GARDNER SEEKS 3RD WESTERN STATES MIDGET VICTORY AT BAKERSFIELD SATURDAY
Ronnie Gardner not only brings his USAC Western States Midget point lead to Bakersfield (Calif.) Speedway Saturday night, he brings a history of success with him to the one-third-mile dirt oval.
Gardner has a scant four-point lead over Shane Golobic in the standings after winning the series opener at Placerville (Calif.) Speedway, but he has two recent Bakersfield victories to his credit. He won last year’s series opener and also won in 2013. In the second 2015 appearance, he was the fastest qualifier and finished second behind Alex Schutte.
Schutte has a pair of Bakersfield wins to his credit, also winning in 2009, while Trey Marcham swept the two Bakersfield races in 2014.
Third-ranking Cody Swanson also figures to be a top contender Saturday, having won at Bakersfield in 2013.
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UPCOMING USAC WESTERN STATES MIDGET CHAMPIONSHIP EVENT
DATE: Saturday, April 30, 2016
SERIES: USAC Western States Midget Championship
TRACK: Bakersfield Speedway (Bakersfield, California) – 1/3-mile, high-banked clay oval
EVENT: USAC Western States Midgets, USAC Micro Sprints, Hobby Stocks, American Stocks, Mini Stocks & CLS
STARTING TIMES: Pit Gate Opens: 2pm. Spectator Gates Open: 4pm. Hot Laps: 5pm. Racing: 6pm.
TICKETS: General Admission-Adult: 16. Seniors (65 and Older): $14. Military (Military ID Required): $14. Kids age 6-12: $6. Pit Pass-Bakersfield Speedway Members: $35 (No Other Memberships Honored). Non-Members: $45.
TRACK ADDRESS: 5001 N Chester Ave Ext, Bakersfield, CA 93308
TRACK PHONE: (661) 393-3373
TRACK WEBSITE: http://www.bakersfieldspeedway.com/
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ALL-TIME USAC WESTERN STATES MIDGET FEATURE WINNERS AT BAKERSFIELD SPEEDWAY
(Prior to 4/30/2016 Bakersfield event)
1. (8) Robby Flock
2. (7) Billy Boat & Sleepy Tripp
4. (5) Jay Drake
5. (4) Jordan Hermansader
6. (3) Steve Paden, Ron Shuman, Jimmy Sills, Danny Stratton & Josh Wise
11. (2) Hank Butcher, Bob Davison, Ronnie Day, Ronnie Gardner, Garrett Hansen, P.J. Jones, Trey Marcham, Wally Pankratz, Frank Pedregon, Alex Schutte & Shane Scully
22. (1) Bobby Boone, Greg Bragg, Larry Brown, Tyler Brown, Johnny Cofer, Dave Darland, Michelle Decker, Larry Derwin, Danny Ebberts, Nic Faas, Terry Farrar, Billy Felts, Jr., Josh Ford, Stan Fox, Damion Gardner, Scott Hansen, Rick Hendrix, Gary Howard, Page Jones, Kasey Kahne, Ryan Kaplan, Cory Kruseman, Brad Kuhn, Josh Lakatos, Jason Leffler, Thomas Meseraull, Troy Rutherford, Graham Standring, Cody Swanson, Brad Sweet, Rich Vogler & Rip Williams
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2016 USAC WESTERN STATES MIDGET CHAMPIONSHIP DRIVER POINT STANDINGS (TOP-10)
1. (78) Ronnie Gardner (Corona, CA)
2. (74) Shane Golobic (Fremont, CA)
3. (69) Cody Swanson (Norco, CA)
4. (67) Sean Dodenhoff (Bakersfield, CA)
5. (63) Michael Faccinto (Hanford, CA)
6. (61) Randi Pankratz (Atascadero, CA)
7. (60) Brady Bacon (Broken Arrow, OK)
8. (54) Britton Bock (Angwin, CA)
9. (49) Taylor Simas (Capay, CA)
10. (46) Frankie Guerrini (San Rafael, CA)
