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Sprint Cars, Modifieds Headline Saturday Night Action
At Antioch Speedway
Antioch, CA...Last week at Antioch Speedway, the All Star Series Winged 360 Sprint Cars and A Modified division both saw their no repeat winner streak snapped as the first two time winners emerged. Will those drivers become three time winners this week? In addition to those two divisions, the Hobby Stocks, Dwarf Cars and B Modifieds will also be on the card this Saturday night. The B Modified division saw the point lead change last week. What will happen this week?
In the Winged 360 Sprint Cars, we hadn't seen veteran Art McCarthy in the winner's circle since the season opener. Since then, McCarthy had one night where his car failed to start just before the Main Event, and it cost him the point lead. His win last Saturday night, combined with his heat race victory, were was just what he needed. However, he didn't gain too much in the championship battle as Billy Aton finish second. Aton has been having a brilliant season so far, and the one time winner continues to set the pace.
Two time Wingless Spec Sprint champion Dan Gonderman has had a difficult time of it lately in his Winged Sprint Car. Though he has had two wins in the Wingless division this year, Gonderman is still searching for that first win in the Winged class. In fact, a flip left him absent from the previous two races, but he bounced back last week with a Top 5 finish. That finish enabled them to reclaim third in the standings.
Making his move into fifth in the standings was reigning champion Shawn Arriaga. Last week, Arriaga finished fourth, just ahead of Gonderman. Though he is the reigning champion, Shawn is running a relaxed schedule this year as he takes some races off to spend time with his family. He could be there this week, and surprise visitors show up all the time, including Marissa Polizzi. Marissa is a regular at Petaluma Speedway, and she finished third in the Main Event last week. Other drivers to watch for include Tim Burcher, Rick Brophy, Chris Magoon, Matt Barber and Burt Foland Jr.
The A Modified division ran their tenth race last week before finally seeing their first repeat winner in Brian Cass. A past champion at Watsonville and Hanford, Cass has also had his moments at Antioch Speedway through the years. To get this win, he had to hold off a four time champion in Troy Foulger, who was giving the Bill Bowers car a shakedown run before an upcoming series race out of town. Surprisingly, Foulger still hasn't had a win in Antioch this year, but he has finished second multiple times.
It was not a great night for point leader Carl Berendsen II. Last week, Carl managed to beat his rival, five time champion Scott Busby. That was the good news. Unfortunately both drivers finished at the back of the pack in ninth and tenth, respectively. Busby had just gotten his car back together after motor problems two weeks ago, and hopefully there wasn't too much damage on his #73 car this week. He started the night off pretty strong early on with a heat race win, but it was all downhill from there.
Trent Wentworth returned last week with a Top 5 finish. We hadn't seen Aaron Crowell in an A Modified since he blew his motor a couple months ago. Josh Combs has a fast car and he put Crowell put him behind the wheel. The 2004 champion Crowell then drove to a third place finish last week. The A Modifieds should put on a good show this week as other competitors such as Sean O'Gara, Bobby Montalvo, Raymond Lindemann, Chester Kniss and Anthony Slaney could be among the field.
Trevor Clymens missed a B Modified race early in the season. Since that time, he's been steadily gaining ground on the leader, Al Johnson. Last week, he won his second straight feature and fifth of the year, and that catapulted him past Johnson into the point lead. It's not just Johnson that Trevor may have to worry about in the weeks ahead. Johnson is the driver in second, and he maintained that was his fifth place finish, but there's another driver closing in fast on both of them.
In this case, it is rookie Shane DeVolder. DeVolder has been racing just about everywhere he can, and much like Trevor, he missed a race earlier this year. However, with his fourth second place finish last week, Shane is in position to make another move in the points this week. Much like Johnson, DeVolder is still looking for his first feature win.
Despite the fact that the B Modifieds are in a marathon season in which they have more dates than any other class at the track, car count numbers haven't been too bad. It helps when you have newcomers such as Michael Smith and Mike Mates joining the field last week. Danny Jones maintained his top five point status last week with a fourth place finish, and the double division racer is anticipated this week. Other competitors to look for include K.C. Keller, Ron Brown, Chuck Golden, Randy Brown, Tim Hammett and Brian Pearce.
Pearce was making his return last week after a hard crash the last time he was out left his frame badly damaged. On the night in question, he led several laps before losing the lead late. With his third place finish last week, it would appear that Pearce is just as fast as ever and could be a threat to win this week.
While Danny Jones and Guy Ahlwardt continue to battle for the Hobby Stock point lead, there was another driver making the headlines last week. This would be Michael Cooper. Cooper is in his fifth season, and he finally grabbed his first Main Event victory last time out. The season started off with Cooper scoring two second place finishes, and it looked like he might be the driver to beat in the race for the championship. Unfortunately, work sometimes takes him away from the track, and his absence from a couple of races has hindered his championship hopes. The win was a gratifying moment, and the fact that he did it ahead of brother in law Jordan Swank last week made it a good night for the family.
