By Gary Thomas
Placerville, CA – May 16, 2017…The Red Hawk Casino championship point season fires back off this Saturday May 20 with an exciting four division program set to commence on “Big Trophy Night” at the Placerville Speedway.
The Thompson’s Auto Group Winged 360 Sprint Cars, Ltd. Late Models and Pure Stocks will all be vying for one of the special five-foot tall perpetual trophies handed out to the winners. In addition to the three speedway regulars the traveling Nor-Cal Dwarf Car Association will also be on hand during the night.
A healthy field of Thompson’s Auto Group Winged 360 Sprint Cars is expected to convene at the Placerville Speedway this weekend, including the first start of the season by reigning champion Mason Moore of Princeton. The driver of the Friends & Family Racing X1 captured three victories last year en route to his first career track title. Moore is also the defending winner of Big Trophy Night and hopes to take home the award once again come Saturday.
Five-time track champion Andy Forsberg of Auburn will also be in competition aboard the potent C&M Motorsports No. 7c machine. “Mr. Excitement” is always a driver to beat whenever he signs in at the El Dorado County Fairgrounds quarter-mile. After coming within inches of a victory last weekend with KWS-NARC, Roseville’s Sean Becker will look to find redemption this Saturday at the helm of the M&M Structures No. 35 sprinter. The “Shark” earned a pair of wins last season in the Dan Monhoff owned machine.
Most recent Thompson’s Auto Group Winged Sprint Car winner Greg Decaires will be gunning to keep the invaders out of victory lane however. The Elk Grove veteran sits atop the standings with two rounds complete, as he searches for a fifth track title aboard the Dale Miller Plumbing No. 4sa mount. Placerville’s own Jimmy Trulli has had a successful start to the season and finds himself second in the standings. Trulli has earned second and fifth place finishes in the first two races respectively.
Additional drivers expected this Saturday will include opening round winner Justyn Cox of Clarksburg, Watsonville’s Justin Sanders, Visalia’s Steven Tiner, Fair Oak’s Jake Morgan, Hollister’s Tony Gualda, Calistoga’s Mike Benson, Shingle Springs Justin Johnson, Placerville’s Andy Gregg, CJ Humphreys and Cody Fendley, Wilton’s Matt Peterson, Napa’s Kirt Organ and Chris Masters, Citrus Height’s DJ and Dustin Freitas, Sacramento’s Matt Barber, Oakdale’s Shawn Conde and more.
The Ltd. Late Models have featured three different winners in as many races this year with Ray Trimble, Matt Micheli and Ryan McDaniel all scooping up victories thus far. Mike and Tyler Lightfoot, Tim Tilford, Eddie Gardner and Ken Micheli will be some of the drivers hoping to make it four different winners in four races on Saturday. Tyler Lightfoot goes into this weekend looking to defend his Big Trophy Night win from last season.
Reigning Pure Stock Big Trophy Night winner Dan Jinkersen earned his second win of the year on May 6 and will be searching to make it three out of four this weekend. Ray Trimble earned the victory on April 29, while defending track champion Nick Baldwin captured the special non-point show last Saturday. Scott Grunert, Jason Palmer, Rick Grunert and Jay Bryant will all look to find victory lane this week.
The Nor-Cal Dwarf Car Association is geared up to make their second Placerville Speedway visit of the season on Saturday. Ryan Winter picked up the victory during the most recent appearance on April 29 over Shawn Jones, Danny Wagner, Scott Dahlgren and Kevin Bender.
Our friends from the Capital Quarter Midget Association will also be at the track Saturday with cars on display and information on how people can get involved. The Rio Linda based Capitol QMA has given a number of racers their start from an early age including four-time NASCAR Cup champion Jeff Gordon.
Adult tickets this Saturday will cost $15, while seniors 62 plus and juniors 12-15 will be $13, children 6-11 are $6 and those under 6 will be free. The pit gate will open at 2pm, with the front grandstand gate opening at 3pm.
A happy hour will be offered from 4pm-6pm in the grandstands featuring discounted Coors Light and Coors Original at the beer stand. Drivers meeting will be held at 4:30pm, with cars on track for wheel packing at 5pm, qualifying scheduled to begin around 5:30pm and heat races expected to fire-off at 6pm.
The Placerville Speedway is located on the beautiful El Dorado County Fairgrounds in Placerville, California. Take Hwy US-50 to Forni Road/Placerville Drive exit. Then go north on Placerville Drive to the Fairgrounds. The physical address is 100 Placerville Dr., Placerville, CA 95667. For more information on the Placerville Speedway log onto http://www.placervillespeedway.com
Since opening in 1965 the Placerville Speedway has been a favorite among fans throughout Northern California. Well known for its steep banks, distinctive red clay, loyal fan base and extremely close action, the track is located just 40-minutes up the hill from the capital city of Sacramento.
Join over 8800 followers of Placerville Speedway on Facebook, where you can keep abreast of updates for the 2017 season. You can also find Placerville Speedway on Twitter by following us https://twitter.com/pvillespeedway – In addition, Placerville Speedway is also on Instagram. Please follow us @PvilleSpeedway.
The Placerville Speedway is operated by Russell Motorsports Incorporated, which can be reached at the track business office at 530-344-7592. Contact Kami Arnold or Scott Russell directly for 2017 sponsorship opportunities at the office.