NWWS Heads to Bakersfield

Source: NASCAR Public Relations
Date: 10/10/1997

SCOTTS VALLEY, Calif.-The battle for the championship in the NASCAR Winston West Series is heading to the high banks of Mesa Marin Raceway in Bakersfield, Calif., for the Spears Manufacturing 250 on Oct. 11.

The $71,749 event is the final short track race of the season and the 13th in a 14-race schedule for the West Coast series.

Butch Gilliland of Anaheim, Calif., continues to hold a slight advantage in the chase for the championship. The veteran driver leads with 1,925 points. Sean Woodside of Saugus, Calif., is 74 points behind with 1,851. Gary Smith of Malahat, British Columbia is third with 1,801 points.

Gilliland, 40, reached victory lane at Mesa Marin Raceway earlier this year in May when the NASCAR Winston West Series made its first of two visits this season to the Bakersfield facility. It was Gilliland's first win on the 1/2-mile paved oval in 22 attempts.

Woodside, meanwhile, will be returning to his home track where he competed in the NASCAR Winston Racing Series Late Model Sportsman division last year. The 26-year-old series rookie will be piloting the Golden West Motorsports Pontiac that won a year ago at Mesa Marin Raceway with Lance Hooper behind the wheel.

Smith, also a rookie in the series, will be making his second start in a NASCAR Winston West Series race at Mesa Marin. He finished third behind Gilliland and Woodside in May.

An even tighter battle is brewing for fourth place in the standings, meanwhile, with four drivers within 58 points. They include Larry Gunselman of Sierra Village, Calif., with 1,562; Scott Gaylord of Lakewood, Colo., with 1,530; Kevin Culver of Portland, Ore., with 1,526; and Bill McAnally of Elverta, Calif., with 1,504.

In addition to the chase for the championship, Woodside and Smith are locked in a battle for the Sears Point Raceway Rookie-of-the-Year Award. Smith leads with 101 points over Woodside with 99. Kevin Culver of Portland, Ore., trails with 88 points, followed by Kenny Smith with 42 and Billy Kann with 31.

A large field of competitors is expected for the Spears Manufacturing 250. Early entries such as two time series champion Bill Sedgwick of Acton, Calif.; Kevin Richards of Spokane, Wash; Jeff Davis of Anaheim Hills, Calif.; and Kevin Harvick of Bakersfield will be joining Gilliland, Woodside and Smith.

Live coverage of the race will be televised nationally by FOX Sports cable network.

The race is part of Mesa Marin Raceway's 22nd annual October Classic. In addition to the NASCAR Winston West Series race, the track will feature a NASCAR Winston Racing Series race on Oct.0 and a NASCAR Featherlite Southwest Tour race on Oct. 10. The four-day event, billed as a "festival of speed", will be highlighted by a NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race on Oct. 12.

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