IRWINDALE, California — Brandon Davis, 25, and Taylor Miinch, 17, won Auto Club Late Model twin-30-lap main events in a 21-car field Saturday on the Toyota Speedway at Irwindale banked half-mile. The twin features concluded the point season for the track's premier division for NASCAR Whelen All-American Weekly Racing Series national points. It was Davis' tenth victory in 19 features and the second for series rookie Miinch. Davis tied the ACLM record for most victories in a season with James Weston (2000) and Todd Burns (2003). Davis, the lead driver for Tim Huddleston's High Point Racing team, won his first oval track championship in his second ACLM season. The Huntington Beach resident also won the NASCAR's Whelen California State championship and finished in the top ten in national points. Road racer Davis also won the 2009 SCCA World Challenge GT Championship driving his Applied Computer Solutions Ford Mustang. He also won SCCA races at the most recent Long Beach GP events. This year he has raced in all three NASCAR K & N West Series road races and selected oval events.
Miinch, who won his first ACLM main event two weeks ago on his birthday, drives the No. 03 King Taco Chevy for Position One Motor-sports, of nearby Baldwin Park. He was named the Whelen national rookie of the year. Miinch retained second position in ACLM points with his finishes of fourth and first in the twin 30s. His final point total of 806 trailed champion Davis' 850 by 44 points. He entered the race 42 points in back of Davis with 100 points maximum available for twin wins. Davis' P. 1 and P. 3 gave him 96 points to 94 for Miinch for P. 4 and P. 1. Miinch's rookie rival Dylan Lupton entered the race only 16 points in back of Miinch, but he finished second and 11th and dropped from third to fourth in final points. Rookie Nik Romano went from fourth to third with 778 points to 772 for his teammate Lupton. Davis won the Auto Club traditional expenses paid for two to Hawaii vacation that will be presented to him at the annual TS@I championship awards dinner/ceremony. Davis and his fiancee Erica are planning to wed next September.
The first of ten TS@I track championships decided this season went to all-conquering Jeff Williams, of Newbury Park, in the Southwest Tour Truck Series. He won all nine 2011 features and set fastest qualifying time at the first eight events. With a season-high 15 trucks present, Williams did not turn any practice laps and qualified only seventh fastest. Whittier resident Ronnie Davis, Jr. turned his first quick time. Williams changed his carburetor and started last in a fully inverted lineup based on qualifying times. He started from row seven and led all but the first lap as drivers went four and five wide during the early laps. The wild dash to the front by all the quicker drivers led to two restarts following spin-outs
Two series in the four division program on Auto Club Night used the third-mile oval. A 13-car Echo Equipment Legend Cars 35-lap main event went to Eric Gunderson, 17, in his Maxima Racing 1934 Ford coupe replica. It was the second feature triumph in Irwindale this season for the former USAC Ford Focus Midget Series driver from San Diego. He also won on July 9. In Jan's Towing Bandolero action, you might call September 16-17 events Christian McGhee near Bando title-crowning events. The series point-leader won his series-leading 10th and 11th 20-lap main events this year over nine-time winner Danny Nikolai. McGhee set FQ times both nights. The 13-year old from Ontario won Friday's 14-car main and topped a 16-car field Saturday. Bando drivers have two weekends in October remaining in a busy season for the entertaining entry-level series. Youngsters have run 25 mains at Irwindale this year with Briggs & Stratton-powered fields ranging from 14 to 21 cars. Four drivers have won features with McGhee logging 11 wins, Nikolai 9, Brandon “Speed” Weaver 3, and rookie Ricky Lewis 2.
ACLM 1ST 30: As fastest qualifier on the first of two laps, Davis started the first 30 from pole position in a 21-car lineup. He led every lap in a tight contest with his HPR teammate and championship challenger Dylan Lupton, 17, an ACLM rookie and 2010 S2 track champion for HPR. The all-green light race took only 9:43.552. Davis, in the blue crew No. 55, averaged 92.537 mph and defeated Lupton's blue crew No. 56 by 0.561. Fellow HPR rookie Nik Romano, 21, an ex-USAC Ford Focus Midget winner, finished third, 3.301 seconds in back of Davis for another HPR podium sweep. Miinch finished fourth, only 0.370 in back of Romano. Larry Cerquettini, 44, took P. 5. HPR rookie drivers Devon Ostheimer, 17, and Austin Dyne, 19, followed. P 8-10 went to Kyle McGrady, Chris Johnson and new SWT Trucks champion Jeff Williams, who pulled double duty in two series. Toni McCray and Richie Altman also completed all 30 laps, with 17 of 21 starters racing a the finish. Winner Davis ran the only sub-19 second lap on lap 2 at 18.970 (94.887 mph).
