Driving a brand new car, Braden Chiaramonte was working his way towards the front in the Avanti Windows and Doors USAC/CRA 30-lap main event last Saturday at Perris Auto Speedway. However, a tangle that involved some lapped cars gathered him in and knocked him out of the race with nine laps to go. Sadly, what could have been a top-five finish ended up being a 20th.
After a practice session at the track the week before, Chiaramonte was debuting his new DRC Chassis along with a 410 engine obtained from Arizona native Sterling Cling who now does most of his racing in the Midwest. Of the 22 cars on hand on Saturday, Chiaramonte ended up 13th fastest in qualifying with a time of 17.031. That was his second-fastest lap in 2024 at the famous Riverside County half-mile clay oval. It was only surpassed by his 16.995 on March 16th.
Chiaramonte, in his pretty #73B, started on the outside of the front row in the first 10 lap heat race. When the checkers ended the preliminary, he ended up fourth. That Kept him in contention for one of the invert spots to start in the first three rows of the main event. Unfortunately, after the second and third heat races, he was out of the invert and was forced to start the 30-lapper in 13th.
In the main, like always, Chiaramonte was moving forward. He was picking off cars and confidently made his way into the top 10. At the halfway point, the talented young driver was up to eighth and seemed headed for the top five. However, coming off turn four on the 22nd circuit, he got caught up in someone else’s mess and was done for the night with a 20th place finish.
Despite other racing duties that saw the El Cajon, California resident miss the two USAC/CRA races in Arizona, Chiaramonte is still 21st in the championship standings and he is third in the Rookie of the Year chase.
Chiaramonte is taking this weekend off to watch his older brother Bronsen race in the “Weedle Industries Perfect 10 Challenge” desert race in Johnson City, California. Next weekend he will be back in action in his winged 360 sprint car at a pair of races on two of the crown jewel tracks in Northern California. On Friday the 10th, he will be at the Silver Dollar Speedway in Chico. Twenty-four hours later and 120 miles south, he will compete on the banked, 58-year-old Placerville Speedway.
Chiaramonte would like to thank all his sponsors who have made his racing efforts possible. RTL Traffic Control, AM Ortega, OCC Motorsports, Hyper Racing, Chop Design, Adams Motors, Hacienda Casa Blanca Fine Mexican Dining, Evil Plus Injection, King Racing Products, Tyner, and Keizer Wheels. If you would like to be a partner with one of America’s fastest-rising racing stars, please contact Daniel Chiaramonte via email at mailto:[email protected] or by calling (619) 988-7563.
Braden Chiaramonte PR
