FISHERS – USAC drivers take on no small task this week with six races run over six days across Indiana for the 15th running of Indiana Midget Week.

Kevin Thomas, Jr. raced Sunday at Tri-State Speedway in Haubstadt and is spending his one day off this week with his Petry Motorsports crew making sure the $50,000 engine in his car is ready to rev up Tuesday at Paragon Speedway.

Midget Week also races into Gas City, Putnamville, Lawrenceburg and Kokomo this week.

“The crew is going to have a lot of work to do. There’s going to be crashes and things like that,” Thomas, Jr. said. “Whenever you race that many days in a row, it’s one of those things that you just got to stay focused.”

According to Chad Lindskog of the Evansville Courier & Press, a few thousand fans packed the stands Sunday in Haubstadt, 20 miles north of Evansville. Thomas, Jr. hopes to see fans flock to the tracks throughout Midget Week.

“Oh, I loved it,” Thomas, Jr. said about the number of fans at Tri-State. “As a race car driver, you never want to see empty grandstands.”

Team owner Scott Petry agrees. He says the coronavirus pandemic has created hardships for everybody in racing.

“We love what we do. It’s exciting. We’re staying busy at work and other things,” Petry said. “But it’s time to go.”

Thomas, Jr. said he is rolling out a new car for Tuesday’s race with adjustments he believes will increase his chances of winning.

“We tested it the other day and it felt really good,” he sad. “So we’re going to have a little bit different of a game plan to get the week started.”

Below is the Indiana Midget Week schedule:

June 16: Paragon Speedway – Paragon, Indiana
June 17: Gas City I-69 Speedway – Gas City, Indiana
June 18: Lincoln Park Speedway – Putnamville, Indiana
June 19: Lincoln Park Speedway – Putnamville, Indiana
June 20: Lawrenceburg Speedway – Lawrenceburg, Indiana
June 21: Kokomo Speedway – Kokomo, Indiana

Tickets can be purchased here.