by Lance Jennings
SANTA MARIA, CA – MAY 21, 2013… This Saturday, May 25th, the Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series will return to Perris Auto Speedway for the annual “Salute To Indy.” “The Power of Purple Night” benefiting the City of Perris Relay For Life and the American Cancer Society will also feature the PAS Senior Sprint Cars, California Lightning Sprints, PAS Young Gun Sprint Cars presented by The Sprint Car Driving Experience, and WRA Vintage Cars on display. The spectator gates will open at 5:00pm and racing at “America’s Premier Dirt Track” will start at 7:00pm.
The annual “Salute To Indy” race has been a Southern California tradition going back to the legendary Ascot Park in Gardena. When Perris Auto Speedway opened their doors in 1996, the Riverside County facility kept the tradition alive and current NASCAR competitor J.J. Yeley took the checkered flags. Since then, some of the brightest stars in sprint car racing have added the prestigious race to their resume. Last year’s winner Mike Spencer will have his sights on joining Cory Kruseman, Damion Gardner, Blake Miller, and Mike Kirby as multiple winners of the Memorial Day Classic.
Heading into the ninth race of the campaign, Concord’s “The Demon” Damion Gardner holds a twenty-one point advantage over the competition. Last Saturday at Tulare, the pilot of Mark Alexander’s #4A Scott Sales Company / Competition Suspension Inc. Spike earned his second Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Award and claimed sixth in the feature. With three feature wins, three heat race victories, one dash win, eight top-10 finishes, and 76 feature laps led on the year, Gardner will be looking for his third “Salute To Indy” victory.
Gardner’s teammate, Nic Faas of Huntington Beach is second in the championship points. Racing Mark Alexander’s #4 Scott Sales Company / Competition Suspension Inc. Spike, Faas rebounded from and early spin to score eighth at Tulare. Currently, the former USAC/CRA Rookie of the Year has one feature win, two Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Awards, one heat race victory, eight top-10 finishes, and 12 feature laps led to his credit. On Saturday, Nic will be looking for his seventh career main event win at Perris Auto Speedway.
Sitting third in the point standings is Temecula’s Mike Spencer. Driving Ron Chaffin’s #50 Grubstake Mini Storage / Madera Produce Maxim, Spencer won last Saturday’s 30-lap feature at Tulare. To date, the five-time USAC/CRA champion has two Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Awards, three heat race victories, six top-10 finishes, and 27 feature laps led on the season. Last year’s “Salute To Indy” winner will have his sights on making the Memorial Day race his 35th career main event win.
Bud Kaeding of Campbell is fourth in the point chase. Piloting Junior Bowman’s #29 Buster & Ziggy Enterprises / Kaeding Performance Bullet, Bud led eleven laps at Tulare before scoring fourth at the checkered flags. Currently, the 3-time Oval Nationals Champion has one dash win, one Competition Suspension Inc. / Rod End Supply Semi-Main win, seven top-10 finishes, and 17 feature laps led on the year. At Perris, Kaeding will be looking to add the “Salute To Indy” to his resume.
After scoring eleventh at Tulare, “The Cadillac” Cody Williams of Yorba Linda has taken over sole possession of fifth in the standings. Racing Jack Jory’s #44 John Jory Corporation / AMA Plastics Spike, Williams has one Keizer Wheels / Racing Optics Hard Charger Award, five top-10 finishes, and 3 feature laps led in the campaign. The former National Sprint Car Rookie of the Year will be looking to claim his first USAC/CRA victory at the “Salute To Indy.”
Among the other drivers expected to be in action are Austin Williams, Brody Roa, Matt Mitchell, Ryan Bernal, “The Ripper” Rip Williams, Seth Wilson, “Super” Rickie Gaunt, “Dynamite” David Cardey, Richard Vander Weerd, David Bezio, Jace Vander Weerd, and many more. Local 360 iron-block powered Sprint Cars are welcome to race with USAC/CRA. The 360s can run their local approved Hoosier tires, but must meet series tech standards and race track muffler rules.
Perris Auto Speedway is located on the Lake Perris Fairgrounds at 18700 Lake Perris Drive in Perris, California. Adult tickets are $25, Senior tickets (65 and over) are $20, and $5 for Children (6-12). For more information, visit www.perrisautospeedway.com or call (951) 940-0134.
To catch all of the action of the Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series at Perris Auto Speedway, Mike Truex’s Loudpedal Productions has DVD videos available for purchase. For more information, call (805) 407-7229 or visit www.loudpedalvideo.com. In addition, Perris Auto Speedway offers a live pay per view feed at www.circletracknetwork.com. The live feed is scheduled to begin at 5:30pm PST.
The Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series would like to thank Hoosier Tire, BR Motorsports, Circle Track Performance, Competition Suspension Inc., DJ Safety, Extreme Mufflers, Huntington Beach Glass & Mirror Inc., Kaeding Performance, Keizer Wheels, King Racing Products, Racing Optics, Rugged Radios, Rod End Supply, SBI Fuel Systems, Saldana Racing Products, Weld Racing, and Woodland Auto Display for their support. If you or your company would like to become part of the series, email PR Director Lance Jennings at lwjennings@earthlink.net.
For more information on the Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series, visit www.usacracing.com/cra or follow the series on Facebook (www.facebook.com/pages/USAC-
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AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT POINT STANDINGS:
1. Damion Gardner-528; 2. Nic Faas-507; 3. Mike Spencer-434; 4. Bud Kaeding-415; 5. Cody Williams-331; 6. Austin Williams-323; 7. R.J. Johnson-300; 8. Brody Roa-287; 9. Matt Mitchell-287; 10. Ryan Bernal-242; 11. Rip Williams-233; 12. Charles Davis Jr.-232; 13. Bryan Clauson-210; 14. Mike Martin-191; 15. Seth Wilson-178; 16. Rickie Gaunt-167; 17. David Cardey-166; 18. Richard Vander Weerd-162; 19. David Bezio-132; 20. Markus Niemela-107.
PERRIS “SALUTE TO INDY” WINNERS:
1996-J.J. Yeley; 1997-Cory Kruseman; 1998-Mike Kirby; 1999-Troy Rutherford; 2000-Richard Griffin; 2001-Mike Kirby; 2002-Mike Kirby; 2003-Damion Gardner; 2004-Damion Gardner; 2005-Cory Kruseman; 2006-Tony Jones; 2007-Blake Miller; 2008-RAIN; 2009-Blake Miller; 2010-David Cardey; 2011-Matt Mitchell; 2012-Mike Spencer.