DAVID GASPER GETS THIRD CLS WIN AT BAKERSFIELD (Torrance, CA, June 14, 2022) After a couple of engine issues in the first three races of the 2022 season, California Lightning Sprint Car Series champion David Gasper has been on a roll that continued last Saturday night when he won the 25-lap main event at the Bakersfield Speedway. The victory was his series-leading third win of the year. Yucca Valley’s Jeff Dyer started the night off by setting his second fast time of the year in the West Evans Motorsports Qualifying. The veteran stopped the clocks at 13.236. Five-time series champion Bobby Michnowicz of Oak Hills was second fastest with a time of 13.272. Palmdale’s Eric Greco was third with a 13.340 lap. Gasper was sixth quick at 13.517. Bobby Michnowicz. CLS photo. A pair of eight-lap heat races preceded the CLS main event. The first one, which was sponsored by Extreme Mufflers, went to impressive series-leading rookie Will Browne of Glendora for his first-ever CLS win. Dyer and “Rockstar” Jon Robertson of Torrance placed second and third. Yoshimura R&D Heat #2 was taken by local Leland Day of Bakersfield with Michnowicz and point leader Cody Nigh of Camarillo in the place and show spots. It was Day’s first CLS heat win of 2022. The heat greeted the teams when they got to the track as it was a toasty 99 degrees in the afternoon. However, by the time the main event pushed off the thermometer had plummeted all the way down to 95 degrees. To compound the misery of the oven-like temperatures, there was not even a wisp of a breeze. For the main event on the blazing hot night, Nigh and Gasper were on the front row. Row two featured Greco in his #8G and Browne in his #8. Michnowicz and Dyer sat next to each other in row three. At the drop of the Randy Schweitzer green flag, Nigh raced into the lead. Browne momentarily poked his nose into second coming off turn two on the opener, but Gasper relegated him back to third before they completed the first of 25 revolutions on “The West’s Fastest 1/3 Mile High Banked Clay Oval” By the end of the third circuit, Nigh had established a half-straight lead and his uncle, Michnowicz, had closed in on Gasper. Nigh was cruising out front, but like the opening night at Bakersfield on March 25th, he was about to experience heartbreak. At the opener, he led every inch of the way only to get passed two feet from the stripe and lose by less than a foot. This time Nigh had a half-straight lead when he tangled with a lapped car of Yucca Valley’s debuting driver Seth Dyer in turn three on the sixth circuit. Nigh tipped over and out came the red flag. Both drivers were okay, but their cars were done for the night. Nigh showed his class a few hours later when he texted Dyer’s dad saying that the accident was not Seth’s fault and apologizing. The next morning, he messaged a member of the media with the same communication. After the two cars in the tangle were towed off, action resumed with Gasper at the point. Nigh, Browne, Greco and Dyer made up the remainder of the top five. Michnowicz peeked at the outside of Gasper soon after the race restarted, but the teen motored away to a comfortable lead. Behind them, the Browne, Greco, Dyer battle for third was more than exciting. Coming to the end of lap six, Dyer swept wide out of turn four to go around Greco and then dove to the inside of Browne for third. Dyer’s fifth to third swoop was a crowd pleaser, but it did not phase Browne and Greco as a lap later the trio flew off turn four in a 3 abreast