Wingless Spec Sprints, Hobby Stocks Run Special County Fair Race At Antioch Speedway

Antioch, CA...It's that time once again when the Contra Costa County Fair comes to the Antioch Fairgrounds. The two divisions being showcased for the special Saturday night show at Antioch Speedway will be the All Star Series Winless Spec Sprints and the Hobby Stocks. Drivers will also get a rare opportunity to run a four lap Trophy Dash in each class.

We are three races into the season, and Bob Newberry leads the Spec Sprint point standings by just 16 tallies ahead of Alan Miranda. Newberry won the season opener, but he has been forced to settle for second in the last two events, won by Miranda and Shannon Newton, respectively. Newberry hasn't competed for points in several seasons, but he is the 2004 Antioch champion. Two years later, he won a championship at Silver Dollar Speedway in Chico.

On the other end of the spectrum, division mainstay Rick Panfili has had a pair of races he'd rather forget. Last time, he was eliminated in an opening lap crash. The time before that, he ended up flipping on the opening lap. Word is that the car will be ready to go this week. Another driver who has flipped this year is ageless veteran Roy Fisher. However, Fisher finds himself 24 points out of the lead, two behind third place competitor Brandon Burd. James East, Scott Martin, Kevin Box and rookie McKenzie Newton are other drivers to look for this week.

In the Hobby Stock division, 2010 champion Chris Sorensen and Michael Cooper have been dividing the victories amongst themselves. Thus far, each has three feature triumphs. Sorensen grabbed his latest victory last week just ahead of reigning champion Cameron Swank. Swank has multiple second place finishes, but he is still looking for his first win of the season. The point race right now finds Sorensen leading Cooper by just 12 points.

John Wacht is one of the many rookies in the class this season. He has finished as high as third in the Main Event, and this has helped put him third in the standings, 20 ahead of Swank and 28 ahead of the steady Billy Garner. Garner enjoyed his best finish of the season last week in fifth after winning his heat race earlier in the evening. Tanis Rangel has done a great job of representing the colors of fictional racer Brewster Baker from the movie Six Pack. He finished fourth in the most recent race and holds sixth in the standings.

Other drivers to watch for this week include Haley Gomez, Brianna Troen, Erik Pitschner, Joey Ridgeway, Anthony VIgna and Don Phillips. Phillips and Troen are both members of the Rollover Club this season.

Saturday night will be an opportunity to enjoy the fair and come see a couple of Antioch Speedway's featured classes from the All Star Series racing line up. For further information, go to www.antiochspeedway.com.


Berendsen, Clymens, Gustafson Win Antioch Speedway Races

Antioch, CA...May 12...Carl Berendsen II scored the impressive victory in the 20 lap All Star Series A Modified Main Event Saturday night at Antioch Speedway. A two-time champion at the speedway, Berendsen grabbed the lead on lap two as early leader Bobby Montalvo broke his steering in Turn 2. After that, Berendsen charged ahead after every yellow flag and was never really threatened in winning the race. The battle all race long was between Kellen Chadwick and Trent Wentworth. The two ran most of the race side by side, and Chadwick finally slipped low in Turn 4 of the 17th lap to grab the second position for good. Wentworth settled for third ahead of incoming point leader Bobby Motts Jr and Sean O'Gara.

Current point leader Trevor Clymens won a good battle with Brent Curran for his second 20 lap B Modified Main Event win of the season. Clymens and Curran each won their heat races and started on the front row. Curran raced into the lead at the start with Clymens a close second. After a lap five yellow flag, Curran and Clymens continued their battle and pulled away from the pack. As they exited Turn 4 of the 14th lap, there was slight contact between Clymens and Curran, allowing Clymens to move ahead for the lead. Clymens caught traffic in the final two laps but was able to make the right moves to win just ahead of Curran. Kenny Shrader won a good battle with Mark Garner and Chuck Golden for the third place finish.

Chris Sorensen won a race long battle with reigning champion Cameron Swank for his third 20 lap Hobby Stock Main Event win of the season. Sorensen took the lead from Tanis Rangel when Rangel pushed high exiting Turn 2 of the third lap. Swank gained second in Turn 4, and the battle was on. A red flag flew moments later when Don Phillips hit the back wall and rolled. Sorensen led Swank on the restart, and the two stretched their lead to a half a straightaway before the final yellow flag on lap 10. The battle resumed on the restart, but Sorensen drove a flawless race and would not relinquish the lead to Swank. Rangel scored his best finish in third ahead of John Wacht and heat race winner Billy Garner.

Mike Gustafson won the 20 lap Limited Late Model Main Event to become the fourth different winner in four races. Gustafson has now won over 50 features in this class. Gustafson got the lead, but he still had his hands full battling Mike Walko, Brian Zachary and heat race winner Mark Garner. However, Gustafson was up to the challenge and took the checkered flag ahead of Walko. Garner made a late move around Zachary for third as Chad Hammer finished fifth.

Point leader Mike Corsaro had a little bit of luck on his side in winning the 20 lap Dwarf Car Main Event. For much of the race, it appeared as if Miranda Chappa would be the winner. Chappa led from the get-go as Corsaro, David Rosa and heat race winner Travis Hensley had a good battle going for second. Hensley spun for a lap 14 yellow flag, collecting Rosa among others. Chappa led Corsaro on the restart, but Chappa spun in Turn 2 with four laps remaining. Corsaro held the lead at that point and led the rest of the way for his fourth win of the year. Mario Marques was a career-best second ahead of ageless veteran Charlie Correia, Chappa and Chris Mello.

The excitement continues next Saturday night during the Contra Costa County Fair as the All Star Series Wingless Spec Sprints and Hobby Stocks will be competing. For further information, go to www.antiochspeedway.com.

Unofficial race results
All Star Series
A Modifieds
Heat winners (8 laps)-Kellen Chadwick, Nick DeCarlo. Main Event (20 laps)-Carl Berendsen II, Chadwick, Trent Wentworth, Bobby Motts Jr, Sean O'Gara, DeCarlo, John MacDougall. Bryan Lewis, David Zeiter, Buddy Kniss.

B Modifieds
Heat winners (8 Laps)-Trevor Clymens, Brent Curran. Main Event (20 laps)-Clymens, Curran, Kenny Shrader, Mark Garner, Chuck Golden, Al Johnson, Kevin Brown, Ryan DeForest, Matt Taylor, Randal Pfuhl.

Limited Late Models
Heat Winners (8 laps)-Mark Garner, Ryan Cherezian. Main Event (20 laps)-Mike Gustafson, Mike Walko, Mark Garner, Brian Zachary, Chad Hammer, Ryan Cherezian, Kimo Oreta, John Evans.

Hobby Stocks
Heat Winners (8 Laps)-Cameron Swank, Billy Garner. Main Event (20 laps)-Chris Sorensen, Cameron Swank, Tanis Rangel, John Wacht, Billy Garner, Haley Gomez, Michael Cooper, Chris Vigna, Breanna Troen, Jordan Swank.

Dwarf Cars
Heat Winners (8 Laps)-Travis Hensley, Mike Corsaro. Main Event (20 laps)-Mike Corsaro, Mario Marques, Charlie Correia, Miranda Chappa, Chris Mello, Troy Stevenson, Roberto Monroy, Lonnie Tekaat, David Rosa, Travis Hensley.