WHAT TO WATCH FOR: American Sprint Car Series Drivers Set to Continue Streak of Stout Racing at Batesville

After bringing fans a “race of the year” show two weeks ago, the American Sprint Car Series (ASCS) will try to produce another barn burner at Arkansas’ Batesville Motor Speedway on Saturday, June 21.

A $4,000 check is in store for the winner of the 13th main event in Series history to be contested at the 3/8-mile oval. The first came in 1996, won by Memphis, TN-racer Mike Ward. Since then, eight additional winners have gone to Victory Lane, including four-time Series champion Gary Wright, who has two, and three-time Series champion Tim Crawley, who also owns two Batesville wins.

The local IMCA Modified, IMCA Stock Car, Hobby Stock, Midwest Modified and Arkansas Factory Stock classes will support the Sprint Car program. The pit gate is set to open at 4 p.m., followed by the grandstand gates at 5 p.m., and Hot Laps set for 7 p.m.

Tickets for the event will be sold at the gate on race day. If you can’t be there to watch in person, stream every lap live on DIRTVision.

Here are the drivers to watch for and storylines to follow this weekend:

HOME-ISH GAME — Ninety minutes southwest of Batesville on Arkansas Highway 25 sits the town of Greenbrier — the hometown of Series full-timer and defending race winner, Jordon Mallett.

The 32-year-old regional Sprint Car champion scored his second career Series victory one year ago at Batesville Motor Speedway in the Brandon Anderson Motorsports No. 55B. Five-time Series champion Sam Hafertepe Jr. led the entire race with Mallett in tow until the final lap when Hafertepe missed the bottom lane through Turns 1–2, giving Mallett the room he needed to slip by for the lead down the backstretch en route to his first Series victory since 2021.

This Saturday, Mallett returns to the seat of his own Jordon Mallett Motorsports No. 14 in search of another win in his home state. Mallett has been consistent so far this season, posting four top-10 finishes in his first five Series races.

ANOTHER TRY — Mallett’s victory in Batesville one year ago came at the expense of Sam Hafertepe Jr. But the Hill’s Racing Team No. 15H will return to the track this weekend to try and reclaim what was sitting less than 3/8ths of a mile away.

Hafertepe, 39, of Sunnyvale, TX, is headed into the weekend with momentum from his third Series victory of the year two weekends ago at another Arkansas venue — Texarkana 67 Speedway — in which he got the best of Blake Hahn and Matt Covington in a thrilling, back-and-forth battle for the lead. The No. 15H team now leads the points standings by 76 over Covington and 80 over Hahn.

USCS INVADER — Current United Sprint Car Series (USCS) points leader Dale Howard is projected to join the American Sprint Car Series roster at Batesville, where he claimed his second career win with the national 360 Sprint Car tour four years ago.

Howard, 49, of Byhalia, MS, won his first career Series event in Houston, TX, in 2000 — the only year he raced the entire national schedule. His second came 21 years later at Batesville in the opening round of ASCS Speedweek 2021, when he executed a last-lap pass for the win on then 15-year-old Ryan Timms for the win.

Howard has been the top talent in USCS competition so far this season, collecting four Feature wins and 14 top-five finishes in 16 starts. He currently leads the points standings by 186 over North Carolina racer Lance Moss.

YOUNG GUN — In his debut at Batesville with ASCS one year ago, Brady Baker raced across the finish line in fifth place, recording his best career Series finish before a technical infraction disqualified his result.

Despite the sour ending to a breakout race, the 17-year-old showed his competitive potential — one he’ll carry with him back to Batesville this weekend, which is only an hour and 45 minutes from his home in Alexander, AR.

Baker has shown consistency with the Series in his Rookie of the Year campaign, collecting three top-five finishes in five main event starts this year, with a best finish of seventh two weekends ago in Texarkana. That night, he collected the race’s Hard Charger honors — his second of the season, which is currently the most by any one driver.

