D.J. QUICK: D.J. JOHNSON REACHES THE TOP AS 2021 USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CHAMP
By: Richie Murray – USAC Media
Speedway, Indiana (December 27, 2021)……… After making just two series starts throughout the past four years, Stockton, California’s D.J. Johnson returned with authority en route to becoming a first-time USAC champ with the West Coast Sprint Cars in 2021.
Making 10 feature appearances, Johnson’s campaign was highlighted by a trio of runner-up finishes in the Golden State of California, at Tulare’s Thunderbowl Raceway, Merced Speedway and Ventura Raceway.
The Stockton, California driver’s eight top-fives, eight top-tens and four heat race wins led all drivers in each category and placed him in total control of the championship race from mid-May onward.
While D.J. missed out on victory lane in 2021, it was another Johnson – Chase Johnson – who won more times (3) and led more laps (69) than anybody else throughout the season. His three feature victories came in succession in the latter part of the season at Merced, Bakersfield (Calif.) Speedway and The Dirt Track at Kern County Raceway Park in Bakersfield, making the Penngrove, Calif. driver the first to win three-in-a-row with the series since Ryan Bernal in 2017.
Bernal (Hollister, Calif.) returned to victory lane with the series for the first time since 2018 when he captured the opener in April at Keller Auto Speedway in Hanford, Calif. A second victory followed for the 2011 USAC West Coast Sprint Car Rookie of the Year in July at Merced to boost his all-time series record total to 35 points-paying feature wins.
Two drivers earned first career USAC West Coast Sprint Car victories in July of 2021, including series Rookie Cody Fendley (Fair Oaks, Calif.) at Placerville (Calif.) Speedway and Shawn Arriaga (Antioch, Calif.) at Petaluma (Calif.) Speedway.
Geoff Ensign (Sebastopol, Calif.) added a victory in his lone start with the series in May at Petaluma (Calif.) Speedway. Also adding single wins to the list this past year were 2016 champion Brody Roa (Garden Grove, Calif.) in April in Tulare along with Troy Rutherford (Ojai, Calif.) who scored at Ventura in June, as well as 2016 series Rookie of the Year Ryan Timmons (Pleasant Hill, Calif.) at Ventura in October’s season finale, which solidified a runner-up finish in the standings for Timmons for the second-straight season.
A.J. Bender (San Diego, Calif.) snagged a spectacular victory in the non-points special event for the series in November as part of the 80th running of the Turkey Night Grand Prix at Ventura.
Jarrett Soares (Discovery Bay, Calif.) was named series Rookie of the Year following his third-place finish in the standings. Austin Liggett (Tracy, Calif.), the 2017 series champion, finished fourth in the standings in 2021. Tanner Boul (Auberry, Calif.) tallied a career-best fifth in the final standings.
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2021 USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR STAT LEADERS:
Driver Champion: D.J. Johnson
Rookie of the Year: Jarrett Soares
Most Feature Wins: 3-Chase Johnson
Laps Led: 69-Chase Johnson
Top-Fives: 8-D.J. Johnson
Top-Tens: 8-D.J. Johnson
Fast Qualifying Times: 2-Chase Johnson & Kaleb Montgomery
Heat Race Wins: 4-D.J. Johnson
Feature Starts: 10-D.J. Johnson
2021 USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR DRIVER POINT STANDINGS:
POS. PTS. DRIVER, HOMETOWN
1 658 D.J. Johnson, Stockton, Calif.
2 532 Ryan Timmons, Pleasant Hill, Calif.
3 451 Jarrett Soares (R), Discovery Bay, Calif.
4 373 Austin Liggett, Tracy, Calif.
5 353 Tanner Boul, Auberry, Calif.
6 342 Kyle Edwards, Fountain Valley, Calif.
7 291 Jake Hodges, Camarillo, Calif.
8 266 Jacob Tuttle (R), Oakley, Calif.
9 257 Kaleb Montgomery, Templeton, Calif.
10 256 Brody Fuson (R), Bakersfield, Calif.
11 240 Chase Johnson, Penngrove, Calif.
12 229 Brody Roa, Garden Grove, Calif.
13 215 Trent Carter, Torrance, Calif.
14 210 Cody Fendley (R), Fair Oaks, Calif.
15 182 James Herrera, New Cuyama, Calif.
16 173 Travis Buckley, Auckland, N.Z.
17 165 Danny Faria Jr., Tipton, Calif.
18 153 Logan Calderwood (R), Goodyear, Ariz.
19 144 Kalib Henry, Mather, Calif.
20 139 Hannah Mayhew, Acton, Calif.
21 135 Tuesday Calderwood (R), Goodyear, Ariz.
22 131 Shane Hopkins, Placerville, Calif.
23 126 Chris Muraoka, Waianae, Hawaii
24 117 Steve Hix, Ventura, Calif.
25 69 Trent Williams, Apple Valley, Calif.
26 67 Heath Holdsclaw, Rocklin, Calif.
