A week after opening the eyes of the wingless Sprint Car world, the second generation driver is set to take on the O'Reilly Sprint Bandits in this weekend's double header at Little Rock's I-30 Speedway on Friday and Saturday night.

After collecting National 360 Sprint Car Rookie of the Year honors at the tender age of 15 in 2003, Stenhouse made his first wingless outing in last Friday's O'Reilly Sprint Bandits vs. USAC Valvoline National Sprint Car Series Wingless Challenge at Memphis Motorsports Park.

Stenhouse didn't disappoint either, timing in fourth-quick among a stout 45-car field that included the nation?s top wingless chauffeurs. Stenhouse went on to battle among the top five for much of the feature before settling for an impressive seventh place finish aboard Shorty Chambliss' No. 40r DynoTech-powered South Tire J&J as the checkered flag flew.

Even more impressive is the fact that the young Olive Branch, MS, native spotted his rivals a horsepower advantage, hustling his 360-ci powered sprinter around the quarter-mile gumbo oval against the nation's top 410-ci wingless machines.

While Stenhouse hopes to have his Sprint Bandits 410-ci powerplant ready in time for this weekend's I-30 Speedway double, he'll plug in his 360 if necessary and make a run for the win against many of the nation's top drivers.

If the 360 is in place, Stenhouse will aim for the best finish possible along with the $500 bonus offered to the top finishing 360 each night. If the 410 is in place, don't count the talented young shoe out of the running for Sprint Bandits victory honors against a tough field of drivers that will include Sprint Car legend Sammy Swindell, nine-time NCRA Outlaw Sprint Car champion Gary Wright and defending ASCS National champion Travis Rilat.

Other top guns expected for this weekend's action, which offers a Short Track Nationals provisional to Saturday night?s winner, include 2003 ASCS Speedweek and Southern Iowa Speedweek champion Shane Stewart, three-time NCRA Outlaw Sprint Car points runner-up Aaron Berryhill, 2001 ASCS National champion Zach Chappell, 2002 ASCS Sooner Region champion Danny Jennings, Jerrod Hull (who posted 14 feature wins in 2003), current ASCS Sooner Region point leader Jason Martin, Jan and Dale Howard, St. Francois County Speedway hotshoe Tim Montgomery and many more.

A number of 360's are expected to battle the 410's atop the quarter-mile clay oval as well, including three-time ASCS National champion Tim Crawley, defending I-30 Speedway track champion Pete Butler and other track regulars including Lewis Jenkins, Jr., Bryce Vowan and Justin Sturch.

I-30 Speedway is located seven miles southwest of Little Rock off I-30 Exit 126 (County Line Road). Tickets for Friday night are just $10 for adults, with children 6-12 just $1 when accompanied by an adult. Tickets for the Saturday night finale are only $20, with children 6-12 just $4 when accompanied by an adult.

Additional information is available by calling the track at 501-455-4567.

Additional information regarding the O?Reilly Sprint Bandits is available at www.sprintbandits.com .

Wise raced to the checkered flag in wire-to-wire fashion, slicing through heavy lapped traffic masterfully to post his first career USAC National Sprint Car Series feature victory aboard the Keith Kunz-owned No. 67 Snyder Enterprise-powered machine.

With the top six from qualifying inverted for the feature, Wise led the field to the green flag with Sprint Bandits shoe Shane Stewart alongside. After a pair of false starts, Wise jumped into the lead, only to have the action interrupted after one round for a turn three tangle in which Gary Wright got upside down.

On the ensuing restart, the field stacked up in turn two, forcing tenth-place runner Aaron Berryhill to slide to a stop in turn two.

Back under way, Wise set the pace in front of Stewart with Troy Cline and Cory Kruseman dicing for third position. Stewart pressured the leader for several laps before Wise began to gradually slip away.

Wise approached heavy lapped traffic by the tenth round, with Stewart and Kruseman, who had gained command of third on the eighth round, sensing the opportunity to challenge for the lead. Wise wasted little time disposing of lapped traffic however, dashing through the backmarkers at a lightning-quick pace as he extended his lead.

With Wise in firm command, Kruseman took advantage of traffic to slip past Stewart for second on the 13th round. The red flag would fly six rounds later when Sammy Swindell, who was battling for tenth, flipped in turn two without injury. On the restart, fourth-running Cline flipped in turn four, also walking away unscathed.

Wise took off on the restart and raced to the checkered flag unchallenged over the final rounds, with Kruseman settling for second aboard Tony Stewart's Mopar-powered No. 20. After a wild flip in qualifying, Shane Stewart rebounded for a strong third place finish aboard Scott Chilcutt's Wesmar-powered No. 4m Ol' Glory Energy Drink Maxim.

Dave Darland turned in the race's hard charger effort by racing from 21st to claim fourth, with Bud Kaeding rounding out the top five. Brian Lee claimed sixth, while 16-year-old Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., battled amongst the top five most of the way before settling for seventh at the stripe. Tracy Hines claimed eighth, with fast qualifier Travis Rilat and Jay Drake completing the top ten.

Rilat kicked off the evening by establishing a new non-wing track record of 12.938 seconds over the strong 45-car field. After Mat Neely topped Jan Howard in the Qualifying Race, heat race victories went to Mike Ward, Boston Reid, Kruseman and Wright. Stewart raced past Hines on the 10th round en route to winning the 12-lap B Feature.

Darren Stewart was a Qualifying Race flip victim, with Kevin Briscoe getting upside down in the fourth heat. Jerrod Wilson flipped after being collected in a B Feature skirmish. There were no injuries.

After his 410-ci machine failed to fire, Zach Chappell broke out his 360. Chappell extended his evening by finishing third in the Qualifying Race, then qualified for the main event by racing from 17th to sixth in the B Feature.

Tony Elliott utilized a provisional starting position to race from 23rd to twelfth in the main event.

