By: Richie Murray – USAC Media
Speedway, Indiana (December 10, 2020)……..USAC’s 2021 NOS Energy Drink Midget National Championship season will consist of 43 events at dirt ovals from Florida to Pennsylvania, from Indiana to Oklahoma, and from Arizona to California, and several places in between.
The 43 events are the most for the series since 49 were on the slate back in 1988. A slew of brand-new events highlights the schedule, which begins with a two-night Winter Dirt Games showdown at Bubba Raceway Park in Ocala, Fla. on Feb. 5-6, where the winner’s share on the final night has been increased to $5,000.
Additions to the schedule this coming year will see the series take on an expanded Indiana Midget Week, which will now span eight races over two weekends. Two new additions to the busiest week-plus for the series include Tri-State Speedway in Haubstadt, Ind. on June 6 and the brand-new Circle City Raceway on June 9, the first series event held in Indianapolis since a date at the Speedrome in 2005.
Return stops for Indiana Midget Week bring the series to Paragon Speedway for the opener on June 3, followed by Bloomington Speedway on June 4 and Lawrenceburg Speedway on June 5, plus Lincoln Park Speedway (Putnamville, Ind.) on June 10, Gas City I-69 Speedway on June 11 and the finale, Kokomo Speedway, on June 12.
Two never-before-raced-by-the-series events at Bridgeport (N.J.) Speedway and the newly renovated Bloomsburg (Pa.) Fairgrounds join in for Eastern Midget Week at the beginning of August. Grandview Speedway (Bechtelsville, Pa.) opens the six-race series on Aug. 3, followed by Action Track USA (Kutztown, Pa.) on Aug. 4, Bridgeport on Aug. 5, Bloomsburg on Aug. 6 and Lanco’s Clyde Martin Memorial Speedway on Aug. 7.
For the first time since 2005, Rossburg, Ohio’s Eldora Speedway will serve as the host of two USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget events in a single season. Only once before, 2001, have Midget races been held at the half-mile on consecutive nights. Twenty years later, that scenario rings true again with the series opening the 39th running of the 4-Crown Nationals on Friday, Sept. 24 with a full show followed by another round the ensuing night on Saturday, Sept. 25.
Three sets of one-track doubleheaders greet the midgets in the months of April and May with Port City Raceway in Tulsa, Okla. hosting back-to-back nights on April 9-10. Kokomo (Ind.) Speedway’s Kokomo Grand Prix sets the stage for a two-night extravaganza on April 30-May 1. Missouri’s Sweet Springs Motorsports Complex has been the stage for some of the most memorable series races of late, and it’s on at the 1/8-mile dirt oval for both May 14-15.
Mid-America Midget Week sees a slightly different look with Red Dirt Raceway’s Tuesday Night Thunder now opening the stretch up on July 13, then is capped off with an expanded Midwest Midget Championship now showcasing three-straight nights of racing on July 15-16-17 at Jefferson County Speedway in Fairbury, Neb.
The James Dean Classic will feature both the USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midgets as well as the USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Cars on the same event card on Sept. 23. One final weekend in the Midwest places the series at Wayne County Speedway in Wayne City, Ill. for the Jason Leffler Memorial on Oct. 8 and Tri-State Speedway in Haubstadt, Ind. for Harvest Cup on Oct. 9.
A number of yet-to-be-announced USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget events are also on the docket, including Sept. 9-10-11, a group of dates which are also displayed as “TBA” on the USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Car schedule as well.
The BC39 at The Dirt Track at IMS, as of now, does not have a date and time set in stone. The case is the same for the entirety of the west coast swing, which annually comprises the month of November: two nights of the 53rd Western World Championships at Arizona Speedway (San Tan Valley, Ariz.), a doubleheader with the USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Cars, plus Bakersfield (Calif.) Speedway’s November Classic, Merced (Calif.) Speedway, the three-night Hangtown 100 at Placerville (Calif.) Speedway and the Turkey Night Grand Prix at California’s Ventura Raceway.
2021 USAC NOS ENERGY DRINK NATIONAL MIDGETS
Friday, February 5: Bubba Raceway Park – Ocala, FL
Saturday, February 6: Bubba Raceway Park – Ocala, FL
Friday, April 9: Port City Raceway – Tulsa, OK
Saturday, April 10: Port City Raceway – Tulsa, OK
Friday, April 30: Kokomo Speedway – Kokomo, IN
Saturday, May 1: Kokomo Speedway – Kokomo, IN
Friday, May 14: Sweet Springs Motorsports Complex – Sweet Springs, MO
Saturday, May 15: Sweet Springs Motorsports Complex – Sweet Springs, MO
Thursday, June 3: Paragon Speedway – Paragon, IN (I)
Friday, June 4: Bloomington Speedway – Bloomington, IN (I)
Saturday, June 5: Lawrenceburg Speedway – Lawrenceburg, IN (I)
Sunday, June 6: Tri-State Speedway – Haubstadt, IN (I)
Wednesday, June 9: Circle City Raceway – Indianapolis, IN (I)
Thursday, June 10: Lincoln Park Speedway – Putnamville, IN (I)
Friday, June 11: Gas City I-69 Speedway- Gas City, IN (I)
Saturday, June 12: Kokomo Speedway – Kokomo, IN (I)
Tuesday, July 13: Red Dirt Raceway – Meeker, OK (M)
Thursday, July 15: Jefferson County Speedway – Fairbury, NE (M)
Friday, July 16: Jefferson County Speedway – Fairbury, NE (M)
Saturday, July 17: Jefferson County Speedway – Fairbury, NE (M)
Tuesday, August 3: Grandview Speedway – Bechtelsville, PA (E)
Wednesday, August 4: Action Track USA – Kutztown, PA (E)
Thursday, August 5: Bridgeport Speedway – Swedesboro, NJ (E)
Friday, August 6: Bloomsburg Fairgrounds – Bloomsburg, PA (E)
Saturday, August 7: Lanco’s Clyde Martin Memorial Speedway – Newmanstown, PA (E)
Thursday, September 9: TBA – TBA
Friday, September 10: TBA – TBA
Saturday, September 11: TBA – TBA
Thursday, September 23: Gas City I-69 Speedway – Gas City, IN
Friday, September 24: Eldora Speedway – Rossburg, OH
Saturday, September 25: Eldora Speedway – Rossburg, OH
Friday, October 8: Wayne County Speedway – Wayne City, IL (A)
Saturday, October 9: Tri-State Speedway – Haubstadt, IN
TBA: The Dirt Track at IMS – Speedway, IN (A)
TBA: The Dirt Track at IMS – Speedway, IN (A)
TBA: Arizona Speedway – San Tan Valley, AZ
TBA: Arizona Speedway – San Tan Valley, AZ
TBA: Bakersfield Speedway – Bakersfield, CA
TBA: Merced Speedway – Merced, CA
TBA: Placerville Speedway – Placerville, CA (A)
TBA: Placerville Speedway – Placerville, CA (A)
TBA: Placerville Speedway – Placerville, CA (A)
TBA: Ventura Raceway – Ventura, CA
(N) represents an indoor event
(I) represents an Indiana Midget Week event
(M) represents a Mid-America Midget Week event
(E) represents an Eastern Midget Week event
(A) represents an event awarding appearance points only