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Sprint Cars, Late Models Highlight Six Divisions Of Racing Saturday Night At Antioch Speedway
Antioch, CA...The All Star Series racing program only has two point races remaining, and there's still some good battles for position in all divisions at Antioch Speedway. Headlining the show this weekend will be the Winged 360 Sprint Cars and the A Modifieds, and both classes have been very interesting with 10 different Main Event winners in each division. Also returning to action will be the popular DIRTcar Late Model division along with the B Modifieds, Hobby Stocks and Dwarf Cars.
There are two big storylines at play in The Winged 360 Sprint car division. There is a close championship battle between Billy Aton and Art McCarthy and a winner's list of 10 drivers after 13 races. The two drivers running at the top of the list are the ones who have scored more than one victory. Two time winner Aton now leads three time winner McCarthy by less than ten points going into this race. The last race was not a good night for either of them, but McCarthy did slightly better with a heat race win and an eighth place place Main Event finish. Aton finished right behind McCarthy in ninth.
Another Outlaw Kart graduate, Kenny Allen, made his first appearance at Antioch Speedway in the hopes of becoming another new winner, but his efforts fell just short in second. Matt Barber has been putting a little bit more time in at Antioch Speedway, and his recent three visits had been disappointing. After his initial three starts resulted in Top 5 finishes, Barber saw something he liked and decided to keep coming back. On Saturday night, he finally broke through for his first victory.
The Winner's List has ten names on it, including Shawn Conde, who made his first start in several races and finished fifth in the event behind three time Marysville Sprint Car champion Brent Dothage. Another welcome sight in the field was Shawn Arriaga, who was once again piloting the Brett Lay own car. Arriaga now has a second and a third in that car. Could a win be next? Management has to be pleased with the turn out of 14 Sprint Cars last week and the fact that so many drivers are willing to come out and give the fast race track a shot.
The track continues to have some good local competitors, including Aton, McCarthy, Arriaga, 2014 champion Chris Magoon, third ranked Dan Gonderman, Burt Foland Jr., Ricky Brophy and rookie Tim Burcher. You never know who will show up from week to week, but you're going to get some entertaining racing when the Winged 360 Sprint Cars are in town.
It might be a good thing for the other A Modified racers that Brian Cass is not racing for points this year. As it is, he has been pretty fast when he has made his visits. Last Saturday night, Cass scored his third Main Event victory of the year ahead of 2004 track champion Aaron Crowell. Crowell was returning after being out of the action for a while with a blown motor. Looking as good as he did last week, one would have to think that Crowell could be a threat to win his second feature this week.
Carl Berendsen II is another driver hoping to get a win, and right now consistency has served him well as he appears to be headed for his second track championship in three seasons. Carl sped to a third place finish last week. Scott Busby already has five championships to his credit, and his fifth place finish behind Trent Wentworth last week put some distance between Busby and Shawn O'Gara, who did not finish the race. If Busby can hold on to his second place point position, it will be the third time in his career that he's been the runner-up in the standings.
Some drivers may be coming to town this week to check their setups as promoter John M. Soares has announced the race date for October 8th. It will be the John Soares Sr. Memorial Top Dog Shoot Out. The race honors the man who opened Antioch Speedway in 1961 and promoted the track for 20 years. The A Modified and Late Model divisions will pay $1,500 to win. Also on the program that night will be $850 to win B Modified and Hobby Stock races.
Because of the wide open competitive nature of the A Modified division, that big money race could be anybody's to win. There are still some competitive locals who have yet to win, including Top 5 point competitor Trent Wentworth and four time champion Troy Foulger. Foulger's car owner Billy Bowers called his car a second place car in his frustrations with their luck at the track this year. However, if there is one thing people know about this team it's that they always come prepared when the money is on the line. They won two big money races at the track last season. Saturday night would be perfect for them should they choose to appear. Other drivers to watch for this weekend include rookie Bobby Montalvo, 2015 point runner up Bobby Motts Jr, hard charger Mike Salazar, Anthony Slaney, Norman Beck and John MacDougall.
