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Traditional Sprint Car FanSite |
See You At The Races!!! |
| 2003
WESTERN WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS by Norm Bogan |
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Seasons are winding down throughout the country, so racers are looking for someplace to get in another race before settling in for winter. When the NASCAR shows come to Phoenix, sprint car racers drift toward the big half-mile oval at Manzanita Speedway. Fans pass the time viewing the stock cars on the one-mile macadam all day, then rush a few miles east to Manzy to get a dirt track fix. With a large enough field to split into two segments, half the racers qualified on Thursday evening and the others on Friday. The premier division was the traditional 410 sprints, joined by the non-winged 360 cars performing on the inside third-mile banked oval. Each night about sixty racecars saw action in a progression of heat races and a nightly feature for the 410 competitors, setting the field for the Saturday finale. A number of drivers participated in both classes, giving credibility to this local racing program. The 360 racers only ran heat races each night, then transferred into Saturday’s “C”, “B” or “A” Mains. Thursday found Cory Kruseman setting fast time in the Stewart Mopar #21X at 18.699, not too far off Brad Noffsinger’s track record of 18.5. Twenty-five 410s clocked in this evening, competing in three heat races and transferring the top five finishers to the feature. Marty Wilcox, Brandon Lane and Damion Gardner claimed the heat victories and Troy Rutherford collected the “B” Feature, sending the top seven into the Main Event. As the feature played out, Jeremy Sherman led the early laps before encountering a flat tire, turning the lead over to Bud Kaeding, who held on for the win. At the checkers, it was Kaeding, Charles Davis Jr., Tyler Walker, Cory Kruseman and Rickie Gaunt in the top spots. On Friday evening, it was a new cast of characters on a track that wasn’t quite as fast as the night before. J.J. Yeley took the other Stewart Mopar #20 to quick time at 19.325. Heat race winners were Richard Griffin, Bill Rose and Jeff Slinkard. Josh Wise came home first in the “B” Feature. Mike Kirby piloted the Alexander #4 to victory in the “A” Feature, with Griffin, Tony Elliott, Brian Venard and John Scott completing the top five. This year’s most dominant sprint car racer, J.J. Yeley suffered fuel pickup problems and finished last in the feature. The 360s drew pills for their starting position in the heats. The top two in each heat went directly to Saturday’s “A” Main, with the next two transferring into the “B” Main and the balance running in the “C”. Heat race winners on Thursday were Bob Ream Jr., Rickie Gaunt, Jon Stanbrough and Eric Wilkins. Friday saw Cory Kruseman, Jeremy Sherman and R.J. Johnson collecting the wins. As Saturday arrived, the “C” Mains were now set and the 360 racers would vie for the top six positions that would transfer to the “B” Main. Davey Bateman claimed the victory and in the 410 portion of the show, J.J. Yeley, Rip Williams, Tracy Hines and Alan Ballard advanced to the “B”. The 360 “B” Main found Casey Shuman winning and the top six finishers moving on to the Big Show. The 410 “B” had Josh Ford claiming the victory and the top eight transferring into the “A” Feature. With feature lineups now final, the 360 sprinters pushed on to the third-mile track and Jeremy Sherman exhibited the strength that has dominated the field all year. Rickie Gaunt, Bob Ream Jr., Mike Leslie and Eric Wilkins completed the top five. Now the scene was set for the forty-lap shootout in the 410 ranks. Twenty-four cars would stage a slugfest on the track for the $12,500 winner’s purse and a year’s bragging rights. Tony Elliott posted one of his premier performances, leading all forty laps and holding off challenges from several of his detractors. Bud Kaeding, Jeremy Sherman, Damion Gardner and Troy Rutherford rounded out the top five. Many of the USAC regulars came west; bringing their regular cars, while others picked up rides in California or Arizona cars. The racing was exciting for the fans, especially those who had sat through days in the hot sun at PIR. The heralded teams of Tony Stewart (Yeley and Kruseman) did not fare well. Soon to be crowned five-time SCRA champ, Richard Griffin was crashed out, collecting John Scott. Friday’s surprise, Brian Venard appeared headed for a top five finish, when he was hit from behind and suffered a fuel pickup problem in the final laps. Most of this cast of characters will now move to Perris for the upcoming Oval Nationals. Expect to see strong runs by some of the heroes and also an unheralded competitor stepping up to challenge all the big guys. The car counts at Manzy were good and the stands were nearly full on all three nights, another successful Western World Championship event. |
