|
Traditional Sprint Car FanSite |
See You At The Races!!! |
| Press Release |
|
|
|
USAC/CRA SPRINT CARS HEAD PERRIS OPEN WHEEL EXTRAVAGANZA ON SATURDAY! |
|
(MARCH 24, 2009, PERRIS, CA) This Saturday night, March 28th, Major League Sprint Car racing returns to Perris Auto Speedway when the Lucas Oil USAC/CRA Sprint Cars take on Don Kazarian’s famous half-mile clay oval for the second time in 2009. Joining them on the ½ mile will be the California Lightning Sprint Cars while the USAC Ford Focus Midgets and Junior Focus Midgets will be racing on the PAS quarter-mile. Spectator gates will open at 4:00 PM and the first 50 adult fans through the gate will receive a free Perris Auto Speedway cap courtesy of Sunoco and The PAS. The first race will be at 6:00 PM. Heading the list of entries for the USAC/CRA portion of the show is longtime Torrance, California racing star “Super” Rickie Gaunt. The popular 40 year old, who has a boisterous tell it like it is personality, scored a huge win when he beat the best traditional Sprint Car drivers in the nation at The PAS on February 28th in the Sokola Shootout. Driving the Nadine Gardner black #16, the 2004 SCRA & Non Wing World Champion and 1999 Oval Nationals Champion fought off the persistent charges of Grass Valley, California’s Brad Sweet and the rest of the top USAC National and CRA stars to post his initial win of 2009. The victory was the 22nd of his combined CRA/SCRA/USACCRA career tying him for 17th with John Redican on the all-time win list. The California Lightning Sprint Cars will be making their second of eleven 2009 appearances at the PAS on Saturday. On their first trip on March 7th, Murrieta, California teenager Stuart Hielscher Jr. picked up right where he left off in 2008 by beating Jarrett Kramer and Alec Bender to the checkered flag. Two weeks ago, defending series champion Brent Sexton won the Lightning main at Jim Naylor’s Ventura Raceway when he topped Hielscher Jr, and Bender on the beach side oval. The USAC Ford Focus Midgets will be making their first appearance at The PAS in several years and their first ever race on The PAS quarter mile. Longtime Southern California favorite Jet Davison, of Arrow Bear, California, will be among the entries. Davison, who first raced with the USRC Midgets in the late 1970’s, was fourth behind Nick Carlson, Eric Gunderson and Sean Dudenhoaf last Saturday at Bakersfield. Fifteen year old sensation Alex Bowman, of Tucson, Arizona, last year’s winningest drive in USAC (all categories) and the 2008 USAC Ford Focus Midget National Champion, will make his PAS debut on Saturday. Rounding out Saturday’s show will be the first ever PAS appearance of the USAC Junior Focus Midgets. The younger generation comes into the event with two races in the books in the 2009 season. Ethan Quinn won the season opener two weeks ago at Ventura, while Fountain Valley, California’s Kyle Edwards won last Saturday at Bakersfield. While those two will be drivers to watch, many in stands will be keeping an eye on Rickie Gaunt’s young sons, Mavrick and Chassen. It will be their first ever race at The PAS. In their only race of 2009, Mavrick finished third and Chassen placed seventh at Ventura. Of watching his two sons compete together at Ventura, the normally tough talking Rickie Gaunt said, “It kind of made me weepy eyed watching them on the track.” Saturday’s action, which will bring out the gunslinger side of “Super” Rickie Gaunt on the USAC/CRA portion of the program and the teary eyed proud father when he is watching his kids on the quarter-mile, will include qualifying, heats, a B main and 30 lap A main for the USAC/CRA cars. All of the other divisions will include heats and A main events (possible B main event as well where applicable). Between 4:00 and 5:00 PM, all fans can purchase two for the price of one food items. This offer does not include drinks or value menu items. Advance tickets for this Saturday are available 24 hours a day by calling 1-800-595-4849. They can also be ordered on the Internet at tix.com or perrisautospeedway.com. For more information call The PAS at: (951) 940-0134. Video and DVD productions of all USAC/CRA races at The PAS dating back to 2004 and including the last five Budweiser Oval Nationals are available from Jeff Kristensen’s Raceway Video. For more information on these productions you can call: (818) 618-9764 or visit the web site at: racewayvideo.com. Perris Auto Speedway is on the Lake Perris Fairgrounds (home of the Southern California Fair), approximately one hour east of Los Angeles and one hour North of San Diego. To get to the track, take the 215 freeway, exit on the Ramona Expressway and go two miles east to the fairgrounds. racesatthepas@aol.com is the only authorized Internet address to issue official media news released from The Perris Auto Speedway or Oval Entertainment |
