Jones, Hines Take Aim At Three USAC Series Victories

INDIANAPOLIS September 18, 2007 - This weekend, Tony Stewart’s Eldora Speedway will be covered in the traditional red, black and gold colors of Chevy Racing. But when the green flag drops on the American Revolution/USAC 4-Crown Nationals Saturday night, Tony Stewart Racing’s (TSR) Levi Jones and Tracy Hines will only be looking for the black and white of the checkered flag.

TSR joins USAC’s biggest stars will take to the legendary half-mile dirt oval Saturday for the second leg of the American Revolution Weekend presented by Chevy. With full racing events on tap for the USAC National Silver Crown, Sprint and Midget Series, the countryside of Rossburg, Ohio, will be alive with the sounds of non-winged Sprint cars for the first time since mid-June.

Jones leads the USAC Sprint Series into the marquee event as he runs at the front of the championship standings. Having won two series events thus far, Jones looks to return to the winner’s circle in a Sprint car at Eldora for the first time since Sept. 24, 2005. He’ll also be seeking his second USAC Midget Series victory of the year, as well as his first career Silver Crown Series win.

Hines is looking to win his third consecutive USAC Sprint Series feature at Eldora on Saturday, having visited the legendary half-mile’s winner’s circle twice this season. Saturday, the veteran driver will look to win his second USAC Midget Series race in only two weeks. He drove to the winner’s circle at Anderson (Ind.) Speedway on Sept. 13. Hines also seeks his first USAC Silver Crown Series victory of 2008. Only two years ago, on Sept. 23, 2006, Hines earned a $50,000 payday for winning two of three USAC feature events during the 4-Crown weekend. He drove to wins in the USAC Sprint and Midget Series events, but came up just short of winning all three events as he finished 10th in the Silver Crown feature.

Jones leads the USAC Sprint Series into Eldora Speedway, holding a 13-point lead over second-place Jerry Coons, Jr. Hines is ranked fourth with 919 markers. In the USAC Midget Series standings, Hines is ranked first with 1,041 points. Jones follows in fourth place with 873 points. In the USAC Silver Crown Series standings, the duo is ranked fifth and sixth, respectively. Hines sits in fifth with 247 points with Jones ranked sixth at 244 points.

Quotes from Levi Jones, driver of the No. 20 TSR/Chevy/Maxim – USAC National Sprint Car Series, No. 20 TSR/Chevy/Spike – USAC National Midget Car Series, and the No. 10 TSR/Chevy/Maxim -- USAC Silver Crown Series

The last time you found victory lane at Eldora Speedway was during the USAC 4-Crown event in 2005. How confident are you heading into this year’s event and what does it take to win at the legendary half-mile?

“Eldora has always been one of my favorite places to race. With this weekend being Chevy Weekend, it would make winning even more fun because we’ll have some of our sponsors in for the event. It would be pretty cool to put a Chevy in the winner’s circle once, twice or maybe even three times in one night. Our team has been working really hard to get ready for this event and I know that Tracy (Hines, teammate) and I are going to have great cars for all three races.

“The key to winning at Eldora is pretty cut-and-dry. You have to qualify well and put yourself in a starting position that can help you move forward as quickly as possible once the green flag drops. But patience, especially in a longer race like the Silver Crown race, is also a key to winning at Eldora. You have to make sure you save your tires and are running near the front in order to have an opportunity to move forward at the end of the race. Leading laps is important, but leading the last lap is what counts the most.”

With the USAC 4-Crown Nationals being condensed into one day, does that make it difficult to transition between the different types of cars that you’ll compete in on Saturday?

“It’s really more important to pay attention to the race track over the course of the day. Starting practice and qualifying so early in the afternoon takes a lot of moisture out of the track. We’ll really have to stay on top of the track conditions to make sure we adjust as we need to. The track will be much different in qualifying than it will be during the time of night we run the feature. It’s also very important as a driver to make sure that I give as much feedback to Rob (Hart, crew chief) and the guys as possible. What I tell them from heat race to heat race, feature to feature, will help us make sure we’ve made the right changes to the car as the night progresses.”

Quotes from Tracy Hines, driver of the No. 21 TSR/Chevy/Maxim – USAC National Sprint Car Series, No. 21 TSR/Chevy/Spike – USAC National Midget Car Series, and the No. 22 TSR/Chevy/Maxim -- USAC Silver Crown Series

It’s been two years since you competed in the USAC 4-Crown Nationals in 2006, when you won $50,000 for victories in the USAC Midget and Sprint Series features. You’ve also collected two feature wins at Eldora Speedway this season. It’s a safe assumption that you know your way around the track. Do you think competing in three different types of race cars in a single day make it harder to find victory lane?

“It’s definitely a challenge to race three different types of cars in one day. Everything moves faster and there’s a lot of racing that will take place. The real challenge of having the 4-Crown in one day is staying on top of each car and keeping up with the track as it changes. With all of the schedules condensed into a few hours, it’s really important that we keep up with the track as it changes throughout the day and night.

“You have to be ready for anything during the 4-Crown and things move really quickly with so much going on at one time. The schedule leaves us very little time to talk with our crew chiefs in between feature events, which is why we really have to stay on top of the track. When I get out of the car for the Midget feature, there are only a few minutes to talk to Bobby (Barth, crew chief) and the team to give them my feedback on the track and what changes we need to make. For a driver like me, who wants to be involved in the set-up decision, it makes for a very focused, busy night of racing.”

Are you looking forward to one of the feature events more so than the others?

“I think that TSR has a legit shot to win all three feature events on Saturday night. It would be pretty awesome to put Chevy in the winner’s circle as a part of its sponsored event, and I believe that Levi (Jones, teammate) and I have a good chance to do so one or more times. Qualifying dictates a lot how your 4-Crown event goes and we’re going to work to make sure we come out on the good end of things to start the heat races. I’d like to win any of the three features, but I’m more focused on having a good race in the Midget feature and extending our points lead as we head into the final events of the season.”