O'REILLY USCS HONORS CHAMPIONS KENNY ADAMS AND WAYNE REUTIMANN, JR. AND CHALLENGERS AT $110,000+ AWARDS BANQUET

January 8, 2006
Peachtree City, GA - Over $110,000 in cash and contingencies were awarded as the O'Reilly Auto Parts United Sprint Car Series ( www.uscsracing.com ) honored Kenny Adams from Malabar, Florida for capturing his second O'Reilly USCS Outlaw Thunder Tour National Championship and Wayne Reutimann, Jr. from Zephyrhills, Florida for winning his first O'Reilly USCS Asphalt Thunder pavement series title on Saturday night during its annual O'Reilly USCS Champions Awards Banquet at the Wyndham Conference Center in Peachtree City, Georgia.  Along with Adams and Reutimann, the top ten drivers from each of five O'Reilly USCS racing divisions were recognized.

In addition to a second National Championship in six seasons, Adams drove his Milk Movers, Inc. / Goodson Farms Shaw / Ott #4a to titles in three O'Reilly USCS regional divisions. Those were the O'Reilly USCS Carolina Thunder, O'Reilly USCS Mid-South Thunder and O'Reilly USCS Southern Thunder Tours. Formerly the Pennsylvania native, who is the O'Reilly USCS' all-time leading feature winner, had been the series' 2000 National Champion.

The "Malabar Missile" also garnered the O'Reilly USCS Huggins Cams Hard Charger of the Year award after passing 180 cars on the season. Adams also received the series 2005 Lap Leader Award for leading the most laps of competition during the 51-race season. He led 417 laps in route to his eighteen 2005 feature wins, 41 top five and 46 top ten finishes. Adams also finished the season ranked second in the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame 360 winged sprint car driver poll that ranks drivers from the over 3000 competitors in winged 360 sprint cars.  

Adams said," We had just a great year in the O'Reilly USCS this season because of the people involved on my team. My crew chief, Red Stauffer did a great job along with Patrick Ryan keeping our team ready and competitive throughout a tough schedule against a lot of top competition and a great USCS season."  Adams continued," it's really great to be able to race with my son Bryn and see him grow in racing. It's wonderful that my family enjoys and supports something that I love to do so much. I'm very lucky". Red Stauffer, the 1997 and first ever O'Reilly USCS National Champion was named National Championship Crew Chief of the Year for his efforts leading the #4a championship team.  

Nineteen year old Danny "The Hammer" Martin Jr. of Sarasota, Florida, who burst onto the National winged outlaw sprint car scene last season with a runner-up finish in the 2004 O'Reilly USCS standings behind four time titlist Terry Gray and a top fifteen in the National rankings as an eighteen year-old, had another banner year finishing in the runner-up spot in the National standings again, this time behind Adams potent effort

Martin also claimed the competitive 2005 Speedmart Young Guns championship that recognizes the series top drivers less than twenty-five years of age. The talented young driver had three wins on the season with two of those coming on pavement and one on dirt. Martin additionally moved up in the National rankings in 2005 and was voted as the ninth best 360 winged sprint car driver in the land by the pollsters of the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame. Those same pollsters also honored Martin as their choice as "Wild Card" Driver of the Year 2005 for winged 360 sprint cars. Martin's father and crew chief, Danny "The Chief" Martin, Sr. was named the O'Reilly USCS Speedmart Young Guns Crew Chief of the Year.

Four time and 2004 O'Reilly USCS National Champion Terry Gray from Bartlett, Tennessee finished third in the O'Reilly USCS National standings although missing three events after a serious practice session crash injury in late May. At that time, Gray led the point standings by ten points over Adams.  Gray had two wins on the season and lead the series in top ten finishes with forty-seven. Gray also received the series Ironman Award for completing more laps than any other driver with a total of 1464 laps (10 more than champion Kenny Adams).

Bryn Gohn from Malabar, Florida finished fourth in the O'Reilly USCS National point standings, and the 20-year-old driver was also honored with the series National Rookie of the Year Award.  The second-generation driver swept the 2005 rookie honors in all O'Reilly USCS Divisions as well.  Gohn was one of three rookie drivers to score wins in the O'Reilly USCS in 2005 when he found victory lane at Fayetteville Motor Speedway. Gohn was formerly a two time Crew Chief of the Year in the O'Reilly USCS Asphalt Thunder division.   

