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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
USAC SouthWest Sprint Car Series
R.J. JOHNSON STORMS TO SALUTE TO INDY VICTORY AT CANYON
By Lance Jennings
PEORIA, AZ – MAY 26, 2015... Slipping past Mike Colegrove on the fourth circuit, R.J. Johnson of Phoenix won his third consecutive “Salute to Indy.” By winning Sunday’s USAC SouthWest Sprint Car feature at Canyon Speedway Park, the point leader earned $1,500 for his efforts. Stevie Sussex, Colegrove, Matt Rossi, and “Chargin” Charles Davis Jr. rounded out the top-five drivers.
Racing Bill Michaels’ #77M Kodiak Products / Beal’s Auto Body Sherman, R.J. Johnson earned his series leading twenty-seventh main event win. After finishing second to Michael Curtis in his heat race, Johnson ranked fifth out of twenty-five racers in the nightly passing points. Heading to Queen Creek on June 13th, R.J. leads the standings with an 81-point advantage on the strength of five feature wins, one high point driver award, four heat race victories, ten top-10 finishes, and 81 feature laps led to his credit.
Tempe’s Stevie Sussex charged from ninth to claim second in the “Salute to Indy.” Piloting Dennis Gile’s #13S Quarterback Academy Ellis, Sussex ran second to Brian Hosford in his heat race and placed ninth in passing points. The veteran racer sits fourth in points with two feature wins, three hard charger awards, eight top-10 finishes, and 72 feature laps led.
Mike Colegrove of Peoria scored third at Canyon Speedway Park. Driving his #17 Precision Tile / Ellis Race Cars machine, Colegrove ran second to Tom Ogle in his heat race and ranked sixth in passing points. Mike left Canyon sixth in the standings with one heat race victory, one hard charger award, six top-10 finishes, and 3 feature laps led on the season.
South Central’s Matt Rossi claimed fourth in the “4th Annual Salute to Indy.” Racing the family owned #02 Apache Scapes / IWR Spike, Rossi took third in his heat race and placed second in passing points. To date, the Western World Champion is fifth in the point chase with two hard charger awards, six top-10 finishes, and 22 feature laps led in the campaign.
“Chargin” Charles Davis Jr. of Buckeye stormed from tenth to score fifth in the 30-lap main event. Piloting the Massey Motorsports’ #50 RSS Industries / Rod End Supply RSS, Davis took third in his heat race and ranked tenth in passing points. The five-time Arizona champion is currently second in points with one feature win, two high point driver awards, three heat race victories, ten top-10 finishes, and 34 feature laps led to his credit.
Peoria’s Dalten Gabbard earned the night’s “Hard Charger / Best Passing Job” honors with an eighth place run from seventeenth. Driving the family owned #77 BG Chemicals / AZ Heat Trucking Maxim, Gabbard was sixth in his heat race, won the 8-lap semi-main, and seventeenth in passing points. The hard charging driver is sixth in the standings with one heat race victory, six top-10 finishes, and 16 feature laps led.
Tom Ogle of Surprise earned his first high point driver award of the season. Racing the family owned #48 RSS Industries / JT Engineering RSS, Ogle won the night’s second 8-lap heat race and ran fifteenth in the main event. Heading to Arizona Speedway on June 13th, Tom is currently twentieth in the standings.
Cottonwood’s Michael Curtis raced to victory in the night’s first 8-lap heat race. Piloting Kevin Turner and Greg Wheeler’s #11C DAR Racing / JT Engineering Maxim, Curtis was third in passing points and finished twenty-third in the main event. At press time, the young driver is seventeenth in points with one top-10 finish and one feature lap led.
Brian Hosford of Gilbert took the victory in the night’s third heat race. Driving Bernie Weber’s #22B Coffin & Trout Fine Jewelers / Invision Auto Body Spike, Hosford was fourth in passing points and ran tenth in the feature. Brian sits eighth in the point chase with two heat race victories and four top-10 finishes in the campaign.
