SPRING VALLEY, Minn. -- Jason Hughes is no stranger to victory lane at Deer Creek Speedway.

But one of his more memorable runs at the track near Spring Valley ended with a runner-up finish. It was just two months ago, Memorial Day weekend, when Hughes had to come through a B Main and start 19th in the feature. He charged all the way up to the front and nearly passed leader Ryan Gustin with five laps to go before settling for a runner-up finish.

The next day, a scheduled USMTS race at Dodge County Speedway in Kasson was rained out.

Hughes, who is chasing his second consecutive USMTS national championship, could have waited around another day and competed in the makeup race at Dodge County, as well as the regularly-scheduled race at Chateau Raceway, the day after the rainout. Instead he kept a promise to his son.

"I told him we might get home and go do some fishing," said Hughes, from Westville, Okla. "I don't like racing during the daytime anyway and we had some things to get done around home."

Even though Hughes didn't race at Dodge County or Chateau that weekend, it likely didn't hurt his fanbase in the area. He has developed a good following in southeastern Minnesota over the past 10 years, and, if he was going to miss a race up here, he couldn't have had a much better reason.

"We love the fans up there," Hughes said over the phone last weekend, in Greenwood, Neb., where he was competing in a two-day USMTS event. "They always come down to the trailer after the races and we've gotten to know quite a few of them. We've been coming there for 10 years and we're even getting to know some of (the fans') kids now."

Hughes will be back at Deer Creek this week, with his sights set on one of the biggest prizes in dirt modified racing — the $20,000 check that comes with winning the inaugural World Modified Dirt Track Championship. Racing begins Wednesday and builds up for three days, until Saturday's A Main.

"I feel like we have as good of a shot as anybody," he said. "To win it, you're going to have to have some luck. That starts with qualifying. If you get your qualifying run in when the track's good, you'll have a better shot than if you have to go out when it's not as good."

Hughes knows what it takes to win in these big money shows.

He has won the Featherlite Fall Jamboree each of the past two years at Deer Creek. Last year, he wrapped up his first USMTS national championship during the Jamboree. And, in late September, 2007, Hughes had a $20,000 payday at Thunderbowl Raceway in Tulare, Calif., when he won the Western Modified Nationals.

The format for this week's event, with more than 150 drivers registered, is different than many big shows. Wednesday through Friday, drivers will attempt to qualify for one of Saturday's Main events. Drivers will accumulate points through time trials, heat races, B Mains and preliminary qualifying features. The 18 drivers with the best points totals will be slotted into Saturday's A Main, which carries the $20,000 winner's check. The remaining drivers will attempt to race their way back into the A Main, through a series of races on Saturday.

"We'll show up and race the way we do every night," Hughes said, when asked if he would approach the WMDTC differently because of the format. "When you start messing with your equipment, that's when things go wrong."

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