Monday, June 15, 2009

Championships favorites becoming clearer at Redwood Acres Raceway

Championships favorites becoming clearer at Redwood Acres Raceway

By Matthew J. Sullivan

The 2009 racing season at Redwood Acres Raceway is more than 1/3rd of the way through the year’s schedule. The points standings in the six local classes after six of the scheduled 15 events are tight in some of the divisions while in others, the margin is much larger and the points standings are more spread out.

The limited street stock division points are led by Fergy Ferguson with 215. He holds a two point lead over Kenny Demello in second and a 14 point lead over Stan Young in third. The closeness of the standings are unfortunately a reflection of the lack of cars in the division. Bill Middleton stands fourth with 66 points garnered.

It’s a battle of brothers in the mini stock class. Scott Baker leads brother Craig 393-382. Brian McIntosh is third with 372 points while rookie Steve Smith isn’t too far behind in fourth with 342. Brian Murrell, Jr. is fifth with 176. Nick Bundy has been the dominant force in the roadrunner divisions first season at Redwood Acres Raceway, winning five of the six main events on the year. Bundy has 390 points, 127 more than second place Oscar Koskinen at 263. Jimmy Murray is third with 261 followed by Carrie Cook with 241 and the Redwood Acres track car with 238.

Ryan Walters has been the man to beat in the real stock division winning four of the six main events. Walters has scored 410 points thus far. Casey Mitchell has been a consistent top three runner and stands in second place with 368 points. Jim Redd is third with a main event win and 366 points, while Pat Conway also has a main event victory and is one point behind Redd in fourth place. Roger Linn, Jr. is in fifth with 342 points.

In the thunder roadster division, David Henderson was able to stretch his points lead over Paul Peeples, Jr. in the June 6th race at Redwood Acres. Henderson swept the night winning the trophy dash, the heat race and the main event while Peeples struggled with his car after having to change his engine earlier in the day. Henderson has 414 points while Peeples in second has 390. While those two have been the dominant drivers in the division, Robert Miller has been the “best of the rest” and is third in points with 362. Fourth place is only five behind miller with 357 while Mike Ward is fifth with 330.

Out of all the divisions, the sportsman class has been the most competitive without question. Through the six races this year, there have been six different winners. Dennis Delbiaggio has a 10 point lead over Larry Pries, 381-371, both drivers having scored a main event win this year. Angelo Marcelli is third, three points behind Pries with 368 and a main event victory. Jerry Peterson is another five points behind Marcelli with 363 and a main event victory in the last race at the Acres on June 6th. Brandon Barnwell sits fifth with a main event and 251 points. The top four drivers are the only ones who have been in all six races this season.

Racing at Redwood Acres Raceway returns on Friday June 26th and Saturday 27th for the Redwood Acres Fair Classic. This event is the second biggest race of the season at the speedway next to the Fall Classic season finale in September. A number of cars are expected to show up for both nights in several of the divisions and its expected to be a pair of thrilling nights at the Acres.

Limited Street Stocks
Track Record: Trevor Miller 17.143
Fergy Ferguson 215, Kenny Demello 213, George Young 201, Bill Middleton 66

Mini Stocks
Craig Baker 18.597
Scott Baker 393, Craig Baker 382, Brian McIntosh 372, Steve Smith 342, Brian Murrell, Jr. 176, Len Bowman 161, Brian Murrell, Sr. 130, Nick Karanopoulos 117, Norm Carmichael 88, Denzil Barrett 59

Roadrunners
Nick Bundy 21.825
Nick Bundy 390, Oscar Koskinen III 263, Jimmy Murray 261, Carrie Cook 241, Track Car 238, Charlie Anderson 221, Dustin DelBiaggio 200, Bill Snow 120, Erik Mendes 111, Raleigh Willoughby 59

Real Stocks
Shawn Craig 18.763
Ryan Walters 410, Casey Mitchell 368, Jim Redd 366, Pat Conway 365, Roger Linn, Jr. 342, Dustin Walters 318, Ryan/Russ Robinson 227, Nick Green 210, Doug Way 101, Bob Lima 57, Jim Bailey 11

Thunder Roadsters
Paul Peeples, Jr. 16.839
Dave Henderson 414, Paul Peeples, Jr. 390, Robert Miller 362, Thomas Payne 357, Mike Ward 330, Chris Sarvinski 303, Rob Nelson 281, Mark Arroyo 281, Bruce Ziemer 257, Belinda Ward 245, Jim Rich 213, Dan Browne 187, Jay Bahner 148, Chris Banfill 141, Donn Cole 59, Dave McMurray 50, Doug Pulver 43

Sportsman
Shawn Andrews 15.794
Dennis DelBiaggio 387, Larry Pries 377, Angelo Marcelli 368, Jerry Peterson 363, Brandon Barnwell 251, Joe McDonald 197, Frank Billy, Jr. 126, Aaron Byers 124, Kavin Conn 116, Shawn Craig 107, Ken Hallis 56, Al Acuna 53, Lissa Uselton 11.