By Lance Jennings
VENTURA, CA – AUGUST 30, 2011… Last Saturday night, Yorba Linda’s Matt Mitchell led all 40 laps to claim the inaugural “Vendor’s Cup” at Jim Naylor’s Ventura Raceway. The USAC/CRA standout held off a strong challenge from “The Kruser” Cory Kruseman to claim over $7,000 in prize money. Kruseman scored second, followed by a hard charging Troy Rutherford, Brian Camarillo, and Josh Ford.
Piloting Steve Watt’s potent #81 machine sponsored by Steve Watt Enterprises and the Christian Stover Foundation, Mitchell also won his first 10-lap event of the year by taking the SWE Heat Race #4. Starting on the pole position of the 40-lap feature, the former USAC Western Midget Series Rookie of the Year continued to hit his marks and earn his first victory of the 2011 campaign with the Ventura Racing Association. Mitchell became the eighth different driver in fifteen events to score a victory and his name will be placed on the perpetual trophy that will spotlight future events of the Vendor’s Cup.
Ventura’s Cory Kruseman mounted a challenge from his fourth starting spot in his #21K Lucas Oil / Sander Engineering machine, but had to settle for second at the checkered flags. Earlier in the program, the USAC Western Midget Series point leader won the Joie of Seating Heat Race #2 and currently sits tenth in the point standings. To date, Kruseman has one feature win, five heat race victories, five top-10 finishes, and thirty-eight feature laps led on the season.
Troy Rutherford of Ojai earned the night’s Hard Charger / Best Passing Job honors with a third place run after starting fourteenth. Driving the #11 Amsoil / L&H Consulting special, the defending track champion was fourth in his heat race and is now fifteenth in the point chase. Rutherford leads all drivers with six feature wins and also has five heat race victories, one semi-main win, nine top-10 finishes, and eighty-five feature laps led.
Scoring fourth in the 40-lap Vendor’s Cup was Camarillo’s Brian Camarillo. The pilot of the #22 Agromin Soil / Waste Management entry won the BR Motorsports Heat Race #3 and is currently fourth in the championship points. To date, Camarillo has one feature victory, seven heat race victories, one semi-main win, nine top-10 finishes, and thirty feature laps led on the year.
Camarillo’s Josh Ford scored fifth after starting seventh in the main event. Driving the #73 King Racing Products / A&A Precision Machining car, Ford was second in his heat race and is second in the chase for the championship. Now 230 points behind Greg Taylor, last season’s All Coast 360 Challenge Champion has four heat race victories, one hard charger award, thirteen top-10 finishes, and six feature laps led in the 2011 campaign.
VRA Senior Sprint Car regular Cliff Warren of Camarillo drove his #25K CW Warren Framing Inc. / Hagle Lumber machine to victory in the Extreme Muffler’s Heat Race #1. Starting third in the 40-lap feature, Warren experienced problems and finished the evening with a nineteenth place finish.
Stockton’s Johnathon Henry made a rare start and won the 12-lap semi-main. Piloting Steve Watt’s #69 Steve Watt Enterprises / surfnsprint.com entry, Henry was fifth in his heat race and scored sixteenth in the main event. The young driver has one heat race victory and three top-10 finishes on the season.
Ventura Raceway scheduled five other companion classes on the night. Brian Camarillo drove to victory in VRA Midget action as Casey Martinez claimed the Ford Focus Midget triumph. Brennan Rogers earned his first Junior Ford Focus Midget win and Aaron Rodarte claimed the IMCA Modified victory. Johnny Conley raced to his second straight feature win in the VRA Go Kart division.
To catch all of the action of the VRA Sprint Car Series and Ventura Raceway, Mike Truex’s Loudpedal Productions has DVD videos available for purchase. For more information, call (805) 407-7229 or visit www.loudpedalvideo.com. In addition, Ventura Raceway offers a live feed of every event at www.venturaraceway.com/live.html. The live feed will begin at 5:00pm PST.
This Saturday night, September 3rd, Ventura Raceway will host a special Flat Track Motorcycle event. The 360 Sprint Cars of the Ventura Racing Association will return to action on Saturday, September 10th. Joining the showcase will be the Senior Sprints, Dwarf Cars, Mod Lites, Mod Lite Juniors, Sport Compacts, Junior Midgets, and Mini Dwarfs. For more event information, please visit www.venturaraceway.com or call (805) 985-5433.
