By Lance Jennings
SANTA MARIA, CA – MAY 11, 2010… The USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series will hold their eighth round of competition this Saturday night, May 15th, at Tulare's Groppetti Automotive Thunderbowl Raceway. The Pombo / Sargent Classic will also showcase the winged Golden State Challenge 410 Sprint Cars and the Central California Modifieds.
Point leader Craig Stidham of Fresno won the 30-lap feature last Saturday night at Santa Maria. The pilot of the Brad Johnson Trucking / KRC Safety #3S Maxim took the lead on lap twenty-six from Visalia's Jace VanderWeerd. Craig led the rest of the way for his third victory of the season and will be looking for his third straight Tulare win. Stidham now enjoys sixty-nine point advantage over Clovis' Peter Murphy.
Murphy, the 2009 Santa Maria Track Champion, finished second at Santa Maria after starting sixth. Driving Tom Tarlton's potent Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino #21 KPC entry, the veteran driver has four heat race wins and four top-5 finishes on the season. Murphy is back to last year's form and will be among the favorites to score his first feature victory of 2010 at Tulare.
Sitting third in the point standings is Kerman's Davey Pombo. Pombo took Junior Bowman's Buster & Ziggy #3 Bullet to a fourth place finish at Santa Maria. Last year's 360 Grand Slam Series Champion took the Bakersfield win on March 27th and was the Tulare Hard Charger on April 10th, scoring fourth place after starting thirteenth. Pombo is looking for a Tulare victory as he makes a bid for the series championship.
Defending series champion Justyne Hamblin of Hanford is now fourth in the point chase. Hamblin piloted the JH Motorsports / Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino #8 Speed Tech to fifth place at Santa Maria. After some tough nights early in the season, Justyne has rebounded with six top-10 finishes and is another driver looking for that first feature victory of the season.
Fresno's T.J. Smith had an eleventh place finish in Steve LeGras' UHL Rubber #14 Maxim at Santa Maria. Sitting fifth in the point standings, the former Plaza Park track champion has two top-5 finishes on the season and will be working for his first series win this Saturday night at Tulare.
Among the other top contenders expected to be in action are "Showtime" Danny Sheridan of Santa Maria, 2006 SCRA 360 Champion Jonathan Logan of Hanford, Bakersfield's Rusty Carlile, "Hollywood" Danny Faria Jr. of Tipton, Mariposa's Andy Ferris, Chris Ennis of Bakersfield, Visalia's Richard and Jace VanderWeerd, and 4-time Santa Maria track champion "Junkyard" Jimmy Thompson from Arroyo Grande.
The USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series would like to thank Southwest Contractors, Hoosier Tire, Amsoil, BR Motorsports, Competition Suspension, Cory Kruseman's Sprint Car & Midget Driving School, Crow Enterprizes, DJ Safety, Extreme Mufflers, Hinchman-Indy Racing Uniforms, Integra Shocks, Kaeding Performance, Keizer Wheels, King Racing Products, Kirkey Racing Fabrication, Port City Racing, Saferacer.com, Saldana Racing Products, and Sander Engineering for their support.
The Groppetti Automotive Thunderbowl Raceway is located on the Tulare County Fairgrounds at the corner of Bardsley and K Streets in Tulare. The Front Gates will open at 5:00pm, with Time Trials at 6:00pm, and Racing at 7:00pm. Reserved Grandstand Tickets are $18 and Bleacher Tickets are $15. Advance tickets are on sale and can be purchased by calling the track office at (559) 688-0909.
For more event information, please visit the track’s website at www.tularethunderbowl.com.
For more information on the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series, please visit www.westcoastsprintcars.com, www.usacracing.com, www.racesantamariaspeedway.com, or follow the series on facebook.
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USAC WEST COAST 360 SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS:
1. Craig Stidham 442
2. Peter Murphy 373
3. Davey Pombo 370
4. Justyne Hamblin 324
5. T.J. Smith 307
6. Rusty Carlile 300
7. Andy Ferris 274
8. Jace VanderWeerd 270
9. Jonathan Logan 259
10. Danny Faria Jr. 250
11. Chris Ennis 248
12. Richard VanderWeerd 218
13. Danny Sheridan 193
14. Jimmy Thompson 187
15. Jesse Mack 168
16. Garrett Ishii 146
17. Geoffrey Strole 127
18. Wes Gutierrez 126
19. Dave Knott 117
20. Kevin Barnes 114
SANTA MARIA, CA – MAY 11, 2010… The USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series will hold their eighth round of competition this Saturday night, May 15th, at Tulare's Groppetti Automotive Thunderbowl Raceway. The Pombo / Sargent Classic will also showcase the winged Golden State Challenge 410 Sprint Cars and the Central California Modifieds.
