Oval Nationals At Perris, CA Start Tonight

[CIRF]

The 21st annual Oval Nationals 3 day show at Perris Auto Speedway will begin tonight. The best wingless 410 sprint cars in the country will be in action. This is a great event and one of the most prestigious victory a sprint car driver can have on his/her resume'.

We've attended the Oval's 3 times and it is another great dirt open wheel event!! Beautiful facility, consistently perfect track prep and racing surface and the best dam race announcer (Scott Daloisio) in the country, bar none!

The Oval's will be broadcast live on Speed Shift TV internet PPV. Speed Shift does a great job. We'll definitely be watching.







By: Lance Jennings

After an exciting Western World Championships in Queen Creek, Arizona, the AMSOIL USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series return to Don Kazarian's Perris Auto Speedway for the "21st Annual Budweiser Oval Nationals, presented by All Coast Construction."*

Close to fifty racers from across the country have entered the three-day event. Co-sanctioned with the USAC National Sprints, Saturday’s 40-lap main event will pay $1,000 to start. Thursday and Friday’s 30-lap features will pay $5,000-to-win and $500 to start. In all, over $130,000 in purse money will be awarded for three nights of action.

Spectator gates will open at 4:00pm on Thursday & Friday with Racing at 7:00pm. On Saturday, the front gates will open and 3:00pm, an autograph session on the front straightaway will be at 3:00pm, and Racing is set for 6:30pm.

This year, “Super” Rickie Gaunt will serve as Grand Marshall of the prestigious race. The popular driver made his sprint car debut in 1988 with the original California Racing Association at the legendary Ascot Park.

Among his career highlights are winning the Oval Nationals in 1999, claiming both the SCRA and Non-Wing World Championship in 2004, and scoring a winged Golden State Challenge victory at Santa Maria in 1991.

Gaunt is currently tied for tenth in USAC/CRA Feature Wins (8) with Ryan Bernal and Danny Sheridan and tied for fifth in Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Awards (12) with Nic Faas.

In addition, “Super Rickie” has won some of the most the prominent races on the West Coast such as the Doug Fort Memorial (2015), Firecracker (2002), Jack Kindoll Classic (2004) and the Sokola Classic (2009)

Since March 6, 2004, the half-mile clay oval at the Lake Perris Fairgrounds has held 190 USAC/CRA Sprint Car events. “The Demon” Damion Gardner leads all drivers with 39 victories and Nic Faas set the 1-lap qualifying record of 15.833 on February 25, 2012.

To date, there have been nine “home track” shows in 2016 and seven different drivers have taken the checkered flag. California’s Austin Williams and Damion Gardner have two victories and other wins have been scored by Indiana’s Bryan Clauson, New Mexico’s Josh Hodges, and California’s Richard Vander Weerd, “Showtime” Danny Sheridan, and Matt Mitchell have stood atop the podium. A complete series win list at Perris Auto Speedway is at the end of this release.

After running second to Chris Windom in the “Western World Championships,” “The Demon” Damion Gardner (Concord, California) has a 158-point advantage over the competition. Racing Mark Alexander’s #4 Scott Sales Company / Weld Racing Spike, Gardner has four feature wins, three Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Awards, eleven heat race victories, one Brown & Miller Racing Solutions Semi-Main win, one BR Motorsports / King Racing Products Hard Charger Award, eighteen top-10 finishes, and 104 feature laps led to his credit. “The Demon” won the Oval Nationals in 2011 and will be looking to claim another eagle trophy and celebrate his fifth USAC/CRA championship.

Richard Vander Weerd (Visalia, California) is second in the championship point standings. Piloting the family owned #10 Vander Weerd Construction / Stone Gate Development Maxim, Richard scored sixth in Western World Championships.” As this writing goes to press, the 2011 USAC West Coast Champion has one feature win, two Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Awards, three heat race victories, sixteen top-10 finishes, and 61 feature laps led on the year. Vander Weerd is tied with Robert Ballou, Levi Jones, Bud Kaeding, and Blake Miller for fifteenth on the USAC/CRA win list (7) and will have his sights on the $25,000 victory.

