Hughes ends drought with homegrown victory at Arrowhead Speedway

October 12, 2023 | by Jeff Nun

Four-time USMTS national champion Jason Hughes snapped a gut-wrenching winless streak of more than six years on Thursday night during opening night of the inaugural ARMI Contractors All-American at the Arrowhead Speedway.

Located just five miles from his Hughes Racing Chassis shop in Colcord, Oklahoma, some home cooking at the all-new state-of-the-art 1/3-mile dirt oval was just what the doctor ordered.

It was six years, one month and six days ago when Hughes won his last main event with the Summit USMTS National Championship presented by RacinDirt—a victory at the Cresco (Iowa) Speedway that all but clinched his fourth title.

Thursday’s win was the 156th of his career and ended a dry spell of 167 events with the USMTS. He's now the USMTS driver with the longest win streak.

Another chassis builder, Kyle Brown of Madrid, Iowa, earned the Sybesma Graphics Pole Award and steered his No. 21K Harris Auto Racing machine to the lead, and then paced the first three laps before the race’s first caution slowed the action.

When racing resumed, Hughes wasted no time in picking off both Brown and Carlos Ahumada Jr. to snag the lead on lap four.

By the 20th lap, Hughes had more than a straight-away advantage over Jake Timm—who had just muscled his way into second place—when the yellow flag waved for a second time when the leader’s son and Arrowhead Speedway track champion Trevor Hughes got the short end of the stick in a turn-three wheel-banger.

It was the last yellow flag of the race and the final green before Hughes rolled underneath the flagstand with the lead when the white and checkered flags waved to collect the $3,000 top prize—the same amount he won for his last USMTS victory six years ago.

“I was pretty good up front and just trying to take it easy,” Hughes said in Victory Lane. “I got up there and hit the wall, but I knew when we got that restart it was time to make the move and try to get out front.

“I think it rubbered quite a bit before I moved down, but I was still good enough up here, but I saw them start driving away from Zack (VanderBeek) so I said it’s time to move down. I didn't mind seeing the yellow but I didn't want to see (Trevor Hughes) sitting there. I know he had a pretty good car he had a good heat race and I wanted him racing up front with me.

The 49-year-old from nearby Watts, Okla., not only ended his long winless streak but also kept his hopes alive for a fifth USMTS crown.

“It’s been way too long,” Hughes said of his six-year drought. “We struggled for a while but the past little while we've had a really good car but not the luck it takes to win some of these races. But what better place to do it than right here at home.”

Fresh off a win at the 10th Annual Summit USRA Nationals, Timm of Winona, Minn., climbed from tenth on the starting grid to claim the runner-up honors with El Paso’s Ahumada, Tyler Wolff of Fayetteville, Ark., and rookie Gabe Hodges of Lebo, Kan., completing the top five.

Points leader Rodney Sanders advanced nine spots to finish sixth, followed by Cayden Carter, Chad Wheeler, Brown and Swift Springs Fast Qualifier Steve Lavasseur.

Despite having the nose of his No. 75 Bloodline Race Cars whip smashed in early on, Terry Phillips earned the FK Rod Ends/KSE Racing Products Hard Charger Award after clawing his way from 22nd to 12th.

One down, two to go: The biggest and highest-paying dirt modified show in Oklahoma history continues on Friday and Saturday as Summit USMTS Modifieds compete for record-setting payouts at two of the last four USMTS races of the year.

The winner of Friday's main event will pocket $5,000 while Saturday night's ARMI Contractors All-American finale pays $20,023 to win and up to $1,200 to start.

Medieval USRA Stock Cars and AmeriFlex USRA B-Mods join the Summit USMTS Modifieds both nights while the USRA Tuners join the show on Saturday.

On Friday, the pits open at 4 p.m. and grandstands open at 5. USMTS qualifying starts at 6:45 with the first green flag of the night scheduled to wave at 7. Saturday's times are all one hour earlier.

