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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
USAC SouthWest Sprint Car Series
R.J. JOHNSON SPRINTS TO “SPRING FLING” VICTORY AT QUEEN CREEK
By Lance Jennings
QUEEN CREEK, AZ – APRIL 20, 2015... After a fierce battle with polesitter Stevie Sussex, R.J. Johnson of Phoenix emerged with the “4th Annual Spring Fling” win at Arizona Speedway. Saturday’s $1,500 triumph was Johnson’s third consecutive USAC SouthWest Sprint Car feature victory. “The Magic Man” Mike Martin, Matt Rossi, Shon Deskins, and “Chargin” Charles Davis Jr. rounded out the top-five drivers.
Starting fourth, R.J. Johnson raced Bill Michaels’ #77M Kodiak Products / Beal’s Auto Body Sherman to his second “Spring Fling” victory. Johnson’s 30-lap triumph at Queen Creek marked his series leading twenty-fifth main event win. Earlier in the program, the defending champion ran second to Bruce St. James in his heat race and ranked third out of twenty-three cars in passing points. Heading to Canyon Speedway Park on May 2nd, R.J. leads the point chase with three heat race victories, six top-10 finishes, and 50 feature laps led to his credit.
Yuma’s “The Magic Man” Mike Martin claimed second in the Arizona Speedway feature. Driving his #16 Sherwin-Williams / Ultimate Offroad Maxim, Martin won the night’s second 8-lap heat race and seated fifth in the passing points. The former Hall of Fame Classic winner has climbed to fifth in the standings on the strength of one high point driver award, three heat race victories, six top-10 finishes, and 4 feature laps led on the season.
Matt Rossi of South Central charged from seventh to score third in the “Spring Fling.” Piloting the family owned #02 Apache Scapes / IWR Spike, Rossi placed fourth in his heat race and ranked sixth in nightly passing points. Heading to the “Canyon Clash,” the Western World Champion has risen to third in the point chase with one hard charger award and three top-10 finishes.
Phoenix’s Shon Deskins ran fourth in Saturday’s main event at Queen Creek. Racing his #20 MP Environmental / Spike Chassis entry, Deskins ran third in his heat race, placing the veteran driver fourth in the nightly passing points. Shon heads to Peoria ranked sixth in the standings with three top-10 finishes and four feature laps led in the campaign.
“Chargin” Charles Davis Jr. of Buckeye raced to fifth at Arizona Speedway from eleventh. Driving the Massey Motorsports’ #50 RSS Industries / Rod End Supply RSS, Davis took fifth in his heat race and placed eleventh in passing points. The five-time Arizona Sprint Car Champion has climbed to second in points with two high point driver awards, three heat race victories, six top-10 finishes, and 4 feature laps led on the season.
Mike Colegrove of Peoria earned the night’s “Hard Charger / Best Passing Job” honors with a seventh place run from sixteenth. Piloting his #17M Precision Tile / Ellis Race Cars machine, Colegrove took sixth in his heat race and ranked seventeenth in passing points. Mike left Queen Creek eighth in the SouthWest standings with three top-10 finishes on the year.
Phoenix’s “The Radio Flyer” Bruce St. James earned the night’s high point driver award. Racing his #7K Woodland Auto Display / Weld Racing Maxim, St. James won the night’s first 8-lap heat race and scored tenth in the main event. As this writing goes to press, Bruce is tenth in the standings with one top-10 finish in the campaign.
Nick Aiuto of Camp Verde raced to victory in the program’s third 8-lap heat race. Driving his #27 David Dick Attorney at Law / Ellis Race Cars entry, Aiuto was second in passing points and claimed eighth in “Spring Fling” main event. To date, the veteran driver has climbed to twelfth in points with one hard charger award and two top-10 finishes on the season.
The USAC SouthWest Sprint Car Series will be back in action on Saturday, May 2nd at Canyon Speedway Park in Peoria. The “5th Annual Canyon Clash will also feature IMCA Modifieds, Mini Sprints, and the Arizona Differential Pure Stocks. Advance tickets are on sale and for more information, visit www.canyonspeedwaypark.com or call 602.258.7223.
The USAC SouthWest Sprint Car Series would like to thank Sunoco Race Fuels, Hoosier Tire, Hose Advantage Store, and the Racers Advantage Store for their support. For more information on the series, visit www.southwestsprintcars.com, www.usacracing.com, or follow the series on Facebook (www.facebook.com/SouthwestSprintCars).