Jake Swanson (Anaheim, California) ranks third in the USAC/CRA point chase. Driving Tom and Laurie Sertich’s #92 Huntington Beach Glass & Mirror / Clackamas Rigging and Transfer XXX, Swanson placed eighteenth at Queen Creek’s Arizona Speedway. To date, the 2012 Rookie of the Year has one feature win, three Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Awards, two heat race victories, two Brown & Miller Racing Solutions Semi-Main wins, fifteen top-10 finishes, and 7 feature laps led on the season. Jake will be looking for the second USAC/CRA main event win of his career at the Oval Nationals.

Brody Roa (Garden Grove, California) sits fourth in the chase for the championship. Piloting the BR Performance #91R HD Industries / Lee & Norma Leonard Maxim, Roa scored sixteenth at the Western World Championships. At press time, the USAC West Coast Champion has one Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Award, six heat race victories, thirteen top-10 finishes, and 52 feature laps led in the campaign. Brody has one career USAC/CRA triumph and will have his sights adding the Oval Nationals to his resume.

“The Big Game Hunter” Austin Williams (Yorba Linda, California) is currently fifth in the USAC/CRA point standings. Racing Jack Jory’s #2 John Jory Corporation / AMA Plastics Spike, Williams scored twenty-fourth at Queen Creek after an early exit. To date, the 2009 Rookie of the Year has posted two feature wins, one Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Award, one heat race victory, one Brown & Miller Racing Solutions Semi-Main win, two BR Motorsports / King Racing Products Hard Charger Awards, thirteen top-10 finishes, and 55 feature laps led in the campaign. Austin is tied with Garrett Hansen for twentieth on the USAC/CRA win list (5) and will be looking to score the biggest win of his career.

Currently ranked seventh in points, Max Adams (Loomis, California) leads the chase for Rookie of the Year honors. Andrew Sweeney (Lomita, California), Trent Williams (Victorville, California), and Mikey Lovas (Wildomar, California) are also in contention.

Local 360 iron-block powered Sprint Cars are welcome to enter the Oval Nationals. Per USAC rules, all fuel-injected 410 and 360 powered sprint cars must run the Hoosier 105/16 Medium Right Rear Tire, cars must pass a tech inspection, and one-way radios are mandatory.

Broken Arrow, Oklahoma’s “The Macho Man” Brady Bacon leads the AMSOIL USAC National Sprint Car point standings. Chase Stockon, “T-Mez” Thomas Meseraull, “The People’s Champion” Dave Darland, “The Bear” Chris Windom, “The Hanford Hornet” Chad Boespflug, “The Madman” Robert Ballou, C.J. Leary, Aaron Farney, and Kevin Thomas Jr. round out the top-10 drivers.

Perris Auto Speedway is located on the Lake Perris Fairgrounds at 18700 Lake Perris Drive in Perris, California. Advance tickets are available and for more information, visit the track’s website at www.perrisautospeedway.com or call 951.940.0134.

The AMSOIL USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series thanks Hoosier Tire, All Coast Construction, BR Motorsports, Brown and Miller Racing Solutions, Circle Track Performance, Competition Suspension Incorporated, DJ Safety, Diversified Machine Incorporated, Extreme Mufflers, Keizer Aluminum Wheels, King Racing Products, Rod End Supply, Stand 21 Racer Goes Safer Foundation, surfnsprint.com, Ultra Shield Race Products, and Woodland Auto Display for their support. If you or your company would like to become part of the series, email PR Director Lance Jennings at lwjennings@earthlink.net.

For more information on USAC/CRA, visit the United States Auto Club (USAC) website at www.usacracing.com. You can also find exclusive content on the USAC/CRA Facebook and Twitter pages.

For more event information on the “Oval Nationals,” visit the track’s website at www.perrisautospeedway.com or call 951.940.0134.

