By Dick Jordan
Mike Spencer of Temecula, Calif. puts his AMSOIL USAC/CRA Sprint Car title defense on the line Saturday at Perris (Calif.) Auto Speedway in the 2011 “Glenn Howard Memorial.”
Spencer, trying to claim a record fourth consecutive title, has a 37-point lead over Matt Mitchell and is only 56 ahead of Nic Faas entering Saturday’s event, which offer 74 total points.
Spencer has 17 career USAC wins at the half-mile dirt oval, including four of this year’s six outings. Mitchell, ironically, has won the other two this season. In five starts at The Pas, Faas has two seconds, a third, fourth and a fifth.
Scott Pierovich of Alamo, Calif. passed Geoff Ensign on lap six and went on to lead the remaining 45 laps to win Saturday night’s “Harvest Classic” USAC Western/Western Classic Sprint race at Madera (Calif.) Speedway. Audra Sasselli was second ahead of Tony Hunt, Ensign and Chad Nichols. Hunt emerged with a five-point lead over Sasselli in the AMSOIL Western Sprint points, but trails Ensign by nine points in the Western Classic standings. Pierovich was also the fastest qualifier.
The 2011 USAC Western Classic” Sprint Series concludes November 24 at Toyota Speedway at Irwindale, Calif.
AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS
1-Mike Spencer-810; 2-Matt Mitchell-773; 3-Nic Faas-754; 4-Austin Williams-570; 5-Greg Bragg-508; 6-Cody Williams-463; 7-Danny Sheridan-412; 8-Rip Williams-387; 9-David Cardey-380; 10-Ronnie Gardner-370.
USAC AMSOIL WESTERN SPRINT CAR SERIES POINT STANDINGS
1-Tony Hunt-585; 2-Audra Sasselli-580; 3-Cody Gerhardt-549; 4-Tim Skoglund-548; 5-Luis Ramos III-468; 6-Scott Pierovich-388; 7-Geoff Ensign-311; 8-Johnny Geisler-271; 9-Tim Barber-258; 10-Shaunna Hogg-228.
USAC WESTERN CLASSIC SPRINT CAR SERIES POINT STANDINGS
1-Geoff Ensign-806; 2-Tony Hunt-797; 3-Scott Pierovich-700; 4-Shauna Hogg-579; 5-Tim Barber-566; 6-Jerry Kobza-211.