Concord, NC — Rusty Schlenk of Jackson, Mich. (Late Models) and Devin Gilpin of Columbus, Ind. (UMP Modifieds) padded their leads in DIRTcar Racing’s UMP national points standings after 11 weeks of weekly competition.
Schlenk, 23, hit double-figures in feature wins this season with his second straight triumph at Oakshade Raceway in Wauseon, Ohio, on June 12, helping him push his DIRTcar Late Model national points edge from 470 to a commanding 558 points. His other weekend start was an 18th-place finish on June 11 at Mount Pleasant (Mich.) Speedway.
The young Michigander is seeking his first-ever DIRTcar Late Model national championship. He finished a career-high third in last year’s points battle.
Moving to second in the points standings for events run through June 13 was veteran Mike Hammerle of St. Charles, Mo., who overtook the idle Ryan Unzicker of El Paso, Il., for the position. Hammerle leads all drivers with 27 starts so far this year, one more than Schlenk in a points race that is determined using drivers’ best 35 finishes/points nights.
Gilpin, 19, enjoyed a solid weekend of UMP Modified racing in the Midwest, winning on June 11 at Moler Raceway Park in Willamsburg, Ohio, and finishing third on June 13 at Windy Hollow Speedway in Owensboro, Ky. He added 21 points to his national points lead, ending the weekend with a 37-point advantage (1,756-1,719) over Rusty Griffaw of Festus, Mo.
Griffaw also won once over the weekend, emerging victorious on June 11 at Callaway Raceway in Fulton, Mo. It was his only points-producing start of the weekend.
Veteran Randle Sweeney of Clifty, Ky., who led the UMP Modified standings for several weeks before being overtaken by Gilpin, lost more ground to Gilpin despite winning on June 12 at Clarksville (Tenn.) Speedway. A fourth-place finisher behind Gilpin on June 13 at Windy Hollow, Sweeney sits third in the points standings, 166 markers behind Gilpin.
In other DIRTcar Racing divisions, Tait Davenport of West Paducah, Ky. (Pro Late Models), Jimmy Cummins of Waterloo, Ill. (Sportsman), Jeff Lawson of Greenville, Ky. (Limited Modifieds), Scott Mooers of Osteen, Fla. (Factory Stocks) and Michael Rittenberry of Clarksville, Tenn. (Sport Compacts) remained national points leaders. Frank Burnell of Waterloo, N.Y., jumped into the top spot in the Stock Car points race.
Log on to www.dirtcar.com for more information on DIRTcar Racing’s UMP circuit and to view complete points standings for all divisions.
DIRTcar Racing UMP National Points Standings (as of June 13, 2010):
Late Models (driver/points/races):
1 . Rusty Schlenk 1859 26
2. Mike Hammerle 1301 27
3. Ryan Unzicker 1263 20
4. Jeff Walson 1177 19
5. Jason McBride 1016 19
6. Brandon Sheppard 1010 19
7. Michael Kloos 1009 17
8. Brian Shirley 997 16
9. Alan Vochaska 986 15
10. Brian Ruhlman 951 15
11. Dillan White 930 17
12. Phil Ausra 920 18
13. Dennis Erb Jr. 898 15
14. Mike Schulte 898 18
15. Jeep VanWormer 875 12
16. Richie Hedrick 865 17
17. Rich Neiser 860 15
18. Dusty Moore 849 16
19. Eric Spangler 843 14
20. Jim Moon 832 18
UMP Modifieds (driver/points/races):
1. Devin Gilpin 1756 25
2. Rusty Griffaw 1719 25
3. Randle Sweeney 1590 25
4. Stormy Scott 1569 23
5. Clint DeMoss 1329 19
6. Levi Kissinger 1262 23
7. Todd Sherman 1171 18
8. Dave Wietholder 1157 20
9. Brett Korves 1149 20
10. Mike Spatola 1146 20
11. Dustin Isom 1119 22
12. Dean Hoffman 1078 19
13. Trent Young 1054 19
14. Zach Fair 1017 18
15. Rob Penny 1008 23
16. Jeff Matthews 1006 15
17. Will Krup 996 24
18. Bryce Jewell 992 20
19. Mike Harrison 978 15
20. Jimmy Ray 977 16
Pro Late Models (driver/points/races):
1. Tait Davenport 963 15
2. Bobby Pierce 857 12
3. Credence Mott 840 15
4. Scott Weber 840 12
5. Bobby Martintoni 790 14
6. Matt Santel 775 15
7. Matt Liner 733 14
8. Casey Montague 688 12
9. Nick Bauman 677 10
10. Kyle Hammer 658 13
Sportsman (driver/points/races):
1. Jimmy Cummins 1030 15
2. Chris Hillman 883 15
3. Dennis Wernle 880 15
4. Rocky Warner 839 13
5. Bruno Cyr 826 13
6. Stephane Lemire 813 13
7. Randy Petro 809 14
8. Steve Peeden 798 13
9. Brad Cummings 756 14
10. Aaron Barsness 749 12
Limited Modifieds (driver/points/races):
1. Jeff Lawson 837 15
2. Scotty Oliver 781 14
3. Jonathan Smith 725 11
4. Shelli O’Bryan 689 14
5. Ronnie Cotton 679 12
6. Clay Settles 636 11
7. John Paul Talkington 594 11
8. Kevin Dupont 554 10
9. Michael Stratton 547 9
10. Josh Tyler 521 10
Stock Cars (driver/points/races):
1. Frank Burnell 758 12
2. Mike Lynn 753 12
3. Larry Russell Jr. 743 13
4. Rick Rush 713 15
5. Tim Hughes 708 12
6. Josh Smith 703 14
7. J.R. Mason 699 10
8. Jerrad Krick 682 10
9. Josh Frye 678 13
10. Mike Welch 673 12
Factory Stocks (driver/points/races):
1. Scott Mooers 1017 15
2. Brad Venhaus 677 10
3. Zac Hoffman 665 11
4. Luke Sadler 615 12
5. Brian Crawford 568 10
6. Dave Grega 547 8
7. Troy Bunfill 516 9
8. Stephen Fohne 504 10
9. Mickey Hines 486 9
10. Richard Calmes Jr. 475 11
Sport Compacts (driver/points/races):
1. Michael Rittenberry 1080 15
2. Jordan Suhre 1026 15
3. Trevor Isaak 935 15
4. Blayne Ellis 926 15
5. Rob Shaw 912 12
6. Eldon Hemken 900 15
7. Justin Hall 837 15
8. Cook Crawford 819 15
9. Jay Gordon 788 15
10. Bradley McGhee 781 14