CHAZ BACA TURNS RARE PERRIS APPEARANCE INTO $1000 MODIFIED WIN By Scott Daloisio (Perris, CA, June 29, 2022) Mesa, Arizona’s Chaz Baca made a rare appearance at Perris Auto Speedway on Saturday night and he turned it into a very profitable showing when he collected $1,000.00 for winning the 20-lap IMCA Modified main event. In addition to Baca’s win, fellow Arizonian Richard McCormick won the Senior Sprint Car main event, and recent high school graduate Stevie Rogers collected another Young Gun Sprint Car trophy. Chaz Baca picked up $1,000.00 for winning the IMCA Modified main last Saturday at Perris. Kenny Lonngren photo. The 20-lap IMCA Modified main event featured defending PAS IMCA champion Billy Griffin of Buena Park on the pole in a car that was formerly owned by four time Major League Baseball All-Star pitcher Troy Percival. Dale Sauter of Fontana was next to Griffin. Trevor Fitz of Nipomo was on the inside of the second row. Past PAS winner Justin Dunn of Riverside was starting to Fitz’s right. Row three was made up of Guatay’s Andy Papp and Ramona’s Kyle Morris who won the main event four weeks earlier. Things got exciting almost immediately after starter Steve Russell waved the green flag. Griffin jumped into the lead with Fitz, Dunn, and Sauter going into turn one three abreast. Sauter, who was on the outside tapped the tall cushion in turn two and momentarily slid sideways. He gathered it in and the race stayed green. Baca, who came into the night second in IMCA National points, began to pick off cars immediately and got into the top five on lap four when he went from sixth to fourth. Nearly everyone was running on the bottom after a lap 5 restart. However, Dunn swung to the outside on lap 6 and it paid dividends. One lap later he went around the outside of Fitz for second. Keeping it on the wide line, Dunn in his pretty #14J, drove around Griffin for the lead coming off turn two on lap nine. At the halfway point, Dunn was in the lead with Griffin close behind. Fitz was third with Baca fourth and “Captain America,” Matt Hicks, of Santee, in fifth. Baca made the move of the race on lap 13. Going into turn one, he went to the inside of Fitz and stole third. He kept his black #75 on the pole and relieved Griffin of second as they came off turn two. However, he was about a half straight behind Dunn and with only seven laps to go, it was going to be a tuff task to catch the leader. His tough task got a lot easier when Lake Elsinore’s Anthony Merritt slid to a stop in turn two bringing out a yellow flag. Suddenly, Dunn’s lead was anything but safe. As soon as the green lights came back on, Baca proved that point. He went to the bottom and pulled alongside Dunn in turn one. Dunn won the drag race back to turn three and maintained the lead. Ramona’s Kyle Morris, who received substantial damage in a heat race crash earlier in the night, was attempting to drive into the top five at the end of lap 14. However, he ended up getting bitten by the old, “three cars where there was only space for two” and slammed into the front chute wall ending his night. Moments before Morris had his encounter with the wall, Baca had taken the top spot from Dunn and when the race continued, he got a fantastic start and motored away from the competition. With Baca moving away from the pack, the crowd switched its attention to the battle between Dunn and Fitz for second. At the end of lap 18, Fitz got by Dunn on the outside. However, as they entered turn one, Fitz spun wildly bringing out a yellow. A few moments later, he pulled alongside Dunn on the back straightaway and it is safe to bet he was not there to ask for directions to a restaurant. When the race restarted it was all Baca in his Prattser Graphics/Yuma Insurance #75 and he happily took the checkered flag ahead of Dunn, Griffin, point leader Randy Thornell of Apple Valley, and Brandon James of Yucaipa. “The sprint cars left us a nice cushion over there in one and two,” the happy winner told the crowd after the race. “I about put it into the fence a couple of times, but we were able to get out of it, move around and work our way up slowly and get us a win. It was a lot of fun and I definitely like running at this place. We have not been back here in about five years.” In the PAS Senior Sprints, Seligman, Arizona’s Richard McCormick took his third win in four starts this year when he beat Santa Fe Springs veteran Ed Schwarz and Rick Hendrix of Palmdale to the line. Stevie Rogers of Apple Valley, who just graduated from high school, collected another PAS Young Guns trophy. The IMCA Modifieds, and the PAS Senior & Young Gun Sprints will return to The PAS along with the USAC/CRA Sprint Cars on August 20th. IMCA Modified Main Event With Starting Positions 1. Chaz Baca, Mesa, AZ, 9th 2. Justin Dunn, Riverside, CA, 4th 3. Billy Griffin, Buena Park, CA, 1st 4. Randy Thornell, Apple Valley, CA, 7th 5. Brandon James, Yucaipa, CA, 11th 6. Blake Thornell, Apple Valley, CA, 10th 7. Andy, Papp, Guatay, CA, 5th 8. Anthony Merritt, Lake Elsinore, CA 12th 9. Chris