General admission tickets are $25 on Friday and $30 on Saturday. Seniors (62+) and juniors (13-17) get in for $20 on Friday and $25 on Saturday. Kids ages 6-12 are $5 each day. Children under 6 get in for free. Tickets for each night are available online at MyRacePass up until race day.

Active military and veterans get free grandstand admission on Saturday, courtesy of ARMI Contractors.

Check out the FAST FACTS for everything you need know about the inaugural ARMI Contractors All-American.

The Arrowhead Speedway is a 1/3-mile semi-banked clay oval located 5.5 miles west of Arkansas/Oklahoma State Line at 20316 US-412 W, Colcord, OK 74338. Visit Arrowhead Speedway online at ArrowheadSpeedway.com and follow them on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

For its Silver Anniversary season, the Summit USMTS National Championship presented by RacinDirt currently features racing at some of America's premier dirt track racing venues. The winners of those events are set to earn more than $300,000 with nearly $2 million in purses and prize money earmarked for the 2023 campaign.

Watch every USMTS event online live and on-demand at RacinDirt.com and get the RacinDirt app for Roku, Amazon Fire, iOS, Apple TV or Google Play.

Visit usmts.com for schedules, points, photos, souvenirs, videos and more. Follow our social media channels on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube. Click here to get USMTS news delivered to your inbox.

OFFICIAL RESULTS
United States Modified Touring Series
Summit USMTS National Championship presented by RacinDirt
Inaugural ARMI Contractors All-American – Night 1 of 3
Arrowhead Speedway, Colcord, Okla.
Thursday, Oct. 12, 2023

Showing finishing position, starting position in parentheses, car number, driver and hometown. Heat race lineups are determined via group qualifying. The top 12 in heat race passing points advance to the Summit Racing Equipment “A” Main.

QUALIFYING GROUP A:
1. 65X Carlos Ahumada Jr., El Paso, Texas, 14.525
2. 4W Tyler Wolff, Fayetteville, Ark., 14.551
3. 712 Trevor Hughes, Westville, Okla., 14.608
4. 87 Darron Fuqua, Mayetta, Kan., 14.611
5. 4R Dereck Ramirez, Woodward, Okla., 14.647
6. 15W Alex Williamson, Rushford, Minn., 14.662
7. 89 Tate Cole, Fort Gibson, Okla., 14.689
8. 15WX Kale Westover, Altus, Okla., 14.748
9. 60 Dan Ebert, Lake Shore, Minn., 14.794
10. 11N Gene Nicholas, Lowell, Ark., 14.826
11. 0 Jake O'Neil, Tucson, Ariz., 14.875
12. 19SB Lance Mari, El Centro, Calif., 14.985
13. 211 Chase Hatton, De Berry, Texas, 14.986
14. 10B Brandon Givens, Wichita, Kan., 15.000
15. 21K Kyle Brown, Madrid, Iowa, 15.001
16. 10C Cayden Carter, Oskaloosa, Iowa, 15.021
17. 27 Greg Skaggs, Coweta, Okla., 15.036
18. 7X Chris Dawson, Lubbock, Texas, 15.047
19. 44K Kelsie Foley, Otis, Kan., 15.066
20. 01 Peyton Taylor, Batesville, Ark., 15.098
21. 11X Tom Berry Jr., Des Moines, Iowa, 15.165
22. 4 Jeremy Nelson, Alexandria, Minn., 15.171
23. 75M Gunner Martin, Sugar creek, Mo., 15.197
24. 75 Terry Phillips, Springfield, Mo., 15.246
25. 25C Brandon Huff, Concord, Okla., 16.084
26. 7W Willie Gammill, Siloam Springs, Ark., 16.084
DQ – 26 Brian Williams, Fayetteville, Ark., 15.197

