The top three in Action Sprint Tour points, Josh Hansen (No.88h), Liam Martin (No.29) and Jacob Dykstra (No.5D) race down the backstretch at Humberstone Speedway on September 2, 2018. (Photo by Dale Calnan/Image Factor Media)
By Clayton Johns
OHSWEKEN, Ont. (July 11, 2019) – The Action Sprint Tour powered by RaceRivalz.com is headed to Humberstone Speedway for the rescheduled Bob Deswiage Memorial on Sunday, July 14. The race marks round four on the 2019 tour and was scheduled to be the second event on tour, but a June 2 rainout makes it the first appearance at the Port Colborne, Ont. oval this year. The event is being run in memory of Bob Deswiage, a former Humberstone Speedway driver and most recently a crew member for Team Turner Racing, who passed away last off-season. Deswiage was affectionately known as “Bobby the Pilot” to his team.
In memory of Bob, Team Turner Racing, who compete regularly in 360 Sprint Cars but have ties to several drivers on the Action Sprint Tour, will enter a car decaled to match one of Bobby’s street stock cars from his early days of racing. Current TTR crew member Brady Chastney will drive the car.
Entering the fourth race of the season, Beamsville’s Josh Hansen is the current point leader with two wins in three starts this season. The No.88h holds a 27-point advantage over a second-place tie between Liam Martin and Jacob Dykstra. Martin has a win to his credit that came back on June 8 at Southern Ontario Motor Speedway (SOMS).
Caledonia driver Ryan Hunsinger sits fourth in the championship standings with a 35-point gap to overcome against Hansen, but is also just eight points behind Martin and Dykstra. Hunsinger has three straight top-10 finishes to start the season on tour, including a pair of top-fives and a podium result at SOMS last month.
In fifth in Beamsville, Ont. driver Paul Klager. The driver dubbed the “Beamsville Bullet” has been a tough customer so far this season despite sitting 53 points back of the lead. He has a pair of top-10 finishes and his most recent outing was his best run of the season on tour, a fifth-place tally at Merrittville on Canada Day.
So far, 32 drivers have attempted to qualify for an Action Sprint Tour race. Rounding out the top-10 in the current standings is Jordan Hill of Ohsweken in sixth, who is just two points back of Klager for fifth. In seventh is Welland’s Blaine Barrow while Jerry Hill of Hagersville is eighth. Holding the final two spots are St. Catharine’s Al Gilletta Jr. and Brian Nanticoke of Ohsweken, respectively.
Race time on Sunday, July 14 is 6:30pm. For additional event information and gate times, visit www.HumberstoneSpeedway.com. For more information on the Action Sprint Tour, including a full break down of the Series’ 2019 point fund and race purses as well as series rules, visit www.ActionSprintTour.com.
2019 Action Sprint Tour Schedule
Mon. May 20 – Merrittville Speedway – Thorold, Ont. – Winner: Josh Hansen
Sun. June 2 – Humberstone Speedway – Port Colborne, On – Rained Out
Sat. June 8 – Southern Ontario Motor Speedway – Merlin, Ont. – Winner: Liam Martin
Mon. July 1 – Merrittville Speedway – Thorold, Ont. – Winner: Josh Hansen
Sun. July 14 – Humberstone Speedway – Port Colborne, Ont.
Tue. July 23 – Ohsweken Speedway – Six Nations, Ont.
Sat. July 28 – Merrittville Speedway – Thorold, Ont.
Sun. August 11 – Humberstone Speedway – Port Colborne, Ont.
Sat. August 17 – Brighton Speedway – Brighton, Ont.
Sat. September 14 – Ohsweken Speedway – Ohsweken, Ont. – Canadian Sprint Car Nationals
ACTION SPRINT TOUR MEDIA
Website: www.ActionSprintTour.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/ActionSprintTour
Twitter: @ActionSprints
About the Action Sprint Tour: The Action Sprint Tour is a travelling Winged Sprint Car Series based in Ontario, Canada. The cars on the Action Sprint Tour are powered by GMC 602 Crate Motors modified specifically to fit a Sprint Car chassis. The Series ran its inaugural season in 2018 and in 2019 will run 10 races at five different Ontario tracks. Drivers will compete for a point fund and bonuses totaling $10,000. For additional information, including rules, event purse and series point fund, visit the Action Sprint Tour official website at www.ActionSprintTour.com.