USAC WEST COAST SPRINTS RUMBLE AT HANFORD SATURDAY By Lance Jennings JUNE 23, 2016... After a successful Santa Maria return, the USAC West Coast Sprint Cars will make their second of three appearances at the Keller Auto Speedway at Kings Fairgrounds in Hanford, California. Promoted by Ron Vander Weerd and Bubby Morse, the eighth point race will also showcase the USAC Western States Midgets, Western RaceSaver Sprint Cars, and IMCA Stock Cars. The pit gates will open at 3:00pm, the front gates open at 5:00pm, and racing is scheduled for 7:00pm. For more information, visit the track’s website at www.racekingsspeedway.com or call 559.651.1990. NOTICE TO RACERS: Saturday’s race at Hanford will be run under the USAC West Coast Rule Book and a $35 entry fee will be collected. The Hoosier 105/16 Medium is the ONLY legal right rear tire and all four corners must be Hoosier. Cockpit adjustable shocks are NOT allowed and engine restrictor rules are 1-7/8” with open heads and 2-3/16” with ASCS cylinder heads. The weight rule is 1,475 lbs. with driver and the USAC West Coast Sprint Car Rule Book can be found online at westcoastsprintcars.com and www.usacracing.com. Since March 14, 2009, the Kings County Fairgrounds has hosted forty-two West Coast Sprint Car races. Richard Vander Weerd leads all drivers with eight victories and veteran Peter Murphy set the 1-lap qualifying track record of 15.290 on March 13, 2010. On April 2nd, Vander Weerd took command from his twin brother Jace to score his first victory of the season. A complete series win list at Keller Auto Speedway at Kings Fairgrounds is at the end of this release. After winning last Saturday’s race at Santa Maria, Brody Roa (Garden Grove, California) has reclaimed the point lead. Driving the BR Performance owned #91R HD Industries / Lee & Norma Leonard Maxim, Roa heads to Hanford with two Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Awards, one heat race victory, six top-10 finishes, and 31 feature laps led to his credit. With two career USAC West Coast Sprint Car victories, the defending Western World 360 Champion will be looking for his first win at Hanford. D.J. Johnson (Stockton, California) ranks second in the chase for the championship. Piloting the family owned #33 Proplant Farm Services / J. Milano Company Eagle, Johnson scored fourth at Santa Maria after starting tenth. The 2013 USAC Western Classic Rookie of the Year enters Saturday’s race with two feature wins, one heat race victory, one BR Motorsports / King Racing Products Hard Charger Award, seven top-10 finishes, and 51 feature laps led to his credit. The young driver will have his sights on his third win of the campaign this Saturday night. Trey Marcham (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma) sits third in the West Coast point standings. Racing Steve Watt’s #81 Maxwell Industries / Steve Watt Enterprises Maxim, Marcham earned Santa Maria’s BR Motorsports / King Racing Products Hard Charger Award with a third place run from eighteenth. At press time, last season’s Rookie of the Year also has one Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Award and six top-10 finishes on the season. Trey will be looking for his first main event win at the Kings County Fairgrounds. Jace Vander Weerd (Visalia, California) is fourth in the championship point chase. Driving the family owned #88 Vander Weerd Construction / Stone Gate Development Maxim, Jace won the 10-lap DJ Safety Heat Race #2 and scored fourteenth at Santa Maria. To date, the 2010 USAC/CRA Rookie of the Year has one Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Award, two heat race victories, one Keizer Wheels Aluminum Wheels / Competition Suspension Inc. Semi-Main win, four top-10 finishes, and 28 feature laps led on the year. This Saturday, Vander Weerd will have his sights on his seventh career feature win. Austin Liggett (Tracy, California) has climbed to fifth in the point standings. Piloting the family owned #83 Excel