27 60 Bradley Terrell, Petaluma, Calif.
28 60 Trevor Schmid, Petaluma, Calif.
29 60 Tristan Guardino, Fremont, Calif.
30 52 Matt Day, Bakersfield, Calif.
31 47 Jake Morgan, Elk Grove, Calif.
32 42 Joey Bishop, Camarillo, Calif.
33 36 Dylan Bloomfield, Oakley, Calif.
34 32 Braidon Moniz, Wheatland, Calif.
35 25 Tom Hendricks, Simi Valley, Calif.
36 10 Kala Keliinoi, Waianae, Hawaii
**(R) represents a series Rookie of the Year
2021 USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR FEATURE WINNERS:
Apr 10: Keller Auto Speedway – Hanford, CA
WINNER: Ryan Bernal (Matt Wood Racing #17w)
Apr 17: Thunderbowl Raceway – Tulare, CA
WINNER: Brody Roa (May Motorsports #8m)
May 15: Petaluma Speedway – Petaluma, CA
WINNER: Geoff Ensign (Ted Finkenbinder #3F)
Jun 26: Ventura Raceway – Ventura, CA
WINNER: Troy Rutherford (Troy Rutherford #11)
Jul 9: Merced Speedway – Merced, CA
WINNER: Ryan Bernal (Matt Wood Racing #17w)
Jul 10: Placerville Speedway – Placerville, CA
WINNER: Cody Fendley (Jessica Russell #73c)
Jul 31: Petaluma Speedway – Petaluma, CA
WINNER: Shawn Arriaga (Lindsey Arriaga #56)
Aug 7: Merced Speedway – Merced, CA
WINNER: Chase Johnson (May Motorsports #8m)
Sep 18: Bakersfield Speedway – Bakersfield, CA
WINNER: Chase Johnson (May Motorsports #8m)
Sep 19: The Dirt Track at Kern County Raceway Park – Bakersfield, CA
WINNER: Chase Johnson (May Motorsports #8m)
Oct 16: Ventura Raceway – Ventura, CA
WINNER: Ryan Timmons (Timmons Racing #29T)
Nov 27: Ventura Raceway – Ventura, CA (SE)
WINNER: A.J. Bender (K & R Motorsports #21B)
**(SE) represents a non-points special event
2021 USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR FEATURE WINS:
3-Chase Johnson (Aug 7 at Merced Speedway, Sep 18 at Bakersfield Speedway & Sep 19 at The Dirt Track at Kern County Raceway Park)
2-Ryan Bernal (Apr 10 at Keller Auto Speedway & Jul 9 at Merced Speedway)
1-Shawn Arriaga (Jul 31 at Petaluma Speedway)
1-Geoff Ensign (May 15 at Petaluma Speedway)
1-Cody Fendley (Jul 10 at Placerville Speedway)
1-Brody Roa (Apr 17 at Thunderbowl Raceway)
1-Troy Rutherford (Jun 26 at Ventura Raceway)
1-Ryan Timmons (Oct 16 at Ventura Raceway)
NON-POINTS SPECIAL EVENT FEATURE WINS:
1-A.J. Bender (Nov 27 at Ventura Raceway)
2021 USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR FEATURE LAPS LED:
69-Chase Johnson
43-Ryan Bernal
34-Troy Rutherford
30-Shawn Arriaga
25-Geoff Ensign
23-Kaleb Montgomery
20-Brody Roa
19-Ryan Timmons
8-Kyle Edwards, Brody Fuson, Jake Morgan & Jace Vander Weerd
6-Steve Hix
5-D.J. Johnson
3-Tanner Boul, Austin Liggett & Caden Sarale
2-Kalib Henry & Jarrett Soares
1-Cody Fendley
2021 USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR TOP-5 FEATURE FINISHES:
8-D.J. Johnson
4-Ryan Timmons
3-Ryan Bernal, Chase Johnson, Austin Liggett, Brody Roa & Jarrett Soares
2-A.J. Bender, Cody Fendley, Kalib Henry, Kaleb Montgomery, Troy Rutherford & Jacob Tuttle
1-Shawn Arriaga, Tanner Boul, Travis Buckley, Logan Calderwood, Trent Carter, Kyle Edwards, Geoff Ensign, Brody Fuson, Jake Hodges, Shane Hopkins, Caden Sarale, Trevor Schmid, Joe Stornetta, Jace Vander Weerd, Daniel Whitley & Trent Williams
2021 USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR TOP-10 FEATURE FINISHES:
8-D.J. Johnson
7-Ryan Timmons
6-Jarrett Soares
4-Tanner Boul, Jake Hodges & Austin Liggett
3-Ryan Bernal, Trent Carter, Kyle Edwards, Danny Faria Jr., Cody Fendley, Brody Fuson, Chase Johnson, Kaleb Montgomery, Brody Roa, Troy Rutherford & Jacob Tuttle
2-A.J. Bender, Travis Buckley, Logan Calderwood, Kalib Henry, James Herrera, Shane Hopkins & Cody Smith
