PITTSBURGH, Pa. -- Jennerstown Speedway's youngest champion is taking his talents to the national stage.

Steel City native Jarrett Kendall has signed a contract with Kenny Wallace Racing for the 2006 NASCAR season, as announced by Wallace himself in a television interview this afternoon. The 17-year-old Kendall will pilot the #126 Richard Petty Experience Dodge for the entire 16-race schedule, beginning on February 8 at Richmond International Raceway for the Bell Tower 150.

"Jarrett really impressed me when I raced against him (last year at Jennerstown)," said Wallace. "I couldn't believe that he was being overlooked by (NASCAR) teams! I'm excited to get him in the #126 and watch him flourish at this stage. I have no doubt in my mind that he'll be a name to remember in the coming years."

"I appreciate Kenny (Wallace) giving me this opportunity," said Kendall. "It's always been my dream to drive in NASCAR, and I'm fortunate that he's giving me the chance to live out my dream. I couldn't be more excited to get to Richmond in February and get this thing started!"

Kendall won his first Jennerstown Speedway Modified championship in 2005, topping the field by 55 points. At 16, he won six of 14 races, and placed inside the top 10 in all but one of them. He's set to be the youngest full-time driver on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour this season by five years.

The Whelen Modified Tour runs on Wednesdays from February to November with practice, qualifying, and the race all on the same day. The series visits 11 tracks, with five (Dodge, Meadow Creek, New Hampshire, Old Spice, Red Ball) getting multiple dates.

RICHMOND, Va. -- Marvin Humphreys led the most laps en route to a season-opening victory at the Bell Tower 150 this evening.

Humphreys won by a margin of 0.201 seconds, with Rodney Clay, Lou Stanton, Travis Haley, and pole-sitter Ned Shannon rounding out the top five.

The much anticipated debut of 17-year-old Jarrett Kendall was a letdown, as the rookie phenom struggled in qualifying and finished 16th following a late-race tangle with Rhett Simmons.

"These cars have a lot more power than what I was used to (at Jennerstown)," said Kendall of his debut. "I started to get a feel for it late and passed some solid cars, but the #156 (Rhett Simmons) caught my bumper and send me up the track. He'll get his - we deserved a better finish."

The Whelen Modified Tour continues next Wednesday at the Milwaukee Mile for the Badger State 150.

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Bell Tower 150 Final Results
Richmond International Raceway | Race 1 of 16
February 8, 2006 | $10,500 Winner's Purse

F | S | ### | Driver (Points)
1 | 5 | 131 | Marvin Humphreys (190)
2 | 3 | 178 | Rodney Clay (170)
3 | 9 | 106 | Lou Stanton (165)
4 | 2 | 188 | Travis Haley (160)
5 | 1 | 190 | Ned Shannon (165)
6 | 11 | 148 | Kasey Clemons (150)
7 | 6 | 115 | Alan Walker (146)
8 | 16 | 159 | Reese Black (142)
9 | 13 | 113 | Nate Beasley (138)
10 | 4 | 105 | Stu Floyd (134)
16 | 21 | 126 | Jarrett Kendall (115)

NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour Standings & Winners
P | ### | Driver (Points, Difference)
1 | 131 | Marvin Humphreys (190 / 1 win)
2 | 178 | Rodney Clay (170, -20)
T-3 | 106 | Lou Stanton (165, -25)
T-3 | 190 | Ned Shannon (165, -25)
5 | 188 | Travis Haley (160, -30)
6 | 148 | Kasey Clemons (150, -40)
7 | 115 | Alan Walker (146, -44)
8 | 159 | Reese Black (142, -48)
9 | 113 | Nate Beasley (138, -52)
10 | 105 | Stu Floyd (134, -56)
16 | 126 | Jarrett Kendall (115, -75)

Bell Tower 150 (Richmond): #131, Marvin Humphreys

WEST ALLIS, Wisc. -- Lyle White was the definition of dominant this evening, as he led wire-to-wire from the pole position to win the Badger State 150.