Results:

Qualifying: 1. Travis Rilat, Rilat 29x, 12.938; 2. Tracy Hines, Dynamics 69, 13.018; 3. Troy Cline, Cline 11c, 13.168; 4. Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., Chambliss 40R, 13.238; 5. Shane Stewart, Chilcutt 4m, 13.308; 6. Josh Wise, Kunz 67, 13.321; 7. Cory Kruseman, Stewart 21, 13.363; 8. Brian Lee, MPHG 2H, 13.375; 9. Kris Deckard, Deckard 97, 13.389; 10. Bud Kaeding, BK 29, 13.415; 11. Tony Elliott, Walker 11, 13.416; 12. Aaron Berryhill, Fast Forward 97x, 13.432; 13. Jay Drake, Stewart 20, 13.437; 14. Marc Jessup, Jessup 14J, 13.438; 15. Sammy Swindell, Vielhauer 12x, 13.448; 16. Levi Jones, BWB 62, 13.455; 17. Jerrod Wilson, Wilson 88J, 13.479; 18. Josh Ford, Ford 73, 13.499; 19. Brian Tyler, Davis/Bowman 6, 13.509; 20. Daron Clayton, Clayton 92, 13.525; 21. John Scott, Scott 83, 13.533; 22. Boston Reid, 2B Racing 2B, 13.550; 23. Dickie Gaines, Dynamics 69x, 13.556; 24. Bryan Stanfill, Roberts 21x, 13.558; 25. Mike Ward, Ward 88, 13.566; 26. Tom Hessert, Hessert 5H, 13.578; 27. Dale Howard, Howard 47x, 13.578; 28. Gary Wright, Wright 9, 13.584; 29. Kevin Newton, Law 77, 13.623; 30. Paul White, Hughey 22R, 13.678; 31. Rex Norris III, Norris 63, 13.691; 32. Dave Darland, Reid 2, 13.738; 33. Jan Howard, Howard 46, 13.806; 34. Mat Neely, Neely 17, 13.933; 35. Wayne Johnson, Fatt-Fro 14AJ, 13.957; 36. Dave Steele, Nicholas 2N, 14.093; 37. Zach Chappell, Chappell 50z, 14.101; 38. Henry Gustavus, Jr., Gustavus 78, 14.152; 39. Jerrod Hull, Hull 12, 14.161; 40. Kevin Briscoe, Roberts 21R, 14.290; 41. Marshall Skinner, Skinner 26k, 14.377; 42. Darren Stewart, Sparks 91, 14.410; 43. Derek Crasi, CNC 95, 14.415; 44. Buster Dickerson, Dickerson 86, 14.464; 45. Justin Marvel, MPHG 47, 14.569

Qualifying Race (6 laps): 1. Mat Neely, 2. Jan Howard, 3. Zach Chappell, 4. Kevin Briscoe, 5. Wayne Johnson, 6. David Steele, 7. Jerrod Hull, 8. Marshall Skinner, 9. Justin Marvel, 10. Henry Gustavus, Jr., 11. Derek Crasi, 12. Darren Stewart, 13. Buster Dickerson. NT

First Heat (10 Laps): 1. Mike Ward, 2. Kevin Newton, 3. Travis Rilat, 4. Jay Drake, 5. Shane Stewart, 6. Kris Deckard, 7. Mat Neely, 8. John Scott, 9. Jerrod Wilson. NT

Second Heat (10 Laps): 1. Boston Reid, 2. Tom Hessert, 3. Bud Kaeding, 4. Marc Jessup, 5. Josh Wise, 6. Josh Ford, 7. Tracy Hines, 8. Jan Howard, 9. Paul White. 2:16.09

Third Heat (10 Laps): 1. Cory Kruseman, 2. Dickie Gaines, 3. Sammy Swindell, 4. Troy Cline, 5. Dale Howard, 6. Zach Chappell, 7. Tony Elliott, 8. Brian Tyler, 9. Rex Norris III. NT

Fourth Heat (10 Laps): 1. Gary Wright, 2. Dave Darland, 3. Levi Jones, 4. Aaron Berryhill, 5. Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., 6. Brian Stanfill, 7. Daron Clayton, 8. Brian Lee, 9. Kevin Briscoe. NT

B Feature (12 Laps): 1. Shane Stewart, 2. Tracy Hines, 3. Josh Wise, 4. Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., 5. Brian Lee, 6. Zach Chappell, 7. Dale Howard, 8. Tony Elliott, 9. Paul White, 10. Kevin Briscoe, 11. Josh Ford, 12. John Scott, 13. Brian Stanfill, 14. Daron Clayton, 15. Kris Deckard, 16. Jerrod Wilson, 17. Brian Tyler, 18. Mat Neely. 2:44.84 DNS: Rex Norris III, Jan Howard.

A Feature (30 Laps - Starting Position in Parentheses): 1. Josh Wise (1), 2. Cory Kruseman (7), 3. Shane Stewart (2), 4. Dave Darland (21), 5. Bud Kaeding (9), 6. Brian Lee (8), 7. Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. (3), 8. Tracy Hines (5), 9. Travis Rilat (6), 10. Jay Drake (11), 11. Aaron Berryhill (10), 12. Tony Elliott (23), 13. Dickie Gaines (16), 14. Mike Ward (17), 15. Kevin Newton (20), 16. Levi Jones (14), 17. Tom Hessert (18), 18. Troy Cline (4), 19. Sammy Swindell (13), 20. Gary Wright (19), 21. Marc Jessup (12), 22. Zach Chappell (22), 23. Boston Reid (15). NT

Lap Leaders: Josh Wise 1-30.

The O'Reilly Sprint Bandits driver that can top USAC's wingless aces will pocket an extra $5,000 bonus, bringing the night's potential earnings to $9,000. "Looking at the guys we're gonna have there, I think Roger (Johnson) better have that extra $5,000 ready to pay out when the night's over," commented O'Reilly Sprint Bandits founder and President Emmett Hahn.

Among the Sprint Bandits drivers expected to vie for Friday's victory will be Sprint Car legend Sammy Swindell, making a rare wingless outing in front of his hometown crowd. Swindell also throws his hat into the mix for the $50,000 bonus that goes to the driver that can top Friday night?s wingless Sprint challenge as well as Saturday?s USAC Weld Racing Silver Crown event.