ACLM 2ND 30: Davis, also the fastest qualifier on the second of two qualifying laps, earned the inside row three starting spot for the second 30 based on the “5” inversion number rolled. Twenty cars started. Miinch had P. 2 for the second feature after starting third in the first 30. Miinch led laps 1 and 3-30. Pole starter Cerquettini, the 2009 Vista Paint Super Stock champion, led lap 2 before Miinch took charge for good. The first lap produced a yellow flag after Lupton and Chris Johnson cars made contact and bounced off the backstretch wall. They drove to the pits, but only Lupton returned. His car had severe right side body damage that had to be rebuilt after the multi-car lap 1 turn 4 crash last month. Davis took P. 3 on lap 3 and passed Cerquettini on lap 9. Two laps later Davis lost a cylinder and his car “sounded like a lawnmower”. He fell to third place on lap 11 and slowed enough to finish third and clinch his first TS@I championship. Miinch beat Cerquettini by 1.296 seconds. Davis was 3.486 back. Romano (-4.833) and ninth starter Toni McCray completed the top five. Dyne, McGrady, J. Williams, Paul Ebersbacher and 14th starter/rookie Bailey Thompson, a 19-year old female from Bakersfield known as “The Brat”, rounded out the top ten. All ran 30 laps. Lupton's car shed right side bodywork on the front straight and caused a lap 7 caution flag. Miinch lapped Lupton's damaged car on the final lap as 13 of 20 starters reached the checkered flag. Davis ran the fastest race lap on lap 9 at 19.087 (94.305 mph) as he took second place. Miinch ran his best lap of 19.124 on lap 8. Miinch, from Alpine in eastern San Diego County, is a friend of USAC open-wheel champion and Alpine resident Cole Whitt, the 19-year old current NASCAR Camping World Truck Series leading rookie who ranks eighth in NCWT points.
SWT TRUCKS: The 15-truck field had two restarts and four cautions before Williams could accomplish his track-record dominating feat—winning every main event of a season-long series with nine main events. The 2007 truck series champion won his second truck title by 64 points over Brady Helms. He drove his PYP Ford F-150 to a 1.257 second victory over 15th starter Neil Conrad, who did not qualify earlier. Kirk Knostman also made the podium after finishing 2+ seconds back. Cecil Phelps, Ed Cutler, Rick Harbaugh and Al Rizzone all finished on the lead lap. FQ and lap 1 leader R. Davis, Jr. was in P. 2 on lap 22 when he bumped the front straight wall, slowed and dropped out on lap 28. The restarted race ran only two more green laps for a total of 29 instead of the scheduled 30 laps. Willliams ran the only sub-20 second lap on lap 3 at 19.995 (90.023 mph). Runner-up Conrad was next quickest at 20.269 on lap 4. Six truckers raced a 6-lap trophy dash to open racing at 7:12 pm. Davis, Jr. started fourth and led the final five laps to defeat first lap leader Rizzone by 0.552.
EELC 35: With some usual front runners competing in a national qualifier at Las Vegas, 13 drivers raced at Irwindale. Aaron Wells set FQ time, and second quickest Gunderson also occupied row three. Gary Scheuerell led the first two laps before Gunderson took charge and led the final 33 laps. Jared Torres, 17, took P. 2 on lap 24 and beat Mark Borchetta, 47, by almost half a second. Wells, Scheuerell, rookie Chancellor Tiscareno, Bandolero point leader Christian McGhee, Mark Iungerich, Cory Miles, and rookies Brent Owens and 13-year old Andrew Bruncati also ran 35 laps; 12 of 13 drivers finished. Two cautions slowed the 13-minute race.
BANDOLEROS: (Sat.) - McGhee, 13, started and finished first in a 16-car field and won by 15-yards after a race-long duel with rookie Troy Wesolowski, the 11-year old grandson of Ascot Park, Gardena stock car veteran Henry Wesolowski. The Canyon Lake youngster enjoyed his career-best starting position (third) as the third FQ and his best finish to date. He ran the third fastest race lap of 18.049 (66.419 mph) on lap 3. Rookie Ricky Lewis, 13, Mikael Lovas, brother Ian Wesolowski, 12, Niko Mongenel, Danny Nikolai, Brandon “Speed” Weaver, Ivan Gudmestad and Brett Scoggins completed the top ten. Lovas logged the fastest lap of the race at 18.025 (66.508 mph) on lap 4. All 16 drivers finished with only one driver down a lap. The 6:04.568 all-green light race averaged 65.766 mph.
(Fri.) - Fourteen drivers raced Friday night. As FQ, McGhee, son of past TS@I ACLM and SLM car owner champion Loyd McGhee, set quickest time during group qualifying at 7:30 pm. He used pole position to lead all 20 laps in a four-car dogfight. Nikolai, Lovas and Weaver followed and all were within 0.939 of the winner. I. Wesolowski finished fifth. Lewis, R. J. Stearns, Ricky Schlick, Gudmestad and Scoggins followed. All 14 drivers completed 20 laps. The race started at 8:11 pm, had one caution for a solo spinner, and finished at 8:20 during the 5 to 9 pm open practice session for all track divisions. One K & N West car (No. 6 Sunrise Ford driven by Derek Thorn) ran hot laps with the 12 ACLM cars present.
