PETERSEN MEDIA
Returning to the Silver Dollar Speedway for the first time since his heartbreak at the Gold Cup Race of Champions, Tanner Carrick found a little redemption as he made a late race move to score the win during the Pacific Sprint Fall Nationals opener before finishing sixth during Saturday’s finale.
“Friday night we were really good, and it was great to get a little redemption at Silver Dollar Speedway after the Gold Cup,” Tanner Carrick said. “Saturday night we had another really good car, but we broke a left rear shock spud at the start of the race, and it made handling a bit rough.”
A large count was in action during both nights of competition at Silver Dollar Speedway, with 66 checking in on Friday and 69 in action on Saturday night. Friday night’s opener saw Carrick go out nearly last in his qualifying flight, and the Lincoln, CA driver was able to time the CVC/Cemex/Interstate Oil backed No. 83T mount in second fastest.
Lining up on the pole of his heat race, Carrick flexed his muscle as his win would move him into the all-important Trophy Dash. Running third in the Dash, Carrick would grid the field from the second row for the 30-lap opening night feature event.
When the race came to life, Carrick would jump into the second position as he chased after Andy Forsberg. With a couple of early cautions keeping Carrick from pressuring for the lead, things would intensify just after the halfway point.
Taking the lead at the halfway point as Forsberg drifted off the track, Carrick would do a great job in traffic, though he would fall back to second on the 17th lap as Forsberg got back by him.
As Carrick continued to pressure Forsberg while they raced through traffic, Forsberg would make another mistake on the 19th lap and Carrick would move back into the race lead as Kyle Hirst would then move into second.
In a high stakes game of Chess, Hirst would get by Carrick on the 22nd lap to take the lead in traffic until a caution on the 25th lap bunched the field back up and gave the leaders clear track.
The race’s final restart would see Hirst lead the field into turns one and two as he attacked the cushion, and second running Carrick would stick the bottom and reclaim the top spot as the field exited turn four.
Out in front, Carrick would leave the field behind as he raced on to his seventh feature event win of the season.
Back in action on Saturday night, Carrick would again lay down the second fastest lap in his qualifying flight before running away with another heat race win.
Finishing fourth in the Saturday night Dash, Carrick would look to repeat his Friday night heroics as he again took the green flag from the second row.
Showcasing another strong car, Carrick would mimic his Friday night start as he quickly jumped up into second. Carrick’s good run would be short lived however, as his left rear shock mount would give way on the third lap creating a ill handling car for the next 37-laps.
Doing all he could on a rough racing surface, Carrick would keep his machine well inside the Top-10 as he closed his weekend out with a sixth place finish.
“I definitely thought we had something to contend for the Saturday night win, but we broke a shock mount early and it really made things tough on us,” Carrick said. “Thanks to the guys for all of their hard work, I am excited to get back to SCCT action this weekend.”
Tanner Carrick would like to thank CVC, Cemex, Interstate Oil, Conti, Harris and Sloan, Emerald, Timberworks Construction, Kaeding Performance, and Arai for their continued support
BY THE NUMBERS: Starts: 546 Wins: 7, Top 5’s: 25, Top 10’s: 33
ON TAP: Carrick will be in action on both Friday and Saturday night at the Keller Auto Speedway in Hanford, CA.
STAY CONNECTED: Stay up to speed with Tanner Carrick by following him on Twitter @Carrick_Tanner or @CarrickMotorsp1, and by clicking over to www.tannercarrick.com.