Swindell will be joined in the pursuit of the $50,000 bonus by fellow Sprint Bandits ace Shane Stewart of Bixby, OK, who will also pull double-duty over the weekend.

Other top Sprint Bandits drivers expected to contend for Friday night's $5,000 bonus include Hooks, TX, veteran hotshoe Gary Wright, who has scored several wingless wins in Florida to go along with his countless winged triumphs over the years, as well as Travis Rilat, winner of the $30,000 Non-Wing Ultimate Challenge in Oskaloosa, IA, in 2002, and Jesse Hockett, who pocketed $10,000 in a non-wing shootout at Lakeside Speedway in Kansas City last year.

Other top Sprint Bandits expected include Zach Chappell, Aaron Berryhill, Jerrod Hull, Wayne Johnson, Jan Howard, Dale Howard, Mike Ward, Jerrod Wilson and Sean Walden. ASCS hotshoe Darren Stewart is slated to make his wingless debut in Friday's card as well.

The O'Reilly Sprint Bandits contingent will go head-to-head with the best USAC has to offer, including current USAC Sprint Car point leader Jay Drake, Boston Reid, Cory Kruseman, Bud Kaeding, Tracy Hines, Dave Darland, Tony Elliott, Brian Tyler and Levi Jones.

After Friday night's wingless challenge, the O'Reilly Sprint Bandits shift back into full gear in the inaugural series championship points chase, taking to Auto Tire & Parts Race Park in Benton, MO, next Wednesday night, May 12, then moving on to Little Rock's I-30 Speedway on Friday and Saturday, May 14-15.

Memphis Motorsports Park is located off Fite Road between Hwy 51 and Raleigh-Millington, north of the I-240 and Austin Peay Highway interchange. For more information, contact the track at 901-358-7223.

Additional information regarding the O'Reilly Sprint Bandits is available at www.sprintbandits.com .

Complete your Sprint Car racing wardrobe or get your copy of the official inaugural season souvenir program by browsing through the secure Sprint Bandits store at www.sprintbandits.com .

The month of racing action gets under way with the Big M Motorfest, where the O'Reilly Sprint Bandits will shed their wings and take on the stars of the USAC Valvoline National Sprint Car Series at Memphis Motorsports Park on Friday night, May 7. An added $5,000 bonus is up for grabs for any Sprint Bandits shoe that can top USAC's wingless aces on the quarter-mile gumbo oval.

From there, the chase for the inaugural championship on the nation's most competitive traveling 410-ci Sprint Car circuit resumes on Wednesday night, May 12, at Auto Tire and Parts Race Park in Benton, MO.

The AT&P event leads into the two-night showdown at Little Rock's I-30 Speedway on Friday and Saturday, May 14-15. A provisional starting position for the 17th Annual Short Track Nationals is up for grabs for the winner of the Saturday night, May 15, show at I-30 Speedway. The 17th Annual Short Track Nationals, to be held October 28-30, features a $15,000 winner's share and $1,700-to-start in the nation's most prestigious 360-ci Sprint Car event.

An added bonus of $500 is also up for grabs for the driver that can top both the May 12 feature at AT&P Race Park and the May 15 event at I-30 Speedway.

After an off weekend, the O'Reilly Sprint Bandits wrap up the month of May with a three-day Memorial Day swing through Missouri, Iowa and Nebraska.

The Sprint Bandits take to Cameron, Missouri's lightning-fast US 36 Raceway on Friday night, May 28, before moving on to the grandiose Knoxville Raceway on Saturday night, May 29. The series wraps up the month on Sunday night, May 30, with a stop at Butler County Speedway in Rising City, NE.

In addition to making a major stride toward the initial O'Reilly Sprint Bandits championship, the month's top points-earner will be awarded the Love's Driver of the Month Award, worth $100 in Love's Travel Stops & Country Stores fuel certificates.

Sammy Swindell is the early leader in the inaugural O'Reilly Sprint Bandits points chase after completing a sweep of the opening weekend of action at Devil's Bowl Speedway on March 19-20. Swindell overtook early pacesetter Jerrod Hull to top the opening night's main event, then held off the late charge of Shane Stewart and Zach Chappell to secure the March 20 victory.

Stewart, Chappell and Daryn Pittman are tied for second in points, just 14 points behind Swindell, with Danny Jennings and Steve King tied for fifth. Completing the current top ten in points are Terry McCarl, Kelly Kinser, Wayne Johnson and Hull.

Founded by Emmett Hahn, the Sprint Bandits series has been created in an effort to revitalize 410-ci Sprint Car racing, in part by utilizing cost-cutting rules including the use of a series head, spec right rear tire and eliminating the wicker bill on wings. These rules will also combine to unhook the cars, thereby making the driver a greater part of the equation, resulting in more competitive Sprint Car racing.

While several teams employed the use of the Brodix series head in the inaugural event, the numerous Dash-12 engines and sleeved-down open engines in competition proved to be on equal footing with the series head.

Additional information regarding the O'Reilly Sprint Bandits is available at www.sprintbandits.com .

With a successful opening weekend in the books, the O'Reilly Sprint Bandits inaugural championship points chase continues on Wednesday, May 12, atop Benton's high-banked 3/8-mile clay oval, before moving on to Little Rock's racy quarter-mile clay oval for a weekend double on Friday and Saturday, May 14-15.

An extra $500, kicked in by the track promoters, has been offered to the driver that wins both the May 12 feature at Benton and the May 15 feature at I-30. With the bonus, a sweep of all three events would be worth $13,000 plus contingencies, including $4,000 for an AT&P Triumph, $2,500 in I-30 prelim action and $6,000 in the Little Rock finale.

Additionally, the winner of the May 15 feature at Little Rock's I-30 Speedway will be awarded a provisional starting position for the 17th Annual Short Track Nationals, to be held at I-30 Speedway on October 28-30. The provisional starting position in the prestigious event is worth $1,700, the amount each starter earns in the $15,000-to-win STN finale.

