LEBANON, Mo. – The high-powered, mud-slinging Modifieds of the USMTS Casey’s General Stores National Tour have sights on the Midway Speedway in Lebanon, Mo., on Friday, May 15, for the first of three nights comprising the 6th Annual Missouri Nationals.

Round 2 of the 6th Annual Missouri Nationals will happen on Saturday, May 16, when the series makes its maiden voyage to the Springfield Raceway in Springfield, Mo., then the tripleheader wraps up on Sunday, May 17, at the Monett Speedway in Monett, Mo.

The main event each night will pay $2,000 to win and a minimum $250 to start.

Friday's event at the Midway Speedway will be the sixth race in the rough-and-tumble Bear Tire Mo-Kan Region where Jon Tesch of Watertown, S.D., and Jason Hughes of Westville, Okla., both have two wins under their belt this season while Steve Holzkamper of Gentry, Ark., also has a victory.

Hughes is on a roll right now, having won six of the races staged in the USMTS Southern Series so far in 2009. He sits atop the rankings for both the USMTS Southern Series and the Bear Tire Mo-Kan Region of the USMTS Casey's General Stores National Tour.

Eight-time USMTS National Champion Kelly Shryock of Fertile, Iowa, will also be on hand with hopes of putting an end to his current career-long 28-race winless drought in USMTS competition.

Other names that race fans can expect to see include Rodney Sanders, Johnny Bone Jr., Dustin Boney, Zack VanderBeek, Chad Wheeler, Scott Green, Bryan Rowland, Dereck Ramirez, Tommy Myer, Tate Cole, Tim Shields, Don Crnkovich, Kip Hughes, Terry Phillips, Jason Krohn, Jeremy Payne, Steven Martin, Brian Bolin, Brian McGowen, Dan Daniels, Pat McVicker, Ron Gould Jr., Jake Richards, Tim Setzer, Matt Waugh, Brian Wolfe, Austin Siebert, Brian Green, Justin Boney, Tony Jackson Jr., Richard Payne and Curt Potter.

Drivers will have some added incentive to find victory lane and fans will have a chance to see NASCAR driver and television personality Kenny Wallace, who will strap on his helmet and stand on the gas as he competes with the USMTS Modifieds at Lebanon on Friday and Monett on Sunday.

FRIDAY, MAY 15 – MIDWAY SPEEDWAY

The Midway Speedway will open the pit gates this Friday at 4:00 with grandstand gates opening at 5:00. Hot laps are slated for 7:00 with racing at 8:00. Local Factory Stocks, Bombers, B-Mods and Pure Stocks are also on the racing card.

The Midway Speedway is a 3/8-mile semi-banked clay oval located 0.5 mile south of SR 32 on CR B in Lebanon, Mo. For more information, call 417-594-0594 or 417-588-4430 on race day. The track's online home can be found at www.lebanonmidwayspeedway.com.

On race day, fans can pick up $2-off discount coupons at all three Casey's General Stores locations in Lebanon. Check out www.caseys.com for store locations.

SATURDAY, MAY 16 – SPRINGFIELD RACEWAY

Pit gates will open at 3:30 at Springfield, with grandstand gates opening at 5:00 and hot laps at 6:15. The first heat race is slated to start at 7:00. Local Sport Mods and Legends Cars will join the racing action.

The Springfield Raceway is a 1/4-mile semi-banked clay oval located south of I-44 at Exit 75 to Kearney Hwy., then 1.0 mile west to Westgate Ave., then 0.3 mile south. For more information call 704-701-0904 or 417-863-0097 or check out www.springfieldraceway.com on the World Wide Web.

On race day, fans can pick up $2-off discount coupons at all four Casey's General Stores locations in Springfield. Check out www.caseys.com for store locations.

SUNDAY, MAY 17 – MONETT SPEEDWAY

At Monett on Sunday, pit gates open at 4:00, grandstands open at 5:00, hot laps begin at 7:00 and the mud starts flying at 7:30. Local Bombers, Factory Stocks, Pro 4s and Rookies will also be featured.

The Monett Speedway is a 3/8-mile semi-banked clay oval located 1.0 mile east of SR 37 on US 60, then north on Chapel Dr. For more information, call the track office at 417-732-2766 or dial 417-236-0600 for day-of-race details. The Monett Speedway can be found at www.monettspeedway.net online.

On race day, fans can pick up $2-off discount coupons at both Casey's General Stores locations in Monett, as well as Pierce City. Check out www.caseys.com for store locations.

