2016 racing season opened with a bang!!!
With storm clouds in the area, it was a crap shoot to get all five scheduled division finished Saturday night as the Bakersfield Speedway opened its doors for its 71st race season. Late Model driver Don Shaw from Ham Lake, Min. made 30 super-quick laps around the 1/3 mile track and claimed the opening night victory. He was never seriously challenged for the top spot. “My car there at the end was missing (not firing on all cylinders),” Shaw said. “I was thinking, where’s the white flag?” Jason Papich took second place. Steve Drake finished third. Rod Sanders was fourth and Bobby Hogge IV placed fifth.
Gary Dutton won a wild 20 lap IMCA SportMod feature. Dutton took the lead from Michael Johnson on lap 15, after Johnson lost control of his car and spun out and then withstood the rest of the field to get the win. “That was awesome,” Dutton said. Nick Spainhoward was the runner up to Dutton. Chris McKeller placed third. Johnson rebounded to take fourth with Wayne Coffman rounding out the top five.
Brody Schweitzer out-dueled Miranda Scott to win the 20 lap American stock main event. Schweitzer, running in his third-ever race in the division led the final 19 laps, beating Scott to the checkered flag by less than half a car length. Dakota Brown was third followed by Brandon Ratcliff and Nicholas Johnson. “I saw Miranda under-neath me a few times so I knew I had to go,” Schweitzer said.
Loni Spiller passed Matt Peterson of Oxnard with four laps to go to win the Mini Stock feature. Peterson led a race-high 12 laps but couldn’t hold off the hard charging Spiller, who finished second in last year’s Mini Stock track standings. Zach Peterson was second followed by Misty Warren, Shaun Schwartzenburger and Kylie Conway.
Michael Scruggs adeptly navigated an ever increasingly slick track to win the final race of the night, the 25 lap Hobby Stock main event. Scruggs led all but two of the race laps, which had eight cautions. Kyle Fife was second followed by Chris Settlemire, Aaron Stewart and Travis Avila. “This track is good,” Scruggs said. “I love racing here. It’s one of my favorite places to race”
Bakersfield Speedway will be right back in action next Saturday night March 12th with another action packed night of dirt track racing. IMCA Modifieds, Pro Stocks, Hobby Stocks, IMCA Stock Cars, Mod Lites, CDCRA and NMRA Midgets will all be battling for the top spot in victory lane. Don’t miss the action…
Bakersfield Speedway would like to thank its major marketing partners: Budweiser, Advance Beverage, Coca-Cola, Monster Energy, Motor City GMC, Melo’s Gas and Gear, West Air Gases, H&S Body Works, Diamond IT, Central Valley Tanks, RealFast.tv, Mid-Cal Fabrication, Hungry Hunter Restaurant, Del Taco and Cowboy Bail Bonds.
For more information, you can visit Bakersfield speedway online at www.bakersfieldspeedway.com or call the event info line at (661) 393-3373. Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter and Instgram for race updates all season.