The DIRTcar Late Model division has been a two car point battle between Richard Papenhausen and Jeff Decker. Papenhausen won the 2014 championship and Decker is the reigning champion. Currently, Papenhausen leads the point standings and is hoping he can wrap up another championship this week. Papenhausen won the most recent race for his second victory of the season. Decker is also a Main Event winner in A Modifieds this year.
After Chester Kniss parked his car to make repairs from some serious damage suffered from his roll over, the third place battle became a race between Dennis Souza and Mike Hynes. These two drivers have been staunch supporters of the class this year and are hoping that they can break through to a Top 3 feature finish this week. However, the lure of racing Late Models at Antioch could draw two fast competitors in past division champion Andy Obertello and double division racer Troy Foulger. Obertello has a win this season. Foulger has finished second, but he was a two time winner last season.
Other drivers to watch for this week include third ranked 2015 point racer Danny Malfatti, David Newquist, Rob Norris and two time Petaluma Speedway champion Paul Guglielmoni. It is also possible that we may see the House Car with an as of yet unnamed driver behind the wheel.
It's been an up and down season for Brian Pierce in the B Modified division. Pearce entered the season with hopes of contending for a championship. While battling for a win early on with point leader Trevor Clymens, Pearce begrudgingly surrendered the lead and ended up hitting the front wall after contact with a slower car. After repairing the damage on his car and missing several races, Pearce made his return three races ago and was immediately running in the Top 5 again. Last week, he raced to a satisfying and much needed first career Main Event win.
Though he has won, rookie Shane DeVolder seems more used to finishing second as he has six runner up finishes at Antioch so far this year. Last time out, DeVolder held off veteran Anthony Giuliani for the second place finish. With his heat race win and fourth place feature finish, Al Johnson kept himself in the championship hunt, but he didn't gain too many points on the leader after Clymens finished sixth. Clymens was going for the lead on lap 13 last week when he spun. He'll be back to go for his eighth win this week as he tries to wrap up the track championship.
Despite a very heavy schedule, the B Modifieds seem to be holding up pretty well as new drivers continue to join the field every week. Last week, that included Mike Mates and Brian Lyons as well as Merced Speedway visitors George Medeiros and Josh Hensley. Kevin Brown scored another fifth place Main Event finish as he continues to get faster with every start. Add tough competitors like Tim Hammett, K.C. Keller and Paul Mulder and you've got a good show for this division this week.
In the Hobby Stock division, it seems a foregone conclusion that Guy Ahlwardt will win the track championship and the "Rookie Of The Year" title in the same season. However, Ahlwardt met his match last week as good friend and the reigning B Modified champion Fred Ryland held him off for the victory behind the wheel of the borrowed Chase Templeton car. Ryland is familiar with that car as his wife drove it to a Top 3 season a few years ago and he got behind the wheel of the car for a 100 lap win back in 2014.
Rookie Lindsey Buirch ended up finishing third in the Main Event last week after the apparent third and fourth place finishers Cameron Swank and Chris Sorensen both got disqualified in post race tech. The fifth place finish she crossed the line with would have been good enough to gain her second in the points anyway. Quietly, and under the radar, last year's "Rookie Of The Year" Jordan Swank is prepared to move into third in the points after this week. Considering he wasn't even in the Top 5 in the standings a few races ago, he has to be pleased with the way his season is ending.
Michael Cooper would likely be holding down second in the points at this time, but because of his work schedule, he missed another race last week. As it is, it has been a good season for Cooper, who won his first Main Event this season. Frank Furtado also got his first win this year and is steadily climbing up the point ladder. These two drivers are anticipated this week along with rookie Anthony Vigna and newcomer Syd Smyth.
