USCS Thunder in the Carolinas sprint spectacular at Carolina on FRIDAY 4/10

USCS Outlaw Thunder Tour “THUNDER IN CAROLINA” Sprint Car Nationals and “USCS North vs. South Shootout” HEADLINES RACING ACTION at CAROLINA SPEEDWAY on FRIDAY (4/10).

Atlanta, GA – April 3, 2015 - The United Sprint Car Series presented by K&N Filters (www.uscsracing.com) returns to the totally re-designed red dirt 4/10 mile racing surface at Carolina Speedway in Gastonia, North Carolina for a full night of racing action on Friday, April 10th during the 7th annual USCS “Thunder in Carolina” Sprint Car Nationals. The event for winged sprint cars also includes the Round #1 of the 10 race USCS North vs. South Shootout challenge series presented by the Georgia based United Sprint Car Series (USCS). The USCS is in its nineteenth season of competition.

The Friday night event at one of the series drivers’ favorite ovals promises to be loaded with an action-packed sprint car racing program with some of the country’s top ranked drivers racing for pride and glory in the third annual USCS North vs. South Shootout sprint car challenge event at Carolina Speedway. Friday night’s racing action features a full program of USCS winged outlaw style sprint car racing plus racing in four of Carolina Speedway’s most popular weekly racing divisions. Additionally the action packed racing card features the winged www.rockauto.com USCS 600 Sprint Car Series mini/micro sprints. The speedway’s SECA Sportsman, Street Stock, Four Cylinder and Renegade divisions will join the two USCS sprint car divisions with special events of their own. Each of those divisions will pay $500 to the winner.

The USCS Outlaw Thunder Tour and USCS 600 Sprint Car Series will contest a full racing program including their Hoosier Tire Speed Dash, Qualifying Heat races and Main Events. All four other divisions will also contest a full program of qualifying races and main events as well.

The Carolina Speedway USCS North vs. South event is expected to bring top winged outlaw sprint car drivers from at least six states to the track from as far away as Florida and Arkansas. The exotic fire breathing, alcohol burning, 700 horsepower open-wheeled USCS sprint cars weight just 1,300 pounds, and are pound for pound the World’s most powerful short track race cars. The cars will literally fly around the track surface at speeds over 130 M.P.H. It is not uncommon to see the USCS sprint cars popping "wheelies" or doing wheel stands because of the brute force of their engines and their huge 17-inch wide Hoosier rear race tires.

Johnny Bridges from nearby Cherryville, North Carolina won last season’s version of this event on April 11, 2014. The Fall visit of the USCS North vs. South Shootout was rained out. 2010 USCS Southern Thunder Tour regional series Rookie of the Year, nineteen year-old Eric Riggins, Jr. from Charlotte, North Carolina, won both winged sprint car events during the USCS Outlaw Thunder Tour presented by K&N Filters visits to Carolina Speedway in 2013. Those wins included a win in last Falls USCS vs. URC North vs. South Shootout when he bested some of the top drivers in the Nation at both Carolina Speedway and at Cherokee Speedway in Gaffney, South Carolina during the two night sprint car spectacular.

A past USCS regional series Champion, Johnny Bridges also won the 2012 Carolina Thunder Nationals Round #2 event at Carolina Speedway in September of that year. Eric Riggins, Jr. also was the winner in the first main event of two contested during the 2011 Fall Carolina Thunder Nationals contest. The only female in the field and the 2010 National “Rookie of the Year”, 18 year-old Morgan Turpen from Oakland, Tennessee won the second main event during the 2011 fall Thunder Nationals main event. Matt Linder from Hoschton, Georgia won the 2010 version of that event and ten times USCS National Champion Terry Gray from Bartlett, Tennessee won the 2009 event. All of those drivers except for Linder are entered for this year’s event with a host of other talented drivers.

Other local and metro Charlotte, North Carolina area sprint car drivers expected to enter for both nights of the USCS North vs. South Shootout include USCS 2014 Rokie of the Year, Brandon McLain from Indian Trail, North Carolina. Also expected are the previous Carolina Racesaver Sprint Car Series Champions, Jake McLain also from Indian Trail, North Carolina and Johnny Petrozelle from Lexington, North Carolina. Greg Smyre from, Hickory, Tim Perry from Mooresville, North Carolina and rookie Matt Hope from nearby York, South Carolina are also on the pre-entry list.

Other entries include sprint car veterans Brian Thomas from Pendergrass, Georgia , Joe Larkin from Suwannee, Georgia and Bob Auld from Largo, Florida. The 2012 USCS Rookie of the Year, Jeff Willingham from Ripley, Mississippi is entered as well, Also entered are Rookie of the Year contenders, Nick Snyder from Marco Island, Florida and Kyle Amerson from Montgomery, Alabama.

Carolina Speedway is located at 6355 Union Rd., Gastonia, NC 28054. The race track phone number is: (704) 869-0313. The track’s website is www.carolinaspeedway.net For USCS information, please visit the USCS web site at www.uscsracing.com or call the USCS presented by K&N Filters at 770-865-6097.