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Teenager Swanson Scores In USAC Sprint Debut

ANDERSON, Ind. – Tanner Swanson, 17, made his USAC National Sprint Car Series debut look easy as he won the Banjo 100 Glen Niebel Classic at the Anderson Speedway Wednesday evening.

Driving the Ram Engineering/Construction Solutions-Bilstein/Beast/Gaerte Mopar, the youthful Californian powered into the lead on the 51st lap after leader Levi Jones collided with a lapped car.

“It was a great run and I think we had the car to do it,” Swanson said. “I had a clean sweep at Altamont (Speedway) last week and on the plane ride, I told my dad I thought I could do it again. And 50 laps into it I started to realize that we had a shot to do it. It is pretty cool to win in my first national race.”

A close second was another teenager, Brad Sweet, who was a mere car length behind when the checkered flag dropped. He drove Kasey Kahne’s Mopar Beast/Speedway Mopar.

“We were coming at the end,” Sweet said. “With 10 to go, I made a charge the best I could. He just didn’t mess up. This is only my third-ever pavement sprint car race.”

Third went to pavement hotshot Bobby Santos in his family’s Santos Motorsports/Beast/Gaerte.

Cole Whitt took fourth place ahead of Christ Windom.

The second five had 16-year old Chad Boat in sixth trailed by Brady Bacon, Jacob Wilson, Shane Cottle and Brady Short.

Short flipped in a six-car melee on the 78th lap.

Early leader and 2007 race winner Jones returned to the race after the stoppage and eked out a 16th place finish.

Fourteen of the 22 starters were running at the end.

Bobby East set a qualifying mark of 11.104 seconds on the banked

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