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Stock Cars & Sprint Cars To Be Featured At Ninth Annual Larry Damitz Memorial At Antioch Speedway

Antioch, CA...After the one week break, racing will resume this Saturday night at Antioch Speedway. This is the Ninth Annual Larry Damitz Memorial, and it will include an exciting lineup of Tri State Pro Stocks, Late Models, Wingless Spec Sprints, California RaceSaver Sprints, Dwarf Cars and 600 Micro Sprints.

This race pays tribute to the man they called the Sun Drop Kid, Larry Damitz. He started his racing career at Contra Costa Speedway in Pacheco back in 1954 in the old Hardtop division. His last season in 2017 saw him win his fifth Antioch Super Stock championship in a seven year span. He was set to defend his championship when he died peacefully at home just prior to the beginning of the 2017 season. He was 87 years old.

Larry was an inspiration to everybody. In his 80s, he was still living his best life and competing at a high level. Though he won many championships and Main Events during that time, it was more about just having fun and being a part of the racing fraternity than any accolades he might have earned. He gave hope to many that they could still pursue their goals with vigor well into their 80s.

The race began in 2017 as a showcase for Late Model and Super Stock racing. The Super Stocks have gone on to be featured in all but the third year. The three Late Model wins went to Bobby Hogge IV of Salinas in 2017, Richard Papenhausen of Chico in 2019 and Anthony Slaney of Martinez last year.

Given that Larry won over 50 Super Stock Main Events, that division has been showcased the most. Antioch's Mark Garner picked up the winner's trophy the first two years and is said to have a ride in the Lyle Hopper car for this race. It's also noteworthy that since Garner's win, there have been no repeat winners. Other wins have gone to Mike Walko of Oakley, Jim Freethy of Danville, Michael Burch of Concord, Jeffrey Hudson of Keno, Oregon and Ryan Cherezian of Bethel Island.

This is the 25th Anniversary season for the Super Stocks, which were the track's first attempt back in 2000 to revive Late Model style racing. Earlier this year, reigning Petaluma champion Mike Learn of Petaluma held off Randy Miramontez of Santa Rosa and Fred Ryland of Brentwood for the victory. Learn has been the driver to beat at Petaluma and Antioch over the last few seasons and won the Antioch championship in 2023.

The Tri State Pro Stocks and Super Stocks are essentially the same division. Corey Hall of Chico won the first Tri State Pro race of the season at Marysville ahead of Learn and Miramontez, but he has since sold that car to Rick Foster of Vallejo. That car is anticipated this week, though it remains to be seen if Foster or multi-time Antioch champion Kimo Oreta of Vacaville will be driving. Oreta returned in his own car last time, but he blew a motor in the heat race.

The Late Models kicked things off with Shawn DeForest of Livermore winning the opener. It was reigning champion Rod Oliver of Yuba City winning the next race and reigning Placerville and Xtreme Late Model champion Anthony Slaney of Martinez was the winner of the Soares Memorial. Slaney also returned to Placerville recently and scored a win there, while Ray Trimble of Auburn won the Tilford Tribute race at Placerville prior to that.

The Antioch Late Model championship battle is close between Oliver and Trimble with Oliver leading by just two points. Vacaville's Paul Gugliamoni is third by four points over DeForest and eight ahead of Belmont's Tim Yeager. With three races in the books in the Xtreme Late Model Series, Guglielmoni finds himself with a two point lead over Trimble. Just 11 points out are the tied DeForest and Oliver, while Yeager holds a two point lead over Mariposa's Andrew Odgers in the race for fifth.

The Wingless Spec Sprint division will be running the Damitz race for the sixth time. Nobody has won the race twice. Previous wins have gone to Bob Newberry of Brentwood, Jimmy Christian of San Jose, Josh Young of Roseville, Eathon Lanfri of Milpitas and Bryant Bell of Brentwood. The Antioch season opener was won by Young ahead of Newberry.

Newberry and Shannon Newton of Elk Grove were both at the Antioch opener and are two drivers in the running to be the first three-time champions in this division at Antioch. Some of the drivers to watch for this week include Steve Maionchi of Sonora, John Ulrich of Antioch, Kevin Box of Bethel Island and Jeff Scotto of Antioch.

