USAC WESTERN STATES MIDGETS CLASH AT VENTURA SATURDAY
By Lance Jennings
OCTOBER 23, 2019... This Saturday, October 26th, the stars and cars of the USAC Western States Midget Series will battle at Ventura Raceway. Promoted by Jim Naylor, the ninth point race is a tune-up for the upcoming “79th Running of the Turkey Night Grand Prix.” Saturday’s event at the seaside 1/5-mile oval will also showcase VRA 360 Sprint Cars, VRA Dwarf Cars, California Lightning Sprints, and Focus/WMR Midgets. The Pit Gates will open at Noon, the Front Gates will open at 3:00pm, and Racing at “The Best Little Dirt Track in America” is set for 5:30pm. For more information, visit the track’s website at venturaraceway.com or call 805.648.RACE.
NOTICE TO RACERS:
- 2019 APPROVED/LEGAL MUFFLERS: EXTREME: 3515-3030, 3615-3030, 3515-3030-8, 3615-3030-8, BILLY BOAT: FRAC-0375-S, COAST FABRICATION: 300x625x17-2s, 350x625x17-2s, 400x625x17-2s, FLOWMASTER: 13009130, 13509130, 13509135, SCHOENFELD: 14272535, 14272530-78. *Failure to comply with the muffler rule will risk disqualification from the event.
- FULL CONTAINMENT SEATS ARE MANDATORY.
- DRAG LINK STRAPS ARE MANDATORY.
- The weight rule is 1,035 lbs. with driver and the USAC Western States Midget Rule Book can be found online at usacracing.com.
- USAC MEMBERSHIPS can be purchased at the track or online at usaclicense.com.
Since May 24, 1986, 147 USAC Western States Midget events have been held at the Ventura County Fairgrounds. On that night, Sleepy Tripp claimed the first of his series leading eighteen Ventura wins and Johnny Cofer set the 1-lap qualifying record (11.675) on November 18, 1995. This season, Robby Josett claimed the June 22nd feature and Robert Dalby earned his third consecutive victory on September 14th. A complete series win list at Ventura is at the bottom of this release.
To date, there have been five different winners with four earning their first triumph in 2019. Making his first career start, Ben Worth won the April 6th Bakersfield season opener with Austin Liggett topping the April 20th Merced and April 27th Santa Maria features. Robby Josett claimed the June 22nd Ventura win and Maria Cofer earned her first victory at Petaluma on July 20th. Robert Dalby joined the winner’s list at Merced on June 27th and topped the last two point races (Santa Maria on August 10th and Ventura on September 14th.)
Heading to Ventura, Robert Dalby (Anaheim, CA) has a 58-point lead over the competition. Racing the family owned #4D R-D Spring & Stamping / Lucas Oil Spike, Dalby has three feature wins, one Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Award, two heat race victories, seven top-10 finishes, and 46 feature laps led on the year. This Saturday night, Robert will be looking for his fourth win in a row.
After running second to Dalby on September 14th at Ventura, Cory Elliott (Bakersfield, CA) has climbed to second in the point chase. Driving the family owned #11E Capital E Trucking / Nagel Earthworks Spike, Elliott has one Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Award, three heat race victories, one Saldana Racing Products Hard Charger Award, seven top-10 finishes, and 30 feature laps led to his credit. The 2015 Rookie of the Year has two career wins and will have his sights on his first triumph at Ventura Raceway.
Austin Liggett (Tracy, CA) ranks third in the chase for the championship. The pilot of the family owned Liggett’s #83 Excel Environmental Services / Liggett Trucking Spike skipped the last race but has two feature wins, one heat race victory, one Wilwood Disc Brakes Lucky 13 Award, six top-10 finishes, and 21 feature laps led on the season. The leading rookie contender will be looking to gain valuable points with a win at the Ventura County Fairgrounds.
David Prickett (Fresno, CA) sits fourth in the Western States Midget point standings. Driving the Neverlift Motorsports’ #15DJ Monster Seal Tire Sealant / Western Performance Spike, Prickett finished 18th at Ventura after an early exit. At press time, the 2012 Dirt Series Champion has two heat race victories, two Saldana Racing Products Hard Charger Awards, and five top-10 finishes on the year. This Saturday night, David will have his sights on his first win of the season.
Shannon McQueen (Bakersfield, CA) is fifth in the championship point standings. Piloting the McQueen Racing #7 Simpson Race Products / Lucas Oil Bullet, McQueen was Ventura’s fast qualifier and scored twentieth in the September 14th main event. To date, the 2012 Champion has one Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Award, and six top-10 finishes in the campaign. Shannon will have her sights on her first win of the season at Ventura.
While Liggett leads the chase for Rookie of the Year honors, Ben Worth (Coalinga, CA), Gage Rucker (Truxton, MO), Troy Morris III (Bakersfield, CA), Mike Leach Jr. (Orange, CA), Anthony Lopiccolo (Yorba Linda), Robert Carson (Concord, CA), Jackson Dukes (Clovis, CA), Beau Lemire (Placerville, CA), and Ricky Lewis (Oxnard, CA) are also in contention.
Among the other drivers expected to be in action are C.J. Sarna, Jake Swanson, Kyle Beilman, Marvin Mitchell, Cody Swanson, Randi Pankratz, Alex Schutte, Dylan Ito, “Fireball” Maria Cofer, Ron Hazelton, Robby Josett, Bryan Drollinger, Alex Grigoreas, and more.