Fitz, Nipomo, CA, 3rd 10. Dale Sauter, Fontana, CA, 2nd 11. Matthew Hicks, Santee, CA, 8th 12. Kyle Morris, Ramona, CA, 6th PAS Senior & Young Gun Sprint Main With Starting Positions 1. Richard McCormick, Seligman, AZ, 3rd 2. Ed Schwarz, Sana Fe Springs, CA, 4th 3. Rick Hendrix, Palmdale, CA, 2nd 4. Tyler Hatzikian, Murrieta., CA, 1st 5. Mark Sookie, Tustin, CA, 6th 6. Dale Gamer, Anaheim, CA, 5th PAS Young Gun 1. Stevie Rogers, Apple Valley, CA, (Rogers was the only Young Gun and got credit for the win. She started seventh overall and was fifth in the combined Senior and Young Gun race) Perris Auto Speedway is located on the freeway close Lake Perris Fairgrounds at 18700 Lake Perris Drive in The City of Perris (92571). Take the 215 Freeway, exit at the Ramona Expressway, and go three miles east to the fairgrounds. The track website is http://www.perrisautospeedway.com/. The office phone number is (951) 940-0134. Advance tickets for all Perris Auto Speedway events, including this Saturday, are on sale now. Fans can order the tickets online at https://www.tix.com/ticket-sales/pas/7 or by calling 1-800-595-4849. For fans who do not wish to purchase tickets in advance, there will be plenty of tickets available for everyone at the gate each race night. 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, Chris’ Hauling, City of Perris, Communication Innovations, Daytona Boat & RV Storage, Ed Moore Bullet Proof Driveshaft, Flowdynamics, 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. Video and DVD productions of all racing sprint cars events at Perris Auto Speedway are available from Loudpedal Productions. For more information on these productions you can contact them by calling (805) 844-3854, E-mailing mailto:trtruex@gmail.com or you can visit the website LoudPedal Productions. 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. mailto:perrisautospeedway1@gmail.com is the only authorized Internet address to issue official media news released from The Perris Auto Speedway or Oval Entertainment. Perris Auto Speedway 2022 Schedule July 2nd CITY OF PERRIS FIREWORKS SKY CONCERT SPECTACULAR, Presented By LKQ Pick Your Part Presents Night of Destruction V - DEMO CROSS, FIGURE 8'S, TRAILER FIGURE 8'S, MINI STOCKS AND DOUBLE DECKERS. PLUS “POWER OF PURPLE NIGHT” BENEFITING THE AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY RELAY FOR LIFE RIVERSIDE COUNTY EAST August 13th LKQ Pick Your Part Presents NIGHT OF DESTRUCTION VI DEMO CROSS, FIGURE 8'S, TRAILER FIGURE 8'S, MINI STOCKS AND DOUBLE DECKERS August 20th “CALIFORNIA RACERS HALL OF FAME NIGHT" AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CARS, PAS SENIOR/YOUNG GUNS SPRINT CARS AND IMCA MODIFIEDS AND WRA VINTAGE CARS ON DISPLAY. PLUS “POWER OF PURPLE NIGHT” BENEFITING THE AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY RELAY FOR LIFE RIVERSIDE COUNTY EAST August 27th PASSCAR SERIES - SUPER STOCKS, STREET STOCKS/IMCA STOCK CARS, AMERICAN FACTORY STOCKS AND IMCA SPORT COMPACTS September 3rd LKQ Pick Your Part Presents NIGHT OF DESTRUCTION VII DEMO CROSS, FIGURE 8'S, TRAILER FIGURE 8'S, MINI STOCKS AND DOUBLE DECKERS September 10th PASSCAR SERIES - SUPER STOCKS, STREET STOCKS/IMCA STOCK CARS, AMERICAN FACTORY STOCKS AND IMCA SPORT COMPACTS. (Note; No IMCA Points will be awarded for this event due to the IMCA Super Nationals running on this weekend. PASSCAR points will be awarded for this event). September 17th "GLENN HOWARD CLASSIC" AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CARS, PAS SENIOR/YOUNG GUNS SPRINT CARS, IMCA MODIFIEDS AND Lucas Oil POWRi SOUTHWEST LIGHTNING SPRINT CARS. PLUS “POWER OF PURPLE NIGHT” BENEFITING THE AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY RELAY FOR LIFE RIVERSIDE COUNTY EAST September 24th PASSCAR SERIES - SUPER STOCKS, STREET STOCKS/IMCA STOCK CARS, AMERICAN FACTORY STOCKS AND IMCA SPORT COMPACTS October 1st AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CARS, PAS SENIOR/YOUNG GUNS SPRINT CARS AND IMCA MODIFIEDS October 15th LKQ Pick Your Part Presents NIGHT OF DESTRUCTION VIII DEMO CROSS, FIGURE 8'S, TRAILER FIGURE 8'S, MINI STOCKS AND DOUBLE DECKERS October 22nd PASSCAR “CHAMPION’S NIGHT” SUPER STOCKS, STREET STOCKS/IMCA STOCK CARS, AMERICAN FACTORY STOCKS, PAS MODIFIEDS AND PAS SPORT COMPACTS November 2nd 26TH ANNUAL HEIMARK/ANHEUSER BUSCH BUDWEISER OVAL NATIONALS - Practice Night November 3rd 26TH ANNUAL HEIMARK/ANHEUSER BUSCH BUDWEISER OVAL NATIONALS - AMSOIL USAC NATIONAL AND AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CARS November 4th 26TH Annual HEIMARK/ANHEUSER BUSCH BUDWEISER Oval NATIONALS - AMSOIL USAC NATIONAL AND AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CARS November 5th 26TH Annual HEIMARK/ANHEUSER BUSCH BUDWEISEROVAL NATIONALS - AMSOIL USAC NATIONAL AND AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CARS November 12th LKQ Pick Your Part Presents NIGHT OF DESTRUCTION IX DEMO CROSS, FIGURE 8'S, TRAILER FIGURE 8'S, MINI STOCKS AND DOUBLE DECKERS THIS SCHEDULE IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE.