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CRA SPRINT CARS, FOCUS MIDGET TITLE DECIDER NEXT AT VENTURA
by Lee Elder
VENTURA, Calif. (Oct. 21, 2008) – Mike Spencer and Blake Miller are trying to decide the 2008 USAC/CRA sprint car racing championship between themselves, but when they race at Ventura Raceway this weekend, they’ll have to go through Cory Kruseman to do it.
The CRA sprinters and their soul-pleasing 410 cubic-inch engines will share the track with USAC’s California Dirt Ford Focus Midgets, USAC Junior Focus Midgets, the Pro Dwarf Cars and VRA Junior Midgets. The California Dirt Ford Focus Midget event is a make up for the Oct. 4 rainout and will decide the 2008 championship.
Spectator gates open at 3 p.m. The Junior Midget heat races start at 3:30 and the adult heat races start at 5:30.
Spencer leads Miller by 62 points in the CRA title chase. Danny Sheridan is third, 41 points behind Miller. Only 74 points are available on race night.
But Kruseman is the undisputed king among sprint car drivers at Ventura and he is expected to race Saturday. Running a partial CRA schedule this season due to his national racing commitments, Kruseman is eighth in the CRA standings. That includes a win at Ventura when the CRA raced at the track earlier this season.
The California Dirt Ford Focus Midget title comes down to three drivers: Alex Bowman, Walt Johnson and Nick Carlson. Bowman has two wins, Johnson has three top-three finishes and Carlson has one win in the previous six races at Ventura this season.
Charlie Butcher, the Santa Barbara Flash, leads the USAC Junior Ford Focus standings. He has four wins this season.
More information about Ventura Raceway is available at www.venturaraceway.com.
Raceway notes: The Oct. 18 event at Ventura attracted 143 racecars and 54 of them were sprint cars. The final installment of the D’Angelos Sprint Car Shootout attracted 32 entrants in the Sprint Car class and there were 22 Senior Sprints entries…The previous event at the track, a vintage motorcycle race, attracted 219 entrants…The Nov. 1 date is an off weekend for the Raceway and is expected to attract no racecars…Race fans interested in getting involved with the sport as officials at Ventura Raceway in 2009 should contact Promoter Jim Naylor now in order to be first in line for any openings that come up.
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