When Southern California sprint car star Brody Roa released his 2022 racing schedule, it shocked many that he was running in a variety of different series and was not chasing championship points in any of them. As the season is about to hit the homestretch, Roa is completely happy with the decision and has absolutely no regrets. This Saturday night he will be competing in the USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series at Perris Auto Speedway.
The story of Roa’s racing the past few seasons has been with the USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series, USAC West Coast Sprint Cars, USAC National Sprint Cars when they headed west to end the season, and his annual trek to the Chili Bowl. To date this year he has raced the Chili Bowl, a few races in the USAC West Coast Series, the USAC National Series at Indiana Sprint Week, and periodic appearances with USAC/CRA. Additionally, he has raced with the World of Outlaws, ASCS/CAS Series in Arizona, King of Thunder winged 360s, and NARC King of the West 410s. With such a varied schedule, he has not had to think about the stress that comes along with point racing, and frankly, he is not missing it.
“I am enjoying it, especially as it comes nearer to the end of the year,” Roa said on Wednesday night. “I know the last few months, September, October, and November, are really stressful when you are point racing. You are counting points all night and you are trying to focus. It is always in the back of your head no matter what anybody says. You think about it. It is nice going into the end of this year not worrying about that. Going into the Ovals I will be focused on making good runs all three nights.”
“It has been our goal the last 10 years to run for that championship,” Roa continued. “It is a different kind of fun I guess you could say. If we have a little off night, we are not worrying ourselves too much. We can move on to the next one. I have tried some things with the car this year that I probably would not have done (if they were chasing points). We have learned a lot this year and we have had a lot more fun. The tension level amongst the team is a little bit lower. It has been nice.”
The obvious question is if he has been having so much fun this year, is he going to do the same thing next year? One would think the clear answer would be “yes,” he is going to stick with what he did in 2022. However, one must consider that the 31-year-old Garden Grove, California resident is a longtime successful racer with competitive juices that run deep.
“I am not sure yet,” Roa stated when asked if he would race for points in 2023. “It’s a conversation I guess everybody has to have and decide what we want to do next year. I had fun with the wing deal this year, so I would like to do that occasionally. I want to run with Jayson (Jayson May who owns the #8M 360 sprint car Roa drives when available) more next year, too. When we get to the end of the year and schedules start coming out, we will all get together as a team with all of our partners, supporters, and families and see what we can and what we want to do next year.”
Roa’s season will end a little over two months from now in the sprint car portion of the Turkey Night Grand Prix at Ventura. He has several races on his schedule including a stretch of five straight Saturdays of racing in three different series starting with this Saturday’s USAC/CRA race at Perris. The rest of that stretch will include another USAC/CRA show at Perris, USAC Western Sprint Series races at Ventura and Kern County Raceway Park, and the NARC King of the West Twin 25’s at Peter Murphy’s Keller Auto Speedway. In addition to the October date at Keller, there may be one more wing race on his schedule in 2022.
“We are going to put the wing back on a couple of times,” Roa said. “Well, maybe a couple times. We only have one wing left. We have to get through the first one. We are going to do it once for sure. We will see about the second one and do whatever we feel at the end of October with the wing or non-wing.”
This Saturday Roa returns to Perris for his fourth wingless appearance at the track this year. His first three appearances on the famous Riverside County half-mile clay Oval in 2022 saw him finish in sixth place, third, and first. The win came on June 25th. The next time the series was at the track was on August 20th. To say the results were 180 degrees different would be an understatement. Between his heat race and getting clobbered and knocked out of the main on lap two, it seemed as though Roa was hit by everyone at the track except for the infield ambulance driver.
“We still show up to run good, but having those nights hurts no matter what,” Roa affirmed. “Whether it is points or just money. We rely a lot on the purse money to get the car ready again for the next one. When we have nights like that (August 20th) and we tear up everything in the trailer in like a total of 10 laps, it hurts the ego and the bank account. But it is definitely less stressful when I have a night like that this year as I am not worrying about a bad night points-wise.”
Roa is looking forward to this weekend in a big way. Not only will racing at Perris Auto Speedway on Saturday be on his agenda. On Sunday, Roa and his wife Tailor will be celebrating their daughter Addison’s second birthday with family and friends.
Adult tickets to see Roa and the rest of the stars in action on Saturday are $30.00. Seniors 65 and over get in for $25.00. For kids 6 to 12, it is just $5.00. Children 5 and under are admitted free. There will be plenty of tickets available for everyone at the ticket window on Saturday, this event will not sell out. For those who wish to purchase advance tickets, they are available 24 hours a day online at https://www.tix.com/ticket-sales/pas/7/event/1256365 or by calling 1-800-595-4849. Perris Auto Speedway is located on the Lake Perris Fairgrounds at 18700 Lake Perris Drive in the city of Paris (91767). The track website is http://www.perrisautospeedway.com/ and the office phone number is (951) 940-0134. The fairgrounds charges $10 for parking.
For fans who come east on the 91 Freeway to get to The PAS, the eastbound lanes will be shut down all weekend in Corona. Fans can take the 91 east to either the 605 or the 57 north to the 60 Freeway east.
If you wish to hear Roa’s recent appearance on the Dirt Tracks and Rib Racks podcast, you can do so at the following link https://spoti.fi/3cjQrLL.
In 2022, Roa is racing in the USAC/CRA, USAC National, and other select events, in his #91R BR Performance/HD Industries Eagle. He will also drive the #8M for May Motorsports in select USAC West Coast events. The 2019 USAC Southwest and 2017 USAC West Coast champion is always open to discussing other driving opportunities.
Roa and the team want to thank the following sponsors for making the 2022 season possible. HD Industries, Burris Racing, Sander Engineering, Inland Rigging, Caltrol, “Biker” Bruce Fischer, Competition Suspension, ALR Virtual Services, K-1 Race Gear, Molecule, Rod End Supply, Driven Racing Oil, Baldwin Filters, and NGK Spark Plugs. In addition, the veteran driver offers thanks to RDM Mechanics, Fastenal, Coopers Propane, Ten West Towing, Ten West Environmental, TJM Distribution, and Westco International for sponsoring the #8M he will pilot for Jayson May on 10 occasions in 2022.
If you or your company would like to jump on board and receive recognition as a team partner throughout the 2022 racing season, please give the two-time USAC champion racer a phone call or drop him a note at the contact information on the top of this release.
Fans can learn more about Roa and the team at https://www.brodyroa.com/. Fans can also check out the team news at Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/br91r/.
To keep up with May Motorsports, please check out and “like” its Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/MayMotorsports8M
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