CRA: Vegas recap, Perris preview

PERRIS UP NEXT FOR USAC/CRA SPRINTS; MILLER, JONES GRAB "LAS VEGAS DIRT CLASSIC" FEATURES

Cory Kruseman of Ventura, Calif. continues to lead the USAC/CRA Sprint Car standings after second and third-place finishes in the "Las Vegas Dirt Classic" Thursday and Friday at the Las Vegas (Nev.) Motor Speedway Dirt Track. He has a 40-point lead over USAC National Champion Levi Jones and is 56 ahead of Blake Miller going into a March 8 race at the Perris (Calif.) Auto Speedway.

Jones and Miller emerged with feature victories at Las Vegas, Miller winning Thursday night's 30-lapper and Jones pacing Friday's race wire-to-wire.

Miller was the last of three different race leaders Thursday, taking the lead from Jesse Hockett on lap 25 and leading the final six laps in his Roy Miller Freightlines/Gardner Pipe & Mechanical Sled/Shaver. He held off fast closing Kruseman and Casey Shuman in a frantic six-lap dash to the checkered flag. Cole Whitt, who also led, finished fourth ahead of Tyler Brown. Hockett slipped to sixth at the finish.

Jones started on the outside of the front row Friday and led all 30 laps in his Hoosier Tire/Weld Wheels DRC/Claxton to beat fast qualifier Hockett, Kruseman, Danny Sheridan and Miller.

Mike Spencer slipped to sixth in the new standings after 15th and 13th-place finishes, ending up against the turn two wall on Friday. He was Thursday's fastest qualifier.

Four drivers flipped Thursday. Jonas Reynolds, who flipped during a heat race, was treated for a mild concussion and released from University Medical Center in Las Vegas.

Last year's USAC/CRA series opened with 11 different race winners. So far this season, four different drivers have won in the first five events. A 30-lap feature caps the March 8 program at Perris, which debuted in February with back-to-back Kruseman triumphs.

-credit: usac