USAC/CRA SPRINTS CLASH AT HANFORD THIS SATURDAY
By Lance Jennings
 
SANTA MARIA, CA – MAY 16, 2012… The cars and stars of the Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series will return to action this Saturday, May 19th, at Kings Speedway in Hanford. Joining Scott Woodhouse's action packed card will be the USAC Western Midgets, IMCA Modifieds, IMCA Sport Mods, and WRA Vintage Cars. The spectator gates will open at 5:00pm, with racing scheduled to begin at 6:30pm.
 
Last year, the 3/8-mile facility provided one of the most dramatic races of the campaign. Bud Kaeding scored the 30-lap feature victory on May 7th after restarting at the back. Nic Faas claimed second after starting nineteenth and Matt Mitchell raced to third from his thirteenth starting spot. On November 13th, Levi Jones won the season finale and the USAC National crown at Hanford, while Mike Spencer claimed his fourth straight USAC/CRA championship.
 
Heading into Saturday's fourth round of competition, Temecula's Mike Spencer holds an eleven point advantage. At Perris on April 28th, the pilot of Ron Chaffin's #50 Madera Produce / Grubstake Mini Storage Maxim nearly swept the show by earning his second fast time award, placing second in his heat race, and winning his second feature of the year. Spencer and the Bruce Bromme Jr. led team will have their sights on the Hanford victory and making history with another title.
 
Nic Faas of Huntington Beach is second in the point chase. Driving Mark Alexander's #4 Scott Sales Company / Competition Suspension Inc. Spike, the 2008 Rookie of the Year was second quick, scored his second heat race win of the year, and claimed seventh in the April 28th feature. Faas won the season opener at Perris on February 25th and will be looking to add Saturday's main event to his title chase.
 
Yorba Linda's Matt Mitchell is currently third in the standings, thirteen points behind Spencer. Piloting the J.W. Mitchell Motorsports' #37 J.M. Mancha Realtors / Sierra Springs Water Maxim, Matt was ninth fast in time trials, third in his heat race, and nearly stole the Perris feature from Spencer before scoring second. The former USAC Western Midget Series Rookie of the Year will be looking to score his first victory of 2012 at Hanford.
 
Ryan Bernal of Hollister sits fourth in the championship points. Driving the Kittle Motorsports' #18 Pace Lighting / PJ1 Lubricants Sherman, Bernal was seventh quick, third in his heat race, and tenth in the April 28th feature. Last year's USAC West Coast 360 Rookie of the Year will have his eyes set on his first career USAC/CRA win on Saturday.
 
Riverside's "Dynamite" David Cardey is fifth in the point standings. Piloting his #59 Circle Track Performance / Victory Race Cars Viper, the former California Lightning Sprint Champion was third quick, second in his heat race, and claimed third in the Perris main event. Cardey is no stranger to victory lane and will drive a new Moose Racing #92 entry later in the season.
 
Among the other top contenders expected to be in action are Yorba Linda's Austin, Cody and "The Ripper"  Rip Williams, Buena Park's Brody Roa, Richard and Jace Vander Weerd of Visalia, Ventura's Cory Kruseman, Camarillo's Josh Ford, Seth Wilson of Las Vegas, and many more.
 
Kings Speedway is located on the Kings County Fairgrounds at 801 South 10th Avenue in Hanford, California. Reserved Grandstand tickets are $20 and General Bleacher tickets are $17. Advance tickets are on sale now and camping is available on the fairgrounds. For more event and ticket information, visit kingsspeedway.net or call (559) 584-RACE (7223).
 
The Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series would like to thank Hoosier Tire, Circle Track Performance, Competition Suspension Inc., DJ Safety, Diversified Machine Inc., Extreme Mufflers, Hilborn Fuel Injection, Integra Shocks, Keizer Wheels, LRB Inc. Race Products, Ringers Gloves, Rod End Supply, SBI Fuel Systems, Saldana Racing Products, and Sander Engineering for their support.
 
For more information on the Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series, visit usacracing.com/cra or follow the series on facebook.
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USAC/CRA SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS:
1. Mike Spencer-207; 2. Nic Faas-196; 3. Matt Mitchell-194; 4. Ryan Bernal-160; 5. David Cardey-142; 6. Austin Williams-140; 7. Brody Roa-136; 8. Rip Williams-121; 9. Richard Vander Weerd-107; 10. Cory Kruseman-106; 11. Josh Ford-99; 12. Seth Wilson-94; 13. David Bezio-93; 14. Jace Vander Weerd-90; 15. Greg Alexander-85; 16. Cody Williams-81; 17. Jake Swanson-78; 18. Josh Pelkey-51; 19. Tony Everhart-41;---. Ronnie Gardner-41.

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USAC WEST COAST 360 SPRINT RACE RESULTS: May 12, 2012 – Tulare, California – Tulare Thunderbowl Raceway – “Chris & Brian Faria Memorial”

QUALIFICATIONS: 1. D.J. Netto, 7N, Netto-16.101; 2. Bud Kaeding, 29, Bowman-16.236; 3. Richard Vander Weerd, 10, Vander Weerd-16.267; 4. Markus Niemela, 81, Watt-16.320; 5. Rusty Carlile, 51, Carlile-16.386; 6. Kyle Larson, 72, Ford-16.390; 7. Danny Faria Jr., 17V, Faria-16.415; 8. Peter Murphy, 11, Iturriria-16.484; 9. Matt Mitchell, 18, Watt-16.491; 10. Chris Ennis, 86, Ennis-16.492; 11. Austin Liggett, 83, Liggett-16.569; 12. Jace Vander Weerd, 88, Vander Weerd-16.588; 13. Justyne Hamblin, 8, JH-16.601; 14. Bobby Bender, 12, Bender-16.608; 15. Ronnie Gardner, 73, Ford-16.655; 16. Ricky Kirkbride, 87, Van Meter-16.668; 17. Austin DeBlauw, 65, DeBlauw-16.681; 18. Kevin Barnes, 36B, Barnes-16.738; 19. Marty Hawkins, 3M, Hawkins-16.785; 20. Kolby Araki, 30K, Araki-16.803; 21. Steve Conrad, 56, Swaim-16.825; 22. Chris Gansen, 4G, Gansen-16.935; 23. Tyler Dolacki, 18X, Dolacki-16.952; 24. Danny Sheridan, 18K, Kittle-17.027; 25. Matt Day, 97, Day-17.067; 26. Adam Frith-Smith, 62, Frith-Smith-17.123; 27. Jonathan Logan, 32, Evett/Logan-17.145; 28. Austin Smith, 14, Springstead-17.147; 29. Jared Little, 25, Little-17.235; 30. Kyle Smith, 51T, Smith-17.454; 31. Burt Foland Jr., 4, Foland-17.589; 32. Don Gansen, 7G, Gansen-17.913; 33. Ray Knight, 6K, Knight-17.972.

FIRST HEAT: (10 laps) 1. Mitchell, 2. Hamblin, 3. Conrad, 4. Carlile, 5. Netto, 6. DeBlauw, 7. Little, 8. Day, 9. Knight. NT

SECOND HEAT: (10 laps) 1. Kaeding, 2. Barnes, 3. C. Gansen, 4. Ennis, 5. K. Smith, 6. Frith-Smith, 7. Bender, 8. Larson. NT

THIRD HEAT: (10 laps) 1. Faria, 2. R. Vander Weerd, 3. Logan, 4. Hawkins, 5. Dolacki, 6. Liggett, 7. Gardner, 8. Foland. NT

FOURTH HEAT: (10 laps) 1. Niemela, 2. Murphy, 3. Sheridan, 4. Kirkbride, 5. D. Gansen, 6. A. Smith, 7. Araki, 8. J. Vander Weerd. NT

SEMI: (7 laps) 1. Liggett, 2. Netto, 3. J. Vander Weerd, 4. Larson (#73), 5. D. Gansen, 6. Dolacki, 7. Little, 8. DeBlauw, 9. K. Smith, 10. Foland, 11. Day, 12. Knight, 13. Bender, 14. A. Smith, 15. Frith-Smith. NT

FEATURE: (30 laps) 1. Kyle Larson (#73), 2. Bud Kaeding, 3. Richard Vander Weerd, 4. Matt Mitchell, 5. Jace Vander Weerd, 6. Rusty Carlile, 7. Marty Hawkins, 8. Ricky Kirkbride, 9. Austin Liggett, 10. Don Gansen, 11. Markus Niemela, 12. Chris Ennis, 13. Tyler Dolacki, 14. Chris Gansen, 15. Steve Conrad, 16. Jonathan Logan, 17. Kevin Barnes, 18. D.J. Netto, 19. Danny Faria Jr., 20. Danny Sheridan, 21. Justyne Hamblin, 22. Peter Murphy. NT

----------------------------

**Larson flipped during the second heat. J. Vander Weerd flipped during the fourth heat. A. Smith flipped during the semi.

FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-19 Mitchell, Laps 20-25 Kaeding, Laps 26-30 Larson.

NEW WEST COAST 360 SPRINT POINTS:

NEXT WEST COAST 360 SPRINT RACE: June 9 – Hanford, CA – Kings Speedway

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TULARE'S "FARIA MEMORIAL" DOUBLEHEADER STARTS FRIDAY
by Lance Jennings
 
SANTA MARIA, CA – MAY 8, 2012... Starting this Friday, May 11th, the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series will compete in a rare doubleheader at Steve Faria's Tulare Thunderbowl Raceway. After rains cancelled the previous Tulare dates, the 2-day "Chris & Brian Faria Memorial Weekend" will also feature the winged Cancen Oil King of the West Sprint Cars and IMCA Modifieds. The Front Gates will open at 5:00pm, with Racing at the lightning fast 1/3-mile to start at 7:00pm.
 
In addition to the two nights of racing action, Steve Faria and his staff have organized a free breakfast on Saturday for anyone with a ticket stub or pit pass from Friday. The breakfast will be held in the Fairgrounds, just north of the RV camping area. For more details and times, visit tularethunderbowl.com.
 
