By Lance Jennings
OCTOBER 26, 2021… A champion will be crowned this Friday, October 29th, as the USAC Western States and the Bay Cities Racing Association (BCRA) Midgets clash at Keller Auto Speedway. Promoted by Peter Murphy, the “Anthony Simone Classic” is the third appearance for the “mighty midgets” at the 3/8-mile oval. The action packed card will also showcase the NARC King of the West 410 Winged Sprint Cars and IMCA Stock Cars. In addition, the King of the West 410s will also hold a special non-winged main event in honor of “Mr. Excitement” Anthony Simone. Located on the Kings County Fairgrounds in Hanford, California, the Spectator Gates will open at 4:00pm, Hot Laps at 6:00pm, with Racing scheduled for 7:00pm. For more event information, visit the track’s website at kellerautospeedway.com.
For those that cannot travel to the races, floracing.com will broadcast a live stream of the night’s action over the internet.
NOTICE TO RACERS:
– NO ENTRY FEE IN 2021. ALL RACERS MUST PURCHASE THEIR USAC LICENSE / MEMBERSHIPS OR TEMPORARY PERMITS (TPs) ONLINE PRIOR TO THE EVENT AT USACRACING.COM OR USACLICENSE.COM. TPs are $25 and Memberships are $150.
– California state protocol calls for competitors, crews, officials, and anyone on the grounds to practice safe social distancing, proper sanitizing, and follow local regulations regarding the COVID-19 Coronavirus.
– 2021 APPROVED/LEGAL MUFFLERS: B&B: FRAC-0375-S w/side outlet, COAST FABRICATION: 300x625x17-2s, 350x625x17-2s, 400x625x17-2s, EXTREME: 3515-3030 (15″ Long 5″ round shell with 3″inlet & 3″ outlet), 3615-3030 (15″ Long 6″ round shell with 3″ inlet & 3″ outlet), 3515-3030-8 (15″ Long 5″ round shell with 3″inlet & 3″ outlet with turnout), 3615-3030-8 (15″ Long 6″ round shell with 3″ inlet & 3″ outlet with turnout), FLOWMASTER: (BCRA Approved) 13009130, 13509130, 13509135, SCHOENFELD: 14272535, 14272730-78 *Failure to comply with the muffler rule will risk disqualification from the event.
– FULL CONTAINMENT SEATS ARE MANDATORY.
– ONE WAY DRIVER RADIOS ARE MANDATORY.
– TRANSPONDERS ARE MANDATORY.
– The USAC Western States Midget Rule Book can be found online at usacracing.com.
Since June 6, 1986, the Kings County Fairgrounds has hosted 45 USAC Western States Midget races and thirty-one different drivers have claimed victory. Robby Flock scored the inaugural victory as Mitchel Moles and Brody Fuson topped the last two visits on the season. Billy Boat leads all drivers with six Hanford triumphs and Ronnie Day set the 1-lap qualifying track record of 15.555 on October 3, 1998. The series win list at Hanford is at the end of this release.
Leading rookie contender, Blake Bower (Brentwood, CA) has a 56-point lead over the competition. Piloting Tony Boscacci’s #9 Orland Public Auto Auction / Mountain Cascade Inc. Spike, Bower raced from ninth to sixth at Ventura Raceway on October 16th. At press time, Blake has posted one Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Award, five heat race victories, eleven top-10 finishes, and 26 feature laps led on the year. Blake will be looking to end his championship bid with his first USAC win this Saturday night.
Ranked second in points, Brody Fuson (Bakersfield, CA) still has a mathematical chance of winning the championship. Driving Rusty Carlile’s #51 RacePa Motorsports / W.E. Spike, Fuson scored fifteenth at Ventura after an early exit. To date, the rookie contender has two feature wins, one Woodland Auto Display Top Qualifier Award, four heat race wins, eight top-10 finishes, and 41 feature laps led to his credit. Brody will have his sights on the crown by claiming another Hanford victory.
