Only one more race in the season after tonight here at the Southern New Mexico Speedway and things are about to get heated. We kick it sideways and you better buckle in because ready or not we are goin RACING!
Sun Valley Hardware USRA Street Stocks are rolling up the hill first tonight for 15 laps. Josh Gallardo will lead lap 1 from the pole but every driver behind him in the top 5 has had at least one win this year. 3 laps complete and the 44X of George LaRose has charged to the bumper of Gallardo for the lead! Out of turn 4 LaRose is looking low but Gallardo still has it by a nose. LaRose sill with the low line into 1 and out of turn 2 its LaRose with a slider and to the lead. 5 laps in, 10 to go and the 3H of Hollingshead is into second around Gallardo. Hollingshead is charging after the 44x but 8 to go and caution #1 on the night. LaRose drags us back to the green and the 3H will be joining him as they pull from the field. 6 to go and the 44X is barely holding onto that line as he does everything he can to keep Hollingshead behind him. The 3H is looking low but nothing will solidify just yet. 3 to go and the 3H is nose-and-nose with the 44x at the line! As they come to the stripe for 2 to go the 3H will get a crazy run low off turn 4 and he will take the lead cleanly!! White flag waving as the 3H crosses but he hasn’t made much ground on the 44X as this one isn’t over just yet. It wont be enough time for the 44x to mount a charge though because at the checkered, winning the USRA Street Stock Main event is Noah Hollingshead in 3H!!! Solid race there for the 44x and George LaRose will come home in second. The 44JT of Jaime Torres slid into third on that last lap.
Casa Nissan Legends always put on a good race and with 11 Rajin rockets on track for 20 laps you better believe tonight will be no exception. The 66 Wilbur Wells will lead the first 3 laps but the 237 of Steven Arellano cut the field like butter and out of 4 for the 4th time he will glide to the lead like it aint even nothing. Gunner Harris 54 is going to grab the bumper of the 237 and scoot on by the 66 as well. 8 to go and Harris is making his move! Harris going low, going high, and going everywhere in between but Arellano is holding steady tonight. The 54 is giving it another go out of turn 2 but 6 to go and caution #1 in this Legends race. The 237 will take us back to green but the field is there now. Harris gets a little Squirrely on the restart but he gathers it back up just in time to fend off a hard charging Mike Zuloaga to hold onto second. Gunner Harris will drive back to the bumper of the 237 with 3 to go but he is pushing up hard when he tries to make the move and no traction coming from up there. The 237 pulls away slightly as the 54 tries new lines but Harris still only 3 lengths back. The 54 is close but out of time tonight. Steven “Scuba” Arellano is tonight’s Casa Nissan Legends winner! The 11 year old of Gunner Harris drove it in hard and will finish with a second tonight as the Nice Guy Mike Zuloaga rounds out the podium in 3rd.
The baddest beasts on dirt have risen from the depths to take us racing tonight. It’s the SOUTHWEST LATE MODELS!!! The 8x will start on the pole 744 Logston and G17 Gallardo ran the fastest times in the heat races. Green flag in the air and the 22 will lead lap 1! 3 laps into this one and your leader loosing power down the front straight! He will pull it to the pits and big lead change tonight! The 8x was back into the lead but the 24X of Jonathan Ortega steal that away quickly as the G17 of Fito Gallardo slides his way into second. 11 to go and the G17 is there to play tonight as they try and pull from the 57 and 744 who are battling hard. 8 to go and caution for the 8x who went off the backstretch and came to a stop. Just before that yellow came out the 744 had made the pass on the 57 so Logston is now in third as they restart! Lights out and its go time. Ortega holding off the G17 and 744 but those two want a win so badly it probably hurts their brains to even think about! 5 to go and out of turn 4 the G17 ducks low for the lead! He will hold the line all the way around but he is down by a nose as they come to with 3 to go. Logston will take advantage of a rare Fito slip and second is his. Not very much time to catch Ortega is blistering the track right now. 2 to go and lappers will pay a factor as the 24X has some major traffic in front of him. Clear the lappers and Logston is pushing his car the limit for the win! White flag flying and Logston going to drive it in deep into 1 but it wont stick and around he goes! A very rare mistake from Logston as he was pushing that car over the edge farther than anyone has in a while. The G17 will inherit second and because the white is already in the air we will not have a yellow flag. Jonathan Ortega in 24X ran the fastest race of his life tonight to hold off both Fito Gallardo and Scott Logston to take home the big Southwest Late Model win!! Fito Gallardo held onto second after that slip by Logston and the 57 of Billy Roy Harris drives into third. Logston hasn’t finished worse than 6th all season but what a heartbreak tonight after being so absolute fast.
