This message was edited on
March 22, 2014 at
01:00:13 AM by ljennings
NIVEN WINS NMRA-TQ MIDGET SEASON OPENER – By Tim Kennedy
Bakersfield, CA., Mar. 15 – NMRA-TQ Midget Series competitors opened their scheduled 12-race season Saturday in a multi-division program topped by USAC West Coast sprint cars at the third-mile clay Bakersfield Speedway. NMRA produced the highest car count--13---in five years with two new entries joining the action. The open-wheel association had 14 cars twice and 13 cars once during the 2009 season.
Scott Niven, a 45-year old electrician from Moorpark, started second and led all 20-laps in his own No. 66 Stealth/836 cc Honda. It was his second career TQ feature triumph. His initial victory came last May 11 at Santa Maria Speedway. The former stock car racer at Ventura Raceway bought his TQ midget in 2008 and finished tenth in both driver and owner point standings. The father of three has not raced as often as he would like because of family obligations. Last season Niven finished ninth in driver and owner points.
Anthony Lopiccolo, of Brea, started fourth and finished second in a Stealth/GPZ 836 cc Kawasaki owned by his father Paul. It is the first TQ chassis built by Stealth for Shane Scully. Ricky Shelton raced it to the USAC TQ driving title in 1996. Alex Harris drove it to the 1997-98 USAC TQ championships. Current NASCAR stock car driver Josh Wise drove it to the 1999 USAC TQ championship. West Evans owned and drove it until 2006. He sold it to Richard Ortega who raced the car to 2009. It has been idle since then. Team Lopiccolo acquired it for the last few races of 2013.
Chuck West, a five-time NMRA driving champion from Clovis, drove the West Evans Motorsports Spike/Racewerks Kawasaki from seventh starting to third place. Kenny Wiley started fifth and placed fourth in his self-built chassis powered by Honda. Pole starter Bruce Hiroshima finished fifth in his own car. Completing the top ten were: 2013 NMRA driving champion West Evans aboard his own No. 36 Spike/Wirth Suzuki. Britt Grissom, the 2013 TQ rookie of the year, started eighth and finished seventh. Scott Dobson, Don Kiefer and Dave Lambert followed. All completed the full 20 laps.
Jonathan St. Clair, NMRA's 2007 rookie of the year, completed 18 laps for 11th position. He drove Paul Lopiccolo's second car, a Rick Stewart chassis with Honda power renumbered from No. 21 to No. 22. Rookie Doyle Mosley, brother of the late Mike Mosley, a 1960s CRA and USAC sprint car driver and Indianapolis 500 driver, did not start. The NMRA-TQ rookie purchased the No. 87 Dave Ellis/Honda from long-time TQ owner/driver Ron Ahrendt. Chris Thomas also sat out the feature with a mechanical problem.
A. Lopiccolo won the first of two eight lap heat races from fifth grid position in a seven car field. Niven (from second in a six car field) captured the second heat. Niven became the first 2014 NMRA point leader by three points in both driver and owner categories. The Brea-based Lopiccolo team ranks second in both categories.
The 2014 NMRA season has races scheduled at two clay speedways. Bakersfield Speedway, in Oildale, has seven dates slated from March to September. Santa Maria Speedway has five days booked from May 3 to October 18. The next NMRA -TQ race date is Saturday, April 19 at Bakersfield Speedway in another multi-division card.
SUMMARY:
Heat 1 – Anthony Lopiccolo, Bruce Hiroshima, Chuck West, Don Kiefer, Britt Grissom, Dave Lambert, Doyle Mosley. All seven completed eight laps.
Heat 2 – Scott Niven, West Evans, Kenny Wiley, Chris Thomas, Jonathan St. Clair, Scott Dobson. All six starters completed eight laps.
Main – Niven, Lopiccolo, West, Wiley, Hiroshima, Evans, Grissom Dobson, Kiefer, Lambert, St. Clair, DNS--Mosley, Thomas.
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