By Lance Jennings
SANTA MARIA, CA – SEPTEMBER 19, 2011… Last Saturday night, Santa Maria’s “Showtime” Danny Sheridan claimed the $2000-to-win Bud Stanfield Memorial in front of his hometown fans. Starting seventh in the action packed feature, Sheridan used a bold outside move on lap twenty-seven to take the lead from Bud Kaeding. From there, the former track champion led the rest of the way to score his first win of the year and third overall with the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series.
Hanford’s Justyne Hamblin shared the front row with Bud Kaeding in the 30-lap feature. At the drop of starter Tom Peterson’s green flag, it was a drag race for the lead and Hamblin seized the opportunity. Looking for her first victory of the season, the 2009 champion was flying around the 1/3-mile clay oval and reached lapped traffic on lap five. Two laps later, Justyne had a straightaway lead on the competition and continued to slice through slower cars. Unfortunately, a close call with traffic on lap eleven resulted in a Hamblin spin and the first yellow flag of the main event.
Wes Gutierrez, who won the previous week at Hanford, inherited the lead followed by Kaeding, Danny Sheridan, and point leader Richard VanderWeerd. Once action resumed, another yellow flag was soon displayed over the speedway for a tangle involving Brody Roa, Austin Liggett, and Hamblin. Liggett’s car left on the hook and the second stop for Hamblin ended her night. Roa was able to restart and finished fourteenth.
Gutierrez was able to hold Kaeding back until a red flag on lap eighteen. Campbell’s Nico Russo had a hard flip in his machine and the young driver was attended to by safety and medical crews. As this writing goes to press, Russo has a reported concussion.
After the extended red flag, Gutierrez held command but Kaeding continued to apply heavy pressure. Bud’s persistence paid off and he took the lead from Wes on lap twenty-four. Sheridan quickly charged into second and two laps later, a yellow flag bunched the field. Kaeding was after his fifth victory of the season, but “Showtime” had other plans. Seeing an opportunity, Sheridan shot to the outside groove and grabbed the lead. Bud tried to battle back, but it was Danny’s night as he won his second career Stanfield Memorial. Kaeding finished second, followed by Gutierrez, VanderWeerd, and Greg Alexander.
Driving the Kittle Motorsports’ #18K Pace Lightning / PIPE Sherman, Danny Sheridan became the eighth different winner in thirteen events. The USAC/CRA standout qualified second fast on the night and scored second in his heat race. In limited starts with the USAC West Coast 360s, Sheridan is fifteenth in the point chase, with two heat race victories, four top-10 finishes, and two Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Awards.
Campbell’s Bud Kaeding had to settle for second at the Bud Stanfield Memorial. Piloting Junior Bowman’s #29 Buster and Ziggy Enterprises / Kaeding Performance Maxim, Kaeding was eighth quick in time trials and third in his heat race. The multi-time USAC Silver Crown Champion is tenth in the standings and leads the series with four main event wins. In addition, Bud has one Sander Engineering Fast Time Award, two heat race victories, and six top-10 finishes on the year.
Wes Gutierrez of San Martin looked strong in the feature and led twelve laps before falling to Kaeding. The driver of the WG Motorsports’ #007 ButlerBuilt / Competition Suspension Inc. DRC claimed third in the Stanfield Memorial and is now tied for third in the points with Jace VanderWeerd. The hard charger qualified sixth fast on the night and took third in his heat race. Leading the series with five heat race victories, Gutierrez also has one feature win and ten top-10 finishes to his credit.
Point leader Richard VanderWeerd of Visalia had another solid night with a fourth place run at Santa Maria. Piloting the family owned #10 VanderWeerd Construction / Battery Worx Maxim, Richard was fifth fast on the night and fourth in his heat race. Currently holding a sixty-five point lead heading into Hanford, VanderWeerd also leads the series with twelve top-10 finishes. In addition, Richard has one feature win, three Sander Engineering Fast Time Awards, three heat race victories, and one Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award.
Gardena’s Greg Alexander finished fifth in the 30-lap feature. Driving Chuck Tyler’s #72 Barnes Systems / Amsoil Maxim, Alexander was seventh quick in time trials and scored fourth in his heat race. Now seventh in the point chase, Greg has one Sander Engineering Fast Time Award, two heat race victories, and eight top-10 finishes on the season.
Jace VanderWeerd of Visalia earned his first Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award with a seventh place run after starting fourteenth. Piloting the family owned #88 VanderWeerd Construction / Battery Worx Maxim, Jace qualified fourteenth and scored fourth in his heat race. Tied for third in the points with Wes Gutierrez, VanderWeerd has one feature win, one Sander Engineering Fast Time Award, one heat race victory, and eleven top-10 finishes in 2011.