Point leader Craig Stidham of Fresno won the 30-lap feature last Saturday night at Santa Maria. The pilot of the Brad Johnson Trucking / KRC Safety #3S Maxim took the lead on lap twenty-six from Visalia's Jace VanderWeerd. Craig led the rest of the way for his third victory of the season and will be looking for his third straight Tulare win. Stidham now enjoys sixty-nine point advantage over Clovis' Peter Murphy.
Murphy, the 2009 Santa Maria Track Champion, finished second at Santa Maria after starting sixth. Driving Tom Tarlton's potent Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino #21 KPC entry, the veteran driver has four heat race wins and four top-5 finishes on the season. Murphy is back to last year's form and will be among the favorites to score his first feature victory of 2010 at Tulare.
Sitting third in the point standings is Kerman's Davey Pombo. Pombo took Junior Bowman's Buster & Ziggy #3 Bullet to a fourth place finish at Santa Maria. Last year's 360 Grand Slam Series Champion took the Bakersfield win on March 27th and was the Tulare Hard Charger on April 10th, scoring fourth place after starting thirteenth. Pombo is looking for a Tulare victory as he makes a bid for the series championship.
Defending series champion Justyne Hamblin of Hanford is now fourth in the point chase. Hamblin piloted the JH Motorsports / Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino #8 Speed Tech to fifth place at Santa Maria. After some tough nights early in the season, Justyne has rebounded with six top-10 finishes and is another driver looking for that first feature victory of the season.
Fresno's T.J. Smith had an eleventh place finish in Steve LeGras' UHL Rubber #14 Maxim at Santa Maria. Sitting fifth in the point standings, the former Plaza Park track champion has two top-5 finishes on the season and will be working for his first series win this Saturday night at Tulare.
Among the other top contenders expected to be in action are "Showtime" Danny Sheridan of Santa Maria, 2006 SCRA 360 Champion Jonathan Logan of Hanford, Bakersfield's Rusty Carlile, "Hollywood" Danny Faria Jr. of Tipton, Mariposa's Andy Ferris, Chris Ennis of Bakersfield, Visalia's Richard and Jace VanderWeerd, and 4-time Santa Maria track champion "Junkyard" Jimmy Thompson from Arroyo Grande.
The USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series would like to thank Southwest Contractors, Hoosier Tire, Amsoil, BR Motorsports, Competition Suspension, Cory Kruseman's Sprint Car & Midget Driving School, Crow Enterprizes, DJ Safety, Extreme Mufflers, Hinchman-Indy Racing Uniforms, Integra Shocks, Kaeding Performance, Keizer Wheels, King Racing Products, Kirkey Racing Fabrication, Port City Racing, Saferacer.com, Saldana Racing Products, and Sander Engineering for their support.
The Groppetti Automotive Thunderbowl Raceway is located on the Tulare County Fairgrounds at the corner of Bardsley and K Streets in Tulare. The Front Gates will open at 5:00pm, with Time Trials at 6:00pm, and Racing at 7:00pm. Reserved Grandstand Tickets are $18 and Bleacher Tickets are $15. Advance tickets are on sale and can be purchased by calling the track office at (559) 688-0909.
For more event information, please visit the track’s website at www.tularethunderbowl.com.
For more information on the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series, please visit www.westcoastsprintcars.com, www.usacracing.com, www.racesantamariaspeedway.com, or follow the series on facebook.
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USAC WEST COAST 360 SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS:
1. Craig Stidham 442
2. Peter Murphy 373
3. Davey Pombo 370
4. Justyne Hamblin 324
5. T.J. Smith 307
6. Rusty Carlile 300
7. Andy Ferris 274
8. Jace VanderWeerd 270
9. Jonathan Logan 259
10. Danny Faria Jr. 250
11. Chris Ennis 248
12. Richard VanderWeerd 218
13. Danny Sheridan 193
14. Jimmy Thompson 187
15. Jesse Mack 168
16. Garrett Ishii 146
17. Geoffrey Strole 127
18. Wes Gutierrez 126
19. Dave Knott 117
20. Kevin Barnes 114
