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acegear
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Joined: 22 Oct 2004
Posts: 973
Location: Enumclaw, WA
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 Posted: Fri Nov 05, 2004 8:08 pm Post subject: USAC Driver: Jason Leffler |
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A four-time USAC National Champions, Jason has also made his mark in NASCAR recently, winning pole positions in all three of NASCAR’s major racing series, Cup, Busch and Trucks! He found time in 2003 to compete in several USAC events and at season’s end ranked 25th in the National Midget Series, posting a pair of “top-10s” in five starts. He also had a pair of “top-10” finishes in the Western Sprint Cars and competed in both Weld Racing Silver Crown races at Indianapolis Raceway Park. In 2002, Jason finished fourth in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series but still found time for some USAC competition and success. He scored a sixth career USAC Silver Crown win in the “Hoosier Hundred” at the Indiana State Fairgrounds in May and was leading the 100-miler at Nazareth, Pa. after 35 miles when rained forced that race to be halted. He also finished third at Indianapolis Raceway Park in August. In the National Midget Car Series he halted Kasey Kahne’s two-year winning streak in the “Night Before the 500” Classic at Indianapolis Raceway Park and added a third at Lincoln, Neb. and a fourth at Terre Haute, Ind. Jason’s 2001 season was committed to the NASCAR Winston Cup Series and included a pole position at the new Kansas Speedway near Kansas City. A limited 2000 USAC schedule found Jason competing in eight of the Silver Crown races. He managed to win two - the Copper World Classic at Phoenix, AZ and the Coca-Cola 100 at Indianapolis Raceway Park. Seconds at Madison, IL and Irwindale, CA also helped him finish 14th in the final series standings. The 1998 Silver Crown series champion now has six series triumphs to his credit to go with 18 in the National Midget Car Series. Two of his Midget wins came in 2000 as well, both at Indianapolis Raceway Park, including the "Mel Kenyon Classic." In 1999 he won Silver Crown races at new venues, Nazareth, Pa. and Irwindale, Calif. and his 11 total USAC wins in various series ranked second only to Dave Darland in 1999 as he finished in the “top-10” in three USAC racing series. He ended up 10th in the final Silver Crown points. His 1999 National Midget title was his third in a row, becoming the first driver in 37 years to accomplish that feat! Victories during the season included the “Summer Sizzle ‘99” Midget Car race in Indianapolis, Ind., a $20,000 victory in the nation’s richest-ever Midget Car race. Seven “top-5” finishes helped Jason earn the first of two 1998 USAC driving championships - in the Silver Crown Championship Series. He later added the USAC National Midget title, capping a tremendous year for the driver who was competing in his first full season of Silver Crown competition! He led all 100 laps to win at Indianapolis Raceway Park, one of four races he led in 1998. He also won the pole in both races at IRP. He led the standings from May through September, then fell behind Brian Tyler. In the season’s final race at Madison, Ill., Tyler encountered problems and Jason’s fourth-place finish was good enough to snare the title. The “Most Improved Driver” in the 1996 Western Midget Car Series, Jason took the National Midget Car Series by storm in 1997, stringing together 21 consecutive “top-5” finishes en route to the championship in his first full season of competition. Along the way he captured the prestigious “Belleville Midget Nationals” in Kansas and the “Hut Hundred” at Terre Haute, Ind.
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