After winning the last two features, Hollister's Ryan Bernal holds an eighteen point advantage over the competition. Piloting Keith Ford's #73 King Racing Products / A&A Precision Machine Spike, last year's runner-up in points has finished on the podium in all of the four races to date. In addition, Bernal has one Competition Suspension Inc. / Diversified Machine Inc. Semi-Main win, one Ringers Gloves Hard Charger Award, and leads the series with forty-three feature laps led. Ryan won the last Tulare race on October 8th and will have his sights on adding the Friday and Saturday shows to his resume.
 
Bud Kaeding of Campbell is second in the point chase. Driving Junior Bowman's #29 Buster & Ziggy Enterprises / Kaeding Performance Bullet, Kaeding finished second last Saturday at Santa Maria. With feature wins coming at Las Vegas and Bakersfield, Bud also has one heat race victory, one Ringers Gloves Hard Charger Award, three podium appearances, and five feature laps led. The defending wingless "Faria Memorial" winner will be looking to repeat and overtake Peter Murphy as the series leader in career feature wins.
 
Sitting third in the championship points is Rauma, Finland's Markus Niemela. Piloting Steve Watt's #81 Lost Reality / Steve Watt Enterprises Maxim, Niemela claimed fourth at Santa Maria. The star of his own reality show has one heat race victory and three top-five finishes on the season. Markus will be making his first career start at Tulare's 1/3-mile facility and has his eyes on the Faria Memorial victory.
 
"Hollywood" Danny Faria Jr. of Tipton is fourth in the hunt for the championship. Driving his #17V Johnston Calf Pens / Buster & Ziggy Enterprises Bullet, Faria was third at Santa Maria and earned his series leading ninth career Sander Engineering / Rod End Supply Fast Time Award. To date, "Hollywood" has two top-five finishes on the year and the hard charger will be determined to win the race that honors the memory of his family.
 
Yorba Linda's Matt Mitchell is currently fifth in the point standings. Driving Steve Watt's #18 Christian Stover Foundation / Steve Watt Enterprises Maxim, Mitchell was sixth at Santa Maria after starting eighth. The USAC/CRA standout has one Sander Engineering / Rod End Supply Fast Time Award, two heat race victories, and one top-five finish in 2012. The former USAC Western Midget Series Rookie of the Year will be looking for his first series win at Tulare.
 
Among the other top contenders expected to be in action are Chris Ennis, Steve Conrad, "The Bakersfield Bullet" Rusty Carlile, 2009 Champion Justyne Hamblin, 2011 Champion Richard Vander Weerd and his brother Jace, "Showtime" Danny Sheridan, Ricky Kirkbride, Chris and Don Gansen, and Jonathan Logan. In addition, Peter Murphy and Eldora 4-Crown Winner Kyle Larson will be on hand to challenge the stars of the USAC West Coast 360s.
 
Tulare's Thunderbowl Raceway is located at the Tulare County Fairgrounds at the corner of Bardsley and K Streets. Reserved Grandstand Tickets are $20 and Bleacher Tickets are $17. Advance tickets are on sale and can be purchased by calling the track office at (559) 688-0909. For more event information, visit the track’s website at www.tularethunderbowl.com.
 
The USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series would like to thank Southwest Contractors, Hoosier Tire, Amsoil, ButlerBuilt, Competition Suspension Inc., Cory Kruseman's Sprint Car & Midget Driving School, Crow Enterprizes, DJ Safety, Diversified Machine Inc., Extreme Mufflers, Hilborn Fuel Injection, Hinchman-Indy Racing Uniforms, Integra Shocks, Kaeding Performance, Keizer Wheels, LRB Inc. Race Products, ParkerStore of Phoenix, Ringers Gloves, Rod End Supply, SBI Fuel Systems, Saferacer.com, Saldana Racing Products, and Sander Engineering for their support.
 
For more information on the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series, visit westcoastsprintcars.com, usacracing.com, racesantamariaspeedway.com, or follow the series on facebook.
 
WINGLESS CHRIS & BRIAN FARIA MEMORIAL WINNERS:
2010- Craig Stidham; 2011- Bud Kaeding.
 
USAC WEST COAST 360 SPRINT POINTS:
1. Ryan Bernal-199; 2. Bud Kaeding-181; 3. Markus Niemela-178; 4. Danny Faria Jr.-175; 5. Matt Mitchell-146; 6. Chris Ennis-118; 7. Steve Conrad-101; 8. Rusty Carlile-97; 9. Kevin Barnes-96; 10. Justyne Hamblin-96; 11. Richard Vander Weerd-96; 12. Danny Sheridan-88; 13. Ricky Kirkbride-87; 14. Chris Gansen-77; 15. Austin Liggett-71; 16. Don Gansen-67; 17. Josh Ford-55; 18. Peter Murphy-52; 19. Jonathon Logan-48; 20. Matt Day-46.
-----------------------------------------------
2012 USAC WEST COAST 360 SPRINT CAR SERIES SCHEDULE
DATE - TRACK - LOCATION
May 11: Tulare Thunderbowl Raceway - Tulare, CA (Chris & Brian Faria Memorial)
May 12: Tulare Thunderbowl Raceway - Tulare, CA (Chris & Brian Faria Memorial)
June 9: Kings Speedway - Hanford, CA
June 23: Santa Maria Speedway - Santa Maria, CA (Bud Stanfield Memorial)
July 7: *Santa Maria Speedway - Santa Maria, CA (War At The Shore / Doug Fort Memorial)
July 14: Tulare Thunderbowl Raceway - Tulare, CA (John Anthony Sharp Memorial)
August 4: Kings Speedway - Hanford, CA (Jim Evett Memorial)
September 8: Kings Speedway - Hanford, CA (Jim Turner Memorial)
September 22: *Canyon Speedway Park - Peoria, AZ (Brawl For It All / Non-Points)
September 29: Santa Maria Speedway - Santa Maria, CA (Billet Cup / John Jewett Memorial / Non-Points)
October 13: Kings Speedway - Hanford, CA (Cotton Classic)
-----------------------------------------------
* = Co-Sanctioned Event With ASCS Canyon Region Sprints.
This schedule is subject to change.

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MOPAR USAC NATIONAL MIDGET RACE RESULTS:

May 5, 2012 - Dodge City, Kansas - Dodge City Raceway Park

QUALIFICATIONS: 1. Levi Roberts,39, CTR/BCI/Curb-Agajainia-15.937; 2. Bobby East,4,Klatt-16.002; 3. Tracy Hines,24, Parker-16.042; 4. Bryan Clauson,67,Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-16.079; 5. Zach Daum,5d, Daum-16.108; 6. Brad Kuhn, 17, RW-16.140; 7. Chris Deshon, 51, Deshon-16.154; 8. Chris Windom,11w, Wilke/Pak-16.166; 9. Darren Hagen,3, RFMS-16.169; 10. Levi Jones, 56, 5ive-6ix,Inc-16.235; 11.Rico Abreu,67k,Kuna-16.241; 12. Jerry Coons, Jr, 3NZ, Lendich-16.273;13. Kyle Larson, 71, Kunz-16.276; 14. Caleb Armstron, 7c, C&A-16.345; 15. Tony Rossi,14, Rossi-16.385; 16. C.J.Johnson, 45x, Johnson-16.394; 17. Brady Bacon, 11, Wilke-Pak-16.401; 18. Davey Ray,33, RayPro-16.427; 19. Garett Hood, 11H, Two Hoods-16.522; 20. Patrick Stasa, 19, Stasa-16.537; 21. Dalton Armstrong, 7A, C&A-16.570; 22. Dave Darland, 63, Dooling-16.586; 23. Riley Emmel, 12, RayPro-16.823; 24. Randy Boyer, 69, Boyer-18.009; 25. Mario Clouser, 27, RW-NT

FIRST HEAT: (8 laps) 1. Johnson, 2. Larson, 3. Clauson, 4. Jones, 5. Roberts, 6. Deshon, 7. Darland, 8. Clouser, 9. Hood 2:10:53

SECOND HEAT: (8 laps) 1. Bacon ,2. C. Armstrong, 3. Abreau, 4. East, 5. Windom, 6. Daum, 7.Emmel, 8, Stasa, 2:10:31

THIRD HEAT: (8 laps) 1.Hagen, 2. Hines, 3. Ray, 4.Coons, 5. Kuhn, 6. Rossi, 7. D. Armstrong, 8. Boyer. 2:09:85

FEATURE: (30 laps) 1. Tracy Hines, 2. Kyle Larson, 3. Brad Kuhn, 4. Bobby East, 5. Darren Hagen, 6. Chris Windom, 7. Levi Roberts, 8. Rico Abreu, 9. Levi Jones, 10. Caleb Armstrong, 11. Brady Bacon, 12. Jerry Coons, Jr, 13. Zach Daum, 14. Davey Ray, 15. Patrick Stasa, 16. C.J. Johnaon, 17. Dalton Armstrong, 18. Mario Clouser, 19. Tony Rossi, 20. Garett Hood, 21. Riley Emmel, 22. Chris Deshon, 23. Bryan Clauson, 24. Randy Boyer  8:19:18

--------------------------------

FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-7 Kuhn, Laps 8-30 Hines

NEW MOPAR NATIONAL MIDGET POINTS: 1-Hagen-222; 2. East-219; 3. C. Armstrong-195; 4.Larson-192; 5.Clouser-187; 6.Clauson-166; 7.Jones-157; 8.Hines-141; 9. Roberts-136; 10-Kuhn-123

NEXT MOPAR NATIONAL MIDGET RACES: May 26 - Indianapolis, IN - Lucas Oil Raceway - 67th "Night Before the 500"

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USAC WEST COAST 360 SPRINT RACE RESULTS: May 5, 2012 – Santa Maria, California – Santa Maria Speedway

QUALIFICATIONS: 1. Danny Faria Jr., 17V, Faria-15.727; 2. Ryan Bernal, 73, Ford-16.054; 3. Richard Vander Weerd, 10, Vander Weerd-16.221; 4. Kevin Barnes, 36B, Barnes-16.314; 5. Bud Kaeding, 29, Bowman-16.323; 6. Danny Sheridan, 18K, Kittle-16.332; 7. Markus Niemela, 81, Watt-16.357; 8. Jace Vander Weerd, 88, Vander Weerd-16.483; 9. Kyle Smith, 51T, Smith-16.587; 10. Matt Mitchell, 18, Watt-16.656; 11. Tom Hendricks, 14K, Kruseman-16.742; 12. Chris  Gansen, 4G, Gansen-16.778; 13. Austin DeBlauw, 65, DeBlauw-16.787; 14. Rusty Carlile, 51, Carlile-16.804; 15. Ricky Kirkbride, 87, Van Meter-16.815; 16. Austin Liggett, 83, Liggett-16.866; 17. Don Gansen, 7G, Gansen-16.911; 18. Chris Ennis, 86, Ennis-17.056; 19. Steve Conrad, 56, Swaim-17.118; 20. Bob Alderman, 21X, Alderman-17.193; 21. Jeff Culver, 71C, Culver-17.194; 22. Justyne Hamblin, 8, JH-17.348; 23. Tyler Dolacki, 18X, Dolacki-17.459; 24. Ray Knight, 6K, Knight-18.151; 25. Brian Baker, 5X, Swaim-NT; 26. Andrew Murray, 21, Murray- NT.