I-30 Speedway management has also offered a bonus to the top-finishing 360-ci competitor in both Little Rock features. The top-finishing 360-ci entry in the Friday, May 14, feature will earn an extra $200, with the top 360 finisher on Saturday night receiving an extra $300.

The top point earners over the three nights of intense racing action will also have the inside track to the Love's Driver of the Month Award, worth $100 in Love's Travel Stops & Country Stores fuel certificates at the end of the month.

Sprint Car legend Sammy Swindell possesses the early lead in O'Reilly Sprint Bandits points after topping both nights of opening weekend action at Devil's Bowl Speedway. Swindell will try to maintain his lead, with other top O'Reilly Sprint Bandits expected to vie for victory honors including Gary Wright, Shane Stewart, Aaron Berryhill, Travis Rilat, Jerrod Hull, Kelly Kinser, Danny Jennings, Danny Smith and Nick Smith among others.

Auto Tire and Parts Race Park is located in Benton, MO, off I-55 Exit 80, then 2.2 miles east on SR 77, then 0.1 mile south. Tickets for the Wednesday, May 12, event, which is slated to get under way at 7:30 p.m., will be $20 for adults. More information is available by calling 573-833-6314.

I-30 Speedway is located seven miles southwest of Little Rock off I-30 Exit 126 (County Line Road). Tickets for Friday night, May 14, are just $10 for adults, with children 6-12 just $1 when accompanied by an adult. Tickets for the Saturday night, May 15 finale, are just $20, with children 6-12 just $4 when accompanied by an adult. Pit gates open at 5:00 p.m. with racing to begin at 7:30 p.m. both nights. Additional information is available by calling 501-455-4567.

Additional information regarding the O'Reilly Sprint Bandits is available at www.sprintbandits.com .

Piloting Bob Vielhauer's Beaver Drill & Tool Company mount, Swindell sits atop the O'Reilly Sprint Bandits point charts after recently sweeping both ends of the series' inaugural event at Devil's Bowl Speedway, edging Shane Stewart and Zach Chappell by less than four-tenths of a second in the Saturday night, March 20, main event. Stewart and Chappell are currently tied with Daryn Pittman for second in points, just 14 points behind Swindell.

Swindell, Stewart and Chappell will be joined at I-30 Speedway by other top O'Reilly Sprint Bandits including Gary Wright, Aaron Berryhill, Travis Rilat, Jerrod Hull, Kelly Kinser, Wayne Johnson and Nick Smith among others.

The May 14-15 double at I-30 Speedway comes amidst a busy month of May for the O'Reilly Sprint Bandits.

The O'Reilly Sprint Bandits take on the non-wing stars of the USAC Valvoline National Sprint Series at Memphis Motorsports Park on May 7. A $5,000 bonus is on tap for any Sprint Bandits regular that wins the main event.

Point racing action resumes on Wednesday night, May 12, at Auto Tire and Parts Race Park in Benton, MO, before moving on to Little Rock's I-30 Speedway.

The month of racing concludes with a Memorial Day weekend swing that kicks off at U.S. 36 Raceway in Cameron, MO, on Friday, May 28, before moving on to Knoxville Raceway on May 29. Memorial Day weekend action concludes on Sunday night, May 30, at Butler County Speedway in Rising City, NE.

The event originally slated for May 22 at Tulsa Speedway has been rescheduled for Monday night, July 5, on the heels of the July 4 event at Oklahoma City's State Fair Speedway.

More information regarding the O'Reilly Sprint Bandits is available at www.sprintbandits.com .

The fans that braved iffy weather on both nights were treated to two tremendous nights of 410-ci Sprint Car racing, as 26 drivers from nine different states, including Arkansas, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Texas, put on quite a memorable show.

Dignitaries turned out in droves to catch the opening weekend of Emmett Hahn's latest creation, including National Speed Sport News Senior Editor Mike Kerchner and Sprint Car & Midget editor Doug Auld among others.

Oklahoma City and Lawton Speedway announcer Randy Ward and Chili Bowl P.A. man Mike Sweeton called the action to the live crowd, while Knoxville announcer Tony Bokhoven made the call to subsequent rave reviews to a worldwide audience over the internet on SCN, the Sprint Car Network.

With the ultimate verdict on the O'Reilly Sprint Bandits not yet set in stone, the parity of engine combinations running near the front provides strong evidence that the goal of more affordable 410-ci Sprint Car racing can be reached, while also verifying recent dyno tests that indicated neither the series head or the sleeved-down open engines possessed any significant advantage.

While Sammy Swindell's winning Beaver Drill & Tool Company machine was equipped with a Brodix series-head engine, the Dash-12 powered cars of Zach Chappell, Wayne Johnson and Danny Jennings, along with the sleeved-down open powerplants utilized by Shane Stewart and Daryn Pittman, proved to be equally competitive on the high-speed Devil's Bowl oval.

With an abundance of Dash-12 head engines available at bargain-bin prices, look for more teams to invest a relatively small sum of money in the coming months to once again be competitive in the 410-ci ranks.

And dispel the ill-conceived notion that the new engine rules will result in perceivably slower racing. In the World of Outlaws last visit to Devil's Bowl Speedway in March of 2003, Steve Kinser set a fast time of 14.418 seconds. Swindell's fastest lap in Saturday night's feature was 14.209 seconds. Myth shattered!

Swindell, the only driver on hand to also compete in the World of Outlaws initial event at Devil's Bowl Speedway 26 years ago, appropriately captured the weekend's headlines by topping both nights of action.

Swindell overtook a fleet Jerrod Hull on the ninth round of Friday night's 25-lap feature, then survived a late bid by Aaron Berryhill to secure the first ever Sprint Bandits win. Swindell wrapped up the weekend by holding off the fast-closing duo of Shane Stewart and Zach Chappell on Saturday night. Less than four-tenths of a second separated the lead trio on Saturday night, 0.39 seconds to be exact, with Stewart literally edging Chappell by .002-seconds at the line for the runner-up slot.

