2009 ASA Midwest Tour Champion to compete in ASA Transcontinental Series FreeState 500 in South Africa.

American Speed Association PR
DAYTONA BEACH, FL (Release Date) - He recently collected his tenth series championship, first with the American Speed Association. He also has been a national champion and got to fly with the United States Air Force Thunderbirds flight team. But now, Steve Carlson will take his first overseas flight to compete in the American Speed Association Transcontinental Series FreeState 500 on Sunday, January 31, 2010 at the Phakisa Freeway Circuit oval in Welkom, Free State South Africa.

By Reid Spencer
Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service
AVONDALE, Ariz.—From his fiasco in Forth Worth, Jimmie Johnson rose like a phoenix in—where else?—Phoenix.

Arana wins first championship; Brown, Neff, Anderson and Krawiec collect race-wins

POMONA, Calif. – Tony Schumacher and the U.S. Army team won their sixth straight and seventh overall NHRA Full Throttle Series championship on Sunday by two points, the narrowest margin in NHRA history.

Schumacher’s team was on deck, sitting on a two-point lead over Larry Dixon, when Dixon was upset in the semifinals by Auto Club Road to the Future Award favorite Spencer Massey, thus clinching the title for the Army team.

“This trophy will go to Fort Hood; I don’t think there’s any question in the world where it belongs,” said Schumacher, alluding to the recent shootings at the Texas Army base. “We’ll present it to the family, the friends, everyone at that base.”

The win capped an intense week – and year – between rivals Schumacher and Dixon as Schumacher had to completely rebuild his team this past offseason after former crew chief Alan Johnson left to form his own team with Sheikh Khalid bin Hamed Al-Thani and hired Dixon as his driver.

Dillon Oliver claims the ASA Late Model Series King's Ransom O'Reilly Auto Parts 300 Presented by Suncoast Plastering today in what could perhaps be the final event ever at Memphis Motorsports Park. Oliver claimed the lead on lap 236 from Josh Hamner and never looked back in route to his second consecutive ASA Late Model Series Challenge Division victory. "We have worked really hard in the seven ASA Late Model Series events we have ran this season," said the new 'King of Short Track' from victory lane. "I was promised I had a specially matched set of tires and that last 200 laps the car was right."

POMONA, Calif. – The Auto Club NHRA Finals, the last race of the 24-event NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series, is all about tradition.

And drama.

And excitement.

Each November, the world’s best drag racers gather at the historic Auto Club Raceway at Pomona to put the finishing touches on a season that began in the same location in drag racing crazy Southern California nine months earlier.

By Reid Spencer
Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service
FORT WORTH, Texas (Nov. 8, 2009) — In recent weeks, Jimmie Johnson has worn out the already threadbare phrase, “Anything can happen in our sport.”

Concord, NC— November 7, 2009—A couple pieces of history were made on Saturday night live on SPEED in the finale of the World Finals at The Dirt Track @ Lowe's Motor Speedway before a standing room only crowd as Joey Saldana became just the fifth driver in the 30-plus year history of the series to win at least 20 A-Feature events in a single season, while Donny Schatz became just the second driver ever to win four consecutive World of Outlaws titles.

ASALMS PR – November 4, 2009
Champions and royalty go together, at least they do at the last event of the season for the ASA Late Model Series Teams. On Saturday, November 7th at Memphis Motor Sports Park we will put on a Finale Spectacular with the top short track drivers in the country. This will be a historic event being held in Memphis, the last race ever to be put on at Memphis Motorsports before it closes its doors for good. Gates will open at 10am, racing starts at 12pm, autograph session at 1pm and at 2:30pm the O’Reilly’s Auto Parts ‘King’s Ransom 300’ Presented by Suncoast Plastering.

Steve Carlson from Sparta, Wisconsin will do all he can to hold on to the title he earned last season as ‘2008 King of Short Track’. This Midwest legend is just one of the many talented teams going for the title of king. The O’Reilly’s Auto Parts ‘King’s Ransom 300’ Presented by Suncoast Plastering will have Champions door to door in one of the most highlighted events of the season.

TALLADEGA, ALA. -- Jamie McMurray added his name to the victory list Sunday in a surprising finish to a typical race at Talladega Superspeedway.

McMurray, odd-man out in Jack Roush's compliance move to fielding a maximum of four teams in 2010, crept home the winner in a green-white-checker finish that only made it three-quarters-of-a-lap before a wild crash brought out a caution flag making McMurray the winner.

NASCAR rules allow only one attempt at a green-white-checkered finish and McMurray was in the right position at the right time.

Kasey Kahne was second, followed by Joey Logano, Greg Biffle, and Jeff Burton.

Probably the story of the day was sixth-place finisher and still leader in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, Jimmie Johnson.

Johnson and crew chief Chad Knaus decided to spend a majority of the race running at half throttle or so in the back of the pack to hopefully stay out of harm's way and protect a lead in the standings that could eventually make Johnson NASCAR's first driver to win four championships in a row.

John Force talks about staying neutral with teammates in the Championship Hunt.