Press
Release |
|
SPENCER GIVES CHAFFIN/BROMME 100TH WIN
By Robert Mayson
|
Perris, Calif…(March 28, 2009) Defending Lucas Oil USAC/CRA Champion Mike Spencer, Temecula, Calif., led all 30-laps Saturday at the Perris Auto Speedway to give car owner Ron Chaffin and crew chief Bruce Bromme, Jr. their 100th win since joining forces in 1995.
Perhaps more importunately, Spencer’s tenth career USAC/CRA triumph put the team back in victory lane for the first time in a year.
“It was actually this weekend last year that we won our last race. Hopefully, we can do the opposite of what we did last year and win some more races,” Spencer smiled. “I’m just excited because this is the 100th win for Ron and Bruce and it’s pretty neat to get that for them and it’s quite a milestone for them.”
Spencer’s Grubstake Storage / Madera Produce No. 50 Maxim started the race on the inside of the second row behind R.J. Johnson and the Preistley-Hansen / Roy Miller Freightlines No. 7 Maxim driven Garrett Hansen of Manhattan Beach, Calif. Johnson briefly led the 22-car field at the start before Spencer darted off the bottom of turn-two to take the lead.
Danny Sheridan, Santa Maria, Calif., ran fourth at the end of the opening lap with David Cardey, Riverside, Calif., directly behind him in the Glenn Crossno / ITI Performance No. 38 Viper. In just seven circuits, “Showtime” Sheridan had his Kittle Motorsports / Scott Sales No. 18 Stinger up to second-place. Within a few laps, Cardey, who started sixth, had moved into third and began pressuring Sheridan.
Tony Jones started the race in the eleventh spot and had just moved into fifth when engine problems forced him to retire to the pit area on lap-18. Within the next few laps mechanical woes also sidelined pole-sitter Johnson, fourth-place Blake Miller and fast qualifier Cory Kruseman.
Six laps from the finish, Cardey passed Sheridan exiting turn-two and quickly set his sites on Spencer. Cardey took his first look at the lead on lap-27 in turn-three, but Spencer was able to stay out front.
Lap-29 provided the most drama of the race with Spencer and Cardey touching wheels exiting turn-two before running side-by-side towards the white flag. Just when it was looking like Cardey had the better line entering turn-one the yellow flag flew for Rip Williams, who slid to a stop in turn-one.
“I think the yellow flag came at the right time for us,” Spencer later admitted. “Cardey was good and he showed us a wheel and I knew I had to turn the wick up with two (laps) to go and run a couple good ones.”
Spencer did, in fact, run a “couple of good ones” and was able to beat Cardey, Sheridan and Hansen to the checkered flag. Greg Bragg, Visilia, Calif., ran third at the end of the opening lap and was able to give his Tom & Laurie Sertich / Huntington Beach Glass No. 92 Buckley a fifth-place finish.
Making his first USAC/CRA feature start, Austin Williams finished seventh, one spot behind Tyler Brown. Eighth-place John Aden earned “Hard-Charger” honors with his run from the 20th-position.
|
|
|
WEBSITE
|
SANCTIONS
|
RACING
|
MISC
|
|
|
T-SHIRTS
& MORE
|
|
|