formation for the third spot. When they hit turn one, Dyer, on the outside had fended them off, but Greco did get by Browne to move up to fourth. While those three were battling for 3rd, out front Gasper looked like he was on a Sunday drive. He had advanced his lead to a half straightaway over Michnowicz. By lap 15, the teenage leader was into lap traffic. But that did not last for long. A yellow due to Robertson rolling to a stop on the back chute halted the action on lap 21. The yellow gave the chasers hope, but as soon as the green light flashed back on, those hopes were dashed. Gasper simply ran away in his bright blue Kittle Motorsports/Certified Construction/Rattlesnake Ridge/Valley Precision Products/Martin Roofing/B2 Design/Hyper Race Cars/Saldana Race Products #18 for his series-leading third win of 2022. Michnowicz stayed in second and was followed across the line by Greco, Dyer, and Browne. Michnowicz received the Speed Mart/Advanced Racing Suspension/Hepfner Racing Products Hard Charger Award and Nigh received the Speed Mart Hard Luck Award. The CLS will get this Saturday night off before returning to the Ventura Raceway for round #9 of the championship season on June 25th. Jeff Dyer will bring a 15-point lead over Greco into Ventura. Gasper is third, 16 behind Greco. Nigh and Browne are fourth and fifth. West Evans Motorsports Qualifying: 1. Jeff Dyer, 13.236; 2. Bobby Michnowicz, 13.272; 3. Eric Greco, 13.340; 4. Cody Nigh, 13.349; 5. Will Browne, 13.365; 6. David Gasper, 13.517; 7. Connor Speir, 13.544; 8. James Turnbull, 13.614; 9. Jon Robertson, 13.81; 10. Leland Day, 13.827; 11. Pat Kelley, 13.932; 12. Seth Dyer, 14.850 Extreme Muffler Heat Race #1: 1. Browne; 2. J. Dyer; 3. Robertson, 4. Greco; 5. Speir; 6. Kelley Yoshimura R&D Heat Race #2: 1. Day; 2. Michnowicz; 3. Nigh; 4. Gasper; 5. Turnbull; 6. S. Dyer A Main Event – 25 Laps (with starting positions) 1. David Gasper (2nd); 2. Bobby Michnowicz (5th), 3. Eric Greco (4th); 4. Jeff Dyer (6th); 5. Will Browne (3rd); 6. James Turnbull (9); 7. Connor Speir (8th); 8. Leland Day (7th); 9. Pat Kelley (11th); 10. Jon Robertson (10th); 11. Cody Nigh (1st); 12. Seth Dyer (12th) Lap Leaders: Nigh 1-5, Gasper 6 -15 CLS Contingency Awards Heat Race #1 – Extreme Muffler $50.00 Product Certificate – Will Browne Heat Race #2 – Yoshimura R& D - $50.00 CSI Product Certificate – Leland Day Saldana Racing Products Wildcard Award - $50.00 Product Certificate – James Turnbull 1st Place Main Event - Eibach Springs $100.00 Product Certificate – David Gasper 2nd Place Main Event - Vahlco Wheels $50.00 Product Certificate – Bobby Michnowicz 3rd Place Main Event - Jake Swanson Shock Technology $50 Product Certificate – Eric Greco 4th Place Main Event – Hyper Chassis - $50 Product Certificate – Jeff Dyer 5th Place Main Event – Smith Titanium Product Certificate – Will Browne 10th Place Main Event – King Racing Products $25.00 Product Certificate – Jon Robertson Fast Qualifier - West Evans Motorsports $25.00 Product Certificate – Jeff Dyer Hard Charger - Speed Mart $25.00 Product Certificate – Bobby Michnowicz Hard Charger - Advanced Racing Suspension $50.00 Product Certificate – Bobby Michnowicz Hard Charger – Hepfner Racing Products $25.00 Product Certificate – Bobby Michnowicz Hard Luck Award – Speed Mart $25.00 Product Certificate – Cody Nigh 1st Car Not On The Lead Lap – Rebel Gears 30% Off Coupon - Pat Kelley California Lightning Sprint Car Series Point Standings 1. Jeff Dyer, Camarillo, CA, 897 2. Eric Greco, Palmdale, CA, 