C.J. Sarna (Brea, CA) is third in the championship point standings. Racing his #20 ZMAX / Final Final Clothing Spike, Sarna finished seventh at the Ventura County Fairgrounds. At press time, the 2007 Co-Rookie of the Year has four heat race victories, three Rod End Supply Hard Charger Awards, and eight top-10 finishes in the campaign. Sarna has one career victory and will have his sights winning at Keller Auto Speedway.
Austin Liggett (Linden, CA) sits fourth in USAC Western Midget point standings. The pilot of the family owned #83 Excel Environmental Services / Liggett Trucking Spike skipped the night’s action at Ventura. To date, the 2018 USAC West Coast 360 Sprint Car Champion has two feature wins, two Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Awards, one heat race victory, seven top-10 finishes and 57 feature laps led in the campaign. With four career wins, Liggett is a threat to win on any given night.
Chase Johnson (Penngrove, CA) ranks fifth in the chase for the championship. Driving Bill Buckley’s #7NZ Buckley Systems / Esslinger Engineering Bullet, Johnson scored third at Ventura after starting fifth in the main event. At press time, the versatile driver has two feature wins, three Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Awards, six top-10 finishes, and 21 feature laps led on the season. Chase has three career wins and will be looking to add a Hanford trophy to his collection.
While Bower leads the chase for rookie honors, Fuson (Bakersfield, CA), Jarrett Soares (Gilroy, CA), Tony Gomes (Modesto, CA), Colby Johnson (Penngrove, CA), Jake Andreotti (Castro Valley, CA), and Colton Raudman (Redding, CA) are also in contention.
Among the other drivers expected to be in action are Ben Worth, Ron Hazelton, Dylan Ito, Colby Johnson, Jake Andreotti, Tony Gomes, Kyle Mentch, Alex Schutte, and more.
Colby Johnson leads the BCRA point standings. Brody Fuson, David Prickett, Blake Bower, Chase Johnson, Kyle Mentch, Shannon McQueen, Robert Carson, C.J. Sarna, and Jarrett Soares round out the top-10 drivers.
Keller Auto Speedway is located at the Kings County Fairgrounds at 801 South 10th Avenue in Hanford, California. General Admission Adult tickets are $20, General Admission Senior (62 and older), Active Military (ID Required), and General Admission Junior tickets (6 to 17) are $15. Kids tickets (5 and under) are FREE. For more event information, visit kellerautospeedway.com or the track’s social media.
The USAC Western States Midget Series thanks AMSOIL, Competition Suspension Incorporated, Extreme Mufflers, Finish Line Promotions by Stephanie Odom, FloRacing, Hoosier Racing Tire, Loudpedal Productions, Rod End Supply, Saldana Racing Products, Superior Bearing and Supply, Ultra Shield Race Products, Walker Performance Filtration, Western Flyer Xpress, Wilwood Disc Brakes, Wireless 101, 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 USAC Western States Midget Series, visit the United States Auto Club (USAC) website at usacracing.com and the social media for USAC Racing. You can also find exclusive content on the USAC Western States Midget Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram pages.
FloRacing.com has live, flag-to-flag coverage of the USAC Western States Midget Series. You can catch the action by subscribing to FloRacing on a monthly or yearly basis to view their huge catalog of live and on-demand auto racing and sporting events.
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USAC WESTERN STATES MIDGET CHAMPIONS: *1982-Jeff Heywood, 1983-Sleepy Tripp, 1984-Tommy White, 1985-Sleepy Tripp, 1986-Robby Flock, 1987-Sleepy Tripp, 1988-Sleepy Tripp, 1989-Robby Flock, 1990-Sleepy Tripp, 1991-Sleepy Tripp, 1992-Sleepy Tripp, 1993-Robby Flock, 1994-Johnny Cofer, 1995-Billy Boat, 1996-Jay Drake, 1997-Ricky Shelton, 1998-Rick Hendrix, 1999-Marc DeBeaumont, 2000-Wally Pankratz, 2001-Danny Ebberts, 2002-Robby Flock, 2003-Steve Paden, 2004-Johnny Rodriguez, 2005-Jerome Rodela, 2006-Jerome Rodela, 2007-Johnny Rodriguez, 2008-Nic Faas, 2009-Garrett Hansen, 2010-Alex Schutte, 2011-Cory Kruseman, 2012-Shannon McQueen, 2013-Ronnie Gardner, 2014- Ronnie Gardner, 2015-Ronnie Gardner, 2016-Ronnie Gardner, 2017-Ronnie Gardner, 2018-Michael Faccinto, 2019-Robert Dalby, 2020-NO AWARD.
