JAKE SWANSON MAKES STATEMENT AT VENTURA
By Lance Jennings
OCTOBER 30, 2018... Serving notice to the competition, Jake Swanson (Anaheim, CA) led all 30-laps to claim last Saturday’s Light Up The World USAC Western States Midget presented by CBD Living Water feature at Ventura Raceway. Piloting the Six8 Motorsports’ #68W Light Up The World Beverages / PAC Springs Stewart, Swanson finished ahead of Cody Swanson, “The Demon” Damion Gardner, Buddy Kofoid, and Alex Schutte.
Before claiming the second victory of his career, Swanson was second quick in time trials out of the twenty-three racers in attendance. After that, last year’s USAC West Coast Sprint Car champion raced to victory in the 8-lap Keizer Aluminum Wheels / Rod End Supply Heat Race #2 and started on the outside of the front row of the main event. With two point races left, Swanson ranks fourteenth in the point standings with two heat race victories, one Saldana Racing Products / Racing Optics Hard Charger Award, four top-10 finishes, and 35 feature laps led.
Starting on the pole position, Cody Swanson (Norco, CA) finished second to his cousin Jake at the Ventura County Fairgrounds. Driving Marcie Campbell’s #71S Marcie Campbell Realtor / Rodela Specialty Fabrication Spike, Swanson qualified sixth overall and won the night’s Competition Suspension Inc. / Rod End Supply Heat Race #3. In limited starts, the 2010 Rookie of the Year is eighteenth in the point chase with one heat race victory and three top-10 finishes to his credit.
In his second start, “The Demon” Damion Gardner (Concord, CA) scored third at Ventura’s checkered flags. Racing Jerome Rodela’s #25 Trench Shoring / Ed Pink Racing Engines Breka, Gardner was fourth fast in time trials and won the night’s Extreme Mufflers’ Heat Race #1. At press time, the six-time USAC/CRA Sprint Car Champion has one feature win, one Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Award, two heat race victories, two top-10 finishes, and 24 feature laps led in the campaign.
Buddy Kofoid (Penngrove, CA) charged from eighth to a fourth place finish in Ventura’s 30-lap main event. Piloting Keith Ford’s #73X Walker Air Filtration / Sun Valley Ag Transport TCR, Kofoid qualified fifth overall, placed third in his heat race, and posted his first top-10 finish of the season.
Alex Schutte (Redding, CA) battled hard to place fifth in last Saturday’s main event. Driving the Schutte/McElwee #28 Proficio / Aircraft Electrical Components Spike, Schutte earned his second Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Award of the season and ran second to Gardner in his heat race. The 2010 Champion left Ventura ranked second in the standings, just 2 points behind Michael Faccinto, with two feature wins, seven heat race victories, eight top-10 finishes, and 43 feature laps led.
Michael Faccinto (Hanford, CA) earned the night’s Saldana Racing Products / Racing Optics Hard Charger Award with a sixth place run from twenty-first. Racing the Dodenhoff Motorsports’ #9D Lightning Medical / Rocket Sports & Entertainment Spike, Faccinto was third quick in time trials and scored seventh in his heat race after two stops. The point leader now has a slim two point advantage on the strength of three feature wins, two Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Award, two heat race victories, nine top-10 finishes, and 64 feature laps led on the year.
On Saturday, November 17th, the Light Up The World Beverages USAC Western States Midget Series will face the P1 Insurance USAC National Midgets at Bakersfield Speedway. Located at 5001 North Chester Extension in Bakersfield, California, the event will also showcase the California Lightning Sprints, Hobby Stocks, and Mini Stocks. Advance tickets are on sale and for more event/ticket information, visit the track’s website at www.bakersfieldspeedway.com or call 661.393.3373.
The Light Up The World USAC Western States Midget Series presented by CBD Living Water thanks Hoosier Tire, ButlerBuilt Professional Seat Systems, Competition Suspension Incorporated, Extreme Mufflers, Five Star Grafix, Keizer Aluminum Wheels, Pyrotect Racing Cells, Racing Optics, Rod End Supply, Saldana Racing Products, Ultra Shield Race Products, and Woodland Auto Display for their support. If you or your company would like to become part of the series, email PR Director Lance Jennings at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .
For more information on the series, visit the United States Auto Club (USAC) website at www.usacracing.com. You can also find exclusive content on the Light Up The World Beverages USAC Western States Midget Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram pages.
Loudpedal Productions has USAC Western States Midget DVDs and videos on demand available for purchase at www.loudpedal.tv and 805.407.7229.
