Published: July 22, 2008 11:04 pm         

Chasing history: USAC driver Levi Jones hopes for more success at Action Track

TERRE HAUTE — Heading into tonight’s First Financial Bank Sumar Classic 100, Levi Jones is among the drivers looking for a precedent in United States Auto Club history to stand beginning at the Terre Haute Action Track.

The only other times the USAC Silver Crown series has contested races on consecutive nights, Mario Andretti and J.J. Yeley took home both first-place trophies.

Andretti swept the back-to-back races at Sedalia, Mo., and Springfield, Ill., in 1974, and Yeley won at O’Reilly Raceway Park and the Indiana State Fairgrounds in 2003.

Yeley’s achievement came in different cars, winning the first night on pavement and the second on dirt.

Jones, a native of Olney, Ill., wasn’t ready to declare that he’s going to achieve the rare double. But he is hoping his success earlier this year at the Terre Haute Action Track is a sign of more accomplishment to come.

“I’ve had success there so it makes you feel better going back,” Jones said. “I’ve always success there and always look forward to going there.”

Jones and Tony Stewart Racing teammate Tracy Hines are third and first respectively in the Silver Crown standings going into tonight’s third race on the schedule.

But Sprint Cup driver Carl Edwards’ team, RE Technologies, has a slight edge in the entrant point standings behind podium finishes by a strong duo of drivers.

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. will handle dirt-driving duties tonight, and Cameron Dodson will race the J.D. Byrider 100 at O’Reilly Raceway Park on Thursday.

With it being the week of the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard, race promoters are hopeful that the high-profile owners will make an appearance in Terre Haute.

“We’ve been told that the team owners, particularly with it being a Wednesday and [Sprint Cup] racing in Indy, a lot of team owners are trying to come in early,” said DHK promotions managing partner Mike King.

Jones wasn’t give any hints as to whether that was the case.

“You never know what Tony might do,” he said. “There will be a lot of people in town, and I’m sure it will be packed in Terre Haute and at IRP. The whole weekend around here should be fun.”

Jones definitely had a fun time in Indiana last week. He’s coming off an Indiana Sprint Week title just last weekend that propelled him into first place in the USAC sprint car standings.

Racing for Tony Stewart Racing for the past three years has been a blessing, and having a talented teammate like Hines to bounce things off is another bonus for the single 26-year-old.

“We’ve shared a lot of information, have really good cars, got the same engines,” Jones said. “Tony is an owner that provides you with everything you need.”

Hines, the 2000 Silver Crown champion, is among a handful of USAC drivers to have won on pavement and dirt. But Jones will be attempting to get his first pavement win Thursday at ORP in the J.D. Byrider 100.

“I just started running pavement cars,” Jones said. “The biggest challenge is just trying to have both cars ready to go.”

For his TSR teammate, winning the first half of this double appears to be the challenge.

Hines, who also leads the USAC midget standings, has not had much success in the Sumar Classic. He was third in 2002, but his highest finish other than that was 11th in 1999. Hines hasn’t ran the race, which was canceled due to rain last year, since taking 24th in 2004.

The 2000 Silver Crown series champion and 2002 Sprint Car champ, Hines could would be the fifth driver all-time to take all three titles during a career.

The Sumar Classic was named for the Terre Haute-based Sumar racing team, a team that raced national events from 1952 to 1960. The team was named after Sue Root and Mary Frances Smith, wives of team founders Chapman Root and Don Smith.

The Sumar Classic was first ran in 1995. Previous winners that should be in the field are 2006 winner Bud Kaeding, 2004 winner Brian Tyler, 2002 and 1998 winner Tony Elliott.

• Into lucky numbers? — Tonight’s race should go down as the 7,777 race since USAC started in 1956. A USAC tripleheader is scheduled to be ran at Anderson tonight, with all three races expected to end before the Sumar Classic.