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CHRIS LEVENTIS SEEKS THIRD
STRAIGHT STREET STOCK TITLE AT PERRIS AUTO
SPEEDWAY By Scott Daloisio
(Perris, CA, February 19,
2024) This Saturday when the 2024
PASSCAR Series kicks off at Perris Auto
Speedway, many eyes will be on veteran
driver Chris Leventis. The Rancho Palos
Verdes, California racer is seeking his
third consecutive street stock
championship. If he is successful, he will
join legendary PAS star Luke Dodd as the
only two street stock drivers to take home
three straight crowns.
Chris Leventis on his way to his second
street stock title at Perris in 2023.
Kenny Lonngren photo.
Leventis has
a long history of racing stock cars in
Southern California. He began on the dirt
at legendary Ascot Park in Gardena in the
1980s. However, he took some time off to
raise a family before returning to the
dirt track wars. To be exact, he took 20
years off. Few drivers return to the
cockpit when they sit out for so long, but
racing has always been in Leventis’ blood.
In addition to stock cars at Ascot, he
raced motorcycles and go-karts back in the
day. He won the Baja 250 once on his
motorcycle in the mid-1980s.
When
he came back he methodically climbed back
up the racing ladder and has now won the
last two street stock championships at The
PAS. He attributes his to a simple theory
that is not always attainable in the rough
and tumble world of street stock racing.
Rolling the car back onto the trailer at
the end of the night!
Dating back
to the start of the 2022 season, Leventis
has had perfect attendance having started
all 22 races in that time. He only won two
races and those victories came in 2023.
However, starting with that first race in
2022 he finished in the top four an
unheard of 21 straight times. That streak
was stopped at the last race of the 2023
season, the Jerry Dodd Champion’s Night,
when he had car issues. Rather than risk
getting the car torn up, he finished back
in the pack and as usual, rolled it onto
the trailer.
“Oh, I was in the
back,” Leventis said with a laugh
recalling last year’s finale. “It was
really muddy out there and my car would
not work. I just stayed out of trouble and
stayed out of the way. I had already won
the championship and did not really care.
That was a rough night so I figured I
would just sit back and relax. There was
no point in me beating my car up for
nothing.”
“It feels good,” Leventis
continued when asked how it feels to be in
a position to tie Dodd. “I am ready for
the challenge. I am going to give it a
shot. There are some pretty tough
customers out there but we will give it
100%.”
One of Leventis's major
competitors is his son George. Getting
faster as he gains experience, the
26-year-old had a top-five finish in the
PASSCAR Street Stock standings last
season. To make it tougher on himself, the
elder Leventis is building a new car for
George and was putting some of the
finishing touches on that car on Monday
night.
His offspring is getting
better with each passing race and with a
brand new car, he could be a major thorn
in Leventis’ drive to win three titles in
a row. But make no mistake about it, the
kid is going to have to earn his spurs and
is not going to get any slack from his
dad. Likewise, the patriarch does not
expect any favors from his son.
“There is no slack being cut between us,”
Leventis firmly responded when asked.
“That is not allowed. It is all out or
nothing and there are no breaks. The break
he got from me is he knows everything I
know. That gives him a big edge. He can
drive. Do not kid yourself, he is going to
be some competition this year. He is still
a little bit green, but I think he is
going to do well.”
In addition to
his own car and his son’s car, Leventis
will again be fielding a super stock for
another Ascot alum, Billy Griffin. When
Leventis won a pair of titles at Arizona’s
Mohave Valley Raceway, Griffin was one of
his main competitors, but they never raced
against each other at Ascot.
In
addition to the street stocks, Rickie Lee
of Beaumont will be on hand to open the
defense of his 2023 PASSCAR Super Stock
crown. The Avanti Windows and Doors
USAC/CRA Sprint Cars will be making their
250th appearance with a full field of 410
sprint cars on Saturday. Rounding out the
card will be round #1 of the GAS Chassis
Young Guns Sprint Car Series and the PAS
Senior Sprints. The champion in the Young
Guns will take home a brand new GAS
Chassis at the end of the year.
The
first race of the Perris Auto Speedway
2024 campaign will take the green flag at
7:00 p.m. Spectator gates will open two
hours earlier at 5:00. Adult tickets for
the night of exciting dirt track racing
action and clean family fun are $30.00.
Seniors 65 and over get in for $25.00. For
kids 6-12 it is only $5.00, and children 5
and under are admitted free. Advance
tickets are available online at
https://www.tix.com/ticket-sales/pas/7.
Advance tickets can also be ordered by
phone at 1-800-595-4849. For those who do
not wish to purchase advance tickets,
there will be plenty available for
everyone at the ticket window on Saturday.
The fairgrounds charge $10.00 for
parking.
Perris Auto Speedway is
conveniently located on the Lake Perris
Fairgrounds at 18700 Lake Perris Boulevard
in the City of Perris (92571). Take the
215 freeway. Exit at the Ramona Expressway
and go three miles east to the
fairgrounds.