FIRST HEAT: (10 laps) 1. D. Gansen, 2. Faria, 3. Kaeding, 4. Smith, 5. Culver, 6. DeBlauw, 7. Baker. NT

SECOND HEAT: (10 laps) 1. Hamblin, 2. Ennis, 3. Mitchell, 4. Carlile, 5. Sheridan, 6. Bernal. NT

THIRD HEAT: (10 laps) 1. Kirkbride, 2. Conrad, 3. Hendricks, 4. Niemela, 5. Dolacki, 6. R. Vander Weerd. NT

FOURTH HEAT: (8 laps) 1. Liggett, 2. J. Vander Weerd, 3. Alderman, 4. C. Gansen, 5. Knight, 6. Barnes. NT

SEMI: (10 laps) 1. Bernal, 2. R. Vander Weerd, 3. Sheridan, 4. Barnes, 5. Dolacki, 6. Culver, 7. Baker. NT

FEATURE: (30 laps) 1. Ryan Bernal, 2. Bud Kaeding, 3. Danny Faria Jr., 4. Markus Niemela, 5. Ricky Kirkbride, 6. Matt Mitchell, 7. Richard Vander Weerd, 8. Chris Ennis, 9. Kyle Smith, 10. Rusty Carlile, 11. Chris Gansen, 12. Steve Conrad, 13. Tyler Dolacki, 14. Austin Liggett, 15. Justyne Hamblin, 16. Jace Vander Weerd, 17. Kevin Barnes, 18. Don Gansen, 19. Danny Sheridan, 20. Bob Alderman, 21. Jeff Culver, 22. Tim Hendricks. NT

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**Baker flipped during qualifications. DeBlauw flipped during the first heat.

FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-26 J. Vander Weerd, Laps 27-30 Bernal.

NEW WEST COAST 360 SPRINT POINTS:

NEXT WEST COAST 360 SPRINT RACE: May 11 – Tulare (CA) Thunderbowl Raceway – “Chris & Brian Faria Memorial

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Kevin Chaffee Scores Opening Night USAC Midget, DIRTcar Modified Wins at Bear Ridge Speedway

BY MARK McKEON

BRADFORD, VT – “The Fairlee Flier,” Kevin Chaffee of Fairlee, VT was the overall winner of the 45 lap USAC Dirt Midget Association feature at Bear Ridge Speedway on Saturday.  Driving for car owner Skip Matczak, Chaffee won the initial 25 lap segment and finished third in the 20 lap second segment, which was won by Jim Mossman of Hollis, NH.  No heat races were run.  Drivers drew for position in the first segment and finishers in the first second were inverted in the second segment, followed by the non-finishers.
 
Chaffee then switched to his DIRTcar Sportsman Modified and won the 60 lap, two segment  feature in that stock car class.
 
“What a great night this is for both of my crews and car owners,” Chaffee said.  “I really appreciate the opportunity that Skip Matczak has given me with a full time ride in the Midget this year. I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for the coaching and mentoring from my teammates Joe Krawiec and Denny Zimmerman”.
 
Last year, Chafee ran a partial Midget schedule, but picked up two feature victories and finished third in points.  He also finished third in points with the Sprint Cars of New England and had a DIRTcar feature win as well.
 
For outstanding accomplishments across a varied blend of cars, Chafee was named Vermont Motor Sports Magazine (vtmotormag.com) Driver of the Year.
 
A series record 20 cars took part in opening event of the sophomore season for the USAC DMA including rookies Chase Dowling of Roxbury, CT, Matt Covey of Corinth, VT, Dave Hotchkiss of East Granby, CT and Jeff Champagne of Westfield, MA.
 
In the first segment, Dowling flipped his Manafort Racing owned Midget, but he returned to finish fifth in the second segment.  Prior to the start of the second segment, Scot Viets of Granby, CT flipped his Miller Racing owned Midget.  He was awake and alert when he was transported to Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in Hanover, NH.
 
The USAC DMA Midgets return to “The Home of the Coupes” on May 19 and will appear every other week all season long, ending with the New England Dirt Track Championships on September 22. 
 
Utilizing a 4 cyl General Motors Quad 4 or a Ford Focus engine in a conventional, wingless Midget Chassis, the USAC DMA Midgets are among the most cost effective forms of racing available to a weekend warrior.  Due to their affiliation with USAC, DMA Midget car owners receive free ethanol racing fuel in 2012 through a partnership with IgniteRacingFuel.com.
 
For more information on the USAC DMA Midgets, visit dmaracing.org.
 
USAC DIRT MIDGET ASSOCIATION RACE RESULTS:  May 5, 2012 – Bradford, Vermont –
Bear Ridge Speedway
 
FEATURE SEGEMNT 1 (25 laps) 1. Kevin Chaffee (#23 Matczak); 2. Scott Holcomb (#91 Holcomb); 3. Scott Viets (#2 Miller); 4. Tim Gallant (#33 Gallant); 5. Dean Christensen (#69 Miller); 6. Ray Miller (#1w Miller); 7. Rusty Tefft (#0 Tefft); 8. Adam Whitney (#12 Whitney); 9. Matt Covey (#26 Covey); 10. Dave Hotchkiss (#47 Miller); 11. (#71 Tefft); 12. Jeff Champagne (#77 Champagne); 13. Jim Mossman (#1 Mossman); 14. Denny Zimmerman (#3 Matczak); 15. Joe Krawiec (#4 Matczak); 16. David Rose, Jr. (#11 Rose); 17. Greg Olson (#6x Olson); 18. Dana Shaw (#7 Olson); 19. Jamie Spalding (#93 Tefft), 20. Chase Dowling (#76 Manafort). NT. Lap Leaders: 1-5 Denny Zimmerman, 6-25 Kevin Chaffee.

FEATURE SEGEMNT 2 (20 laps) 1. Jim Mossman; 2. Kevin Tefft; 3. Kevin Chaffee; 4. Ray Miller; 5. Chase Dowling; 6. Joe Krawiec; 7. Scott Holcomb; 8. Tim Gallant; 9. Dave Hotchkiss; 10. Dean Christensen; 11. Matt Covey; 12. Greg Olson; 13. Jeff Champagne; 14. Dana Shaw; 15 David Rose; 16. Denny Zimmerman; 17. Jamie Spalding ; 18. Rusty Tefft; 18. Scott Viets,19. Jamie Spalding.  NT. Lap Leader: 1-20 Mossman.
 
OVERALL FEATURE:  (45 laps)   1. Kevin Chaffee; 2. Scott Holcomb; 3. Ray Miller; 4. Tim Gallant; 5. Kevin Tefft, 6. David Rose; 7. Dave Hotchkiss; 8. Matt Covey; 9. Joe Krawiec; 10. Scott Viets; 11. Dean Christensen; 12. Chase Stockton; 13. Jeff Champagne; 14. Rusty Tefft; 15. Greg Olson; 16. Adam Whitney; 17. Denny Zimmerman; 18. Dana Shaw; 19. David Rose; 20. Jamie Spalding.
 
NEXT USAC DMA MIDGET RACE:  May 19, 2012 – Bradford, Vermont – Bear Ridge Speedway

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Larson is Top USAC Midget Gun on Dodge City Night One

Lonnie Wheatley, DODGE CITY, Kan. (May 4, 2012) – Kyle Larson emerged from a heated early-race battle and then survived a late charge teammate Bryan Clauson and then Brad Kuhn to win Friday night’s 30-lap USAC Mopar National Midget feature event atop the 3/8-mile Dodge City Raceway Park clay oval.

While Larson was victorious on the opening night of the two-night Boot Hill stand, other picking up wins including Brendon Gemmill in the IMCA Modifieds, Bart Baker in the United Wireless IMCA Sport Modifieds and Dan Rogers in the Poor Boy Kustomz Thunder Cars.

With Larson starting third in the Midget feature, Mario Clouser and Levi Jones led the way to the green flag after original front row outside starter Bobby East tagged the tail of the field.  Defending Gold Crown Midget Nationals champion Jones of Olney, IL, gunned into the lead at the outset with third-starter Larson immediately moving into second.

Larson was already challenging Jones for the lead when the race’s first caution flew on the third round for a five-car melee in turn that sent Rico Abreu, Jerry Coons, Jr. and Dalton Armstrong pitside.  Tony Rossi and Chris Windom rejoined the action.

Action heated up on the restart, with Jones, Larson and Darren Hagen trading sliders in a wild three-way battle for the lead.  Larson ultimately got the edge on the 7th round and left Jones and Hagen to battle with the likes of Bryan Clauson and Levi Roberts.

“That was wild early, it was a lot of fun,” Larson commented afterward.  “I just wanted to get out front, I knew if Hagen got out front he’d be tough to catch.”

Larson’s Keith Kunz Motorsports teammate Clauson took command of second by the midway point as Hagen’s powerplant began to sour and then closed in on the Elk Grove, CA, shoe in the race for the lead.

After a quick red flag for Rossi, who got upside down in turn three with just eight laps to go, another pair of cautions livened things up as 14th-starter Kuhn entered the mix and was on Larson’s tailtank on the final restart with four laps to go.

Larson proved untouchable though, racing on to the checkered flag aboard the Toyota-powered Bullet chassis.  Kuhn settled for runner-up honors in the Fontana-powered RW Motorsports No. 27 Beast.

