ASA WEEKEND AT IRWINDALE SPEEDWAY - APRIL 6/7
AMERICAN SPEED ASSOCIATION WEEKEND AT IRWINDALE APRIL 6 & 7 … IS' FIRST-EVER SUNDAY AFTERNOON RACE Saturday Afternoon: ASA Qualifying Saturday Night: NASCAR Weekly Racing Show Sunday Afternoon: ASA Tirerack.com 300 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACTS: ASA - Mike Miller (765) 778-8088 x 272 IS - Doug Stokes (626) 358-1100 x 206 Irwindale, Calif. - - Last year's American Speed Association 300-lapper was a important first for ASA as well as a significant first for Irwindale Speedway. ASA's first race west of the Rockies and, logically, Irwindale's first ASA race. Everyone associated with the operation of the event was more than pleased with the turnout of enthusiastic fans who filled the stadium on a cold, blustery, early-March night to cheer on the ASA pros in their inaugural appearance at the famed “Half-Mile Super Speedway”. “…This year we've got a unique two-day show that will combine the best of our NASCAR Weekly Racing Series Presented by Dodge events with the excitement of a very high-visibility appearance for the American Speed Association in a Saturday/Sunday show,” said Track VP Bob DeFazio. The event will also mark Irwindale's 2002 TV bow with a live national TNN presentation of the ASA Tirerack.com 300 in Sunday afternoon sports primetime. On Saturday afternoon at 4:00 o'clock, the ASA cars will make their 2-lap timed runs for placement in the Sunday afternoon “Tirerack.com 300 presented by BFGoodrich”. Following that a complete regular night of great NASCAR racing featuring the Jani-King Super Late Models (in their first of 10 Miller Lite “championship within a championship” races), the Grand American Modifieds, and the Vista Paint Super Stocks. SATURDAY, APRIL 6: After one race #98 Tony Green of Oak Hills in the Balance Contracting Chevy Monte Carlo has the advantage in the Jani-King Super Late Models with #42 Brent Reynolds (Oceanside) in his Ingersoll-Rand Pontiac and Rod Johnson in the #15 Waste Management Monte Carlo second and third in points. In the Grand Americans, Oceanside's Dean Kuhn showed why he's the defending champion by besting Roger Carufel Jr. (Saugus) and Rod Johnson. Darren Cheek, from Phelan, leads the Vista Paint cars into battle on Saturday night after winning the first two races of the young season. But Andrew Phipps (Saugus) and Greg Benner (Whittier) are right behind in the number two and three points slots. All three divisions WILL put on spirited races on Saturday, bet the farm AND the tractor on that. While it's still very early in the season, getting points “in the bank” RIGHT NOW is an important way to “save up” against the day that something goes wrong in the mid-late season. The idea is to strike while the iron is hot, while many of your fellow competitors are still shaking off the off-season … Yeah, That's the ticket! SUNDAY, APRIL 7: The American Speed Association is not only noted for putting on some of the most exciting and competitive stock car races on the face of the Earth, but for the color and style in which they do it. Each car proudly carries the name of its driver in 10-inch tall block very readable letters on each rocker panel. No doubt about who's driving which car here. They also have made the pre-race, on-track autograph session a winning highlight of their show, bringing fans and drivers together in a festive mood that gives everyone in attendance a chance to feel much more a part of the event. As last year at Irwindale, the ASA has set aside an entire hour (11:00AM to 12 Noon) for the special session. … Irwindale fans will feel right at home on the front straightaway mingling with the ASA pros before the 300 on Sunday morning. All fans are urged to take advantage of the opportunity to create their own “up close and personal, live, in person,” personal moments right on the racetrack … It's something that TV simply just can't offer. Getting out to Irwindale early for an event is always a good idea and standing out on the race track's banked front straightaway looking up at the grandstands while meeting and greeting the heroes is always a super way to start off a night (or day in this case on Sunday afternoon) at the races. Hot off his first-race-of-the-season win at USA International Speedway in Lakeland, Florida, Joey Clanton leads the ASA drivers into competition with a 13-point lead over last year's Irwindale ASA winner Gary St. Amant (203 –190). Third place charger Kevin Cywinski will roll in only 18 points behind Clanton and only five points behind St. Amant. “It might be early in ASA's 2002 season,” said PR Director Mike Miller. “But all indicators point toward these 20 races being the best and most competitive in ASA's history. We run at all of the finest short tracks in the country and that's why we're back at Irwindale. After last year's race we just had to make a return visit to this place, all of our drivers love it … We were very pleasantly surprised at the number of California fans we had … We think that we gave them the kind of show that they expected from ASA.” IMPORTANT SCHEDULE TIMES: FRIDAY, APRIL 5: MEDIA (ONLY) LUNCHEON 11:30AM SATURDAY, APRIL 6: ASA QUALIFYING 4:00PM NASCAR WEEKLY RACE NIGHT FIRST RACE: 7:00PM SUNDAY, APRIL 7: SPECTATOR GATES OPEN: 10:00AM ON-TRACK AUTOGRAPH SESSION: 11:00AM PRE-RACE CEREMONIES: 12:15PM INTRODUCTION OF DRIVERS: 12:30PM INVOCATION & NATIONAL ANTHEM: 12:50PM TIRERACK.COM 300 presented by BFGOODRICH: 1:00PM TICKETS FOR BOTH DAYS ARE AVAILABLE AT THE TRACK OR BY PHONE (626) 358-1100 THANKS!