White never relinquished the top position, holding off a late charge by Lou Stanton to claim the second race of the season. Marvin Dyer, Rodney Clay, and Nate Beasley completed the top five.

17-year-old Jarrett Kendall made a late charge to finish one spot out of the top 10, right behind last week's rival, Rhett Simmons.

"We were hit or miss today," said Kendall of his 11th-place effort. "We didn't qualify well and started beside the #156, who squeezed me into the first turn. That forced us to play some catch up, but I was proud of the charge we made at the end."

Apparently, Kendall hasn't made many friends in his first two races, with last week's winner, Marvin Humphreys, joining Simmons in frustration with the Pittsburgh native.

"He's got a lot to learn," said Humphreys, who placed 18th. "He's been reckless with the way he races, diving into corners and into spots that aren't there. We're going to end up with a mess of wrecked race cars if he continues to drive the way he's been driving."

The Whelen Modified Tour returns on March 1 for the Appalachian 150 at Martinsville Speedway.

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Badger State 150 Final Results
The Milwaukee Mile | Race 2 of 16
February 15, 2006 | $20,000 Winner's Purse

F | S | ### | Driver (Points)
1 | 1 | 175 | Lyle White (190)
2 | 3 | 106 | Lou Stanton (170)
3 | 5 | 132 | Mark Dyer (165)
4 | 2 | 178 | Rodney Clay (160)
5 | 4 | 113 | Nate Beasley (155)
6 | 8 | 115 | Alan Walker (150)
7 | 9 | 158 | Camden Barnes (146)
8 | 6 | 149 | Jamie Gonzalez (142)
9 | 10 | 101 | Scott Stevens (138)
10 | 17 | 156 | Rhett Simmons (134)
11 | 18 | 126 | Jarrett Kendall (130)

NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour Standings & Winners
P | ### | Driver (Points, Difference)
1 | 106 | Lou Stanton (335)
2 | 178 | Rodney Clay (330, -5)
3 | 131 | Marvin Humphreys (299, -36 / 1 win)
3 | 175 | Lyle White (299, -36 / 1 win)
5 | 115 | Alan Walker (296, -39)
6 | 132 | Mark Dyer (295, -40)
7 | 113 | Nate Beasley (293, -42)
8 | 188 | Travis Haley (278, -57)
9 | 190 | Ned Shannon (271, -64)
10 | 158 | Camden Barnes (270, -65)
14 | 126 | Jarrett Kendall (245, -90)

Bell Tower 150 (Richmond): #131, Marvin Humphreys
Badger State 150 (Milwaukee): #175, Lyle White

RIDGEWAY, Va. -- Rhett Simmons made it three different winners in three NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour races this season, as he won from the pole position at the Appalachian 150.

Simmons led throughout, putting a 2.968-second distance on second-place Travis Haley. His rival, Jarrett Kendall, slice and diced through the field en route to a career-best third-place finish.

"I was able to fit my car onto the bottom early on," said Kendall of his third-place effort. "That was the difference. It's so hard to find the bottom lane when you start outside, and you can end up getting stuck up there. Really proud of the team tonight - we've been making some great strides."

Kasey Clemons and Brady Riley rounded out the top five. Lou Stanton entered the night as the tour's point leader, but limped to a 19th-place finish after qualifying poorly.

The Whelen Modified Tour will have three weeks off before heading to Nazareth for the Lehigh Valley 150 on March 22.

