By Dick Jordan
Mike Spencer of Temecula, Calif. and Tony Hunt of Lincoln, Calif. hope to extend point leads in this weekend’s “Louie Vermeil Classic” AMSOIL USAC/CRA and Western Classic Sprint car events at the Calistoga (Calif.) Speedway.
Spencer is well on his way to a record fifth USAC/CRA title, currently 186 points ahead of Nic Faas entering the Friday and Saturday program at the half-mile Claistoga oval. Hunt sits atop the Western Classic and Dirt standings going into the annual Calistoga event.
Feature events highlight the twin “doubleheaders,” scheduled each night for both the AMSOIL Sprints and Mopar Western Midgets.
Hunt’s lead in the Western Classic rankings is a bit more tenuous than Spencer’s. He’s 24 up on Shauna Hogg in the Western Classic series and 34 ahead of Hogg in the Dirt standings. A championship or two would merely add to a resume already containing eight titles. Only A.J. Foyt (13), Sleepy Tripp and Rich Vogler (9 each) have more.
2012 AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS
1-Mike Spencer-955, 2-Nic Faas-769, 3-Brody Roa-674, 4-Ryan Bernal-667, 5-Austin Williams-664, 6-Rip Williams-625, 7-Cory Kruseman-613, 8-Matt Mitchell-461, 9-Cody Williams-450, 10-Seth Wilson-431.
2012 USAC WESTERN CLASSIC SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS
1-Tony Hunt-562, 2-Shauna Hogg-538, 3-Scott Pierovich-388, 4-Tom Baker-340, 5-Gordon Rodgers-319, 6-Marty Hawkins-233, 7-Brian McClish-209, 8-Tim Skoglund-179, 9-Cody Gerhardt-174, 10-Taylor Simas-155.
2012 USAC WESTERN CLASSIC SPRINT CAR DIRT POINT STANDINGS
1-Tony Hunt-403, 2-Shauna Hogg-369, 3-Tom Baker-252, 4-Marty Hawkins-233, 5-Scott Pierovich-214, 6-Gordon Rodgers-164, 7-Taylor Simas-155, 8-Jerry Cisco-86, 9-Geoff Ensign-49.