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Ventura, CA...Oct 12.......Taking
the lead from former champion Kevin Kierce on a restart around midrace, former
dwarf car star Tom Stansberry won his second 30 lap VRA unwinged 360 sprint car
feature Saturday night at Ventura Raceway. Stansberry's win was his second of
2002 and paid $1000. Tony Dighera was a $750 second and rookie Chris Tramel
continued his strong recent efforts with a $500 third. Jimmy Crawford ran a
solid fifth to wrap up the season championship with one point race remaining as
his 1060 point lead is uncatchable with just 1050 points available each race
night. Wiley Miller won his 7th 16 lap Senior Sprint Car feature in 14 starts
and wrapped up the track championship in the process. Richard Terry finished
second ahead of Ron Butler. Jody Davis won his 2nd VRA Modified main event of
2002 and that division's point title fight will go to the final night with five
drivers in contention. Tom Fish won his second 20 lap pony stock main event and
Cliff Ashlock used a fourth place finish to increase his point lead over Mike
Frazier to 55 points.
There were 34 cars in the
pit area for the regular VRA unwinged 360 sprint cars. They were divided into
the usual four heat races with the top four in each heat advancing to the 30 lap
A Main. Ronnie Case won a photo finish with Dighera in heat 1 as Chris Wakim ran
third. Josh Ford was an early crash victim. Stansberry dominated heat 2 with his
Maxim as SCRA racers Gary W Howard and Steve Ostling ran 2-3. New track champion
Crawford won heat 3 from the back of the field. He used a low line to beat
Kierce and Mike Knopf. A series of early incidents in heat 4 sidelined point
runnerup Greg Taylor and Clark Templeman III. Tramel won the race ahead of Luis
Espinoza and Trevor Brillman. Taylor did drive his Ellis to a win in the B Main
with Ostling and Ford in the 2-3 slots. Previous week winner Allan Ballard had
to battle back from an early spin while leading to take the final transfer slot.
Fellow Bakersfield racer Mike Broome just missed the cut. Kierce took an early
lead in the 30 lap A Main ahead of pole starter Howard, Tramel and Stansberry. A
yellow flag for a crashed Wakim slowed the action and Stansberry was able to
take the lead from Kierce on this restart. Dighera worked his way around Kierce
and chased Stansberry to the win. Tramel ran third ahead of Kierce, Crawford and
17th starter Taylor. Ostling came from 18th to run 7th ahead of Howard and
Brillman. The action wrapped up the title for Crawford and second for Taylor.
The third place duel between Wakim, Dighera and Ford will continue on Oct 19th
as only 240 points seperate the trio.
The Senior Sprint
division had a record 24 cars. Hoping to keep his faint hopes of catching Miller
for the title alive, 2001 champion Jim Porter won heat 1 but Miller ran second
ahead of Terry. Dayle Henry beat Sammy Iaconis and John Woodward in heat 2.
Rookie of the year Curtis Richards won heat 3 ahead of Butler and Oren Prosser
Sr. The division is for drivers 45 years old or older and actually has a
father-son team as C Richards father John Richards was co-rookie of the year in
2001 and ran fourth in this heat. The officials elected to start all 24 cars in
their 16 lap feature. Miller and C Richards were in the front row and Miller led
all the way for the win. He drove his Stinger to victory ahead of Terry, Butler,
Prosser Sr and Ron Bach. Henry ran sixth ahead of Woodward, Mike Cook and C
Richards. Porter trails Miller by 2055 points, but there is a tight battle for
second to be determined on Oct 19. Porter leads Butler by just 10 points with
Bach just 370 behind Porter.
There were 15 VRA
Modifieds and they used a two heat format. The red hot Ric Bronson won heat 1
with defending champion George Krieder IV second. Marty Desbrow won heat 2 ahead
of David Lidren. Davis won the 20 lap feature ahead of Bronson, Krieder, Ray
Martinez, Desbrow, Mark Gallimore, Mike Schwellinger and Andy Frank. Gallimore
holds a 35 point lead on Krieder, is 100 ahead of Rick Rodarte, 125 ahead of
Marty McLaughlin and 165 in front of Bronson with 220 points available on Oct
19. There were 20 pony stocks and Jon Everhart won the first heat over Andrew
Greiman. Wade Zimmerman and Tom Fish were 1-2 in heat 2. Fish won the 20 lap
main event ahead of James Brown, Greiman, Ashlock, Everhart, Jon Mortensen, Adam
McPhail and Frazier. The track title fight is just a two person fight between
Ashlock and Frazier with the 55 point difference. Brown holds an 85 point margin
on John Duque in their third place fight.
After the Oct 19 point finale for the local
classes, the SCRA sprint cars close the 2002 campaign with the annual Wags Dash
action on Oct 26.
Summary
Pony Stocks
Heat 1-Jon Everhart, Andrew Greisman, Randy Miller, Dave Revard, James
Brown.
Heat 2-Wade Zimmerman, Tom Fish, Jim Jewett, Adam McPhail, Morgan Cole.
Main-Fish, Brown, Greiman, Cliff Ashlock, Everhart, Jon Mortensen, McPhail, Mike
Frazier, Lindsey Klingberg, John Mikkelsen, Joel Chavez, Revard, John Duque,
Jewett, Tracy Scaffire, Cole, Miller, Zimmerman, Candice Raney.
VRA Modifieds
Heat 1-Ric Bronson, George Kreider IV, Ray Martinez, Mark Gallimore, Jody Davis.
Heat 2-Marty Desbrow, David Lidren, Rick Rodarte, Marty McLaughlin, Andy Frank.
Main-Davis, Bronson, Kreider, Martinez, Desbrow, Gallimore, Mike Schwellinger,
Frank, McLaughlin, Lidren, Joe Henderson, Dave Rose, Rodarte, Travis Wickenden,
Art Justus.
Senior Sprints
Heat 1-Jim Porter, Wiley Miller, Richard Terry, Ron Bach, Eddie Wirth.
Heat 2-Dayle Henry, Sammy Iaconis, John Woodward, Mike Cook, Chuck Tyler.
Heat 3-Curtis Richards, Ron Butler, Oren Prosser Sr, John Richards, Mark
Chuhaloff.
Main-Miller, Terry, Butler, Prosser, Bach, Henry, Woodward, Cook, C Richards,
Tyler, Iaconis, Sparky Edmonston, Sam Vail, Bruce Douglas, Rick Lewis, Chuhaloff,
J Richards, Tim Moon, Bill Perkins, Ray Knight, Wirth, Porter, Preiss Movius,
Dale Harwood.
Unwinged 360 Sprint Cars
Heat 1-Ronnie Case, Tony Dighera, Chris Wakim, Steven Conrad, Bill
Camarillo.
Heat 2-Tom Stansberry, Gary W Howard, Oren Prosser Jr, Bill Welch, Allan
Ballard.
Heat 3-Jimmy Crawford, Kevin Keirce, Mike Knopf, Mike Davis, Steve Chuhaloff.
Heat 4-Chris Tramel, Luis Espinoza, Trevor Brillman, Jeff Wilson, Patrick
Frisco.
B Main-Greg Taylor, Steve Ostling, Josh Ford, Ballard, Mike Broome, Russell
DeBlauw, Frisco, Chuhaloff, Jonas Reynolds, Steve Gresham.
A Main-Stansberry, Dighera, Tramel, Kierce, Crawford, Taylor, Ostling, Howard,
Brillman, Conrad, Prosser Jr, Davis, Ford, Ballard, Welch, Wilson, Wakim,
Espinoza, Knopf, Case.
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