Defending series champion Clauson settled for the show position in the No. 67 Toyota-powered Bullet, with Windom bouncing back from the early tangle to take fourth in the Wilke-Pak Toyota-powered No. 11 Spike after apparent fourth-place finisher Levi Roberts came up light at the scales.

Jones rounded out the top five in the Esslinger-powered Three Wide Networks No. 56 Beast, with Patrick Stasa climbing from 19th to sixth.  Davey Ray raced from 17th to seventh, with Caleb Armstrong, Clouser and Garrett Hood completing the top ten.

Levi Roberts kicked the night off by establishing a quick time of 16.081 seconds in qualifying over the 26-car field, with Windom, Clauson, Ray and Coons, Jr., winning the heat races.

Brady Bacon lost an engine in qualifying and after scratching from his heat race, advanced from 18th to fifth before exiting after the lap 22 restart.  East rallied from the tail into the top five as well before running out of fuel less than a handful of laps shy of the checkered flag.

Jeff Stasa’s night ended before it started when steering failure sent his machine into the third turn wall in the initial hot lap session.  Clint Schubert’s weekend also came to an early end when he detonated an engine in qualifying.

Racing action continues at Dodge City Raceway Park on Saturday night with another full card of USAC Mopar National Midgets, IMCA Modifieds, United Wireless IMCA Sport Modifieds and IMCA Stock Cars.

Dodge City Raceway Park Results (May 4, 2012):

USAC Mopar National Midgets:

Qualifying: 1. Levi Roberts, Tucker/BCI 39 16.081, 2. Darren Hagen, RFMS 3, 16.095, 3. Levi Jones, 5ive-6ix Inc. 56, 16.099, 4. Kyle Larson, Kunz 71, 16.222, 5. Rico Abreu, Kunz 67k, 16.238, 6. Bobby East, Klatt 4, 16.313, 7. Tony Rossi, Rossi 14, 16.314, 8. Mario Clouser, RW 27, 16.320, 9. Chris Windom, Wilke-Pak 11w, 16.325, 10. Dave Darland, Dooling 63, 16.367, 11. Chris Deshon, Faith Motorsports 51, 16.378, 12. Jerry Coons, Jr., DL Motorsports 3nz, 16.390, 13. Caleb Armstrong, C&A 7c, 16.433, 14. Bryan Clauson, Kunz 67, 16.438, 15. Dalton Armstrong, C&A 7a, 16.446, 16. Brad Kuhn, RW 17, 16.519, 17. Zach Daum, Daum 5d, 16.519, 18. C.J. Johnson, Johnson 45x, 16.538, 19. Davey Ray, Ray Pro 33, 16.609, 20. Brady Bacon, Wilke-Pak 11, 16.665, 21. Patrick Stasa, SBR 19, 16.746, 22. Garrett Hood, Two Hoods 11h, 16.933, 23. Riley Emmel, Ray 12, 17.366, 24. Randy Boyer, Boyer 69, 18.382, 25. 44-Clint Schubert, Schubert 44, 18.589, 26. Jeff Stasa, SBR 91, NT.

First Heat (8 Laps): 1. 11w-Chris Windom, 2. 39-Levi Roberts, 3. 7c-Caleb Armstrong, 4. 19-Patrick Stasa, 5. 67k-Rico Abreu, 6. 5d-Zach Daum.  DNS: 44-Clint Schubert.

Second Heat (8 Laps):  1. 67-Bryan Clauson, 2. 45x-C.J. Johnson, 3. 4-Bobby East, 4. 3-Darren Hagen, 5. 63-Dave Darland, 6. 11h-Garrett Hood.  DNS: 91-Jeff Stasa

Third Heat (8 Laps):  1. 33-Davey Ray, 2. 7a-Dalton Armstrong, 3. 56-Levi Jones, 4. 51-Chris Deshon, 5. 14-Tony Rossi, 6. 12-Riley Emmel.

Fourth Heat (8 Laps):  1. 3nz-Jerry Coons, Jr., 2. 17-Brad Kuhn, 3. 71-Kyle Larson, 4. 27-Mario Clouser, 5. 69-Randy Boyer. DNS: 11-Brady Bacon.

"A" Feature (20 Laps):  1. 71-Kyle Larson (3), 2. Brad Kuhn (14), 3. 67-Bryan Clauson (12), 4. 11w-Chris Windom (9), 5. 56-Levi Jones (2), 6. 19-Patrick Stasa (19), 7. 33-Davey Ray (17), 8. 7c-Caleb Armstrong (13), 9. 27-Mario Clouser (1), 10. 11h-Garrett Hood (22), 11. 3-Darren Hagen (5), 12. 51-Chris Deshon (11), 13. 4-Bobby East (24), 14. 5d-Zach Daum (22), 15. 45x-C.J. Johnson (16), 16. 11-Brady Bacon (18), 17. 69-Randy Boyer (23), 18. 14-Tony Rossi (6), 19. 12-Riley Emmel (21), 20. 63-Dave Darland (8), 21. 67k-Rico Abreu (7), 22. 3nz-Jerry Coons, Jr. (10), 23. 7a-Dalton Armstrong (15), 24. 39-Levi Roberts (4). Note: Levi Roberts disqualified for failing to meet minimum weight after taking the checkered flag in fourth.  

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AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT RACE RESULTS: April 28, 2012 – Perris, California – Perris Auto Speedway
 
QUALIFICATIONS: 1. Mike Spencer, 50, Chaffin-16.162; 2. Nic Faas, 4, Alexander-16.275; 3. David Cardey, 59, Cardey-16.594; 4. Ronnie Gardner, 42, Cheney-16.635; 5. Austin Williams, 2, Jory-16.639; 6. Rip Williams, 3, Jory-16.664; 7. Ryan Bernal, 18, Kittle-16.673; 8. Seth Wilson, 1X, Wilson-16.681; 9. Matt Mitchell, 37, Mitchell-16.744; 10. Richard Vander Weerd, 10, Vander Weerd-16.810; 11. Josh Ford, 73, Ford-16.830; 12. Brody Roa, 91R, BR-16.999; 13. Cory Kruseman, 7, Priestley-17.004; 14. Johnny McCall, 44J, Morbitzer-17.059; 15. Jake Swanson, 44, Henry/Jones-17.106; 16. Jace Vander Weerd, 88, Vander Weerd- 17.110; 17. Greg Alexander, 72, Tyler-17.123; 18. Verne Sweeney, 98, Tracy-17.131; 19. Bobby Bender, 12, Bender-17.181; 20. Cody Williams, 44, Jory-17.192; 21. Kenny Perkins, 0K, Perkins-17.294; 22. Cal Smith, 39, CalSun-17.470; 23. David Bezio, 37X, Bezio-17.705; 24. Austin Smith, 14, Springstead-17.771; 25. Adam Frith-Smith, 62A, Frith-Smith-17.879; 26. A.J. Bender, 11, Bender-17.895; 27. Tony Everhart, 55, Everhart-17.924; 28. Raymond Potter, 33, Potter-17.925; 29. Royal Adderson, 40, Adderson-17.938; 30. Gavin Matlock, 25, Williams-19.075; 31. Jerry Welton, 62, Welton-19.433.
 
FIRST HEAT: (10 laps) 1. Kruseman, 2. Spencer, 3. Mitchell, 4. A. Williams, 5. Perkins, 6. Alexander, 7. Frith-Smith, 8. Adderson. NT
 
SECOND HEAT: (10 laps) 1. Faas, 2. R. Williams, 3. Sweeney, 4. R. Vander Weerd, 5. C. Smith, 6. A. Bender, 7. Matlock, 8. McCall. 2:53.81
 
THIRD HEAT: (10 laps) 1. Swanson, 2. Cardey, 3. Bernal, 4. Bezio, 5. Ford, 6. Everhart, 7. Welton, 8. B. Bender. NT
 
FOURTH HEAT: (6 laps) 1. C. Williams, 2. Roa, 3. J. Vander Weerd, 4. Gardner, 5. A. Smith, 6. Wilson, 7. Potter. 1:45.16
 
SEMI: (9 laps) 1. Ford, 2. Alexander, 3. Wilson, 4. Everhart, 5. A. Bender, 6. A. Smith, 7. Perkins, 8. C. Smith, 9. Matlock, 10. McCall. NT
 
FEATURE: (30 laps) 1. Mike Spencer, 2. Matt Mitchell, 3. David Cardey, 4. Austin Williams, 5. Rip Williams, 6. Cory Kruseman, 7. Nic Faas, 8. Richard Vander Weerd, 9. Brody Roa, 10. Ryan Bernal, 11. Jake Swanson, 12. Seth Wilson, 13. Josh Ford, 14. Jace Vander Weerd, 15. Cody Williams, 16. Verne Sweeney, 17. David Bezio, 18. A.J. Bender, 19. Tony Everhart, 20. Ronnie Gardner, 21. Austin Smith, 22. Greg Alexander. NT
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**C. Smith and Perkins flipped during the semi.
 
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-8 Bernal, Laps 9-30 Spencer.
 
NEW AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT POINTS: 1-Spencer-207, 2-Faas-196, 3-Mitchell-194, 4-Bernal-160, 5-Cardey-142, 6-A.Williams-140; 7-Roa-136; 8-R.Williams-121; 9-R.Vander Weerd-107, 10-Kruseman-106.
 
NEXT AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT RACE: May 19 – Hanford, CA - Kings Speedway

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SCHUERENBERG HOLDS ON TO WIN GAS CITY, DARLAND TAKES BORDER WARS

Gas City, Indiana……Hunter Schuerenberg of Sikeston, Missouri picked up his first AMSOIL National Sprint Car win of the year after leading every official circuit in Friday’s 30-lap Main Event at Gas City (Ind.) I-69 Speedway. Schuerenberg led the opening lap from the pole before falling to third at the completion of lap two, but a caution behind him gave Schuerenberg another chance at the front of the field, and he took advantage in his Rock Steady Racing – Fatheadz Eyewear – R&B Trucker’s Spike/Rider #35.

“I got another shot at the lead after that caution. Luckily, that was the break we needed. This is a big win for us. We got a terrible start to the year, so a win just gets us going back in the right direction,” Schuerenberg said after some celebratory donuts.

