New Castle, Ind.—Nov 20, 2012— The Turkey Night Grand Prix was born on the dirt in 1934 and for a majority of the existence of the famed event, it has been held on a variety of dirt tracks in California, with a few exceptions. One of those being a recent 13-year run on the pavement at the half-mile Irwindale Speedway. This year, the Turkey Night Grand Prix returns to its roots on the dirt at Perris Auto Speedway just outside of Los Angeles. Tracy Hines has competed in the historic event on both dirt and paved tracks and takes aims at his first Turkey Night win this week. The last time the event was held on the dirt was in 1998 at Bakersfield Speedway.
The 72nd Turkey Night Grand Prix is set for Thursday, Nov. 22, with practice and time trials opening the day, followed by two qualifying races and the traditional 98-lap main event. A practice day will be held at the high-banked oval on Wednesday, Nov. 21. The Turkey Night Grand Prix will serve as the final race of 2012 for the USAC Mopar National Midget Series.
“It’s been quite a few years since Turkey Night has been on the dirt and it will be exciting to be part of the return of the event to dirt,” said Hines. “I’ve had some good runs on Turkey Night over the years and it’s definitely one of those events every driver circles on their calendar. I’ve won a few of the bigger midgets races that are out there and Turkey Night is another I would really like to win.”
Hines has raced twice this season at Perris Auto Speedway with both of those starts coming with the USAC Amsoil National Sprint Car Series during the 17th Annual Budweiser Oval Nationals on Nov. 2–3. The native of New Castle, Ind., led 37 laps in the finale of that event, en route to a runner-up finish, after coming home fourth on the opening night.
“We were very strong at Perris in the sprint car a few weeks back, so hopefully we can carry some of that momentum into this week,” he shared. “It’s been a couple of years since I’ve raced a midget there, so having laps in the sprint car should be a big help.”
Hines made his first start in a midget at Perris in 1995 in a USAC Mopar Western Midget Series event, finishing second on a one-third-mile track that preceded the current half-mile, which opened in 1996. He made his most recent start at the facility in 2010 in a combined USAC Mopar National/Western Midget Series contest, finishing 11th, after starting 21st with a very solid field of drivers in attendance.
“Perris is definitely a momentum-type track and should really lend itself to some great racing with the midgets,” Hines noted. “We’ve been pretty strong this year in the midget at just about every track we’ve gone to. The first challenge will be qualifying well and starting near the front to put ourselves in a good position. Then you have to take care of your equipment for all 98 laps, which is the longest midget race of the year.”
Last season, Hines finished 24th in the Turkey Night Grand Prix at the half-mile paved Irwindale Speedway. He finished a career-best third in the event in 2000, behind three-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Tony Stewart and fellow NASCAR star Kasey Kahne. Hines has competed in Turkey Night at four different tracks on both dirt and pavement.
Hines, who is currently second in points with the USAC Mopar National Midget Series, has won four times with the series this season, twice on the dirt and twice on pavement, aboard the Parker Machinery Toyota-powered midget. He has picked up 12 top-10 finishes, of which seven have been top-five performances. Hines is also second in the USAC National Driver of the Year standings, with the Turkey Night Grand Prix serving as the season finale in that competition.
“It would be a great end to the season to pick up a win at Turkey Night and carry some momentum into the off-season,” said Hines. “We should have a pretty good set-up right out of the box and will make the most of the hot laps we get and fine-tune the car for time trials and the main event.”
Tracy Hines Racing would like to thank: Parker Machinery, AFCO Racing Shocks, Bell Race Gear, FatHeadz, Kenny's Components, Race Bumpers, Rod End Supply, Schoenfeld Headers and Stanton Racing for their continued support.
For more information on Tracy Hines Racing, including a complete 2012 schedule, visit http://www.tracyhinesracing.com. Follow Tracy on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/TracyHinesRacin.
- Admin Account on Nov 20, 2012
- Article Date: 11/20/2012 by Tracy Hines Racing PR