Rate this article:
IndyCar Vintage White Logo Tee
100% washed cotton. Features Indy wings and wheel logo printed with special distressed look. Cool vintage tees!
Our Price: $22.00 ($19.80 Member)
Ferrari Red Classic Hat
Ferrari racing shield embroidered on front and Ferrari branding on back adjuster strap with shield embossed metal closure.
Our Price: $29.00 ($26.10 Member)
Formula 1 2009 Calendar
Every month is accompanied by a superb action shot from the 2008 season, with essential information about the sport.
Our Price: $16.95 ($15.26 Member)
Written by:
Robin Miller
09/11/2008 - 05:27 PM
Indianapolis, Ind.
Chuck Gurney wins the second leg of the Toyota Challenge. (photo courtesy Toyota Motorsports) » More Photos
Chuck Gurney Jr. is the driver of midget #151. He’s also the owner, chief mechanic, parts chaser and tire changer.
To say Gurney is the prohibitive underdog going into Friday night’s Toyota Challenge Showdown at O’Reilly Raceway Park is a bit of an understatement since he’s up against the well-funded teams of Tony Stewart, Kasey Kahne, Steve Lewis, Klatt Enterprises and Western Speed.
They all spend more money on pit passes than Gurney Racing has in its budget. But the 25-year-old Californian is leading the standings going into the finale for the $15,000 prize presented by Toyota to the driver/team scoring the most points in the three USAC midget races this season at ORP.
Gurney, who led all 30 laps in July and beat Kahne to the checkered flag, owns a 12-point lead over Bobby Santos of Western Speed with Levi Jones of Stewart Racing and Kody Swanson of Nine Racing (Lewis) only 26 behind.
“I guess I’m the little guy in this deal but I like running ORP and my car works good there,” said Gurney, whose father Chuck was a front-runner in USAC during the ’70s and ’80s.
“I know the competition is tough but it always is in USAC, whether it’s pavement or dirt. I’ll just run as hard as I can.”
Gurney is a bit of a throwback to the days when drivers worked on their own cars and he lives and breathes auto racing. Employed full-time by Jeff West, who owns Indy Performance Composites, the former quarter midget king repairs Indy cars, drag racers and does bodywork for midgets and sprints during the week. If he’s not driving, then he crews for Cole Whitt’s sprinter.
“Jeff is a great boss and I couldn’t do any of this without him and he also works on my midget,” continued Gurney. “I
“When Cole isn’t running for Keith Kuntz, we go sprint car racing and we’ve probably run 25 times this summer so I’ve been plenty busy. But driving is my real passion and that’s why I moved back here. To run against the best.”
Gurney's effort might be low budget, but the results haven't shown it. (USAC photo) » More Photos
It’s been an interesting climb to the top of the Toyota standings. At last May’s annual Night Before the 500 at ORP, Gurney was asked to drive one of the prestigious Nine Racing cars by Lewis.
“I was running in the top five in practice when the rear axle snapped and sent me into the wall,” he explained. “But Dave Steele’s car (also a Nine Racing mount) was open so Steve put me in there and I was running decent in the feature when the rear axle snapped on that car and I flipped down the straightaway. I had put Keith Scott in my car and he ran second so that worked out OK.”
In the July show, Gurney ran his own car for only the third time since he bought it in 2006 and he captured his initial USAC win in impressive style – beating all the big boys and their budgets. Asked if it helped get him noticed, Chuck replied: “I thought it might help but so far nothing’s happened so I’ve just got to keep plugging away.”
And if he can capture the $15,000?
“I’ll use it to go run the Phoenix mile and Turkey Night at Irwindale (Calif.),” he replied like a typical racer.
Veteran Tracy Hines leads the national midget standings going into ORP with 15-year-old Whitt only 65 points behind. They’re entered along with Bobby East, who won the May race, and Brady Bacon, Brad Sweet and defending USAC champ Jerry Coons Jr.
View All Comments
- Press Releases | Advertising | Jobs | Feedback | FAQ | Terms & Conditions | Privacy | Site Map
Fox Sports | FUEL TV | FX Network | FOXReality | National Geographic | IGN | AskMen | BeliefNet -
The Online Motorsports Authority© Copyright 2008 Speed Channel, Inc. All Rights Reserved.