Hollister’s Ryan Bernal earned his first Sander Engineering Fast Time Award behind the wheel of Danny Olmstead’s #11D S&S Automotive / Dorso’s Automotive Maxim. The former Wingless Spec Sprint Champion claimed third in his heat race and finished tenth in the Stanfield Memorial. Currently second in the championship points, Bernal leads the series with 116 feature laps led. In addition, Ryan has three feature wins, two heat race victories, and ten top-10 finishes on the year.
Justyne Hamblin raced to victory in the Extreme Mufflers Heat Race #1. Piloting the JH Motorsports’ #8 Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino / Dias Law Firm Speed Tech, Justyne was ninth fast in time trials and led the first eleven laps of the feature. Scoring twentieth at Santa Maria, the former series champion is eighth in the points with three heat race victories, one Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award, and seven top-10 finishes on the season.
Austin Liggett of Tracy won his first heat race of the year by taking the Saldana Racing Products / Keizer Wheels sponsored event. Driving the family owned #83 Excel Environmental Services / Home Connections Inc. Maxim, Liggett qualified eighteenth and scored twenty-first in the feature. Tied for twenty-ninth in the point chase, Austin has one Keizer Wheels Hard Charger Award on his resume.
Ramona’s Bobby Bender took Bill Jones’ #16 Santa Maria Masonry / Artistic Impressions Stinger to the DJ Safety Heat Race #3 victory. The California Lightning Sprint graduate was nineteenth fast on the night and finished thirteenth in the 30-lap feature. In limited starts, Bender is currently thirty-first in the point standings.
In his first start of the year, Derek Buckley of Ojai won the Competition Suspension Inc. / Rod End Supply Heat Race #4. Driving Melinda Buckley’s #76 Fatheadz Eyewear / Competition Suspension Inc. Ellis, Derek was twelfth quick in time trials and scored ninth in the main event. The VRA standout is now forty-first in USAC West Coast 360 points.
Another Ventura standout making their first start of the season was Camarillo’s Josh Ford. Piloting Keith Ford’s #73 King Racing Products / A&A Precision Machine Spike, Josh won the 10-lap Keizer Wheels Semi-Main event. Qualifying fourth in time trials and scoring fifth in his heat race, Ford took eighth in the Stanfield Memorial. The former USAC National Sprint Car Rookie of the Year is now fortieth in the point standings.
The USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series would like to thank Cyndi Jewett and family for their support of the Bud Stanfield Memorial. Their sponsorship of the event honored John Jewett’s memory and is greatly appreciated by the competitors. Next season, the Santa Maria facility plans to host the John Jewett Memorial Race and it will be one of the most anticipated dates on the schedule.
In addition, the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series thanks Southwest Contractors, Hoosier Tire, Amsoil, BR Motorsports, ButlerBuilt, Competition Suspension Inc., Cory Kruseman’s Sprint Car & Midget Driving School, Crow Enterprizes, DJ Safety, Extreme Mufflers, Hilborn Fuel Injection, Hinchman-Indy Racing Uniforms, Integra Shocks, Kaeding Performance, Keizer Wheels, King Racing Products, Port City Racing, Rod End Supply, Saferacer.com, Saldana Racing Products, and Sander Engineering for their support.
The USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series will return to action this Saturday, September 24th, at Scott Woodhouse’s Giant Chevrolet Speedway in Hanford. Located on the Kings County Fairgrounds at 801 S. 10th Avenue, more event information can be found at www.giantchevroletspeedway.com or calling (559) 584-RACE (7223).
For more information on the USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Series, please visit westcoastsprintcars.com, usacracing.com, racesantamariaspeedway.com, or follow the series on facebook.
