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Marysville CA - July 7,
2007 ---
As the seventh day of the month in the seventh month of the seventh year, Saturday was being classified by many as the luckiest day of the century. Placerville sprint car driver Andy Gregg surely felt as if it was. After a season of short comings and stolen victories, Gregg rolled himself a seven during the seventh round of the Civil War Series at Marysville Raceway Park to claim his first ever win in the traveling campaign.
Gregg’s recent victory is his first to take place in California. The former moto crosser and Placerville native that is known as “The Hurricane” to his counterparts has previous feature win to his name, however that feat took place in the Pacific Northwest several season’s ago. Additionally Gregg is the second straight driver from the Placerville area to win a Civil War race this season. Placerville’s Jimmy Trulli won the sixth leg of the series just two weeks ago on his home track.
Although Saturday’s win didn’t take place on his home track, Gregg certainly earned the win at Marysville Raceway Park Saturday night. Competing against 36 of California’s best drivers, Gregg used great patience and caution to work his way to the front of the field from the 14th starting position.
At the waving of the green flag series point leader and defending champion Andy Forsberg of Auburn took the lead while fellow two time series champion Mike Henry of Sacramento followed the leader from the second starting position. Forsberg and Henry dueled for the lead position throughout the early laps of the race along with Mark Hall of Grass Valley, a former Marysville track champion who worked into the top three on the second lap, stealing the bridesmaid position from Henry until the sixth lap when Henry rallied back behind Forsberg.
On the ninth lap both Forsberg and Henry fell from the top runners to the rear of the field when they both were unable to work their way through a rough area of turns one and two. Forsberg was unable to travel through the area smoothly and when his #92 sprint car began to go out of control he collected Henry in the transition and both drivers fell to the rear of the field.
On the eleventh lap of the event Gregg worked his way into the top five positions behind new leader Mark Hall, Mike Monahan, Brett Rollag and Greg DeCaires. Gregg moved into the fourth position on the 15th lap and into the top three on lap 21 behind DeCaires who had taken the lead from Hall on lap earlier. After overtaking Hall for second place on the 22nd lap, Gregg set his sights on DeCaires for the lead and closed in on the top position. In the final six laps of the event Gregg reeled his #16x sprint car closer to DeCaires and stole the lead in the closing laps of the event, much like he has had races taken from him in recent weeks.
At the finish line Gregg was followed by DeCaires, Hall, Monahan and Rollag at the checkered flag. In earlier events on Saturday night DeCaires won the B feature followed by fast qualifier Jeremy Burt and Shawn Amos. Rick Kraushar won the C-feature. Heat races were won by Gregg, Mike Benson, Courtney Dozier and Justin Johnson.
The Civil War Series will next compete at Petuluma Speedway on Saturday, July 21. For complete results and series point standings visit
www.johnpadjenmotorsports.com.
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