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USAC SOUTHWEST SPRINT CAR RACE RESULTS:
April 18, 2015 – Queen Creek, Arizona – Arizona Speedway – “4th Annual Spring Fling”
FIRST HEAT: (8 laps)
1. Bruce St. James (#7K St. James), 2. R.J. Johnson (#77M Michaels), 3. Tye Mihocko (#5 Mihocko), 4. Josh Pelkey (#12 Allen), 5. Chris Bonneau (#78 Bonneau), 6. Jonas Reynolds (#4 Harland), 7. Koty McGullam (#44K McGullam), 8. Rick Shuman (#25AZ Shuman). NT
SECOND HEAT: (8 laps)
1. Mike Martin (#16 Martin), 2. Stevie Sussex (#21AZ Burkhart), 3. Brian Hosford (#22B Weber), 4. Matt Rossi (#02 Rossi), 5. Charles Davis Jr. (#50 Massey), 6. Johnny Shelton Jr. (#9 Shelton), 7. Michael Curtis (#11C Turner/Wheeler), 8. Andy Reinbold (#19 Underwood). NT
THIRD HEAT: (8 laps)
1. Nick Aiuto (#27 Aiuto), 2. Mike Bonneau (#29 Bonneau), 3. Shon Deskins (#20 Deskins), 4. Dennis Gile (#13 Gile), 5. Josh Shipley (#2 Bishop), 6. Mike Colegrove (#17M Colegrove), 7. Tom Ogle (#48 Ogle). NT
FEATURE: (30 laps – With Starting Positions)
1. R.J. Johnson (4th), 2. Mike Martin (2nd), 3. Matt Rossi (7th), 4. Shon Deskins (3rd), 5. Charles Davis Jr. (11th), 6. Josh Pelkey (10th), 7. Mike Colegrove (16th), 8. Nick Aiuto (5th), 9. Josh Shipley (15th), 10. Bruce St. James (6th), 11. Brian Hosford (9th), 12. Andy Reinbold (21st), 13. Dennis Gile (13th), 14. Tye Mihocko (12th), 15. Michael Curtis (19th), 16. Johnny Shelton Jr. (17th), 17. Koty McGullam (22nd), 18. Stevie Sussex (1st), 19. Mike Bonneau (8th), 20. Chris Bonneau (14th), 21. Rick Shuman (20th), 22. Tom Ogle (23rd), 23. Jonas Reynolds (18th). NT
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FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-11 Sussex, Laps 12-15 Johnson, Laps 16-21 Sussex, Laps 22-30 Johnson.
HARD CHARGER: Mike Colegrove (16th to 7th)
USAC SOUTHWEST SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS:
1. R.J. Johnson-252, 2. Charles Davis Jr.-215, 3. Matt Rossi-203, 4. Stevie Sussex-197, 5. Mike Martin-187, 6. Shon Deskins-187, 7. Josh Pelkey-181, 8. Mike Colegrove-159, 9. Brian Hosford-130, 10. Bruce St. James-129, 11. Andy Reinbold-114, 12. Nick Aiuto-96, --. Dennis Gile-96, 14. Josh Shipley-82, 15. Ryan Bernal-71, 16. Tye Mihocko-66, 17. Matt Mitchell-62, 18. Hunter Schuerenberg-57, 19. Michael Curtis-48, 20. Chris Windom-48, --. Colby Copeland-48.
2015 USAC SOUTHWEST SPRINT CAR SERIES SCHEDULE
DATE - TRACK - LOCATION
May 2: Canyon Speedway Park - Peoria, AZ (Canyon Clash)
May 16: Arizona Speedway - Queen Creek, AZ
May 23: Canyon Speedway Park - Peoria, AZ (Salute To Indy)
May 24: Canyon Speedway Park - Peoria, AZ (Salute To Indy)
June 13: Arizona Speedway - Queen Creek, AZ
June 20: Canyon Speedway Park - Peoria, AZ (Father’s Day Classic)
June 27: USA Raceway - Tucson, AZ (Hot Summer Nights)
July 10: #El Paso Speedway Park - El Paso, TX (Border Tour / $2,000-to-Win)
July 11: #Southern New Mexico Speedway - Las Cruces, NM (Border Tour / $2,000-to-Win)
July 18: Arizona Speedway - Queen Creek, AZ
August 1: Canyon Speedway Park - Peoria, AZ (Allscapes Back To School Special)
August 19: Lawton Speedway - Lawton, OK (Freedom Tour / $2,500-to-Win / Non-Points)
August 20: Creek County Speedway - Sapulpa, OK (Freedom Tour / $2,500-to-Win / Non-Points)
August 21: 81 Speedway - Wichita, KS (Freedom Tour / $2,500-to-Win / Non-Points)
August 22: Dodge City Raceway Park - Dodge City, KS (Freedom Tour / $2,500-to-Win / Non-Points)
August 28: Prescott Valley Raceway - Prescott Valley, AZ (Rick Stewart Memorial)
August 29: Prescott Valley Raceway - Prescott Valley, AZ (Rick Stewart Memorial)
September 19: Arizona Speedway - Queen Creek, AZ
September 26: *Canyon Speedway Park - Peoria, AZ (Brawl For It All / $2,500-to-Win / Grudge Series)
October 3: Arizona Speedway - Queen Creek, AZ
October 17: Central Arizona Speedway - Casa Grande, AZ
November 19: *USA Raceway - Tucson, AZ (Western World Championships / Grudge Series)
November 20: *USA Raceway - Tucson, AZ (Western World Championships / Grudge Series)
November 21: *USA Raceway - Tucson, AZ (Western World Championships / Grudge Series)
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* = Co-Sanctioned Event with USAC West Coast Sprints.
# = Co-Sanctioned Event with NMMRA Sprints.
This schedule is subject to change.
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