Event 16 of the 2002 ASA Racing Series, the annual Labor Day Miller Lite 300, took place on Monday, September 2nd at Minnesota State Fair Speedway in St. Paul, Minnesota. This is the 26th consecutive year that ASA has sanctioned an event at the ½ mile oval. 2001 ASA champion Johnny Sauter and racing veteran Dick Trickle were both in the field for the traditional Labor Day race.

The top 20 starting positions were decided on owner's points with Dick Trickle starting 21st. This placed JC 19th on the starting grid. The annual Miller Lite 300 was under way with JC running strong and surging to the front. Beattie steered the #09 clear of an early wreck and was up to 16th position before trouble struck. The ATI Chevy Monte Carlo's motor went sour and let go on lap 70 ending ATI Performance Racing's day prematurely.

"It's a shame, the car was running decent and we were just getting ready to come in and make some minor changes," said JC.

Gary St. Amant led 129 laps and held off a fast Kevin Cywinski to capture his first win of 2002. Cywinski's teammate Dan Frederickson finished third with David Stremme and Kyle Busch rounding out the top five. Clanton's point lead over St. Amant has dwindled down to 32 points with four races remaining in the 2002 ASA Racing Series.

Also, remember to log-on to www.51sportsracing.com to vote for JC Beattie Jr. as the most popular ASA driver. Voting will continue until the end of the 2002 ASA season on October 6, 2002 at midnight.

The ASA will return to Hawkeye Downs Speedway in Cedar Rapids, IA on September 8, 2002 for the Iowa 300. The race will be telecast live on TNN The National Network starting at 2:00PM EST.

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