Ahlwardt continued his summer slump as he pulled into the pits late in the race and finished out of the running. Likewise, Chris Sorensen saw his bid for another Top 5 finish snapped. Sorensen led the race for seven laps before he broke a transmission to end his night. The low buck racer will be scrambling to get something back together, and we'll see if he is able to make it out this week.
It is a competitive Hobby Stock division at Antioch Speedway, and like Cooper just proved, anybody can win on any given week. Rookie Anthony Vigna had his best showing of the year last week in third, followed by another rookie and top five point competitor Lindsay Buirch. This duo should be in action this week, and others to watch for include Natalie Perry, Frank Furtado, Cameron Swank and Mitchell Loccicere.
The Dwarf Cars were on the schedule and then off and were just added back to the schedule. The reason for pulling them in the first place was because management wanted to let the racers attend a big Nationals event in Oregon. When management heard that many of the racers didn't have the budget to go, the date was put back on the schedule to give them a place to race closer to home.
Therefore, the battle will continue between two time winner Kevin Miraglio and one time winner Mike Corsaro for the championship. Miraglio actually has the biggest point lead at the track, and Corsaro was giving it a good run last week in second after a heat race win. However, Miraglio was just a bit faster and joined reigning champion David Teves and Mark Biscardi on the two time winner's list.
While David Teves saw his bid to repeat in the car of the late Brian Tilseth end early, a pair of Davids were having a good night. Nobody at the track has had more Street Stock feature wins than David Rosa. The two time Street Stock champion has been steadily dialing in his #68 Dwarf Car, and he collected a heat race win before his best division effort in third. It was a nice comeback from the previous race, where he had the front end knocked out of his car in a crash. Not to be outdone, son David Michael Rosa closed in on the Top 5 in points with his fifth place finish.
The Dwarf Cars are that sleeper division you may not think about when you go to the races, but you generally leave having been entertained by their good race. Other competitors to watch for this week include ageless veteran Charlie Corriea. young gun Buddy Kniss, Robert Coe, Timmy Ryan and Brian Gray.
This five division program at Antioch Speedway, featuring The Winged 360 Sprint Cars, A Modifieds, B Modifieds, Dwarf Cars and Hobby Stocks, should be an exciting show this week. For further information on this race and other happenings at the track, go to www.antiochspeedway.com.
Antioch Speedway Points
Winged 360 Sprints
Billy Aton 372
Art McCarthy 349
Dan Gonderman 226
Burt Foland Jr. 206
Shawn Arriaga 189
Rick Brophy 174
Matt Barber 136
Bobby McMahan 136
Chris Magoon 118
Adam McCarthy 102
A Modifieds
Carl Berendsen II 384
Scott Busby 319
Bobby Montalvo 310
Sean O'Gara 304
Trent Wentworth 292
Troy Foulger 278
Ray Lindeman 274
Brian Cass 20r
John MacDougall 194
Aaron Crowell 192
B Modifieds
Trevor Clymens 642
Al Johnson 636
Shane DeVolder 606
Danny Jones 504
K.C. Keller 410
Randy Brown 292
Anthony Giuliani 269
Brian Pearce 228
Lloyd Cline 226
Chuck Golden 210
Hobby Stock
Danny Jones 483
Guy Ahlwardt 474
Michael Cooper 402
Lindsey Buirch 396
Jordan Swank 372
Chris Sorensen 369
Cameron Swank 368
Natalie Perry 321
Rob Waldrop 288
Anthony Vigna 288
Dwarf Car
Kevin Miraglio 426
Mike Corsaro 354
Tim Reeder 296
Buddy Kniss 268
Robert Coe 230
David Michael Rosa 224
Charlie Correia 210
Brian Gray 199
Josh Miller 182
David Rosa 182
California Hardtops head To
Placerville Speedway Saturday Night
Placerville, CA...The California Hardtop Association is back in action this Saturday night at Placerville Speedway. The group is coming up on some big dates next month, which will include Calistoga Speedway on Labor Day weekend and the big Chet Thomson Memorial race at Antioch Speedway the week after that. But, before they get to those races, they will be running at Placerville Speedway this Saturday night. The schedule continues with the Johnny Soares Classic at Petaluma Speedway on August 13th and another date at Antioch Speedway on August 20th.
The call has been placed to the racers to get those race cars ready for the big finish to the 2016 season. For this Saturday night, a group of 6-8 or so racers should be competing at the popular Saturday night racing venue in Placerville. This year, you never really know who might win on any given week. To illustrate that point, it was "The Rocket Man" Ken Clifford scoring the victory ahead of Joe Hopp at the last Chico race. For Clifford, it was his first career win in a Hardtop and came on the heels of two straight wins for his son Jason. Jason is reportedly not ready to go quite yet and not really thrilled about it either
Word from the Armstrong Team is that Jason Armstrong is readying the car of John Philbert for a Saturday night return. Jason is also getting his own car ready. His father Dennis Armstrong was the winner of the most recent race at Placerville Speedway, and he should also be making an appearance. While the Armstrong's get their cars ready to go, word out of the Antioch area is that two time Antioch Speedway winner Dave Mackey is trying to get his car ready for Saturday night. Dave had to replace his transmission.