1-Zack Albers, Shawn Arriaga, Tuesday Calderwood, Bob Davis, Matt Day, Bruce Douglass, Jeff Dyer, Geoff Ensign, Tristan Guardino, Steve Hix, Hannah Mayhew, Chris Muraoka, Gary Paulson, Caden Sarale, Nate Schank, Trevor Schmid, Joe Stornetta, Grasen Ternora, Bradley Terrell, Jace Vander Weerd, Trey Walters, Daniel Whitley & Trent Williams
2021 USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR FEATURE STARTS:
10-D.J. Johnson
9-Ryan Timmons
8-Jarrett Soares
7-Tanner Boul & Kyle Edwards
6-Jake Hodges & Austin Liggett
5-Brody Fuson & Jacob Tuttle
4-Trent Carter, James Herrera & Kaleb Montgomery
3-Ryan Bernal, Travis Buckley, Logan Calderwood, Tuesday Calderwood, Danny Faria Jr., Cody Fendley, Chase Johnson, Hannah Mayhew, Chris Muraoka, Brody Roa, Troy Rutherford, Cody Smith & Nate Schank
2-A.J. Bender, Bruce Douglass, Kalib Henry, Steve Hix, Heath Holdsclaw & Shane Hopkins
1-Zack Albers, Shawn Arriaga, Joey Bishop, Dylan Bloomfield, Bob Davis, Matt Day, Troy DeGaton, Jeff Dyer, Geoff Ensign, Tristan Guardino, Tom Hendricks, Rick Hendrix, Dave Lindt, Braidon Moniz, Jake Morgan, Gary Paulson, Caden Sarale, Trevor Schmid, Joe Stornetta, Matt Streeter, Grasen Ternora, Bradley Terrell, Jimmy Trulli, Jace Vander Weerd, Trey Walters, Daniel Whitley & Trent Williams
2021 USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR FAST QUALIFYING TIMES:
2-Chase Johnson & Kaleb Montgomery
1-Ryan Bernal, Brody Fuson, Steve Hix, Austin Liggett & Jacob Tuttle
2021 USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR HEAT RACE WINS:
4-D.J. Johnson
2-Travis Buckley & Brody Roa
1-Ryan Bernal, Kyle Edwards, Cody Fendley, Brody Fuson, Tristan Guardino, Kalib Henry, Steve Hix, Chase Johnson, Hannah Mayhew, Jake Morgan, Jarrett Soares, Ryan Timmons & Daniel Whitley
2021 USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR QUALIFYING RACE WINS:
1-Tanner Boul & Geoff Ensign
ALL-TIME USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR FEATURE WINS: (FULL POINTS EVENTS)
35-Ryan Bernal
15-Richard Vander Weerd
11-Bud Kaeding
10-Danny Faria Jr. & Austin Liggett
7-Troy Rutherford & Jace Vander Weerd
6-Tristan Guardino, Brody Roa & Jake Swanson
4-Chase Johnson, T.J. Smith & Craig Stidham
3-Ryan Timmons
2-Geoff Ensign, Wes Gutierrez, D.J. Johnson, Cory Kruseman, Kyle Larson, Matt Mitchell, Davey Pombo & Danny Sheridan
1-Max Adams, Dean Alexander, Shawn Arriaga, Bryan Clauson, Nic Faas, Cody Fendley, Justin Grant, Justyne Hamblin, Kyle Hirst, Josh Hodges, Dennis Howell, Ricky Kirkbride, Mike Martin, Kaleb Montgomery, Peter Murphy & Stevie Sussex
ALL-TIME USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR FEATURE WINS: (NON-POINTS SPECIAL EVENTS)
9-Bryan Clauson
5-Ryan Bernal
3-Brady Bacon & Dave Darland
2-Geoff Ensign, Josh Hodges, R.J. Johnson, Austin Liggett, Mike Spencer, Ryan Timmons & Richard Vander Weerd
1-A.J. Bender, Colby Copeland, Tyler Courtney, Charles Davis Jr., Dennis Gile, Tristan Guardino, Chase Johnson, C.J. Leary, Carson Macedo, Peter Murphy, Brody Roa, Matt Rossi & Terry Schank Jr.
USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR DRIVER CHAMPIONS:
2010: Craig Stidham
2011: Richard Vander Weerd
2012: Bud Kaeding
2013: Danny Faria Jr.
2014: Matt Mitchell
2015: Danny Faria Jr.
2016: Brody Roa
2017: Jake Swanson
2018: Austin Liggett
2019: Tristan Guardino
2020: None
2021: D.J. Johnson
USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR ROOKIES OF THE YEAR:
2010: Chris Ennis
2011: Ryan Bernal
2012: Austin Liggett
2013: Landon Hurst
2014: Trent Carter & Garrett Long
2015: Trey Marcham
2016: Ryan Timmons
2017: Brandon Wiley
2018: Britton Bock
2019: J.J. Ringo
2020: None
2021: Jarrett Soares