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VRA SPRINT CAR RACE RESULTS:
Ventura Raceway – Ventura, California
August 27, 2011 – “Vendor’s Cup”
ENTRIES: ( Car / Driver Name / Points)
2 Wally Pankratz 15; 3 Kevin Kierce 150; 3M Jake McVey 10; 6 Jesse Denome 115; 7 Greg Taylor 105; 7G Don Gansen 5; 8 Ronnie Case 5; 8x Richard Ortega Jr 15; 11 Troy Rutherford 210; 14K Jay Waugh 125; 17 Jimmy Crawford 170; 21k Cory Kruseman 240; 22 Brian Camarillo 215; 24 Guy Woodward 10; 25K Cliff Warren 125; 27 Cody Kershaw 165; 27x Nic Faas 175; 28 Dakota Kershaw 100; 43 Justin Kierce 20; 51 Brent Camarillo 145; 55s Kyle Smith 145; 56 Steve Conrad 185; 57 Steve Hix 155; 62 Adam Frith-Smith 10; 67K Taylor Price 15; 69 Johnathon Henry 120; 71K Tom Hendricks 150; 73 Josh Ford 200; 76 Derek Buckley 20; 81 Matt Mitchell 260; 86 Chris Ennis 10; 96k Charlie Butcher 5.
HEAT RACE 1: (10 laps)
1. Cliff Warren, 2. Brent Camarillo, 3. Steve Hix, 4. Jesse Denome, 5. Jay Waugh, 6. Taylor Price, 7. Chris Ennis, 8. Ronnie Case.
HEAT RACE 2: (10 laps)
1. Cory Kruseman, 2. Nic Faas, 3. Tom Hendricks, 4. Jimmy Crawford, 5. Jonathan Henry, 6. Kyle Smith, 7. Adam Frith-Smith, 8. Charlie Butcher.
HEAT RACE 3: (10 laps)
1. Brian Camarillo, 2. Kevin Kierce, 3. Steve Conrad, 4. Troy Rutherford, 5. Justin Kierce, 6. Wally Pankratz, 7. Guy Woodward, 8. Don Gansen.
HEAT RACE 4: (10 laps)
1. Matt Mitchell, 2. Josh Ford, 3. Cody Kershaw, 4. Greg Taylor, 5. Derek Buckley, 6. Richard Ortega Jr., 7. Jake McVey, 8. Dakota Kershaw.
SEMI-MAIN: (12 laps)
1. Johnathon Henry, 2. Kyle Smith, 3. Dakota Kershaw, 4. Jay Waugh, 5. Chris Ennis, 6. Ronnie Case, 7. Wally Pankratz, 8. Justin Kierce, 9. Charlie Butcher, 10. Derek Buckley, 11. Richard Ortega Jr., 12. Taylor Price, 13. Jake McVey, 14. Adam Frith-Smith, 15. Guy Woodward (DNS), 16. Don Gansen (DNS).
FEATURE: (40 laps – With Starting Positions)
1. Matt Mitchell (1st), 2. Cory Kruseman (4th), 3. Troy Rutherford (14th), 4. Brian Camarillo (2nd), 5. Josh Ford (7th), 6. Steve Conrad (9th), 7. Jimmy Crawford (16th), 8. Nic Faas (8th), 9. Cody Kershaw (12th), 10. Kyle Smith (18th), 11. Steve Hix (10th), 12. Tom Hendricks (11th), 13. Kevin Kierce (6th), 14. Brent Camarillo (5th), 15. Jay Waugh (20th), 16. Johnathon Henry (17th), 17. Dakota Kershaw (19th), 18. Jesse Denome (15th), 19. Cliff Warren (3rd), 20. Greg Taylor (13th).
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FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-40 Matt Mitchell.
HARD CHARGER: Troy Rutherford (14th to 3rd)
VRA SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS:
1. Greg Taylor 3110; 2. Josh Ford 2880; 3. Steve Conrad 2730; 4. Brian Camarillo 2575; 5. Don Gansen 2290; 6. Brent Camarillo 2260; -. Derek Buckley 2260; 8. Kyle Smith 1845; 9. Markus Niemela 1815; 10. Cory Kruseman 1805; 11. Jimmy Crawford 1800; 12. Austin DeBlauw 1495; 13. Tom Harper 1385; 14. Dakota Kershaw 1335; 15. Troy Rutherford 1235; 16. Brandon Thomson 1175; 17. Guy Woodward 1125; 18. Brody Roa 1055; 19. Tom Hendricks 1010; 20. Cody Kershaw 980.
NEXT VRA SPRINT CAR RACE:
September 10 – Ventura Raceway – Ventura, California