As exciting as Saturday night's 30-lap finale was, the excitement didn't end with the checkered flag, as Swindell and Chappell tangled in turn four on the cool down lap, with Swindell getting on his lid. There were no injuries and Swindell laughed the incident off, his mood presumably enhanced after collecting $8,500 over two nights of racing.

While Swindell abused his tires trying to check out on the field in Saturday's finale, the checkered flag barely came soon enough for the Tennessee veteran. Chappell and Stewart had the crowd on its feet as they reeled Swindell in, falling just short at the line.

Chappell, the 2001 ASCS National champion, locked the Carbone-powered Champco Concrete Construction Maxim into Saturday night's feature after a fourth place run in Friday's prelim, then moved to the front row outside when Aaron Berryhill, who finished second on Friday night in the Snyder-powered Fast Forward Motorsports Eagle, was unable to get his machine running on all cylinders and started scratch before exiting to the pit area soon after the green.

After lackluster finishes in heat and qualifying races on Friday, Stewart charged from 15th to fifth, one spot shy of a lock-in position in the Wesmar-powered Ol' Glory Maxim. Stewart fared better in heat and qualifying action on Saturday, making his dramatic runner-up charge from the eighth starting slot.

2002 ASCS Sooner Region champion Danny Jennings battled past Chappell for third late in Friday's feature and appeared to be destined for a second row starting slot in Saturday's main before last lap contact from Chappell nearly turned the Norman, OK, driver around in turn two. Jennings held on for sixth in the prelim, then raced from 14th to eighth Saturday night with his Dash-12 equipped engine.

After a tough opening night, Oklahoma City's Wayne Johnson elbowed up and hustled the Harvill Industries machine to a solid fifth place finish in Saturday's finale, with power from a ?Mexico? Joe Bustillos loaner Dash-12 engine under the hood.

Owasso, OK, ace Daryn Pittman must be commended for sticking to his principles. Pressured by WoO brass to find other weekend plans, Pittman held firm to his convictions and competed in the O'Reilly Sprint Bandits opener. The same threats, which included the withholding of future tow money, sent the other WoO regulars scurrying for cover. Past Chili Bowl sponsorship however, which helped fund his early WoO efforts, compelled Pittman to help Lanny Edwards and Emmett Hahn launch the Sprint Bandits.

After fuel problems in his heat race on Friday night, Pittman put on a dazzling show for the fans. Pittman had charged from 18th to fifth when the white flag flew, then took advantage of the Chappell-Jennings turn two tango to snare third at the stripe. Pittman ran fourth throughout Saturday's main but was unable to make a bid for the win.

Mark Dobmeier, the first official member of the O'Reilly Sprint Bandits, earned the unofficial Longest Tow award by hauling all the way from Grand Forks, ND. After a shaky start that included a meeting with the frontstretch wall exiting turn four, the 2003 NOSA champion showed steady improvement throughout the weekend, posting 14th and 13th place finishes.

Two-time NCRA 360 champ Steven King of Jetmore, KS, was racy all weekend, notching a pair of seventh place finishes.

Lady Luck wasn't terribly kind to the host Lone Star state drivers, with 15th and 14th place runs from Travis Rilat the best of the quintet.

Hooks, TX, hotshoe Gary Wright appeared at times to have the fastest car in the joint, pulling away from the field on Friday night before a blown oil filter gasket sent him pitside after three rounds. Gridding sixth on Saturday night, Wright's run would end after just six rounds with a flat tire and undetermined engine ailments.

Multi-time Devil's Bowl champion Kevin Ramey was a DNF on both nights, while front end damage on Friday and engine woes on Saturday derailed young Matt Clevenger's efforts. After a DNF on Friday night, Jeff Day piloted Lanny Row's machine to a 15th place finish on Saturday with side panel damage on the top wing.

Seemingly perennial Knoxville Raceway champion Terry McCarl, instrumental in the development of the Brodix series head over the past several years, rebounded from a qualifying race incident on Friday to claim ninth, then crossed the stripe sixth in Saturday's finale.

Indiana's Danny Smith charged from 20th to round out the top ten on Friday night. After an errant wheel sent Smith towards parking lot in heat race action, Smith won his qualifying race to gain a few positions in the main event starting grid. Unable to capitalize, any disappoint was overshadowed when mechanic Jim Bennett succumbed to a heart attack soon after the evening's action.

Fellow Hoosier veteran Kelly Kinser, who plans on competing on much of the O'Reilly Sprint Bandits trail, scored an eighth on Friday before finishing twelfth on Saturday.

Coming off a strong 2003 season, Sprint Bandits championship contender Jerrod Hull of Sikeston, MO, led five laps of Friday's feature before surrendering the point to Swindell. Hull's left rear tire would explode several rounds later. Hull returned to finish twelfth, then claimed ninth in Saturday's finale.

Little Rock's Ricky Logan fought a tight racecar on Friday night, then missed a top ten finish by one spot on Saturday.

ASCS Sooner Region shoe Foster Landon of Collinsville, OK, shook off a Friday night DNF to round out the top ten in Saturday night's main event.

Tony Bruce, Jr., entered the 2004 season with an eye on the ASCS National Tour. However, a taste of Florida 410-ci action and the O'Reilly Sprint Bandits opener has the young Liberal, KS, shoe leaning toward a full season of Sprint Bandits action. Bruce raced from 19th to eleventh in Friday's feature.

Also from Liberal, KS, Jason Martin earned a second row starting position in Friday's feature through heat and qualifying race action, then junked his machine with a hard flip in turn three. The team prepped a second car for Saturday's finale, but Martin was sidelined after a lap six tangle.

Nick Smith, an up-and-coming talent from Broken Arrow, OK, with plans of chasing the full Sprint Bandits tour, struggled with his machine all weekend, with a 13th place showing on Friday his best.

Cedar Rapids, IA, driver Colin Northway was unable to make the call for Friday night?s feature, then went the distance in Saturday's main to finish 16th.

