USAC/CRA & USAC NATIONAL SPRINTS CLASH AT $25,000-TO-WIN PERRIS OVAL NATIONALS

By Lance Jennings

NOVEMBER 6, 2018... After a hard fought Western World Championships in Arizona, the AMSOIL USAC/CRA and National Sprint Car Series are ready to battle at Don Kazarian's Perris Auto Speedway. Opening with a special Wednesday night practice, the prestigious "23rd Annual Budweiser Oval Nationals presented by All Coast Construction" will have close to fifty racers from across the country for three nights of action packed racing. Capped off a 40-lap main event on Saturday, the prestigious event has a total purse over $100,000 and will pay $25,000 to the winner. For more event information, visit the track’s website at www.perrisautospeedway.com or call 951.940.0134.

NOTICE TO RACERS: FRONT AXLE TETHER SYSTEMS ARE MANDATORY. Hoosier Tires are required on all four corners with the 105/16 Medium and the 105/18 Hard as the only approved right rear tires. The “Medium” is also legal with the USAC West Coast, USAC SouthWest, and VRA Sprint Cars. Cars must pass a tech inspection and one-way radios are mandatory for drivers. USAC/CRA charges a $25 entry fee to all competitors and the series rule book can be found online at www.usacracing.com. USAC MEMBERSHIPS can be purchased at the track or online at https://usacracing.redpodium.com/2018-usac-sprint-midget-sc

2018 APPROVED/LEGAL MUFFLERS: 

EXTREME: 6014-3535, 3615-3535

SCHOENFELD: 14272535, 14272735-78

FLOWMASTER: 53545-10, 13516100, 13516101

COAST FABRICATION: 350x625x17-2S

B&B: FRAC-0375S

SPINTECH: 1545P SUPER STOCK

*Failure to comply with the muffler rule will risk disqualification from the event.

With longtime sprint car supporter Mike Grosswendt from All Coast Construction serving as Grand Marshall, the festivities will begin on Wednesday, November 7th with a special practice session for cars that are only entered in the Oval Nationals. Admission to the grandstands is FREE and cars will be on the track around 5:00pm. The concession stand will be open with $2 pizza, $2 soda, and $2 beers for sale. Spectator gates will open at 4:00pm on Thursday & Friday with Racing at 7:00pm. On Saturday, the front gates will open and 3:00pm, an autograph session on the front straightaway will be at 3:00pm, and Racing is set for 7:00pm. The current Oval Nationals pre-entry list is at the end of this release.

Since 1996, the Budweiser Oval Nationals has been one of the most prestigious events for non-wing sprint car racing across the country. “The Professor” Jimmy Sills won the inaugural event and there have been fifteen different drivers that have claimed the checkered flags. Bud Kaeding, “The People’s Champion” Dave Darland, and “The Demon” Damion Gardner lead all drivers with three Oval National wins. Alabama’s Kevin Thomas Jr. claimed last year’s event and the Oval Nationals winner’s list is at the end of this release.

After scoring seventh in the Western World finale, “The Demon” Damion Gardner (Concord, CA) has reclaimed the point lead and enters the Oval Nationals with a slim 5-point advantage. Piloting Mark Alexander’s #4 Trench Shoring / Weld Racing Spike, Gardner has five feature wins, six Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Awards, one dash win, twelve heat race victories, eighteen top-10 finishes, and 155 feature laps led on the season. The six-time champion has 80 career USAC/CRA victories and will be looking for his fourth Oval Nationals triumph.

Brody Roa (Garden Grove, CA) is second in the chase for the championship. Driving the BR Performance #91R HD Industries / Burris Racing Maxim, Roa scored thirteenth in the Western World Championships. To date, the 2016 USAC West Coast 360 Champion has three feature wins, one Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Award, seven heat race victories, one Competition Suspension Incorporated / Rod End Supply Semi-Main win, three Saldana Racing Products / Racing Optics Hard Charger Awards, nineteen top-10 finishes, and 94 feature laps led to his credit. With six career USAC/CRA wins, Brody will be looking to add the Budweiser Oval Nationals to his resume.

“The Big Game Hunter” Austin Williams (Yorba Linda, CA) is third in USAC/CRA point chase. Racing Jack Jory’s #2 John Jory Corporation / AMA Plastics DRC, Williams ran twentieth last Saturday night at Arizona Speedway. At press time, Williams has two feature wins, one Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Award, one Saldana Racing Products / Racing Optics Hard Charger Award, sixteen top-10 finishes, and 9 feature laps led in the campaign. The 2009 Co-Rookie of the Year has seven career wins and will be looking for the $25,000 victory at Perris Auto Speedway.