Little break from the super speed now as the bomber roll out for 15 laps of racing with 12 cars taking the drop of the green. The 98 will lead lap 1 but into turn 1 the 13RLT will drive in and stick it for the lead. 12 to go and the 4B has caught the 13Rlt of Boerger. Into turn 4 the 13RLT and 4B will get together hard and around they go bringing out the yellow early on. Those two both go to the rear for involvement and the 7 of Sean Privette is your new leader! Privette drags us to the stand but as they head into turn 2 the 4B and 22 hit hard! The 4B was pushed up by the 13RLT, as tensions are high out there. The 22 rejoins the back of the field as we got 12 more coming at you. Privette off and away again but the 44X of George LaRose took some notes on that first attempt and here he comes. 8 to go and the 7 is pulling from the 44x as the 88 slides his way into third over the 13Rlt in fourth. 5 to go and the 7 is way out as the 44x starts to smoke heavy again from that motor. The 44x finally looses his motor completely in a puff of white on the front stretch and his night is done. As the checkered waves the 7 of Sean Privette will win big by almost half a track!! The 13Rlt of Dane Boerger rallied back into a second place after trouble for the 44X. At the end of this one we run a little special event for these bombers. They are going to have a reverse track dash with 3 laps for 100 Dollars!! Three laps in the wrong direction and these guys are lovin it.
Have you checked the time? If you have then you know, IT IS MODIFIED TIME!!!! Those who haven’t checked the clock, welcome to the party. The G17 Fito Gallardo is always fast and he will start on the pole tonight. Fito’s son, Jake Gallardo, has won the last 4 in a row and he will start outside row 3 right where he wants to be. Fito will take a big lead out of turn 2 but as the field enters turn 3 the 131 will spin with no laps complete. 131 Royal Jones luckily only takes a small lick on that spin and he will rejoin the rear of the pack. Reset the field and we try again for 25 laps. Donovan Flores to the inside of the G17 and he will lead lap 1!! The g17 will stay to his outside and rallying back quickly to the lead for lap 2! W got a race on our hands now. Donovan “Fireball” Flores was on the charge right there but caution 2 laps in. Short yellow and back to racing. Fito gets away clean on this one and the 07 Flores is a sitting duck for the J17 of Jake Gallardo who has darted around the 85 for third. 19 to go and the G17 is pulling but Flores is holding his own with the J17 who can’t get cleared just yet. 17 to go and the 07 has charged hard to stay away from the J17 but has caught the G17! Flores looks low quickly but Fito holding him off like the seasoned vet he is. As those two dance the J17 is closing back in. 15 to go and Flores trying again out of turn 2!! This time it sticks and Donovan Flores will lead down the back! Donovan put in a heater right there but now he has both Gallardo cars right behind him. The J17 cant clear his dad just yet but luckily for those two we got another caution for the 131. 11 to go and the J17 with a red-hot restart from the inside of row 2!! He got a super jump over Flores and as they enter turn 1 he will steal that lead right away. Jake Gallardo is checking out as the G17 slides around the 07 for second. 8 to go and Jake is loosing ground as Fito is hard on the gas and driving it all over to catch up. 6 to go and the G17 is almost on the bumper of Jake but it looks like he taught his son a little too much because he can’t get around anytime soon. The J17 has the track on lockdown tonight. White flag and Jake in the middle of lapped traffic with nowhere to go! Jake cant clear all the lappers before the checkered waves but luckily tonight neither can Fito and at the line its JAKE GALLARDO holding off his dad once again to take his 5th straight win at the Southern New Mexico Speedway!!! Fito finally back in fashion and will hold on to second tonight as the Gallardo clan goes 1&2. The 07 ran what could be considered his fastest race yet in the modifieds as he settles with third tonight.
Jake Gallardo has been winning so much its like old habit to strike up a conversation with him but they all get him closer to that next step and tonight was no different. Big smile after the race as always with plenty to say.
What was the key on that restart?
“Well I just pushed the gas and it took off straight out of 4. Flores was there and I didn’t know where I was going to pass him but that restart went textbook and here we are. The car needs some adjustments but it cant be perfect every week. Just ready for the last race next Saturday and then the Fall Nationals in October. I really want to win that.”
Jake Gallardo was on a rail tonight and if you missed it then don’t forget to join us next weekend as we go racing during the Southern New Mexico Fair both Friday and Saturday night!!! Sprint cars on Friday and Modifieds Saturday! Gates open at 5:30 with racing starting at 7:45. Paid admission to the fair gets you in for free!! See yall there.