QUALIFYING GROUP B:
1. 99L Steve Lavasseur, River Falls, Wis., 14.505
2. 18 Chase Junghans, Manhattan, Kan., 14.670
3. 88S Nathan Smith, Anthony, N.M., 14.678
4. 08 Dakota Sproul, Hays, Kan., 14.751
5. 02 Tanner Mullens, Wichita, Kan., 14.767
6. 12 Jason Hughes, Watts, Okla., 14.779
7. 49 Jake Timm, Winona, Minn., 14.817
8. 88 Chad Wheeler, Muskogee, Okla., 14.839
9. 396 R.C. Whitwell, Tucson, Ariz., 14.905
10. 24C Jim Chisholm, Osage, Iowa, 14.923
11. K9 Will Krup, Mt. Carmel, Ill., 14.944
12. 20 Rodney Sanders, Happy, Texas, 14.997
13. 96T Randy Brown, Chowchilla, Calif., 15.004
14. 12H Mike Hansen, Dickinson, N.D., 15.004
15. 15L Ryan Taylor, Springdale, Ark., 15.008
16. 7G Gabe Hodges, Lebo, Kan., 15.018
17. 58X Gary Christian, Broken Bow, Okla., 15.018
18. 5 Steve Holzkamper, Gentry, Ark., 15.045
19. 33 Chad Smith, Springdale, Ark., 15.071
20. 91 Joe Duvall, Claremore, Okla., 15.081
21. 33Z Zack VanderBeek, New Sharon, Iowa, 15.176
22. 44T Tanner Black, Otis, Kan., 15.227
23. 51 Eddie Martin, Stilwell, Okla., 15.228
24. 4RJ Jared Russell, Wagoner, Okla., 15.302
25. 5* John Briggs, Harrison, Ark., 15.324
26. 19R Chris Kratzer, Haysville, Kan., 38.374
27. 84 John Yeoman, Joplin, Mo., NT.

SIMPSON RACE PRODUCTS HEAT RACE #1 (8 laps):
1. (1) 10C Cayden Carter, Oskaloosa, Iowa
2. (6) 65X Carlos Ahumada Jr., El Paso, Texas
3. (3) 11N Gene Nicholas, Lowell, Ark.
4. (7) 4 Jeremy Nelson, Alexandria, Minn.
5. (5) 87 Darron Fuqua, Mayetta, Kan.
6. (4) 89 Tate Cole, Fort Gibson, Okla.
7. (2) 211 Chase Hatton, De Berry, Texas
8. (8) 25C Brandon Huff, Concord, Okla.
9. (9) 44K Kelsie Foley, Otis, Kan.

FAST SHAFTS HEAT RACE #2 (8 laps):
1. (1) 7G Gabe Hodges, Lebo, Kan.
2. (4) 49 Jake Timm, Winona, Minn.
3. (3) 24C Jim Chisholm, Osage, Iowa
4. (2) 96T Randy Brown, Chowchilla, Calif.
5. (6) 99L Steve Lavasseur, River Falls, Wis.
6. (5) 08 Dakota Sproul, Hays, Kan.
7. (8) 44T Tanner Black, Otis, Kan.
8. (10) 4D Bo Day, Greenville, Texas
9. (7) 33 Chad Smith, Springdale, Ark.
10. (9) 5* John Briggs, Harrison, Ark.

EDELBROCK HEAT RACE #3 (8 laps):
1. (6) 4W Tyler Wolff, Fayetteville, Ark.
2. (4) 15WX Kale Westover, Altus, Okla.
3. (2) 10B Brandon Givens, Wichita, Kan.
4. (3) 0 Jake O'Neil, Tucson, Ariz.
5. (5) 4R Dereck Ramirez, Woodward, Okla.
6. (1) 27 Greg Skaggs, Coweta, Okla.
7. (7) 01 Peyton Taylor, Batesville, Ark.
8. (8) 75M Gunner Martin, Sugar creek, Mo.
9. (9) 7W Willie Gammill, Siloam Springs, Ark.

WIELAND HEAT RACE #4 (8 laps):
1. (2) 12H Mike Hansen, Dickinson, N.D.
2. (4) 88 Chad Wheeler, Muskogee, Okla.
3. (3) K9 Will Krup, Mt. Carmel, Ill.
4. (8) 51 Eddie Martin, Stilwell, Okla.
5. (6) 18 Chase Junghans, Manhattan, Kan.
6. (9) 19R Chris Kratzer, Haysville, Kan.
7. (5) 02 Tanner Mullens, Wichita, Kan.
8. (7) 91 Joe Duvall, Claremore, Okla.
9. (1) 58X Gary Christian, Broken Bow, Okla.