HANFORD USAC WESTERN STATES MIDGET TRACK RECORD: Ronnie Day – 15.555 (10/3/98)
HANFORD USAC WESTERN STATES MIDGET WINS: 6-Billy Boat, 4- Robby Flock, 3-Jimmy Sills, 2-Ronnie Day, 2-Alex Harris, 2-Rusty Rasmussen, 2-Ron Shuman, 1-Tommy Astone, 1-Donnie Beechler, 1-Ryan Bernal, 1-Cory Elliott, 1-Mark DeBeaumont, 1-Danny Ebberts, 1-Nic Faas, 1-Brody Fuson, 1-Joe Gaerte, 1-Ronnie Gardner, 1-Garrett Hansen, 1-Levi Jones, 1-Dallen McKenney, 1-Carson Macedo, 1-Andy Michner, 1-Mitchel Moles, 1-Alex Schutte, 1-Ricky Shelton, 1-Tony Stewart, 1-Danny Stratton, 1-Matt Streeter, 1-Sleepy Tripp, 1-Rich Vogler, 1-Josh Wise.
2021 USAC WESTERN STATES MIDGET WINS: 2-Brody Fuson, 2-Chase Johnson, 2-Austin Liggett, 1-Jake Andreotti, 1-Maria Cofer, 1-Colby Johnson, 1-Mitchel Moles, 1-Hayden Williams, 1-Ben Worth.
2021 USAC WESTERN STATES MIDGET POINT STANDINGS: 1. Blake Bower ®-788, 2. Brody Fuson ®-732, 3. C.J. Sarna-648, 4. Austin Liggett-549, 5. Chase Johnson-460, 6. Shannon McQueen-418, 7. Ben Worth-405, 8. Jarrett Soares ®-392, 9. Ron Hazelton-346, 10. David Prickett-334, 11. Dylan Ito-286, 12. Maria Cofer-282, 13. Colby Johnson ®-281, 14. Jake Andreotti ®-226, 15. Tony Gomes ®-222, 16. Randi Pankratz-212, 17. Mitchel Moles-205, 18. Robby Josett-202, 19. Kyle Beilman-190, 20. Terry Nichols-173, —. Kyle Mentch-173, 22. Troy Rutherford-151, 23. Mike Leach Jr.-117, 24. Colton Raudman ®-116, 25. Alex Schutte-113, 26. Caden Sarale-107, 27. Matt Mitchell-104, 28. Joey Bishop-86, 29. Dylan Bloomfield-82, 30. Hayden Williams-80, 31. Logan Seavey-79, 32. Michael Faccinto-78, 33. Shane Golobic-77, 34. Ryan Bernal-75, —. Travis Buckley-75, 36. Davey Ray-72, 37. Jade Avedisian-68, 38. Max Adams ®-65, 39. Beau Lemire-58, 40. Floyd Alvis-56, 41. Ashlyn Rodriguez-55, 42. Michael Snider-54, —. Matt Streeter-54, 44. Thomas Esberg-53, 45. Troy Morris III-50, —. Sparky Howard-50, —. Ronnie Gardner-50, —. Robert Carson-50, 49. Ben Wiesz-49, —. Gage Rucker-49, 51. Kenny Welch-46, 52. Kaleb Montgomery-36, 53. Jake Vermeer-27.