTS will battle for $2,000 to win Thursday and $3,000 to win Friday before capping the weekend with a $5,000-to-win finale Saturday night and the crowning of the 21st USMTS national champion.

Unless something miraculous happens, that person will be Rodney Sanders.

The 30-year-old from Happy, Texas, comes into the event with a healthy 212-point lead (3,619 to 3,407) over Dereck Ramirez of Woodward, Oklahoma. In order to capture his third USMTS title, Sanders simply needs to put his suit on all three nights.

Meanwhile, Ramirez has a big lead over third-ranked Hunter Marriott of Brookfield, Missouri (3,188) and Terry Phillips of Springfield, Missouri (3,021) while another former champ, Ryan Gustin of Marshalltown, Iowa, is fifth with 2,953 points.

The rest of the top ten includes Jake O'Neil of Tucson, Arizona (2,902), Zack VanderBeek of New Sharon, Iowa (2,306), Adam Kates of Tonganoxie, Kansas (2,289), Mike Striegel of Wheatland, Missouri (1,878) and Travis Saurer of Elizabeth, Minnesota (1,685).

With the points titles for the Mid-American Series, Northern Lights Series and Hunt for the Casey's Cup already sewn up, Sanders can also make it a sweep of the regional action this year by holding on to his lead in the Summit Southern Series.

Not only will fans witness the biggest names in dirt modified racing during the Summit Southern Nationals, but the best of the best in the Factory Stock and Limited Mod divisions will also be battling for $1,000 to win Thursday, $1,500 on Friday night and a top prize of $2,000 on Saturday in both classes.

On top of that, any driver that wins all three features in either division gets a $1,000 bonus or win two of three and get a $500 bonus.

Wednesday's practice will get underway at 6 p.m. and go until 9 p.m. the pits will open at 12 p.m., pre-tech will begin at 1 and the drivers meeting will commence at 5:30. Pit passes will be $20 and admission to the grandstands is free. This will likely be the only night for hot laps.

On Thursday and Friday, the pits open at 2 p.m. with the drivers meeting at 5:30 and racing at 6. The pits will open at 1 p.m. on Saturday with the drivers meeting at 4:30 and racing at 5.

More information for racers is available in the Downloads section of usmts.com and usraracing.com.

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

= = = = = = = = = = = = = = =

USMTS OFFICIAL SPONSORS: American Racer Racing Tires, Casey's General Stores, Chevrolet Performance, CP-Carrillo, Deatherage Opticians, Eibach Springs, Fast Shafts, FK Rod Ends, Intercomp, Jerovetz Motorsports Racing Parts, K1 RaceGear by Ryan Bowers Motorsports, KSE Racing Products, Malvern Bank, Mesilla Valley Transportation, MSD, MyRacePass, Nitroquest Media, Pace Performance, PEM Racing Gears & Drivetrain, RacinDirt.com, RacingJunk.com, Snickers, Spike Hardcore Energy, Summit Racing Equipment, VP Racing Fuels, Wrisco Industries.

USMTS PARTICIPATING SPONSORS: Arizona Sport Shirts, ASi Racewear, Boubin Tire & Automotive, Brodix Cylinder Heads, Duvall Electric, Eagle Moon Farm, Impact RaceGear, PBM Performance Products, RACEceiver, Rancho Milagro Racing, River's Edge Scrap Management, Tony Moro Powder Coat, Top of the World Ranch, YouDirt.com.

USMTS CONTINGENCY SPONSORS: 905 Ink, AFCO Racing Products, Allstar Performance, Beyea Custom Headers, Brown & Miller Racing Solutions, Bryke Racing, BSB Manufacturing, Champ Pans, E3 Spark Plugs, Edelbrock, Forty9 Designs, Genesis Racing Shocks, Hooker Harness, Hyperco, Integra Racing Shocks and Springs, Keyser Manufacturing, Maxima Racing Oils, Out-Pace Racing Products, QA1, RacerWebsite.com, Real Racing Wheels, Simpson Performance Products, Swift Springs, Sybesma Graphics, Tire Demon, Wilwood Racing.