On Saturday, June 13th, the USAC SouthWest Sprint Cars will battle at Queen Creek’s Arizona Speedway. Located at the ET Motopark, the event will also feature IMCA Modifieds, Dwarf Cars, and Bombers. For more event and ticket information, visit www.arizonaspeedway.net or calling 480.926.6688.
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:
May 24, 2015 – Peoria, Arizona – Canyon Speedway Park – “Salute to Indy”
FIRST HEAT: (8 laps)
1. Michael Curtis (#11C Turner/Wheeler), 2. R.J. Johnson (#77M Michaels), 3. Charles Davis Jr. (#50 Massey), 4. Mike Bonneau (#29 Bonneau), 5. Bruce St. James (#7K St. James), 6. Josh Shipley (#2 Bishop), 7. Andy Reinbold (#19 Underwood), 8. Ray Bishop (#20AZ Bishop), NT
SECOND HEAT: (8 laps)
1. Tom Ogle (#48 Ogle), 2. Mike Colegrove (#17 Colegrove), 3. Matt Rossi (#02 Rossi), 4. Tye Mihocko (#5 Mihocko), 5. Nick Aiuto (#27 Aiuto), 6. Bobby Marcum (#85 Marcum), 7. Dustin Burkhart (#22 Burkhart), 8. Koty McGullam (#44K McGullam). NT
THIRD HEAT: (8 laps)
1. Brian Hosford (#22B Weber), 2. Stevie Sussex (#13S Sussex), 3. Chris Bonneau (#78 Bonneau), 4. Josh Pelkey (#12 Allen), 5. Mike Martin (#16 Martin), 6. Dalten Gabbard (#77 Gabbard), 7. Dennis Gile (#13 Gile), 8. Katherine Aragon (#42 Aragon). NT
SEMI: (8 laps)
1. Gabbard, 2. Gile, 3. Reinbold, 4. Marcum, 5. Burkhart, 6. Aragon, 7. Mark Morin (#28 Morin), 8. McGullam. NT
FEATURE: (30 laps – With Starting Positions)
1. R.J. Johnson (2nd), 2. Stevie Sussex (9th), 3. Mike Colegrove (1st), 4. Matt Rossi (5th), 5. Charles Davis Jr. (10th), 6. Nick Aiuto (12th), 7. Josh Pelkey (8th), 8. Dalten Gabbard (17th), 9. Josh Shipley (15th), 10. Brian Hosford (3rd), 11. Chris Bonneau (7th), 12. Mike Martin (16th), 13. Tye Mihocko (11th), 14. Dennis Gile (18th), 15. Tom Ogle (6th), 16. Bobby Marcum (20th), 17. Dustin Burkhart (21st), 18. Mike Bonneau (14th), 19. Andy Reinbold (19th), 20. Bruce St. James (13th), 21. Katherine Aragon (22nd), 22. Michael Curtis (4th). NT
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**St. James flipped during the feature.
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-3 Colegrove, Laps 4-30 Johnson.
HARD CHARGER: Dalten Gabbard (17th to 8th.)
USAC SOUTHWEST SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS:
1. R.J. Johnson-514, 2. Charles Davis Jr.-433, 3. Josh Pelkey-427, 4. Stevie Sussex-407, 5. Matt Rossi-407, 6. Mike Colegrove-348, 7. Mike Martin-305, 8. Brian Hosford-302, 9. Bruce St. James-271, 10. Shon Deskins-256, 11. Andy Reinbold-241, 12. Josh Shipley-219, 13. Dennis Gile-216, 14. Chris Bonneau-212, 15. Tye Mihocko-207, 16. Nick Aiuto-191, 17. Michael Curtis-169, 18. Dalten Gabbard-165, 19. Mike Bonneau-151, 20. Tom Ogle-109.
2015 USAC SOUTHWEST SPRINT CAR SERIES SCHEDULE
DATE - TRACK - LOCATION
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.
ATTACHED PHOTOS/IMAGES:
CSP Salute to Indy Podium: L-R, Stevie Sussex (2nd), R.J. Johnson (1st), and Mike Colegrove (3rd). Photo by Jason Rominger.
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