(6/20/2022) Sacramento, CA… The NARC Fujitsu General Sprint Cars will tackle one of the biggest races in series history this weekend as they’ll invade Washington’s Skagit Speedway for the 50th edition of the Jim Raper Memorial Super Dirt Cup.
The action kicks off with a pair of prelim nights this Thursday, June 23rd and Friday, June 24th before the $50,000 to win, 50-lap finale on Saturday, June 25th.
With a unique format planned, plenty of money up for grabs, and a loaded roster with not just the West Coast’s best drivers but some of the top talent across the country, Dirt Cup’s return to 410ci sprint cars is set to be a memorable one.
The Format
The two preliminary nights will put an emphasis on line-up inversions and accumulated points will establish the lineups for the final night on Saturday
On both Thursday and Friday points will be handed out right away for Qualifying. The Fast Qualifier will earn 200 points with a two point drop for each subsequent position. The Heat Races will be lined up with an eight-car inversion. The Heat Races will award 100 points to the winner with a three point drop for each subsequent position. The top 20 in points after Qualifying and Heat Races will be locked into the prelim Features. Those outside the top-20 will be positioned in the C-main and B-main with the C sending the top-four finishers to the B, and the B sending its top-four finishers to the Feature. The Feature will invert the top-16 in points. The Feature winner will earn 200 points with a two point drop for each subsequent position.
The top-18 in accumulated points from Thursday and Friday will be locked into Saturday’s feature. The top-six of those 18 are locked into the Pole Shuffle. The finish of the Pole Shuffle will set the top-three rows of Saturday’s Feature. The B-main will line up straight up on points and transfer the top-six finishers to the Feature. Two cars will be added to the finale via a fan choice and a promoter’s choice, totaling 26 cars. There will be a fuel/tire stop on lap 40.
Money, money, and more money
On top of already paying a whopping 50 grand to win, there will be plenty of other ways for drivers to earn some stout paydays.
Firstly, simply making Saturday’s main event will be worth $1,000.
Courtesy of generous supporters, each lap led in Saturday’s 50-lap main event will award an extra $1,000, making it possible to take home $100,000 should a driver lead every circuit.
For any 360ci sprint cars who are bold enough to take on Dirt Cup, there are some bonuses up for grabs. The highest finishing 360 of the event earns an extra $3,700 while second-highest gets $2,500 and third takes $604.
Who to Watch
Chico, California’s Jonathan Allard makes his highly anticipated return to Dirt Cup aboard the Williams No. 0 and will be one to keep an eye on. He hasn’t competed in the prestigious race since 2014, but his four Dirt Cup titles (2005, 2006, 2011, 2013) rank second all-time. All of his victories came aboard the Williams machine.
“Dirt Cup is a very special place,” Allard said. “It allowed me to buy my first house and do a lot of things in my life because of the prize money. With the history up there, it’s pretty special to be a part of it and be one of the guys who have won multiple Dirt Cup championships. It’s special to me, and we’ve got a lot of great fans up there. To go right up into there, it’s pretty neat to be able to be in this car again and represent the 0 team.”
Last year Dominic Scelzi starred in his Dirt Cup debut by finishing runner-up on night one then winning the final two nights. The Fresno, California native and crew chief Jimmy Carr have already proven that their chemistry is just as strong this year as it was during their dominant 2021, but a tall task awaits them if they plan to repeat at Dirt Cup. Last year it was still a 360 event that paid $15,000, and with the 410s on the card chasing a $50,000 payday, coming out on top of Saturday is certain to be a challenge.
One Californian especially eager to experience Dirt Cup victory is San Jose’s Tim Kaeding. The two-time NARC champ has finished runner-up in the prestigious event on three occasions (2006, 2009, 2011) and third twice (2004 & 2008). After rain washed out his planned return to the Bates-Hamilton Racing No. 42X this past weekend, he’ll now return to the seat for Dirt Cup.
Puyallup, Washington native, Trey Starks, has been on fire in limited races so far in 2022, and he’ll look to translate that momentum into his first Dirt Cup title. Starks already owns a pair of victories at the 3/8ths mile this year, one where he drove from 24th to the front. He also topped NARC just a month ago as the series visited Grays Harbor Raceway.
A pair of Washington born Dirt Cup champions will be vying for their second titles. Burlington, Washington’s Jason Solwold (2015 winner) and Snohomish, Washington’s Seth Bergman (2018 winner) are always stout at Skagit.
