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LA MONTE, Mo. (Aug. 27) – It had been a close-but-no-cigar campaign so far for Jason Hughes in The Hunt for the USMTS Casey’s General Stores National Championship presented by Bad Boy Mowers, but Friday night at the LA Raceway the Westville, Okla., driver was smoking – literally.

Nate Caruth took the lead at the drop of the green flag in Friday night’s 40-lap WIX Filters “A” Main. In the first three laps, the 17-year-old built himself a five-car-length advantage over points leader Ryan Gustin, but Gustin chased down the leader and pulled alongside Caruth as they came to the flagstand to complete lap 5.

Debris on the front-stretch brought out the race’s first and only caution at that point. As the field slowed, Hughes’ machine began to belch smoke and it appeared his night might end prematurely.

On the restart, however, Hughes found a fast line around the top of the 3/8-mile oval and powered around both Gustin and Caruth to lead the sixth lap. Gustin followed into second a half-lap later.

Hughes expanded his lead over Gustin to about ten car-lengths during the next ten laps. Two things didn’t change over the final 30 laps: Hughes’ advantage over the field and the blue smoke pouring out of the rear of his Modified as he entered each turn.

After taking the checkered flag for his first win of ‘The Hunt,’ it was discovered that Hughes ran over the debris on lap 5 which punctured his oil pan. He finished the race $3,000 richer but with several quarts of oil missing from his powerplant.

Gustin finished second while Tommy Myer raced from 11 on the starting grid to third at the finish line. Corey Dripps was fourth and Zack VanderBeek wound up fifth. Sixth through tenth went to Jason Krohn, Dustin Boney, Jesse Stovall, Caruth and Tim Donlinger.

While Hughes won the battle, Gustin continues to win the war but saw his points lead dwindle to a single point over Hughes (886 to 885) after nine events. VanderBeek lurks in third with 834 markers, followed by Myer (806), Kelly Shryock (761), Krohn (749), Donlinger (689), Rodney Sanders (689), Dereck Ramirez (683) and Johnny Scott (634).

On Saturday, the 24 Raceway in Moberly hosts the USMTS Casey’s General Stores National Tour for the fifth time in three years. The 2008 event at the 4/10-mile high-banked clay oval drew national attention with the first-ever tie to end a USMTS main event as Jon Tesch and Zack VanderBeek crossed the stripe in a dead heat.

Tesch rolled to a convincing win when the series visited again in 2009. The series returned later that season in August with Michael Long capturing his career-first victory under the USMTS banner.

Jason Hughes scored the win this past April in a memorable battle that came down to the wire.

Gates will open at 5 p.m., with hot laps slated for 6:30 and the first green flag scheduled to wave at 7. Also on the racing card will be the Dart Iron Man Challenge for USRA Karl Chevrolet Stock Cars, plus local Sportsman and Hornet divisions.

The 24 Raceway is located 3.5 miles east of US 63 on US 24. For more information, call 573-881-8861 or visit www.24racewayinmoberly.com on the World Wide Web.

Race fans can pick up $2-off-admission coupons on Saturday at Casey’s General Stores locations in Macon, Madison and Moberly. Colt Mather and his Snicker-sponsored Skyrocket Modified will be meeting and greeting fans from 12-2 p.m. at the 1222 Hurley St. store in Moberly.

For more information, or to find the Casey’s location nearest you, check out www.caseys.com online.

Film crews for the Dirt Knights television show will be on hand capturing the action this week and at every race during The Hunt for the USMTS Casey's General Stores National Championship presented by Bad Boy Mowers.

Dirt Knights will be an on-going dramatic series of one-hour programs that will air during the highly coveted Sunday evening time slot for 13 weeks. The much-anticipated show is set to debut in January of 2011 on VERSUS cable sports network, reaching more than 75 million households.

Visit www.dirtknights.com on the World Wide Web for more information or to view the trailer. Also look for Dirt Knights on Facebook and Twitter.