Jon Stanbrough closed on the leader late in the race as traffic bottled up the top-three. With Stanbrough looking for an option to get by Schuerenberg on the final lap, Shane Cottle slipped underneath in his Epperson Painting DRC/Claxton #2 to take the runner-up spot. Stanbrough filled the podium in the Roberts/Tate Racing – Leer Racing DRC/Speedway #21x. Filling out the top-five were Billy Puterbaugh, Jr. in the Puterbaugh Racing – Lucas Oil DRC/Foxco #16 and Bryan Clauson in the CTR/BCI/Curb-Agajanian R&B Trucker’s Maxim/Fisher #7.

AMSOIL USAC NATIONAL SPRINT CAR RACE RESULTS: April 27, 2012 – Gas City, Indiana – Gas City I-69 Speedway – “Border Wars”

QUALIFICATIONS: 1. Scotty Weir, 10E, Edison-11.571; 2. Brent Beauchamp, 11B, Beauchamp-11.610; 3. Shane Cottle, 2, Epperson-11.667; 4. Bryan Clauson, 7, CTR/BCI/Curb-Agajanian-11.698; 5. Jon Stanbrough, 21x, Roberts/Tate-11.711; 6. Billy Puterbaugh, Jr., 16, Puterbaugh-11.747; 7. Hunter Schuerenberg, 35, Rock Steady-11.763; 8. Kody Swanson, 19, Slinkard-11.763; 9. Dave Darland, 11, Walker-11.787; 10. Chris Windom, 5, Baldwin-11.799; 11. Ted Hines, 12, Hines-11.826; 12. Casey Shuman, 21, Pollock-11.833; 13. Kevin Thomas, Jr., 9K, Black Jack-11.840; 14. Levi Jones, 20, Stewart-11.945; 15. Darren Hagen, 69, Dynamics-11.947; 16. Justin Grant, 40, Hery-11.953; 17. Tracy Hines, 4, Hines-11.956; 18. Jon Sciscoe, 57, Hazen-11.967; 19. Kyle Larson, 1K, Abreu-12.050; 20. Damion Gardner, 71, DG-12.068; 21. Chase Stockon, 32, Stockon-12.071; 22. Jerry Coons, Jr., 71P, Phillips-12.088; 23. Jonathan Hendrick, 68, Hendrick-12.150; 24. Robert Ballou, 81, MPHG-12.175; 25. Thomas Meseraull, 41, Stensland-12.180; 26. Bobby East, 2B, 2B Racing-12.239; 27. Travis Welpott, 18, Welpott-12.297; 28. Coleman Gulick, 14, Gulick-12.298; 29. CJ Leary, 30, Leary-12.381; 30. Casey Riggs, 37, KKM/Indiana Underground-12.421; 31. Braylon Fitzpatrick, 3, Fitzpatrick-12.432; 32. Tyler Hewitt, 21H, Hewitt-12.473; 33. Wes McIntyre, 83, McIntyre-12.530; 34. Josh Spencer, 42G, Jackson-12.581; 35. Blake Fitzpatrick, 10, Fitzpatrick-12.599; 36. Matt Goodnight, 39, Goodnight-12.751; 37. Logan Jarrett, 29, Jarrett-12.956; 38. Joe Bares, 19x, Test-12.976.

FIRST HEAT: (8 laps) 1. Tracy Hines, 2. Darland, 3. Weir, 4. Stanbrough, 5. Thomas, 6. Stockon, 7. Jarrett, 8. Leary, 9. Meseraull, 10. Hewitt. 2:04.24

SECOND HEAT: (8 laps) 1. Jones, 2. Coons, 3. Sciscoe, 4. Puterbaugh, 5. Windom, 6. East, 7. Beauchamp, 8. McIntyre, 9. Bares, 10. Riggs. NT

THIRD HEAT: (8 laps) 1. Larson, 2. Hendrick, 3. Cottle, 4. Schuerenberg, 5. Hagen, 6. Ted Hines, 7. Blake Fitzpatrick, 8. Welpott, 9. Braylon Fitzpatrick. 2:06.08

FOURTH HEAT: (8 laps) 1. Clauson, 2. Shuman, 3. Ballou. 4. Gardner, 5. Grant, 6. Gulick, 7. Goodnight, 8. Swanson, 9. Spencer. 2:08.71

SEMI: (12 laps) 1. Swanson, 2. Hagen, 3. Thomas, 4. Windom, 5. Beauchamp, 6. East, 7. Gulick, 8. Stockon, 9. Ted Hines, 10. McIntyre, 11. Blake Fitzpatrick, 12. Goodnight, 13. Grant, 14. Braylon Fitzpatrick, 15. Riggs, 16. Welpott, 17. Jarrett, 18. Leary, 19. Bares, 20. Hewitt, 21. Meseraull. NT

FEATURE: (30 laps) 1. Hunter Schuerenberg, 2. Shane Cottle, 3. Jon Stanbrough, 4. Billy Puterbaugh, Jr., 5. Bryan Clauson, 6. Scotty Weir, 7. Dave Darland, 8. Casey Shuman, 9. Brent Beauchamp, 10. Chris Windom, 11. Kevin Thomas, Jr., 12. Tracy Hines, 13. Jon Sciscoe, 14. Kyle Larson, 15. Darren Hagen, 16. Jerry Coons, Jr., 17. Jonathan Hendrick, 18. Levi Jones, 19. Chase Stockon, 20. Bobby East, 21. Damion Gardner, 22. Kody Swanson, 23. Robert Ballou, 24. Justin Grant. NT
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FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-30 Schuerenberg.

NEW AMSOIL NATIONAL SPRINT POINTS: 1-Stanbrough-282; 2-Clauson-273; 3-Darland-264; 4-Hines-239; 5-Grant-237; 6-Gardner-235; 7-Jones-235; 8-Hagen-215; 9-Shuman-195; 10-Kaeding-195.
FINAL “BORDER WARS” POINTS: 1-Darland-114, 2-Stanbrough-103, 3-Hines-102, 4-Weir-101, 5-Schuerenberg-96.

NEXT AMSOIL NATIONAL SPRINT RACE: April 28 – Putnamville, IN – Lincoln Park Speedway

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GAS CITY FOCUSES TRY AGAIN FRIDAY; RANKINE, J.PETERSON, DAVISON, G.PETERSON (2) ALL WIN

USAC’s Focus racing resumes this Friday night at Gas City, Ind. (Midwest) before May 12 races at Columbus, Ohio (Midwest/East) and Stockton, Calif. (West) after last weekend’s activity which included races at four different tracks.

Ross Rankine of Willard, Ohio led the final eight laps to win Saturday night’s 20-lap USAC Midwest Focus race at Montpelier (Ind.) Motor Speedway. Rankine passed Sam McGhee after McGhee had led the first 12 laps. Josh Staten also got by McGhee for second, with McGhee third ahead of Tyler Shullick and Adam Thomason. Rain forced postponement of Friday’s race at Gas City (Ind.) Speedway, which has been rescheduled for this Friday night.

Garrett Peterson of Sacramento, Calif. swept to victory in a pair of 30-lap USAC Western Focus features Saturday night at Stockton (Calif.) 99 Speedway. He passed Sheldon Didinger on lap 15 in race one and led the final 16 laps, then led the final 27 laps of the nightcap after passing Didinger on lap four. Ricky Bowers finished second in both races ahead of Tyler Edwards and Didinger. Molly Helmuth and Christine Breckenridge were the respective fifth-place finishers.

Jet Davison of Running Springs, Calif. remained undefeated on the dirt this year in USAC’s Western Focus series, leading all 30 laps of Friday night’s race at Ocean Speedway in Watsonville, Calif. He was closely pursued by Cody Elliott, followed at the checkered flag by Parker Colston and Michael Steele.

Jared Peterson of Stanwood, Wash. won Saturday night’s 25-lap USAC Northwest Focus debut at Grays Harbor Raceway in Elma, Wash., leading the final 12 laps after passing Garrett Thomas on lap 14. Jeremy Miller, Ariel Biggs, Garrett Johnson and Thomas rounded out the “top10.” Peterson leads the standings entering a May 12 race at Banks, Ore.

2012 USAC MIDWEST FOCUS POINT STANDINGS:  1-Ross Rankine-176, 2-Jared Irvan-138, 3-Bradley Riethmeyer-135, 4-Copper Clouse-128, 5-Sam McGhee-124, 6-Nic Davidson-121, 7-Tyler Corriher-100, 8-Austin Prock-99, 9-Chris Lamb-94, 10-Davey Hamilton Jr.-90.

2012 USAC WESTERN FOCUS POINT STANDINGS: 1-Christine Breckenridge-205, 2-Jet Davison-136, 3-Wally Pankratz-135, 4-Bryant Dawson-127, 5-Parker Colston-123, 6-Garrett Peterson-120, 7-Winn Frazin-119, 8-Cody Elliott-116, 9-Michael Steele-114, 10-Ricky Bowers-114.

2012 USAC NORTHWESTERN FOCUS POINT STANDINGS: 1-Jared Peterson-74, 2-Jeremy Miller-66, 3-Garret Johnson-62, 3-Ariel Biggs-61, 5-Garrett Thomas-57, 6-Zak DeBakker-50, 7-Michael Millard-47, 8-Madison Hess-47, 9-Hannah Lindquist-41, 10-Chase Goetz-40.

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CLASSIC SPRINTS EYE MAY 5 RACE AT MADERA; BERNAL #1 AT OCEAN SPEEDWAY

Ryan Bernal of Hollister, Calif. leads the 2012 USAC Western Classic Sprint Series, which returns to the Madera (Calif.) Speedway May 5 to conduct the “Gerhardt Classic.”

Bernal opened the 2012 USAC Western Classic Series with a 30-lap feature victory at Ocean Speedway Friday night. Driving the King Racing Products/A & A Precision Machine Spike/Raney, Bernal took the lead from Kyle Hirst on lap 13, lost it on lap 15 but regained it when Hirst got up on the crash wall on a restart at lap 27. He led the final four laps to post the win over Brent Kaeding, who led the first eight laps, Taylor Simas, Markus Niemela and Marty Hawkins.

Bernal was also the fastest qualifier and now leads both the Western Classic and West Coast Sprint Series standings.

2012 USAC WESTERN CLASSIC SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS: 1-Ryan Bernal-74, 2-Bud Kaeding-63, 3-Taylor Simas-60, 4-Markus Niemela-58, 5-Marty Hawkins-53, 6-Shauna Hogg-52, 7-Geoff Ensign-49, 8-Matt Mitchell-46, 9-Zach Tyler-42, 10-Tom Baker-39.

