Text 104, 69 rader
Skriven 2006-09-14 16:10:00 av Mike Powell (1:2320/105.0)
Ärende: MMS Ends Weekly Racing
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Mansfield Motorsports Speedway Ends Weekly Racing; New Focus on Special
Events in 2007

Mansfield Motorsports Speedway's 2006 NASCAR Weekly Racing Series season was
completed on Saturday September 9, and with the completion of the event also
brings with it the end of weekly racing at the banked half-mile asphalt oval.
In 2007, MMS will present an 8-10 event schedule of major specials rather
than offer a weekly program. The track was the last weekly racing track to
hold a national-level NASCAR touring series race with the NASCAR Craftsman
Truck Series visiting each of the past three years.

"Anyone who knows me personally knows that this is a hard decision for me to
make," said MMS president Chris Mize. "I am a big supporter of weekly short
track racing, and once we decided that is the direction we were going in 2007
it literally made me sick. But this is a business and what our business model
tells us is we need to focus on a schedule of eight to ten events on the oval
track rather than trying to race 20 or more times.

"I'd like to thank all of the drivers, teams, and fans that have supported us
the past several years," Mize continued. "We have had a great field of
drivers this season in all of our divisions. Things just haven't gone quite
as we expected with our weekly shows, and with today's business environment
we thought it made more sense to make the change now rather than wait until
things got worse and hurt everyone. Congratulations to our champions in 2006
- John Sandquist, Jr. in the Miller Lite Late Models, Baldy Baker, Jr. in the
Mountain Dew Modifieds, and Tigh Shaffer in the Pizza Hut Grand Nationals -
as well as all of our winners throughout the year."

The cornerstone event on MMS's 2007 oval track calendar will be the fourth
annual NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Ohio 250.

"We are very proud to be NASCAR's home here in the state of Ohio with the
NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race," Mize said. "We will be announcing the
dates for our NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Ohio 250 weekend shortly along
with ticket information."

As for the rest of Mansfield Motorsports Speedway's 2007 schedule, Mize has
had discussions with several sanctioning bodies that have expressed an
interest in racing at the track next season.

"We've had several calls already from sanctions wanting to schedule a race
here next season," Mize said. "I'm already working on a first draft of what
our schedule will look like. It will be a great mix of events for all types
of racing fans. We are working hard to bring top level racing for stock car
fans and open wheel fans alike. We are discussing bringing some new series to
Mansfield that haven't ever raced here before. Hopefully things come together
like we anticipate and we'll be able to follow up with more exciting news
when we announce our oval track schedule for next season."

Mansfield Motorsports Speedway has already announced plans to construct a
world class drag strip on the east side of the speedway property. Blueprints
are already being developed for the dragstrip, which will host the IHRA World
Finals as soon as 2007.

There are two weekends of racing left on the 2006 schedule at Mansfield
Motorsports Speedway. On Saturday October 7, MMS will play host to the HOSS
410 Sprints along with the track's Miller Lite Late Models, Mountain Dew
Modifieds, and Pizza Hut Grand Nationals in the annual fall classic
Cavalcade. The season winds up with the USAR Hooter's ProCup Series Alan
Kulwicki Memorial Sears Auto Centers 250 on Saturday October 14. For ticket
information, contact the Mansfield Motorsports Speedway ticket office at
(419) 525-RACE or visit the track website at www.mansfield-speedway.com.

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