THIS WEEKEND AT A GLANCE 

WHEN AND WHERE

• Saturday, June 21 at Batesville Motor Speedway in Batesville, AR

TRACK FACTS

• High-banked, 3/8-mile oval
• Track Record — 12.457 seconds set by Matt Covington on June 22, 2024

ON THE INTERNET
X — @ASCSRacing
Instagram — @ascs_racing
Facebook — @AmericanSprintCarSeries
YouTube — @AmericanSprintCarSeries
DIRTVision — DIRTVision.com (Platinum annual FAST PASS for $299 or monthly FAST PASS for $39/month)

CURRENT CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (8/34 Races)

1. Sam Hafertepe Jr. (727pts)
2. Matt Covington 651pts (–76)
3. Blake Hahn 647pts (–80)
4. Seth Bergman 608pts (–119)
5. Kyler Johnson 579pts (–148)
6. Jordon Mallett 576pts (–151)
7. Jason Martin 564pts (–163)
8. Zach Blurton 562pts (–165)
9. Austyn Gossel 552pts (–175)
10. Landon Britt 536pts (–536)

FEATURE WINNERS (4 Drivers):

1. Justin Peck, Sam Hafertepe Jr. (3 wins)
2. Matt Covington, Zach Blurton (1 win)

FEATURE LAPS LED (6 Drivers)

1. Justin Peck (65 laps)
2. Sam Hafertepe Jr. (61 laps)
3. Matt Covington (48 laps)
4. Zach Blurton (25 laps)
5. Brian Brown (15 laps)
6. Blake Hahn (1 lap)

QUICK TIME AWARDS (6 Drivers)

1. Matt Covington (2 awards)
2. Emerson Axsom, Austin McCarl, Kyler Johnson, Seth Bergman, Roger Crockett (1 award)

HEAT RACE WINNERS (19 Drivers)

1. Sam Hafertepe Jr. (6 wins)
2. Justin Peck, Matt Covington, Blake Hahn (3 wins)
3. Scotty Thiel, Whit Gastineau, Seth Bergman (2 wins)
4. Hank Davis, Chris Martin, Cole Macedo, Emerson Axsom, Austin McCarl, Sean McClelland, Caleb Saiz, Bradley Fezard, Garrett Benson, Bryan Gossel, Jake Bubak, Jordon Mallett (1 win)

DASH APPEARANCES (30 Drivers)

1. Sam Hafertepe Jr. (7 appearances)
2. Blake Hahn, Matt Covington (5 appearances)
3. Justin Peck, Kyler Johnson, Whit Gastineau, Seth Bergman (3 appearances)
4. Austin McCarl, Emerson Axsom, Scotty Thiel, Danny Dietrich, Cole Macedo, Brady Bacon, Daison Pursley, Garrett Benson, Jordon Mallett (2 appearances)
5. Hank Davis, Jordan Thomas, Scotty Thiel, Chris Martin, Brian Brown, Sean McClelland, Caleb Saiz, Chance Morton, Bradley Fezard, Zach Blurton, Bryan Gossel, Austyn Gossel, Jake Bubak, Roger Crockett (1 appearance)

SMITH TITANIUM LAST CHANCE SHOWDOWN WINS (7 Drivers)

1. Blake Hahn, Emerson Axsom, Tyler Clem, Kyle Clark, Bryant Wiedeman, Jason Martin, Harli White (1 win)

HARD CHARGER AWARDS (7 Drivers)

1. Brady Baker (2 awards)
2. Austin McCarl, Emerson Axsom, Blake Hahn, Landon Britt, Jordon Mallett, Jason Martin (1 award)

PODIUM FINISHES (14 Drivers)

1. Sam Hafertepe Jr. (6 podiums)
2. Justin Peck, (3 podiums)
3. Brian Brown, Matt Covington, Blake Hahn (2 podiums)
4. Emerson Axsom, Cole Macedo, Austin McCarl, Seth Bergman, Sean McClelland, Jason Martin, Zach Blurton, Austyn Gossel, Kyler Johnson (1 podium)

2025 SCHEDULE + WINNERS
Race Number. Day, Date / Track / City, State / Winner (Total Wins)

1. Thu, Jan. 30 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Justin Peck (1)
2. Fri, Jan. 31 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Justin Peck (2)
3. Sat, Feb. 1 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Justin Peck (3)
4. Sat, April 12 / Salina Highbanks Speedway / Salina, OK / Sam Hafertepe Jr. (1)
5. Sat, May 10 / Paducah International Raceway / Paducah, KY / Matt Covington (1)
6. Fri, May 30 / Salt City Speedway / Hutchinson, KS / Zach Blurton (1)
7. Sat, May 31 / Dodge City Raceway Park / Dodge City, KS / Sam Hafertepe Jr. (2)
8. Sat, June 7 / Texarkana 67 Speedway / Texarkana, AR / Sam Hafertepe Jr. (3)