FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series
- R.J. Johnson & Crew In Victory Lane. Photo by SurfnSprint.com.
R.J. JOHNSON WINS "COPPER ON DIRT" AT CANYON
by Lance Jennings
PEORIA, AZ - MARCH 3, 2013... Last Saturday night, R.J. Johnson of Phoenix took the lead from Bruce St. James on the second lap and fought off Nic Faas to win the "6th Annual Copper On Dirt." After starting third, the second generation driver claimed his second career Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car victory in front of a packed house at Canyon Speedway Park. Faas, Bryan Clauson, "The Demon" Damion Gardner, and Ryan Bernal followed Johnson to the checkered flags.
Piloting his 360 powered #7K Woodland Auto Display / Weld Racing Maxim, Bruce St. James took command from the pole position. Johnson immediately slipped past Faas to take second, as Charles Davis Jr., Clauson, and Rip Williams looked to move forward. Johnson powered by St. James on the next circuit before a caution flag for a stalled Austin Williams halted the action.
After the restart, five-time champion Mike Spencer had tire problems going into turn one and slowed his machine to a stop in the third turn. Matt Mitchell collected Spencer, and flipped his machine, bringing out a red flag. Both drivers were uninjured in the incident, but were done for the night.
Johnson set the pace with Faas in close pursuit. Clauson looked to chase down the leaders and sweep the weekend as Gardner charged into fourth from the twelfth spot. Changing track conditions made for tight racing and three wide action on the 1/3-mile oval. Eleventh starting "Super" Rickie Gaunt made an early charge to sixth and had a furious battle with Bud Kaeding for position.
Reaching lapped traffic on lap thirteen, Faas remained within striking distance of the leader. With the laps counting down, Faas took several shots for the lead that fell short. While Johnson and Faas fought for the top spot, Ryan Bernal threatened for a podium finish from nineteenth. The night belonged to R.J. Johnson, leading the final twenty-nine laps and scoring the $3,000 victory at his home track.
Piloting Bobby Martin's #51 Weiler Farms / Pecon Builders Maxim, R.J. Johnson last visited USAC/CRA's victory circle at Perris Auto Speedway on March 24, 2007. The 2005 Rookie of the Year qualified fourth quick in time trials and ran fifth in his heat race. Now sixth in USAC/CRA points, Johnson will compete in Thursday's USAC West Coast / Southwest action at Las Vegas and then travel to Perris for Saturday's "Sokola Shootout."
For the second night in a row, Nic Faas of Huntington Beach, California ran second at Canyon Speedway Park. Driving Mark Alexander's #4 Scott Sales / Competition Suspension Inc. Spike, Faas timed in seventh quick on the night and finished second in his heat race. The 2008 Rookie of the Year is second in championship points heading to Perris on March 9th.
Noblesville, Indiana's Bryan Clauson had a great weekend at the "Copper On Dirt." The defending USAC National Sprint Car Champion won the Friday USAC/CRA main, won both Midget features, and claimed third in Saturday's Sprint Car finale. Piloting Mike Martin's #16B Ultimate Offroad / Naquin Precision Earth Moving Maxim, Clauson qualified third and won the Saldana Racing Products / Circle Track Performance Heat Race #3. Word is that the current USAC/CRA point leader will be in action at Perris' "Sokola Shootout" on Saturday.
"The Demon" Damion Gardner of Concord, California charged from twelfth to fourth in last Saturday's main event. Driving Mark Alexander's #4A Scott Sales / Competition Suspension Inc. Spike, Gardner qualified twelfth and finished second to Clauson in his heat race. Now third in points, "The Demon" will return to Perris Auto Speedway, where he leads all USAC/CRA drivers with twenty-five feature wins.
Hollister, California's Ryan Bernal earned the night's Keizer Wheels / Racing Optics "Hard Charger / Best Passing Job” honors with a fifth place run after starting nineteenth. Piloting Keith Ford's #73 King Racing Products / A&A Precision Machine Spike, Bernal qualified nineteenth and finished third in his heat race. The two-time Santa Maria track champion is currently sixth in the point standings after the opening weekend.
Mike Spencer of Temecula, California earned the Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Award and nearly set a track record by out-qualifying the other twenty-five cars in the pit area. Racing the famed Ron Chaffin owned #50 Grubstake Mini Storage / Madera Produce Maxim, Spencer was fourth in his heat race before problems in the feature and collecting Matt Mitchell resulted in a twenty-third place finish. The five-time champion is currently ninth in points heading to Perris.