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2016 USAC WESTERN STATES MIDGET CHAMPIONSHIP OWNER POINT STANDINGS (TOP-10)
1. (78) Six8 Motorsports #68
2. (74) Bock Racing #26
3. (69) Kirk Swanson #71s
4. (67) Sean Dodenhoff #9D
5. (63) MF Racing #35F
6. (61) Wally Pankratz #8
7. (60) Keith Ford #73
8. (54) Bock Racing #67
9. (49) Bock Racing #62
10. (46) MF Racing #35s
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2016 USAC WESTERN STATES MIDGET CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE & RESULTS
Mar 23: Placerville, CA - Placerville Speedway
WINNER: Ronnie Gardner
Apr 9: Tulare, CA - Thunderbowl Raceway
WINNER: Rained Out
Apr 30: Bakersfield, CA - Bakersfield Speedway
May 21: Ventura, CA - Ventura Raceway
Jun 4: Bakersfield, CA - Bakersfield Speedway
Jun 25: Hanford, CA - Keller Auto Speedway at Kings Fairgrounds
Jul 16: Petaluma, CA - Petaluma Speedway
Sep 3: Calistoga, CA - Calistoga Speedway
Sep 4: Calistoga, CA - Calistoga Speedway
Sep 8: Chico, CA - Silver Dollar Speedway
Sep 17: Santa Maria, CA - Santa Maria Raceway
Oct 8: Tulare, CA - Thunderbowl Raceway
Oct 29: Ventura, CA - Ventura Raceway
Nov 19: Bakersfield, CA - Bakersfield Speedway
Nov 24: ### Ventura, CA - Ventura Raceway
**Races noted with ### represent a race with the USAC National Midget Series.
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2016 USAC WESTERN STATES MIDGET CHAMPIONSHIP STATISTICS
FEATURE WINS:
1. (1) Ronnie Gardner (Placerville Speedway on March 23)
FEATURE LAPS LED:
1. (19) Ronnie Gardner
2. (9) Shane Golobic
3. (2) Sean Dodenhoff
TOP-FIVE FEATURE FINISHES:
1. (1) Sean Dodenhoff, Michael Faccinto, Ronnie Gardner, Shane Golobic & Cody Swanson
TOP-TEN FEATURE FINISHES:
1. (1) Brady Bacon, Britton Bock, Sean Dodenhoff, Michael Faccinto, Ronnie Gardner, Shane Golobic, Frankie Guerrini, Randi Pankratz, Taylor Simas & Cody Swanson
HEAT RACE WINS:
1. (1) Brady Bacon, Danny Carroll & Ronnie Gardner
FEATURE STARTS:
1. (1) Brady Bacon, Britton Bock, Danny Carroll, Bryan Clauson, Maria Cofer, Courtney Crone, Robert Dalby, Sean Dodenhoff, Tyler Dolacki, Cory Elliott, Michael Faccinto, Brian Gard, Ronnie Gardner, Dustin Golobic, Shane Golobic, Frankie Guerrini, Terry Nichols, Randi Pankratz & Taylor Simas, Matt Streeter, Cody Swanson & Nate Waite
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ALL-TIME USAC WESTERN STATES MIDGET CHAMPIONSHIP FEATURE WINS
1. [104 wins] Sleepy Tripp
2. [52 wins] Robby Flock
3. [41 wins] Billy Boat
4. [19 wins] Wally Pankratz
5. [18 wins] Page Jones
6. [16 wins] P.J. Jones, Jason Leffler & Rusty Rasmussen
9. [14 wins] Ronnie Gardner & Garrett Hansen
11. [13 wins] Jimmy Sills & Tony Stewart
13. [12 wins] Jay Drake & Tommy White
15. [11 wins] Josh Wise
16. [10 wins] Johnny Cofer, Jerry Coons, Jr., Dave Darland, Cory Kruseman & Ron Shuman
21. [9 wins] Bobby East, Tracy Hines, Kasey Kahne & Rich Vogler
25. [8 wins] Stan Fox, Michael Lewis, Steve Paden, Dave Steele & Danny Stratton
30. [7 wins] Rick Hendrix, Chad Nichols & Kody Swanson
33. [6 wins] Rico Abreu, Bryan Clauson, Johnathon Henry, Ken Nichols, Brad Noffsinger & Dave Strickland Jr.
