By Scott Daloisio
(Perris, CA, March 25, 2019) Perris Auto Speedway will celebrate its 23rd birthday this Saturday night, March 30th, and one of the invited guests will be the NOS Energy Drink World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series. The appearance will be the World of Outlaws only appearance in Southern California in 2019 and their first since 2017 as they were rained out last year. Others invited to the party are the popular Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Cars and The PAS Senior & Young Gun Sprints. Spectator gates for the quadruple header will open an hour earlier than normal at 4:00 P.M. with racing at 7:00.
The popular Riverside County half-mile clay oval opened on March 30, 1996 and future NASCAR regular JJ Yeley won the first ever SCRA Sprint Car main event at the track. Since that time, dozens of legendary drivers have graced the oval that is located at the base of the Lake Perris Dam. One of those drivers is Minot, North Dakota’s Donnie Schatz. The 41-year-old 10-time World of Outlaws champion, who drives for Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing, won his 254th series main event last month. However, none of those victories have come at Perris. Ironically, Steve Kinser, the only driver with more Outlaw titles (20) than Schatz and who scored 690 lifetime wins in his illustrious career, also was never able to earn a “W” at The PAS.
Saturday’s race at the track that was dubbed “Sprint Car Heaven” a few weeks after it opened, will be the eighth of the 2019 season for the Outlaws. Heading into this weekend’s races (the Outlaws will race Friday in Hanford before heading south to The PAS), six different drivers have won the first seven Outlaw races of the season. Only Daryn Pittman, a three-time winner at The PAS, has more than one win this year. The Owasso, Oklahoma native, who has three wins at The PAS over the years, won the first two Outlaw races of the season in Florida. Since then, five different drivers – Aliquippa, Pennsylvania’s Tim Shaffer, Californian Carson Macedo from Lemoore, Australian Ian Madsen, Hanover, Pennsylvania’s Logan Schuchart and Schatz – have picked up single main event wins.
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Oklahoma’s Darryn Pittman has two wins and leads the World of Outlaws point standings. Jason Tucker photo.
All of this year’s winners are expected to be on hand Saturday as will Watertown, Connecticut’s David Gravel, who won the last Outlaws main event at The PAS in 2017. In addition, Grass Valley, California’s Brad Sweet, Jason Sides of Bartlett, Tennessee, Wooster, Ohio’s Sheldon Haudenschild, 2015 PAS winner Paul McMahon of Elk Grove, California, Hanover, Pennsylvania resident Jacob Allen, Shane Stewart of Bixby, Oklahoma and Bloomington, Indiana’s Kraig Kinser are expected to be in Saturday’s Outlaws field.
Going into Saturday’s race, Pittman leads Schatz by 10-points in the championship standings. Sweet currently sits third and is only 10-points out of the lead.
On the USAC/CRA side of Saturday’s program, Garden Grove’s Brody Roa and R.J. Johnson of Laveen, Arizona are currently deadlocked at the top of the championship standings. Seven-time series champion Damion Gardner of Concord, California is lurking just 3-points behind the leaders. Tijeras, New Mexico’s Josh Hodges and Hunter Schuerenberg of Sikeston, Missouri, who will be racing with the Outlaws on Saturday, split the series season-opening races in Peoria, Arizona four weeks ago. Of interest to local fans, Yorba Linda’s Matt Mitchell will be back in his own car and returning to regular action at The PAS beginning on Saturday night.
Tickets for Saturday’s show, which include a free “World of Outlaws Fan Pit Pass” if reserved or premiere seats are purchased in advance, are available at the following link https://bit.ly/2rLFzex or by calling 1-844-DIRT-TIX.
Perris Auto Speedway is conveniently located on the SoCal Fair and Event Center (home of October’s Southern California Fair), approximately one hour east of Los Angeles and one-hour North of San Diego. To get to the track, take the 215 freeway, on the Ramona Expressway and go three miles east to the fairgrounds. For directions on MapQuest, the address to enter is: 18700 Lake Perris Drive and the zip code is 92571.
Perris Auto Speedway wants to thank its corporate partners for the 2019 season. All Coast Construction, Austin Hutchinson Realtor, Battery Systems, Brass and Bass Firearms & Fishing Supplies, Budweiser, Bud’s Tire Pro, Chris’ Hauling, City of Perris, Daytona Boat & RV Storage, Ed Moore Bullet Proof Driveshaft, Flowdynamics, Harley’s Custom Cycles, HD Industries, Hoosier Tires, Inland Rigging, K2 Displays, Living Water’s Hospice, LKQ Pick Your Part, Luke’s Transmission, Pepsi-Cola, Pole Position, Precision Engine of Temecula, PrintItNow.com, Rainbow Bolt & Supply, Shaver Specialties, Square H, Sunoco Race Fuels, Sunstate Equipment, Trench Shoring, Varner Construction, VIA RV Service and Vista Paint.
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Video and DVD productions of all racing sprint cars events at Perris Auto Speedway are available from Loudpedal Productions. For more information on these productions you can contact them by calling (805) 844-3854, E-mailing mailto:trtruex@gmail.com or you can visit the website LoudPedal Productions.
DVD’s of all the PASSCAR/IMCA racing and Nights of Destruction at The PAS are available from Fourvideos. For more information call (714) 225-9500.
racesatthepas@aol.com is the only authorized Internet address to issue official media news released from The Perris Auto Speedway or Oval Entertainment.