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Appalachian 150 Final Results
Martinsville Speedway | Race 3 of 16
March 1, 2006 | $11,000 Winner's Purse

F | S | ### | Driver (Points)
1 | 1 | 156 | Rhett Simmons (190)
2 | 3 | 188 | Travis Haley (170)
3 | 14 | 126 | Jarrett Kendall (165)
4 | 5 | 148 | Kasey Clemons (160)
5 | 7 | 103 | Brady Riley (155)
6 | 2 | 157 | Clint Ferguson (150)
7 | 9 | 158 | Camden Barnes (146)
8 | 4 | 187 | Wes Blount (142)
9 | 11 | 115 | Alan Walker (138)
10 | 6 | 178 | Rodney Clay (134)

NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour Standings & Winners
P | ### | Driver (Points, Difference)
1 | 178 | Rodney Clay (464)
2 | 188 | Travis Haley (448, -16)
3 | 106 | Lou Stanton (441, -23)
4 | 115 | Alan Walker (434, -30)
5 | 156 | Rhett Simmons (424, -40 / 1 win)
6 | 113 | Nate Beasley (423, -41)
7 | 148 | Kasey Clemons (422, -42)
8 | 175 | Lyle White (420, -44 / 1 win)
9 | 132 | Mark Dyer (419, -45)
10 | 158 | Camden Barnes (416, -48)
12 | 126 | Jarrett Kendall (410, -54)

Bell Tower 150 (Richmond): #131, Marvin Humphreys
Badger State 150 (Milwaukee): #175, Lyle White
Appalachian 150 (Martinsville): #156, Rhett Simmons

NAZARETH, Pa. -- Jarrett Kendall made a daring pass on Alan Walker with 20 laps to go for the lead, and held on from there, capturing his debut NASCAR victory in the Lehigh Valley 150.

Kendall earned his highest qualifying effort of sixth earlier in the day, but fell back to 10th in the early going. The Pittsburgh product steadily climbed through the field over the course of the race, making the winning pass on Walker into the first turn.

"I'm so pumped, I can't even describe it!" exclaimed Kendall of his first win on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour. "Our guys brought a great car, and I had little trouble moving through the field. We got pushed back at the start because of the outside starting spot, but I knew we'd get back to the front. I'm so honored to drive for Kenny (Wallace) and see my dreams come true."

Walker would hold onto second, 1.500 seconds behind the blossoming rookie. Rhett Simmons, pole sitter Ned Shannon, and Camden Barnes rounded out the top five. Points leader Rodney Clay struggled throughout the race and finished 15th.

Kendall's victory makes it four different winners in four races on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour. Over that stretch, his finishing position has climbed from 16th, to 11th, to third, to now first.

The Whelen Modified Tour returns on April 12 with the Market Street 150 at Meadow Creek.

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Lehigh Valley 150 Final Results
Nazareth Speedway | Race 4 of 16
March 22, 2006 | $21,000 Winner's Purse

F | S | ### | Driver (Points)
1 | 6 | 126 | Jarrett Kendall (190)
2 | 2 | 115 | Alan Walker (175)
3 | 7 | 156 | Rhett Simmons (165)
4 | 1 | 190 | Ned Shannon (165)
5 | 4 | 158 | Camden Barnes (155)
6 | 11 | 149 | Jamie Gonzalez (150)
7 | 19 | 150 | Joey Patterson (146)
8 | 15 | 157 | Clint Ferguson (142)
9 | 9 | 103 | Brady Riley (138)
10 | 5 | 101 | Simon Stevens (134)

NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour Standings & Winners
P | ### | Driver (Points, Difference)
1 | 115 | Alan Walker (609)
2 | 126 | Jarrett Kendall (600, -9 / 1 win)
3 | 156 | Rhett Simmons (589, -20 / 1 win)
4 | 178 | Rodney Clay (582, -27)
5 | 188 | Travis Haley (575, -34)
6 | 158 | Camden Barnes (571, -38)
7 | 190 | Ned Shannon (554, -55)
8 | 113 | Nate Beasley (544, -65)
T-9 | 131 | Marvin Humphreys (538, -71 / 1 win)
T-9 | 105 | Lou Stanton (538, -71)

Bell Tower 150 (Richmond): #131, Marvin Humphreys
Badger State 150 (Milwaukee): #175, Lyle White
Appalachian 150 (Martinsville): #156, Rhett Simmons
Lehigh Valley 150 (Nazareth): #126, Jarrett Kendall