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BERNAL LEADS WC SPRINTS BACK TO SANTA MARIA MAY 5; RAIN POSTPONES SANTA MARIA’S “RON OTTO MEMORIAL”

The USAC West Coast Sprints will try again May 5 to present the “Ron Otto Memorial” at Santa Maria (Calif.) Speedway and Ryan Bernal of Hollister, Calif. will lead the series back to the third-mile dirt oval.

Heavy rains early in the week forced postponement of the event last Saturday night.

Bernal leads two USAC series after winning last Friday’s Western Classic Sprint opener at Watsonville, Calif.

2012 USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS: 1-Ryan Bernal-134, 2-Markus Niemela-122, 3-Bud Kaeding-117, 4-Danny Faria Jr.-108, 5-Matt Mitchell-95, 6-Kevin Barnes-74, 7-Chris Ennis-72, 8-Danny Sheridan-66, 9-Justyne Hamblin-65, 10-Steve Conrad-65.

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FAAS, SPENCER RESUME RIVALRY AT PERRIS SATURDAY

AMSOIL USAC/CRA Sprint car point leaders Nic Faas and Mike Spencer will be hard-pressed to top their last performance at Perris (Calif.) Auto Speedway when the series resumes at the half-mile dirt oval this Saturday night.

Spencer, of Temecula, Calif., posted the win March 31, but not before being challenged multiple times in the closing laps by Faas, of Huntington Beach, Calif. Faas fell less than a half-car length short at the checkered flag but he has a seven-point lead over the defending four-time champion entering this Saturday’s race.

Spencer has a total of 17 series wins at Perris, while Faas will be seeking his fifth career win there this weekend.

Matt Mitchell, a three-time Perris winner, sits only 10 points behind Faas in the current standings.

2012 AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS: 1-Nic Faas-141, 2-Mike Spencer-134, 3-Matt Mitchell-131, 4-Ryan Bernal-121, 5-Brody Roa-93, 6-Austin Williams-82, 7-David Cardey-77, 8-Greg Alexander-69, 9-David Bezio-69, 10-Josh Ford-68.

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SPRINTS BACK TO GAS CITY FRIDAY, AT LINCOLN PARK SATURDAY; HINES WINS “BORDER WARS” OPENER AT ELDORA

A trio of “top-10” finishes has Justin Grant of Ione, Calif. atop the 2012 AMSOIL USAC National Sprint Car standings entering this week’s races at Gas City, Ind. (Friday) and Putnamville, Ind. (Saturday). He has a three-point lead over Jon Stanbrough.

Rain forced postponement of last Friday’s race at Gas City I-69 Speedway, setting up this Friday’s “Border Wars” finale at the quarter-mile dirt oval. Lincoln Park Speedway hosts Saturday’s race at Putnamville.

Tracy Hines of New Castle, Ind. took the first step toward becoming the second four-time “Border Wars” champion (1999, 2002 and 2003) by winning Saturday night’s “Don Branson/Jud Larson Classic” at the Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio. Bryan Tyler also already owns four “Border Wars” titles. Hines’ victory was spectacular as he passed Dave Darland in turn one on the final lap to put his MP Environmental Services DRC/Shaver in victory lane. Darland led the first 29 laps and finished second ahead of Matt Westfall, Robert Ballou coming from 18th to finish fourth and new series point leader Grant.

The victory was Hines’ 42nd in USAC National Sprint racing and his 78th in USAC National competition, putting him one behind sixth-ranking Bob Wente on the all-time list.

Hines and Darland emerged in a virtual tie for the “Border Wars” lead, six points ahead of Ballou. Darland and Ballou are seeking their initial “Border Wars” titles.

2011 AMSOIL USAC NATIONAL SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS: 1-Justin Grant-224, 2-Jon Stanbrough-221, 3-Damion Gardner-217, 4-Dave Darland-215, 5-Bryan Clauson-214, 6-Levi Jones-210, 7-Tracy Hines-202, 8-Bud Kaeding-195, 9-Darren Hagen-189, 10-Robert Ballou-165.

“BORDER WARS” POINTS: 1-Tracy Hines-65, 2-Dave Darland-65, 3-Robert Ballou-59, 4-Justin Grant-57, 5-Levi Jones-51.

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HINES LAST-LAP “BORDER WARS” VICTOR AT ELDORA

Rossburg, OH……..Tracy Hines of New Castle, Ind. passed Dave Darland on the final lap of Saturday night’s 30-lap “Border Wars” AMSOIL USAC National Sprint race at the Eldora Speedway.

Darland led the first 29 laps before Hines made the winning move in his MP Environmental Services DRC/Shaver. Trailing Darland in third was Matt Westfall, with Robert Ballou coming from 18th to finish fourth and new series point leader Justin Grant taking fifth.

“Border Wars” concludes next Friday night at the Gas City (Ind.) I-69 Speedway.

AMSOIL USAC NATIONAL SPRINT CAR RACE RESULTS: April 21, 2012 – Rossburg, Ohio – Eldora Speedway

QUALIFICATIONS: 1. Levi Jones, 20, Stewart-14.872; 2. Justin Grant, 40, Hery-14.885; 3. Chase Stockon, 32, Stockon-14.887; 4. Bryan Clauson, 7, CTR/BCI/Curb-Agajanian-14.895; 5. Darren Hagen, 69, Dynamics-15.002; 6. Damion Gardner, 71, DG-15.074; 7. Scotty Weir, 77, Wingo/Wing-15.103; 8. Tracy Hines, 4, Hines-15.107; 9. Dave Darland, 11, Walker-15.118; 10. Matt Westfall, 22, Simon-15.164; 11. Jerry Coons Jr., 71p, Phillips-15.177; 12. Kyle Larson, 1x, Abreu-15.202; 13. Bobby East, 2B, Benic-15.234; 14. Jon Stanbrough, 21x, Roberts/Tate-15.236; 15. Bud Kaeding, 29k, BK-15.271; 16. Casey Riggs, 37, Kunz/Indiana Underground-15.310; 17. Kevin Thomas Jr., 9k, Black Jack-15.366; 18. Robert Ballou, 81, MPHG-15.418; 19. Chris Windom, 5, Baldwin-15.496; 20. Hunter Schuerenberg, 35, Byram-15.571; 21. Coleman Gulick, 14, Gulick-15.673; 22. Thomas Meseraull, 9x, SC-15.693; 23. C.J. Leary, 30, Leary-15.713; 24. Landon Simon, 45, Simon-15.725; 25. Casey Shuman, 21, Pollock-15.843; 26. Chad Boespflug, 98, Nine Eight-15.965; 27. Wes McIntyre, 83, McIntyre-16.260; 28. Travis Hery, 21H, Hery-16.338; 29. Jonathan Hendrick, 68, Hendrick-17.647; 30. Logan Jarrett, 29, Jarrett-NT.

FIRST HEAT: (8 laps) 1. Darland, 2. Thomas, 3. Gulicki, 4. East, 5. Hagen, 6. Jones, 7. Shuman, 8. Hendrick. 2:06.71

SECOND HEAT: (8 laps) 1. Ballou, 2. Westfall,  3. Stanbrough, 4. Meseraull, 5. Gardner, 6. Grant, 7. Jarrett. 2:05.51

THIRD HEAT: (8 laps) 1. Coons, 2. Kaeding, 3. Stockon, 4. Weir, 5. Leary, 6. McIntyre, 7. Windom. 2:07.67

FOURTH HEAT: (8 laps) 1. Schuerenberg, 2. Larson, 3. Clauson, 4. Hines, 5. Riggs, 6. Simon, 7. Hery. NT

SEMI: (12 laps) 1. Grant, 2. Jones, 3. Gardner, 4. Hagen, 5. Riggs, 6. Shuman, 7. Leary, 8. McIntyre, 9. Simon, 10. Jarrett, 11. Hendrick, 12. Windom. 3:14.15

FEATURE: (30 laps) 1. Tracy Hines, 2. Dave Darland, 3. Matt Westfall, 4. Robert Ballou, 5. Justin Grant, 6. Scotty Weir, 7. Levi Jones, 8. Chase Stockon, 9. Jon Stanbrough, 10. Darren Hagen, 11. Damion Gardner, 12. Bud Kaeding, 13. Coleman Gulick, 14. Jerry Coons Jr., 15. Hunter Schuerenberg, 16. Chris Windom, 17. Thomas Meseraull, 18. Wes McIntyre, 19. Casey Riggs, 20. Casey Shuman, 21. Kevin Thomas Jr., 22. Bobby East, 23. Bryan Clauson, 24. Kyle Larson. NT
--------------------------------
**Hery flipped during the fourth heat. Larson flipped on lap 8 of the feature.

FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-29 Darland, Lap 30 Hines.

NEW AMSOIL NATIONAL SPRINT POINTS: 1-Grant-224, 2-Stanbrough-221, 3-Gardner-217, 4-Darland-215, 5-Clauson-214, 6-Jones-210, 7-Hines-202, 8-Kaeding-195, 9-Hagen-189, 10-Ballou-165.

NEW “BORDER WARS” POINTS: 1-Hines-65, 2-Darland-65, 3-Ballou-59, 4-Grant-57, 5-Jones-51.

NEXT AMSOIL NATIONAL SPRINT RACE: April 27 – Gas City (IN) I-69 Speedway

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USAC WESTERN CLASSIC SPRINT CAR RACE RESULTS: April 20, 2012 - Watsonville, California – Ocean Speedway

QUALIFICATIONS: 1. Ryan Bernal, 73, Ford-13.120; 2. Zach Tyler, XXX, Tyler-13.464; 3. Danny Faria Jr., 17v, Faria-13.490; 4. Shauna Hogg, 5, Hogg-13.510; 5. Markus Niemela, 81, Watt-13.626; 6. Taylor Simas, 7T, Simas-13.681; 7. Marty Hawkins, 3m, Hawkins-13.734; 8. Kyle Hurst, 14, Pierson/Vertullo-13.765; 9. Brent Kaeding, 69, Kaeding-13.784; 10. Matt Streeter, 14jr, Streeter-13.809; 11. Tony Hunt, 56, Phulps-13.875; 12. Shane Golobic, 46, Golobic-13.903; 13. Matt Mitchell, 18, Watt-13.923; 14. Scott Hall, 56v, Hall-14.084; 15. Tom Baker, 3T, Baker-14.521; 16. Jimmy Riddell, 19, Riddell-14.722; 17. John Gerber, 14s, Gerber-16.290; 18. Geoff Ensign, 3F, Finkenbinder-17.827; 19. Gordon Rodgers, 94, Dusin-NT; 20. Jerry Cisco, 4B, Baisden-NT.