VP RACING HEAT RACE #5 (8 laps):
1. (2) 21K Kyle Brown, Madrid, Iowa
2. (4) 60 Dan Ebert, Lake Shore, Minn.
3. (6) 712 Trevor Hughes, Westville, Okla.
4. (3) 19SB Lance Mari, El Centro, Calif.
5. (8) 75 Terry Phillips, Springfield, Mo.
6. (5) 15W Alex Williamson, Rushford, Minn.
7. (9) 26 Brian Williams, Fayetteville, Ark.
8. (7) 11X Tom Berry Jr., Des Moines, Iowa
9. (1) 7X Chris Dawson, Lubbock, Texas

SUPER CLEAN HEAT RACE #6 (8 laps):
1. (1) 5 Steve Holzkamper, Gentry, Ark.
2. (3) 20 Rodney Sanders, Happy, Texas
3. (5) 12 Jason Hughes, Watts, Okla.
4. (6) 88S Nathan Smith, Anthony, N.M.
5. (4) 396 R.C. Whitwell, Tucson, Ariz.
6. (8) 4RJ Jared Russell, Wagoner, Okla.
7. (7) 33Z Zack VanderBeek, New Sharon, Iowa
8. (9) 84 John Yeoman, Joplin, Mo.
9. (2) 15L Ryan Taylor, Springdale, Ark.

REAL RACING WHEELS “B” MAIN #1 (15 laps, top 5 advance):
1. (2) 20 Rodney Sanders, Happy, Texas
2. (1) 60 Dan Ebert, Lake Shore, Minn.
3. (4) 24C Jim Chisholm, Osage, Iowa
4. (7) 0 Jake O'Neil, Tucson, Ariz.
5. (6) 4R Dereck Ramirez, Woodward, Okla.
6. (10) 396 R.C. Whitwell, Tucson, Ariz.
7. (5) 10B Brandon Givens, Wichita, Kan.
8. (9) 15W Alex Williamson, Rushford, Minn.
9. (11) 02 Tanner Mullens, Wichita, Kan.
10. (12) 26 Brian Williams, Fayetteville, Ark.
11. (14) 33Z Zack VanderBeek, New Sharon, Iowa
12. (17) 91 Joe Duvall, Claremore, Okla.
13. (20) 58X Gary Christian, Broken Bow, Okla.
14. (8) 96T Randy Brown, Chowchilla, Calif.
15. (15) 211 Chase Hatton, De Berry, Texas
16. (19) 33 Chad Smith, Springdale, Ark.
17. (21) 5* John Briggs, Harrison, Ark.
18. (3) 4 Jeremy Nelson, Alexandria, Minn.
19. (16) 25C Brandon Huff, Concord, Okla.
20. (18) 44K Kelsie Foley, Otis, Kan.
21. (13) 27 Greg Skaggs, Coweta, Okla.

REAL RACING WHEELS “B” MAIN #2 (15 laps, top 5 advance):
1. (1) 88S Nathan Smith, Anthony, N.M.
2. (4) K9 Will Krup, Mt. Carmel, Ill.
3. (2) 51 Eddie Martin, Stilwell, Okla.
4. (6) 75 Terry Phillips, Springfield, Mo.
5. (7) 19SB Lance Mari, El Centro, Calif.
6. (10) 4RJ Jared Russell, Wagoner, Okla.
7. (5) 87 Darron Fuqua, Mayetta, Kan.
8. (8) 08 Dakota Sproul, Hays, Kan.
9. (11) 89 Tate Cole, Fort Gibson, Okla.
10. (3) 11N Gene Nicholas, Lowell, Ark.
11. (12) 44T Tanner Black, Otis, Kan.
12. (14) 4D Bo Day, Greenville, Texas
13. (16) 75M Gunner Martin, Sugar creek, Mo.
14. (17) 11X Tom Berry Jr., Des Moines, Iowa
15. (19) 7X Chris Dawson, Lubbock, Texas
16. (13) 01 Peyton Taylor, Batesville, Ark.
17. (18) 15L Ryan Taylor, Springdale, Ark.
18. (9) 19R Chris Kratzer, Haysville, Kan.
19. (15) 84 John Yeoman, Joplin, Mo.
DNS – 7W Willie Gammill, Siloam Springs, Ark.

SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT “A” MAIN (35 laps):
1. (4) 12 Jason Hughes, Watts, Okla.
2. (10) 49 Jake Timm, Winona, Minn.
3. (2) 65X Carlos Ahumada Jr., El Paso, Texas
4. (7) 4W Tyler Wolff, Fayetteville, Ark.
5. (8) 7G Gabe Hodges, Lebo, Kan.
6. (15) 20 Rodney Sanders, Happy, Texas
7. (5) 10C Cayden Carter, Oskaloosa, Iowa
8. (12) 88 Chad Wheeler, Muskogee, Okla.
9. (1) 21K Kyle Brown, Madrid, Iowa
10. (13) 99L Steve Lavasseur, River Falls, Wis.
11. (14) 18 Chase Junghans, Manhattan, Kan.
12. (22) 75 Terry Phillips, Springfield, Mo.
13. (19) 24C Jim Chisholm, Osage, Iowa
14. (11) 15WX Kale Westover, Altus, Okla.
15. (24) 19SB Lance Mari, El Centro, Calif.
16. (17) 60 Dan Ebert, Lake Shore, Minn.
17. (21) 0 Jake O'Neil, Tucson, Ariz.
18. (23) 4R Dereck Ramirez, Woodward, Okla.
19. (25) 02 Tanner Mullens, Wichita, Kan.
20. (16) 88S Nathan Smith, Anthony, N.M.
21. (20) 51 Eddie Martin, Stilwell, Okla.
22. (27) 33Z Zack VanderBeek, New Sharon, Iowa
23. (26) 4 Jeremy Nelson, Alexandria, Minn.
24. (6) 712 Trevor Hughes, Westville, Okla.
25. (28) 87 Darron Fuqua, Mayetta, Kan.
26. (3) 12H Mike Hansen, Dickinson, N.D.
27. (18) K9 Will Krup, Mt. Carmel, Ill.
28. (9) 5 Steve Holzkamper, Gentry, Ark.
DNS – 4RJ Jared Russell, Wagoner, Okla.
DNS – 58X Gary Christian, Broken Bow, Okla.

Lap Leaders: K. Brown 1-3, J. Hughes 4-35.
Total Laps Led: J. Hughes 32, K. Brown 3.
Margin of Victory: 0.47 second.
Time of Race: 16 minutes, 37.409 seconds (2 cautions).
Provisional Starters: Mullens, Nelson, Russell (track), Christian (track).
Emergency Provisionals: VanderBeek, Fuqua.
FK Rod Ends/KSE Racing Products Hard Charger: Phillips (started 27th, finished 12th).
Entries: 55.
Next Race: Friday-Saturday, Oct. 13-14, Arrowhead Speedway, Colcord, Okla.
Summit USMTS National Championship Points: Sanders 2552, Hughes 2410, Chisholm 2345, Ramirez 2312, O'Neil 2297, Mullens 2286, Ebert 2233, Wolff 2191, Phillips 2185, Carter 2162.
Grant Junghans USMTS Rookie of the Year Points: Berry 1729, Krup 1707, Nelson 1546, Christian 1470, Lavasseur 1305.
FK Rod Ends USMTS Hard Charger Points: Chisholm 170, Sanders 129, O'Neil 116, Hughes 101, Phillips 87.
Miller Welders USMTS Manufacturers Championship Points: MBCustoms 217, Mullens 199, Hughes 196, VanderBuilt 150, Skyrocket 141.
Callies/JE Pistons USMTS Engine Builder of the Year Points: Mullins 236, Cornett 221, Hatfield 199, Stoen 189, KSE 175.