Impressive 16 year old first year driver, Matt Tiffany from Daytona Beach, Florida finished in the fifth spot in the O'Reilly USCS National standings. Tiffany's rookie year performance included a win at Lanier National Speedway in September, plus 12 top five and 27 top ten finishes in 47 events. He finished in second place in the O'Reilly USCS Rookie of the Year standings and in third place in the Speedmart Young Guns standings. Additionally Tiffany was nominated along with only four other drivers for National Rookie of the Year honors by the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame.

2004 O'Reilly USCS Rookie of the Year, eighteen year-old R.J Johnson from Decatur, Tennessee led the second five with a strong Sophomore year finish in sixth place in the standings with 16 top tens and a top five finish in 44 events. Skeeter Faulconer from Lutz, Florida hit the road almost full-time with the series in 2005 and finished seventh in the standings. Eighteen year-old Ryan Myers from Eldora do, Ohio used 8 top fives and 16 top tens in 27 races and a fourth place finish in the O'Reilly USCS Asphalt Thunder standings to finish eighth in the National points. Johnny Bridges from Cherryville, North Carolina finished ninth in the National standings and received the Comeback Driver of the Year award for his outstanding performances in 2005 after a dismal and mechanically plagued 2004 season. Bridges earned two CnB Mushrooms Fast Times awards, 9 top five and 15 top ten finishes in 27 starts. The 2005 Koolbeans Trophy Dash Champion, Chad Allum from Kannapolis, North Carolina had 3 top five and 10 top ten finishes in 25 events and rounded out the O'Reilly USCS Outlaw Thunder Tour National top ten standings.

Wayne Reutimann, Jr. used a steady team effort with two feature wins, twelve top five and thirteen top ten finishes in fourteen races to claim the 2005 O'Reilly USCS Asphalt Thunder title in his Case Contracting/James Rivard GMC Hurricane/Snyder #00. The third generation open wheel star was complimentary of his competitors and said, " I've been totally impressed by the talent in the O'Reilly USCS this season, there is a great mix of talented young drivers and potent veterans in this series. Wins are tough to get every night in the USCS. I feel extremely proud of this title and fortunate to be standing here with this championship trophy. I'm also lucky to get to race with my dad (Wayne Reutimann, Sr.) He is a great driver and I have learned so much from him as my team-mate and was so proud to see him still winning races this season", he concluded.

2004 O'Reilly USCS Asphalt Thunder Champion, Terry Gray from Bartlett, Tennessee finished the title chase just 16 points back of Reutimann, Jr. The National Champion Kenny Adams was 40 points down in third place, followed by new-kid-on-the-pavement-block Ryan Myers. The wiry eighteen year old who builds his own motors, raced a pure dirt car to fourth place in the standings while garnering two fast times and twice finished second in Asphalt Thunder A-Mains. Two-time 2005 Asphalt Thunder feature winner, Danny Martin, Jr. rounded out top five in the paved oval standings.

The second five in the O'Reilly USCS Asphalt Thunder standings included Rookie of the Year Bryn Gohn in sixth and rookie Asphalt Thunder feature winner Matt Tiffany in seventh. Behind Tiffany in the standings was a two-time 2005 feature winner and a racer in his fifth decade in sprint cars, veteran Wayne Reutimann, Sr. from Zephyrhills, Florida in eighth place. O'Reilly USCS main-stay Brian Thomas from Auburn, Georgia finished ninth in the standings of the competitive pavement series in the first year he has attempted a serious pavement title chase. In tenth place was sixteen year-old rookie pavement sensation Kevin Swindell from Germantown, Tennessee who only entered 10 of the 14 O'Reilly USCS Asphalt Thunder events, but won five times, set quick time nine times and established seven new track records. Wayne Reutimann's brother, Shawn Reutimann was recognized as the 2005 O'Reilly USCS Asphalt Thunder Crew Chief of the Year.

O'Reilly USCS Asphalt Thunder Champion, Wayne Reutimann, Jr. finished the season ranked in the 22nd position in the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame 360 winged sprint car poll. The rookie Kevin Swindell was 19 th in the same poll and garnered the 2005 NSCHOF 360 winged sprint car Rookie of the Year honors.

The 2005 O'Reilly USCS Most Improved Driver honors went to Bruce Cline from Apex, North Carolina, a rookie driver who finished in fourth place behind 2005 Champion Kenny Adams, Gray and Bryn Gohn in the point standings. Cline lost the Carolina Thunder Rookie of the Year title to Gohn by only one point after being collected in a crash on the final event of the season. Chad Allum rounded out the O'Reilly USCS Carolina Thunder top five standings.

