By: Kevin Ramsell
BURLINGTON, WI (Sunday, June 08, 2008) – After four events, Matt Kocourek and Nick Murgic are showing that each are worthy of the Lane Automotive Rookie of the Year presented by Red Line Synthetic Oil and Hyperco. But, don’t count out Adam Hensel with the fifth event coming up this Friday at Hawkeye Downs in Cedar Rapids, IA.

Murgic made his first visit to Dells Raceway Park and appeared to have quickly adapted to the 1/3-mile oval. He started out the day by qualifying third, only 0.030 seconds behind fast qualifier Dan Fredrickson. He would finish 13th in the Miller Lite 100 presented by Arby’s, the highest finishing rookie.

“I was really excited about how qualifying went and was looking forward to the race,� Murgic stated. “We misjudged the track and about ten laps in, the car got very loose so I just had to hold on to what I had.�

While he battled with a loose handling car, he was able to gain some valuable experience in the race, “It was a fun race to be racing against guys like Dan Fredrickson, Johnny & Travis Sauter, Steve Carlson, and some of the local guys so I was just happy to have done that.�

But so far, Murgic is happy after four races, “With four races in so far we are pretty happy with how it’s going but I would like to get some top ten runs in here soon. I’m looking forward to Hawkeye even though I have never been there but my dad used to run pretty good down there so hopefully his knowledge will help me out when we get there.�

Kocourek qualified 16th and was the last driver to get into the main event on time. He would finish 15th in the main event.

“We started out really strong in practice and the car was good on old tires but we struggles once we bolted on new rubber for qualifying and the race,� Kocourek stated. “I was happy to squeak into the show on time but pretty disappointed with the car in the feature. We’ve got to get a lot better in these races. I really like the Dells and would have liked a better finish.�

Even though he was personally disappointed with his run at the Dells, he has been satisfied with his season overall, “I’m happy with where we are this season with the competition out there. We’ve made the first four shows with two tracks we had never been to before and came close to quick time at one,� Kocourek recalled. “I’m happy with how we have qualified but disappointed in our race setups so far. These tires get so hot and greasy compared to the 2005 compound that it’s tough to race on them and guess right for the feature.�

He also is looking forward to Hawkeye Downs, “I helped an ASA team at Cedar Rapids maybe eight years ago and it looked like a pretty nice track,� Kocourek recalls. “We’re going to focus on getting into the show on time and then getting a setup so we can compete for a top five.�

Kocourek currently sits ninth in points, 169 points behind leader Fredrickson while Murgic is 11th only 176 points back of the leader. The highest finishing rookie at the end of the season will be the Lane Automotive Rookie of the Year.

Adam Hensel made his first visit to Dells Raceway Park and qualified 30th and would finish 11th in the Last Chance race. He currently sits 25th in points, 292 points behind Fredrickson.

Hensel spent this past weekend competing in dirt late model events in North Dakota and South Dakota.

All three will be competing this Friday night at the Keith Fleck Miller 100 at Hawkeye Downs Speedway in Cedar Rapids, IA. The fan information for this event is available online at www.asamidwesttour.com.

To learn more about the American Speed Association Kwik Trip Midwest Tour presented by Echo Outdoor Power Equipment log on to www.asamidwesttour.com or call the ASA Midwest Tour office at (262) 514-3880 or e-mail Tim Olson at tim@asamidwesttour.com or Steve Einhaus at steve@asamidwesttour.com.

To learn more of the Daytona Beach, Florida-based Racing Speed Associates or the American Speed Association Racing Member Track program, call (386) 258-2221 or send an e-mail to info@asa-racing.com. For news and information from all the racetracks and regional tours involved in the American Speed Association, visit www.asa-racing.com.