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A Look Back At The 2017 Lincoln Speedway Season

4 Champions To Be Crowned At January Banquet

                (Lincoln, IL) Lincoln Speedway, located in Lincoln, IL, had a highly successful 2017 season come to an end on September 1.  The track, in its 14th season, completed 11 out of 12 scheduled events with great weather, much improved crowds, and top notch racing on the 1/4-mile.  From Sprint cars to Hornets to a Summer Nationals event that set the record for biggest crowd at the track, the track had great racing from start to finish this year.  This year’s top point finishers will be honored during the January 20 banquet.

                The UMP Pro Late Models competed in nine out of the eleven events this season at the track and Springfield, IL’s Jake Little was the man to beat.  Little started the season with three finishes of 2nd and one 12th place finish but starting with the June 23 show, he was lights out.  Little won four of the last five races and finished second at the other.  Those numbers were plenty good enough to claim the championship by 60 points over last year’s champion, Roben Huffman.  Cody Maguire had a strong season and finished third, while Brandon Eskew and Dustin Ingram rounded out the top five.  In addition to Little’s four wins, Myles Moos, Ryan Little, Guy Taylor, Matt Taylor, and AJ May were one-time winners.

                79 different UMP Modified drivers were on track this season at Lincoln Speedway, including an astounding 40 for the Summer Nationals event.  Much like previous seasons, the Modified class put on some of the best and most competitive racing, even on a few nights when the counts were a little low.  Ashland, IL driver Brandon Roberts had a stellar season, winning four features and claiming ten top fives in 11 starts.  Following Roberts to the championship were Austin Lynn, multi-time champion Brian Lynn, Ray Bollinger, and Mike Brooks.  Roberts was joined in the wins department by Bollinger with 3 and Allen Weisser, Kenny Wallace, Mike Chasteen, Jr., and Rodney Standerfer with one each.

                The POWRi Lucas Oil DII Midgets Presented By Nutech Seed had a pretty good point battle at the top all year long.  Last year’s champion, Tyler Vantoll, of Belleville, IL, was plagued with mechanical issues during portions of this year’s slate.  Taking advantage was Waterman, IL’s Jack Routson.  Routson came on strong during the season’s second half, claiming two wins and seven top fives in ten starts.  Routson took the track championship by 58 points over Vantoll, while Mitchell Davis, Robby McQuinn, and Andy Baugh rounded out the top five.  Vantoll took four features, Routson and Gedd Ross two each, and Davis and McQuinn each claimed one feature.

                Rounding out the regular classes at Lincoln Speedway was the UMP Hornet division.  Springfield, IL’s Mike Eskew claimed this year’s championship, after finishing second one year ago.  While Eskew didn’t win a race this season, four top fives  in six starts was enough to claim the championship by ten points over 2015 champion, Cook Crawford.  Adam Webb, David Lauritson, and Shane Kelley  were top five finishers.  Three wins were claimed by Webb, while Kelley, Jeremy Reed, Kenny Butterfield, and Joe Reed each won one.

                When it came to special events, two that stand out are the June 9 Arctic Cat All Star Circuit Of Champions event with Tony Stewart in action and the July 2 Summer Nationals Graue Chevrolet Showdown.  Both events saw packed houses, especially the Summer Nationals event.  The All Star Sprint race went caution free, flag-to-flag.  The July 2 event had the biggest crowd in Lincoln Speedway history, as fans from all over filled the grandstands.  The fairgrounds facility actually ran out of parking, as late arrivals had to park along the streets.  The racing lived up to and surpassed expectations as the Summer National Late Models, Summit National Modifieds, and USAC Midgets all had great fields and awesome racing.

                Work now begins for the Track Enterprises crew in preparing for the 2018 season and the work won’t be easy, trying to top the excitement and great racing that was seen during this past campaign.  Expect many of the same favorites plus some other twists and turns to up the excitement level event more.