Austin Williams of Yorba Linda, California won the night's Extreme Mufflers Heat Race #1. Driving Jack Jory's #2 John Jory Corporation / AMA Plastics Spike, Williams qualified thirteenth and scored eighteenth in the "Copper On Dirt." The 2009 Rookie of the Year is tied with David Cardey for fourteenth in points and will be looking to rebound at Perris.
Buckeye's Charles Davis Jr. won the program's DJ Safety Heat Race #2. Piloting the Gerry Cook owned #4G Lucas Oil RSS, Davis was second quick in time trials and finished ninth in the main event. The Arizona Champion is fifth in USAC/CRA points as he heads to Thursday's USAC West Coast / Southwest action at Las Vegas Motor Speedway's Dirt Track.
Bud Kaeding of Campbell, California's Bud Kaeding won the 12-lap Competition Suspension Inc / Rod End Supply Semi-Main. Driving Junior Bowman's #29 Ultimate Offroad / Buster & Ziggy Enterprises Maxim, Kaeding qualified sixth, placed sixth in his heat race, and ran sixth in the main event. Last year's USAC West Coast Champion is fourth in USAC/CRA points and will be in action at Las Vegas before racing at Perris on Saturday.
The Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series would like to thank Hoosier Tire, BR Motorsports, Circle Track Performance, Competition Suspension Inc., DJ Safety, Diversified Machine Inc., Extreme Mufflers, Huntington Beach Glass & Mirror, Keizer Wheels, King Racing Products, Racing Optics, Rod End Supply, SBI Fuel Systems, Saldana Racing Products, Weld Racing, and Woodland Auto Display for their support. If you or your company would like to become part of the series for the upcoming season, please email PR Director Lance Jennings at [email protected].
For more information on the Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series, visit www.usacracing.com/cra or follow the series on Facebook (www.facebook.com/pages/USAC-CRA-Sprint-Car-Series/167535183297971) or Twitter (www.twitter.com/#!/USAC_CRA).
AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CAR RACE RESULTS:
March 2, 2013 – Peoria, Arizona – Canyon Speedway Park – 6th “Copper on Dirt”
WOODLAND AUTO DISPLAY TIME TRIALS:
1. Mike Spencer, 50, Chaffin-13.588; 2. Charles Davis Jr., 4G, Cook-13.712; 3. Bryan Clauson, 16B, Martin-13.729; 4. R.J. Johnson, 51, Martin-13.784; 5. Rip Williams, 3, Jory-13.829; 6. Bud Kaeding, 29, Bowman-13.970; 7. Nic Faas, 4, Alexander-13.972; 8. Bruce St. James, 7K, St. James-14.029; 9. Brody Roa, 91, BR-14.033; 10. Cody Williams, 44, Jory-14.127; 11. Cory Kruseman, 7, Priestley-14.175; 12. Damion Gardner, 4A, Alexander-14.199; 13. Austin Williams, 2, Jory-14.222; 14. Seth Wilson, 1X, Wilson-14.251; 15. David Cardey, 92, Sertich-14.254; 16. Matt Mitchell, 37, Mitchell-14.267; 17. Rickie Gaunt, 66, Miller-14.309; 18. Hunter Schuerenberg, 8, BRAT-14.332; 19. Ryan Bernal, 73, Ford-14.441; 20. J.J. Yeley, 11, Yeley-14.521; 21. David Bezio, 37X, Bezio-14.626; 22. Andy Reinbold, 19, Underwood-14.634; 23. Michael Curtis, 11C, Turner/Wheeler-14.643; 24. Josh Hodges, 74X, Hodges-14.654; 25. Tony Everhart, 55, Everhart-14.771; 26. Mike Martin, 16, Martin-NT.
EXTREME MUFFLERS HEAT RACE 1: (8 laps)
1. Austin Williams, 2. Nic Faas, 3. Matt Mitchell, 4. Mike Spencer, 5. R.J. Johnson, 6. Ryan Bernal, 7. Cody Williams, 8. Andy Reinbold, 9. Tony Everhart. NT
DJ SAFETY HEAT RACE 2: (8 laps)
1. Charles Davis Jr., 2. Seth Wilson, 3. Cory Kruseman, 4. Rickie Gaunt, 5. Bruce St. James, 6. J.J. Yeley, 7. Mike Martin, 8. Rip Williams, 9. Michael Curtis. NT
SALDANA RACING PRODUCTS / CIRCLE TRACK PERFORMANCE HEAT RACE 3 : (8 laps)
1. Bryan Clauson, 2. Damion Gardner, 3. Hunter Schuerenberg, 4. David Cardey, 5. Josh Hodges, 6. Bud Kaeding, 7. Brody Roa, 8. David Bezio. NT
COMPETITION SUSPENSION INC. / ROD END SUPPLY SEMI-MAIN: (12 laps)
1. Bud Kaeding, 2. Rip Williams, 3. Ryan Bernal, 4. Brody Roa, 5. J.J. Yeley, 6. Cody Williams, 7. Andy Reinbold, 8. Mike Martin, 9. David Bezio, 10. Tony Everhart, 11. Michael Curtis. NT
FEATURE: (30 laps - With Starting Positions)
1. R.J. Johnson (3rd), 2. Nic Faas (2nd), 3. Bryan Clauson (4th), 4. Damion Gardner (12th), 5. Ryan Bernal (19th), 6. Bud Kaeding (8th), 7. Hunter Schuerenberg (18th), 8. Rickie Gaunt (17th), 9. Charles Davis Jr. (5th), 10. Brody Roa (9th), 11. Josh Hodges (22nd), 12. David Cardey (15th), 13. J.J. Yeley (20th), 14. Rip Williams (7th), 15. Cody Williams (10th), 16. Seth Wilson (14th), 17. Andrew Reinbold (21st), 18. Austin Williams (13th), 19. David Bezio (23rd), 20. Cory Kruseman (11th), 21. Bruce St. James (1st), 22. Matt Mitchell (16th), 23. Mike Spencer (6th). NT
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**Matt Mitchell flipped on lap 3 of the feature.
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Lap 1 St. James, Laps 2-30 Johnson.
KEIZER WHEELS / RACING OPTICS HARD CHARGER: Ryan Bernal (19th to 5th)
NEW AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT POINTS:
1. Bryan Clauson-138; 2. Nic Faas-124; 3. Damion Gardner-119; 4. Bud Kaeding-110; 5. Charles Davis Jr.-102; 6. Ryan Bernal-98; 7. Hunter Schuerenberg-91; 8. R.J. Johnson-88; 9. Mike Spencer-80; 10. Rickie Gaunt-78; 11. Brody Roa-71; 12. Matt Mitchell-63; 13. Josh Hodges-62; 14. David Cardey-60; --. Austin Williams-60; 16. Cody Williams-58; 17. Rip Williams-49; 18. Cory Kruseman-48; 19 Bruce St. James-39; 20. David Bezio-32.
2013 AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CAR SERIES SCHEDULE
DATE - TRACK - LOCATION
March 9: Perris Auto Speedway - Perris, CA (Sokola Shootout)
April 6: Perris Auto Speedway - Perris, CA
April 19: Cocopah Speedway - Yuma, AZ
April 20: Cocopah Speedway - Yuma, AZ
May 4: Perris Auto Speedway - Perris, CA
May 18: Thunderbowl Raceway - Tulare, CA
May 25: Perris Auto Speedway - Perris, CA (Salute To Indy)
June 14: **Ocean Speedway - Watsonville, CA
June 15: Santa Maria Speedway - Santa Maria, CA
July 4: Perris Auto Speedway - Perris, CA (Firecracker 30)
August 9: **Ocean Speedway - Watsonville, CA
August 10: Santa Maria Speedway - Santa Maria, CA
August 17: Perris Auto Speedway - Perris, CA (California Racers Hall of Fame Night)
August 31: **Calistoga Speedway - Calistoga, CA (Louie Vermeil Classic)
September 1: **Calistoga Speedway - Calistoga, CA (Louie Vermeil Classic)
September 14: Perris Auto Speedway - Perris, CA (Glenn Howard Classic)
October 5: Perris Auto Speedway - Perris, CA (Southern California Fair Race)
October 25: *Canyon Speedway Park - Peoria, AZ (Hall of Fame Classic)
October 26: *Canyon Speedway Park - Peoria, AZ (Hall of Fame Classic)
November 1: *Perris Auto Speedway - Perris, CA (Oval Nationals)
November 2: *Perris Auto Speedway - Perris, CA (Oval Nationals)
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* = Co-Sanctioned Event With USAC National Sprints.
** = Co-Sanctioned Event With USAC Western Classic Racing Series.
This schedule is subject to change.
