Drake Drives to Midget Win at Ventura

Although Ventura Raceway is about 40 miles from Jay Drake’s Val Verde home, Drake calls Ventura his home track.

Drake showed that he felt right at home Saturday night once again as he won the U.S. Auto Club’s 20-lap Western States three-quarter Midget main event before 3,688.

Drake, the two-time defending three-quarter Midget champion, overtook pole-sitter J.J. Ercse of Bellflower on Lap 2 and opened a big lead before yellow flags bunched the field. Drake won by several car lengths over Kenny White of Ventura, Cory Kruseman of Ventura and Walt Johnson of Sun Valley.

Season points leader Rick Hendrix of Simi Valley finished sixth. Drake is currently third in the points battle behind Hendrix and Johnson.

On a night that was billed as a tribute to Sleepy Tripp of Costa Mesa, the winningest Midget driver in USAC history with 148 main-event victories nationally and 13 at Ventura, the 30-lap main event with Tripp sitting on the pole had not yet started as this edition went to press.

It was a night of tight competition in 10-lap Midget heat-race action. Gary Howard of Oxnard edged Ron Shuman of Tempe, Ariz., by a car length for a win. Wally Pankratz of Orange made it even closer in the next heat, nipping George Ito of Oxnard by no more than a foot.

Earlier in the program, Hendrix came from sixth place to win a three-quarter Midget eight-lap heat race. Brett Horrobin of Auckland, New Zealand, edged Ricky Gray of Sepulveda by inches to win the Midget 12-lap semi-main event. Both qualified for the feature along with J.D. Vance of Phoenix, Ariz. and Gary Schroeder of Burbank.

The Coors Light Silver Bullet stock car series returns to Ventura on Friday at 8 p.m.