SIMI DRIVER LIKES HIS NEW RIDE.Byline: TIM TIM Timothy TIM Technical Interchange Meeting TIM Transient Intermodulation Distortion TIM Time Is Money TIM The Invisible Man (movie) TIM Telecom Italia Mobile (Italian cellular provider) HADDOCK Motor Sports Andrew Phipps is following a familiar path at Irwindale Speedway Irwindale Speedway is a motorsports facility located in Irwindale, California. It features banked, paved 1/2 and 1/3 mile oval tracks. It is mainly used for USAC sprint car and regional NASCAR races. . After winning two NASCAR NASCAR (National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing), organization that sanctions American stock-car races, est. 1948. It held its first race in Daytona Beach, Fla. Grand American For sports car racing association formed in 1999, see . Grand American was a NASCAR sanctioned series of pony car stock cars. The series ran from 1968 until 1971. The series was sometimes called the Baby Grand series. Modified track championships, the driver from Simi Valley Simi Valley (sē`mē, sĭm`ē), city (1990 pop. 100,217), Ventura co., SW Calif. in an oil, fruit, and farm region; laid out 1887, inc. 1969. is moving up to Super Late Models, the top class at Irwindale Speedway. It is the same move Rip Michels made a few years ago, going from a championship Grand Am team to the Super Late Model ranks. Michels, a driver from Mission Hills, is now racing on the NASCAR Elite Division, Southwest Series. Along the way, Michels won a Sunbelt Region championship in the NASCAR Dodge Weekly Racing Series and was named the Southwest Series rookie of the year Rookie of the Year may refer to:
Phipps said he is hoping to experience some of the same success as Michels as the NASCAR season opens Saturday night at Irwindale Speedway. Prepared to make the move to Super Late Models on his own, Phipps was presented with a tempting offer. Bob Bruncati had an available stock car that his sons, James and Tony, have driven with modest success at Irwindale. Neither of Bruncati's sons were going to race the car this year, so the seat was offered to Phipps. He tested it for the first time last week. Because of the crew and team that Bruncati had in place for the car, Phipps said he is far more prepared than he would have been on his own. Crew chief Chris Diedrich has been especially helpful. ``It's a huge advantage,'' said the 27-year-old Phipps, a Simi Valley High graduate. ``The guy's already done so much homework. I don't have to start from square one. It's like a dream come true for a guy like me.'' Tony Bruncati won one race and finished second six times behind Greg Pursley last year in the car Phipps will be driving this year. Pursley went on to win the NASCAR Dodge Weekly Racing Series national championship and the track Super Late Model title. The driver from Canyon Country is now racing on the Southwest Series with Michels. ``If it wasn't for Pursley's dream season, everyone would be talking about Tony,'' Phipps said. But the system that propelled Pursley to a NASCAR national short track championship has been replaced by a new format. Pursley and Michels won their NASCAR titles using a system called the Competition Performance Index, which took into account among other things, wins, top-fives finishes and car counts. The new system awards drivers points for how they finish in races, much like the NASCAR Nextel Cup The NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series is NASCAR's top racing series. It was formerly known as the Strictly Stock Series (1949), Grand National Series (1950-1971), and the Winston Cup Series (1972-2003). Series does. NASCAR has created four national regions and drivers are awarded bonus points for racing at tracks that field more cars. A 10-point bonus is awarded to drivers who compete in fields of 15 to 20 cars. A 20-point bonus is awarded to drivers who compete in fields of 21 or more cars. That should benefit drivers at Irwindale, which regularly draws fields of 20 cars or more on race night for the Super Late Model division. But unlike the old system, only the top-16 driver finishes will be counted toward the regional and national championship point standings. Because of Irwindale Speedway's remote location, compared to other tracks across the country, Phipps said the disadvantages of the new system outweigh the benefits. Irwindale Speedway is lumped into a region that includes three tracks in New Hampshire New Hampshire, one of the New England states of the NE United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts (S), Vermont, with the Connecticut R. forming the boundary (W), the Canadian province of Quebec (NW), and Maine and a short strip of the Atlantic Ocean (E). , three in Connecticut and two in Pennsylvania. The closest track to Irwindale Speedway in the region is Tucson Raceway Park Tucson Raceway Park is a 3/8-mile paved oval race track located in Tucson, Arizona, USA. The track was built in 1968, originally as a clay oval. in Arizona. Theoretically, a driver in New England New England, name applied to the region comprising six states of the NE United States—Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut. The region is thought to have been so named by Capt. could race three or four times a week and compete in anywhere from 60 to 80 races. A driver at Irwindale Speedway has only 22 races to rack up his best 16 finishes. ``I can understand why they're doing it,'' Phipps said. ``At the same time, I don't have access to the kind of tracks they go to.'' As a result, Phipps said it's unlikely a driver from Irwindale Speedway will win another NASCAR Weekly Racing Series championship. Still, Phipps said he is looking forward to the start of the Irwindale Speedway season. ``We're definitely learning,'' Phipps said. ``I think if things go well, we'll be a team to contend with the first night.'' --Indy Racing League: Toyota fans, breathe easier. It was reported here last week that Toyota was going to leave the Indy Racing League The Indy Racing League, better known as IRL, is the sanctioning body of a predominantly American based open-wheel racing series. The League consists of two series, the premiere IndyCar Series as an engine provider after the 2005 season. Chevrolet is the only engine manufacturer that has decided to stop supplying motors to IRL 1. (jargon, chat) IRL - In real life. Generally synonymous with f2f. 2. (language, robotics) IRL - Industrial Robot Language. teams after the 2005 season. Toyota has a contract to supply engines for IRL teams through the 2006 season. After that, it's anybody's guess. CAPTION(S): photo, box Photo: Martin Truex, Jr. holds up his trophy after winning the NASCAR Busch Series race at Hermanos Rodriguez racetrack last Sunday. Eduardo Verdugo/Associated Press Box: RACE WEEK BY TIM HADDOCK |
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