Ventura Raceway is located on the Ventura County Fairgrounds at 10 West Harbor Blvd. in Ventura, California. Adult tickets are $15, Senior tickets (60 and older), Active Military tickets (ID Required), and Student tickets (with ID) are $11. Kids tickets (12 and under) are FREE. For more event information, visit the track’s website at venturaraceway.com or call 805.648.RACE.
The USAC Western States Midget Series thanks AMSOIL, Brown & Miller Racing Solutions, Butlerbuilt Professional Seat Systems, Competition Suspension Incorporated, Extreme Mufflers, Five Star Grafix, Hoosier Racing Tire, Loudpedal Productions, Pyrotect Racing Cells, Saldana Racing Products, Ultra Shield Race Products, Wilwood Disc Brakes, and Woodland Auto Display for their support. If you or your company would like to become part of the series, email PR Director Lance Jennings at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .
For more information on the series, visit the United States Auto Club (USAC) website at usacracing.com and the social media for USAC Racing. You can also find exclusive content on the USAC Western States Midget Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram pages.
FloSports has USAC Western States Midget live videos and on demand coverage available for purchase at www.floracing.com.
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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, 2013-Ronnie Gardner, 2014- Ronnie Gardner, 2015-Ronnie Gardner, 2016-Ronnie Gardner, 2017-Ronnie Gardner, 2018-Michael Faccinto.
2019 USAC WESTERN STATES MIDGET WINS: 3-Robert Dalby, 2-Austin Liggett, 1-Maria Cofer, 1-Robby Josett, 1-Ben Worth.
VENTURA USAC WESTERN STATES MIDGET WINS: 18-Sleepy Tripp, 13-Billy Boat, 8-Page Jones, 7-Garrett Hansen, 6-Ronnie Gardner, 6-Jimmy Sills, 5-Johnny Cofer, 5-Robby Flock, 5-Cory Kruseman, 4-Robert Dolacki, 4- P.J. Jones, 4-Robby Josett, 3-Jay Drake, 3-Chris Rahe, 3-Tony Stewart, 2-Tommy Astone, 2-Christopher Bell, 2-Tyler Brown, 2-Josh Ford, 2-Dennis Hart, 2-Johnathon Henry, 2-Brad Kuhn, 2-Frank Pedregon, 2-Jerome Rodela, 2-Chuck West, 1-Mike Appio, 1-Wayne Bennet, 1-Chad Boat, 1-Bobby Boone, 1-Mario Bringetto Jr., 1-Hank Butcher, 1-Keith Chrisco, 1-Robert Dalby, 1-Kevin Doty, 1-Tony Elliott, 1-Nic Faas, 1-Stan Fox, 1-Russ Gamester, 1-Chuck Gurney, 1-Daryl Haugh, 1-Rick Hendrix, 1-A.J. Johnson, 1-Ryan Kaplan, 1-Josh Lakatos, 1-Kyle Larson, 1-Brad Loyet, 1-Carson Macedo, 1-Lealand McSpadden, 1-Matt Mitchell, 1-Steve Paden, 1-Rusty Rasmussen, 1-Keith Rauch, 1-Troy Rutherford, 1-Shane Scully, 1-Ron Shuman, 1-Bryan Stanfill, 1-Jake Swanson, 1-Tommy White.
2019 USAC WESTERN STATES MIDGET POINT STANDINGS: 1. Robert Dalby-557, 2. Cory Elliott-499, 3. Austin Liggett ®458, 4. David Prickett-410, 5. Shannon McQueen-407, 6. Ben Worth ®-376, 7. C.J. Sarna-348, -. Jake Swanson-348, 9. Kyle Beilman-326, 10. Marvin Mitchell-310, 11. Cody Swanson-309, 12. Randi Pankratz-289, 13. Alex Schutte-257, 14. Dylan Ito-209, 15. Michael Faccinto-207, 16. Maria Cofer-204, 17. Gage Rucker ®-199, 18. Troy Morris III ®-174, 19. Terry Nichols-157, 20. Mike Leach Jr. ®-142.
2019 USAC WESTERN STATES MIDGET SERIES SCHEDULE
DATE-TRACK-LOCATION
April 6: Bakersfield Speedway – Bakersfield, CA (Winner: Ben Worth)
April 20: Merced Speedway – Merced, CA (Winner: Austin Liggett)
April 27: Santa Maria Raceway – Santa Maria, CA (Winner: Austin Liggett)
June 22: Ventura Raceway – Ventura, CA (Winner: Robby Josett)
July 20: Petaluma Speedway – Petaluma, CA (Winner: Maria Cofer)
July 27: Merced Speedway – Merced, CA (Winner: Robert Dalby)
August 10: Santa Maria Raceway – Santa Maria, CA (Winner: Robert Dalby)
September 14: Ventura Raceway – Ventura, CA (Winner: Robert Dalby)
October 26: Ventura Raceway – Ventura, CA
November 15: *Arizona Speedway – San Tan Valley, AZ (Western World Championships)
November 16: *Arizona Speedway – San Tan Valley, AZ (Western World Championships)
November 19: *Placerville Speedway – Placerville, CA (Hangtown Hundred)
November 20: *Placerville Speedway – Placerville, CA (Hangtown Hundred)
November 23: *Bakersfield Speedway – Bakersfield, CA (November Classic)
November 28: *Ventura Raceway – Ventura, CA (Turkey Night Grand Prix)
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* = Co-Sanctioned Event with NOS Energy Drink USAC National Midgets.
This schedule is subject to change.