Not to be forgotten on the card is the Dwarf Car division, which we haven't seen much lately. When last we saw them, Stock Car veteran David Rosa was picking up his first ever win in this division. Meanwhile, his son David Michael Rosa is now in the Top 5 in the standings. Higher up on the point ladder you will find point leader Kevin Miraglio and Mike Corsaro. Both are Main Event winners this year, and Miraglio now has two of them among his frequent Top 3 finishes. Miraglio missed the most recent race to compete at Petaluma in a Dwarf Car Regional event. Rather than stay at Antioch and almost certainly gain the point lead, Corsaro followed him to Petaluma.
These two drivers are almost certain to be at Antioch this week and at the Dwarf Car Nationals in Marysville next week along with Tim Reeder. Reeder is poised to move back into third in the standings at Antioch as word was that rookie Buddy Kniss had another engagement this Saturday night. Kniss has already sold his car and is moving up to the B Modified division next season. Other drivers to watch for this week include Robert Coe, Jenna Frazier, veteran Charlie Correia and Timmy Ryan.
This Saturday night's six division show of Winged 360 Sprint Cars, DIRTcar Late Models, A Modifieds, B Modifieds, Hobby Stocks and Dwarf Cars should be a good night of racing. For further information, go to www.antiochspeedway.com.
Antioch Speedway Points
Winged 360 Sprint Car
Billy Aton 594
Art McCarthy 589
Dan Gonderman 392
Burt Foland Jr. 334
Shawn Arriaga 237
Matt Barber 220
Matt DeMartini 202
Rick Brophy 174
Marissa Polizzi 151
Chris Magoon 150
DIRTcar Late Model
Richard Papenhausen 366
Jeff Decker 340
Dennis Souza 242
Mikde Hynes 231
Andy Obertello 196
Chester Kniss 171
Rob Norris 164
Bobby Hogge IV 162
Paul Guglielmoni 160
David Newquist 139
A Modifieds
Carl Berendsen II 512
Scott Busby 461
Trent Wentworth 430
Sean O'Gara 422
Bobby Montalvo 418
Norm Beck 304
Troy Foulger 289
Ray Lindeman 274
Brian Cass 256
Aaron Crowell 246
B Modifieds
Trevor Clymens 898
Al Johnson 874
Shane DeVolder 844
Danny Jones 636
K.C. Keller 610
Randy Brown 368
Brian Pearce 334
Chuck Golden 322
Anthony Giuliani 321
Lloyd Cline 271
Hobby Stock
Guy Ahlwardt 686
Linsdsey Buirch 562
Danny Jones 537
Jordan Swank 532
Michael Cooper 500
Chris Sorensen 479
Cameron Swank 456
Frank Futado 437
Anthony Vigna 418
Natalie Perry 379
Dwarf Car
Kevin Miraglio 474
Mike Corsaro 454
Buddy Kniss 390
Tim Reeder 378
David Michael Rosa 360
David Rosa Sr. 338
Charlie Correia 320
Robert Coe 256
Jenna Frazer 254
Timmy Ryan 240
Merced Speedway Returns From
Two Week Break Saturday Night
Merced, CA...After the two week break, racing returns to the fast quarter-mile clay oval at Merced Speedway this Saturday night. The numbers are up all the way around at Merced Speedway with more cars in the pits and more fans coming to watch. Though most of the championships seem to be in hand, the racing on the track is still close as several positions near the top of the standings are up for grabs. Competing this Saturday are the IMCA Modifieds, IMCA Sport Modifieds, Mini Stocks and the Valley Sportsman division.
After picking up his fourth Main Event win of the season last time, Randy Brown seems headed for the IMCA Modified championship this season. If he doesn't stumble in a major way on Saturday night, he would pretty much have to just take the green flag next week to win the championship. However, as everybody knows, anything can happen at Merced Speedway. Brown has had an amazing run in his previous seven races with three seconds to go along with his four wins.
Ramie Stone has done a little bit better for himself in recent races, and though he isn't gaining much on Brown, he has managed to move into second in the standings. Stone would need to have a storybook ending to his season, but if you have watched him through the years, you know what he's capable of doing. Stone has won championships in three different divisions going back to the 1990's, and long time spectators would tell you not to count him out. At the very least, he could pick up a victory on any given week. It could happen Saturday night.
