WHAT TO WATCH FOR: Appalachian Midget Week Features Northeast Regulars vs. Xtreme Outlaws
NEWMANSTOWN, PA (Aug. 8, 2023) – The longest and most grueling stretch of the season begins today as the Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series presented by Toyota kicks off the inaugural Appalachian Midget Week.
Five races in five nights at five different tracks across Pennsylvania and New Jersey carry the Series into the second half of the season as the points battle tightens up in the chase for the season championship. A separate points tally will be kept over all five races, using the current Xtreme Outlaw points championship scale, and award the top five drivers with cash prizes at the conclusion of the final event – $2,500 to the champion, $1,250 for second, $750 for third, $500 for fourth and $250 for fifth.
The week begins Tuesday, Aug. 8 with a debut at Clyde Martin Memorial Speedway, followed by trips to Action Track USA (Aug. 9), Linda’s Speedway (Aug. 10), Path Valley Speedway (Aug. 11) and Bridgeport Motorsports Park (Aug. 12), all paying $4,000 to the Feature winner. Each race is co-sanctioned with the American Racing Driver’s Club (ARDC) and will reward the highest-finishing ARDC driver in each Feature with a $100 bonus.
Tickets for each race will be on sale at the gate; if you can’t be there to watch in person, stream every lap live from all five races with a FAST PASS subscription to DIRTVision.
Here are the drivers to watch and storylines to follow this week:
POINTS BATTLE – What started as a 180-point difference in the Series points standings between Cannon McIntosh and Jade Avedisian six races ago is now down to eight points heading into the biggest racing stretch of the season.
Avedisian, 16, of Clovis, CA, sat fourth place in the standings, 180 points behind McIntosh when the Series came back into action in late July at Doe Run Raceway. With three wins and no finishes worse than sixth in the six races since the break, she has retaken the lead in the standings by eight points over McIntosh.
McIntosh, 20, of Bixby, OK, has cooled off after red-hot start to the season, posting only two top-five finishes since the break. He aims to get back to Victory Lane for the first time since May with the Dave Mac-Dalby Motorsports #08 this week as one of the few full-timers in the field with prior experience at the lineup of tracks in Appalachian Midget Week.
NEW CAR, NEW TRACKS – Kyle Jones will rejoin the Xtreme Outlaw roster this week for the first time since the end of July, driving for a new team at several tracks he’s never competed at before.
North Carolina car owner John Levecque will field a Ripper Chassis for Jones to compete with Wednesday-Saturday – all but the first race of Appalachian Midget Week. This will be a week of new challenges for the 29-year-old Texan, as he visits each of the PA/NJ tracks for the first time in his career.
Jones was the Series points leader in April, piloting the Trifecta Motorsports #7U before Zach Daum was tapped to fill the seat in early July. He last appeared on the national Midget scene with the Xtreme Outlaws two weekends ago, when he finished 11th in a Branigan Roark-owned Ripper Chassis #33 before taking the Dan Minear-owned #16 out to a fourth-place finish at Southern Illinois Raceway the following night after leading most of the race.
BUCKWILD – Two of Pennsylvania’s best multi-division, open-wheel racers in the Northeast make their Xtreme Outlaw Series debuts this week – Tim and Steve Buckwalter.
Tim, of Douglassville, PA, will pilot the Matt Seymour Racing #29 on Tuesday at Clyde Martin and Wednesday at Action Track. The Marlboro, MA-based team has already seen great heights of success this year, going to Victory Lane at the Chili Bowl Nationals with Oklahoma racer Hank Davis on the Tuesday night preliminary Feature, and later fielding the Little 500-winning asphalt Sprint Car for 18-year-old Jake Trainor in May. As for Tim, he qualified for his second-straight Chili Bowl A-Main this past January in the same car he’ll be racing this weekend.
Steve, of Royersford, PA, more commonly known for his weekly 410 Sprint Car racing efforts around the famed tracks of Pennsylvania, has many years of Midget racing and fabrication experience as builder of Elite Midget Chassis. He’s projected to join the roster at various tracks during the week while also fielding a car for New York racer Kevin Woody and Pennsylvanian Derrick Sheaffer at select events.
NON-WING THING – Briggs Danner is slated for a return to the Xtreme Outlaw roster this week for the first time since May.
Danner, 21, of Allentown, PA, posted finishes of fourth and eighth with the Series during the two-day Double Down Showdown event at Millbridge Speedway in the John Schneider-owned #98. He’s scheduled to be back in the seat of the car at various races this week.
