|
KNOXVILLE, IOWA (March 19, 2005) - From 1991 through
2003, World of Outlaws (WoO) founder and president Ted Johnson was named the
sport’s ‘Most Influential Leader’ by the North American Sprint Car Poll.
Now, for the second year in a row, Knoxville Raceway director of racing Ralph
Capitani holds that same honor, as determined by an industry-wide voting panel
of manufacturers, media members, sanctioning officials and promoters.
“Cappy” captured 15 of the 42 first-place ballots cast in the 2005 poll,
which was actually one less than the 16 earned by 19-time WoO point champion
Steve Kinser. However, Capitani out-pointed WoO's 'senior statesman' Kinser,
2,523 to 2,382.
Those ranked third through sixth, respectively, among “Sprint Car Racing’s
30 Most Influential Leaders” are new Eldora Speedway owner Tony Stewart (three
first-place votes), Emmett Hahn (five votes) of the American Sprint Car Series (ASCS),
United States Auto Club (USAC) president Rollie Helmling (one vote), and chief
executive officer Paul Kruger (four votes) of WoO parent company DIRT
MotorSports. John Padjen of northern California’s Silver Dollar Speedway,
Civil War Series, and the Golden State Challenge also received one first-place
vote and ranked fifteenth in the special poll.
The leadership of the sport of sprint car racing continues to be very stable as
the highest-ranked ‘new-comer’ to the poll is veteran Alan Kreitzer in 17th
place, and he comes back to the rankings having returned to the promoter’s
post at the venerable Williams Grove Speedway in central Pennsylvania. Besides
Kreitzer, others who were unranked last year are The Outdoor Channel’s Brad
Doty, Eagle Raceway’s Craig Cormack, Northern Sprint Tour (NST) and Grays
Harbor Raceway promoter Fred Brownfield, United Sprint Car Series (USCS)
president Pete Walton, SLS Promotion’s Scott Boyd, and Beef Packers’ car
owner/promoter Dennis Roth.
It is interesting to note that Earl Baltes, who sold his famed Eldora Speedway
to NASCAR star Tony Stewart late last year, continues to be ranked 18th, while
former WoO ‘head honcho’ Ted Johnson did not receive multiple votes for the
first time in the history of the poll. During the decade of the ‘90s, Johnson,
Baltes, and former All Star Circuit of Champions (ASCoC) president Bert Emick
dominated the ‘power poll’ rankings along with Knoxville’s Ralph Capitani.
All four have previously been inducted into the National Sprint Car Hall of
Fame, and will be joined in the Hall by fifty-year-old Steve Kinser on June 4,
2005.
The North American Sprint Car Poll is an official awards program of the National
Sprint Car Hall of Fame and Museum Foundation of Knoxville, Iowa.
Special Edition 2005 North American Sprint Car Poll:
“Sprint Car Racing’s 30 Most Influential Leaders”
2005 Rank, 2004 Rank, Person (First Place), Affiliation, Occupation, Points
1., 1., Ralph Capitani (15), Knoxville Raceway, 360/410 promoter, 2,523
2., 5., Steve Kinser (16), Quaker State #11, 410 driver/owner, 2,382
3., 8., Tony Stewart (3), Mopar #20, 21/Eldora Speedway, non-w/410
owner/promoter, 1,310
4., 4., Emmett Hahn (5), ASCS/Sprint Bandits, 360/non-w sanction, 1,306
5., 6., Rollie Helmling (1), U.S. Auto Club, non-w sanction, 882
6., 7., Paul Kruger (1), DIRT/WoO/BMSR, 410 sanction, 542
7., 11., Tom Schmeh, Natl Spr Car Museum, non-w/360/410 media, 382
8., 9., Guy Webb, All Star Circuit of Champions, 410 sanction/owner, 321
9., 10., Doug Auld, Sprint Car & Midget, non-w/360/410 media, 313
10., 19., Danny Lasoski, Bass Pro Shops #20, 410 driver, 277
11., 15., Steve Sinclair, IRA/SLS Promotions, 410 promoter/sanction, 212
12., 14., Allan Holland, www.hoseheads.com, non-w/360/410 media, 205
13., 16., Dave Argabright, SC&M/Speed Channel/NSSN, non-w/360/410 media, 199
14., 13., Ron Shuman, Sprint Car Racing Association, non-w sanction, 188
15., 17., John Padjen (1), Silver Dollar/GSC/CW, 360/410 promoter/sanction, 186
16., 12., Bobby Hartslief, DIRT/WoO/BMSR, 410 sanction, 175
17., -, Alan Kreitzer, Williams Grove/Lincoln, 358/410 promoter, 173
18., 2., Earl Baltes, retired non-w/360/410 promoter, 123
19., 18., Lanny Edwards, Devil’s Bowl Speedway, 360/410 promoter, 102
20., -, Brad Doty, The Outdoor Channel/SC&M, non-w/360/410 media, 90
tie, 21., Chuck Merrill, Maxim Chassis, non-w/360/410 builder, 90
22., -, Craig Cormack, Eagle Raceway/ESTS, 360/410 promoter/sanction, 78
23., 22., Chris Economaki, National Speed Sport News, non-w/360/410 media, 70
24., -, Fred Brownfield, Grays Harbor/NST, 360/410 promoter/sanction, 65
25., 28., Tommy Hunt, U.S. Auto Club, non-w sanction, 63
26., -, Pete Walton, United Sprint Car Series, 360 sanction, 56
27., -, Scott Boyd, SLS Promotions, 410 promoter, 49
28., 23., Terry McCarl, #24/McTwo Promotions, 360/410 owner/driver/promoter, 47
29., 20., Jerry Russell, Eagle Chassis, non-w/360/410 builder, 40
30., -, Dennis Roth, Beef Packers #83, 410 owner/promoter, 38.
Also receiving multiple votes: Cary Agajanian, Craig Agan, Steve Beitler, Bruce
Bromme, J.V. Brotherton, Brian Butler, Dave Despain, Mike Devin, Jay Drake, Bob
East, Kevin Eckert, Jack Elam, Tommie Estes (Jr.), Earl Gaerte, Bobby Gerould,
Richard Hoffman, Bob Jones, Dick Jordan, Don Kazarian, Chad Kemenah, Mike
Kerchner, Karl Kinser, Paul Kistler, Cory Kruseman, Keith Kunz, Bob Lawton, John
McCoy, Bob Miller, Bob Newton, Don “Bug” Ott, Fred Rahmer, Jerry Reigle, Bob
Sargent, Ron Shaver, Ralph Sheheen, Wade Sherman, Jason Smith, Jeff Swindell,
Sammy Swindell, H.A. “Humpy” Wheeler, Justin Zoch.
|
