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KRAMER GETS 5TH CALIFORNIA LIGHTNING SPRINT CAR WIN AT
BARONA!
(Torrance, CA, August 15, 2019) Jarrett Kramer took
another step towards his third POWRi Lucas Oil California Lightning
Sprint Car Series championship when he won his fifth main event of 2019
last Saturday night at the Barona Speedway. The win allowed the Spring
Valley resident to extend his lead in the standings with only six races
to go in the season.
(Attached photo of Jarrett Kramer courtesy of Pit
Princess Photography)
Nineteen cars showed up for the third and final CLS
appearance at the San Diego County oval in 2019. Local Brent Sexton from
Lakeside out-qualified the competition with a lap of
15.339. Kingsburg’s Doug Nunes, who came into the night second in
points, was second fast at 15.401. Lakewood’s Aiden Lange was third
fastest when he toured the track in 15.481.
Sexton, San Diego’s A.J. Bender and series leading rookie
Jason Arnolde, who also resides in San Diego, won the three, eight-lap
heat races.
When the lineup for the main event was posted, it cast a
dark cloud over most of the competition as Kramer, in his Malicious
Liquids/Anarchist Manufacturing/AK Hardparts/Reber Reber Inc./Finest
City Dog Training/BK Wings/Guhl Motors/Victory Graphix/Kramer Brothers
Racing/DLX/Kawasaki ZX10R #1, was starting on the outside of the front
row. Camarillo’s Cody Nigh started inside of the defending series
champ. Row two saw teenager Dominic Del Monte OF Gardena on the inside
with Bermuda Dunes CHP officer Jeff Dyer, who won the last CLS race at
Santa Maria two weeks earlier, outside of him. Row three saw seven CLS
championships represented. Lomita’s Bobby Michnowicz, who has five
titles, was paired with Sexton, who has two. Palmdale’s Eric Greco and
Gage Cheek of Santa Clarita made up row four. `
Kramer, 36, blew into the lead with Nigh and Dyer giving
chase on the start. Sexton and Michnowicz sandwiched Del Monte in turn
three on the first lap to race into fourth and fifth.
Things did not proceed for long as Michnowicz went to the
inside of Sexton as they came off turn four on the second circuit. The
two came together and the result was Michnowicz slamming hard into the
crash wall with the left side of his car. The red came out and
Michnowicz momentarily laid on the track. He ended up with a
concussion, an injured knee and a DNF for the night.
For the restart with 24-laps to go, Kramer was at the
point and was followed by Dyer, Nigh, Sexton and Del Monte. All of two
laps got completed when 2018 Rookie of the Year Grant Sexton, who was
debuting a gorgeous new wrap, barrel-rolled down the front chute
necessitating another red flag. It was the area where the then
14-year-old tumbled in April. Like before, he was uninjured, but his
car was done for the night and he watched the remainder of the race from
the sidelines.
With only three laps in the books, the restart lineup was
the same as the previous effort. Kramer had built up a comfortable
lead over Dyer once the action got going again. On a track that was
making passing anything but easy, the top five was the same at the end
of lap 10 as it was on the lap two restart.
The best battle on the track was for third where Sexton
was staying glued to the rear end of Nigh. Sexton finally got the job
done and took third on lap 12. However, he had a long way to go to
catch up to second-place Dyer.
Surprisingly, three-laps after securing third, Sexton had
chased Dyer down and was breathing down his neck as they worked their
way through lapped traffic. A few laps later Dyer gave himself some
breathing room again and seemed destined for a runner up finish. While
most eyes in the crowd were on the battle for second, Kramer had pulled
away and it was going to take a mechanical issue or problems with a
lapper to stop his march to win number five.
When it seemed like all was done, Greco spun in turn four
and brought out a yellow flag. That kissed Kramer’s huge lead good-bye
as with less than five laps to go, all the lappers are sent to the
back. It was Kramer with Dyer, Sexton, Nigh and Del Monte looking like
they were attached by a string for the restart with only three laps
left.
The race went one more lap when a car slowed going into
three, forcing a yellow. Seconds after the yellow waved, Dyer
mysteriously spun in turn four while still in second. The culprit of the
pirouette was a broken panhard bar.
Due to time constraints, the checkered flag came out and
the race deemed complete at 23-laps. That gave Kramer his
series-leading fifth CLS winner’s trophy of the year. Sexton ended up
one spot short of sweeping the show in second with Del Monte third. USAC/CRA
Sprint Car Series regular Bender, who was driving Pat Kelley’s #03 for
the first time, finished fourth with Nigh fifth.
Sexton now leads the championship standings by
123-points, his widest margin of the year. Nunes is second. Nigh has
moved past Michnowicz for the third spot with Greco fifth. Only 40
points separates third from fifth.
If things are not already bright enough for Kramer, the
CLS returns to action at the Ventura Raceway on August 24th. In the
first four races at the series home track in 2019, Kramer has finished
first every time.
Barona Speedway Main Event
1. Jarrett Kramer – Spring Valley, CA
2. Brent Sexton – Lakeside, CA
3. Dominic Del Monte – Gardena, CA
4. A.J. Bender – San Diego, CA
5. Cody Nigh – Camarillo, CA
6. Gage Cheek – Santa Clarita, CA
7. Dalton Sexton – Lakeside, CA
8. Eric Greco – Palmdale, CA
9. Jeff Dyer – Bermuda Dunes, CA
10. Doug Nunes – Kingsburg, CA
11. Ken Coulston – Bermuda Dunes, CA
12. Jon Robertson – Torrance, CA
13. James Squire III – Lakeside, CA
14. Jason Arnolde – San Diego, CA
15. Shane Sexton – San Diego, CA
16. Grant Sexton – Lakeside, CA
17. Bobby Michnowicz – Lomita, CA
18. Aiden Lange – Lakewood, CA
19. James Turnbull Jr. – Indio, CA
POWRi Lucas Oil California Lightning Sprint Car Standings
1. Jarrett Kramer – Spring Valley, CA – 1369
2. Doug Nunes – Kingsburg, CA – 1246
3. Cody Nigh - Camarillo, CA – 1159
4. Bobby Michnowicz – Lomita, CA – 1143
5. Eric Greco – Palmdale, CA – 1119
6. A.J, Bender – San Diego, CA – 1086
7. Jeff Dyer – Bermuda Dunes, CA – 1078
8. Dominic Del Monte – Gardena, CA – 1057
9. Aiden Lange - Lakewood, CA – 1019
10. Gage Cheek – Santa Clarita, CA - 852
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