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SCRA SET FOR FINALE THIS WEEKEND
By Dan Fleisher
Six months and 14 events later, the race for the SCRA 360 non-winged Sprint car championship comes down to a doubleheader this weekend at Kings Speedway in Hanford CA. Although 51 different drivers have participated during the season, only two remain in the chase, point leader Peter Murphy and arch-rival Davey Pombo. Murphy’s 1,003 leads Pombo (939) by a mere 64 with a maximum of 70 points available Friday, and 80 points available Saturday to any one particular driver. A “slip up” by Murphy on either night could cost him the coveted crown while the same fate by Pombo could “seal the deal” for the transplanted Aussie.
The pair dominated the season, combining for 11 victories, and finished one-two on seven occasions. Only Ryan Kaplan, with two victories, and teenage sensation Michael Faccinto, were able to reach the winner’s circle. Faccinto will be on-hand seeking victory number two.
A host of seasoned veterans, and young, talented teenagers, are hopeful of “making” their season by capturing at least one of the two remaining events. They include Rusty Carlile, Jeff Gardner and defending 2006 champion Jonathan Logan, who currently sit third through fifth in the standings, along with rookies Justyne Hamblin and John Niggli, who are sixth and seventh respectively. They (Hamblin and Niggli) are separated by only 37 points in the chase for Rookie of the Year honors.
Two other rookies seeking to capture the first-place trophy after near misses the previous two events are Myles Bishop and Richard VanderWeerd. Bishop had the September 8 feature all but locked up when he crashed with only five laps remaining while VanderWeerd was challenging Pombo for the lead during the September 15 feature when he made incidental contact with a lapped car, negating his chance for victory.
Adding to the list of drivers to watch are Davey Pombo’s cousin Albert, who’s a definite threat based on his Trophy Dash victory two weeks ago, and his feature win in the Bandit series at Santa Maria last weekend, popular local chauffeur Danny Faria Jr., veteran Jim Richardson, who makes his first SCRA appearance of the year, and other teenagers T.J. Hartman (Seattle, WA), Jared Little, who will drive the 2005 championship winning car, and Shane Golibic, who has enjoyed success racing at Chico.
The weekend’s events will be dedicated to Glen Howard, founder of SCRA, who passed away earlier this week.
For further information on participants and details, call Dan Fleisher at 559/635-1111.
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