Cummins clinched second straight USAC title as Swanson won twice at Western World
NXTbets Pro | Published On: October 24, 2026
Western World opener
Jacob Denney opened the Western World Championships with a breakthrough Thursday night at Central Arizona Raceway in Casa Grande, Arizona, sweeping the USAC Southwest 360 Sprint Car program and earning his first career USAC Southwest Sprint Car feature victory. He backed up fast time in qualifying with a heat race win, then drove from fifth to take control of the 25-lap feature and lead the final nine laps. Denney made the winning move on Kevin Thomas Jr. in turns one and two on lap 18 and held on to win by 1.975 seconds. R.J. Johnson, Ricky Thornton Jr. and Ryan Bernal rounded out the top five, giving the opener a clear mix of established names and a first-time winner at the front.
Swanson title run
Jake Swanson delivered the other headline performance of Thursday’s card, leading all 30 laps to win the 59th annual Western World Championships feature and capture both the USAC AMSOIL Sprint Car National Championship and the Avanti Windows & Doors USAC CRA Sprint Car combined event. The win was his fourth USAC National Sprint Car victory of the season and his second in the last three races. Stevie Sussex finished second, Kyle Cummins third, Gavin Miller fourth and Jacob Denney fifth, giving the national sprint feature a strong top five that reflected the depth of the field and the stakes attached to the championship race.
Cummins title clinch
Kyle Cummins used the Thursday finish to lock up his second straight USAC National Sprint Car driving title with two races remaining, a clinch that underscored the consistency he carried through the season. Petty Performance Racing also secured its second consecutive entrant championship, giving the team another season-ending prize to match the driver title race. Friday brought a different set of winners and a new batch of contenders at the front, with Gavin Miller leading all 25 laps from the pole to win the USAC Southwest 360 Sprint Car feature for his first career victory in the division. Miller narrowly avoided contact with Dayton Shelton with 11 laps remaining, then finished 2.925 seconds ahead of Kevin Thomas Jr. after Jacob Denney’s accident. Elijah Gile, Briggs Danner and Ricky Lewis completed the top five. Swanson then returned to Victory Lane in Friday’s Western World night two feature after passing Ryan Bernal at the midway point and leading the final 15 laps. He finished about a second ahead of Miller, with Sussex third, Bernal fourth and Thomas Jr. fifth. The Friday win gave Swanson his third in his last four series starts and his 12th career USAC National Sprint Car victory, which moved him into a tie for 49th on the all-time list. Based on combined points from Thursday and Friday, Swanson, Miller, Sussex, Cummins, Bernal and Thomas Jr. locked into Saturday’s $35,000-to-win Western World feature and the $5,000 Underwood Dash.
