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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
USAC WEST COAST 360 SPRINT CAR SERIES
#17V "Hollywood" Danny Faria Jr. at Santa Maria Speedway. Photo by Lance Jennings.
USAC WEST COAST 360S BATTLE AT SANTA MARIA SATURDAY
By Lance Jennings
SANTA MARIA, CA – SEPTEMBER 14, 2010… This Saturday, September 18th, the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series will make their final appearance of the year at Santa Maria Speedway. Joining the powerful sprint cars will be the West Coast Street Stocks, MMI Hobby Stocks, and Toste Mini-Stocks. The Front Gates will open at 4:00pm, Time Trials will start at 5:00pm, with Racing to follow at 6:00pm.
"The West's Best Short Track" has showcased five other races during the 2010 season. T.J. Smith has won the last two events at the 1/3-mile clay oval, while "Showtime" Danny Sheridan, Craig Stidham, and Jace VanderWeerd have also won 30-lap main events. To date, ten different drivers have reached victory circle in eighteen races with the traditional 360 sprint cars. With two point races remaining on the schedule, Saturday's event could play a major role in the championship chase.
Fresno's Craig Stidham holds a fifteen point advantage over Davey Pombo. Last Saturday at Hanford, Stidham drove the #3S Brad Johnson Trucking / KRC Safety Maxim to his second Sander Engineering Fast Time Award of the year. After finishing fourth in his heat race, the former California Rebel Cup Sprint Car champion dropped out of the feature and scored a fifteenth place finish. Stidham will be looking for his fifth win of the year and clinch the championship at Santa Maria.
Kerman's Davey Pombo won the Southwest Contractors 360 Clash title and earned the King Racing Products / Kirkey Racing Fabrication Hard Charger Award at Hanford. Piloting the #3 Junior Bowman / Buster & Ziggy Bullet, Pombo roared to a sixth place finish after starting nineteenth. Earlier in the program, Davey broke in time trials and was sixth in his heat race. Pombo has his eyes on the series title and will look for a strong performance at Santa Maria.
Fresno's T.J. Smith sits third in the point standings and has won four out of the last five main events. Driving the #14 UHL Rubber / K&N Filters Maxim, Smith won the Jim Turner Memorial at Hanford. Earlier in the night, the former Plaza Park track champion was third quick in time trials and third in his heat race. Smith will be looking to increase his hot streak with a third straight Santa Maria victory.
Hanford's Justyne Hamblin is fourth in the point chase. Piloting the #8 JH Motorsports / Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino Speed Tech, Hamblin was fifth quick in time trials, second in her heat race, and fourth in the feature in front of her hometown fans. Justyne made history on June 5th at Hanford by becoming the second female driver to win a USAC Sprint Car main event on dirt. This Saturday, Hamblin will have her sights set on a 30-lap feature victory at Santa Maria.
Tipton's "Hollywood" Danny Faria Jr. sits fifth in the point standings. Driving the #17V Louie De Groot & Sons Dairy / Borges Farms Maxim, Faria was thirteenth quick in time trials and won the Extreme Mufflers Heat Race #1 at Hanford. The veteran driver had mechanical problems at the Jim Turner Memorial and recorded an eighteenth place finish. Faria has two consecutive runner-up finishes at Santa Maria and will look for the top spot on Saturday.
Among the other top contenders expected to be in action are Bakersfield's Rusty Carlile, Clovis' Peter Murphy, Visalia's Jace and Richard VanderWeerd, Chris Ennis of Bakersfield, San Martin's Wes Gutierrez, Bakersfield's Ricky Kirkbride, Mariposa's Andy Ferris, 2006 SCRA champion Jonathan Logan of Hanford, and Visalia's Jesse Mack.
The USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series would like to thank Southwest Contractors, Hoosier Tire, Amsoil, BR Motorsports, Competition Suspension, Cory Kruseman's Sprint Car & Midget Driving School, Crow Enterprizes, DJ Safety, Extreme Mufflers, Hilborn Fuel Injection, Hinchman-Indy Racing Uniforms, Integra Shocks, Kaeding Performance, Keizer Wheels, King Racing Products, Kirkey Racing Fabrication, Port City Racing, Saferacer.com, Saldana Racing Products, and Sander Engineering for their support.
Santa Maria Speedway is located 1/4-mile north of the 101/166 interchange at 1900 Hutton Road in Nipomo, California. Adult tickets are $16, Senior, Military, and Student tickets (13-17) are $14, Kids tickets (6-12) are $5, and Children’s tickets (5 and under) are FREE. For more event information, please visit the track’s website at www.racesantamariaspeedway.com or call (805) 922-2232.
For more information on the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series, please visit www.westcoastsprintcars.com, www.usacracing.com, www.racesantamariaspeedway.com, or follow the series on facebook.
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USAC WEST COAST 360 SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS:
1. Craig Stidham 1040; 2. Davey Pombo 1025; 3. T.J. Smith 957; 4. Justyne Hamblin 852; 5. Danny Faria Jr. 767; 6. Peter Murphy 731; 7. Rusty Carlile 697; 8. Richard VanderWeerd 694; 9. Jace VanderWeerd 637; 10. Chris Ennis 530; 11. Ricky Kirkbride 515; 12. Wes Gutierrez 508; 13. Geoffrey Strole 434; 14. Andy Ferris 404; 15. Jonathan Logan 388; 16. Jared Little 370; 17. Jesse Mack 340; 18. Koen Shaw 328; 19. Jimmy Thompson 270; 20. Danny Sheridan 226.
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