ChumpCar racing at Spokane County Raceway
For $500 and the need for speed, it could be you at Spokane County Raceway.
The popular ChumpCar racing returns to the Inland Northwest with the Toyo Tires 24 Hours of Spokane this weekend at SCR.
The series brings a healthy following for its unique form of racing. Fans and racers flock to series stops across the country, making it a growing form of motorsports, especially those drivers on a budget. This weekend’s race is the only Eastern Washington event for the series, which has held races in Portland and Western Washington earlier this season.
ChumpCar followers like the affordable racecars and the simple approach to racing. Safety is key but most race fans can relate to the Hornet-type race cars with a strict limit on how much can be spent to prepare it for competition (no more then $500). In addition to keeping to a strict rules package, each car this weekend will be equipped with headlights and taillights for visibility once the race moves into nighttime.
Beginning with today’s practice sessions, as many as 40 teams will tackle the tricky 2.5-mile SCR circuit that features more left-hand turns then right throughout its course.
Titles on line
SCR’s oval will also be in full-race mode with season championships in the Late Model, Hobby Stock, Pony Stock, Baby Grand and Sportsman divisions.
Joey Nelson, who scored his first career Late Model main event just last month, brings a one-point advantage over Gerald Nash into Saturday’s finale with third-place Andy Brown only 13 points behind Nelson.
Brown picked up the main event victory in last weekend’s action and with it is within striking distance of his second straight SCR Super Oval Late Model crown. Nelson, last year’s Rookie of the Year in the division, will be battling back from an incident last weekend that forced him to the sidelines in the main event with significant front end damage. Nash will also be looking to bounce back from a tough outing, as he and Nelson will be battling each other while keeping a close eye on Brown’s every move.
Nick Bellomy jumped into the top spot in the chase for the Hobby Stock championship after his strong showing last week. Mike Bellomy fell back to second place by seven points with Don Shelby rounding out the top-3 heading into the season finale.
Bryce Ruppert (Pony Stocks), Dino Olson (Road Runners), Bill Belton (Sportsman) and Tim Brown (Street Stocks) have all clinched their respective divisional titles heading in the weekend.
Busy flat track
Spokane Speedway hosts its championship this weekend with a night race on Saturday followed by an afternoon affair on Sunday.
More than100 entries have been a part of the flat track’s season thus far and with a two-day show on tap plenty more are expected for the lighting-quick facility. With a dozen divisions in play for championships, several are close heading into the weekend.
In the 125cc/250cc class, Dave Staley leads Anthony Steeve by 13 points with Jason Colwell 15 points out of first place. Drew Hemboch holds a 12-point lead over fifth-place Brandon Garber.
Garber also runs in the 85cc Advanced division where he’s locked down the championship heading into the weekend. Garber’s older brother, Colton, is out to score the MX Grudge 250 championship as he brings a three-point lead over Steeve. Doing double duty, Steeve will have his hands full in the MX Grudge class as his hold on second place is a mere one point over Keith Evolson.
In the 250/450cc Class, Troy Allen holds a slim eight-point lead on Chris Morgan with two races remaining.