Jesse Hockett had a rough weekend. A broken rear-end sidelined ?The Rocket from Friday's feature, then an ill-handling machine sent him pitside in the early going on Saturday.

Bentonville, AR, driver Sean Walden, with plans of running the full Sprint Bandits tour, also was unable to start Friday's feature, then slid off turn one on the opening round of Saturday's feature.

With a successful opening weekend in the history books, the O'Reilly Sprint Bandits have several weeks off before taking on the non-wing USAC Valvoline National Sprint Car Series stars at Memphis Motorsports Park on May 7 in a non-point event. An extra $5k is up for grabs for any Sprint Bandits shoe that takes the victory.

The MMP show kicks off a busy month of May for the O'Reilly Sprint Bandits, with the next stop on Wednesday night, May 12, at Auto Tire and Parts Race Park in Benton, MO. After a day off, Little Rock's I-30 Speedway hosts the series on May 14-15. The next Saturday, the O'Reilly Sprint Bandits take to Tulsa Speedway. Memorial Day weekend kicks off at US 36 Raceway in Cameron, MO, on Friday, May 28, before moving on to the famed Knoxville Raceway on Saturday night, then wrapping up the month at Butler County Speedway in Rising City, NE, on Sunday night, May 30.

After starting from the pole, Swindell flashed under the checkered flag a mere car length ahead of Shane Stewart, who edged Zach Chappell by .002-seconds for the runner-up slot. On the cool down lap, Swindell and Chappell tangled in turn four with Swindell's mount flipping.

There's a first time for everything I guess, commented the happy victor afterwards. I guess he (Chappell) didn't see the checkered flag the lap before and thought we were still racing and we just got together there in turn four.

A night after capturing the first ever O'Reilly Sprint Bandits feature, Swindell led the feature field to the green flag. Chappell lined up on Swindell's outside shoulder after Aaron Berryhill, initially slated to begin Saturday night's finale outside the front row, moved to the back with engine problems and departed soon after the green flag waved.

Swindell jumped into the lead at the drop of the green and had stretched out nearly a straightaway advantage over Chappell, Daryn Pittman, Shane Stewart and Gary Wright when the caution flew after five rounds for Jesse Hockett's disabled machine. Wright would exit to the pit area a lap later with a flat right front tire.

Swindell took off again on the restart, gradually amassing a straightaway lead over Chappell, while Pittman and Stewart dueled for third. As Swindell encountered lapped traffic at the race's midpoint, Stewart took command of third and began his pursuit of Chappell.

With heavy traffic slowing Swindell's progress aboard Bob Vielhauer's Wesmar-powered Beaver Drill & Tool Company No. 12x Maxim, Chappell and Stewart had closed to within ten car-lengths by the 20th round. Five rounds later, Swindell's advantage had dissipated to just four car-lengths.

Chappell and Stewart had nearly closed to Swindell's rear bumper as the white flag flew. The torrid side-by-side battle for second was enough for Swindell to preserve the victory by just a car length over Stewart, who nipped Chappell at the line in a photo finish for second.

We used a taller gear and the track slicked over some, Swindell stated in victory lane. We're not real familiar with the Hoosier spec tire, so I blistered the right rear. When I got to traffic, it was tough to get those guys because by then I had hurt my left rear too. I'm just happy we were able to hang on and win this one.

Stewart settled for a close second in the Wesmar-powered Ol' Glory No. 4m Maxim, with Chappell taking the show position in the Carbone-powered Champco Concrete Construction Maxim. Pittman was closing on the leaders in the final rounds and crossed the stripe fourth in the lone Mopar-powered entry. Wayne Johnson made a strong charge to round out the top five aboard the Harvill Industries machine.

Terry McCarl crossed the stripe in sixth, with Steven King, 14th-starter Danny Jennings, 15th-starter Jerrod Hull and Foster Landon completing the top ten.

Kelly Kinser, Travis Rilat and Wright topped Saturday night?s heat race action, with Landon, Jennings and Danny Smith winning the qualifying races.

O'Reilly Sprint Bandits Results:

Top Four from Friday Night Feature Locked In: #12x Sammy Swindell, #97 Aaron Berryhill, #21 Daryn Pittman, #50z Zach Chappell.

First Heat (8 Laps): 1. #4k Kelly Kinser, 2. #4m Shane Stewart, 3. #24 Terry McCarl, 4. #15s Nick Smith, 5. #17g Ricky Logan, 6. #11f Foster Landon, 7. #97w Sean Walden, 8. #18 Tony Bruce, Jr.

Second Heat (8 Laps): 1. #29 Travis Rilat, 2. #41 Jeff Day, 3. #13 Mark Dobmeier, 4. #36 Jason Martin, 5. #7m Kevin Ramey, 6. #61J Danny Jennings , 7. #31 Matt Clevenger.

Third Heat (8 Laps): 1. #9 Gary Wright, 2. #75 Jesse Hockett, 3. #44 Wayne Johnson, 4. #88 Steven King, 5. #12 Jerrod Hull, 6. #60 Colin Northway, 7. #4 Danny Smith.

First Qualifying Race (8 Laps): 1. #11f Foster Landon, 2. #97w Sean Walden, 3. #17g Ricky Logan, 4. #24 Terry McCarl, 5. #7m Kevin Ramey, 6. #9 Gary Wright, #75 Jesse Hockett. DNS: #18 Tony Bruce, Jr.

Second Qualifying Race (8 Laps): 1. #61J Danny Jennings, 2. #88 Steven King, 3. #44 Wayne Johnson, 4. #36 Jason Martin, 5. #41 Jeff Day, 6. #4k Kelly Kinser. DNS: #31 Matt Clevenger.

Third Qualifying Race (8 Laps): 1. #4 Danny Smith, 2. #12 Jerrod Hull, 3. #60 Colin Northway, 4. #4m Shane Stewart, 5. #29 Travis Rilat, 6. #13 Mark Dobmeier, 7. #15s Nick Smith.

