Hooper Races to Unchallenged Saugus Victory

One week ago, Lance Hooper won the 40-lap Sportsman main event at Saugus Speedway, but the Palmdale driver was disqualified during post-race inspections.

Unfazed, Hooper started second during Saturday night’s 40-lap event and seized the lead on the back straightaway of Lap 7. It was a blowout from there as Hooper blazed unchallenged to the main-event win before a crowd of 3,754.

Gary Sigman of Carson moved into second on Lap 38 and hung on to beat Keith Spangler of Northridge. Russ Beckers of Sepulveda finished fourth.

The race featured the surprise return of Reseda’s Larry Krieger, who is coming off a neck injury suffered nearly a month ago.

Krieger said that his doctors cleared him to race officially on Wednesday and he jumped at the news.

“My neck’s a little tired,” Krieger said after a night of qualifying. “But once the green flag dropped, I forgot everything.”

Krieger’s return lasted just 18 laps, however, before he developed car trouble that forced him to the pits.

In the Street Stock oval main event, five yellow flags weren’t enough to slow Ken Maler of Castaic. Maler, starting fifth, slowly nudged his way up and wound up winning the 25-lap event by passing rookie Scott Dinger of Simi Valley on Lap 21.

Dinger’s wide turn in Turn 2 relegated him to fourth while Maler and teammate Dave Blankenship of Reseda went 1-2. Ed Horst of Canoga Park took third.

In earlier races, points leader Dave Phipps of Simi Valley won his second Grand American Modified main event in the division’s second run at Saugus. Phipps took the lead on the fourth lap when leaders Charles Schardt of Chatsworth and Chris Hamilton of Hanford tied up in Turn 2. Sigman took second.

In the 15-lap Mini Stock main event, John Petsco of Newbury Park slid past Jim Peacock of Granada Hills on Turn 4 of the final lap to win.

Earlier in the night, Hooper drove his way to an eight-lap fast heat win in the Sportsman Division. Other fast-heat winners included Phipps (Grand American Modified), Doug Thornton of Ventura (Mini Stock) and Horst (Street Stock Oval).