LEWIS TOPS BCRA MIDGET FIELD AT STOCKTON

By Floyd Busby

STOCKTON, CA, SEPT. 4: Michael Lewis topped the field in the Bay Cities Racing Association Midget feature at the Stockton "99" Speedway.

The Indiana driver scored the 30-lap run from his 14th starting position, leading two BCRA rookies across the line aboard the pristine Western Speed Racing Esslinger powered Beast.

Tim Joyce jumped into the lead from his outside front row berth at the green with John Sarale skirting into second over
pole-sitter Shannon McQueen. BCRA point leader Thomas Meseraull held fourth over Cliff Servetti as fast-qualifier Lewis picked off two cars to hold 12th.

Meseraull displaced McQueen on the third round with Pete Davis slipping by to hold fourth.

Lewis gained one position for each of several laps, then moved into seventh on the fifth round. On the eighth lap Brian Gard spun his Borghasani Beast/Gaerte Chevy in the second turn to bring out the caution flag.

Lewis held sixth behind Joyce's Segur Ellis/Wirth Gaerte with Sarale, Meseraull, Davis and Servetti in front of the nationally ranked challenger.

Following the green, McQueen, making her very first start on pavement, spun the newly acquired Stealth/Esslinger in the fourth turn. At this point Meseraull's race came to an end with overheating problems and he pulled the Ferrari Beast/Brayton Ford into the pits.

Lewis was now sitting fourth. He immediately dropped Davis then set out after Sarale, passing the Arata/Sarale Motorsports Beast/Chevy on the inside of turn three to hold second, then, one lap later, scored the lead with an inside pass of Joyce exiting turn four.

During the encounters at the front of the pack, Scott Pierovich was threading his way from tenth, pulling into third on the
11th circuit. The young rookie then whipped his Beast/Mopar under Joyce exiting the fourth turn to take second.

At the halfway point Lewis held the lead over Pierovich, with Davis outdueling Joyce for third. Now holding fifth was rookie Greg Dennett, charging through traffic from his 13th starting position in the 3D Racing Beast/Wirth Chevy.

McQueen brought out the caution with a turn-one spin on the 18th lap, but not before Dennett gained yet another position to hold fourth.

At the green Dennett dislodged Davis' Beast/Esslinger for third. Joyce held fifth over Michael Hubert III, Sarale and veteran Floyd Alvis, Dallen McKinney and Brian Gard.

On the 23rd lap the most serious encounter of a contact kind occurred when Gard tangled with Alvis, sending the veteran's Stealth/VanDyne spinning into the backstretch wall, to be lifted and towed to the pits. Gard was sent to the rear by referee Tom Manning. Gard dropped out three laps later.

From this point the race ran straight to the checkered flag. Both Pierovich and Dennett held their own against the visiting
national driver, not allowing Lewis to expand his lead.

At the line Lewis took top money over Pierovich, Dennett, Davis, Joyce, Hubert, McKinney, Sarale, Servetti, McQueen, Jim Silva, Eddie Abrew, Carly Lawrence and Joe Lindsey, all completing the 30-lap route.

Lewis outqualified the 18-car field at 13.363. Silva took the first heat race over Sarale and Joyce with Meseraull taking the second 10-lapper over Lewis and Gard. Dennett won his third trophy dash of the season.

Following an off week, BCRA joins forces with Western States USAC for a program at the annual Harvest Classic at the Madera Speedway on Sept. 18, then proceeds to the Shasta Speedway in Anderson the following Saturday. On October 9 BCRA again co-sanctions with USAC at the Kings Speedway in Hanford. The final race of the season is the 2nd Annual Johnny Baldwin Classic on October 16 at the Santa Maria Speedway with $15,000 on the line and $3,000 to win the 50-lap feature, plus a six-car, six-lap $1,000 to win "Dash for Cash"

SUMMARY:
QUAL.: 1. Michael Lewis, #40 Western Speed 13.363; 2. Greg Dennett, #47 3D Racing 13.402; 3. Dallen McKinney, #88 McKinney 13.501; 4. Brian Gard, #57 Borghasani 13.570; 5. Scott Pierovich, #35 Pierovich 13.638; 6. Pete Davis, #00 Davis 13.736; 7. Michael Hubert III, #56 Hubert 13.824; 8. Thomas Meseraull, #69 Ferrari13.872; 9. Floyd Alvis, #18 Champion 13.906; 10. Cliff Servetti, #83 Custom Engine 13.989; 11. John Sarale, #32 Arata/Sarale 14.063; 12. Eddie Abrew, #25 Abrew 14.072; 13. Tim Joyce, #99 Segur 14.252; 14. Shannon McQueen, #7 McQueen 14.291; 15. Joe Lindsey, #23X Lindsey 14.307; 16. Carly Lawrence, #11Z Lawrence 14.383; 17. Jim Silva, #19 Chandler 14.402; 18. Bobby Boone, #20 Roza N/T.

HEAT-1: Silva, Sarale, Joyce, Servetti, McQueen, Lawrence, Lindsey, Abrew. 10-Laps 2:22.12.
HEAT-2: Meseraull, Lewis, Gard, Alvis, Davis, Hubert, Dennett, Pierovich, McKinney.

DASH: Dennett, Lewis, Gard, McKinney.

MAIN: Michael Lewis, Scott Pierovich, Greg Dennett, Pete Davis, Tim Joyce, Michael Hubert III, Dallen McKinney, John Sarale, Cliff Servetti, Shannon McQueen, Jim Silva, Eddie Abrew, Carly Lawrence, Joe Lindsey, Brian Gard, Floyd Alvis, Thomas Meseraull.