This message was edited on
November 29, 2012 at
11:16:58 AM by stevenblakesley
Tim Kaeding leads final California Sprint & Midget Power Poll for 2012
For full poll results, visit: http://stevenblakesley.com/news/11.28-sprintcarpoll.html
ELK GROVE, CALIFORNIA (November 28, 2012) - The final California Sprint &
Midget Power Poll is completed and it's a familiar driver on the top of
the list. Our final top 10 for the year includes the champions from
King of the West, Civil War Series, USAC/CRA, USAC West Coast 360, and
Placerville Speedway along with winners from most major events in
California including the Dave Bradway, Jr. Memorial, Oval Nationals,
Louie Vermeil Classic, and Johnny Key Classic. In total, these
drivers accumulated 91 wins and were the dominate force in nearly every
race they entered.
After a thrilling
season of racing in California with hundreds of drivers competing on
both pavement and dirt, wings and non-wings, in midgets and sprint
cars, it was San Jose's Tim Kaeding coming out on top again
1. Tim Kaeding
- Tim Kaeding reigns supreme as the top driver in the state of
California in 2012 on the strength of eight victories in his 29
starts. TK spent a good portion of his year away from the Golden State
running in the World of Outlaws. His eight wins included six in the
King of the West and World of Outlaws victories at Tulare in March and
Antioch in September. Kaeding was the top 410 driver in California
bar none this season and that was enough to propel him to the top of
the poll
2. Mike Spencer
- Winning a historic fifth consecutive USAC/CRA championship helped
Mike Spencer finish second in our 2012 Power Poll. Spencer ran
primarily in USAC/CRA competition which limited his exposure among our
media poll. Since there were no opportunities this season to see
Kaeding vs. Spencer, it will be debated as to who should be #1. Spencer
racked up 10 victories in 32 starts and also won the Ventura Raceway
All Coast Challenge three race mini series championship as well.
3. Kyle Larson
- Speaking of drivers who didn't have their full attention on
California, Kyle Larson made the most of his 22 starts this year out
west to score third in the Power Poll. Larson's wins included most
notably a dominating performance at the Gold Cup Race of Champions but
also saw him top 60 entries for the 98 lap Turkey Night Grand Prix at
Perris. He also came one main event short of a four-for-four sweep at
Tulare in May. Larson visited victory lane eight times this season in
California while also finding time to win the NASCAR K&N Pro
Series, East championship.
4. Jon Allard
- Jonathan Allard won the 2012 King of the West championship to guide
himself to fourth in the state of California this season. Not only
did Allard win the KWS title, he became a five-time Dave Bradway, Jr.
Memorial winner. He won four KWS features and added two more to get
himself to six wins on the season in a 38 race campaign. Allard is
already on a hot streak in New Zealand for his winter schedule,
winning the first three main events at Western Springs.
5. Kyle Hirst
- This year's do anything driver was Kyle Hirst of Sacramento, who won
in all varieties of sprint cars on his way to eight wins this season.
Hirst swept the USAC shows at Placerville and Chico in August, won the
final night of the Louie Vermeil Classic at Calistoga in September,
and won with the Civil War and King of the West as well.
6. Sean Becker
- "The Shark" had a season he described as his career's best, winning a
preliminary night of the Gold Cup and winning the 2012 Silver Dollar
Speedway championship in a narrow battle with Andy Forsberg. But his
win at Calistoga in the 75th Anniversary Commemorative race might have
been his biggest of 2012, snaring $15,000 for his first ever win at the
half-mile Napa Fairgrounds speed plant. Becker won 10 races this
season in a productive season.
7. Andy Forsberg
- "Mr. Excitement" found himself racing all over the state of
California this year in search of wins and championships, leading the
state with 68 starts while still having time to win the Civil War and
Placerville Speedway championships along the way. Forsberg also
finished right behind Sean Becker in the Silver Dollar Speedway
championship and ironically finishes behind Becker in the Power Poll as
well. Forsberg parked it in victory lane a dozen times this year.
8. Ryan Bernal
- The young Ryan Bernal out of Hollister, CA is a non-wing phenom who
opened up the eyes of the racing media with nine wins this year.
Bernal focused on the USAC/CRA and USAC West Coast 360s but also won
twice with the USAC Western Midgets. He capped his big 2012 season with
a well-deserved third place finish at the Turkey Night Grand Prix. A
win or two at Perris with the USAC/CRA would have surely moved Bernal
up the rankings but his Calistoga Speedway Louie Vermeil win was
significant as well.
9. Bud Kaeding
- Like his brother Tim, Bud Kaeding spent a good amount of his 2012
season chasing action on the East Coast including USAC Sprint Car and
USAC Silver Crown action. But Bud still had a very productive year in
California with 12 wins and winning the 2012 USAC West Coast 360
championship. Kaeding narrowly missed winning the Johnny Key Classic
by finishing third as well. After running as high as fifth in the
poll, Kaeding rounds out the season in ninth.
10. Tommy Tarlton
- 2012 was supposed to be the year that Tommy Tarlton slowed down, but
instead he put together six Ocean Sprints wins and added two more for a
huge season. Tarlton won the first three Johnny Key qualifying nights
and lived up the hype with the $10,000 Johnny Key Classic victory at
Ocean Speedway. He also scored a pair of wins at Hanford in the Rebel
Cup sprint cars in 2012 to be our 10th place finisher in the Power
Poll.
About the CA Sprint Car & Midget Power Poll:
Eligible drivers come from any injected winged or non-wing Sprint Car division in the state along with full Midgets as well.
The poll includes
top-ten lists from various media members including site editor Steven
Blakesley, photographer Chris Cleveland, announcers Troy Henning, Ron
Lingron, and Bill Sullivan, King of the West PR guru Gary Thomas, and
driver PR specialist PJ Petersen. A statistical analysis of California
racing stats by Jeff Bye, Jr. is combined with the media poll to create
a current picture of the top-10 drivers in the state.
Power polls will be
released every other week throughout the racing season until the end of
the season, when StevenBlakesley.com will crown a California Sprint
& Midget Power Poll" champion for the season.
www.stevenblakesley.com
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