Tafoya Remains Sixth in Usac/Cra Standings – Arizona Is Next

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After two nights of USAC/CRA Sprint Car racing in California’s Central Valley last weekend, Eddie Tafoya Jr. is still ranked in sixth place in the series championship standings.  Up next will be his first-ever trip to the Mohave Valley Raceway on April 23. 

First off on the two-night trek 200 miles north of Tafoya’s Chino Hills, California home was a race at Peter Murphy’s Keller Auto Speedway.  As the series had not been on the track in Hanford since 2018, this was Tafoya’s first time competing there. In qualifying, his lap of 15.969 was the 10th fastest in the 28 car field.  He followed that up with fifth-place finishes in both his 10-lap heat and the 12-lap B main event.

Tafoya started 12th in the 30-lap A main event on the brightly lit track.  For the first half of the race, he was running around the 10th place spot.  However, he slid to a stop in turn two on lap 16.  That forced the 2019 USAC/CRA and USAC Southwest “Rookie of the Year” to restart at the back of the pack.  With half the race to go, Tafoya made an impressive run from the rear of the field to 13th at the end of the 30-lapper.

On Saturday, Tafoya and the team headed to the famous Thunderbowl Raceway in Tulare.  The popular lightning-fast dirt oval can at times be very unforgiving.  Tafoya found that out the hard way at his first race there in March of 2021.  On that night in his heat, he flipped into the turn two billboards.  He limped the car back to the pits where his crew jumped on it to check the damage.  It was quickly discovered that the car was destroyed, and he was not only done for that night, but he was also eliminated from night #2 of the two-day show.

This time at Tulare, things went much better for the driver known as “Mr. Smooth.”  He ended up 12th in qualifying when he toured the 1/3 mile banked clay oval in 16.102.

Tafoya placed fourth in his heat and started the main event in 12th.  On a night when the track proved tough to pass on, he ended up 15th.   

For anyone who missed the two races or who wishes to watch them again, they are both available with a subscription to Flo Racing.  Details are available at https://www.floracing.com/.

Up next for Tafoya and his team will be a race at another brand new track (to them), Arizona’s Mohave Valley Raceway.  The USAC/CRA Series will make its first of two 2022 appearances there on April 23rd. One week later the personable driver will race closer to home at Perris Auto Speedway.

Tafoya and the #51T team would like to thank Specialty Fasteners, DRC Chassis, Ryder Racing Engines, Simpson Safety Products, Bell, Benic Enterprises, BR Motorsports, PSC Powder Coating, Magik Graphics, Gasper Transportation, Owen’s Insurance Services, and Weld Wheels for making the 2022 season possible.

If you or your company would like to be a part of the Specialty Fastener team’s 2022 season effort, please contact Eddie Tafoya Jr. via phone at (909) 393-3999 or by e-mail at [email protected]. He will be happy to talk to you and layout the team’s 2022 plans.

Fans can follow Tafoya on Instagram @eddietafoya51. The same contact point can be used to purchase his great-looking shirts via mail.

Eddie Tafoya PR

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