DAMION GARDNER WINS SANTA MARIA MAIN & CALIFORNIA SPRINT WEEK CROWN
SANTA MARIA, CA – SEPTEMBER 7, 2019… When the checkered flag waved at Santa Maria Raceway, “The Demon” Damion Gardner (Concord, CA) emerged victorious and topped the 5-race “California Sprint Week” championship by one point. Driving Mark Alexander’s #4 Trench Shoring / All Coast Construction Spike, Gardner took command from Chris Gansen on the tenth lap and recorded his third AMSOIL USAC/CRA Sprint Car win of the campaign (83rd career) over fast qualifier “The Big Game Hunter” Austin Williams, Jake Swanson, Max Adams, and “Chargin” Charles Davis Jr.
Ryan Bernal earned the Specialty Fasteners Hard Charger Award with an eleventh to sixth place run. Troy Rutherford claimed the Wilwood Disc Brakes “Lucky 13 Award” and James Herrera scored the USAC 360 Bonus with a fourteenth place finish in the feature.
Williams also posted his fifth career Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Award with a time of 13.388 over the 19-car field.
The night’s 10-lap heat race victories went to rookie contender Steve Hix (Extreme Mufflers First Heat), Bernal (Circle Track Performance / Ultra Shield Race Products Second Heat), and Davis (Saldana Racing Products / ButlerBuilt Seats Third Heat).
The AMSOIL USAC/CRA Sprint Cars will return to Perris Auto Speedway on Saturday, September 21st, for the “Glenn Howard Classic.”
The AMSOIL USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series thanks All Coast Construction, Brown & Miller Racing Solutions, Butlerbuilt Professional Seat Systems, Circle Track Performance, Competition Suspension Incorporated, Extreme Mufflers, Five Star Grafix, Flowdynamics, Hoosier Racing Tire, Loudpedal Productions, Pyrotect Racing Cells, Saldana Racing Products, Specialty Fasteners, surfnsprint.com, Sway-A-Way Racing Technology, Ultra Shield Race Products, Wilwood Disc Brakes, and Woodland Auto Display for their support.
For more information on the AMSOIL USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series, visit usacracing.com and the social media for USAC Racing. You can also find exclusive content on the USAC/CRA Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram pages.
AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CAR SERIES RACE RESULTS: September 7, 2019 – Santa Maria Raceway – Santa Maria, California – “California Sprint Week Finale”
WOODLAND AUTO DISPLAY QUALIFYING: 1. Austin Williams, 92, Sertich-13.388; 2. Jake Swanson, 34AZ, Grau/Burkhart-13.579; 3. Max Adams, 42X, Cheney-13.619; 4. Damion Gardner, 4, Alexander-13.708; 5. Chase Johnson, 68, Thomas-13.761; 6. Chris Gansen, 4G, Gansen-13.809; 7. Brody Roa, 91R, BR-13.831; 8. Danny Faria Jr., 42, Cheney-13.847; 9. Charles Davis Jr., 50, Davis-13.856; 10. Cody Williams, 44, Williams-13.864; 11. Ryan Bernal, 73, Ford-13.993; 12. Troy Rutherford, 11, Rutherford-14.061; 13. Steve Hix, 57, Hix-14.226; 14. Verne Sweeney, 98, Tracy-14.237; 15. Eddie Tafoya Jr., 51T, Tafoya-14.312; 16. Mike Martin, 16, Martin-14.339; 17. Austin Ervine, 51, AJ-14.431; 18. Brandon Wiley, 33B, Team 33-14.445; 19. James Herrera, 5J, Herrera-14.487.
EXTREME MUFFLERS FIRST HEAT: (10 laps) 1. Hix, 2. Roa, 3. A.Williams, 4. Gardner, 5. C.Williams, 6. Herrera, 7. Martin. NT
CIRCLE TRACK PERFORMANCE / ULTRA SHIELD RACE PRODUCTS SECOND HEAT: (10 laps) 1. Bernal, 2. Johnson, 3. Faria, 4. Swanson, 5. Sweeney. NT
SALDANA RACING PRODUCTS / BUTLERBUILT SEATS THIRD HEAT: (10 laps) 1. Davis, 2. Tafoya, 3. Adams, 4. Gansen, 5. Wiley, 6. Rutherford. NT
FEATURE: (30 laps, with starting positions) 1. Damion Gardner (3), 2. Austin Williams (6), 3. Jake Swanson (5), 4. Max Adams (4), 5. Charles Davis Jr. (9), 6. Ryan Bernal (11), 7. Cody Williams (10), 8. Chase Johnson (2), 9. Chris Gansen (1), 10. Steve Hix (13), 11. Eddie Tafoya Jr. (15), 12. Verne Sweeney (14), 13. Troy Rutherford (12), 14. James Herrera (19), 15. Danny Faria Jr. (8), 16. Brody Roa (7), 17. Mike Martin (16), 18. Brandon Wiley (18), 19. Austin Ervine (17). NT
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**Wiley flipped on lap 5 of the third heat. Faria flipped on lap 26 of the feature.
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-9 Gansen, Laps 10-30 Gardner,
SPECIALTY FASTENERS HARD CHARGER: Ryan Bernal (11th to 6th)
WILWOOD DISC BRAKES LUCKY 13 AWARD: Troy Rutherford
USAC 360 BONUS: James Herrera
NEW AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CAR POINTS: 1-Gardner-1064, 2-A.Williams-1006, 3-Roa-996, 4-Swanson-895, 5-Gansen-699, 6-Malcolm-598, 7-Davis-592, 8-Faria-583, 9-Matt McCarthy-565, 10-Richard Vander Weerd-508.
FINAL CALIFORNIA SPRINT WEEK POINTS: 1-Gardner-328, 2-A.Williams-327, 3-Faria-306, 4-Johnson-306, 5-Swanson-301, 6-Roa-280, 7-Davis-267, 8-Bernal-246, 9-Austin Liggett-223, 10-Gansen-219.
NEXT AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CAR RACE: September 21 – Perris Auto Speedway – Perris, California – “Glenn Howard Classic”