by Lance Jennings
SANTA MARIA, CA – MAY 12, 2013… Starting on the outside of the front row, Anaheim’s Jake Swanson added his name to the record books by winning his first USAC Western Midget Series feature. Jake dominated the main event at Santa Maria Speedway by leading all 25-laps to score the $1,000 victory. Ronnie Gardner, T.J. Smith, Cody Swanson, and David Prickett followed Swanson to the checkered flags.
Piloting the family owned #05 Honda Racing / Goodwine Glass Stealth, Jake Swanson qualified sixth and won the night’s second 8-lap heat race. With the feature triumph, last year’s USAC/CRA Rookie of the Year has tied Gardner in both the overall and dirt series point chase. Heading to Saturday’s action at Ventura, Swanson has three heat race victories, four top-10 finishes, and 43 feature laps led in the campaign.
Ronnie Gardner of Norco raced to second from the fourth starting spot in the main event. Driving the Six8 Motorsports’ #68 Baldozier Racing / Esslinger Engineering Stewart, Gardner was third fast in time trials and third in his heat race. Currently, the co-leader in both the overall and dirt standings has one feature win, four top-10 finishes, and 18 feature laps led to his credit.
Fresno’s T.J. Smith made a late race surge to claim third at the checkered flags. Making his first start in the Neverlift Motorsports’ #55 Crysalli Water / Mt. Rose Cocktail Mixes Spike, Smith qualified second overall and placed third in his heat race. The 2010 Santa Maria Sprint Car Champion will be looking for more opportunities to compete with the USAC Western Midget Series.
Cody Swanson of Norco started on the pole position and had to settle for fourth on this night. Racing the family owned #71 Edmunds Auto Research / K&N Filters entry, Swanson was seventh quick in time trials and second in his heat race. To date, Cody ranks sixth in the overall points and fourth in the dirt series with one feature win, one heat race victory, two top-10 finishes, and 30 feature laps led on the year.
Fresno’s David Prickett scored fifth in the Santa Maria feature. Piloting the Neverlift Motorsports’ #15 Motorsports’ #15 Crysalli Water / Mt. Rose Cocktail Mixes Spike, Prickett was fifth fast in time trials and won the night’s first 8-lap heat race. Currently third in both the overall and dirt series points, David has two heat race victories, one semi-main win, and four top-10 finishes on the season.
Shannon McQueen of Tehachapi earned her second “Hard Charger / Best Passing Job” honors with a seventh place run after starting eleventh. Driving the McQueen Racing #7 Lucas Oil / Simpson Race Products Spike, last year’s champion qualified fourth and ran sixth in her heat race. As this writing goes to press, McQueen sits ninth in the overall standings and seventh in the dirt series with one fast time award and three top-10 finishes.
Huntington Beach’s Nic Faas made his first start in Jerome Rodela’s potent #25 machine and set fast time over the thirteen car field. The former series champion scored fourth in his heat race and claimed sixth in the 25-lap main event.
The USAC Western Midget Series will be back in action this Saturday, May 18th at Jim Naylor’s Ventura Raceway. Co-sanctioned with the VRA Midget Series, the second round of “Battle at the Beach” will also feature Senior Sprints, Dwarf Cars, IMCA Modifieds, Focus Midgets, and Go Karts. For more event and ticket information, visit www.venturaraceway.com or call 805.648.RACE.
The USAC Western Midget Series would like to thank Amsoil, Hoosier Tire, Rugged Radios, and Western Performance Parts for their support. For more information on the series, visit www.usacracing.com, or follow the series on Facebook (www.facebook.com/
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USAC WESTERN MIDGET DIRT RACE RESULTS:
May 11, 2013 – Santa Maria, California – Santa Maria Speedway
QUALIFICATIONS:
1. Nic Faas, 25, Rodela-14.666; 2. T.J. Smith, 55, Neverlift-14.865; 3. Ronnie Gardner, 68, Johnson-14.894; 4. Shannon McQueen, 7, McQueen-15.018; 5. David Prickett, 15, Neverlift-15.048; 6. Jake Swanson, 05, Swanson-15.063; 7. Cody Swanson, 71, Swanson-15.087; 8. Terry Nichols, 45, Neverlift-15.088; 9. Frankie Guerrini, 63, Guerrini-15.343; 10. Jimmy Voitel, 21, Voitel-15.895; 11. Randi Pankratz, 8, Pankratz-15.951; 12. Britton Bock, 67, Bock-16.004; 13. Trey Marcham, 37, McQueen-16.106.
FIRST HEAT: (8 laps)
1. David Prickett, 2. Cody Swanson, 3. Ronnie Gardner, 4. Nic Faas, 5. Frankie Guerrini, 6. Randi Pankratz, 7. Trey Marcham. NT
SECOND HEAT: (8 laps)
1. Jake Swanson, 2. Terry Nichols, 3. T.J. Smith, 4. Britton Bock, 5. Jimmy Voitel, 6. Shannon McQueen. NT
FEATURE: (25 laps – With Staring Positions)
1. Jake Swanson (2nd), 2. Ronnie Gardner (4th), 3. T.J. Smith (5th), 4. Cody Swanson (1st), 5. David Prickett (3rd), 6. Nic Faas (6th), 7. Shannon McQueen (11th), 8. Frankie Guerrini (8th), 9. Randi Pankratz (12th), 10. Trey Marcham (13th), 11. Jimmy Voitel (9th), 12. Britton Bock (10th), 13. Terry Nichols (7th). NT
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FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-25 Jake Swanson.
HARD CHARGER: Shannon McQueen (11th to 7th)
USAC WESTERN MIDGET POINT STANDINGS:
1-Ronnie Gardner-284, 2-Jake Swanson-284, 3-David Prickett-235, 4-Kody Swanson-212; 5-Scott Pierovich-200, 6-Cody Swanson-156, 7-Frankie Guerrini-151, 8-Bryan Clauson-143, 9-Shannon McQueen-139, 10-Rico Abreu-128.
USAC WESTERN MIDGET DIRT POINT STANDINGS:
1-Ronnie Gardner-284, 2-Jake Swanson-284, 3-David Prickett-235, 4-Cody Swanson-156, 5-Bryan Clauson-143, 6-Kody Swanson-140, 7-Shannon McQueen-139, 8-Scott Pierovich-138, 9-Rico Abreu-128, 10-Christopher Bell-125.