Ricky Thatcher has been running a little bit faster lately, but his hopes of making it onto the podium last time out ended in a front straightaway tangle during the early stages of the Main Event. Thatcher is battling with Bruce "Bubba" Nelson for the third point position, and the rookie Nelson managed to put a little distance between himself and Thatcher with his third place finish last time out. Nelson seems to have figured out the IMCA Modified, and the three time Hobby Stock Main Event winner will be hoping to get his first win in this division Saturday night.
The IMCA Modified division at Merced Speedway has an amazing roster of top notch talent, including rookie Ryan Larimer, who finished second in the Main Event last time out. Larimer, who is a past Hanford IMCA Sport Modified champion, Nelson, Jeremy Hoff and Tim Cecil are drivers who have moved up from the Sport Modified division into the Modifieds this year. They compete with such experienced talent such as 2012 champion Bill Egleston, Late Model veteran Derek Nance, Ryan Porter, Mitch Enos and Mike Villanueva, who counts himself as a past Hanford IMCA Modified champion.
The season could have came to an end for Rick Diaz when he lost his ride. However, the 2014 IMCA Sport Modified champion was on a mission. John Fore Jr. was a good friend of his, and he is racing this season in honor of him. When he lost the ride, Diaz didn't miss a beat as he secured another ride and came back out as if nothing had happened. With five Main Event wins, he knows he doesn't even have to be there and he will still be leading the points at the end of the night. However, the focus will be on continuing his strong effort and entering the final race having clinched the championship.
The battle will be behind Diaz for the second point position, and all of these competitors are still looking for their first feature victory. Driving for George Medeiros, Mike Drake has turned in some solid efforts all season long to hold down second ahead of veteran Gary Tucker and Tim Elias. Tucker and Elias have raced in multiple divisions through the years and have won their share of races, but they all want to visit the Winner's Circle in the Sport Modifieds at Merced Speedway this year. Diaz and Fred Ryland make that a tall order, but any one of these drivers can do it.
Ryland started the season late and missed three of the first four races, but with three feature wins and a second place finish at the most recent race, Ryland is closing in fast on the Top 5 in the point standings. If Fred has a chance to win, you also can't count out his wife, Patti Ryland, who is capable of showing the boys how it's done. Chase Thomas is also on the rise on the point ladder, and his Top 5 finish last time out followed up a first career win from the previous race. Chase and his brother Tanner Thomas are Top 10 ranked and are both giving their father Darren Thomas something to be proud of with the way they've been racing this year.
While the IMCA Modified division is loaded with talent, the same can be said for the Merced Speedway IMCA Sport Modified class. There are some great competitors in this division, including 2015 runnerup Mark Odgers, Chris Falkenburg, Danny Roe, reigning champion Josh Hensley, Paul Espino, Mark Squadrito and Dwayne Short.
Chris Corder is on his way to his second Mini Stock championship at the speedway in three years. All season long, there hasn't been too much competition for him. When Corder's car is running strong, he's winning the race. In fact, he has six wins at Merced Speedway and more wins in his visits to Watsonville's Ocean Speedway.
It was one of Corder's appearances at Watsonville that likely convinced D.J. Keldsen of the legendary Keldsen family to come to Merced Speedway and see if he could take the winner's trophy home with him. After a second place finish in his first visit, Keldsen came back even stronger and won the most recent race in an impressive victory. While Corder is on his way to the championship, there are still some positions up for grabs in the points.
Paul Lauretti has been consistent all year and has some Top 3 finishes to show for it, but one stumble and rookie Destiny Carter could steal second from him in the standings. For Destiny, just racing one of the Corder team cars has been a dream come true, and she has a chance to come out of this season with third in the points. To do it, she will have to hold off one time winner Curtis Thornhill, who runs fourth.
