|
Traditional Sprint Car FanSite |
See You At The Races!!! |
| Press Release |
|
|
|
MANZANITA SPEEDWAY |
|
Phoenix, AZ (October 8) With championship races on the horizon, several
records in danger of being broken and driving championships to be decided, the
coming weeks will add luster to what has already been a great season.
The Championship season actually starts with the Liberty Buick/Peoria Pontiac-GMC Final Showdown on October 25th and the Buddy Taylor Memorial on the 26th. The Taylor Memorial will also run under the sponsorship of Liberty Buick and Peoria Pontiac-GMC. The next weekend is Sands Chevrolet Dirt Modified and Dwarf Car Nationals. The $5000 to win Dirt Modified Half Mile Track Nationals are sponsored by Mesilla Valley Transportation and Barnett Harley-Davidson. The Dwarf Car Nationals have sponsorship from DwarfCar.com/Dwarf Car Company. November 7-9 brings us to the NAPA/Budweiser Western World Championships and its brand new format with over $85,000 on the line for the open wheel affair. The race will decide the championship in the Non Winged World Championship Series which pits SCRA against USAC on Manzy's half mile track. The 360 non winged sprint cars will also be showcased as they show their stuff on the one third mile oval. Mini Sprints will also be on the short track. The SCRA race carries a $12,500 winner's share of a $61,000 purse. Jeremy Sherman became the first Phoenix driver to win the Western last year and will try for a repeat in the Ellis Racing Products sprinter. The SCRA cars will be divided into two groups. Half the field will run qualifying heats, semi and main event Thursday night and the other half will repeat the process Friday night. The championship races–Consy, semi and 40 lap feature headlines the Saturday night card. The 360 sprinters run their qualifying heats on Friday night with the finals Saturday night. The 360 winners share is $1200 with $500 to start the feature. The Mini Sprints run their qualifiers Thursday night and their feature race Saturday night. The F&E Development 150 lap Bomber Enduro is set for Saturday night, November 16. About 80 cars are expected to start the long grind which has a $1000 check waiting for the winner. Dave Ellis will be presenting the Kenz & Leslie/BG Products Duel in the Desert II November 22-23. 360 non winged Sprint Cars and Midgets will race for a combined $73,300 purse. Main event winners in each division will be rewarded with a $2500 payday each night. The Sprint Cars will be on the half mile track and the Midgets will compete on the one third mile oval. Some records have already been set and at least one more record is expected to be broken before the final checkered flag falls. Anthony Madrid has set a record for most Factory Stock wins in a season (18) most stock car wins in a season(23), most starts in a season (52) and needs only three more wins to break the record of 25 wins in a season. The record was set in 1977 when Hall of Fame driver Lealand McSpadden won eight sprint car races, eight Midget races, seven Super Modified races and two Sprint Buggy features. He entered only 35 races that year and failed to start the first three after breaking in the heat races. Madrid has at least seven more starts to try to get the three wins. He has both Factory Stock and Bomber events October 12 and again October 25 and Dirt Modified races October 19 and at the Nationals November 2-3. Terry Belcher can tie the record for most Dirt Modified wins in a season if he can win either the October 19 race or one of the features at the Nationals. His eight wins trail the record of nine set by Ricky Johnson in 1994. There have been eight different winners in the Sprint Cars this year and that ties the record. Several drivers have been knocking on the door and should one of them get to the line first in the Buddy Taylor Memorial that will go in the record books. The youngest driving champion in Manzanita's 51 year history will undoubtedly be crowned at the Taylor Memorial. Fifteen year old R.J. Johnson needs only to start the feature to win the 2002 Arizona Midget Racing Association title. George Fronsman has cinched the West Connection Super Stock title with two races half mile track races remaining on the schedule. The Super Stocks will take to the big track Saturday night, October 12th and then in the Liberty Buick/Peoria Pontiac-GMC Final Showdown October 26. Madrid can concentrate on breaking the record without regard to points as he has already won his second Factory Stock title. He won first in 1996 and was the Super Stock champion last year. The point season for the Dirt Modifieds is over and Ricky Thornton keeps the crown whle the Dwarf Cars have two races remaining on their card the final of which is on October 19. Dino Soto, with nine feature wins, is trying for his first driving title. |
