LAS VEGAS — Report by Race Chaser Online Managing Editor Jacob Seelman —
Stevie Sussex snagged the top spot from race-long leader Hunter Schuerenberg on lap 22 of Thursday night’s Sin City Showdown at the Dirt Track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and never looked back, going on to claim the victory in the co-sanctioned season-opener for the USAC West Coast Sprint Car Series and USAC Southwest Sprint Car Series.
Ryan Bernal finished second, followed by Matt Mitchell on the podium in third. Charles Davis Jr. came home in fourth and Schuerenberg faded in the final laps before the checkered flag, rounding out the top five.
Schuerenberg, R.J. Johnson, Bernal and Davis won heat races earlier in the night, while Jace Vander Weerd took the sem-feature victory and was among six drivers to advance to the 30-lap main event.
The USAC West Coast Sprint Car Series is back in action on March 13 at Thunderbowl Raceway in Tulare, California, while the USAC Southwest sprinters are off for two weeks before resuming at the end of the month for the Hank Arnold Memorial at Arizona’s Canyon Speedway Park on March 28.
For more information, visit www.usacracing.com.
RESULTS: USAC West Coast/Southwest Sprint Car Series; The Dirt Track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway; 4th FVP Sin City Showdown/Grudge Series; March 5, 2015
FIRST HEAT: (8 laps) 1. Hunter Schuerenberg (#73X Ford), 2. Danny Faria Jr. (#17V Bowman), 3. Richard Vander Weerd (#10 Vander Weerd), 4. Josh Pelkey (#12 Allen), 5. Colby Copeland (#74 Williams), 6. Dennis Gile (#13 Gile), 7. Shannon McQueen (#87 Van Meter), 8. Tye Mihocko (#5 Mihocko).
SECOND HEAT: (8 laps) 1. R.J. Johnson (#77M Michaels), 2. Stevie Sussex (#21AZ Burkhart), 3. Matt Mitchell (#37 Mitchell), 4. Brody Roa (#48 Leonard), 5. Trey Marcham (#73 Ford), 6. Shon Deskins (#20 Deskins), 7. Tristan Guardino (#81 Watt), 8. Landon Hurst (#179 Hurst).
THIRD HEAT: (8 laps) 1. Ryan Bernal (#56 Phulps), 2. Austin Liggett (#83 Liggett), 3. Bruce St. James (#7K St. James), 4. Jace Vander Weerd (#88 Vander Weerd), 5. Max Adams (#5X Adams), 6. Matt Rossi (#02 Rossi), 7. Jeff Sibley (#42N Sibley), 8. Andy Reinbold (#19 Underwood).
FOURTH HEAT: (8 laps) 1. Charles Davis Jr. (#50 Massey), 2. Troy Rutherford (#11 Rutherford), 3. Chris Windom (#22B Weber), 4. Mike Martin (#16 Martin), 5. Dustin Cormany (#20X Deskins), 6. Brian Hosford (#32B Weber), 7. A.J. Bender (#21B Bender).
SEMI: (12 laps) 1. J.Vander Weerd, 2. Copeland, 3. Rossi, 4. Deskins, 5. Marcham, 6. Hurst, 7. Cormany, 8. Reinbold, 9. Sibley, 10. Guardino, 11. McQueen, 12. Bender, 13. Gile, 14. Hosford.
FEATURE: (30 laps) 1. Stevie Sussex, 2. Ryan Bernal, 3. Matt Mitchell, 4. Charles Davis Jr., 5. Hunter Schuerenberg, 6. Colby Copeland, 7. Chris Windom, 8. Richard Vander Weerd, 9. Max Adams, 10. Jace Vander Weerd, 11. R.J. Johnson, 12. Danny Faria Jr., 13. Trey Marcham, 14. Matt Rossi, 15. Austin Liggett, 16. Mike Martin, 17. Troy Rutherford, 18. Landon Hurst, 19. Shon Deskins, 20. Josh Pelkey, 21. Brody Roa, 22. Bruce St. James.
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-21 Schuerenberg, Laps 22-30 Sussex.
CREDIT: USAC Racing
