From Dick Jordan
This weekend’s races at Canyon Raceway Park in Peoria, Ariz. offer points toward three USAC championships and historic implications are aplenty.
Levi Jones of Olney, Ill. is leading the AMSOIL National Sprint Car standings in quest of a record fifth series title. Mike Spencer of Temecula, Calif. leads the AMSOIL USAC/CRA Sprint Car standings in search of a record fourth consecutive championship! Bryan Clauson of Noblesville, Ind. holds a 10-point lead over Kyle Larson in his bid to repeat as USAC’s National Drivers Champion, which offers a $40,000 year-end bonus plus rides in all of the 2012 Firestone Indy Lights oval-track events.
The Friday and Saturday night races will be USAC’s first at the 3/8-mile dirt oval located northwest of Phoenix.
Jones enters the two races with a tenuous 44-point National lead over Chris Windom, while Spencer’s lead over Nic Faas in the USAC/CRA standings is just 31 points. A total of 148 points weill be available at the two Peoria races.
Jones won the last USAC Sprint race in the Grand Canyon State, at USA Raceway in Tucson last year. Darren Hagen won the last USAC Sprint race in the Phoenix area, in 2009 at Manzanita Speedway.
AMSOIL USAC NATIONAL SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS
1-Levi Jones-1,324; 2-Chris Windom-1,280; 3-Jon Stanbrough-1,242; 4-Hunter Schuerenberg-1,173; 5-Robert Ballou-1,077; 6-Tracy Hines-1,062; 7-Dave Darland-1,054; 8-Damion Gardner-978; 9-Bryan Clauson-959; 10-Bobby East-823.
AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS
1-Mike Spencer-930; 3-Nic Faas-899; 3-Matt Mitchell-891; 4-Austin Williams-678; 5-Greg Bragg-615; 6-Cody Williams-545; 7-Danny Sheridan-471; 8-Rip Williams-467; 9-Rickie Gaunt-451; 10-David Cardey-443.