To learn more about the United States Modified Touring Series, visit www.usmts.com online or call 515-832-7944. You can also follow the USMTS on Facebook, MySpace, Twitter and YouTube.

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OFFICIAL RESULTS
The Hunt for the USMTS Casey’s General Stores National Championship presented by Bad Boy Mowers
4th Annual Event
LA Raceway, La Monte, Mo.
Friday, August 27, 2010

Showing finishing position, starting position in parentheses, car number, driver, hometown, chassis/engine builder, laps completed, reason out (if any) and money won. The top 12 drivers in passing points accumulated in the heat races are locked into the WIX Filters “A” Main, with the top 8 re-drawing for starting positions 1-8.

ISKY RACING CAMS HEAT RACE #1 (8 laps):
1. (4) 7c Nate Caruth (R), Ames, Iowa.
2. (3) 20 Rodney Sanders, Happy, Texas.
3. (8) 19r Ryan Gustin, Marshalltown, Iowa.
4. (2) 73 Mickey Burrell (R), Fair Grove, Mo.
5. (5) 13 Aaron Poe, Warrensburg, Mo.
6. (7) 8 Colt Mather, Webster, Iowa.
7. (6) 17 Lucas Conley (R), Spring Hill, Kan.
8. (1) 12v Nathan Vaughn, Lincoln, Mo.

NEW VISION GRAPHICS HEAT RACE #2 (8 laps):
1. (2) 00 Jesse Stovall, Galena, Mo.
2. (6) 96 Chad Lyle, Oak Grove, Mo.
3. (1) 90 Terry Schultz (R), Sedalia, Mo.
4. (5) 17s Mike Spaulding, Bemidji, Minn.
5. (4) 4r Dereck Ramirez, Woodward, Okla.
6. (7) 20 Jason Thompson, Concordia, Mo.
7. (3) 5j John Schwab, Liberal, Kan.
DNS - 25 Scotty Roberts, Columbia, Mo.

SCHOENFELD HEADERS HEAT RACE #3 (8 laps):
1. (1) 12 Jason Hughes, Westville, Okla.
2. (3) 3d Tim Donlinger, Rochester, Minn.
3. (7) 33z Zack VanderBeek, New Sharon, Iowa.
4. (4) 66t Tyler Schmidt, Easton, Kan.
5. (6) 85d Mark Dotson, Cameron, Mo.
6. (5) 5 Buddy Thompson, Oak Grove, Mo.
7. (2) 22 Luke Feeback, Harrisonville, Mo.

EIBACH SPRINGS HEAT RACE #4 (8 laps):
1. (5) 7k Jason Krohn, Slayton, Minn.
2. (4) 22 Dustin Boney, Kansas City, Mo.
3. (7) 88d Matt Dotson (R), Sturgeon, Mo.
4. (6) 7 Al Hejna, Clear Lake, Iowa.
5. (1) 62 Hunter Marriott, Brookville, Mo.
6. (2) 112 Justin Moon, Sedalia, Mo.
7. (3) 02 Tommy Weder Jr., Woodward, Okla.

AMERICAN RACER HEAT RACE #5 (8 laps):
1. (2) 31 Corey Dripps, Waterloo, Iowa.
2. (1) 15r Jamie Ragland (R), Lebanon, Mo.
3. (7) 65 Tommy Myer, Blooming Prairie, Minn.
4. (4) 3 Kelly Shryock, Fertile, Iowa.
5. (5) 1st Johnny Scott (R), Las Cruces, N.M.
6. (6) 002 R.C. Whitwell (R), Tucson, Ariz.
7. (3) 18 Chase Junghans, Manhattan, Kan.

REAL RACING WHEELS “B” MAIN #1 (12 laps, top 6 advance):
1. (1) 3d Tim Donlinger, Rochester, Minn.
2. (2) 90 Terry Schultz (R), Sedalia, Mo.
3. (3) 17s Mike Spaulding, Bemidji, Minn.
4. (5) 85d Mark Dotson, Cameron, Mo.
5. (6) 4r Dereck Ramirez, Woodward, Okla.
6. (7) 1st Johnny Scott (R), Las Cruces, N.M.
7. (8) 20 Jason Thompson, Concordia, Mo., $75.
8. (4) 66t Tyler Schmidt, Easton, Kan., $75.
9. (10) 17 Lucas Conley (R), Spring Hill, Kan., $90.
10. (9) 112 Justin Moon, Sedalia, Mo., $75.
11. (11) 22 Luke Feeback, Harrisonville, Mo., $75.
DNS - 18 Chase Junghans, Manhattan, Kan., $90.
DNS - 25 Scotty Roberts, Columbia, Mo., $75.

REAL RACING WHEELS “B” MAIN #2 (12 laps, top 6 advance):
1. (7) 8 Colt Mather, Webster, Iowa.
2. (2) 7 Al Hejna, Clear Lake, Iowa.
3. (1) 15r Jamie Ragland (R), Lebanon, Mo.
4. (11) 02 Tommy Weder Jr., Woodward, Okla.
5. (3) 73 Mickey Burrell (R), Fair Grove, Mo.
6. (4) 3 Kelly Shryock, Fertile, Iowa.
7. (5) 13 Aaron Poe, Warrensburg, Mo., $75.
8. (10) 5j John Schwab, Liberal, Kan., $90.
9. (6) 62 Hunter Marriott, Brookville, Mo., $75.
10. (9) 002 R.C. Whitwell (R), Tucson, Ariz., $190.
11. (8) 5 Buddy Thompson, Oak Grove, Mo., $75.
DNS - 12v Nathan Vaughn, Lincoln, Mo., $175.

WIX FILTERS “A” MAIN (40 laps):
1. (4) 12 Jason Hughes, Westville, Okla., Hughes/Mullins, 40, $3000.
2. (3) 19r Ryan Gustin, Marshalltown, Iowa, Hughes/Mullins, 40, $1500.
3. (11) 65 Tommy Myer, Blooming Prairie, Minn., GRT/Sput’s, 40, $1000.
4. (7) 31 Corey Dripps, Waterloo, Iowa, BC/Mullins, 40, $900.
5. (9) 33z Zack VanderBeek, New Sharon, Iowa, Skyrocket/Sput’s, 40, $800.
6. (5) 7k Jason Krohn, Slayton, Minn., Skyrocket/Sput’s, 40, $700.
7. (6) 22 Dustin Boney, Kansas City, Mo., Hughes/Sput’s, 40, $650.
8. (8) 00 Jesse Stovall, Galena, Mo., Hoffman/Yeoman, 40, $500.
9. (1) 7c Nate Caruth (R), Ames, Iowa, Shaw/Sput’s, 40, $550.
10. (13) 3d Tim Donlinger, Rochester, Minn., Ramirez/Sput’s, 40, $500.
11. (2) 96 Chad Lyle, Oak Grove, Mo., GRT/Durham, 40, $350.
12. (12) 20 Rodney Sanders, Happy, Texas, Hughes/ASI, 40, $425.
13. (16) 7 Al Hejna, Clear Lake, Iowa, Harris/JR, 40, $400.
14. (23) 1st Johnny Scott (R), Las Cruces, N.M., Hughes/ASI, 40, $375.
15. (24) 3 Kelly Shryock, Fertile, Iowa, Skyrocket/Sput’s, 40, $400.
16. (15) 90 Terry Schultz (R), Sedalia, Mo., Mach1/Schultz, 39, $300.
17. (14) 8 Colt Mather, Webster, Iowa, Skyrocket/Sput’s, 39, $300.
18. (10) 88d Matt Dotson (R), Sturgeon, Mo., GRT/BMS, 39, $300.
19. (20) 02 Tommy Weder Jr., Woodward, Okla., Hughes/Clements, 39, $300.
20. (18) 15r Jamie Ragland (R), Lebanon, Mo., Allen/Richmont, 39, $300.
21. (21) 4r Dereck Ramirez, Woodward, Okla., Ramirez/ProPower, 39, $400.
22. (17) 17s Mike Spaulding, Bemidji, Minn., BC/Mullins, 39, $300.
23. (22) 73 Mickey Burrell (R), Fair Grove, Mo., TRE/Ruble, 13, mechanical, $300.
24. (19) 85d Mark Dotson, Cameron, Mo., GRT/KSE, 4, mechanical, $300.