39. [5 wins] Tommy Astone, Christopher Bell, Bob Davison, Ronnie Day, Robert Dolacki, Davey Hamilton, Tony Hunt, Brad Kuhn & J.J. Yeley
48. [4 wins] Tyler Brown, Hank Butcher, Nick Chivello, Marc DeBeaumont, Nic Faas, Josh Ford, Chuck Gurney, Darren Hagen, Jordan Hermansader, Ryan Kaplan, Thomas Meseraull, Frank Pedregon, Chris Rahe, Keith Rauch, Jerome Rodela, Johnny Rodriguez, Shane Scully, Ricky Shelton, Tanner Swanson, Brad Sweet & Billy Wease
69. [3 wins] Ryan Bernal, Bobby Boone, Mario Bringetto, Jr., Danny Ebberts, Shane Golobic, Jeff Gordon, Scott Hansen, Alex Harris, Robby Josett, Trey Marcham, Danny McKnight, Ryan Newman, Johnny Parsons, Scott Pierovich, Troy Rutherford, Alex Schutte & Chuck West
86. [2 wins] Floyd Alvis, Alex Bowman, Rick Bussell, Tony Elliott, Michael Faccinto, Terry Farrar, Mike Figliomeni, Bobby Grewohl, Darryl Haugh, Dennis Hart, Jeff Heywood, Gary Howard, R.J. Johnson, Josh Lakatos, Kyle Larson, Evan Margeson, Matt Mitchell, Rory Price, Stevie Reeves, Bobby Santos, Darin Snider, Michael Snider & Bryan Stanfill
109. [1 win] Mike Appio, Caleb Armstrong, Brady Bacon, Donnie Beechler, Wayne Bennet, Pat Bliss, Garratt Boyden, Greg Bragg, Larry Brown, Keith Chrisco, Michelle Decker, Larry Derwin, Kevin Doty, Dan Drinan, Dale Durbin Jr., Cory Elliott, Bob Ellis, Tommie Estes Jr., Duane Feduska, Billy Felts Jr., A.J. Fike, Joe Gaerte, Russ Gamester, Brian Gard, Damion Gardner, Cody Gerhardt, Rick Gerhardt, Frankie Guerrini, Jac Haudenschild, Lloyd Hemman, Nathan High, Rick Hood, Kenny Irwin Jr., A.J. Johnson, Jim Keene, Steve Knepper, Brad Loyet, Dallen McKenney, Shannon McQueen, Lealand McSpadden, Jeff Meyer, Andy Michner, Kevin Olson, Aaron Pollock, David Prickett, Davey Ray, C.J. Sarna, Zach Schiff, Ryan Scott, Jeremy Sherman, Graham Standring, John Starks, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Chase Stockon, Matt Streeter, Cody Swanson, Jake Swanson, Sammy Swindell, Tanner Thorson, Richard Vander Weerd, Eric Wilkins, Rip Williams & Paul Zimmerly
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ALL-TIME USAC WESTERN STATES MIDGET CHAMPIONS
1982: **Jeff Heywood; 1983: Sleepy Tripp; 1984: Tommy White; 1985: Sleepy Tripp; 1986: Robby Flock; 1987: Sleepy Tripp; 1988: Sleepy Tripp; 1989: Robby Flock; 1990: Sleepy Tripp; 1991: Sleepy Tripp; 1992: Sleepy Tripp; 1993: Robby Flock; 1994: Johnny Cofer; 1995: Billy Boat; 1996: Jay Drake; 1997: Ricky Shelton; 1998: Rick Hendrix; 1999: Marc DeBeaumont; 2000: Wally Pankratz; 2001: Danny Ebberts; 2002: Robby Flock; 2003: Steve Paden; 2004: Johnny Rodriguez; 2005: Jerome Rodela; 2006: Jerome Rodela; 2007: Johnny Rodriguez; 2008: Nic Faas; 2009: Garrett Hansen; 2010: Alex Schutte; 2011: Cory Kruseman; 2012: Shannon McQueen (Overall), Chad Nichols (Pave) & David Prickett (Dirt); 2013: Ronnie Gardner (Overall), Chad Nichols (Pave) & Ronnie Gardner (Dirt); 2014: Ronnie Gardner (Overall), Chad Nichols (Pavement), Ronnie Gardner (Dirt); 2015: Ronnie Gardner
**The 1982 Western Midget championship was derived from finishes posted in a number of “west coast” races held under National sanction. These events were NOT promoted, recognized or reported as “western” races and no series standings were generated.