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LIGHT UP THE WORLD USAC WESTERN STATES MIDGET SERIES PRESENTED BY CBD LIVING WATER RACE RESULTS: October 27, 2018 – Ventura, California – Ventura Raceway
WOODLAND AUTO DISPLAY QUALIFICATIONS: 1. Alex Schutte, 28, Schutte/McElwee-11.945; 2. Jake Swanson, 68W, Six8-11.982; 3. Michael Faccinto, 9D, Dodenhoff-12.051; 4. Damion Gardner, 25, Rodela-12.076; 5. Buddy Kofoid, 73X, Ford-12.149; 6. Cody Swanson, 71S, Campbell-12.258; 7. Shannon McQueen, 7, McQueen-12.261; 8. Tristan Thomas, 1P, Nichols-12.296; 9. Randi Pankratz, 8, Pankratz-12.336; 10. Robert Dalby, 4D, Dalby-12.341; 11. Frankie Guerrini, 9F, Dodenhoff-12.354; 12. Kyle Beilman, 31, Beilman-12.388; 13. Bryan Drollinger, 71, Drolinger-12.465; 14. Dylan Ito, 73, Ford-12.585; 15. C.J. Sarna, 20, Sarna-12.767; 16. Ashley Hazelton-Heredia, 15, Hazelton-12.896; 17. Jessica Clark, 68, Six8-12.980; 18. Tony Everhart, 55, Everhart-13.135; 19. Gage Rucker, 16K, Kruseman-13.379; 20. Daniel Anderson, 77, Anderson-NT; 21. David Prickett, 24X, Neverlift-NT; 22. Robby Josett, 2, Josett-NT; 23. Mike Leach Jr, 33P, Leach-NT.
EXTREME MUFFLERS FIRST HEAT: (8 laps) 1. Gardner, 2. Schutte, 3. Dalby, 4. McQueen, 5. Rucker, 6. Hazelton-Heredia, 7. Drollinger, 8. Prickett. NT
KEIZER ALUMINUM WHEELS / ROD END SUPPLY SECOND HEAT: (8 laps) 1. J.Swanson, 2. Guerrini, 3. Kofoid, 4. Thomas, 5. Anderson, 6. Ito, 7. Clark, 8. Josett. NT
COMPETITION SUSPENSION INCORPORATED / ROD END SUPPLY THIRD HEAT: (8 laps) 1. C.Swanson, 2. Beilman, 3. Pankratz, 4. Leach, 5. Everhart, 6. Sarna, 7. Faccinto. NT
FEATURE: (30 laps – With Starting Positions) 1. Jake Swanson (2nd), 2. Cody Swanson (1st), 3. Damion Gardner (3rd), 4. Buddy Kofoid (8th), 5. Alex Schutte (4th), 6. Michael Faccinto (21st), 7. C.J. Sarna (18th), 8. Kyle Beilman (6th), 9. Randi Pankratz (9th), 10. Gage Rucker (13th), 11. Jessica Clark (20th), 12. Tony Everhart (15th), 13. Daniel Anderson (14th), 14. Frankie Guerrini (5th), 15. Bryan Drollinger (19th), 16. Shannon McQueen (10th), 17. Dylan Ito (17th), 18. Robert Dalby (7th), 19. Tristan Thomas (11th), 20. Mike Leach Jr. (12th), 21. David Prickett (22nd), 22. Ashley Hazelton-Heredia (16th), 23. Robby Josett (23rd). NT
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FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-30 J.Swanson.
SALDANA RACING PRODUCTS / RACING OPTICS HARD CHARGER: Michael Faccinto (21st to 6th)
LIGHT UP THE WORLD USAC WESTERN STATES MIDGET PRESENTED BY CBD LIVING WATER POINT STANDINGS: 1. Michael Faccinto-695, 2. Alex Schutte-693, 3. Robby Josett-570, 4. Robert Dalby-547, 5. C.J. Sarna-503, 6. David Prickett-499, 7. Kyle Beilman-418, 8. Shannon McQueen-370, .. Ronnie Gardner-370, .. Frankie Guerrini-370, 11. Randi Pankratz-358, 12. Clayton Ruston-310, 13. Maria Cofer-306, 14. Jake Swanson-284, 15. Daniel Anderson-269, 16. Marvin Mitchell-262, 17. Ryan Bernal-260, 18. Cody Swanson-218, 19. Dylan Ito-216, 20. Ashley Hazelton-Heredia-176.
2018 LIGHT UP THE WORLD USAC WESTERN STATES MIDGET SERIES PRESENTED BY CBD LIVING WATER SCHEDULE
November 17: #Bakersfield Speedway – Bakersfield, CA
November 22: #Ventura Raceway – Ventura, CA (Turkey Night Grand Prix)
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# = Co-Sanctioned Event with USAC National Midgets.
This schedule is subject to change.