COMING EVENTS:

The USMTS Casey's General Stores National Tour drivers last competed April 11 at the 24 Raceway in Moberly, Mo. Hopefully, they're well-rested because when the high-powered, mud-slinging Modifieds hit the Midway Speedway on Friday, it will be the first of 13 events in 16 days for the tireless throttle-heavy touring titans.

Nearly $200,000 in prize money will be doled out during the May swing.

Wallace will also be competing at two other events this month, including stops at the Southern Iowa Speedway in Oskaloosa, Iowa, on May 19, and the Marshalltown (Iowa) Speedway on May 20. At both events, Wallace will also be joined by fellow NASCAR legend and semi-regular USMTS racer Ken Schrader. Schrader has also penciled-in the Cresco (Iowa) Speedway for May 21 on his calendar.

The month of May shapes up like this:

Fri May 15 … Midway Speedway, Lebanon, MO (Bear Tire Mo-Kan Region)
Sat May 16 … Springfield Raceway, Springfield, MO (Bear Tire Mo-Kan Region)
Sun May 17 … Monett Speedway, Monett, MO (Bear Tire Mo-Kan Region)
Tue May 19 … Southern Iowa Speedway, Oskaloosa, IA (Central States Region)
Wed May 20 … Marshalltown Speedway, Marshalltown, IA (Central States Region)
Thu May 21 … Cresco Speedway, Cresco, IA (Yeager Machine Upper Midwest Region)
Fri May 22 … Chateau Raceway, Lansing, MN (Yeager Machine Upper Midwest Region)
Sat May 23 … Deer Creek Speedway, Spring Valley, MN (Yeager Machine Upper Midwest Region)
Sun May 24 … Dodge County Speedway, Kasson, MN (Yeager Machine Upper Midwest Region)
Mon May 25 … Mississippi Thunder Speedway, Fountain City, WI (Yeager Machine Upper Midwest Region)
Thu May 28 … LA Raceway, La Monte, MO (Bear Tire Mo-Kan Region)
Fri May 29 … Tri-City Speedway, Granite City, IL (Bear Tire Mo-Kan Region)
Sun May 30 … Lake Ozark Speedway, Eldon, MO (Bear Tire Mo-Kan Region)

It doesn't slow down with the flipping of the page on the calendar, however, as six straight USMTS Casey’s General Stores National Tour events kick off the month of June:

Mon Jun 1 … Iowa State Fair Speedway, Des Moines, IA (Central States Region)
Tue Jun 2 … Hancock County Speedway, Britt, IA (Yeager Machine Upper Midwest Region)
Wed Jun 3 … Highway 3 Raceway, Allison, IA (Central States Region)
Thu Jun 4 … Buena Vista Raceway, Alta, IA (Great Plains Region)
Fri Jun 5 … Murray County Speedway, Slayton, MN (Great Plains Region)
Sat Jun 6 … Upper Iowa Speedway, Decorah, IA (Yeager Machine Upper Midwest Region)

All 19 events will pay $2,000 to win and a minimum $250 to start the Sunoco "A" Main each night. Rules, complete payouts and entry forms are available on the USMTS website.

To learn more about the United States Modified Touring Series, call the headquarters at (515) 832-7944 or visit www.usmts.com online for the latest news and information from the USMTS.

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USMTS TITLE SPONSOR: Casey’s General Stores.

USMTS OFFICIAL SPONSORS: American Racer Racing Tires, Awesome Racewear, AwesomeRaceSuits.com, BRODIX Cylinder Heads, COMP Cams, Intensitee Custom Racewear, Intercomp, Karl Chevrolet, KEVKO Oil Pans & Components, Nitroquest, PBM Performance Products, Sunoco Race Fuels.

USMTS PARTICIPATING SPONSORS: ASi Racewear, Bear Tire, Big Dog Chassis & Fabrication, DandyLand Farms, Day Motor Sports, Diamond Oil Company, Gressel Oil Field Service, Just Say Yes, Ramirez Race Cars, Lone Star Super Gas, Olympic Fire Protection, Ruter Farms, Yeager Machine.

USMTS CONTINGENCY SPONSORS: AFCO Racing Products, ButlerBuilt Professional Seat Systems, Dynatech Racing Exhaust, Hyperco, ISKY Racing Cams, KSE Racing Products, Marsh Racing Wheels, Out-Pace Racing Products, Quarter Master, QuickTime Performance Race Parts, Real Racing Wheels, US Brake.