By Matthew J. Sullivan
Opening night at Redwood Acres Raceway on April 30th proved to be a very interesting evening of racing on the 3/8-mile paved oval. The battle for the track championship in all six divisions still has a long way to go. Those at the top are looking to add to their early advantage while others hope to recover from woes suffered in the first race of 2016.
Steve Paiment currently leads the California State & Federal Employee Credit Union roadrunner standings. The division veteran holds a five point advantage over second place, Tyler Peach. Bethany Rapp and Jennifer Murrell are tied for third while Richard Standcliff is fifth. Standcliff is division rookie and won opening night’s main event in the roadrunners.
The Fortuna Wheel & Brake bomber division standings are currently being led by Tyler Avelar. His advantage is four points over James Moore thanks to his main event victory. Ryan Ahrens is seven points behind Avelar in third while Matt Simon and Kim Sorrels round out the top five, ten and twelve points in arrears to Avelar.
Jarrett Mayo was dominant in the Humboldt Hydroponics mini stock division on April 30th. His advantage over Gary Klinetobe is four points. Eugene Palmer sits third in the standings and is only eight points behind Mayo. Division rookie, Daniel Buell is fourth 11 points behind Mayo while Brett Murrell is fifth and 12 points off Mayo’s lead.
After winning the first Thunder Roadster feature, division point leader, Tommy Payne will look to add another victory while padding his lead for the track championship. Payne has a six point lead over Donnie Brown in the standings. Aaron Byers and Ronnie O’Neill are tied for third and are seven points behind Payne. Chris Sarvinski had a tough first night but is still in the fight as he is fifth in the standings and only 10 points behind Payne.
Due to the rest of the field having issues on opening night, Brent Mack has a substantial lead in the new Legend division standings. Mack leads Anissa Curtice by 33 markers. Brad Curtice is 41 points behind while M’Kinzy Uselton is 43 points off Mack’s lead.
The Mid City Motor World late model point standings are currently being led by veteran driver, Mic Moulton. Second place is locked between opening night feature winner, Jedd Ambrosini and west coast racing legend, Jim Walker both of whom are three points behind Moulton. Another tie rounds out the top five drivers in the division standings as Marty Walsh and Kenny Demello are eight points behind Moulton.
Racing returns to Redwood Acres Raceway in this Saturday May 14th for Pepsi Night at the Acres. All six local divisions will be in action for what should be another thrilling night of action on the pavement. Grandstands open at 5:00PM with racing beginning at 6:30PM. For more information, visit Redwood Acres Raceway’s official website, www.racingtheacres.com.