SANTA MARIA, California — Chuck West, of Clovis, won his fourth NMRA-TQ Midget Series 25-lap main event of the season Saturday on the third-mile clay Santa Maria Speedway. The three-time NMRA driving champion extended his current point lead from nine to 24 points over his car owner/first cousin West Evans. He drove the No. 38 Stealth/750cc Suzuki as usual. The ninth NMRA event of 2011 followed the rain-canceled event at Bakersfield Speedway a week earlier. That race has been added to the schedule as the final race this year on Saturday, October 22 at Bakersfield Speedway.
With 12 cars present for the SMS race, West started seventh and led only the final lap. Scott Dobson started second and led the first 24 circuits before yielding to West on the run to the checkers. Dobson's No. 18 Rick Stewart chassis with Honda power finished second. Kenny Wiley, NMRA's 2007 driving champion, came from fourth to nail third position. Fastest qualifier Anthony Lopiccolo started eighth and claimed fourth after winning the last two TQ main events at Bakersfield Speedway on August 6 and 20. Owner/driver Evans started and finished fifth. Bruce Hiroshima, pole starter Ron Ahrendt, rookies Adam Baker and Michael Black ran sixth through ninth respectively; all finishers completed 25 laps.
Title-hopeful Brian Baker, the 2010 TQ rookie of the year, started sixth and incurred a blow to his title chances when his car dropped out on lap 3. He now trails West by 44 points. Dakota Schweitzer retired on the first lap. Dave Lambert's car did not start. All 12 drivers ran two qualifying laps and shot for the TQ track record of 14.820 set by Jimmy May on 4/10/04. Lopiccolo came closest with his 15.363 aboard his dad Paul's Stewart/Honda. It was the fastest TQ lap during time trails at SMS in three years. West (from fifth) and Dobson (from second) won the pair of six-car, eight-lap heat races.
The tenth and final NMRA race this year will be the ninth event of the year at Bakersfield Speedway, the official NMRA-TQ home track. So far this season 19 drivers and 16 car owners have earned 2011 NMRA championship points.
Summary:
Heat 1 – Chuck West, West Evans, Bruce Hiroshima, Ron Ahrendt, Michael Black, Dave Lambert.
Heat 2 – Scott Dobson, Brian Baker, Kenny Wiley, Anthony Lopiccolo, Adam Baker, Dakota Schweitzer.
Main – West, Dobson, Wiley, Lopiccolo, Evans, Hiroshima, Ahrendt, A. Baker, Black, B. Baker, Schweitzer, DNS-Lambert.
POINT STANDINGS:
Drivers Car Owners
1 Chuck West 535 1 No. 38 West Evans 565
2 West Evans 511 2 No. 36 West Evans 541
3 Brian Baker 491 3 No. 6 Brian Baker 518
4 Ron Ahrendt 468 4 No. 87 Ron Ahrendt 498
5 Dakota Schweitzer 401 5 No. 59 Steve Parke 428
6 Scott Dobson 348 6 No. 18 Scott Dobson 424
7 Anthony Lopiccolo 346 7 No. 17 Adam Baker 401
8 Adam Baker 323 8 No. 21 Paul Lopiccolo 364
9 Michael Black 285 9 No. 14 Michael Black 309
10 Dave Lambert 206 10 No. 55 Dave Lambert 224