FIRST HEAT: (8 laps) 1. Bernal, 2. Mitchell, 3. Streeter, 4. Hawkins, 5. Hogg, 6. Riddell, 7. Rodgers. NT

SECOND HEAT: (8 laps) 1. Hurst, 2. Hunt, 3. Hall, 4. Niemela, 5. Tyler, 6. Gerber, 7. Cisco. NT

THIRD HEAT: (8 laps) 1. Golobic, 2. Ensign, 3. Kaeding, 4. Simas, 5. Faria, 6. Baker. NT

FEATURE: (30 laps) 1. Ryan Bernal, 2. Brent Kaeding, 3. Taylor Simas, 4. Markus Niemela, 5. Marty Hawkins, 6. Shauna Hogg, 7. Geoff Ensign, 8. Matt Mitchell, 9. Tom Baker, 10. Zach Tyler, 11. Tony Hunt, 12. Jimmy Riddell, 13. John Gerber, 14. Gordon Rodgers, 15. Kyle Hurst, 16. Matt Streeter, 17. Shane Golobic, 18. Jerry Cisco, 19. Scott Hall, 20. Danny Faria Jr. NT
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FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-8 Kaeding, Laps 9-12 Hurst, Laps 13-14 Bernal, Laps 15-26 Hurst, Laps 27-30 Bernal.

NEW USAC WESTERN CLASSIC SPRINT STANDINGS: 1-Bernal-74, 2-Kaeding-63, 3-Simas-60, 4-Niemela-58, 5-Hawkins-53, 6-Hogg-52, 7-Ensign-49, 8-Mitchell-46, 9-Tyler-42, 10-Baker-39.

NEXT USAC WESTERN CLASSIC SPRINT CAR RACE: May 5 – Madera (CA) Speedway

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RAIN POSTPONES GAS CITY'S "BORDER WARS"

Heavy rains this afternoon have forced postponement of Friday night's "Border Wars" opener for the AMSOIL USAC National Sprint Cars at the Gas City (Ind.) I-69 Speedway. The race has been rescheduled for Friday night, April 27. "Border Wars" is now slated to start with Saturday night's "Don Branson/Jud Larson Larson Classic" at the Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio.

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USAC WEST COAST 360S ADD MAY 11TH TULARE POINT RACE
by Lance Jennings
 
SANTA MARIA, CA – APRIL 18, 2012... USAC West Coast 360 Promoter Chris Kearns and officials with Tulare Thunderbowl Raceway have confirmed the addition of Friday, May 11th to the schedule. Billed as the "Chris & Brian Faria Memorial Weekend," the 1/3-mile facility will now host a doubleheader on May 11th and 12th with the winged King of the West 410 Sprint Cars. With two days of championship points available, the Tulare events will be a major factor in the quest for the title.
 
"We have lost three point races due to weather and felt it necessary to add a point show for the racers," says Kearns. "Instead of scheduling another race on a whole new Saturday, we thought this might actually be a little more feasible for most racers. There are not a whole lot of open Saturdays to schedule a race, and I try and be very careful on scheduling."
 
Hollister's Ryan Bernal leads the point standings and has his eyes on the crown. Last season's Rookie of the Year will have to hold off a talented roster of drivers, including Markus Niemela of Finland, 3-time USAC Silver Crown Champion Bud Kaeding, "Hollywood" Danny Faria Jr., USAC/CRA standout Matt Mitchell, and many more.
 
Before Tulare's "Chris & Brian Faria Memorial Weekend," the traditional 360s will travel to Kearns' Santa Maria Speedway on Saturday, May 5th.
 
Tulare's Thunderbowl Raceway is located at the Tulare County Fairgrounds at the corner of Bardsley and K Streets. Advance tickets are on sale and can be purchased by calling the track office at (559) 688-0909. For more event information, visit the track’s website at www.tularethunderbowl.com.
 
The USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series would like to thank Southwest Contractors, Hoosier Tire, Amsoil, ButlerBuilt, Competition Suspension Inc., Cory Kruseman's Sprint Car & Midget Driving School, Crow Enterprizes, DJ Safety, Diversified Machine Inc., Extreme Mufflers, Hilborn Fuel Injection, Hinchman-Indy Racing Uniforms, Integra Shocks, Kaeding Performance, Keizer Wheels, LRB Inc. Race Products, ParkerStore of Phoenix, Ringers Gloves, Rod End Supply, SBI Fuel Systems, Saferacer.com, Saldana Racing Products, and Sander Engineering for their support.
 
For more information on the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series, visit westcoastsprintcars.com, usacracing.com, racesantamariaspeedway.com, or follow the series on facebook.
 
WINGLESS CHRIS & BRIAN FARIA MEMORIAL WINNERS:
2010- Craig Stidham; 2011- Bud Kaeding.
 
USAC WEST COAST 360 SPRINT POINTS: 1. Ryan Bernal 131; 2. Markus Niemela 122; 3. Bud Kaeding 116; 4. Danny Faria Jr. 108; 5. Matt Mitchell 95; 6. Kevin Barnes 74; 7. Chris Ennis 69; 8. Danny Sheridan 66; 9. Steve Conrad 65; 10. Rusty Carlile 59; 11. Josh Ford 55; 12. Justyne Hamblin 55; 13. Peter Murphy 52; 14. Richard Vander Weerd 50; 15. Jonathan Logan 48; 16. Matt Day 46; 17. Don Gansen 42; 18. Marty Hawkins 42; 19. Austin Liggett 38; 20. Chris Gansen 37.
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2012 USAC WEST COAST 360 SPRINT CAR SERIES SCHEDULE
DATE - TRACK - LOCATION
May 5: Santa Maria Speedway - Santa Maria, CA
May 11: Tulare Thunderbowl Raceway - Tulare, CA (Chris & Brian Faria Memorial)
May 12: Tulare Thunderbowl Raceway - Tulare, CA (Chris & Brian Faria Memorial)
June 9: Kings Speedway - Hanford, CA
June 23: Santa Maria Speedway - Santa Maria, CA (Bud Stanfield Memorial)
July 7: *Santa Maria Speedway - Santa Maria, CA (War At The Shore / Doug Fort Memorial)
July 14: Tulare Thunderbowl Raceway - Tulare, CA (John Anthony Sharp Memorial)
August 4: Kings Speedway - Hanford, CA (Jim Evett Memorial)
September 8: Kings Speedway - Hanford, CA (Jim Turner Memorial)
September 22: *Canyon Speedway Park - Peoria, AZ (Brawl For It All / Non-Points)
September 29: Santa Maria Speedway - Santa Maria, CA (Billet Cup / John Jewett Memorial / Non-Points)
October 13: Kings Speedway - Hanford, CA (Cotton Classic)
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* = Co-Sanctioned Event With ASCS Canyon Region Sprints.

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CLAUSON RETURNS TO SPRINTS THIS WEEKEND; WEATHER PROVISIONS DISCUSSED

USAC National driving champion Bryan Clauson of Noblesville, Ind. returns to the AMSOIL USAC National Sprint Car Series this weekend for races at Gas City, Ind. (Friday) and Rossburg, Ohio (Saturday).

Last week he competed in the Toyota Celebrity Race at the Long Beach Grand Prix and was fighting for the lead in the pro division three laps from the finish when he clipped a tire barrier, but recovered to finish.

If weather intervenes provisions have been made for rescheduling Friday’s Sprint and Focus races at Gas City to the following Friday, April 27.

“It’ll be nice to get back behind the wheel of my Sprint car at Gas City,” says Bryan. I still hold the one-lap track record from 2009 and would like to get back to victory lane.”

Chad Boespflug will sub for Darren Hagen in the Hoffman Auto Racing machine Friday and Hagen returns Saturday at Eldora. Boespflug is one of several drivers seeking their initial series victory, while the Hoffman’s continue to search for their record 80th.

Tracy Hines is also one to watch, aiming for his 42nd career triumph as the active leader.

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CLASSIC SPRINTS DEBUT AT OCEAN SPEEDWAY

The 2012 USAC Western Classic Sprint Series, following a March rainout at Madera, Calif., will try this weekend for a debut at Ocean Speedway in Watsonville, Calif.

Geoff Ensign of Sebastopol, Calif. is the defending series champ and finished second to Cory Kruseman in last year’s Western Classic feature at the quarter-mile dirt oval.

The race is the first of four scheduled for the series at Watsonville this year. Return engagements are slated June 15, July 6 and August 10.

Tony Hunt, the 2012 series runner-up, also bears watching Saturday, as he continues his quest for USAC driving championships to add to the eight he has already earned.

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BERNAL LEADS WEST COAST SPRINTS TO “RON OTTO MEMORIAL;” RAIN FORCES TULARE POSTPONEMENT TO MAY 12

Ryan Bernal of Hollister, Calif. continues to lead the 2012 USAC West Coast Sprint standings entering this Saturday’s “Ron Otto Memorial” race at the Santa Maria (Calif.) Speedway. Bernal has a 12-point lead over Markus Niemela in the series points.

Heavy rains on the west coast forced postponement of last Saturday’s “Brian & Chris Faria Memorial” USAC West Coast Sprint race at the Tulare (Calif.) Thunderbowl Speedway. The race has been reset for May 12.

Bernal won two of the four races contested at Santa Maria last season. The other two winners were Jace Vander Weerd and Danny Sheridan.

2012 USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS: 1-Ryan Bernal-134, 2-Markus Niemela-122, 3-Bud Kaeding-117, 4-Danny Faria Jr.-108, 5-Matt Mitchell-95, 6-Kevin Barnes-74, 7-Chris Ennis-72, 8-Danny Sheridan-66, 9-Justyne Hamblin-65, 10-Steve Conrad-65.