So far, the two Armstrong's, the two Clifford's and Mackey count themselves among the feature winners this year. Chances are we could see a repeat winner at Placerville, but you can't count out racers like John Turner, Russ Kraft, Ron Ruiz and Joe Hopp, who has a pair of second place feature finishes so far this year. The good news is, Hardtop racing is alive and well in Northern California, and the drivers will be busy racing from now until mid September with several dates still booked.
The race date at the historic Calistoga Speedway on Labor Day weekend is a big event that several of the regulars want to be a part of. A week later in Antioch on September 10th is the revival of the Chet Thompson Memorial Race, which was first held at Vallejo Speedway from 1967 to 1979, when the track closed. A field of 12-16 cars is anticipated for that event. But those wanting to see some Hardtop action before then can head to Placerville Speedway this Saturday night. It should be a good show.
McCarthy Looking For Two In A Row
At Antioch Speedway This Saturday Night
Antioch., CA...Perhaps it is no surprise that Art McCarthy is the driver to finally become the first repeat winner in the All Star Series Winged Sprint Car division at Antioch Speedway. McCarthy has been racing for many years going back to the Super Modifieds out at the old San Jose Speedway. He's won multiple Winged 360 Sprint Car championships in his career and is in the hunt for the championship this year.
McCarthy opened the season strong with a feature win, but it was a few races later when his car would not start before that night's Main Event. Since Art missed that race, Billy Aton was able to get by him for the point lead. McCarthy has been getting things dialed in little by little, and last week's win in the Main Event and his heat race win was just what he needed. However, with Aton right behind him in second, McCarthy didn't gain to too much in the standings. Then again, it's not a big point lead that Aton has, and every point race counts. This Saturday night will be another opportunity for McCarthy to close the gap.
The latest new driver to come in and take advantage of the opportunity to race at Antioch, where they pay $1,200 to win the Main Event, was Marissa Polizzi. Polizzi has been racing at Petaluma Speedway this season, but she took a night to come visit Antioch and scored a heat race win early in the evening. She followed It up by holding off reigning champion Shawn Arriaga for a respectable third place feature finish.
For Arriaga, this has been a year in which he has been running a relaxed schedule, spending his off nights with his family. However, his fourth place finish moved him into fifth in the standings. It was also a good night for Dan Gonderman. Gonderman finished fifth in the Main Event, and this comes on the heels of two races off making repairs to his damaged Sprint Car after a flip in his previous start. It was a much needed positive result for him, and he used that finish to move into third in the standings.
Having won his first career Main Event recently, Brayden McMahan was back out there to see if he could pick up another one of those $1200 winner's paychecks at Antioch Speedway. Unfortunately, his night didn't go so well, and he ended up in sixth ahead of rookie Tim Burcher, Matt Demartini and Steve Jaquith.
You never know who will show up at Antioch Speedway to compete, and it's usually a very entertaining show when the All Star Series Winged Sprint Cars are in action. This will be round #9 of the season and McCarthy may think he's got a good shot at his second win in a row. However, you never know what will happen when the green flag flies over John M. Soares's three-eighth mile clay oval. For further information on this race and other happenings at Antioch Speedway, check out the official website at www.antiochspeedway.com.
2016 Antioch Winged 360 All Star Series Points
Billy Aton 372
Art McCarthy 349
Dan Gonderman 226
Burt Foland Jr. 206
Shawn Arriaga 189
Rick Brophy 174
Matt Barber 136
Bobby McMahan 136
Chri Magoon 118
Adam McCarthy 102
2016 All Star Series Winged 360 Sprint Car Schedule
July 30
August 6
August 13
August 20
August 27
September 10
September 17
September 24
Past Champions
1998-Gary Geving
2007-Art McCarthy
2010-Craig Smith
2013-Chris Magoon
2014-Chris Magoon
2015-Shawn Arriaga
Recent Feature Winners
July 30, 2016: Art McCarthy
July 16, 2016: Brayden McMahan
June 25, 2016: Kaleb Montgomery
June 18, 2016: Bobby McMahan
June 4, 2016: Shawn Conde
May 21, 2016: Koen Shaw
April 23, 2016: Billy Aton
April 2, 2016: Art McCarthy
August 29, 2015: Art McCarthy
August 8, 2015: Shawn Arriaga
July 11, 2015: Jake Haulot
June 20, 2915: Austin Liggett
June 6, 2015: Shawn Arriaga
May 16, 2015: Jake Haulot
April 25, 2015: Alissa Geving
March 7, 2015: Art McCarthy
August 2, 2014: Zack Lynskey
June 21 2014: Bradley Terrell
June 10, 2014: Chris Magoon
April 5, 2014: Kurt Nelson
May 4, 2013: Shawn Arriaga
April 13, 2014: Chris Martin
September 17, 2011: Billy Aton
July 30, 2011: Craig Smith
September 15, 2010: Jeremy Burt
August 25, 2010: Craig Smith
April 24, 2010: Craig Smith
March 27, 2010: Craig Smith
March 20, 2010: Ryan Risconi
September 26, 2009: Jeremy Burt
August 29, 2009: Jeremy Burt
