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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series
#50 Mike Spencer. Photo by Steve Lafond / Tear-Off Heaven Fotos.
USAC/CRA RETURNS TO ARIZONA FOR CANYON'S "HALL OF FAME CLASSIC"
By Lance Jennings
SANTA MARIA, CA – OCTOBER 24, 2011… This Friday and Saturday, October 28th & 29th, the Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series will make their debut at Peoria, Arizona's Canyon Speedway Park for the ParkerStore "Hall of Fame Classic." The co-sanctioned events with the USAC National Sprint Car Series will mark the return of Traditional 410 Sprint Car Racing to "The Copper State" and will feature an incredible roster of talent from across the country. The popular Challenge Cup Sprint Cars will join the showcase and the spectator gates will open at 5:00pm with racing set begin at 7:30pm.
Canyon Speedway Park's 3/8-mile facility will host two compete programs for the "Hall of Fame Classic." Starting on Friday, the 30-lap feature will pay $2500-to-win and $300 to-start. The purse for the Saturday night 30-lap finale will pay $5000-to-win and $500 to start. "Kevin Montgomery and I have been working on this event for a while now and we are happy to see USAC coming back to Arizona," commented USAC/CRA Director Chris Kearns. "This will be a great event with an impressive purse and a great start to the USAC Western Swing."
Formerly held at Manzanita Speedway, the "Hall of Fame Classic" not only honors an elite group of racers to the Arizona Motorsports Hall of Fame, it showcases some of the best drivers in the country. Since Manzanita's closing in April 2009, track promoter Kevin Montgomery and his staff have pledged to continue the rich tradition and spirit of racing in Arizona. "The Flying Shoe" Ron Shuman will serve as the event's Grand Marshal and will sign autographs along with other legends of the sport, including "The Tempe Tornado" Lealand McSpadden and "The Gasman" Richard Griffin.
Temecula's Mike Spencer holds a thirty-one point advantage over the competition as he looks for his fourth straight title. Piloting Ron Chaffin's famed #50 Madera Produce / Grubstake Mini Storage Maxim, Spencer finished third at Perris on October 8th. To date, the defending champion leads the series with six feature wins, four Sander Engineering Fast Time Awards (tied), two Competition Suspension Inc. Semi-Main wins (tied), and 121 feature laps led. In addition, he has six heat race victories and thirteen top-10 finishes to his credit. Mike will have his sights set on the "Hall of Fame Classic" victories as he closes in on another USAC/CRA crown.
Nic Faas of Huntington Beach is second in the point chase. Driving Mark Alexander's #4 Scott Sales Company / VP Racing Fuels Spike, Faas has won the last two main events on the circuit. The 2008 Rookie of the Year leads the series with four Sander Engineering Fast Time Awards (tied) and three Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Awards. In addition, Nic has six heat race victories, thirteen top-10 finishes, and thirty-nine feature laps led on the year. Faas will be looking to gain ground on the point leader with feature wins at Canyon Speedway Park.
Sitting third in the standings and thirty nine points behind Spencer is Yorba Linda's Matt Mitchell. Piloting the J.W. Mitchell Motorsports' #37 Mancha Realtors / Sierra Springs Maxim, Matt placed seventh on October 10th at Perris. The former USAC Western Midget Series Rookie of the Year leads the series with seven heat race victories and fourteen top-10 finishes on the year. In addition, Mitchell has two feature wins, one Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award, and forty-nine feature laps led. Matt is in the thick of the championship chase and will be a favorite for the "Hall of Fame Classic" victories.
Austin Williams of Yorba Linda is fourth in the championship hunt. Driving Jack Jory's #2 John Jory Corporation / AMA Plastics Viper, the 2009 Rookie of the Year scored eighth at Perris on October 10th. Williams has one feature win, three heat race victories, one Competition Suspension Inc. Semi-Main win, one Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award, ten top-10 finishes, and thirty feature laps led on the season. The son of Hall of Fame driver Rip Williams will be looking to claim his first Arizona victories.
Visalia's Greg Bragg is fifth in the championship points. Piloting Tom and Laurie Sertich's #92 Huntington Beach Glass & Mirror / Pacific Business Machine Buckley, Bragg claimed fifth on October 10th at Perris. The 3-Time California Lightning Sprint Champion has three heat race victories, two Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Awards, eleven top-10 finishes, and fourteen main event laps led to his credit. As this writing goes to press, Greg and the Moose Racing Team will miss the "Hall of Fame Classic" and plan to return at the Perris Oval Nationals.