A Feature (30 Laps - Starting Position in parenthesis): 1. #12x Sammy Swindell (1), 2. #4m Shane Stewart (8), 3. #50z Zach Chappell (4), 4. #21 Daryn Pittman (3), 5. #44 Wayne Johnson (7), 6. #24 Terry McCarl (5), 7. #88 Steven King (10), 8. #61J Danny Jennings (14), 9. #12 Jerrod Hull (15), 10. #11f Foster Landon (12), 11. #17g Ricky Logan (13), 12. #4k Kelly Kinser (16), 13. #13 Mark Dobmeier (19), 14. #29 Travis Rilat (9), 15. #41 Jeff Day (11), 16. #60 Colin Northway (23), 17. #4 Danny Smith (18), 18. #7m Kevin Ramey (21), 19. #15s Nick Smith (24), 20. #18 Tony Bruce, Jr. (25), 21. #36 Jason Martin (17), 22. #75 Jesse Hockett (22), 23. #9 Gary Wright (6), 24. #97w Sean Walden (20), 25. #97 Aaron Berryhill (2). DNS: #31 Matt Clevenger.

Lap Leaders: Sammy Swindell 1-30

O'Reilly Sprint Bandits Points (Top Ten): 1. Sammy Swindell 300, 2. (tie) Daryn Pittman, Zach Chappell and Shane Stewart 286, 5. (tie) Danny Jennings and Steven King 272, 7. Terry McCarl 270, 8. Kelly Kinser 260, 9. (tie) Wayne Johnson and Jerrod Hull 258.

Swindell, the only driver among the 26-car field who also competed in the first World of Outlaws event at Devil's Bowl Speedway 26 years ago, slipped around Jerrod Hull on the ninth round en route to winning the 25-lap feature atop the well-manicured half-mile oval at the 31st Annual Devil's Bowl Spring Nationals.

Swindell survived the race's final caution with six rounds to go, with Aaron Berryhill chasing the veteran to the stripe. After starting 18th, Daryn Pittman emerged from a wild last lap skirmish to snare the show position, with Zach Chappell claiming the fourth and final transfer position to Saturday night's main event.

Hull earned the feature's starting position by amassing the most points through heat race and qualifying race action, with Gary Wright alongside. Wright jumped into the lead at the drop of the green flag and began stretching out a lead in front of Hull, third-starter Swindell, Chappell and Berryhill. Wright's strong run would come to an early end with engine problems on the fourth round, bringing out the race's first caution.

Hull assumed command on the restart, with Swindell pressing for the lead. Swindell's pressure paid off when he dove underneath Hull entering turn one on the ninth round. Hull held the second spot until his left rear tire disintegrated on the frontstretch after 14 circuits. Hull would rejoin the field at the tail.

The ensuing restart was waved off when Jason Martin flipped violently in turn three. Martin was uninjured.

Swindell continued to pace the field on the restart aboard the Wesmar-powered Beaver Drill and Tool Company #12x Maxim, with Berryhill, Chappell and Danny Jennings giving chase, as Pittman disposed of Steven King on the 15th round to crack the top five.

The final caution flew with 19 laps in the books when Wayne Johnson's disabled mount coasted to a stop on the backstretch.

Berryhill tried to mount a charge on Swindell in the final rounds, but Swindell was not to be denied the coveted victory. Berryhill settled for a strong runner-up finish in the Snyder-powered Fast Forward Motorsports Eagle.

Jennings battled past Chappell for third on the 23rd round. Chappell made a charge into turn one on the final round in an effort to regain third, with the two cars making contact. Pittman sliced between the pair to snare third in the Mopar-powered machine, with Chappell recovering to finish fourth.

Shane Stewart completed a charge from 15th to round out the top five, with Jennings settling for sixth at the line. King claimed seventh, with Kelly Kinser, Terry McCarl and 20th-starter Danny Smith completing the top ten.

Martin, Jeff Day and Johnson were all victorious in heat race action, with Tony Bruce, Jr., Pittman and Kevin Ramey topping the qualifying races. Johnson led all the way to win the B Feature.

Swindell, Berryhill, Pittman and Chappell are all locked into Saturday night's 31st Annual Devil's Bowl Spring Nationals finale, with the remainder of the field battling through a full program of heat races, qualifying races and a B Feature to determine the balance of the feature lineup.

O'Reilly Sprint Bandits Results:

First Heat (8 Laps): 1. #36 Jason Martin, 2. #24 Terry McCarl, 3. #12 Jerrod Hull, 4. #9 Gary Wright, 5. #61J Danny Jennings, 6. #50z Zach Chappell, 7. #7m Kevin Ramey, 8. #15s Nick Smith, 9. #18 Tony Bruce, Jr.

Second Heat (8 Laps): 1. #41 Jeff Day, 2. #29 Travis Rilat, 3. #88 Steven King, 4. #4m Shane Stewart, 5. #4 Danny Smith, 6. #97 Aaron Berryhill, 7. #17g Ricky Logan, 8. #13 Mark Dobmeier, 9. #21 Daryn Pittman.

Third Heat (8 Laps): 1. #44 Wayne Johnson, 2. #12x Sammy Swindell, 3. #97w Sean Walden, 4. #11f Foster Landon, 5. #4k Kelly Kinser, 6. #60 Colin Northway, 7. #75 Jesse Hockett, 8. #31 Matt Clevenger.

First Qualifying Race (8 Laps): 1. #18 Tony Bruce, Jr., 2. #17g Ricky Logan, 3. #15s Nick Smith, 4. #4k Kelly Kinser, 5. #12x Sammy Swindell, 6. #4m Shane Stewart, 7. #4 Danny Smith, 8. #41 Jeff Day, 9. #44 Wayne Johnson.

Second Qualifying Race (8 Laps): 1. #21 Daryn Pittman, 2. #97 Aaron Berryhill, 3. #61J Danny Jennings, 4. #12 Jerrod Hull, 5. #29 Travis Rilat, 6. #36 Jason Martin, 7. #13 Mark Dobmeier, 8. #75 Jesse Hockett, 9. #97w Sean Walden.