                Next on the Lincoln Speedway schedule will be the 2017 awards banquet which is set for Saturday, January 20 at the Lincoln American Legion.  Doors will open at 6:00 that night with dinner at 7:00, and the awards ceremony beginning at 8:00.  Registration will open in October with more details coming at that time.

                Officials would also like to take this time to thank everyone who helped make the 2017 season a success.  From the drivers to the teams, car owners, sponsors, and of course the officials and fans, thanks again for keeping racing alive and well at the Logan County Fairgrounds and Lincoln Speedway.

About Lincoln Speedway:

                For more information on the track, follow Lincoln Speedway online at www.lincolnspeedwayil.com, on Facebook (www.facebook.com/LincolnILSpeedway), and Twitter (@LincolnILSpdwy).  Updates are also available by calling the Track Enterprises office at 217-764-3200.

                Lincoln Speedway is located at the Logan County Fairgrounds, in Lincoln, IL.  The physical address is 1408 Short 11th St., Lincoln, IL 62656.  Lincoln Speedway races a number of UMP classes as well as specials on a near bi-weekly schedule of Friday and Sunday evenings.  Lincoln Speedway is a proud member of the Contingency Connection’s $100,000 Racer Rewards Program.

FINAL STANDINGS (Top 10’s)

UMP Pro Late Models

Pos Car # First Name Last Name City State Points Gap
1 38J Jake Little Springfield IL 510 0
2 33H Roben Huffman Midland City IL 450 60
3 32M Cody Maguire Carlinville IL 412 98
4 11E Brandon Eskew Ashland IL 390 120
5 20 Dustin Ingram Lincoln IL 366 144
6 84 Myles Moos Lincoln IL 356 154
7 38L Ryan Little Springfield IL 336 174
8 1M Andy Minett New Berlin IL 314 196
9 67R Rudy Zaragoza Jacksonville IL 210 300
10 2K Kyle Van Dorn New Berlin IL 188 322


UMP Modifieds

Pos Car # First Name Last Name City State Points Gap
1 35 Brandon Roberts Ashland IL 614 0
2 72A Austin Lynn Mason City IL 530 84
3 14 Brian Lynn Mason City IL 514 100
4 77 Ray Bollinger Kewanee IL 348 266
5 3 Mike Brooks Peoria IL 302 312
6 10 Curt Rhodes Taylorville IL 282 332
7 98C Cole Hussong Mattoon IL 268 346
8 25W Allen Weisser Peoria IL 178 436
9 36 Kenny Wallace St. Louis MO 172 442
10 32 Donovan Lodge Andover IL 142 472


POWRi Lucas Oil DII Midgets By Nutech

Pos Car # First Name Last Name City State Points Gap
1 10R Jack Routson Waterman IL 518 0
2 30T Tyler Vantoll Belleville IL 460 58
3 56 Mitchell Davis Auburn IL 430 88
4 09 Robby McQuinn Springfield IL 284 234
5 6B Andy Baugh Mason City IL 276 242
6 5 Wyatt Teare Rankin IL 276 242
7 54 Eric Reibenstein Joliet IL 266 252
8 2 Austin Archdale Brimfield IL 262 256
9 7B Dave Baugh Bloomington IL 256 262
10 51R Gedd Ross Havana IL 210 308


UMP Hornets

Pos Car # First Name Last Name City State Points Gap
1 21 Mike Eskew Springfield IL 322 0
2 64CK Cook Crawford Lincoln IL 312 10
3 40 Adam Webb Decatur IL 220 102
4 15 David Lauritson Normal IL 208 114
5 14K Shane Kelley Hopedale IL 170 152
6 83D Dallas Lugge Belleville IL 168 154
7 X Eric Vanapeldoorn Clinton IL 156 166
8 33 Jeremy Reed Decatur IL 118 204
9 88 Derrick DeFord Canton IL 110 212
10 89 Vernon Carlow Springfield IL 106 216

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