Environmental Services / Lucas Oil entry, Liggett won Santa Maria’s Brown & Miller Racing Solutions Heat Race #3 and scored eleventh in the main event. At press time, the 2012 Rookie of the Year has one feature win, three heat race victories, three top-10 finishes, and 30 feature laps led on the season. At Hanford, Austin will be looking to earn the third USAC West Coast victory of his career. Currently tenth in points, Ryan Timmons (Pleasant Hill, California) leads the chase for Rookie of the Year honors. Colton Slack (Brentwood, California), “Chainsaw” Johnny White (Bakersfield, California), and Cory Elliott (Bakersfield, California) are also in contention. Among the other drivers expected to be in action are Richard Vander Weerd, Tristan Guardino, Max Adams, “Hollywood” Danny Faria Jr., Jeff Sibley, Cody Majors, Troy Rutherford, Kevin Barnes, Kyle Smith, Shannon McQueen, “Shifter” Landon Hurst, and more. Keller Auto Speedway at Kings Fairgrounds is located at 801 South 10th Avenue in Hanford, California. Adult tickets are $15, Student and Senior tickets are $12, and Kids (5 and Under) are FREE. Camping is available on the fairgrounds and for more event information, visit www.racekingsspeedway.com or call 559.651.1990. The USAC West Coast Sprint Car Series thanks Amsoil, Hoosier Tire, BR Motorsports, Brown and Miller Racing Solutions, Chris Kearns Presents, Competition Suspension Incorporated, DJ Safety, Diversified Machine Incorporated, Extreme Mufflers, Keizer Aluminum Wheels, King Racing Products, Rod End Supply, Stand 21 Racer Goes Safer Foundation, 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 [email protected]. For more information, visit westcoastsprintcars.com, and www.usacracing.com. You can also find exclusive content on the USAC West Coast Facebook and Twitter pages. Loudpedal Productions has USAC West Coast Sprint Car DVDs and videos on demand available for purchase at www.loudpedal.tv and 805.407.7229. ----------------------------------------------- USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR CHAMPIONS: 2009-Justyne Hamblin, 2010-Craig Stidham, 2011-Richard Vander Weerd, 2012-Bud Kaeding, 2013-Danny Faria Jr., 2014-Matt Mitchell, 2015-Danny Faria Jr. 2016 USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR WINS: 4-Bryan Clauson, 2-Josh Hodges, 2-D.J. Johnson, 1-Austin Liggett, 1-Brody Roa, 1-Troy Rutherford, 1-Richard Vander Weerd. HANFORD USAC WEST COAST SPRINT WINS: 8-Richard Vander Weerd, 7-Ryan Bernal, 5-Danny Faria Jr., 4-Bud Kaeding, 3-Jace Vander Weerd, 2-Justyne Hamblin, 2-Peter Murphy, 2-T.J. Smith, 2-Craig Stidham, 1-Aaron Altaffer, 1-Rusty Carlile, 1-Wes Gutierrez, 1-Cory Kruseman, 1-Davey Pombo, 1-Troy Rutherford, 1-Terry Schank Jr. USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS: 1. Brody Roa-477, 2. D.J. Johnson-473, 3. Trey Marcham-425, 4. Jace Vander Weerd-401, 5. Austin Liggett-363, 6. Richard Vander Weerd-354, 7. Tristan Guardino-337, 8. Max Adams-323, 9. Danny Faria Jr.-293, 10. Ryan Timmons-293, 11. Jeff Sibley-237, 12. Cody Majors-234, 13. Troy Rutherford-216, 14. Kevin Barnes-215, 15. Kyle Smith-190, 16. Shannon McQueen-187, 17. Ricky Kirkbride-162, 18. Bryan Clauson-137, 19. Landon Hurst-135, 20. Brady Bacon-119. 2016 USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR SCHEDULE DATE-TRACK-LOCATION June 25: Keller Auto Speedway at Kings Fairgrounds - Hanford, CA July 22: Merle Stone Chevrolet Thunderbowl Raceway - Tulare, CA (Peter Murphy Classic) July 23: Merle Stone Chevrolet Thunderbowl Raceway - Tulare, CA (Peter Murphy Classic) August 6: Santa Maria Raceway - Santa Maria, CA (Bud Stanfield Memorial) August 12: Ocean Speedway - Watsonville, CA August 13: Keller Auto Speedway at Kings Fairgrounds - Hanford, CA November 23: Ventura Raceway - Ventura, CA (Turkey Night Grand Prix / Non-Points) November 24: Ventura Raceway - Ventura, CA (Turkey Night Grand Prix / Non-Points) ----------------------------------------------- This schedule is subject to change.