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.

Kyle Busch, driver of the #18 NOS Energy Drink Toyota celebrates by smashing the Gibson Guitar given to the winner after winning the NASCAR Nationwide Series Federated Auto Parts 300 at the Nashville Superspeedway. (Photo Credit: Chris Graythen/Getty ImagLEBANON, Tenn. -– Joe Gibbs Racing driver Kyle Busch said he thought he was like Ozzy Osbourne after winning Saturday night's Federated Auto Parts 300 NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Nashville Superspeedway.

He may have been more like The Who's Pete Townsend when he slammed the special trophy the track gives to race winners, a Sam Bass-designed Gibson Les Paul guitar.

"Ozzy's done it, right?" Busch said

"(Ted) Nugent," crew chief Jason Ratcliff suggested.

"Pete Townsend?" Busch wondered. "I think Ozzy's done it, too. I think Kiss has even done it. Everybody's done it, expect race car drivers. All them sorry saps, they take it home in one piece and put it on their shelf, man. I break that thing up and spread it within the team so everybody's got a piece."

by Candida Benson, NHRA.com
Tony Schumacher successfully defended his NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals title, defeating Doug Kalitta to score a second straight Top Fuel victory at Bristol Dragway. Joining “the Sarge” in the winner’s circle were Funny Car’s Del Worsham, who won his second straight, and Pro Stock’s Mike Edwards, who won his second of ’09.

Though 10 races still remain in the Countdown to 10 portion of this year’s championship chase, the manner in which Schumacher, Worsham, and Edwards won in Bristol certainly lifted them into the role of a championship favorite. All three had arguably the best cars in their classes on Sunday, running low e.t. of the round multiple times during the course of the day. Worsham and Edwards clocked the quickest times of the weekend in their categories with respective runs of 4.075 and 6.633 in their final-round bouts.

by Candida Benson, NHRA.com
Cory McClenathan (Top Fuel), Ashley Force Hood (Funny Car), and Mike Edwards (Pro Stock) lead their respective categories after the first of two days of qualifying at the ninth annual NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway, race eight of the 2009 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series.

McClenathan is looking to improve upon his second-place start at the series’ last event, in Madison, which was his best qualifying position this year. If McClenathan’s 3.874 holds through tomorrow’s two sessions, it would give the Fram-backed driver the 33rd No. 1 start of his career. Force Hood is seeking her second top start of the 2009 season, which would also bring her overall total to five No. 1s during her two-plus years in the Funny Car category. Should Edwards hold on to the Pro Stock lead, it would be his fourth start from No. 1 this season and the 10th of his career.

NHRA Media PhotoBRISTOL, Tenn. – Brandon Bernstein must feel like his Budweiser/Lucas Oil Top Fuel dragster has assumed the shape of a B-2 Stealth Bomber.

Just like the Air Force’s highly-sophisticated undetectable aircraft, he’s powered along this season at a rapid pace, quietly knocking out round wins and accumulating points. However, mission control hasn’t turned him loose to bag the big one yet.

With runner-up finishes in Phoenix, Las Vegas and St. Louis, and six races of qualifying in the top five positions, Bernstein has put himself in solid position in the NHRA Full Throttle Countdown to the Championship. A top-three player in the points standings all season long, Bernstein hopes a victory at the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol will provide the boost his team needs to move to the top of the standings where they can pursue their ultimate season goal – winning a world championship title.

Strong Entry List is Set for Budwesier All-American 150

NASCAR star Kyle Busch will have plenty of competition to race against in next weekends CRA Super Series Budweiser All American 150 at the historic Fairgrounds Speedway located in Nashville, Tennessee. Busch has been the winningest driver in all three top tier NASCAR Series the past two seasons, winning a record 21 races in those three series including the Sprint Cup Series, Nationwide Series and the Camping World Truck Series in 2008 and is already back to his winning ways in 2009 with two Cup wins and is seventh in series points, two Nationwide wins were he is also the current points leader and two Truck Series wins, were he also leads the points going into this weekends NASCAR racing action.

For the 54th consecutive time, a sellout crowd of 160,000 packed Bristol Motor Speedway to watch NASCAR Sprint Cup Series racing. (Photo Credit: Chris Graythen/Getty Images)Kyle Busch celebrates winning the Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway. The win was Busch's 14th in his career and second at Bristol. (Photo credit: Rusty Jarrett/Getty Images for NASCAR)
By Reid Spencer, Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service

BRISTOL, Tenn. (March 22, 2009) — You couldn't blame Kyle Busch for believing Bristol Motor Speedway owed him a win in NASCAR's Sprint Cup Series.

After all, the driver of the No. 18 Toyota led 415 of 500 laps last August, only to finish second.

Kyle Busch does a burnout on the frontstretch of Bristol Motor Speedway to celebrate his Food City 500 victory. (Photo Credit: Chris Graythen/Getty Images)Busch didn't wait for the .533-mile short track to take its time paying him back. Instead, he seized control of Sunday's Food City 500, leading 378 laps en route to his second victory of the season.

by Steve Hixson
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. -- Calls are coming in from all over the South as race teams make alternate plans to come race the unsanctioned $5,000-to-WIN Super Late Model dirt race Saturday afternoon at the Chattanooga, Tennessee area race track. The BOYD's BLAST will kicks off the 2009 season this Saturday afternoon, with the touted BIGGEST RACE EVER, in the tracks history. Gates are opening early Jan. 24th as racers from around the region will converge on the newly refurbished dirt track. MID-NITE OIL RACING FUEL the events sponsor will be giving away free gas cards to fans and drums of racing fuel to competitors as long as the sport the proper decals during all four (4) of the racing divisions in competition Saturday.