TSR, Hines, Jones Terre Haute preview

TONY STEWART RACING, CHEVY GEAR UP FOR 57TH HUT HUNDRED AT HISTORIC TERRE HAUTE ACTION TRACK

INDIANAPOLIS (October 3, 2008) -- Tony Stewart Racing's (TSR) Tracy Hines and Levi Jones are set to tackle the historic half-mile of the Terre Haute (Ind.) Action Track (THAT) this weekend as the USAC National Midget Car Series takes center stage in the series' final Midwest appearance of the season. The 57th Hut Hundred, sponsored by The First Financial Bank, features a 100-lap race from which the winner's name will be etched in the record books alongside some of the sport's greatest of all time.

Entering Saturday's Hut Hundred, Hines leads the USAC Midget Series standings with 1,060 points. He and the No. 21 Chevy/Bass Pro Shops/Spike team have one series victory this season. Hines has made 18 USAC Midget Series starts at THAT in his career, having posted one victory in USAC Regional Midget Series competition. He is a former winner of the Hut Hundred, having taken the checkered flag in 2001 when the event was held at Lincoln Park Speedway.

Jones, the other half of the TSR duo, has made only one USAC Midget Series start at Terre Haute in his career. He finished sixth in his first Hut Hundred start on Sept. 9, 2006. Jones and the No. 20 Chevy/Bass Pro Shops/Spike team have earned one USAC Midget Series victory thus far in 2008. In Sprint Car series action at THAT, Jones has five victories in 34 starts. He is ranked fourth in the USAC Midget Series standings with 916 points.

Levi Jones, driver of the No. 20 TSR/Chevy/Bass Pro Shop/Spike for Tony Stewart Racing:

You've won five Sprint Car features at the Terre Haute Action Track in your career. What would it mean to you to have your first USAC Midget Series victory at the track come in the historic Hut Hundred?

"Terre Haute is one of my favorite race tracks, hands down. I am from Olney, Ill., and much of my family still lives there. It's pretty close to Terre Haute and I consider it to be my home track. It's always fun to race there as my family and friends come out to support me and it's been cool to have them there the five times I've been in victory lane. Putting my name in the books as the winner of the Hut Hundred would be a milestone in my career. I've only been racing Midgets since 2006, and even though I've taken the checkered flag at Terre Haute several times, it would be huge to do so in the Midget. I'd love to put Chevy and Bass Pro Shops in the winner's circle this Saturday and I'm very confident the car that the TSR team has prepared will give me a good opportunity to do so."

What's the key to success at the Terre Haute Action Track?

"Success is something that is found in very different ways when it comes to a Sprint car and a Midget. In a typical Sprint car race at Terre Haute, you want to qualify well and put yourself in a position to be near front at the end of the race. A Sprint car race is typically 30 laps, so things are happening at a really fast pace. In a 100-lap Midget race, patience is what you need to remember as a driver. Qualifying is still a big part of how your evening is going to play out, so we need to make sure we come away with a good lap. The difference is strategy for the race. At the beginning of the race, you want to make sure you stay close enough to be able to move forward as you get down to the final laps, but you also have to stay out of trouble during the middle stretch of the race. You also have to take care of your tires well enough to have something to go on when you get close to the end. Patience is really the key."

Tracy Hines, driver of the No. 21 TSR/Chevy/Bass Pro Shops/Spike for Tony Stewart Racing:

This will be the first time in several years that you've competed in multiple events at the Terre Haute Action Track. Are you looking forward to this weekend's Hut Hundred?

"The Hut Hundred has been a staple of the USAC Midget Series schedule for many years and it's great to have it as our final Midwest appearance of the season this year. We've had an opportunity to compete at Terre Haute twice this season and it's been great to see the track fall back into its role as a part of the USAC schedule. As a former winner of the Hut Hundred, I'm really looking forward to this Saturday's race. The list of drivers who have won this event makes it a very special race. I'm also ready to get on the track and see how the new car the TSR team built this week is going to feel. The crew worked really hard to get this car together after we were caught up in an accident at Eldora (Speedway) during the Chevy Weekend and I'm really confident that we're going to have a good shot of running up front."

Dirt tracks in the Midwest can be very tricky in planning race strategy and set-ups. How would you like to see the track's surface be for this Saturday's race?

"I'm hoping that the track shapes up to be dry slick with a really good cushion. That's our best-case scenario. With the Spike chassis and Chevy engine package that we're competing with this year, dry slick tracks work very well with that combination. Running with the Modifieds on Saturday, I think we're going to see the track go in that direction over the course of the night. We'll work to stay on top of the track conditions all night and make the right call in terms of tires and set-up before the feature. The track is definitely going to change from qualifying to race time and we'll have to make sure we make the right adjustments to put the No. 21 Chevy/Bass Pro Shops/Spike up front."

-credit: tsr