As IMCA has strengthened their presence in California over the last 20 years, one of the divisions that has been able to gain a foothold in the state is the RaceSaver Sprint Car class. The division boasts a less expensive motor program with the 305ci engine. They've had a presence in the Hanford, Tulare and Bakersfield area for a decade and have a list of State champions that has seen only one driver win it twice.

Under new leadership, the California RaceSaver car count has been ticking upwards. They've held a pair of races at Tulare and one at Merced. The wins so far have gone to Fresno's Koen Shaw at Tulare and Clovis's Kyle Rasmussen at Merced and Tulare. Rasmussen bears the distinction of being the only two-time series champion in 2021 and 2022.

The reigning State champion is Phil Heynen of Visalia, who currently sits third in the standings with a pair of Top 5 finishes to his credit. Atop the list you'll find Davey Pombo Jr of Kerman. The Pombo name is synonymous with open wheel racing. His grandfather, Al Pombo, is who some say is the greatest California Super Modified driver of all time, while his father also won several championships in open wheel racing.

So far, Davey has three Top 5 finishes, including a pair of seconds. This gives him a seven point lead over Fresno's Tylor Hanson and an eight point advantage over Heynen. Lance Jackson of Kingsburg and Davey's brother Anthony Pombo of Kerman are tied for fourth, 14 points out of the lead, heading into Antioch. This will be the first visit to Antioch for the division.

The last time we saw the Dwarf Cars, it was Chris Durden of Hollister picking up the win a night after winning at Watsonville. This occasion saw the Dwarf Cars bring more than 10 cars for the first time in several races, and season opener winner Sean Catucci of Brentwood finished second.

Catucci currently leads two-time reigning champion Travis Day of Concord by 10 points and rookie David Hays of Brentwood by 12. Antioch's David Rosa has had an eventful season so far but sits 14 points out of lead in fourth as these four drivers seem to be the players in the championship battle.

The 600 Micro Sprints are off to their best Antioch start yet. It was Kyle Mench of Alameda kicking things off with a feature win, though Santa Rosa's Peyton Gentry forced him to settle for second last time out. However, Mentch has an eight point advantage over Gentry, who is also second in points at Petaluma. Buddy Chappell of San Jose is third, 18 points out of the lead.

Antioch's Roberto Monroy and Ryan Dotson of Fremont are tied for fourth, 28 points out of the lead. Last time out, Monroy took a wicked tumble in the Main Event in Turn 4. Not only has he put his car back together for Saturday night, he went out and picked up another Micro Sprint that could be ready soon.

Saturday's show is an opportunity to pay tribute to one of the all-time greats of Antioch Speedway racing. Larry Damitz is a member of the BCRA, Antioch Speedway and Vallejo Sports Hall of Fame. Undoubtedly, he would enjoy the fact that the night will include Late Models and Pro Stocks. The fact that Winged and Wingless Sprint Car racing is a part of the bill and kids get in free will be further enticement for fans to come enjoy a great night of racing in Antioch.

The gates will open at 4:00 with the first race starting at 6:00.

Adult tickets are $15, Senior/Military $15, Kids (5-12) free and kids four and under free.

Picture Descriptions:

Larry Damitz #15 and Mark Garner #76 battle for position in a Super Stock race in 2016. Photo by Katrina Kniss

Winged 305 RaceSaver Sprint Cars make their first Antioch Speedway visit this week. Photo by Katrina Kniss

Cameron Gonzalez #c28 and Buddy Chappell #99 in Micro Sprint action. Photo by Katrina Kniss

David Michael Rosa #2d, Anthony Estrada #3n and reigning Dwarf Car champion Travis Day #88. Photo by Katrina Kniss

Wingless Spec Sprint stars Shawn Arriaga #32, Eathon Lanfri #31, Blake Bower #3t and Joshua Wooten #95. Photo by Katrina Kniss

Reigning Super Stock champion Ryan Cherezian #12, Antonio Aragon #055 and Danneeka Garretson #65 racing down the straightaway at last year's Larry Damitz Memorial. Photo by Katrina Kniss

Late Model point leader Rod Oliver #57 and Ray Trimble #37 are looking for a Larry Damitz Memorial win. Photo by Katrina Kniss

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