“The Cadillac” Cody Williams (Corona, CA) sits fourth in the championship point chase. Piloting Jack Jory’s #44 John Jory Corporation / AMA Plastics Spike, Williams finished 24th at the Western World Championships. To date, the 2010 Victorville Champion has three Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Awards, four heat race victories, fourteen top-10 finishes, and 24 feature laps led on the year. “The Cadillac” has one career USAC/CRA triumph and will have his sights on the Oval Nationals victory.

Jake Swanson (Anaheim, CA) is fifth in the USAC/CRA point standings. Driving John Grau and Mike Burkhart’s #34AZ Western Premier Hauling / KSE Custom Drywall DRC, Swanson placed 12th in the San Tan Valley main event. To date, the 2017 USAC West Coast 360 Champion has one feature win, one Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Award, three heat race victories, three Saldana Racing Products / Racing Optics Hard Charger Awards, thirteen top-10 finishes, and 43 feature laps led on the season. Jake has two career USAC/CRA victories and will be looking to add the Oval Nationals trophy to his collection.

Currently ranked fifteenth in points, Joel Rayborne (West Covina, CA) leads the chase for Rookie of the Year honors. Austin Ervine (Bakersfield, CA) and Gary Paulson (Woodland, CA) are also in contention.

Kevin Thomas Jr. (Cullman, AL) leads the AMSOIL USAC National point chase. “Sunshine” Tyler Courtney, Chris Windom, “The People’s Champion” Dave Darland, C.J. Leary, “The Macho Man” Brady Bacon, Chase Stockon, Justin Grant, “The Mad Man” Robert Ballou, and Isaac Chapple round out the top-10 in points.

Perris Auto Speedway is located on the Lake Perris Fairgrounds at 18700 Lake Perris Drive in Perris, California. Advance tickets are available and for more information, visit the track’s website at www.perrisautospeedway.com or call 951.940.0134.

The AMSOIL USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series thanks Hoosier Tire, All Coast Construction, BR Motorsports, Bullet Impressions, ButlerBuilt Professional Seat Systems, Circle Track Performance, Competition Suspension Incorporated, Extreme Mufflers, Five Star Grafix, Keizer Aluminum Wheels, King Racing Products, Pyrotect Racing Cells, Racing Optics, Rod End Supply, Saldana Racing Products, surfNsprint.com, Ultra Shield Race Products, and Woodland Auto Display for their support. If you or your company would like to become part of the series, contact PR Director Lance Jennings at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

For more information on USAC/CRA, visit the United States Auto Club (USAC) website at www.usacracing.com. You can also find exclusive content on the USAC/CRA Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram pages. 

Loudpedal Productions has USAC/CRA DVDs and videos on demand available for purchase at www.loudpedal.tv and 805.407.7229.

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AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CAR CHAMPIONS: 2004-Rip Williams, 2005-Damion Gardner, 2006-Cory Kruseman, 2007-Tony Jones, 2008-Mike Spencer, 2009-Mike Spencer, 2010-Mike Spencer, 2011-Mike Spencer, 2012-Mike Spencer, 2013-Damion Gardner, 2014-Damion Gardner, 2015-Damion Gardner, 2016-Damion Gardner, 2017-Damion Gardner.

BUDWEISER OVAL NATIONALS WINNERS: 1996-Jimmy Sills, 1997-Rip Williams, 1998-Rodney Argo, 1999-Rickie Gaunt, 2000-Tony Jones, 2001-Bud Kaeding, 2002-Bud Kaeding, 2003-Cory Kruseman, 2004-Cory Kruseman, 2005-Dave Darland, 2006-Dave Darland, 2007-Bud Kaeding, 2008-Jesse Hockett, 2009-Damion Gardner, 2010-Chris Windom, 2011-Damion Gardner, 2012-Mike Spencer, 2013-Dave Darland, 2014-Robert Ballou, 2015-Bryan Clauson, 2016-Damion Gardner, 2017-Kevin Thomas Jr.

2018 AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CAR WINS: 5-Damion Gardner, 3-Justin Grant, 3-Brody Roa, 2-Austin Williams, 1-Max Adams, 1-Ryan Bernal, 1-Colby Copeland, 1-Tyler Courtney, 1-Chase Johnson, 1-Austin Liggett, 1-Jake Swanson, 1-Jace Vander Weerd.

