PETERSEN MEDIA
Over the years, that first win at Placerville Speedway has eluded Tony Gomes. That changed on Saturday night, as Gomes wired the field during the track’s crowned jewel event and raced his way to a memorable win, and gave the C&M Motorsports team its first Mark Forni Classic triumph in doing so.
“I have done everything but seal the deal at Placerville Speedway, and to finally do it back in the C&M Motorsports car is really special,” Tony Gomes said. “Cody and Mandi believed in me enough to give me my first opportunity a few years ago, and to team back up and do this with them at the Mark Forni Classic of all races is amazing.”
With 43 cars checked in at the 17th running of the event, Gomes got off to a rock-solid start as he tied the Legacy Specialties Inc./Lund Construction/Anrak backed No. 7c in seventh fastest in his qualifying flight.
Gomes’ qualifying effort put him on the front row of his heat race. Picking up the win was a crucial part in Saturday’s equation as it put Gomes in the redraw where the one pill lined him up on the front row of the feature event alongside Andy Forsberg.
On a very slick racing surface that had built up a monstrous curb on both ends of the speedway, Gomes quickly went to work around the lip as the race came to life. Though a few cautions sprinkled throughout the course of the 25-lap feature slowed Gomes, he was strong on each restart as he continued to leave Forsberg in his wake and give himself breathing room.
Getting into traffic at times during the race, Gomes cut through traffic with extreme precision as continued his torrid pace as he clicked off laps getting closer to that elusive first Placerville Speedway win.
A late restart gave Gomes clear track for a final dash to the finish, and though he got back into traffic with two to go, Gomes never faltered as he beat the field the checkered flag and celebrated his first career win at the speedway.
“Cody and Bobby had our car on rails all night long, and we were so good on the cushion for 25-laps,” Gomes said. “There are a lot of great people who support the No. 7c, so to celebrate with them on Saturday as well was the icing on top of the cake.”
The C&M Motorsports team would like to thank Legacy Specialties Inc., Lund Construction, Anrak, Sam Rhodes, Alturas Tires, Swartz Diesel, PT Shocks, Creason Enterprises, and all of their product sponsors for their continued support.
ON TAP: C&M Motorsports will be back in action at Placerville Speedway on Saturday, August 6th.
BY THE NUMBERS: Starts-15, Wins-1, Top 5’s-2, Top 10’s-10
STAY CONNECTED: Keep up with C&M Motorsports by following @PrecisonShocks or @Mandi7C on Twitter.