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GAS CITY, ELDORA HOST “BORDER WARS” SPRINTS; RAIN POSTPONES LAWRENCEBURG

“Border Wars,” the popular AMSOIL USAC National Sprint race “doubleheader” featuring races in Indiana and Ohio, returns this weekend with back-to-back races at Gas City (IN) I-69 Speedway and Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio Friday and Saturday night respectively.

Persistent inclement weather and forecasted heavy rains in Indiana conspired to force postponement of last Saturday’s AMSOIL/USAC National Sprint races at the Lawrenceburg Speedway. USAC and track officials are working to try to reschedule the event for a later date.

“Border Wars” originated in 1995 and was held each year through 2008. Cole Whitt won the 2008 title, the eighth driver to win the honor. Brian Tyler is a four-time champion (1996-97-98-2000), while Tracy Hines owns three “Border Wars” crowns (1999-2002-2003). Jay Drake won two titles (2004-2005). Tony Stewart was the 1995 king, J.J. Yeley won it in 2001, with Jerry Coons Jr. the 2006 champ and Jon Stanbrough on top in 2007.

Saturday night’s Eldora race is also the ‘Don Branson/Jud Larson Classic.” Eighteen different winners of the event have been crowned in 28 races although last year’s race was rained out. Jerry Coons Jr., Robert Ballou, Tracy Hines, Rich Vogler, Jack Hewitt, Frankie Kerr, Kevin Doty and Jac Haudenschild are all two-time winners and Jay Drake earned three wins in the classic.

Bryan Clauson is the 2012 AMSOIL USAC National Sprint Car point leader entering the weekend races, nine points ahead of Damion Gardner.

2011 AMSOIL USAC NATIONAL SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS: 1-Bryan Clauson-192, 2-Damion Gardner-183, 3-Jon Stanbrough-179, 4-Justin Grant-167, 5-Levi Jones-159, 6-Bud Kaeding-159, 7-Darren Hagen-153, 8-Dave Darland-150, 9-Kevin Thomas Jr.-140, 10-Tracy Hines -137.

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LAWRENCEBURG SUCCUMBS TO WEATHER; GAS CITY NEXT

Lawrenceburg, IN……..Persistent inclement weather and forecasted heavy rains in Indiana have conspired to force postponement of Saturday’s AMSOIL/USAC National Sprint races at the Lawrenceburg Speedway. USAC and track officials are working to try to reschedule the event for a later date. The next series events are April 20-21 at Gas City, Ind. and ROssburg, Ohio respectively.

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SHORT REPLACES CLAUSON FOR LAWRENCEBURG; USAC/CRA STAR FAAS ALSO EXPECTED TO COMPETE

Two-time USAC National Drivers Champion Bryan Clauson of Noblesville, Ind. leads the AMSOIL USAC National Sprint Car Series but his commitment to the Toyota Pro-Celebrity race at Long Beach, Calif. this week means that Brady Short will sub for him for this Saturday night’s AMSOIL USAC race at Lawrenceburg (Ind.) Speedway

Short, of Bedford, Ind.,  has four career USAC Sprint wins to his credit, including a 2008 win at the Lawrenceburg oval. He also scored at Bloomington, Ind. in 2006, North Vernon, Ind. in 2007 and Brownstown, Ind. in 2010.

Among drivers to keep an eye on at Lawrenceburg is USAC/CRA Sprint Car star Nic Faas of Huntington Beach. Calif., who is slated to compete in the Fox Brothers Racing entry. Faas finished a close second to Mike Spencer in a March 31 thriller at Perris (Calif.) Auto Speedway which many call one of the track’s greatest races in history. Faas made a half-dozen USAC National Sprint appearances at the end of last season and scored a feature win at Perris.

The Foxco entry will also take center stage in subsequent AMSOIL USAC National Sprint races at Gas City, Ind. and Rossburg, Ohio April 20-21 with four-time USAC/CRA Sprint Car king Mike Spencer at the wheel.

Clauson has a five-point lead over Damion Gardner in the 2012 standings, seeking his first title in the series. Gardner was one of two Florida race winners, the other being Darren Hagen, who finds himself atop the early USAC National Drivers Championship.

Lawrenceburg has proven to be an unpredictable track in recent times. The last six USAC Sprint races there have produced seven different winners. Defending four-time series champion Levi Jones of Olney, Ill. was one of the two winners there in 2011. The other was Robert Ballou.

Jones holds the track’s 1-lap qualifying record of 12.926 seconds, set in 2008.

2011 AMSOIL USAC NATIONAL SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS: 1-Bryan Clauson-187; 2-Damion Gardner-182; 3-Jon Stanbrough-179; 4-Justin Grant-167; 5-Levi Jones-159; 6-Dave Darland-147; 7-Darren Hagen-140; 8-Kevin Thomas Jr.-140; 9-Tracy Hines-137; 10-Casey Shuman-135.

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WEST COAST SPRINTS BACK TO TULARE FOR “FARIA MEMORIAL” SATURDAY; BERNAL TAKES KINGS SPEEDWAY 30-LAPPER

Ryan Bernal, the 2011 runner-up in the USAC West Coast Sprint Car Series, is the 2012 point leader entering this Saturday’s Chris & Brian Faria Memorial” at the Tulare (Calif.) Thunderbowl Raceway.

Bernal, of Hollister, Calif., sped to victory in Saturday night’s 30-lap USAC West Coast Sprint Car race at Kings Speedway in Hanford, Calif., leading the final 26 laps after passing Richard Vander Weerd on lap five. Trailing Bernal’s Keith Ford King Racing Products/A & A Precision Machine Spike/Raney to the checkered flag were Danny Sheridan, Markus Niemela, Danny Faria Jr. and Bud Kaeding, who recovered from a flip during qualifying.

Kaeding has “owned” the Tulare oval in recent times, winning three of the last five USAC West Coast Sprints there. Bernal, however, won the most recent race at the one-third mile dirt oval last October.

2012 USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS: 1-Ryan Bernal-134, 2-Markus Niemela-122, 3-Bud Kaeding-117, 4-Danny Faria Jr.-108, 5-Matt Mitchell-95, 6-Kevin Barnes-74, 7-Chris Ennis-72, 8- Danny Sheridan-66, 9-Justyne Hamblin-65, 10-Steve Conrad-65.

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USAC WEST COAST 360 SPRINT RACE RESULTS: April 7, 2012 – Hanford, California  – Kings Speedway

QUALIFICATIONS: 1. Matt Mitchell, 18, Watt-15.549; 2. Ryan Bernal, 73, Ford-15.605; 3. Rusty Carlile, 51, Carlile-15.626; 4. Richard Vander Weerd, 10, Vander Weerd-15.636; 5. Markus Niemela, 81, Watt-15.760; 6. Danny Sheridan, 21, Dorathy-15.791; 7. Marty Hawkins, 3M, Hawkins-16.098; 8. Danny Faria Jr., 17V, Faria-16.131; 9. Adam Frith-Smith, 62, Frith-Smith-16.208; 10. Jace Vander Weerd, 88, Vander Weerd-16.287; 11. Austin Liggett, 83, Liggett-16.290; 12. Justyne Hamblin, 8, JH-16.371; 13. Steve Conrad, 56, Swaim-16.417; 14. Burt Foland Jr., 4, Foland-16.556; 15. Dave Knott, 28, Knott-16.615; 16. Matt Day, 97, Day-16.640; 17. Kolby Araki, 30K, Araki-16.662; 18. Kevin Barnes, 36B, Barnes-16.797; 19. Chris Ennis, 86, Ennis-16.811; 20. Jared Little, 25, Little-16.875; 21. Austin DeBlauw, 65, DeBlauw-16.970; 22. Zach Sawyers, XXX, Sawyers-17.042; 23. Terry Nichols, 33, Nichols-17.419; 24. Chris Gansen, 4G, Gansen-17.465; 25. Jeremy Ellertson, 98, Ellertson-17.738; 26. Brian Baker, 5X, Swaim-21.025; 27. Bud Kaeding, 29, Bowman-NT; 28. Jonathan Logan, 32, Evett/Logan-NT; 29. Ray Knight, 6K, Knight-NT; 30. Don Gansen, 7G, Gansen-NT.

FIRST HEAT: (10 laps) 1. Mitchell, 2. Niemela, 3. Conrad, 4. Araki, 5. Ellertson, 6. Frith-Smith, 7. Knight, 8. DeBlauw. NT

SECOND HEAT: (10 laps) 1. Sheridan, 2. Bernal, 3. Barnes, 4. J. Vander Weerd, 5. Sawyers, 6. D. Gansen, 7. Foland. NT

THIRD HEAT: (10 laps) 1. Carlile, 2. Ennis, 3. Hawkins, 4. Liggett, 5. Knott, 6. Nichols. NT

FOURTH HEAT: (10 laps) 1. R. Vander Weerd, 2. Faria, 3. Logan, 4. Hamblin, 5. Little, 6. C. Gansen, 7. Day. NT

SEMI: (10 laps) 1. Day, 2. Little, 3. DeBlauw, 4. Kaeding, 5. Ellertson, 6. Foland, 7. C. Gansen, 8. Baker, 9. Nichols, 10. Frith-Smith, 11. Knott, 12. Sawyers, 13. D. Gansen. NT

FEATURE: (30 laps) 1. Ryan Bernal, 2. Danny Sheridan, 3. Markus Niemela, 4. Danny Faria Jr., 5. Bud Kaeding, 6. Rusty Carlile, 7. Jonathan Logan, 8. Richard Vander Weerd, 9. Marty Hawkins, 10. Austin Liggett, 11. Chris Ennis, 12. Jared Little, 13. Justyne Hamblin, 14. Steve Conrad, 15. Matt Day, 16. Jeremy Ellertson, 17. Kevin Barnes, 18. Burt Foland Jr., 19. Kolby Araki, 20. Matt Mitchell, 21. Jace Vander Weerd, 22. Austin DeBlauw. NT.

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**Kaeding flipped during qualifications. Knott, C. Gansen, and Baker flipped during the semi.

FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-4 R. Vander Weerd, Laps 5-30 Bernal.

NEXT WEST COAST 360 SPRINT RACE: April 14 – Tulare, CA - Tulare Thunderbowl Raceway - "Chris & Brian Faria Memorial"

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