MT. OLIVE, Ill. -- After collecting more USMTS feature wins than any other builder, Mullins Race Engines claimed the 2011 COMP Cams Engine Builder of the Year title for the second straight year.

Each year, hundreds of the best dirt Modified competitors in the world take part in United States Modified Touring Series events. These drivers bring the best hot rods and best engines into battle in these events, and to recognize the top-performing power plant producers on the tour each year, COMP Cams sponsors the COMP Cams Engine Builder of the Year award.

In 2011, Mullins Race Engines of Mt. Olive, Ill., topped the competition again.

After a successful 2010 campaign which saw Mullins Race Engines win the COMP Cams Engine Builder of the Year title, the company was back in 2011 looking for an even more dominant year as some of the tour's top competitors employed the use of the potent engines. The Mullins Race Engines effort was led by 2011 USMTS National Champion Ryan Gustin from Marshalltown, Iowa, who won a series best 23 features on the season.

As if Gustin's performances weren't enough, 2010 USMTS Nationals Champion Jason Hughes from Watts, Okla., earned 11 feature wins and also claimed the USMTS Southeast Region title. Various other drivers utilizing Mullins Race Engines contributed wins during the course of the long season to give the builder an impressive 112 point advantage in the final standings.

A Wisconsin engine builder, Pro Power Racing finished second in the final standings as veteran racer Kelly Shryock from Fertile, Iowa, enjoyed a bounce-back season on his way to 12 wins on the tour, including the $15,000 triumph in the King of America Modified Nationals at the Humboldt Speedway in October. A host of other Pro Power Race Engines drivers also found victory lane on the tour, including Oklahoma's Derek Ramirez, who broke through with his first two career wins with the series, which came in the season finale at the Royal Purple Raceway in Baytown, Texas, in November.

Three-time COMP Cams Engine Builder of the Year honoree Sput's Race Engines of Owatonna, Minn., rounded out the podium in the competition with a third-place finish. Several customers of the engine builder found victory lane in 2011, led by Jon Tesch of Watertown, S.D., with three wins. Zack VanderBeek and Tommy Myer were among the other Sput's Race Engines customers who etched their names into the win column in 2011.

ASI Racing Engines (Lubbock, Texas) with drivers such as Johnny Scott and Geddes Race Engines (Colorado Springs, Colo.), which powered Rodney Sanders and Randy Timms to multiple wins in 2011, rounded out the top five in the final standings in the COMP Cams Engine Builder of the Year competition.

Despite the resounding domination of the competition by Mullins Race Engines, each of the top five engine builders represented in the final standings recorded their own impressive performances throughout the course of the season. For any engine builder to see his product in victory lane on any given night is a testimony to the quality of the power plants being produced by these great companies. COMP Cams is proud to know that its products are found in just about every one of these winning engines.

In all, 83 different engine builders scored points in the 2011 COMP Cams Engine Builder of the Year competition.

The COMP Cams Engine Builder of the Year Award was created at the start of the 2008 campaign to recognize the masters of the horsepower-making craft  whose dedication, hard work and unparalleled expertise propel the mud-slinging USMTS Modifieds around America's finest dirt ovals.

For more than 32 years, the COMP Cams mission has never changed: to produce the highest-performing products possible, provide customers with superior service, and to lead the industry in technological development. While the COMP Performance Group has grown to multiple companies and hundreds of employees, we still retain the competitive spirit and desire to be the very best that has positioned COMP Cams as the absolute leader in valve train components.

COMP Cams has never forgotten that performance is defined by results – both at the track and on the street.

Headquartered in Memphis, Tenn., COMP Cams employs the industry’s largest and most highly-trained engineering staff, and the most sophisticated manufacturing processes and test equipment in the world. The integration of research, engineering and development at COMP Cams consistently proves itself by out-performing the competition.

Whether you’re looking for horsepower, reliability or gas mileage, COMP Cams has the products that will deliver. For more information about COMP Cams, call toll-free 800-999-0853 or visit them online at www.compcams.com.

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.

= = = = = = = = = = = = = = =

USMTS TITLE SPONSORS: Casey’s General Stores, Swan Energy.

USMTS OFFICIAL SPONSORS: American Racer Racing Tires, Awesome Race Suits, Cheetos, Intercomp, Karl Chevrolet, KEVKO Oil Pans & Components, New Vision Graphics, Nitroquest, RACEceiver, SLAP Energy, Snickers.

USMTS PARTICIPATING SPONSORS: Arnold Motor Supply, ASi Racewear, BRODIX Cylinder Heads, Day Motor Sports, Dirthead.com, DirtKnights.com, DrySlik Dirt Trak Racewear, Farm Boy BBQ Sauce, Intensitee Custom Racewear, Karl Performance Parts, Mesilla Valley Transportation, Olympic Fire Protection, Ramirez Race Cars, Ruter Farms, Sybesma Graphics, Yeager Machine.

USMTS CONTINGENCY SPONSORS: AFCO Racing Products, COMP Cams, CPD Racing Tools, Eibach Springs, Erson Cams, Fast Shafts, Forty9Designs.com, Genesis Shocks, Hooker Harness, Hypercoil Springs, ISKY Racing Cams, The Joie of Seating, KSE Racing Products, Marsh Racing Wheels, Out-Pace Racing Products, PBM Performance Products, Quarter Master, Real Racing Wheels, RHS – Racing Head Service, Tiger Rear Ends, Wehrs Machine & Racing Products, WIX Filters.