Another driver who's been slowly gaining some attention out there is second generation racer Lucy Falkenberg. Lucy has been racing more than ever this year, and she gets better with every start. Last time, she won her heat race and finished third in the Main Event. The Falkenberg team believes Lucy could get herself a feature win, and people might have to keep an eye on her this Saturday night. You also have to keep an eye on Top 5 ranked competitor Tony Peffer in his truck, and other hard chargers who could show up include James Stockton, Mike Germait and one time winner Jason Lewis
The Valley Sportsman division looked like it was going to get really interesting after Mike Friesen won the double point race on Legends Night. He seriously closed the gap between himself and point leader Kenny Birdsong. But when he needed to win most, Birdsong picked up his third feature win of the season last time. In doing so, Birdsong will basically only need to take a green flag in the Main Event to assure himself the 2016 championship.
For two time champions Friesen, this has been an amazing season. He missed a race and still found himself in the championship battle. Mike was a division original when this class was brought back in 1999 and has been a big booster of the vintage racing movement with Hardtop and Super Modified cars in his shop as well. With Jeff Bristow missing Legends Night, Friesen managed to pass him for second in the standings. Bristow missed that race with a broken tow vehicle, but he came back in a big way last time by finishing second in the Main Event and winning his heat race.
The positive to take from the Sportsman division this year is that car count numbers are up. There have been new cars fielded this year and word is that more cars are more on the way. Other drivers to watch for this week include newcomer Jeff West, Jesse James Burks, Tim Prothro and Jerry Cecil. You also never know when past champion Mark Odgers will show up with his Vern Willhoite tribute car. Sportsman racing is alive and well at Merced Speedway!
So, if you're interested in going out and watching the races at Merced Speedway after the two week layoff, Saturday night will be the night to come out and see IMCA Modifieds, IMCA Sport Modifieds, Mini Stocks and Valley Sportman cars. For further information, go to www.racemerced.com.
Merced Speedway Points
IMCA Modified
Randy Brown 400
Ramie Stone 372
Bruce Nelson 359
Ricky Thatcher 348
Bill Egleston 337
Jarod Fast 259
Mike Villanueva 214
Paul Stone 188
Mitch Enos 187
IMCA Sport Modifieds
Rick Diaz 491
Mike Drake 445
Gary Tucker 432
Tim Elias 423
Josh Hensley 390
Fred Ryland 380
Chase Thomas 348
Steve Stone 334
Tanner Thomas 327
Dwayne Short 293
Mini Stock
Chris Corder 165
Paul Lauretti 123
Destiny Carter 114
Curtis Thornhill 102
Tony Peffer 99
Lucy Falkenberg 79
Jennifer Corder 69
Joy Alger 66
James Stockton 59
Mike Germait 57
Valley Sportsman
Kenny Birdsong 147
Mike Friesen 133
Jeff Bristow 105
Tim Prothro 88
Jerry Cecil 60
Jeff Amos 59
Mark Odgers 58
Shannon Fry 58
Jesse James Burks 50
Eric Seely 49
Hobby Stock
Michael Shearer 229
Kevin Joaquin 186
Robbie Loquaci 177
Phillip Vaughn 171
Kristie Shearer 170
Garrett Corn 167
Austin Van Hoff 158
Kodie Dean 152
Dexter Long 147
Cody Parker 131
Armstrong Scores Emotional Win In Chet Thomson
Memorial Race At Antioch Speedway
Antioch, CA...September 10...The biggest Hardtop race in the Bay Area since the days of Vallejo Speedway took place at Antioch Speedway with the running of the 14th Chet Thomson Memorial Race Saturday night. Running with a heavy heart after his 12 year old son Tyler lost his battle with Leukemia a week ago, Jason Armstrong won the 20 lap Main Event. The group dedicated the race to Tyler Armstrong, and all money made from Chet Thomson Memorial t-shirt sales was donated to the Armstrong family to help with the medical costs.
