Venegas repeats scratch main win at Fast Fridays in Auburn

Charlie Venegas has come alive and found his groove, winning his second scratch main event in a row at Fast Fridays Motorcycle Speedway in Auburn. Venegas won July 16 and was on it again Friday night. Venegas, 54, a veteran of nearly 25 years on a speedway bike and with a racing résumé too long to list, was perfect in the scratch program. Venegas, lucky in the lane draw, lined up in number 1. Next in 2 was Tyler Warren, in 3 was Billy Janniro, and way out in 4 was Louie Mersaroli. From the gate, Venegas got a good start and hopped onto the track's well-worn blue groove in turn 1 and just rode it like a magic carpet to the end. Giving chase was the pesky Warren, but there was not much of an option for passing on the dusty track and the skillful Venegas took the checkered flag and made two victory laps. Warren was second, Janniro third and Mersaroli, who slid out on lap three, finished fourth. The streak continues, with all scratch main-event wins coming out of lane 1. Venegas joins Bart Bast and Janniro with two scratch main wins this season. Warren, who has only been in the lineup three times this season, looked like he hasn't missed a beat, winning the handicap main event. Tough all night in handicap and scratch, Warren was perfect in the handicap program, also winning his heat race and semifinal. Mersaroli was second and Bast was third. In an event that has become a crowd favorite, Team SOS increased its lead over Team CHP in the Team Challenge. Teams of two compete for points based on finish position in three races. In the first race, Bast and Mersaroli of Team SOS presented an excellent example of team racing, working together to keep Janniro and Blake Borello of Team CHP at bay to pick up first and second place and adding five points to their score. Rheten Todd also picked up a first-place finish for Team SOS, adding three points. Venegas won his race and picked up three points for Team CHP. Venegas leads the series for both teams with an individual score of 11 points. The total score for the fourth round was Team SOS 13, Team CHP 5. Team SOS now has a commanding 41-31 lead in the series. The challenge series continues Aug. 13 and ends with the final Aug. 20. Elsewhere, Rees Todd claimed his fourth main event victory of 2021 in Division II. Greg Moore was second and Derik Denzin was third. Jeff Powell was first in the Division III main event, his second victory this season. Powell won his heat race also. Marc Denniston was second and Tim Rott was third. Slater Lightcap made the trip from Southern California worthwhile by winning the Youth 250 main event. Alex Martin was second and Levi Luetz was third. National AMA 2020 Youth 150 champion Nick Hohlbein showed why he wears the No. 1 plate on his bike, winning the main event. Hohlbein was perfect in his class, winning all his races. Caden Cavrikas was second and Jameson Hutchinson was third. The Extreme Sidecars return to Fast Fridays on Aug. 6. Fast Fridays results for July 30 Scratch main event: 1. Charlie Venegas, 2. Tyler Warren, 3. Billy Janniro, 4. Louie Mersaroli. Handicap main event: 1. Tyler Warren, 2. Louie Mersaroli, 3. Bart Bast. Division II main event: 1. Rees Todd, 2. Greg Moore, 3. Derik Denzin. Division III main event: 1. Jeff Powell, 2. Marc Denniston, 3. Tim Rott. Youth 250 main event: 1. Slater Lightcap, 2. Alex Martin, 3.Levi Leutz. Youth 150 main event: 1. Nick Hohlbein, 2. Caden Cavrikas, 3. Jameson Hutchinson. SOS Team Challenge (round 4): Team SOS 13, Team CHP 5. Total series score: Team SOS 41, Team CHP 31.