This year, Danner has been full-time at the controls of the Hogue Racing #39 Non-Wing Sprint Car, competing around his home state with the USAC East Coast Sprint Cars, of which he currently leads points with two Feature wins thus far. Some Non-Wing Micro Sprint experience at Clyde Martin, Action Track and Linda’s will also help his case as he aims for his first national Midget series win.
ACTION TRACK TOPPER – Daison Pursley is slated to make his third PA/NJ Midget venture this week behind the wheel of the Reinbold/Underwood Motorsports #19.
Pursley, 18, of Locust Grove, OK, competed with USAC during the Northeast swing of races in 2020 and 2021, and took the checkered flag at Action Track in 2021, which stands as his only Midget win in the area. As part of the Keith Kunz Motorsports stable, Pursley defeated a host of accomplished national Midget talent that night including Logan Seavey, Chris Windom, Tanner Thorson, Zach Daum and others.
He’s headed back to the Northeast for the third time in his career this week, now a part-time teammate to Xtreme Outlaw full-timer Hayden Reinbold. Tuesday at Clyde Martin will be his second appearance with the Series this year, following a start at Tri-City Speedway in June.
THIS WEEKEND AT A GLANCE
When and whereTuesday, August 8 – Clyde Martin Memorial Speedway (Newmanstown, PA)Wednesday, August 9 – Action Track USA (Kutztown, PA)Thursday, August 10 – Linda’s Speedway (Jonestown, PA)Friday, August 11 – Path Valley Speedway (Spring Run, PA)Saturday, August 12 – Bridgeport Motorsports Park (Swedesboro, NJ)
On the internetXtreme Outlaw Midget Series presented by ToyotaTwitter – @Xtreme_OutlawInstagram – @XtremeOutlawFacebook – @XtremeOutlawSeries.WRG
Live broadcastDIRTVision – DIRTVision.com. Platinum annual FAST PASS for $299 or monthly FAST PASS for $39/month.
Current championship points standings (view full standings)
- Jade Avedisian: 3323 points | Keith Kunz Motorsports #71
- Cannon McIntosh: 3315 points (-8) | Dave Mac-Dalby Motorsports #08
- Gavin Miller: 3213 points (-110) | Keith Kunz Motorsports #97
- Zach Daum: 3169 points (-154) | Trifecta Motorsports #7U
- Chase McDermand: 3147 points (-176) | Mounce/Stout Motorsports #40
- Taylor Reimer: 3113 points (-210) | Keith Kunz Motorsports #25K
- Chance Crum: 2910 points (-413) | Rudeen Racing #26
- Hayden Reinbold: 2633 points (-690) | Reinbold/Underwood Motorsports #19AZ
- Ethan Mitchell: 1922 points (-1401) | Bundy Built Motorsports #19M
- Austin Barnhill: 1844 points (-1497) | Dave Mac-Dalby Motorsports #17B
Toyota Feature winners (7 drivers)4 wins – Cannon McIntosh (Dave Mac-Dalby Motorsports), Jade Avedisian (Keith Kunz Motorsports)3 wins – Zach Daum (Trifecta Motorsports)2 wins – Chase McDermand (Mounce/Stout Motorsports)1 win – Jesse Love (Chad Boat Industries), Daniel Whitley (Abacus Racing), Karter Sarff (Sarff Racing)
Toyota Feature laps led (15 drivers)78 laps – Cannon McIntosh70 laps – Jade Avedisian59 laps – Daniel Whitley52 laps – Zach Daum41 laps – Karter Sarff28 laps – Ryan Timms26 laps – Thomas Meseraull24 laps – Chase McDermand23 laps – Gavin Miller22 laps – Shane Cottle, Kyle Jones21 laps – Ashton Torgerson11 laps – Hayden Reinbold4 laps – Jesse Love1 lap – Nick Drake
Whitz RC Racing Products Quick Time Awards (11 drivers)4 awards – Cannon McIntosh2 awards – Ethan Mitchell, Daniel Whitley1 award – Gavin Miller, Hayden Reinbold, Jesse Love, Kevin Thomas Jr, Zach Daum, Joe B. Miller, Corbin Rueschenberg, Chase McDermand