Third Qualifying Race (8 Laps): 1. #7m Kevin Ramey, 2. #50z Zach Chappell, 3. #9 Gary Wright, 4. #60 Colin Northway, 5. #88 Steven King, 6. #11f Foster Landon, 7. #24 Terry McCarl. DNS: #31 Matt Clevenger.

B Feature (8 Laps): 1. #44 Wayne Johnson, 2. #21 Daryn Pittman, 3. #18 Tony Bruce, Jr., 4. #4 Danny Smith, 5. #13 Mark Dobmeier, 6. #15s Nick Smith. DNS: #60 Colin Northway, #97w Sean Walden, #75 Jesse Hockett, #31 Matt Clevenger.

A Feature (25 Laps - Starting Position in parenthesis): 1. #12x Sammy Swindell (3), 2. #97 Aaron Berryhill (7), 3. #21 Daryn Pittman (18), 4. #50z Zach Chappell (6), 5. #4m Shane Stewart (15), 6. #61J Danny Jennings (8), 7. #88 Steven King (9), 8. #4k Kelly Kinser (10), 9. #24 Terry McCarl (14), 10. #4 Danny Smith (20), 11. #18 Tony Bruce, Jr. (19), 12. #12 Jerrod Hull (1), 13. #15s Nick Smith (22), 14. #13 Mark Dobmeier (21), 15. #29 Travis Rilat (5), 16. #44 Wayne Johnson (17), 17. #36 Jason Martin (4), 18. #17g Ricky Logan (12), 19. #41 Jeff Day (13), 20. #11f Foster Landon (16), 21. #7m Kevin Ramey (11), 22. #9 Gary Wright (2).

Lap Leaders: Gary Wright 1-3, Jerrod Hull 4-8, Sammy Swindell 9-25.

O'Reilly Sprint Bandits Points (Top Ten): 1. Sammy Swindell 150, 2. Aaron Berryhill 146, 3. Daryn Pittman 144, 4. Zach Chappell 142, 5. Shane Stewart 140, 6. Danny Jennings 138, 7. Steven King 136, 8. Kelly Kinser 134, 9. Terry McCarl 132, 10. Danny Smith 130.

A tough field of drivers is expected for this weekend's history-making O'Reilly Sprint Bandits opener, including three-time World of Outlaws champion Sammy Swindell of Bartlett, TN, nine-time NCRA Outlaw Sprint champion Gary Wright of Hooks, TX, and five-time Knoxville Raceway champion Terry McCarl of Altoona, IA.

Defending O'Reilly ASCS National champion Travis Rilat of Forney, TX, will be on hand to kick off his pursuit of the inaugural O'Reilly Sprint Bandits championship, as will Broken Arrow, OK, shoe Aaron Berryhill.

Hailing from Bixby, OK, Shane Stewart, last year's ASCS Speedweek champion and Southern Iowa Speedway Mr. Sprint Car winner, will be among the leading contenders for victory honors in the first ever O'Reilly Sprint Bandits event, as will other top guns including WoO standout Daryn Pittman (Owasso, OK), Jerrod Hull (Sikeston, MO), Nick Smith (Broken Arrow, OK), Zach Chappell (Talala, OK), and Danny Smith (Danville, IN).

Up-and-coming Sprint Car ace Jesse Hockett of Warsaw, MO, will try to notch another big win in the 410-ci ranks, while Ft. Worth's Kevin Ramey and Danny Jennings of Norman, OK, both former ASCS Sooner Region champions, will also shoot for 410-ci glory.

Sunnyvale, TX, driver Sam Hafertepe, Jr., who claimed his first Sprint Car feature victory in ASCS Gulf South Region action this past weekend, will make the jump to 410-ci action after testing an ARCA Stock Car in North Carolina this week.

2003 Northern Outlaw Sprint Association (NOSA) champion Mark Dobmeier of Grand Forks, ND, who several weeks ago became the first official Sprint Bandits member, expects to contend for more than the Long Haul award.

In total, approximately 35 drivers are expected to vie for the honor of entering the history books as the winner of the first ever O'Reilly Sprint Bandits event this weekend at Devil's Bowl Speedway.

Those not fortunate enough to attend this landmark event can tune in and listen to all the action live on both nights, as Tony Bokhoven makes the call on SCN Radio at www.sprintcarnet.com .

Devil's Bowl Speedway is located six miles east of Dallas I-635 on US 80, then three miles south on Lawson Road. Racing action is slated to begin at 8:00 p.m. on both Friday and Saturday night. For additional information, contact the track at 972-222-2421.

Additional information regarding the O'Reilly Sprint Bandits is available at www.sprintbandits.com  or by calling 918-838-3777.

Bokhoven, the voice of Knoxville Raceway and the Knoxville Nationals, will announce both nights of O'Reilly Sprint Bandits action from Devil's Bowl Speedway on SCN Radio, with Friday and Saturday night's programs both slated to get under way at 8:00 p.m. CST.

The Sprint Car Network, SCN Radio, will provide worldwide web casts of not only the O'Reilly Sprint Bandits debut, but of every event on the inaugural Sprint Bandits slate in 2004. Fans need simply go to www.sprintcarnet.com to listen to all of the excitement of the O'Reilly Sprint Bandits.

A loaded field of approximately 40 cars, including three-time World of Outlaws champion Sammy Swindell, nine-time NCRA Outlaw sprint champion Gary Wright, five-time Knoxville Raceway champion Terry McCarl, defending ASCS National champion Travis Rilat, 2003 ASCS Speedweek champion Shane Stewart, WoO frontrunner Daryn Pittman, Aaron Berryhill, Jerrod Hull, Nick Smith, Joey Saldana, Kelly Kinser, Danny Smith, Randy Hannagan, Ricky Logan and Jesse Hockett among others, is expected for both nights of racing action at Devil's Bowl Speedway next Friday and Saturday night.

Additional information regarding the O'Reilly Sprint Bandits is available at www.sprintbandits.com