USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CARS RETURN TO MERCED SATURDAY
By Lance Jennings
AUGUST 3, 2021... This Saturday, August 7th, the USAC West Coast Sprint Cars will tackle the Merced Speedway (Merced, CA) for their second visit of the campaign. Promoted by Chris Shannon and Paul Stone, the “Kevin Triplett Memorial” will also feature the USAC Western States and Bay Cities Racing Association (BCRA) Midgets, Hobby Stocks, Mini Late Models, and BCRA Midget Lites. The Pit Gates will open at 2:00PM, the Front Gates open at 5:00PM, with Racing scheduled at 7:00PM. For more information, visit the track’s website at mercedspeedway.net or call 209.600.8382. For those that cannot travel to the races, floracing.com will broadcast a live stream of both night’s action over the internet.
NOTICE TO RACERS:
- NO ENTRY FEE IN 2021. ALL RACERS MUST PURCHASE THEIR USAC LICENSE / MEMBERSHIPS OR TEMPORARY PERMITS (TPs) ONLINE PRIOR TO THE EVENT AT USACRACING.COM OR USACLICENSE.COM. TPs are $25 and Memberships are $150.
- 2021 ENGINE RULES: Legal ASCS spec cylinder head w/ 2 3/16 Injector/Restrictor; or 2 3/16 with any open legal head. All Open head must be within 1 degree of OEM Head. All heads ASCS and Open must be Chevy 23 degree plus or minus 1 degree. Ford 20 degree plus or minus 1 degree. Dodge 18 degree plus or minus 1 degree.
- 2021 WEIGHT RULE: 1,475 lbs. with driver for cars with an open cylinder head. Cars with an ASCS cylinder head must weigh 1,450 lbs. including driver.
- California state protocol calls for competitors, crews, officials, and anyone on the grounds to practice safe social distancing, proper sanitizing, and follow local regulations regarding the COVID-19 Coronavirus.
- ANY WINGLESS SPEC SPRINT is invited to race with the USAC West Coast Sprints and can run their rules 100 percent, including the tire rule.
- TRANSPONDERS ARE MANDATORY.
- ONE WAY DRIVER RADIOS ARE MANDATORY.
- FRONT AXLE TETHER SYSTEMS (2-Chassis, 1-King Pin to King Pin) ARE MANDATORY.
- FULL CONTAINMENT SEATS ARE MANDATORY.
- The USAC West Coast Sprint Car Rule Book can be found online at usacracing.com.
Entering Saturday’s event, the Merced County Fairgrounds has hosted one USAC West Coast Sprint Car event. Ryan Bernal topped the July 9th race and Kaleb Montgomery set the 1-lap track record of 12.401.
Heading to the eighth point race, D.J. Johnson (Stockton, CA) has a 66-point advantage over the competition. Racing his #33 Bill’s Tire Service of Pacheco / The Halstead Real Estate Eagle, Johnson scored thirteenth at Petaluma after an early flip ended his night. To date, the 2013 USAC Western Classic Sprint Car Rookie of the Year has four heat race victories, one Wilwood Disc Brakes Lucky 13 Award, five top-10 finishes, and 5 feature laps led on the season. D.J. has two career wins and will be looking to add Merced to his resume.
Ryan Timmons (Pleasant Hill, CA) has climbed to second in the point chase. Driving the family owned #29T Timmons Auto & Truck Repair / Evergood Fine Foods entry, Timmons ran sixth at the Sonoma-Marin Fairgrounds. At press time, the 2016 Rookie of the Year has two Rod End Supply Hard Charger Awards and five top-10 finishes on the season. Ryan has four career wins and will have his sights on the “Kevin Triplett Memorial” trophy.
Austin Liggett (Linden, CA) ranks third in the championship point standings. Piloting the family owned #83 Excel Environmental / Liggett Trucking Maxim, Liggett did not start the feature last Saturday Night. To date, the 2018 Champion has recorded one Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Award, four top-10 finishes and three feature laps led to his credit. With twelve career victories, Austin is a threat to win on any given night.
Kaleb Montgomery (Templeton, CA) is fourth in the USAC West Coast standings. The driver of the family owned #3 Mission County Properties / David Crye Maxim, was not in action at Petaluma. At press time, the young driver has posted two Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Awards, one Wilwood Disc Brakes Lucky 13 Award, three top-10 finishes, and 24 feature laps led to his credit. Kaleb has one career USAC win and is a threat to win the “Triplett Memorial.”
Ryan Bernal (Hollister, CA) sits fifth in the USAC West Coast point chase. Running a limited schedule, the pilot of the Matt Wood Racing owned #17W NOS Energy Drink / Elk Grove Ford entry was not in action at Petaluma. To date, the 2011 Rookie of the Year has two feature wins, one Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Award, one heat race victory, three top-10 finishes, and 43 feature laps led. Ryan leads all drivers with thirty-eight career USAC West Coast Sprint Car wins.
Jarrett Soares (Gilroy, CA), leads the chase for Rookie of the Year honors by one point over Cody Fendley (Placerville, CA). Jacob Tuttle (Oakley, CA), Cody Smith (Chico, CA), Logan Calderwood (Goodyear, AZ), Tuesday Calderwood (Goodyear, AZ), Nate Schank (Santa Rosa, CA), and Brody Fuson (Bakersfield, CA) are also in contention.