Campbell's Bud Kaeding, Ventura's Cory Kruseman, Robert Ballou of Rocklin, and Elk Grove's Kyle Larson have also scored feature wins in 2011. Kaeding won the Hanford shootout on May 7th, while Kruseman won the Watsonville show on June 16th and the following night at Santa Maria. Ballou won the first night of the "Louie Vermeil Classic" at Calistoga and Larson won the "Tiner Family Classic" at Chico.
Among the other top USAC/CRA contenders expected to be in action are Yorba Linda's Cody and "The Ripper" Rip Williams, "Showtime" Danny Sheridan of Santa Maria, "Super" Rickie Gaunt of Torrance, Riverside's "Dynamite" David Cardey, Norco's Ronnie Gardner, and more.
The USAC National Series is led by Levi Jones of Olney, Illinois. Jones is looking for his fifth career series championship as he battles with Chris Windom, (Canton, IL), Jon Stanbrough (Avon, IN), Hunter Schuerenberg (Sikeston, MO), and Robert Ballou (Rocklin, CA). Other series drivers expected to compete are Tracy Hines (Wilkinson, IN), Dave Darland (Lincoln, IN), "The Demon" Damion Gardner (Concord, CA), Bryan Clauson (Noblesville, IN), Bobby East (Brownsburg, IN), Keith Bloom Jr. (Anderson, CA), and more.
Local 360 iron-block powered Sprint Cars are welcome to race with USAC/CRA. The 360s can run their local approved tires (all four corners must be Hoosier), but must meet series tech standards and race track muffler rules. There is an entry fee for both nights and entry forms can be found at www.usacracing.com/sprint_index/garage_s. The Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series does not charge for transponders, but drivers must have one-way radios. In addition, the series is offering a bonus to the highest finishing 360 team- a $200 cash award from the United States Auto Club.
Canyon Speedway Park is located at 9777 West Carefree Highway in Peoria, Arizona. To get to the track, take Lake Pleasant Parkway, then 1.3 miles West on Carefree Highway. Advance tickets are on sale now and more event information can be found at www.canyonspeedwaypark.com or calling (602) 258-7223 (RACE).
The Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series would like to thank Hoosier Tire, Circle Track Performance, Competition Suspension Inc., DJ Safety, Donovan Engineering, Electro Tech Powder Coating, Extreme Mufflers, Hilborn Fuel Injection, Huntington Beach Glass & Mirror, Keizer Wheels, Rod End Supply, Saldana Racing Products, Sander Engineering, and So-Cal Performance for their support. For more information, visit usacracing.com/cra or follow the series on facebook.
AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT POINTS:
1. Mike Spencer 930; 2. Nic Faas 899; 3. Matt Mitchell 891; 4. Austin Williams 678; 5. Greg Bragg 615; 6. Cody Williams 545; 7. Danny Sheridan 471; 8. Rip Williams 467; 9. Rickie Gaunt 451; 10. David Cardey 443; 11. Ronnie Gardner 441; 12. Cory Kruseman 391; 13. Richard VanderWeerd 279; 14. Blake Miller 277; 15. Jace VanderWeerd 260; 16. David Bezio 258; 17. Brody Roa 196; 18. Damion Gardner 189; 19. Greg Alexander 181; 20. Danny Faria Jr. 169.
AMSOIL USAC NATIONAL SPRINT POINTS:
1. Levi Jones 1324; 2. Chris Windom 1280; 3. Jon Stanbrough 1242; 4. Hunter Schuerenberg 1173; 5. Robert Ballou 1077; 6. Tracy Hines 1062; 7. Dave Darland 1054; 8. Damion Gardner 978; 9. Bryan Clauson 959; 10. Bobby East 823; 11. Blake Fitzpatrick 745; 12. Jerry Coons Jr. 744; 13. Keith Bloom Jr. 636; 14. Coleman Gulick 591; 15. Casey Riggs 578; 16. Shane Cottle 542; 17. Brady Short 451; 18. Justin Grant 417;
19. Wes McIntyre 312; 20. Bud Kaeding 236.
AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT SCHEDULE:
October 28: *Canyon Speedway Park - Peoria, AZ
October 29: *Canyon Speedway Park - Peoria, AZ
November 3: *Perris Auto Speedway - Perris, CA
November 4: *Perris Auto Speedway - Perris, CA
November 5: *Perris Auto Speedway - Perris, CA
November 12: *Giant Chevrolet Kings Speedway - Hanford, CA
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* = Co-Sanctioned Event With USAC National Sprints.
This schedule is subject to change.
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