Industry Hills Speedway
The Grand Arena
Industry Hills Expo Center
City of Industry, California
Speedway
June 21, 2023 - Industry Hills Speedway
Results and Photo By Ryan Evans
The Industry Hills Speedway Scratch Main Event (inside - outside):
Dillon Ruml, Broc Nicol, Wilbur Hancock, Max Ruml.
The finishing order was M.Ruml, Nicol, D.Ruml, and Hancock (engine failure).
Industry Hills Speedway, CA, USA - June 21
2021 AMA Speedway National Champion “Mad” Max Ruml fought off a fierce challenge from Broc Nicol to win the Scratch Main Event on Kingson Mold and Machine Night at Industry Hills Speedway.
Dillon “Pickle” Ruml was undefeated entering the main event and that afforded him the first choice of starting position. He chose gate one. Nicol, who swept all of the Scratch Mains last week, selected gate two. Max Ruml quickly picked gate four and that left 2020 Youth National Champion Wilbur Hancock to start in gate three in his first Scratch Main Event.
The Ruml Brothers gated ahead of the Nicol and Hancock and entered turn one together. Max Ruml used the plentiful outside dirt to propel himself into the lead while Nicol charged up the inside of Dillon Ruml for second. Max Ruml dropped in front of Nicol entering turn three and led through the first lap. Dillon Ruml was preparing an outside attack but that was thwarted because the leader chose the wide line through turns one and two. Max Ruml entered turn three with the dilemma of choosing the outside line to protect against his brother or the hug the pipe and block Nicol’s challenge. He actually raced the middle and it allowed Nicol to gain precious ground. Max Ruml stayed in the outside cushion on the third lap but his lead narrowed as he had to go very deep into turns three and four. Nicol shrewdly put his front wheel inside the pipe and found enough grip to take a slight lead at the white flag. Max Ruml had enough momentum to drop in front of Nicol in turn one but his speed carried him wide and they were even exiting turn two the final time. They battled into the final corner with Max Ruml just off the inside line and Nicol employing the same strategy he utilized the previous lap. They drag raced to toward the finish and it was Max Ruml getting the better of Nicol by a half-wheel. The crowd gave a thunderous applause to both racers for their spectacular battle. Dillon Ruml finished third and Hancock was fourth.
Nicol opened the evening with a victory over Hancock and Tim Gomez. Max Ruml defeated Shawn “Mad Dog” McConnell and Justin Almon in event two. Dillon Ruml beat Michael Wells and Bobby “Boogaloo” Schwartz to end round one.
Max Ruml started round two with a win ahead of Nicol and Wells. Dillon Ruml scored his second straight victory by defeating McConnell and Joey Donaldson. Hancock ended the second round by defeating Jordan Vanderham and Schwartz.
Gomez was awarded a must-need victory after a crash behind him brought a premature end to event 18. Max Ruml used the outside to earn his third consecutive win ahead of Hancock and McConnell. The final heat race provided great entertainment with Dillon Ruml and Nicol swapping the lead multiple times before Dillon Ruml took control for the win to match his brother’s perfect score.
Dillon Ruml won the first semi comfortably ahead of Hancock who would join him in the main. Nicol swept around the outside and won the second semi with Max Ruml getting second to also transfer to the main.
Gomez held a slight lead through the first corner of the Scratch Consolation but McConnell found traction on the inside and they were side-by-side on the back straight. Gomez went wide and McConnell’s inside line gave him a slight lead exiting turn four. Gomez’s momentum gave him the lead entering turn one and he took control on the back straight. McConnell went down in turn three with Wells quickly laying his machine down behind him. The 64-year-old was down for a few minutes but was able to exit the track with some assistance and a sore leg. Gomez was awarded the win, Wells was credited with second, Schwartz was third, and McConnell was relegated to fourth.
Harold Hartke led the Second Division Main Event through the first lap but was being stalked by Kevin Fiore. Hartke went wide in turn two and Kevin Fiore blasted through the opening and took the lead. Kevin Fiore made no mistakes from there and led to the finish. Eloy Medellin was second, David Newsham finished third, and Hartke faded back to fourth.
Pastor Bob Peet was the led the start of the Third Division Main Event for the second straight week. He was leader through two laps but Tony Rutledge had gone around the outside of the field to get himself into second. Peet was still the leader beginning the final lap just as he was last week before losing the lead in the final corner. Peet led on the back straight but Rutledge was now within striking distance. They raced through the final corner and it was Rutledge who was first to the checkered flag by a narrow margin. Peet, who had to feel struck by lightning for the second straight week, was second, second-generation racer Ryan Bacarella finished third, Paige Newsham was fourth, and Greg Willis finished fifth.
