NARC SPRINT CARS HEAD TO TULARE FOR CHRIS & BRIAN FARIA MEMORIAL RACE

By Andrew Kunas

Tulare, CA…A Thunderbowl Raceway cornerstone event is next on tap for the NARC 410 Sprint Car Series, which will race in the Chris & Brian Faria Memorial this Saturday, April 26th.

Saturday’s event is the first of two visits that NARC will make to the 1/3-mile, high-banked clay oval located at the Tulare County Fairgrounds this season. This marks the third stop on the 27-event NARC campaign.

First contested in 2002, the event honors a pair of brothers from the Faria family, longtime participants in California racing. Chris Faria, who was an up-and-coming racer, passed away after a farming accident in 1993. His older brother Brian, who was active behind the scenes at Thunderbowl Raceway, tragically passed away in early 2006 in a traffic accident, and Brian’s name was soon put alongside his brother’s name for this race.

The event, held at one of California’s most challenging dirt tracks, has long been looked forward to by NARC competitors and fans, and the list of past winners of the race reads like a who’s who of west coast sprint car racing.

Jason Meyers, a future two-time World of Outlaws champion, won the inaugural event in 2002. National Sprint Car Hall of Famer Brent Kaeding won it twice in the latter years of his legendary career. A young kid named Kyle Larson, years before the NASCAR world got to know him, was the 2010 winner of the race. NARC champions such as D.J. Netto and Kyle Hirst are also past winners.

Last year’s Chris & Brian Faria Memorial was rained out on its original sprint date, but the series and Thunderbowl Raceway were able to reschedule the event to October 12th, and it was Cole Macedo picking up the victory that night.

Netto, who lives just down the road from Thunderbowl Raceway in Hanford, currently leads the NARC point standings after two completed events aboard the Netto Ag No. 88N. With his win in the season opening event at Stockton Dirt Track, followed by his fourth place run at the Mini Gold Cup at Silver Dollar Speedway, Netto carries a five-point advantage over Templeton’s Kaleb Montgomery.

Montgomery, having driven two different cars in two races, turned in Top 5 finishes each time, including a third-place effort at the Mini Gold Cup.

WHO TO WATCH

Justin Sanders, after a tough month of March, bounced back in a big way at Silver Dollar Speedway, winning the Mini Gold Cup after a last lap battle with Tanner Holmes. With the $10,000 NARC victory at Chico, the reigning NARC “King of the West” clawed back to sixth in the standings, only 12 points out of the lead and feeling that momentum is back on the side of the Mittry Motorsports No. 2x.

Fremont’s Shane Golobic enters the night third in the NARC point standings aboard the Matt Wood Racing No. 17w. While Golobic did not fare well in the Faria Memorial race last October, he was victorious in the NARC race at the Tulare clay oval in May. Golobic has been competitive at Thunderbowl Raceway, logging many top five and top ten finishes over the years, including a seventh place run just last month with the High Limit Racing series during their spring California swing.

Others expected to compete include Roseville’s Sean Becker and Ryan Bernal, Lincoln’s Tanner Carrick, San Jose’s Tim Kaeding, Oakley’s Dylan Bloomfield, Tyler Thompson from Oregon, Arizona’s Ashton Torgerson, Chance Grasty from Suisun City, Campbell’s Bud Kaeding, Benicia’s Billy Aton, John Clark from Windsor, Landon Brooks from Rio Oso, and many others.

Central California will be well represented in the pit area with competitors including two-time series champion Dominic Scelzi and Gauge Garcia from Fresno, 2024 Rookie of the Year Caeden Steele of Lemoore, and Dominic Gorden and Mariah Ede from Clovis.

FAN INFO

It will be all sprint cars on Saturday night at Thunderbowl Raceway, as winged 360 Kings of Thunder sprint cars and California Racesaver sprints will also be in action.

The NARC portion of the program includes qualifying, three eight-lap heat races, a six-lap trophy dash, and a 30-lap feature event headliner.

Tickets will be available at the front gate for fans. Grandstand tickets are $35, and $33 for seniors. Bleacher seats are $30 for adults, $28 for seniors and $15 for kids 12 and under. Pit passes are $45. Front gates open at 4:00 p.m. Hot laps are scheduled for 5:00 p.m. with qualifying at 6:00 and racing beginning at 7:00 p.m.

For first time visitors, Thunderbowl Raceway is located at the Tulare County Fairgrounds on K Street.

ABOUT NARC

The Northern Auto Racing Club is the premier 410-winged sprint car series in the western United States. Since 1960, the traveling organization has thrilled fans at dirt tracks up and down the West Coast and crowned a “King of the West” champion. For more information on the NARC 410 sprint car series, including race results, points standings, and upcoming events, go to www.narc410.com.   You can also follow on various social media platforms.