The biggest car count of the year was on hand for this race as 14 competitors came to race. Armstrong was only making his third start in this car, but he had a second place finish with it at Placerville and a win in the Johnny Soares Classic Hardtop race at Petaluma a week later. He started the night off with a win in his heat race to grab a front row starting spot in the Main Event. Dave Mackey won a battle with Tommy Thomson to win their heat race. Thomson didn't take the initial green flag in the Main Event, and Larry Damitz was a Main Event scratch.
The race figured to be a showdown between J. Armstrong and Mackey, who was piloting his #1 Dudley Family Racing tribute car. Unfortunately, Mackey spun in the fourth turn before a lap was completed. Somehow, two time Main Event winner Jason Clifford managed to avoid t-boning him. J. Armstrong set the pace as Ken Retzloff, Jason's father Dennis Armstrong, the V-6 powered Hardtop of Dan Williams and J. Clifford battled for second. Retzloff was piloting the #36 car of Bill McLaughlin, which has just been sold. Mackey steadily worked his way back to the front and joined the battle with J. Armstrong and Retzloff. As Mackey entered the third turn late in the race in an attempt to set up a pass on Retzloff, he spun in front of the pack, collecting David Reed, Ken Clifford and Eddie Dixon in the Sam Huff tribute car. J. Armstrong got his name on the Chet Thomson Memorial Race Perpetual Trophy with his impressive victory. Retzloff was a strong second ahead of D. Armstrong, Williams, J. Clifford, Charles Mart, Steve Cloyes, Joe Shenefield and Mackey.
Race Results
Hardtops
Heat Winners (6 Laps)-Jason Armstrong, Dave Mackey. Main Event (20 Laps)-J. Armstrong, Ken Retzloff, Dennis Armstrong, Dan Williams, Jason Clifford, Charles Mart, Steve Cloyes, Joe Shenefield, Mackey, Tommy Thomson, Dave Reed, Ken Clifford, Eddie Dixon, Larry Damitz (DNS).
Fan Appreciation Night This Saturday At Orland Raceway
Orland, CA...The tenth and final point race of the season is set for this Saturday night at Orland Raceway, and there is news of more races to come next month. But first, it is O'Reilly Auto Parts Fan Appreciation Night this Saturday night with some special things lined up.
In addition to Hobby Stock, Mini Stock, Mini Truck and Micro Sprint racing on the one-fifth mile oval, there will be a meet and greet with the drivers in the grandstand area from 3-5:00 p.m. Saturday night. At that time, the track will be serving free hot dog meals while the fans get a chance to interact with their favorite drivers. Also during the night, the track will be raffling off a patio furniture set along with other prizes for some lucky fans.
After what has been a successful relaunching of the track under the new management team of Rich Hood, the track has added race dates on October 1st and 15th. Planning has already begun for a bigger race on October 29th. Before we get to those dates, there are some new champions to crown in the point series finale this Saturday night.
In the Pure Stock division, two time winner Steve Martin has already secured his second track championship, but there is a battle for second. Two time winner Jeremy Langenderfer has a five point advantage over three time winner Shannon Collins for second in the standings. Despite some bad luck lately, Cody Bundy is still only nine points out of second in the standings.
When two time winner Dan Webster takes the green flag this week, he will secure his first career Mini Truck championship. Reigning champion Keith Ross is a four time winner this year and leads William Fogle by 14 points in a good battle for second. Two time winner Olin Crane was in the battle before putting Jeff Bennett behind the wheel of his truck for a pair of races.
John Kirkpatrick will basically wrap up his second Mini Stock track championship simply by taking a green flag in the Main Event. Since he's finished as high as second this season, John is hoping to get a victory to end the point season. That may be difficult as Tom Davis won for the fifth time in the most recent race. One time winner Robert Hunt currently ranks second in the standings.
Andrew Love will be the 250 Micro Sprint champion while Jeremie Crismon repeats as 600 Micro Sprint champion. Both divisions have still produced several different winners. Kenny Wanderstadt (600's) and Jackie Whitson Jr. (250's) were the respective winners last time as the track focuses on building a Micro Sprint program.