Loudpedal Productions has USAC/CRA DVDs and videos on demand available for purchase at www.loudpedal.tv and 805.407.7229.

[Ryan21mid]

I'll take T-Mez for the win! But the Demon will be tough to beat and the Bear has been RED HOT lately!

[CIRF]

I'll take T-Mez for the win! But the Demon will be tough to beat and the Bear has been RED HOT lately!

Ryan, you know your wingless 410 sprint car racing!! A tip of the hat for that. There are very few who post here who pay much attention to the best dirt racing there is.

I too would love to see T-Mez win it.

If you ever have the opportunity to attend Perris Auto Speedway and the Oval Nationals by all means do so. It is a great show at a great facility. Since it's so close to Los Angeles parking, food and beverage is a bit steep but for the most part the whole experience is worth it!! With Lake Perris just off of turn 3 the evening moisture in the air moves in and the track is nearly a sure thing to be tacky and fast all night with a usable cushion.

Plus, the Oval's are one of the biggest, if not the biggest, wingless shows of the year. Wish I could go every year!!

[Ryan21mid]

I grew up watching & wrenching on late models and modifieds, now have had the opportunity to race mods for the last 10 years so I was always turned off by sprinters....until I met Jesse Hockett. That guy tore up our tracks here around home and ever since I've grown to love open-wheel racing. Losing him was such a blow to our local open-wheel racing scene and really the scene as a whole, one of the last true outlaws!

The winged cars have gotten a bit too "slot-car-ish" for my liking but traditional sprints are #1 in my book. I'm a huge T-Mez fan, wish he'd get in a solid ride, he tears stuff up and has one helluva personality LOL but the dude lays it all out there and is fun to watch! Was stoked to see him podium @ Western World prelim in his own low-budget ride though!

I've never been to the west coast but it's on my bucket list to get to Perris for Ovals and Tulare for Trophy Cup one day. One place I'm sad I missed out on was Manzy, they say that place was a spectacle in itself.

[CIRF]

Now I see why you know what you're talking about. After driving mods for 10 years and having watched "The Rocket" you no doubt know a little of what it takes to be good in a full on 410 sprinter.

I watched Jesse race many times over the years and feel fortunate that I did. In fact we were at Terre Haute for the Hulman Classic right after he passed away. He was preparing the car and hauler to head out to Terre Haute when the generator accident happened. He was tough in a sprint car, that's for sure.

I've always said T-Mez would be entertaining to watch even if he was doing laps on a big wheel around a small sapling all by himself! The most memorable T-Mex race I ever watched was at the indoor POWRi midget show at Du Quoin. Bryan Clauson and T-Mez were locked in a fierce battle for the lead from about lap 15 till the end of the 30 lap A-main. They were bustin' off big sliders and dodging traffic and the lead was sometimes changing twice a lap. Unfortunately T-Mez came up just a bit short but he and Bryan hugged and laughed after the race knowing they'd thoroughly entertained all in attendance.

I feel exactly the same as you about winged sprints as opposed to wingless. The wingers are nasty fast but the wingless are more entertaining IMHO.

We went to Manzy 3 years prior to it being closed for good. It was the Western World Championships. I feel extremely fortunate to have attended an event there. They stopped selling general admission tickets because the place completely full. I have never, before or since, ever attended an event where they stopped selling standing room only tickets!

Another West Coast track you need to make sure you visit is Ventura Raceway. Ventura is about 120 miles north of Los Angeles. It's literally a stones throw from the Pacific Ocean. We're headed out there for the Turkey Night Grand Prix in a couple of weeks. We were at Turkey Night at Perris in 2012 when Kyle Larson won it but we're really pumped about going to TN at Ventura. We attended opening night at Ventura in March of 2012 and found it to be the most picturesque and unique dirt track we've ever been to.

[CIRF]

I'll take T-Mez for the win! But the Demon will be tough to beat and the Bear has been RED HOT lately!

Ryan, you were dead on about The Demon being tough. He picked off his 3rd Oval Nationals victory. He's the only 3 time winner to date.