Eddie Tafoya Jr. Back in Action in the Salute to Indy Saturday at Perris Auto Speedway

Eddie Tafoya Jr. will have some fresh graphics when he returns to action this Saturday night, May 22^nd, in the 70^th Salute to Indy at Perris Auto Speedway.  Fans attending the prestigious race will get a first look at the flashy new design on the #51T Specialty Fasteners sprint car and the team’s race hauler.

Saturday’s race will be the second of the year for the 23-year-old Chino Hills, California resident at the track closest to his home.  Last month at Perris, Tafoya placed eighth in a tough, veteran field in the 30-lap main event.  It was his first full night of sprint car racing on the West Coast in 2021.  Coming into this week’s Salute to Indy, the young driver ranks 29^th in the USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series championship point standings.

Earlier this week, the team practiced on the same Perris half-mile oval that Tafoya will be competing on Saturday.  The car is a new DRC chassis that the crew went to Indiana to pick up and race two times last month before its initial showing at Perris.  This week’s practice session was to make some final adjustments for Saturday’s race.  

Two years ago in his Rookie of the Year title season in both the USAC/CRA and USAC Southwest Series, Tafoya competed in the Salute to Indy for the first time.  Not only was it his initial outing in the race, but it was one of his first ever 410 sprint car races.  He qualified 18^th in the 25-car field.  In his heat race he placed 7^th and followed that up with an eighth-place finish in the B Main.  In the Salute to Indy 30-lap A Main, the rookie ended up 21^st.  Last year would have been his second time in the race, but the entire sprint car season at Perris was cancelled due to COVID.

After this Saturday’s final checkered flag, Tafoya will have his brand-new shirts for sale in the pit area.  Fans can go to the #51T hauler once the gates are opened to purchase a shirt.  For those who would like to acquire one, but who cannot make it to the track, they can contact Tafoya on Instagram or Facebook.

For fans who would like to attend Saturday’s race, spectator gates will open at 5:00 p.m. with racing at 7:00.  Advance tickets are available at the following link  tix.com/ticket-sales/pas/7.  Due to COVID mandates, that is the only way to purchase tickets for this race.  There will be no walk-up ticket sales on Saturday.

Tafoya and his team would like to thank the following sponsors for being a part of the 2021 racing campaign.  Specialty Fasteners, Circle Track Performance, DRC Chassis, Ryder Racing Engines, Benic Enterprises, Simpson, and Bell. If you or your company would like to become a part of the team in 2021, please give them a call or send an E-mail to the contact information at the top of this press release.

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