The racers have been putting on a good show all season, and fans can meet them and get pictures and autographs before the races this Saturday night. Plus, the 3-5:00 p.m. gathering offers up free hot dog meals for everybody. It's all part of Fan Appreciation night at the races. Racing starts at 7:00 p.m. General admission is $7.00, children 7-12 are $5.00 and children 6 and under are free. For further information, go to, www.orlandraceway.org.
Orland Raceway Point Standings
Pure Stock
Steve Martin 443
Jeremy Langenderfer 312
Shannon Collins 307
Cody Bundy 303
Earl Adams 272
Mini Trucks
Dan Webster 413
Keith Ross 374
William Fogle 360
Olin Crain 264
Ross Vige 247
Mini Stock
John Kirkpatrick 425
Robert Hunt 396
Tom Davis 324
Donovan Chilton 263
Jeff Bennett 250
250 Micros
Andrew Love 288
Dave McKinnon 151
Ronnie Heyer 144
Jess Garland 140
Jackie Whitson Jr. 110
600 Micros
Jeromie Crismon 367
Skyler Richter 294
Toni Alosi 156
Kyra Michelet 153
Rick Gutzke 106
New Stars Emerging At Siskiyou Motor Speedway
Yreka, CA...Racing continues at Siskiyou Motor Speedway this Saturday night with the IMCA Sport Modifieds and McDonald's Mini Stocks both in action. From 11:00 in the morning to 2:00 in the afternoon, there will also be a playday on the new banked, eighth-mile clay oval Outlaw Kart track. The smaller track is where the future stars of the bigger track will come from. Some of those drivers may some day be the ones challenging the stars who are now emerging on the big track.
Last week saw young Colton Cheffey score his third Main Event win of the season in the O'Reilly Auto Parts IMCA Sport Modifieds. Nobody has more wins in this division this season than Cheffey, who also won the Patriot Series championship with his latest victory. The reality is that the competition in this class is so fierce that there are a dozen different Main Event winners so far.
Another of the up and coming drivers, D.J. Bottoms, gave sign of things to come when he won his first Trophy Dash earlier in the evening. D.J. will be hoping to challenge for a Main Event victory this Saturday night when point racing resumes. At the top of the point ladder is Jimmy Lipke, who has been fairly consistent in finishing in the Top 5 this year. Lipke also got his first win earlier this season as he leads Garrett Hamilton in the IMCA championship battle.
The SCMA also keeps a point race for it's members, and Hamilton leads last year's association champion, Doug Franklin, in that race. These three front runners and the two rising young stars could be joined in battle this week by reigning championship Colter Boswell, Jack Waldon Jr., Randy Wright and others.
Another talented teen burning up the scene in McDonald's Mini Stocks is 14 year old Ethan Killingsworth. After several second and third place finishes, Killingsworth emerged with his first win last week. Ethan and fellow Mini Truck racer Terry Kendrick are battling fiercely for second in the standings, and the young leadfoot won a heat race and the Trophy Dash last week in a near perfect evening.
Having lurked in the Top 5 in the standings for the past several seasons, Marilyn Yawnick is having her best season yet as the point leader. Marilyn now has three feature wins and picked up a Top 5 finish last week. It should be another competitive race this week as these three racers are joined by such hard chargers as reigning champion David Steele, 2014 champion Mike Whitaker, Mike Colson, Mike Frost, Amber Waldon and others.
Fans will want to mark September 24th on their calendar as the Annual Rod Restad Memorial race closes the championship season. This big race will pay $3000 to win for the IMCA Modifieds and should attract some of the best drivers in the area with that kind of money. Two time race winner, Nick Trenchard, point leader Duane Orsburn, six time Medford champion Mark Wauge and two time Medford champion Albert Gill are just some of the racers anticipated. Nevada visitor Jake Holland won the race last season.
