8/23/2024
Antioch Speedway
Late Models, Spec Sprints And Hobby Stocks Headline Saturday Show At Antioch Speedway
Antioch, CA...Racing continues at Antioch Speedway this Saturday night, and it's the final event of August as the track goes dark on Labor Day Weekend. For this occasion, the Late Models are a featured attraction along with the Wingless Spec Sprints, Pacific Coast Hobby Stocks, Dwarf Cars, Mini Stocks, 600 Micros and Hardtops.
For much of the last decade, Late Model racing has been included on the Antioch Speedway schedule. This is at a time when the division has faded in California. The emergence of the Limited Late Model rules at Placerville has been a beacon of hope for Late Model enthusiasts who want to see this style of racing continue.
Mike Slaney of Martinez put together a series that has helped the effort along in the Bay Area, and the numbers seen at Antioch Speedway back that up. When Slaney decided to withdraw his series from this Saturday night and the October race, track management decided to see if they could keep it going.
Chester Kniss of Antioch, who operates Delta Transmission, graciously came on board to sponsor the effort with a purse that should entice the competitors to continue to support the show. It is hoped that the numbers stay solid this week and in October, and the class will continue at Antioch in 2025.
Anthony Slaney is leading the point standings at Placerville and in the series. He has won both races at Antioch this year, but it's unknown if the Martinez competitor will be a part of this show. Chester and his son Buddy Kniss of Oakley are both anticipated this week. Rod Oliver of Yuba City has been a big supporter of the Antioch effort in recent years and could be there as well.
Since the race will continue to pay $800 to win and a minimum of $200 to start, it is anticipated that most of the competitors who have been supporting the division at Antioch in the past couple of years will be on hand this week. The fans should be treated to another good show for the Late Models.
The Hobby Stocks delivered a whopping 30 cars last week for the Hetrick Memorial, and Clarence Holbrook III of Galt used his fourth victory to move to within 12 points of Ryan Hart of Dos Palos. Hart has also picked up multiple victories. The non-point nature of this race meant that teams could go to Bakersfield to support The Clash and not lose out in Antioch. However, the Bakersfield race has been postponed to October.
Though Antioch isn't offering points for this show, the $750 prize money for the winner and increased purse should be an enticement for others. Some of the drivers to watch for include third-ranked James Thomson and Jared Baugh, both of Pittsburg, Aidan Ponciano of Oakley, Colten Haney of Brentwood and Kevin Brown of Oakley.
The Wingless Spec Sprint championship is being led by Jacob Tuttle of Oakley. Tuttle is also the Hunt Series leader. He's done an impressive drive job of piloting the Ted Finkenbinder car, and his two Antioch wins gives him a 38 point lead over two-time champion Bob Newberry of Brentwood going into Saturday. Newberry will need to come up big to put himself in a position to overtake Tuttle in September.
Steve Maionchi of Sonora holds on to third in the standings by 32 points over past WMR and USAC Midget champion Blake Bower of Brentwood, while rookie John Ulrich of Antioch sits in the fifth position, eight points ahead of Brentwood's Dylan Newberry. A car count in the double digits is anticipated for Saturday night.
Despite missing the most recent race to compete at Placerville, 2020 Dwarf Car champion Travis Day of Concord leads the standings. Day has a feature win to his credit as he leads Benicia's Brandon Aylesworth by 36 points. Antioch Speedway Hall of Famer David Rosa of Antioch is a feature winner this year and is eight points behind Aylesworth in third. Other drivers anticipated include Joe Leduc of Placerville and Sean Catucci of Antioch.
Mini Stocks haven't had a big car count, but the battle of the Tom's rages on. Reigning track champion Tom Davis of Los Molinos has picked up four feature triumphs, and yet he trails two-time winner Tom Brown of Santa Rosa by four points. Brown won the most recent race in another car. Tony Quinonez of Corning has a solid hold on third and seems to be the driver most likely to overtake the Tom's for a feature win of his own.
In the rookie chase, Jackie Price of Antioch returned after repairing damage from a back stretch crash earlier this year. She leads that battle and is fourth overall, followed by Matt Wirth of Oakland, Danville's David Dupuis and Tom Carse of Novato, all of whom are rookies in the division.
In the Hardtop division, reigning champion Joel Hannagan of San Jose leads the charge in the Doug Braudrick owned Junkyard Dog. Joel has won all three races so far. At Merced last week, however, his plans of victory were thwarted by that track's Sportsman point leader, Mike Gillard of Atwater. It was the Jerry Cecil Memorial race, making Gillard's win all the sweeter. He currently ranks second at Antioch, 16 points behind the leader as he hopes to evict Hannagan from the winner's circle here. Bob Slaney of Martinez currently sits third in the standings, 34 ahead of Dexter Long of Ballico and 44 in front of Joe Shenefield of Roseville.
The Micro Sprint division seems to be attracting a little bit of interest as more drivers are giving Antioch a shot. Santa Rosa's Ken Carter is a regular at Petaluma Speedway. He is a two-time feature winner at Antioch this year and leads Ryan Dotson of Stockton by 30 points. 31 points behind Dotson is Devon Zuffa of Tracy, while Charlie Kight of Antioch is 11 points behind Zuffa in fourth.
The Late Models and Wingless Spec Sprints have proven to be a good combination. With the Hobby Stocks on the card along with the other classes, this should be an enjoyable final race of August.
The gates will open at 4:00 with the first race starting at 6:00.
Adult tickets are $20, Senior/Military $15, Kids (5-12) $15 and kids four and under free.
For further information, go to www.raceantiochspeedway.com or check out the Antioch Speedway by PROmotions Facebook page.
Article Credit: Candice Martin, Photos by Katrina Kniss
Submitted By: Wylie Wade
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