One of the richest traditions in racing will roar into action this Friday night for the 59th edition of the Hoosier Hundred. The Indiana State Fairgrounds dirt mile has a special place in the history of automobile racing; the mile dirt track was the site of the first 60 mile per hour lap in automobile racing history on June 21, 1903. Seven drivers who won the Hoosier Hundred also won the Indianapolis 500 during their career. Three of the seven won the 500 and the Hoosier Hundred in the same season. A.J. Foyt has the most Hoosier Hundred wins with six. There have been 37 different winners since 1953. The defending champion, Jerry Coons Jr, (Plainfield, Ind.) .is set to try for two in a row.
Bryan Clauson, (Noblesville, Ind.) will be setting a milestone by participating in both the Hoosier Hundred and the Indy 500 in the same weekend. Jack Hewitt was the last to participate in both events in1998 where he finished 18th in the Hoosier, after an early race accident, and 12th at Indy. Clauson, the “Road to Indy” winner, will start his first Indianapolis 500 for Sarah Fisher Racing this month. Bryan won back-to-back USAC national drivers championships in 2010 and 2011 for his performance in all three major USAC open-wheel divisions. He will be teammate in the Indy 500 to another young American driver, Josef Newgarden, who is from Nashville, Tenn.
NASCAR star Kenny Schrader, has filed an early entry to compete in the UMP Modified portion of the Hoosier Hundred at the Indy Mile.
Tickets are on sale now for reserved grandstand seats, ticket prices for the Friday, May 25, 2012 Hoosier Hundred are as follows: Advance Adults: $25.00 and Children 11 and under: $10.00. Tickets may be purchased by calling Track Enterprises at 217-764-3200 or by calling Indiana State Fairgrounds (317) 927-7600. Infield tickets will only be sold the day of the scheduled event, race admission to the infield is $15.00 for adults and children 12 & under are $5.00.
Information on the Indiana State Fairgrounds Hoosier 100 or other Track Enterprises, Inc. events can be found at www.trackenterprises.com or www.hoosier100.com