BELLEVILLE, Kan. — Thirty USAC Silver Crown National Championship drivers and cars are on the entry list for the return of champ car racing to the Belleville High Banks for the first time in eight seasons this Friday-Saturday, May 19-20.
Three previous USAC Silver Crown events have been held at the half-mile dirt oval – in 2013-’15, with this Saturday’s 50-lap main event paying $8,000 to the winner.
One previous Belleville Silver Crown winner is entered for this weekend’s events, that being seven-time series titlist Kody Swanson, who hustled to victory back in 2014.
In fact, of the 30 drivers in this year’s field, only nine have previously competed in the event: Swanson, C.J. Leary, Justin Grant, Shane Cockrum, Kevin Thomas Jr., Brady Bacon, Shane Cottle, Austin Nemire and Chris Fetter.
Mario Clouser has previously competed with the midgets on the high banks, but this weekend will mark his first foray at the track with the Silver Crown cars. Several others are in the same boat, having competed at Belleville in various divisions in years past.
Chief among those are Matt Westfall, Travis Welpott and Matt Mitchell, all of whom have previously competed with the USAC National Midgets during the Belleville Nationals. Wayne Johnson and Bryan Gossel, meanwhile, have both taken winged sprint cars to the banks.
Belleville debuts come from USAC National champion Logan Seavey, plus USAC National feature winners Jake Swanson, Chase Stockon and Mitchel Moles.
Taylor Ferns and Kaylee Bryson will arrive at Belleville having come off terrific 2022 Silver Crown campaign. Ferns earned a pair of top-three results while Bryson, the 2022 USAC National Most Improved Driver, took home a top-five in the most recent series dirt race.
Johnson and Bryson are among this year’s top-flite class of Silver Crown Rookie of the Year contenders making their Belleville debuts along with two-time Little 500 winner Tyler Roahrig and Trey Burke.
Also gunning for Belleville glory are in their first USAC Silver Crown appearances at Belleville are Kyle Steffens, Casey Buckman, Dave Berkheimer, 2022 rookie of the year Gregg Cory, Patrick Bruns, Danny Long and Tom Paterson, who’s returning for his second Silver Crown season.