1/11/2018
RacinBoys
Sam Hafertepe Jr. repeats as North American 360 Sprint Car Poll 'Driver of the Year'
By NSCHoF (Knoxville, IA) -- Sam Hafertepe, Jr., of Sunnyvale, Texas, was voted the 2017 “Driver of the Year” by the North American 360 Sprint Car Poll voting panel of media members, promoters, sanctioning officials and manufacturers for the second year in a row. Hafertepe, the two-time and defending American Sprint Car Series (ASCS) national tour champion, earned ten (10) of the first-place ballots cast in the year-end poll. Keith Dobbs, owner for Hafertepe’s #15H earned the “Team of the Year” award for the second straight time as well.
PHOTO CREDIT: John Lee of High-Fly'n Photos -- http://www.highfly-nphotos.com
Those drivers ranked second through fifth, respectively, are Aaron Reutzel of Texas, Wayne Johnson of Oklahoma, Seth Bergman of Washington and Morgan Turpen of Tennessee. Rounding out the ‘top ten’ for the season are Davie Franek (one first place vote), Empire Super Sprints (ESS) champion Jason Barney, United Racing Club (URC) champion Curt Michael, Sprint Car Challenge Tour (SCCT) champion Kyle Hirst and United Sprint Car Series (USCS) champion Jordon Mallett (one first place vote).
Ayrton Gennetten of Missouri earned the North American 360 Sprint Car Poll “Rookie of the Year” title in his first full season of winged 360-cubic-inch sprint car competition. Jack & Bonnie Elam of J&J Auto Racing (for the twelfth time) and Mark Smith of Mach-1 Chassis will both receive the “Builder/Manufacturer of the Year” honors for 2017.
In addition, Dave Argabright of MAVtv (his seventh such award) will receive the “Media Member of the Year” award. Scott Russell of the Sprint Car Challenge Tour and Placerville Speedway received “Promoter of the Year” honors and Aaron Reutzel will receive the “Wild Card Award” in 2017 for his exciting performances in 360 sprint car racing.
The North American 360 Sprint Car Poll is an annual awards program of the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum Foundation, Inc., of Knoxville, Iowa. All awards will be distributed in 2018 at tracks throughout North America. The awards were announced at the Lucas Oil Chili Bowl Midget Nationals in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
360 Sprint Car Poll Top 20
Position. Name, Hometown, Points (First Place Votes)
- Sam Hafertepe Jr., Sunnyvale, TX, 1040 (10)
- Aaron Reutzel, Clute, TX, 564
- Wayne Johnson, Oklahoma City, OK, 315
- Seth Bergman, Snohomish, WA, 165
- Morgan Turpen, Cordova, TN, 152
- Davie Franek, Wantage, NJ, 148 (1)
- Jason Barney, Brewerton, NY, 147
- Curt Michael, Ocean View, DE, 138
- Kyle Hirst, Sacramento, CA, 134
- Jordon Mallett, Greenbrier, AR, 131 (1)
- Matt Covington, Glenpool, OK, 130
- Andy Forsberg, Auburn, CA, 110
- Dylan Westbrook, Scotland, ONT, Can., 85
- Clint Garner, Sioux Falls, SD, 80
- Jared Zimbardi, Bradford, PA, 65
- Johnny Herrera, Albuquerque, NM, 62
- Jared Horstman, Cloverdale, OH, 59
- Jonathan Cornell, Sedalia, MO, 54
- Sammy Swindell, Germantown, TN, 53
- Mark Smith, Sunbury, PA, 52
For more information on the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum and the special events happening here, visit http://www.SprintCarHoF.com and follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum
One Sprint Capital Place
Knoxville, IA 50138
Phone: 641-842-6176
Fax: 641-842-6177
E-mail: Info@SprintCarHoF.com
Website: http://www.SprintCarHoF.com
Submitted By: Kirk Elliott