PETERSEN MEDIA
Closing the 2022 season at Placerville Speedway with a runner up finish last September, Justin Sanders and Dale Miller Motorsports continued to show their dominance at the El Dorado County Fairgrounds facility, as Sanders opened the 2023 season at the track in victory lane in what was a photo finish over Shane Golobic.
“Man, I really don’t know what to say,” Justin Sanders said. “The top-four raced so hard and clean all night, I don’t think anyone of us ever touched as he battled. This was some of the most fun I have ever had in a racecar, and even if we ran second after all of that, I don’t think I could have been disappointed.”
With 25 cars on hand for the season opening at event at Placerville Speedway, Sanders opened up the night by timing the Thompson’s Buick-GMC/Thompson’s Jeep-Ram/Dale Miller Septic Inc. backed No. 4SA in second fastest in qualifying time trials.
Lining up second in his heat race, the Aromas, CA driver showcased a ton of speed around the red ¼ mile bullring as he worked his way to a second-place finish and secured a berth in the nightly redraw.
Pulling the four pill, Sanders took the green flag from the second row on a very well prepared racing surface despite the recent rain in the area.
Jumping into third when the race came to life, Sanders would find himself amidst a torrid race long battle between Tanner Carrick, Shane Golobic, and Colby Copeland as they all jockeyed for position at the front of the field racing two and three wide at times as they played cat and mouse through traffic.
Officially running in third much of the race, Sanders was able overtake Tanner Carrick for second with five to go, though the tight battles remained until the yellow flag flew with three laps to go.
Restarting on the tail of Shane Golobic, the duo exchanged the lead on the race’s penultimate lap. Running second as the white was displayed, Sanders chased Golobic through turns one and two, before making a cross over move exiting turn four and beating him in a drag race to the finish by just .026 seconds as the crowd came to their feet in approval.
“I honestly didn’t know we won until I looked up at the scoreboard going down the back stretch,” Sanders said. “It was a really good race, and a great start to the season. Dale Miller has put together another great package for us, and we have a great group of supporters behind us.”
The Dale Miller Motorsports team would like to thank Thompson’s Buick-GMC, Thompson’s Jeep-Ram, Dale Miller Septic Inc., North County Plastering, Hangtown Billiards, 24 Hour Road Side Service, Anrak Corporation, Smith Titanium, Frank’s Body Shop, Fisher Racing Engines, Low Voltage Experts Inc., Walker Performance Filtration, Factory Kahne Shocks, Vortex Wings, TJ Forged Wheels, FK Rod Ends, Triple X Race Co., King Racing Products, and A.R.T. Speed Equipment for their support.
BY THE NUMBERS: Starts- 1, Wins- 1, Top-5’s-1, Top-10’s-1
ON TAP: Dale Miller Motorsports and Justin Sanders are slated to return to Placerville Speedway on Saturday night.