Marvel Shines at Marysville Raceway
PRESS RELEASE-FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Marysville, CA 4/24/23)…Brinton Marvel was in the right place at the right time Saturday night at Marysville Raceway. Making his first career start at the action track of the West, Marvel had run second for most of the 25-lap winged 360 sprint car main event. As leader Casey Schmitz approached the white flag, two slower cars made contact in front of him, resulting in Schmitz slamming into one of those cars and coming to a stop. While Schmitz sat there dejected, Marvel inherited the lead. The race restarted with two to go, and Marvel rocketed to a good size lead and won his first career winged 360 sprint car main event. It was an impressive accomplishment for him, and Harley Vandyke owned No. 5f. Marvel calls Indiana home but recently relocated to nearby Red Bluff. Marvel will be a nice addition to the Northern California sprint car driver roster. Brian McGahan Jr. continued to impress and finished second. Chase Majdic made a rare Marysville start and finished third. Carson Hammes held his own to finish in fourth. Dawson Hammes was on the gas all night and drove up to a fifth-place finish. McGahan Jr. earned the fast time award with a blistering 12.283. A total of 16 cars competed tonight.
Jason Ballentine cruised to a popular win during the 20-lap Crate Sprint main event. Ballentine led all 20-laps in convincing style. The mover and shaker of the night was Misty Castleberry. The many times track champion had her elbows up as she charged from ninth to second. It was by far the most impressive drive of the entire night. Seventh place starting Carl Droivold was also impressive. Droivold avoided mistakes and finished in a respectable third place. Jeff Macedo was able to hold off Kelly Hicks for the fourth-place finish. It was an all-star night of racing for the Crates as they continued to shine at Marysville Raceway. Jason won the first heat and David Sims grabbed the honors for heat two. It was a clean sweep for Ballentine. A solid 16 drivers put on a great show tonight for the fans. Ballentine Brothers Racing, along with Castleberry, were kind enough to give-a-way hats after the Crate Sprint heat races were conducted.
Three different drivers held the top spot during the 20-lap Hobby Stock feature event. Jacob Bright led the first five laps. On lap six Gary Holsey was credited with the lead. But on lap seven, Kyle Cheney drove into the lead and never looked back. It was an impressive win, and much needed, as Cheney has been fast all season. Phillip Shelby pressured Cheney the final lap but was unable to make the pass. Joe Gillock has also been up front all season and finished third. Point leader Zach Lindgren rebounded from an early flat tire to finish fourth. Bright rounded out the top five. Howard Law, who had come into the race as the point leader, had an unfortunate night that ended on lap five with a crash in turn four. Sebastian Davis continues to get faster and drove from his 13th starting spot to a sixth-place finish. The three, eight-lap heat race winners were Cheney, Lindgren, and Gillock. Another solid field of 24 cars competed during tonight’s race.
Full results are located at https://speedhive.com/Events/2173229
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