Dirt Cup will also draw some stars from across the country as a pair of Hoosiers in Indianapolis, Indiana’s Tyler Courtney and Angola, Indiana’s Zeb Wise plan to make the trip West. Visalia, California’s Cory Eliason intends to use the All-Star off weekend to return to his home region of the West Coast to compete in Kevin Rudeen’s machine.
Plenty of other drivers will be in attendance including some potent Californians in Aromas’ Justin Sanders, Fremont’s Shane Golobic, Sebastopol’s Joel Myers Jr., Hanford’s Mitchell Faccinto, Colfax’s Willie Croft, Redding’s Max Mittry, Hanford’s D.J. Netto, Foresthill’s Ryan Robinson, Clovis’ Corey Day, Campbell’s Bud Kaeding, Benicia’s Billy Aton, and more.
More Pacific Northwest locals plan to be in the mix including Jacksonville, Oregon’s Tanner Holmes, Harrisburg, Oregon’s Tyler Thompson, Mill Creek, Washington’s Cam Smith, Central Point, Oregon’s Garen Linder, Idaho’s Logan Forler and more.
Fan & Competitor Info
On both Thursday and Friday the pit gate will open at 12:00 P.M. with the front gate following at 5:00 P.M. Racing will begin around 7:00 P.M. The only difference on Saturday will be the pit gate opening at 2:00 P.M.
On both Thursday and Friday General Admission tickets will be $35. Juniors, seniors, and military will be admitted for $30. Children (ages 3-6) will be admitted for just $10. Saturday General Admission tickets are $40. Juniors, seniors, and military will be admitted for $35. Children (ages 3-6) will still be admitted for $10.
Tickets can be purchased at the gate or online via the following link: https://skagitspeedway.showare.com.
Skagit Speedway is located at 4796 Old Highway 99 North Burlington, WA 98233. For more information visit skagitspeedway.com or call 360-724-3567.
All three nights of the Jim Raper Memorial Super Dirt Cup can be viewed live on floracing.com along with the entire NARC Fujitsu General Sprint Car schedule.
2022 NARC King of the West Fujitsu 410 Sprint Car Series
Championship Points Standings (After ten events in 21-race series – 6/20/22)
- Dominic Scelzi, Fresno – 1150
- Willie Croft, Colfax – 1106
- Bud Kaeding, Campbell – 1080
- Justin Sanders, Aromas – 1073
- Mitchell Faccinto, Hanford – 1059
- Max Mittry, Redding (R) – 1046
- Billy Aton, Benicia – 982
- Shane Golobic, Elk Grove – 977
- Joel Myers Jr, Sebastopol – 900
- Logan Forler, Boise, ID – 895
- Corey Day, Salinas – 649
- Chase Johnson, Penngrove – 620
- Tanner Holmes, Jacksonville, OR (R) – 604
- Colby Copeland, Rocklin – 562
- Tim Kaeding, San Jose – 497
- Geoffrey Strole, Hanford – 467
- DJ Netto, Hanford – 433
- Michael Faccinto, Hanford – 411
- Garen Linder, Central Point, OR – 408
- Landon Brooks, Yuba City – 407
The NARC Fujitsu General USA Racing Series is also sponsored by Hoosier Racing Tires and Floracing.com. Associate and product award sponsors include Automotive Racing Products (ARP), Brown & Miller Racing Solutions, Bullet Impressions, Dirt.Travel, FK Rod Ends, Johnstone Supply, Kaeding Performance Center, Kimo’s Tropical Car Wash, KSE Racing Products, Maxim, Mettec Titanium, Pyrotect, Roth Motorsports, Safecraft Safety Equipment, Saldana Racing Products, Schoenfeld Headers, SCI Racing Products, Scelzi Enterprises, Starr Property Management, Swift Metal Finishing, Sunnyvalley Bacon, System 1 Ignition, Ultra Lite Brakes, Vortex Wings, Wilwood Disc Brakes, and Winters Performance Products.
SOCIAL MEDIA INFORMATION
Website: www.NARC410.com
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Live Stream PPV: Floracing.com
UPCOMING EVENTS:
July 9 – Petaluma Speedway – Salute to Baylands Raceway Park
July 16 – Ocean Speedway (Watsonville, CA) – Howard Kaeding Classic
July 23 – Stockton Dirt Track – Salute to NARC Champion LeRoy Van Conett