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KENNY WILEY WINS FIRST NMRA-TQ MIDGET FEATURE
- By Tim Kennedy
Hanford, CA, Mar. 17 -- Kenny Wiley, 46, started his fifth year as a TQ Midget driver Saturday night and won the first NMRA-TQ Midget feature of his career at the 3/8-mile clay Kings Speedway. The 2002 NMRA rookie of the year drove Paul Lopiccolo's No. 21 Rick Stewart chassis with Honda power. The scheduled 25-lap NMRA point season opener ran 15-laps because of time constraints in a multi-division racing program. Wiley led every lap in the 11-car race and became the NMRA point leader by five points (66-61) over Bruce Hiroshima.
Hiroshima, 44-year old NMRA 2004 rookie of the year from Camarillo, finished second in his own Stewart/Honda. Ron Ahrendt, from Harbor City, placed third in wife Judi's No. 87 Dave Ellis chassis with Honda power. A pair of first-time TQ Midget drivers--Nick Cali and Jonathan St. Clair--finished fourth and
fifth respectively. Cali drove Hiroshima's second car and St. Clair drove his own recently purchased No. 15 Walt Johnson chassis with Honda power.
West Evans, second year TQ racer Jenna Bliffen, 2006 NMRA rookie of the year Scott Dobson, Richard Marshall, 2002 and 2006 NMRA champion Chuck West and Richard Ortega, Jr completed the 22-car field in that order. Wiley and Marshall won a pair of eight-lap TQ heat races with six cars in heat one and five cars in heat two. Time trials were not held. Round two of the current 16 NMRA point race schedule will be held Saturday, March 31 at the fifth-mile clay Ventura Raceway next to the Pacific Ocean. VRA 360 Sprints, VRA Senior Sprints and IMCA Modifieds also share the racing card that evening.
NMRA POINT STANDINGS:
Drivers Car Owners
1 Kenny Wiley 66 1 21 Paul Lopiccolo 69
2 Bruce Hiroshjima 61 2 5 Bruce Hiroshima 64
3 Ron Ahrendt 59 3 87 Judi Ahrendt 62
4 Nick Cali 51 4 20 Bruce Hiroshima 54
5 Jonathan St. Clair 51 5 15 Jonathan St.Clair 54
6 West Evans 50 6 36 West Evans 53
7 Jenna Bliffen 42 7 3 Michael Bliffen 45
8 Scott Dobson 42 8 18 Guy Barber 45
9 Richard Marshall 42 9 6 Richard Marshall 45
10 Chuck West 33 10 38 West Evans 36
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