By Troy Hennig
Chico, CA (Aug 27, 2019) …. Grass Valley’s Brad Sweet will lead a pack of hungry travelers into the World of Outlaws Nos Energy Sprint Car Series portion of the 66th Gold Cup Race of Champions at Chico’s Silver Dollar Speedway on Friday and Saturday September 6th and 7th. Sweet leads the World of Outlaw series with 12 wins in 2019, including his second Kings Royal at Eldora Speedway that paid an unprecedented $175,000.
Joining Sweet in that search for Gold at Silver Dollar Speedway is a two-time Gold Cup winner and ten-time World of Outlaw Champion Donny Schatz of Fargo, ND. Schatz has recently taken back the points lead from Sweet. Schatz has amassed eight wins this season and leads the series with 46 top ten finishes out of 50 starts. The driver with the most momentum coming into Chico is David Gravel from Watertown, CT. Gravel is fresh off his dominating win at the Knoxville Nationals. Gravel sits third in points with seven wins. Other traveling World of Outlaw Gold Cup winners include Daryn Pittman of Owasso, OK (2006) and Shane Stewart of Bixby, OK (2017).
Locally the charge is led by two-time and defending Gold Cup Champion Rico Abreu of St. Helena, CA. Abreu is one of the few locals who knows what it’s like to hold that giant Gold Cup trophy after 40-laps of competition on Saturday night. Chico’s Jonathan Allard is set to return and try to recapture the magic that took him to the top in 2014. San Jose’s Tim Kaeding recently won his 58th career main event at Chico during the KWS/NARC Thursday Night Thunder race. Sean Becker just claimed his seventh track title and picked up his 66th career win at Chico. Auburn’s Andy Forsberg is a four-time track champion at Chico and has 54 career wins. Chico’s Michael Ing, Roseville’s Colby Copeland and Fremont’s Shane Golobic are all contenders against the high-powered traveling Outlaws.
The Silver Dollar Speedway will host the 66th Annual Gold Cup Race of Champions that will run September 4th – 7th of 2019. You must call the office to order reserved seating @ 530 350-7275. Reserve tickets are not available for purchase online. General admission tickets which cover seating in rows A thru I in the south (turn-1) and north (turn-4) in the bleachers are on a first come basis. They can be purchased in advance by phone or online at www.silverdollarspeedway.com. All reserved and general admission tickets will also be available at the gate each night starting at 5pm and from 9am to 4pm daily in the ticket office the week of Gold Cup.
Many activities for the 66th Gold Cup are planned to include the Christmas themed Black Light party on Thursday, the Clyde Lamar Golf Tournament on Friday, and the world-famous Joe Hunt Magnetos Chili Feed and Miss Gold Cup Bikini contest. Saturday JP’s Paint and Body Works will sponsor the Fan Appreciation BBQ at noon by the pit entrance.
The Gold Cup starts with a two-night show called the Platinum Cup. This winged 360 sprint car themed event will feature over 40 drivers competing during the Wednesday and Thursday night of Gold Cup. The World of Outlaw Nos Energy Sprint Car Series will hit the track Friday night, Sep 6th and conclude on Saturday night Sept 7th.