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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series
#2 Danny Faria Jr. Photo by paquetphotography.com.
USAC WEST COAST 360 SPRINTS RETURN TO SANTA MARIA
By Lance Jennings
SANTA MARIA, CA – JULY 26, 2011... This Saturday night, July 30th, the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series will compete at Chris Kearns' Santa Maria Speedway. The showcase will also present the West Coast Street Stocks, USAC Ford Focus Midgets, USAC Quarter Midgets, and the Okie Bowl Hardtops. The Front Gates will open at 4:00pm, Time Trials will start at 5:00pm, with Racing at "The West Coast's Best Short Track" to begin at 6:00pm.
Twin brothers Richard and Jace VanderWeerd of Visalia sit atop the standings heading into Saturday's action. Driving the family owned #10 VanderWeerd Construction / Battery Worx Maxim, Richard holds a fifty-four point advantage over the competition. The young driver won Hanford's early make-up feature on July 16th and claimed third in the Jim Evett Memorial. To date, VanderWeerd has two Sander Engineering Fast Time Awards, three heat race victories, seven top-10 finishes, and led seventeen feature laps on the year.
Piloting the family owned #88 VanderWeerd Construction / Battery Worx Maxim, Jace VanderWeerd was victorious at Santa Maria on April 9th. Now second in the point chase, Jace was fifth in the Hanford make-up 30-lapper and fifth in the Evett Memorial. As this writing goes to press, last year's USAC/CRA Sprint Car Rookie of the Year has seven top-10 finishes and led fourteen main event laps in 2011.
Campbell's Bud Kaeding is third in standings and leads the series with four feature wins. Driving Junior Bowman's #29 Buster & Ziggy Enterprises / Kaeding Performance Maxim, Bud was second in the make-up show and fifteenth in the Evett Memorial. The multi-time USAC Silver Crown Champion has one Sander Engineering Fast Time Award, two heat race victories, five top-10 finishes, and led seventy-seven feature laps on the season.
Sitting fourth in the championship points is "Wide Open" Wes Gutierrez of San Martin. Piloting the WG Motorsports' #007 ButlerBuilt / Competition Suspension Inc. DRC, Wes was fourteenth in the make-up 30-lapper and fourth in the Evett Memorial. The young hard charger has three heat race victories and five top-10 finishes to his credit in 2011.
After a tough night at Hanford, Hollister's Ryan Bernal dropped to fifth in points. The driver of Danny Olmstead's #11D S&S Automotive / Dorso's Automotive Maxim, scored twenty-second in the early make-up show and did not make the Evett Memorial feature in a borrowed ride. The former Wingless Spec Sprint Champion has two heat race victories, five top-10 finishes, and led fifty-one laps of main event competition.
Tipton's "Hollywood" Danny Faria Jr. and Peter Murphy of Clovis have also claimed victory in 2011. Faria won Hanford's Jim Evett Memorial on July 16th and Murphy won Tulare's 30-lap feature on April 30th. Saturday’s card will mark the third of five scheduled events at Santa Maria's 1/3-mile facility, including the "Bud Stanfield Memorial" on September 17th.
Among the other top contenders expected to be in action are Greg Alexander of Gardena, Rancho Palos Verdes' Dennis Howell, Fresno's T.J. Smith, Justyne Hamblin of Hanford, and Bakersfield's Rusty Carlile. In addition, Hanford's Jonathan Logan, Kerman's Davey Pombo, and Ricky Kirkbride of Bakersfield should be on hand to battle for the victory.
Santa Maria Speedway is located 1/4-mile north of the 101/166 interchange at 1900 Hutton Road in Nipomo, California. Adult tickets are $16, Senior, Military, and Student tickets (13-17) are $14, Kids tickets (6-12) are $6, and Children’s tickets (5 and under) are FREE. For more event information, visit the track’s website at www.racesantamariaspeedway.com or call (805) 922-2232.
The USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series would like to thank Southwest Contractors, Hoosier Tire, Amsoil, BR Motorsports, ButlerBuilt, Competition Suspension Inc., Cory Kruseman's Sprint Car & Midget Driving School, Crow Enterprizes, DJ Safety, Extreme Mufflers, Hilborn Fuel Injection, Hinchman-Indy Racing Uniforms, Integra Shocks, Kaeding Performance, Keizer Wheels, King Racing Products, Port City Racing, Rod End Supply, Saferacer.com, Saldana Racing Products, and Sander Engineering for their support.
For more information on the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series, visit www.westcoastsprintcars.com, www.usacracing.com, www.racesantamariaspeedway.com, or follow the series on facebook.
USAC WEST COAST 360 SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS
1-Richard VanderWeerd-450; 2-Jace VanderWeerd-396; 3-Bud Kaeding-376; 4-Wes Gutierrez-371; 5-Ryan Bernal-368; 6-Danny Faria Jr.-368; 7-Greg Alexander-332; 8-Dennis Howell-294; 9-T.J. Smith-283; 10-Justyne Hamblin-282.
NEXT USAC WEST COAST 360 SPRINT RACE:
July 30 - Santa Maria (CA) Speedway
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