Auto racing returns to Tulsa Fairgrounds

TULSA, Okla. (July 24, 2003) - The much-anticipated return of auto racing to the Tulsa Fairgrounds is just a few short weeks away, as the stars of the USAC Weld Racing Silver Crown series will take to the ¾-mile dirt oval for the inaugural Tulsa 100 on Sunday, September 14, at the Tulsa Fairgrounds Motorplex.

Leading the charge for victory honors in the Tulsa 100 will be defending USAC Silver Crown champion J.J. Yeley, who is in the midst of rewriting the USAC record books in the sanctioning body's three major touring series.

Yeley will be faced with plenty of stiff competition, including two-time USAC National Midget champion Dave Darland, non-winged open wheel standouts Jay Drake and Tracy Hines, former Silver Crown champion Paul White and winged Sprint Car stars Tyler Walker and Donny Schatz among others.

The USAC Silver Crown cars last competed on the famed Tulsa Fairgrounds soil in 1980, then a 5/8-mile oval, when Rich Vogler and Billy Englehart shared victory honors in the twin-75 lap main events.

The September 14 event will be the first auto racing event held at the Tulsa Fairgrounds since 1984. Throughout the 1970's and early 1980's, auto racing events played to massive crowds of 10,000-plus on a weekly basis at the Tulsa Fairgrounds.

A very limited number of luxury box seats, at $36, remain for the Tulsa 100, with Reserved Seats available for $31 and General Admission for $26. General Admission tickets for children, ages 6-11, are $11.

Tickets are also available for the USAC National Midget "Night Before the 100", which will be held at Sapulpa's Creek County Speedway on Saturday night, September 13. Creek County Speedway's quarter-mile semi-banked dirt oval, located just 25 minutes southwest of the Tulsa Fairgrounds, will serve as host to all the stars of the USAC National Midget series as a prelude to Sunday's Tulsa 100.

Tickets for Creek County Speedway's "Night Before the 100" are available for only $20 in advance. "Night Before the 100" tickets will be $22 at the gate on race day.

Tickets for both events may be ordered by calling the ticket office at 918-838-3777.

More information on the Tulsa Fairgrounds Motorplex, the Tulsa 100 and the "Night Before the 100" is available at www.tulsafairgroundsmotorplex.com.

-Lonnie Wheatley