(R) = DandyLand Farms Rookie of the Year contender.

WIX Filters Lap Leaders: Caruth 1-5, Hughes 6-40.
Total Laps Led: Hughes 35, Caruth 5.
Margin of Victory: 3.043 seconds.
AFCO Pole Winner: Krohn.
PBM Performance Products Hard Charger: Scott (started 23rd, finished 14th).
Ruter Farms Long Tow: Whitwell (1,302.21 miles).
Next Race: Saturday, Aug. 28, 24 Raceway, Moberly, Mo.
Championship Points: Gustin 886, Hughes 885, VanderBeek 834, Myer 806, Shryock 761, Krohn 749, Donlinger 689, Sanders 689, Ramirez 683, Scott 634.
DandyLand Farms Rookie of the Year Points: Scott 1682, Nick Deal 772, Mark Elliott 664, Curt Myers 619, Conley 597.
COMP Cams Engine Builder of the Year Points: Mullins 379, Sput’s 376, ASI 205, ProPower 180, JR 146.
Chassis Builders Championship Points: Hughes 378, Skyrocket 366, GRT 304, Ramirez 261, BC 161, Harris 161.

Contingency Awards:
Ai-Racing – Caruth.
American Racer – Burrell.
ButlerBuilt Professional Seat Systems – VanderBeek.
Dart Machinery – Sanders.
Eibach Springs – Krohn.
Forty9Designs.com – Dripps, Caruth.
Hooker Harness – Hejna.
Isky Racing Cams – Caruth.
KSE Racing Products – not awarded.
Marsh Racing Wheels – Mark Dotson.
Out-Pace Racing Products – not awarded.
PBM Performance Products – Scott.
Quarter Master – Hughes.
QuickTime – Boney.
Real Racing Wheels – Scott, Shryock.
Schoenfeld Headers – Hughes.
WIX Filters – Hughes.

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USMTS TITLE SPONSORS: Casey’s General Stores, Castle Rock Recruiting.

USMTS OFFICIAL SPONSORS: American Racer Racing Tires, AwesomeRacesuits.com, GoPro, Intercomp, Karl Chevrolet, Kevko Oil Pans & Components, New Vision Graphics, Nitroquest, RACEceiver.

USMTS PARTICIPATING SPONSORS: Allstar Performance, Arnold Motor Supply, ASi Racewear, Bad Boy Mowers, Bear Tire, Big Dog Chassis & Fabrication, BRODIX Cylinder Heads, Cagle Motorsports, Centex Motorsports, DandyLand Farms, Day Motor Sports, Dirt Track Racing School, Dirthead.com, DirtKnights.com, Falcon Wind Power, Farm Boy BBQ Sauce, Gressel Oil Field Service, Intensitee Custom Racewear, Just Say Yes, Karl Performance Parts, Olympic Fire Protection, Ramirez Race Cars, Ruter Farms, WIX Filters, Yeager Machine.

USMTS CONTINGENCY SPONSORS: AFCO Racing Products, Ai-Racing, Belleville Motorsports, ButlerBuilt Professional Seat Systems, COMP Cams, Dart Machinery, Dynatech Racing Exhaust, Eibach Springs, Fast Shafts, Forty9Designs.com, GRT Race Cars, Hooker Harness, Hypercoil Springs, Isky Racing Cams, KSE Racing Products, Marsh Racing Wheels, Out-Pace Racing Products, PBM Performance Products, Quarter Master, QuickTime Inc, Real Racing Wheels, RHS – Racing Head Service, Schoenfeld Headers, US Brake, Willy’s Carburetor & Dyno Shop, WIX Filters.