By Dick Jordan
Matt Mitchell of Yorba Linda, Calif. and Tony Hunt of Lincoln, Calif. are the latest point leaders respectively in the AMSOIL USAC/CRA and USAC Western Classic Sprint Car series following this past weekend’s races at Watsonville and Santa Maria, Calif.
Mitchell finished fourth and 19th in the two races and has a five-point lead over defending USAC/CRA champ Mike Spencer going into a July 2 race at Perris (Calif.) Auto Speedway, while Hunt, who was 10th and 17th in the two dirt-track races, is 63 ahead of Geoff Ensign in the Western Classic series which resumes July 9 at Stockton (Calif.) 99 Speedway.
Cory Kruseman of Ventura, Calif. scored his initial AMSOIL USAC Sprint car feature wins of 2011 in last weekend’s races, leading the final 26 laps of the AMSOIL USAC/CRA – Western Classic main event at Ocean Speedway in Watsonville Friday in his Lucas Oil/Sander Engineering Eagle/Mopar. Ensign finished second ahead of Spencer, Mitchell and Nic Faas. Ryan Bernal led the first four laps of Friday’s race
Kruseman then led the final eight laps of Saturday’s 30-lap race at Santa Maria Speedway. Defending USAC/CRA titlist Spencer led the first 22 laps before retiring from the event with mechanical problems. Faas, Greg Bragg, Austin Williams and Rickie Gaunt trailed Kruseman’s Lucas Oil/Sander Engineering Eagle/Mopar at the finish.
USAC WESTERN CLASSIC SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS
1-Tony Hunt-353; 2-Geoff Ensign-290; 3-Shauna Hogg-288; 4-Tim Barber-274; 5-Scott Pierovich-264; 6-Jerry Kobza-242; 7-Audra Sasselli-182; 8-Luis Ramos III-160; 9-Brian McClish-160; 10-Tim Sherman Jr.-156.
AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS
1-Matt Mitchell-371; 2-Mike Spencer-366; 3-Nic Faas-348; 4-Greg Bragg-303; 5-Austin Williams-290; 6-Rickie Gaunt-281; 7-Blake Miller-277; 8-David Cardey-273; 9-Cory Kruseman-246; 10-Cody Williams-231.