EL CAJON, CA (August 19, 2000). Who is going to win the late model sportsman championship at Cajon Speedway this year? Stay tuned because at this point, it's still a wide-open chase.
This Saturday night Cajon's premier division starts its stretch drive - a six gut wrenching weeks that will conclude on September 23. When the checkered flag falls that night, three of the four drivers, who are in the midst of the tightest point battle at the track in 25 years, will face a winter of what might have been and if onlys.
Just just 27 markers separate John Tyczki, Ron Overman, Jerry Gay, and Gary Tamborelli as they prepare for this Saturday night's run at the track. Race time is 6:45 P.M. Qualifying runs start at 5:15 P.M. Sharing the Gillespie Field pavement will be street stocks, pony stocks, bomber stocks, and speed trucks.
The tightness of the late model sportsman point race becomes apparent when you realize that any driver can earn a maximum of 95 points each race night during the next five weeks and 145 markers the final night of the season.
That's a total of 620 points that any one driver can earn over the next six weeks. So a bobble here or a miscue there and a driver can slip from first to fourth in a hurry.
Tyczki currently sets the pace with 1003 points. He moved into the number one spot in the standings two weeks ago when he ran third in the feature.
Ron Overman had entered the night the top point man, but he could only manage a fifth place finish. Those two positions combined with the additional qualifying and passing points Tyczki earned resulted in a swing of 14 points in Tyczki's favor. Overman though is just one point behind Tyczki.
Jerry Gay won the 40-lap main event two weeks ago. He sits in third place in the hunt with 985 points. Gary Tamborelli, the division's winningest driver this year, has 976 markers. He already has to think about "what could have been". Tambo lost a main event victory and more than 60 points a month ago when he was disqualified after his Monte Carlo came up some six pounds light at the scales during a technical inspection following the race.
Tamborelli does have four victories so far this season. But one of those came in the non-points season opening open competition event. So that night will have no bearing on the final result this year. Tyczki gained the win the night Tamborelli was disqualified; he has three wins. Overman and Gay each have visited victory lane on two occasions.
So with the points battle too close to call, there is only one thing that is for certain. There will be a champion. Tie-breaking procedures were established many years ago (number of wins in point races, then number of seconds, then number of thirds, etc. until a champion is determined). They never have been used at Cajon before. But they may be dusted off this year.
CAJON SPEEDWAY NASCAR WEEKLY RACING SERIES POINT STANDINGS
LATE MODEL SPORTSMAN
1 John Tyczki Jr Lakeside 3 wins 1003
2 Ron Overman Lakeside 2 wins 1002
3 Jerry Gay San Diego 2 wins 985
4 Gary Tamborelli Escondido 4 wins 976
5 Todd McLauchlan Alpine 2 wins 778
6 Dee Cable Santee 546
7 Russ Gregson Santee 542
8 Don Kerr El Cajon 2 wins 448
9 Robert Parenteau Lakeside 406
10 Jack Lee Vista 380
GRAND AMERICAN MODIFIED
1 Mike Salm Fallbrook 5 wins 774
2 Scott Brown Lakeside 605
3 Douglas Carpenter La Mesa 595
4 Randy Keatts Santee 594
5 Lance Biggers Alpine 7 wins 554
6 Mike Jackson Bonita 333
7 Bo Lemler Bonita 1 win 274
8 Ron Nava Encinitas 268
9 Dave Williams Escondido 228
10 Ron Brown San Diego 165
STREET STOCK
1 Danny Gay Lakeside 11 wins 1241
2 Eric Evans Imperial Beach 823
3 Rick Hagen Alpine 1 win 761
4 Scott Moses Chula Vista 747
5 Rob Freeman Santee 660
6 Rich Green Jr. El Cajon 2 wins 585
7 Rob Overman El Cajon 559
8 Ivan Harrison Santee 507
9 Dave Arce Santee 456
10 Brian Collins Oceanside 386
PONY STOCK
1 Jimmy Kyte Lakeside 2 wins 920
2 Ed Hale El Cajon 5 wins 745
3 Andy Papp La Mesa 1 win 643
4 Marty Schmidt El Cajon 610
5 Douglas Wright Jr. Jamul 1 win 570
6 Ralph Smith Santee 1 win 518
7 Troy Hatfield Descanso 487
8 Billy Hoagland Santee 1 win 471
9 Tony Cortes La Mesa 454
10 Earl Downing Spring Valley 432
BOMBER STOCK
1 Pat Garity El Cajon 3 wins 1178
2 Mark Holland San Diego 1 win 883
3 John Luecht Chula Vista 1 win 665
4 Randy Wallace El Cajon 6 wins 594
5 Scott Youngren Fallbrook 591
6 Bill Holland El Cajon 576
7 Alex McKay San Diego 531
8 Bob Wickey Spring Valley 2 wins 492
9 Greg McCown El Cajon 472
10 Chris Boyer San Diego 472
