SPRINTS CLOSE WITH “WESTERN WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS” AT TUCSON;
$25,000 PAYDAY FOR “OVAL NATIONALS” CHAMP CLAUSON;
BALLOU STAYS #1 WITH PRELIM “SWEEP”
It all comes down to this weekend as four 2015 USAC Sprint Car championships are up for grabs in the 48th “Western World Championships” at USA Raceway in Tucson, Ariz.
One of America’s most storied motorsports histories will be renewed with races Thursday, Friday and Saturday for USAC’s AMSOIL National and CRA 410-c.i. series and USAC’s West Coast and Southwest 360 c.i. series.
California drivers Robert Ballou (National), Damion Gardner (CRA) and Danny Faria, Jr. (West Coast), and Arizona driver R.J. Johnson (Southwest) lead their respective series standings entering this week’s Tucson activities, which begin with a Wednesday night practice session.
Bryan Clauson of Noblesville, Ind. stamped himself as one of the favorites for the Tucson 410s after winning last Saturday night’s $25,000-to-win “Budweiser Oval Nationals” presented by All Coast Construction 40-lapper at Perris (Calif.) Auto Speedway. Clauson, wheeling the B&H Contractors/Dooling Machine Spike/Fisher, grabbed the lead on a 23rd-lap restart after early leaders Kevin Thomas Jr. and Thomas Meseraull were caught up in a tangle in turn three. Thomas hit the wall and, after spinning, collected Meseraull, who was forced to the pit area with mechanical issues. Clauson led the remaining 18 laps to beat Dave Darland, Gardner, Tracy Hines and Ballou.
Darland’s runner-up Saturday finish earned his team $15,000, while Gardner’s third-place finish was worth $10,000.
Ballou, of Rocklin, Calif., whose fifth-place finish left him with a 60-point National lead over Darland, swept Thursday and Friday’s 30-lap prelims in his Pacific Turf & Grass/Blakesley Auto Maxim/Ott. Thursday’s race produced four different lap leaders. Ballou eventually caught Darland on lap 28 and led the final three laps to beat Darland, Clauson, Chase Stockon and Jon Stanbrough. On Friday night, Ballou passed Gardner on lap 12 and led the rest of the way to beat Brady Bacon, Gardner, Tracy Hines and Thomas.
Pro Source fast qualifiers were Justin Grant Thursday and Clauson Friday.
Gardner, of Concord, Calif., with back-to-back third-place finishes Friday and Saturday, emerged with a 45-point lead over Mike Spencer, who suffered through the three “Oval Nationals” races with finishes of 15th, 16th and 17th.
Faria, of Tipton, Calif., has a dozen “podium” finishes in 15 West Coast starts this year, while Johnson’s Southwest season has netted the Phoenix, Ariz. driver nine wins in 17 starts!
Bacon, Gardner and Johnson have already recorded feature wins at Tucson this season. Matt Rossi won last year’s “Western World Championships” Sprint Car main event. Clauson was the 2012 and 2013 winner, while Bacon and Bud Kaeding have a pair of Western World wins and other previous winners include Hines, Darland, and Tucson’s own Jerry Coons Jr. Bob Cleberg won the inaugural “Western World Championships” feature in 1968.
