ANDERSON, Ind. — Kenny Schrader will return to the Lucas Oil Little 500 presented by UAW with a new team this May.
Schrader will drive for Matt Seymour Racing. The team will once again bring a non-winged sprint car to compete in the Midwest, something they have been known to do for many decades.
The patriarch of the family Louie Seymour, known by many as “Boston Louie,” started campaigning USAC midgets, sprint cars and Silver Crown cars in 1965. The team traveled all over the country competing in USAC competitions from their home in Massachusetts.
Schrader and the Seymours got hooked up after Schrader had already won the 1982 USAC Silver Crown championship and the 1983 USAC sprint car championship.
“I had known the Seymours for years from when I was running USAC full time,” said Schrader. “In 1986, I asked if they wanted to go run some USAC Silver Crown races, so we did.”
The won their first race together at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park. Schrader ran 10 races with the team, winning four times, including twice in the Copper World Classic at Phoenix Int’l Raceway.
Schrader will attempt the Little 500 in search of his sixth consecutive start in the 500-lap race at the quarter-mile track. In his five previous attempts, Schrader has three top-10 finishes. All of his previous starts have come with Brad and Tara Armstrong.
Matt Seymour Racing competes regularly in the NEMA Midget Series and has also participating in national midget events at Lucas Oil Raceway Park the past two seasons with Bobby Santos III.
“We feel a little bit like a college football team going to play in the Superbowl in our first game,” said Bobby Seymour. “We haven’t competed in a sprint car race since 1980. We are in over our heads, but we are excited to do this for Schrader.”
The Seymour family has never competed in the Little 500. The team is assembling a new Beast Chassis and Stanton engine for the event.
“It is worth the effort to do it again,” said Bobby Seymour. “If it was anyone but Schrader I don’t know if our first sprint car race would be the Little 500. We just really want to do this with these guys.”