Four racers lined up at the tapes with Ryder Schultz 50 yards back to start the Mini 150 Main Event. Hudson Jones was the first of the quartet to the first bend and held the lead through the first lap. Schultz made up the stagger on the field pretty quickly but the tough work was ahead. Hudson Jones led through the second lap but Schultz had weaved through the field to second. He set after the leader and closed ground rapidly. He took the lead at the end of lap three and never looked back from there. Schultz claimed the victory. Hudson Jones finished second, Kayd Fiore was third, Morgan Myers finished fourth, and Maddux Myers was fifth.
The Pee Wee Main Event presented a unique circumstance in which Jett Ferré was handicapped one full lap. In order to win, he had to complete four laps before Leilah Rivera completed three. Ferré turned in three very fast laps and had Rivera in his sights on the last lap. Rivera was leading in the final corner but Ferré was closing fast. Everyone in attendance braced for a close finish when the duo turned toward Tom Fox’s checkered flag. Rivera finished first by a narrow margin with both racers receiving loud accolades from the crowd.
Ace Kale and Brent Smith led the Sidecar Main Event from the start but had Joe Jones and Tom Summers planted on their back tire throughout the first lap. The same scenario played out the previous Saturday at Costa Mesa Speedway with both teams ending up on the infield after contact. Ace Kale and Smith got off the inside line the second time they came out of turn four and that’s all it took for Joe Jones and Summer to snatch the lead. They cruised to the finish to earn the victory. Ace Kale and Smith were second and Kevin Kale and Mike North finished third.
The next event at Industry Hills Speedway will be Legends and Heroes Night on Saturday, July 1. The two Saturday events have both provided large crowds and this event will be no different. Many of American Speedway’s most notable competitors from the past will be present. They will also be signing autographs near the entrance prior to the first race.
RESULTS
Scratch Main Event
5 - Max Ruml
98 - Broc Nicol
3 - Dillon Ruml
117 - Wilbur Hancock (engine failure)
Scratch Consolation (awarded)
30 - Tim Gomez
214 - Michael Wells
11 - Bobby Schwartz
6 - Shawn McConnell (fell)
Second Division Main Event
159 - Kevin Fiore
178 - Eloy Medellin
111 - David Newsham
290 - Harold Hartke
Second Division Consolation
327 - Tyler Moszer
299 - Rayson Normandin
Third Division Main Event
113 - Tony Rutledge 20
373 - Bob Peet 0
197 - Ryan Bacarella 0
313 -Paige Newsham 0
215 - Greg Willis 0
Junior 250 Main Event
48 - Jose Navarrete
Mini 150 Main Event
22 - Ryder Schultz 50
15 - Hudson Jones 0
159 - Kayd Fiore 0
175 - Morgan Myers 0
175x - Maddux Myers 0
Pee Wee Main Event
48 - Leilah Rivera
25 - Jett Ferré (one lap handicap)
Sidecar Main Event
7 - Joe Jones/Tom Summers
357 - Ace Kale/Brent Smith
07 - Kevin Kale/Mike North
First Division Heat Scoring 1 2 3 T
3 – Dillon Ruml 3 3 3 9
5 – Max Ruml 3 3 3 9
6 – Shawn McConnell 2 2 1 5
11 – Bobby Schwartz 1 1 1 3
30 – Tim Gomez 1 N 3 4
37 – Joey Donaldson 0 1 0 1
98 – Broc Nicol 3 2 2 7
117 – Wilbur Hancock 2 3 2 7
137 – Justin Almon 1 0 1 2
214 – Michael Wells 2 1 2 5
Race Results
1: Nicol, Hancock, Gomez, Donaldson
2: M.Ruml, McConnell, Almon, Vanderham
3: D.Ruml, Wells, Schwartz
10: M.Ruml, Nicol, Wells, Almon
11: D.Ruml, McConnell, Donaldson, Gomez (non-starter)
12: Hancock, Vanderham, Schwartz
18: (awarded) Gomez, Wells, Schwartz, Vanderham (fell)
19: M.Ruml, Hancock, McConnell (fell, remounted)
20: D.Ruml, Nicol, Almon, Donaldson
Semi 1: D.Ruml, Hancock, Gomez, Wells
Semi 2: Nicol, M.Ruml, McConnell, Schwartz
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