The balance of the Carolina Thunder top ten were Danny Martin, Jr. in sixth, Johnny Bridges seventh, Matt Tiffany was eighth, R.J. Johnson in ninth and 2005 O'Reilly USCS Cherokee Super Speedway feature winner Brice Wrenn from Lexington, South Carolina rounded out the top ten. Bruce Cline's crew chief, Denny Chase was recognized as the O'Reilly USCS Carolina Thunder Crew Chief of the Year.

Adams won the tough O'Reilly USCS Mid South Thunder regional series but definitely did not dominate the title chase. He captured the title by a scant sixteen points over Mid-South open wheel ace Mike Ward from Memphis, Tennessee who won four of the thirteen events, but left the title at Crossville Raceway USA in the series season opener when his car would not crank after being scheduled to start on the pole of the A-Main. Adams won three times in the series. Sensational Speedmart Young Gun Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. from Olive Branch, Mississippi raced to third place in the standings with three wins as well. Danny Martin, Jr. and Marshall Skinner from West Memphis, Arkansas with one feature win finished just two points behind Stenhouse in a tie for the fourth position. Only 31 points separated the top five in the Mid-South Thunder standings.

Bryn Gohn was sixth in the standings followed by Wesley Hale from Collierville, Tennessee in seventh. Ageless Ray Bugg from Iuka, Mississippi in his 5 th decade racing open wheel cars was honored for an eighth place finish in the standings. Fifteen year old Speedmart Young Gun and Mid-South hot-shoe Hunter Shuerenberg from Sikeston, Missouri was ninth and veteran Bartlett, Tennessee sprint car racer Mike McElya rounded out the top ten in the O'Reilly USCS Mid-South Thunder standings.

Kenny Adams rode four wins and a series of steady performances in the O'Reilly USCS Southern Thunder Tour events to the top of those standings. Adams step-son and team-mate Bryn Gohn and his crew chief Patrick Ryan helped deliver a one-two (or 4a and 4b) punch as the Rookie of the Year got a runner-up finish in those standings followed by Speedmart Young Gun Champion Danny Martin, Jr. Rookie of the Year runner-up Matt Tiffany and defending champion Terry Gray rounded out the top five.

Leading the second five in the O'Reilly USCS Southern Thunder standings was R.J Johnson in sixth followed by Florida sprint car veteran and two time East Bay Raceway Champion, Brian Maddox from Tampa in seventh. Skeeter Faulconer followed in eighth, rookie Stephen Darvalics from Venice, Florida was ninth and rookie Shane Nelson from Ooltewah, Tennessee rounded out the top ten.

Six O'Reilly USCS drivers were recognized in the 2005 National Sprint Car Hall of Fame Top 25 Poll National rankings.  Kenny Adams finished 2nd in the voting, with Terry Gray taking the  8th spot, Danny Martin was voted  9th in the poll. Additionally, Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. was ranked 13th . Kevin Swindell was ranked 19th and Asphalt Thunder Champion Wayne Reutimann, Jr. was ranked 22nd . Mike Ward received honorable mention as one of the only 43 drivers receiving votes in the poll.

Series founder, Pete Walton closed the awards ceremony by announcing details of the 2006 and 10 th Anniversary O'Reilly USCS season that begins with the first half of a two night double-header on Monday night February 6, 2006 at Volusia Speedway Park in Barberville, Florida The 60+ night tour is scheduled to end with the O'Reilly USCS Bullring Sprint Car Nationals at Columbus Speedway in Columbus, Mississippi on Saturday, November 11, 2006. For more information about the O'Reilly USCS, visit the series website at www.uscsracing.com.

PHOTO CUTLINES:  1) Kenny Adams of Malabar , Florida accepts the O'Reilly USCS Outlaw Thunder Tour National Championship Trophy from series Founder, Pete Walton. 

2) O'Reilly USCS Asphalt Thunder Champion Wayne Reutimann, Jr. is congratulated by O'Reilly USCS series Founder and President, Pete Walton.

3) O'Reilly USCS National Top Ten and Top Five finishers in Asphalt and regional dirt series show off 2005 Hoosier Racing Tire Championship Jackets. (Trophies and photos by John Seller @ Koolbeans Trophies www.koolbeans.biz

contacts:

Pete Walton - Ph. 404-886-5913 petewalton@bellsouth.net
United Sprint Car Series
305 Industrial Way - Suite A
Fayetteville, GA 30214