882 3. David Gasper, Santa Barbara, CA, 866 4. Cody Nigh, Camarillo, CA, 837 5. Will Browne, Glendora, CA, 721 6. Bobby Michnowicz, Oak Hills, CA, 613 7. Connor Speir, Fillmore, CA, 581 8. Pat Kelley, Chino, CA, 563 9. Jon Robertson, Torrance, CA, 416 10. A.J. Bender, San Diego, CA, 366 CLS vs BCRA “Civil War Series” Points 1. David Gasper – CLS - 142 2. Dakota Albright – BCRA – 126 3. Eric Greco – CLS – 126 4. Will Browne – CLA 116 5. Harlee Aguilera – BCRA – 109 6. Cody Nigh – CLS – 104 7. Greg Dennett – BCRA – 100 8. Hunter Kinney – BCRA – 92 9. Matt Land – BCRA – 89 10. Tim Kinser - 83 The following companies have become marketing partners with the CLS in 2022. They have offered up more than $13,000.00 in contingencies that will be awarded on top of the regular racing purses and they will be paid out throughout the year. Yoshimura R&D, Hoosier Tires West, T-Shirts By Timeless, Extreme Mufflers, Saldana Racing Products, Rod End Supply, Speed Mart, Cold Fire West, West Evens Motorsports, RC Fuel Injection, Jake Swanson Shock Technology, Advanced Racing Suspensions, CSI Shocks, Eibach Springs, Triple X Race Components, King Racing Products, Hyper Racing Products, Rebel Gears, Vahlco Wheels, Wilwood Disk Brakes, Fuel Safe Systems, MPI, Circle Track Performance, E-Z UP, Hepfner Racing, Smith Titanium, and Hoosier Speed. If you or your company would like to become a partner of the longtime racing organization, contact Jon Robertson via email at mailto:jon.robertson@sbcglobal.net or by calling (310) 367-9050. 2022 California Lightning Sprint Car Series Schedule March 25 Bakersfield Speedway Winged – Grant Sexton April 2 Merced Speedway Non-Wing –– Civil War #1 – David Gasper April 16 Bakersfield Speedway Winged – A.J. Bender April 30 Ventura Raceway Winged (Make Up Main) David Gasper April 30 Ventura Raceway Winged – Bobby Michnowicz May 14 Bakersfield Speedway Winged – A.J. Bender May 21 Ventura Raceway Winged – Eric Greco June 11 Bakersfield Speedway Winged – David Gasper June 25 Ventura Raceway Winged July 9 Ventura Raceway Winged July 23 Ventura Raceway Winged August 26 Silver Dollar Speedway Winged – Civil War #2 August 27 Placerville Speedway Winged – Civil War #3 September 10 Lemoore Raceway Winged September 24 Bakersfield Speedway Winged – Civil War #4 October 8 Mohave Valley Raceway Winged – With SWLS October 29 Ventura Raceway Winged November 15 Bakersfield Speedway Winged – With USAC Midgets - Civil War #5 November 17 Placerville Speedway Non-Wing – With USAC Midgets - No Points November 18 Placerville Speedway Non-Wing – With USAC Midgets - No Points November 19 Placerville Speedway Non-Wing – With USAC Midgets - No Points To keep up with the CLS online, please visit the website at http://racecls.com/ or on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/californialightningsprints PAST CALIFORNIA LIGHTNING SPRINT CAR CHAMPIONS 1994 Tony Everhart, 1995 Gary Sexton, 1996 Rob Sczymczak, 1997 Jon Rahe, 1998 Chris Rahe, 1999 Brent Sexton, 2000 Greg Bragg, 2001 Greg Bragg, 2002 Greg Bragg, 2003 David Cardey, 2004 Keith Janca, 2005 Johnny Bates, 2006 Donny Gansen, 2007 Shane Rossen, 2008 Brent Sexton, 2009 Stuart Hielschier Sr., 2010 Jarrett Kramer, 2011 Tim Brown, 2012 Bobby Michnowicz, 2013 Stephen Limon, 2014 Bobby Michnowicz, 2015 Bobby Michnowicz, 2016 Bobby Michnowicz, 2017 Bobby Michnowicz, 2018 Jarrett Kramer, 2019 Jarrett Kramer, 2021 David Gasper This press release was produced by Scott Daloisio Sports (909) 226-7768 mailto:sdaloisiosports@gmail.com