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TED JOHNSON RATED ‘MOST
INFLUENTIAL’ |
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KNOXVILLE, IOWA (February 28, 2003) - World of Outlaws (WoO) founder and president Ted Johnson continues to be rated the most influential leader in sprint car racing, according to the 2003 special edition of the National Sprint Car Poll. Johnson, who has been in that position since the start of the annual leadership poll in 1991, received 27 of the 52 first-place ballots cast by the industry voting panel of manufacturers, media members, sanctioning officials and promoters. Those ranked second through fourth, respectively, among “Sprint Car Racing’s 30 Most Influential Leaders” remain the same as last year: Knoxville Raceway promoter Ralph Capitani (six first-place votes), Eldora Speedway and "Mopar Million" promoter Earl Baltes (nine votes), and American Sprint Car Series (ASCS) president Emmett Hahn (five votes). The biggest change in the poll from last season is the fact that former All Star Circuit of Champions (ASCoC) president Bert Emick, never ranked below the ‘top five’ since it’s inception, dropped completely out of the ‘top thirty’ following retirement. Ron Shuman, former driver turned president of the Sprint Car Racing Association (SCRA), moved from being ranked sixth in 2002 to fifth this year. The 2003 National Sprint Car Hall of Famer also garnered one first-place vote. Moving to sixth in the ‘power poll’ is defending WoO titlist and Knoxville Nationals champion Steve Kinser, who picked up two first-place ballots. Rounding out the ‘top ten’ are United States Auto Club (USAC) president Rollie Helmling, veteran sprint car owner/mechanic Karl Kinser, Sprint Car & Midget founder and editor Doug Auld, and new ASCoC president Guy Webb, respectively. Others receiving one first-place nod each are Devil’s Bowl Speedway promoter Lanny Edwards, who was named RPM Auto Racing Promoter of the Year this month in Daytona Beach, Florida, and award-winning media member Dave Argabright. Besides the sudden appearance of Guy Webb in the ‘top ten’ of the rankings, the only other new-comers to the poll are Bob Newton of Hoosier Racing Tire in 27th and Fred Brownfield of the Northern Sprint Tour (NST) and Gray’s Harbor Raceway Park in 28th, respectively. And besides Bert Emick’s departure, only former Williams Grove Speedway co-promoter Bob Jones (28th) and United Sprint Car Series (USCS) president Pete Walton (30th) slipped out of the ratings in the past year. It appears that the leadership within the overall sport of sprint car racing is pretty stable heading into the 2003 racing season. The National Sprint Car Poll is an official awards program of the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame and Museum Foundation of Knoxville, Iowa. The special edition poll results have been certified by the non-profit museum foundation's immediate past president, Larry Ball, Jr., of Altoona, Iowa. Special
Edition 2003 National Sprint Car Poll: “Sprint Car Racing’s 30 Most Influential Leaders” 2003 Rank, 2002 Rank, Leader (1st Place Votes), Affiliation, Occupation, Points 1., 1., Ted Johnson (27), World of Outlaws, 410 sanction, 3,567. 2., 2., Ralph Capitani (6), Knoxville Raceway, 360/410 promoter, 2,319. 3., 3., Earl Baltes (9), Eldora Speedway, non-w/360/410 promoter, 2,284. 4., 4., Emmett Hahn (5), American Sprint Car Series, 360 sanction, 1,365. 5., 6., Ron Shuman (1), Sprint Car Racing Association, non-w sanction, 1,099. 6., 8., Steve Kinser (2), Quaker State #11, 410 driver/owner, 821. 7., 14., Rollie Helmling, United States Auto Club, non-w sanction, 435. 8., 7., Karl Kinser, #5m, 410 owner, 332. 9., 11., Doug Auld, Sprint Car & Midget, non-w/360/410 media, 314. 10., not ranked, Guy Webb, All Star Circuit of Champions, 410 sanction/owner, 305. 11., 10., Chuck Merrill, Maxim Chassis, non-w/360/410 builder, 258. 12., 25., Tony Stewart, J.D. Byrider #20, non-w/410 owner, 237. 13., 13., Tom Schmeh, National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum, non-w/360/410 media, 222. 14., 18., Lanny Edwards (1), Devil’s Bowl Speedway, 360/410 promoter, 207. 15., 27., Alan Kreitzer, Williams Grove/Lincoln Speedway, 360/410 promoter, 187. 16., 9., Dave Argabright (1), Sprint Car & Midget, non-w/360/410 media, 180. 17., 29., Steve Sinclair, Interstate Racing Association, 410 sanction, 179. 18., 17., Allan Holland, www.hoseheads.com, non-w/360/410 media, 178. 19., 15., Danny Lasoski, J.D. Byrider #20, 410 driver, 177. 20., 22., Earl Gaerte, Gaerte Engines, non-w/360/410 builder, 169. 21., 16., John Padjen, Silver Dollar/Golden State/Civil War Series, 360/410 promoter/sanction, 136. 22., 23., Jack Elam, J&J Chassis, non-w/360/410 builder, 118. 23., 19., Jerry Russell, Eagle Chassis, non-w/360/410 builder, 112. 24., 20., Jason Smith, United States Auto Club, non-w sanction, 102. 25., 21., Chris Economaki, National Speed Sport News/Elbows Up!, non-w/360/410 media, 94. 26., 24., Bob East, Beast Chassis, non-w builder, 66. 27., not ranked, Bob Newton, Hoosier Racing Tire, non-w/360/410 builder, 65. 28., not ranked, Fred Brownfield, Northern Sprint Tour/Gray’s Harbor, 360/410 promoter/sanction, 64. 29., 12., Brad Doty, Sprint Car Network, non-w/360/410 media, 63. 30., 26., J.V. Brotherton, Brodix Cylinder Heads, non-w/360/410 builder, 50. Also receiving multiple votes: Steve Beitler, Larry Brown, Johnny Capels, Dick Carbery, Craig Cormack, Dave Darland, Joe Darmofal, Mike Devin, Jay Drake, Kevin Eckert, Bert Emick, Joe Gaerte, Bobby Gerould, Richard Griffin, Keith Hall, C. Ray Hall, Al Hamilton, Jack Hewitt, Tracy Hines, Janet Holbrook, Tommy Hunt, Bobby Jackson, Bob Jones, Brent Kaeding, Don Kazarian, Mike Kerchner, Paul Kistler, Cory Kruseman, Keith Kunz, Bob Lawton, Jim Liberatore, Terry McCarl, Bill McCroskey, Mike Martin, Bob Miller, Kevin Miller, Stu Murray, Jim Naylor, Bruce Neimeth, Don Ott, Jerry Reigle, Carlton Reimers, Larry Rice, Glen Sander, Ralph Sheheen, Roger Slack, Jerry Slade, Bruton Smith, Gary Stanton, Greg Stephens, Sammy Swindell, Pete Walton, Bob Westphal, Humpy Wheeler, Patti Wheeler, Morrie Williams, J.J. Yeley, John Zimmerman, Justin Zoch.
Note: non-w = non-winged sprint car; 360 = 360-cubic-inch sprint car; 410 = 410-cubic-inch sprint car. |