Contingency Awards:
Aero Race Wheels – Nelson.
American Racer – Mullens.
Beyea Custom Headers – Wolff.
BigDeal Car Care – J. Hughes, TBD.
Bryke Racing – Mari.
BSB Manufacturing – Martin.
Carquest – TBD.
Champ Pans – Hodges.
Collins Brothers Towing – toughbrake.
Deatherage Opticians – Hodges.
Edelbrock – Wolff.
Fast Shafts – Hodges.
FK Rod Ends – Phillips.
Hooker Harness – Phillips.
Hyperco – Carter.
Integra Racing Shocks & Springs – Ramirez.
Keyser Manufacturing – Lavasseur.
KSE Racing Products – Phillips.
MD3 – J. Hughes.
Mel Hambelton Racing – Timm.
Mesilla Valley Transportation – N. Smith.
Midwest Wrap Co. – VanderBeek.
MSD Performance – Ahumada.
Penske Racing Shocks – Chisholm.
PEM Racing Gears & Drivetrain – R. Brown.
QA1 – Wolff.
Quarter Master – Wheeler.
RacerWebsite.com – Russell.
Salty’s BBQ & Catering – TBD.
Simpson Race Products – Carter.
Summit Racing Equipment – Berry, Skaggs, C. Smith, N. Smith, Sproul, Taylor.
Super Clean – J. Hughes.
Swift Springs – Lavasseur, Wheeler, J. Hughes.
Sybesma Graphics – K. Brown.
VP Racing – J. Hughes.
Wehrs Machine & Racing Products – Huff.
Willy's Carb & Dyno Shop – K. Brown.
Wilwood Disc Brakes – Carter.

USMTS OFFICIAL SPONSORS: American Racer Racing Tires, Beyea Headers, Callies Performance Products, Chevrolet Performance, Fast Shafts, FK Rod Ends, KSE Racing Products, Malvern Bank, Mesilla Valley Transportation, Nitroquest Media, PEM Racing Gears & Drivetrain, RacinDirt, Summit Racing Equipment, Super Clean, VP Racing, Wieland.

USMTS PARTICIPATING SPONSORS: ARMI Contractors, Boomtest Well Service, Boubin Tire & Automotive, Brodix Cylinder Heads, Collins Brothers Towing, D&T Marriott Enterprise, LLC, DAY Motorsports, Duvall Electric, Gunshepherd.com, Hacienda Mechanical, Kenny's Tile, Mel Hambelton Racing, Midwest Wrap Co., Miller Welders, PBM Performance Products, Rancho Milagro Racing, S&S Fishing & Rental, Salty's BBQ & Catering, Shocker Hitch, Shop Quik Stores, YouDirt.com.

USMTS CONTINGENCY SPONSORS: AERO Race Wheels, AFCO Racing Products, Allstar Performance, BigDeal Car Care, Bryke Racing, BSB Manufacturing, Champ Pans, Deatherage Opticians, Edelbrock, Hooker Harness, Hyperco, Integra Racing Shocks and Springs, JE Pistons, K1 RaceGear by Ryan Bowers Motorsports, Keyser Manufacturing, MD3, MSD Performance, Penske Racing Shocks, Performance Bodies & Parts, QA1, Quarter Master, RacerWebsite.com, Real Racing Wheels, Simpson Performance Products, Swift Springs, Sybesma Graphics, Wehrs Machine & Racing Products, Willy’s Carb & Dyno Shop, Wilwood Racing.

USMTS RACETRACKS: 81 Speedway, Ark-La-Tex Speedway, Arrowhead Speedway, Cedar Lake Speedway, Deer Creek Speedway, Fayette County Speedway, Hamilton County Speedway, Humboldt Speedway, Lakeside Speedway, Lucas Oil Speedway, Mason City Motor Speedway, Ogilvie Raceway, Rocket Raceway Park.