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USAC WEST COAST 360 SPRINT RACE RESULTS:
September 17, 2011 – Santa Maria, California – Santa Maria Speedway – “Bud Stanfield Memorial”
SANDER ENGINEERING TIME TRIALS
1. Ryan Bernal, 11D, Olmstead-13.529; 2. Danny Sheridan, 18K, Kittle-13.591; 3. Davey Pombo, 3E, Eames-13.633; 4. Josh Ford, 73, Ford-13.638; 5. Richard VanderWeerd, 10, VanderWeerd-13.662; 6. Wes Gutierrez, 007, WG-13.700; 7. Greg Alexander, 72, Tyler-13.705; 8. Bud Kaeding, 29, Bowman-13.724; 9. Justyne Hamblin, 8, JH-13.727; 10. Dennis Howell, 62, Howell-13.804; 11. Brody Roa, 91R, BR-13.940; 12. Derek Buckley, 76, Buckley-13.950; 13. A.J. Bender, 12, Bender-13.958; 14. Jace VanderWeerd, 88, VanderWeerd-13.989; 15. Peter Murphy, 51, Carlile-14.115; 16. Ricky Kirkbride, 87, Van Meter-14.159; 17. T.J. Smith, 14, LeGras-14.176; 18. Austin Liggett, 83, Liggett-14.195; 19. Bobby Bender, 16, Jones-14.240; 20. Jeff Culver, 71C, Culver-14.242; 21. Nico Russo, 3N, Russo-14.280; 22. Ray Potter, 33X, Potter-14.518; 23. Bill Jones, 16J, Jones-14.552; 24. Richard Terry, 30, Terry-14.718; 25. Greg Edenholm, 73X, Ford-14.863; 26. Jeff Miller, 5X, Swaim-15.210; 27. Ray Knight, 6K, Knight-NT.
EXTREME MUFFLERS HEAT RACE 1: (8 laps)
1. Justyne Hamblin, 2. T.J. Smith, 3. Ryan Bernal, 4. Richard VanderWeerd, 5. A.J. Bender, 6. Greg Edenholm, 7. Nico Russo. NT.
SALDANA RACING PRODUCTS / KEIZER WHEELS HEAT RACE 2: (8 laps)
1. Austin Liggett, 2. Danny Sheridan, 3. Wes Gutierrez, 4. Jace VanderWeerd, 5. Dennis Howell, 6. Ray Potter, 7. Jeff Miller. NT.
DJ SAFETY HEAT RACE 3: (8 laps)
1. Bobby Bender, 2. Davey Pombo, 3. Brody Roa, 4. Greg Alexander, 5. Peter Murphy, 6. Bill Jones, 7. Ray Knight. NT.
COMPETITION SUSPENSION INC. / ROD END SUPPLY HEAT RACE 4: (8 laps)
1. Derek Buckley, 2. Jeff Culver, 3. Bud Kaeding, 4. Ricky Kirkbride, 5. Josh Ford, 6. Richard Terry. NT.
KEIZER WHEELS SEMI-MAIN: (10 laps)
1. Josh Ford, 2. Dennis Howell, 3. A.J. Bender, 4. Peter Murphy, 5. Nico Russo, 6. Ray Potter, 7. Richard Terry, 8. Greg Edenholm, 9. Bill Jones, 10. Jeff Miller. NT.
FEATURE: (30 laps – With Starting Positions)
1. Danny Sheridan (7th), 2. Bud Kaeding (2nd), 3. Wes Gutierrez (4th), 4. Richard VanderWeerd (5th), 5. Greg Alexander (3rd), 6. Dennis Howell (10th), 7. Jace VanderWeerd (14th), 8. Josh Ford (9th), 9. Derek Buckley (12th), 10. Ryan Bernal (8th), 11. Davey Pombo (6th), 12. A.J. Bender (13th), 13. Bobby Bender (19th), 14. Brody Roa (11th), 15. Ricky Kirkbride (16th), 16. Jeff Culver (20th), 17. Ray Potter (22nd), 18. T.J. Smith (17th), 19. Nico Russo (21st), 20. Justyne Hamblin (1st), 21. Austin Liggett (18th), 22. Peter Murphy (15th). NT.
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*Nico Russo flipped during the feature.
FEATURE LAP LEADERS:
Laps 1-11 Justyne Hamblin, Laps 12-23 Wes Gutierrez, Laps 24-26 Bud Kaeding, Laps 27-30 Danny Sheridan.
KEIZER WHEELS HARD CHARGER: Jace VanderWeerd (14th to 7th)
NEW WEST COAST 360 SPRINT POINTS:
1-Richard VanderWeerd-752; 2-Ryan Bernal-687; 3-Wes Gutierrez-647; 4-Jace VanderWeerd-647; 5-Dennis Howell-559; 6-Danny Faria Jr.-550; 7-Greg Alexander-514; 8-Justyne Hamblin-495; 9-T.J. Smith-461; 10-Bud Kaeding-439.
USAC WEST COAST 360 SPRINT SCHEDULE:
September 24: Giant Chevrolet Kings Speedway – Hanford, CA
October 8: Groppetti Automotive Tulare Thunderbowl Raceway – Tulare, CA
October 15: *Giant Chevrolet Kings Speedway – Hanford, CA