2024 Perris Auto
Speedway Schedule February 24th AVANTI
USAC/CRA SPRINT CARS, PAS SENIOR SPRINTS,
GAS CHASSIS YOUNG GUN SERIES AND PASSCAR
SUPER AND STREET STOCKS
March 9th
LKQ Pick Your Part Presents NIGHT OF
DESTRUCTION: DEMO CROSS, FIGURE 8'S,
TRAILER FIGURE 8’S, MINI STOCKS AND DOUBLE
DECKERS
March 16th AVANTI USAC/CRA
SPRINT CARS PAS SENIOR SPRINTS, GAS
CHASSIS YOUNG GUN SERIES AND PASSCAR
STREET AND FACTORY STOCK CARS
April 6th LKQ Pick Your Part Presents
NIGHT OF DESTRUCTION: DEMO CROSS, FIGURE
8'S, TRAILER FIGURE 8’S, MINI STOCKS AND
DOUBLE DECKERS
April 27th AVANTI
USAC/CRA SPRINT CARS, PAS SENIOR SPRINTS,
GAS CHASSIS YOUNG GUN SERIES AND PASSCAR
SUPER AND FACTORY STOCKS
May 4th
LKQ Pick Your Part Presents NIGHT OF
DESTRUCTION: DEMO CROSS, FIGURE 8'S,
TRAILER FIGURE 8’S, MINI STOCKS AND DOUBLE
DECKERS
May 25th "SALUTE TO INDY"
AVANTI USAC/CRA SPRINT CARS, PAS SENIOR
SPRINTS, GAS CHASSIS YOUNG GUN SERIES AND
PASSCAR SUPER AND STREET STOCKS
June 1st LKQ Pick Your Part Presents NIGHT
OF DESTRUCTION: DEMO CROSS, FIGURE 8'S,
TRAILER FIGURE 8’S, MINI STOCKS AND DOUBLE
DECKERS
June 22nd AVANTI
USAC/CRA SPRINT CARS, PAS SENIOR SPRINTS,
GAS CHASSIS YOUNG GUN SERIES AND PASSCAR
STREET AND FACTORY STOCKS
July 4th
“FIREWORKS SPECTACULAR AND SKY CONCERT”
(TENTATIVE) LKQ Pick Your Part Presents
NIGHT OF DESTRUCTION: DEMO CROSS, FIGURE
8'S, TRAILER FIGURE 8’S, MINI STOCKS AND
DOUBLE DECKERS
July 13th AVANTI
USAC/CRA SPRINT CARS, PAS Senior Sprints,
GAS CHASSIS YOUNG GUNS SERIES, AND PASSCAR
SUPER AND FACTORY STOCKS
August
10th LKQ Pick Your Part Presents NIGHT OF
DESTRUCTION: DEMO CROSS, FIGURE 8'S,
TRAILER FIGURE 8’S, MINI STOCKS AND DOUBLE
DECKERS
August 17th CALIFORNIA
RACER’S HALL OF FAME NIGHT, AVANTI
USAC/CRA SPRINT CARS, PAS Senior Sprints,
GAS CHASSIS YOUNG GUNS SERIES AND PASSCAR
SUPER AND STREET STOCKS
September
7th LKQ Pick Your Part Presents NIGHT OF
DESTRUCTION: DEMO CROSS, FIGURE 8'S,
TRAILER FIGURE 8’S, MINI STOCKS AND DOUBLE
DECKERS
September 21st AVANTI
USAC/CRA SPRINT CARS, PAS Senior Sprints,
GAS CHASSIS YOUNG GUNS SERIES AND PASSCAR
SUPER AND FACTORY STOCKS
October
26th LKQ Pick Your Part Presents NIGHT OF
DESTRUCTION: DEMO CROSS, FIGURE 8'S,
TRAILER FIGURE 8’S, MINI STOCKS AND DOUBLE
DECKERS
November 8th 27TH RUNNING
OF THE OVAL NATIONALS Featuring AVANTI
USAC/CRA SPRINT CARS, PAS SENIOR SPRINTS,
GAS CHASSIS YOUNG GUN SERIES AND PASSCAR
SUPER, STREET AND FACTORY STOCKS
November 9th 27TH RUNNING OF THE OVAL
NATIONALS Featuring AVANTI USAC/CRA SPRINT
CARS, PAS SENIOR SPRINTS, GAS CHASSIS
YOUNG GUN SERIES – JERRY DODD CHAMPIONS
NIGHT, PASSCAR SUPER, STREET AND FACTORY
STOCKS
THIS SCHEDULE IS SUBJECT TO
CHANGE.
Perris Auto Speedway is
conveniently located on the Lake Perris
Fairgrounds (home of the Southern
California Fair), one hour east of Los
Angeles and one hour North of San Diego.
To get to the track, take the 215 freeway,
exit on the Ramona Expressway, and go
three miles east to the fairgrounds. For
directions online, the address to enter
is: 18700 Lake Perris Drive and the zip
code is 92571.
USAC/CRA races from
Perris Auto Speedway are not streamed
online.
Fans can stay up to date on
track and driver news on The PAS social
media efforts at the links below.
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Perris-Auto-Speedway/113876798686480?ref=hl
Twitter: Perris Auto Speedway on
Twitter Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/perrisautospeedway/
Website:
http://perrisautospeedway.com/
Perris Auto Speedway wants to thank the
following corporate partners. Ahern
Equipment Rentals, Anderson Chevrolet,
Battery Systems, Bud’s Tire, Tire Choice
Auto Service, Chris’ Hauling, City of
Perris, Communication Innovations, Daytona
Boat & RV Storage, Ed Moore Bullet Proof
Driveshaft, Flowdynamics, GAS Chassis, HD
Industries, Heimark/Anheuser Busch,
Hoosier Tires, Inland Rigging, Living
Water’s Hospice, LKQ Pick Your Part,
Luke’s Transmission, Moose Racing,
Pepsi-Cola, Performance Online, Pole
Position Raceway, PrintItNow.com, Rainbow
Bolt & Supply, Rene’s Bar & Grill, Rugged
Radios, Shaver Specialties, Square H,
Sunoco Race Fuels, Trench Shoring, Upland
Rock, Varner Construction and Vista Paint.
For information on 2024 billboard
advertising at The PAS, please call
951-940-0134 and ask for Charlie Watson.
DVDs of all the PASSCAR/IMCA racing
and Nights of Destruction at The PAS are
available from Fourvideos. For more
information call (714) 225-9500. |
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