Heat Race winners (20 drivers)7 wins – Jade Avedisian5 wins – Cannon McIntosh, Chase McDermand4 wins – Zach Daum3 wins – Hayden Reinbold2 wins – Chance Crum, Nick Drake, Ethan Mitchell, Gavin Miller, Corbin Rueschenberg, Andrew Felker, Daniel Whitley1 win – Austin Barnhill, Shane Cottle, Thomas Meseraull, Kyle Jones, Rico Abreu, Briggs Danner, Daison Pursley, Chase Johnson
High-points honors (12 drivers)3 honors – Cannon McIntosh2 honors – Daniel Whitley, Jade Avedisian1 honor – Gavin Miller, Chance Crum, Rico Abreu, Landon Brooks, Briggs Danner, Hayden Reinbold, Kyle Jones, Andrew Felker, Chase McDermand
Last Chance Showdown wins (12 drivers)2 wins – Kyle Jones1 win – Landon Brooks, Karter Sarff, Howard Moore, Ryan Timms, Taylor Reimer, Henry Chambers, Chance Crum, Chase Briscoe, Mitchell Davis, Cannon McIntosh, Corbin Rueschenberg
DIRTVision Hard Charger Awards (15 drivers)2 awards – Hayden Reinbold1 award – Mitchel Moles, Chase Johnson, Ryan Timms, Chance Crum, Zach Daum, Gavan Boschele, Taylor Reimer, Chase McDermand, Shane Cottle, Cooper Williams, Kyle Jones, Cannon McIntosh, Jerry Coons Jr, Jade Avedisian
Podium finishes (16 drivers)8 podiums – Cannon McIntosh7 podiums – Zach Daum6 podiums – Chase McDermand, Jade Avedisian4 podiums – Gavin Miller3 podiums – Daniel Whitley, Taylor Reimer2 podiums – Shane Cottle1 podium – Thomas Meseraull, Kyle Jones, Ryan Timms, Ashton Torgerson, Landon Brooks, Jesse Love, Jerry Coons Jr, Karter Sarff
Top-10 finishes (38 drivers)14 top-10s – Cannon McIntosh, Jade Avedisian, Gavin Miller13 top-10s – Chase McDermand12 top-10s – Zach Daum10 top-10s – Taylor Reimer9 top-10s – Chance Crum5 top-10s – Landon Brooks, Kyle Jones, Ethan Mitchell, Daniel Whitley4 top-10s – Gavan Boschele, Karter Sarff3 top-10s – Thomas Meseraull, Ryan Timms, Corbin Rueschenberg, Austin Barnhill, Hayden Reinbold, Chase Johnson2 top-10s – Briggs Danner, Shane Cottle, Chase Briscoe, Kevin Thomas Jr, Branigan Roark, Andrew Felker, Jerry Coons Jr, Cooper Williams, Mariah Ede1 top-10 – Mitchel Moles, Daniel Adler, Sam Johnson, Rico Abreu, Ashton Torgerson, Don Droud Jr, Nick Drake, Jesse Love, Trey Marcham, Joe B. Miller
2023 Schedule & Winners – Race No. Day, Date / Track / Location / Winner (Total Wins)1. Fri, March 10 / Southern Illinois Center / Du Quoin, IL / Cannon McIntosh (1)2. Sat, March 11 / Southern Illinois Center / Du Quoin, IL / Jade Avedisian (1)3. Fri, April 14 / Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 / Pevely, MO / Cannon McIntosh (2)4. Fri, May 5 / Humboldt Speedway / Humboldt, KS / Chase McDermand (1)5. Sat, May 6 / 81 Speedway / Park City, KS / Chase McDermand (2)6. Tue, May 22 / Millbridge Speedway / Salisbury, NC / Cannon McIntosh (3)7. Wed, May 23 / Millbridge Speedway / Salisbury, NC / Cannon McIntosh (4)8. Thu, June 1 / Tri-City Speedway / Pontoon Beach, IL / Jesse Love (1)9. Fri, June 2 / Wayne County Speedway / Wayne City, IL / Zach Daum (1)10. Sat, June 3 / Wayne County Speedway / Wayne City, IL / Zach Daum (2)11. Fri, July 21 / Doe Run Raceway / Doe Run, MO / Zach Daum (3)12. Sat, July 22 / Southern Illinois Raceway / Marion, IL / Jade Avedisian (2)13. Sat, July 29 / Atomic Speedway / Chillicothe, OH / Jade Avedisian (3)14. Sun, July 30 / Brushcreek Motorsports Complex / Peebles, OH / Daniel Whitley (1)
15. Fri, Aug. 4 / Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 / Pevely, MO / Karter Sarff (1)
16. Sat, Aug. 5 / Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 / Pevely, MO / Jade Avedisian (4)