Among the other drivers expected to be in action are Tanner Boul, Kyle Edwards, Jake Hodges, Heath Holdsclaw, and more.
Merced Speedway is located on the Merced County Fairgrounds at 900 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. in Merced, California. Adult tickets are $20, Senior tickets are $18, Kids tickets (6-10) are $5, and Children (5 & Under) are FREE. For more event information, visit the track’s website at mercedspeedway.net or call 209.600.8382.
The USAC West Coast Sprint Car Series thanks AMSOIL, Chris Kearns Presents, Competition Suspension Incorporated, Extreme Mufflers, FloRacing, Hoosier Racing Tire, Loudpedal Productions, Rod End Supply, Saldana Racing Products, Sway-A-Way Torsion Bars, Ultra Shield Race Products, Wilwood Disc Brakes, 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 usacracing.com and the social media for USAC Racing. You can also find exclusive content at the USAC West Coast Sprint Car Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram pages.
FloRacing.com has live, flag-to-flag coverage of the USAC West Coast Sprint Car Series. You can catch the action by subscribing to FloRacing on a monthly or yearly basis to view their huge catalog of live and on-demand auto racing and sporting events.
-----------------------------------------------
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-Brody Roa, 2017-Jake Swanson, 2018-Austin Liggett, 2019-Tristan Guardino, 2020-NO AWARD.
MERCED USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR TRACK RECORD: Kaleb Montgomery – 12.401 (07/09/21)
MERCED USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR WINS: 1-Ryan Bernal
2021 USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR WINS: 2-Ryan Bernal, 1-Shawn Arriaga, 1-Geoff Ensign, 1-Cody Fendley, 1-Brody Roa, 1-Troy Rutherford.
2021 USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS: 1. D.J. Johnson-448, 2. Ryan Timmons-382, 3. Austin Liggett-373, 4. Kaleb Montgomery-257, 5. Ryan Bernal-241, 6. Tanner Boul-238, 7. Brody Roa-229, 8. Kyle Edwards-217, 9. Jarrett Soares ®-211, 10. Cody Fendley ®-210, 11. Jake Hodges-181, 12. Jacob Tuttle ®-159, 13. Cody Smith ®-158, 14. Logan Calderwood ®-153, 15. Kalib Henry-144, 16. Tuesday Calderwood ®-135, 17. Shane Hopkins-131, 18. Nate Schank ®-130, 19. Brody Fuson ®-126, 20. Danny Faria Jr.-110, 21. Trent Carter-90, 22. James Herrera-86, 23. Geoff Ensign-78, 24. Daniel Whitley-77, 25. Troy Rutherford-76, 26. Shawn Arriaga-75, 27. Joe Stornetta Jr.-73, 28. Trent Williams-69, 29. Heath Holdsclaw-67, 30. Jace Vander Weerd-66, 31. Tristan Guardino-60, ---. Bradley Terrell-60, ---. Trevor Schmid-60, 34. Gary Paulson-55, 35. Bob Davis-48, ---. Zack Albers-48, 37. Bruce Douglass-47, ---. Jake Morgan-47, 39. David Lindt-45, 40. Hannah Mayhew-43, 41. Rick Hendrix-42, ---. Travis Buckley-42, 43. Christopher Muraokoa-36, ---. Dylan Bloomfield-36, 45. Braidon Moniz-32, 46. Jimmy Trulli-27, 47. Tom Hendricks-25, 48. Matt Streeter-24, 49. Bill Cornwell-11, 50. Steve Hix-10, ---. Kala Keliinoi-10, ---. Michael Faccinto-10.
2021 USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR SERIES SCHEDULE
DATE – TRACK - LOCATION
April 3: *Ventura Raceway – Ventura, CA (CANCELLED)
April 10: Keller Auto Speedway – Hanford, CA (Winner: Ryan Bernal)
April 17: Thunderbowl Raceway – Tulare, CA (Winner: Brody Roa)
May 15: Petaluma Speedway – Petaluma, CA (Winner: Geoff Ensign)
June 12: Thunderbowl Raceway – Tulare, CA (CANCELLED)
June 26: *Ventura Raceway – Ventura, CA (Winner: Troy Rutherford)
July 9: Merced Speedway – Merced, CA (Winner: Ryan Bernal)
July 10: Placerville Speedway – Placerville, CA (Winner: Cody Fendley)
July 31: Petaluma Speedway – Petaluma, CA (Winner: Shawn Arriaga)
August 7: Merced Speedway – Merced, CA (Kevin Triplett Memorial)
August 28: Santa Maria Raceway – Santa Maria, CA (Ron Otto Memorial)
September 18: Bakersfield Speedway – Bakersfield, CA
September 19: Dirt Track at Kern County Raceway Park – Bakersfield, CA
October 9: Placerville Speedway – Placerville, CA (Prospector Pandemonium)
October 10: Petaluma Speedway – Petaluma, CA
October 16: *Ventura Raceway - Ventura, CA
November 26: *Ventura Raceway - Ventura, CA (Turkey Night Grand Prix / SE)
November 27: *Ventura Raceway - Ventura, CA (Turkey Night Grand Prix / SE)
-----------------------------------------------
* = Co-Sanctioned Event with VRA Sprints.
SE = Special Event / Non-Points.
This schedule is subject to change.