In the meantime, it's O'Reilly Auto Parts Sport Modifieds and McDonald's Mini Stocks this week. The track will be "going gold" in recognition of Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. There will be kids games and prizes during intermission. Gates open at 5:00 p.m. with the first race starting at 7:00 p.m. Adult tickets are $9, Seniors and Veterans are $7, Juniors (6-12) are $5 and kids five & under are free. For further information, go to www.siskiyoumotorspeedway.com.
10 Different Winners As Sprint Cars Return To
Antioch Speedway Saturday night
Antioch, CA...The highly-competitive All Star Series Winged 360 Sprint Cars return to Antioch Speedway this Saturday night. The two narratives in the division at this point are the close championship battle between Billy Aton and Art McCarthy and a list of 10 different Main Event winners after 13 races. Last week saw Matt Barber become the tenth different winner after holding off Kenny Allen for the $1,200 victory.
Matt Barber has competed in about half of the events so far this season, and his first three visits to the track resulted in Top 5 finishes each time. His more recent appearances have seen him struggle through various problems, but he was back in a major way last Saturday night. Barber drive a great race, and he needed to be on his toes as Kenny Allen was pressuring him in second. However, Barber led the field to the checkered flag.
Kenny Allen, meanwhile, is another driver who has risen from the ranks of the Outlaw Kart circuit at tracks like Cycleland Speedway and Red Bluff. In recent seasons, he has been running a Winged 360 Sprint Car, and he decided to make his first appearance at Antioch. He didn't get the win, but second place was one of his best finishes in a Sprint Car so far. Might he return this week for a run at the win?
After putting reigning champion Shawn Ariana behind the wheel of his car and watching him drive to an impressive second place finish from last starting a race ago, Brett Lay decided to let the talented third generation driver pilot his fast #24b Sprinter again last week. Arriaga responded with a solid performance in third. In the process, Arriaga strengthened his hold on fifth in the point standings. It would seem that the Arriaga-Lay teaming is ready for a victory should they join forces again this week.
Making another appearance at the speedway was talented second generation racer Brett Dothage. In his first appearance of the season two races ago, the three time Marysville Raceway champion led several laps before losing a heartbreaker to Petaluma title contender Riley Matson. Dothage settled for second that night, and he finished fourth last week ahead of Shawn Conde. Conde counts himself as one of the 10 different winners so far this year.
Open wheel veteran Wayne Katon made his first Antioch Speedway appearance and finished sixth ahead of second generation racer Matt DeMartini. Behind DeMartini were the two title contenders, Art McCarthy and Billy Aton. Aton carried an 11 point lead into the night, and both drivers had to be disappointed with their finishes back in eighth and ninth. McCarthy managed to gain some points as he also won his heat race earlier in the evening.
Rounding out the finishing order for Michael Kofoid, Shawn Laeber, Ricky Brophy and reigning Watsonville champion Justin Sanders, who also won a heat race. Marissa Polizzi was back to try to make a run at another Top 5 finish, but unfortunately she had mechanical problems take her out of the Main Event.
As the field has generally had a dozen or so cars competing for the $1,200 to win first prize, various different visitors have increased the roster of total competitors to over 40 drivers now. You never know who might show up, and top local competitors like Dan Gonderman, Burt Foland Jr., rookie Tim Burcher, 2014 champion Chris Magoon and Adam McCarthy could be among the field this week. For further information about this race and other happenings at Antioch Speedway, go to www.antiochspeedway.com.
2016 Antioch Winged 360 All Star Series Points
Billy Aton 594
Art McCarthy 589
Dan Gonderman 392
Burt Foland Jr. 334
Shawn Arriaga 237
Matt Barber 220
Matt DeMartini 202
Rick Brophy 174
Marissa Polizzi 151
Chris Magoon 150
2016 All Star Series Winged 360 Sprint Car Schedule
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
September 10, 2016: Matt Barber
August 27, 2016; Billy Aton
August 20, 2016: Riley Matson
August 13, 2016: Art McCarthy
August 6, 2016: Seth Nunes
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
