By Gary Thomas
Stockton, CA…After a rainout last weekend the Elk Grove Ford Sprint Car Challenge Tour is now ready to get the season started at the newly renovated Stockton Dirt Track this Saturday April 6th.
The event at the San Joaquin County Fairgrounds facility marks the annual “Asparagus Cup” and is the first of two SCCT appearances this year in Stockton. The fully loaded show taking place on a newly reconfigured and shortened track also features the NARC 410 Sprint Cars.
The much-anticipated race is held one weekend prior to the annual San Joaquin Asparagus Festival, which sees more than 65,000 people come through the gates over its three-day run.
Former winners of the Asparagus Cup include current national stars James McFadden and Giovanni Scelzi, along with most recently Colby Copeland of Roseville.
With the www.shopkylelarson.com full-time Bonus automatically factored in, this Saturday’s SCCT feature will award $3,000-to-win and $400-to-start. The tour will again hand out $10,000 to its champion at season’s end.
Last year saw the Elk Grove Ford Sprint Car Challenge Tour have its closest championship battle in series history, with the top-three in points separated by just 11 markers following the Stockton finale.
Clarksburg’s Justyn Cox ultimately fended off Templeton’s Kaleb Montgomery by four slim points to secure his initial SCCT title. Cox, who piloted the Bates-Hamilton Racing No. 42x, became the fourth driver to claim a Sprint Car Challenge Tour championship, joining Andy Forsberg, Ryan Robinson and Kyle Hirst.
Despite coming up just short, both Montgomery and Oakley’s Dylan Bloomfield made it an ultra-close fight right down to the end. Suisun City youngster Chance Grasty locked up the Garth Moore Insurance Rookie of the Year Award and finished fourth in the standings, while Clovis’ Dominic Gorden completed the top-five.
Dale Miller Racing captured their first SCCT owner championship last season in dominating fashion. Aromas wheel-man Justin Sanders piloted the car for much of the year and book ended the campaign by winning the opener in Placerville, along with the finale at Stockton.
Tickets and Details:
Grandstand seating for the Asparagus Cup is general admission this Saturday April 6th. Adult tickets cost $30, while seniors 65+, military and juniors 5-17 will be $25. Kids four and under are free. Purchase tickets online at https://bit.ly/3PfzphN or at the gate on race day.
The pit gate will open at noon, with the front gate opening at 4pm. The pit meeting will be held at 4pm with cars on track at 4:30. Hot laps, Sierra Foothills Wine Services qualifying and racing will follow.
SCCT teams must utilize mufflers this Saturday in Stockton. It will mirror that of the NARC rule, which is Flowmaster, SpinTech, Schoenfeld 14272735-78 or Extreme mufflers.
For those who can’t make it to the track CaliDirt.TV provides live coverage of every Sprint Car Challenge Tour event. The service also covers every championship point race at Placerville Speedway. Fans can purchase through a cost savings monthly membership or on a per race basis via https://calidirt.tv/
The Stockton Dirt Track is located on the San Joaquin County Fairgrounds in Stockton, California. The physical address is 1658 S Airport Way, Stockton, CA 95206. For information on the speedway visit www.stocktondirttrack.com
More information on the Elk Grove Ford Sprint Car Challenge Tour can be found at our official website www.sprintcarchallengetour.com – Be sure to also like us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/sprintcarchallengetour and follow on X/Twitter https://twitter.com/360SCCT for the latest breaking news regarding SCCT. You can also find us on Instagram by searching scct360.