PERRIS AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CAR WINS: 45-Damion Gardner, 24-Mike Spencer, 19-Tony Jones, 17-Cory Kruseman, 9-Nic Faas, 8-David Cardey, 7-Rip Williams, 6-Bryan Clauson, 6-Mike Kirby, 6-Matt Mitchell, 6-Danny Sheridan, 6-Richard Vander Weerd, 5-Rickie Gaunt, 4-Robert Ballou, 4-Dave Darland, 4-R.J. Johnson, 4-Austin Williams, 3-Justin Grant, 3-Garrett Hansen, 2-Darren Hagen, 2-Jesse Hockett, 2-Levi Jones, 2-Blake Miller, 2-Chris Windom, 1-Chad Boespflug, 1-Greg Bragg, 1-Daron Clayton, 1-Charles Davis Jr., 1-Josh Ford, 1-Josh Hodges, 1-Bud Kaeding, 1-Adam Mitchell, 1-Brody Roa, 1-Johnny Rodriguez, 1-Chase Stockon, 1-Kevin Thomas Jr., 1-Scotty Weir, 1-Jason York.

2018 BUDWEISER OVAL NATIONALS PRE-ENTRY LIST: (Provided by Perris Auto Speedway) 2-Austin Williams, 4-Damion Gardner, 4-Justin Grant, 4D-TBA, 4G-Chris Gansen, 5-Logan Williams, 5-Chris Windom, 5-Tye Mihocko, 5M-Max Adams, 5X-Tommy Malcolm, 7BC-Tyler Courtney, 8-Michael Faccinto, 10-Richard Vander Weerd, 12-Dave Darland, 13-Dennis Gile, 15-Danny Sheridan, 16-Bud Kaeding, 19-Logan Seavey, 19S-Jason McDougal, 21-A.J. Bender, 28M-Matt McCarthy, 30-C.J. Leary, 32-Chase Stockon, 34AZ-Jake Swanson, 36D-Chase Johnson, 39E-Kyle Edwards, 42-Danny Faria Jr., 44-Cody Williams, 50-Charles Davis Jr., 51-Austin Ervine, 52-Isaac Chapple, 55-Tony Everhart, 69-Kevin Thomas Jr., 72-Gary Marshall Jr., 74X-Josh Hodges, 77M-Thomas Meseraull, 83-Austin Liggett, 88-Jace Vander Weerd, 90-Randy Waitman, 91R-Brody Roa, 92-R.J. Johnson, 92X-TBA, 98-Verne Sweeney, 98-Jeremy Ellertson, 99-Brady Bacon.

AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS: 1. Damion Gardner-1470, 2. Brody Roa-1465, 3. Austin Williams-1235, 4. Cody Williams-1115, 5. Jake Swanson-1068, 6. R.J. Johnson-1030, 7. Max Adams-943, 8. Danny Faria Jr.-900, 9. Logan Williams-882, 10. Chris Gansen-803, 11. Tommy Malcolm-646, 12. Ryan Bernal-601, 13. A.J. Bender-512, 14. Matt McCarthy-477, 15. Joel Rayborne-476, 16. Austin Ervine-383, 17. Verne Sweeney-342, 18. Matt Rossi-325, 19. Chase Johnson-322, 20. Austin Liggett-311.

AMSOIL USAC NATIONAL SPRINT CAR POINT STANDINGS: 1. Kevin Thomas Jr.-2521, 2. Tyler Courtney-2519, 3. Chris Windom-2471, 4. Dave Darland-2195, 5. C.J. Leary-2178, 6. Brady Bacon-2175, 7. Chase Stockon-2138, 8. Justin Grant-2084, 9. Robert Ballou-1771, 10. Isaac Chapple-1467, 11. Chad Boespflug-1104, 12. Carson Short-887, 13. Kyle Cummins-885, 14. Jarrett Andretti-875, 15. Thomas Meseraull-772, 16. Timmy Buckwalter-746, 17. Matt Westfall-653, 18. Josh Hodges-552, 19. Tony DiMatta-522, 20. Nick Bilbee-518.

2018 AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CAR SERIES SCHEDULE

DATE-TRACK-LOCATION

November 8: *Perris Auto Speedway - Perris, CA (Budweiser Oval Nationals presented by All Coast Construction)

November 9: *Perris Auto Speedway - Perris, CA (Budweiser Oval Nationals presented by All Coast Construction)

November 10: *Perris Auto Speedway - Perris, CA (Budweiser Oval Nationals presented by All Coast Construction)

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* = Co-Sanctioned Event with AMSOIL USAC National Sprints.

This schedule is subject to change.