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Bakersfield, CA- Aug. 29 – Kenny Wiley started sixth and led the final 11 laps of the NMRA-TQ Midget Series 25-lap main event Saturday at the banked, third-mile clay Bakersfield Speedway. The event was part of a five division card with two open-wheel traveling series and three local stock car divisions. Owner/driver Wiley, from Sunland, scored his third TQ feature victory this year and the ninth of his eight-year NMRA career. He won the 2002 series rookie of the year trophy and the 2007 NMRA-TQ championship driving for Paul Lopiccolo. His 66-point night Saturday moved Wiley from fourth to third in 2009 NMRA points and jumped his No. 96 WMK chassis with a 760cc Suzuki engine from fifth to third in 2009 owner points.
TQ veteran driver/owner Ron Ahrendt, from Harbor City, started on the pole and led the first 14 circuits before yielding the lead to Wiley. Ahrendt, aboard his own Ellis/Honda, finished second after missing the last two NMRA events. His 62 points as runner-up Saturday moved him back into the top ten in driver points (10th) from his 11th position prior to the Bakersfield race. Hometown driver/owner Jimmy Dodson started and finished third. Scott Dobson came from eighth starting spot to place fourth. Scott Niven, Anthony Lopiccolo, Richard Ortega, Jr., West Evans, rookie Dakota Schweitzer, Dave Lambert and car owner Ed Thomas, subbing for his daughter Amanda, completed the final laps in that order. All 11 drivers were racing at the conclusion and eight drivers completed all 25 laps.
Wiley and Dodson won the pair of 8-lap heat races after starting third and second respectively in six and five car fields. All drivers finished on the lead lap in both heats. NMRA-TQ teams will race next in round 14 on Saturday night, September 12 in the sixth of six scheduled TQ races at Bakersfield. Wiley has won twice at Bakersfield this year and once at Ventura. Other Bakersfield TQ winners this season have been S. Dobson, Ahrendt and J. Dodson. The final three NMRA races on the 2009 schedule will be held September 19 at Santa Maria Speedway, October 3 in Ventura Raceway, and October 17 at Orange Show Speedway in San Bernardino in the only paved track NMRA event.
The other open-wheel winner at Bakersfield was first-time USAC Western Midget Series feature winner Alex Schutte,who turned 20 two months ago. Schutte, from Redding, started third and led only the 30th and final lap in Cory Kruseman's No. 12k Lucas Oil/AEC Spike/Mopar. Scott Nail started from the front row in the Neverlift Motorsports No. 16 and led the first 29 laps. Series point leader Garrett Hansen, a 410 sprint car feature winner and top ten in USAC-CRA sprint car points, made a determined inside move between the first two turns and took the lead in Andy Bondio's No. 47 Bondio/Barnes. Nail drove hard into the third turn to reclaim the lead. The two leading cars came together and slammed hard into the third turn crash-wall. Third place Schutte raced past the two leaders and won the 14-car main event after leading only the final two turns. Hansen and Nail exchanged words afterwards as their disabled cars were towed to the pits. Nail finished ninth and Hansen tenth.
Josh Ford, a 410 and 360 cu. in. sprint car veteran, finished second in his No. 73 family-owned midget. Randi Pankratz, daughter of 2000 USAC Western Midget champion Wally Pankratz, took third in the Pankratz No. 8. Bakersfield resident Bobby Boone finished fourth in the Martens No. 97 and Chris Gansen finished fifth. John Lowrey, a late model stock car deriver at the track, took his first midget ride in the main event, subbing for Wink Schweitzer. He skated high in the fourth turn on lap 4, bumped the wall and flipped past the starting line. His Schweitzer No. 60 midget landed upright; Lowrey escaped injury. Following the race, Hansen enjoyed a 126-point lead (662-536) over seventh finisher/two-time series champion Jerome Rodela. Hansen is seeking his initial USAC championship. Schutte solidified his hold on third position in points with 454.
Three stock car series also saw action. Chris Smith outlasted Lonnie Welch and point leader Tim Randolph in a 30-lap Super Street Stocks East vs West Series main event. It was his first victory at the track after 12 years. Roy Deeger, Jr. won his first hobby stocks 25-lap main event over Devan Jones and Kevin Irwin. Jordan Hagar earned his second 20-lap mini stock main trophy this year after leading the final 11 laps. Taylor Paddock was second and Hunter Schaufelberger third.
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