FOR ORLEANS RACING AT IRWINDALE

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (July 29, 2002) – Austin Cameron entered the JaniKing 200 at Irwindale (Calif.) Speedway knowing the car he was driving won all three NASCAR Winston West Series races on the half-mile oval last season. It was important to him to extend that streak to four consecutive wins for Orleans Racing. And that is exactly what he did by putting the NAPA Auto Parts/Martin Senour Chevrolet in victory lane on Saturday, July 27.

 (photo courtesy of Denny Strimple)

"I’m glad we could continue the tradition for the No. 16," Cameron said later. "We had an awesome car." Brendan Gaughan, who dubbed the car "Bad Andy," drove it to victory at Irwindale three times last year.

This year’s event took on a slightly different complexion, however, with 164 consecutive laps of green flag racing. "This is where the pit stop strategy came into play," Cameron pointed out. "The Winston West hasn’t gone that many laps here without a caution. It was more like a (NASCAR) Winston Cup race than ever. It was a pretty neat feeling to be in a race like that with live pit stops in front of the fans and come out with the victory. It really says a lot for the pit crew and being able to make the adjustments."

Cameron crossed the finish line with a margin of victory of .347 of a second at an average speed of 76.062 mph. He netted $12,766 in prize money and posted awards, including the Gatorade Front Runner Award and the Bud Pole Award. The 25-year-old turned a fast lap of 94.817 mph in time trials, winning his third consecutive pole award and his fourth in five races.

Chasing Cameron across the finish line was Eric Norris of Dana Point, Calif., in the JaniKing/Ultra Wheels Ford. Kevin Richards of Spokane, Wash., was third in the Monaco Enterprises Chevrolet. Fourth went to Greg Pursley of Newhall, Calif., in the American Diabetes Assoc/King Taco Ford – while Johnny Borneman of Ramona, Calif., was fifth in the MotorSportDirect.com Ford. Rounding out the top 10 were Scott Gaylord, Mike David, Brandon Ash, Brett Thompson and Todd Burns.


The race featured eight lead changes among six drivers – Cameron, Richards, Gaylord, David, Borneman and Norris. The race was slowed by just two cautions for 20 laps.

Cameron was able to shave 10 points off the lead Norris holds in the championship standings – 1,009 to 967. Richards is third with 936, while Mike Duncan is fourth with 875 and David is fifth with 859. Completing the top 10 are Pursley at 850, Ash at 835, Borneman at 834, Gaylord at 812 and Thompson at 796.

David continues to hold a slight edge in the tightly contested battle for the Stage 8 Locking Fasteners Rookie-of-the-Year Award. He leads with 54 points over Pursley with 52 and Thompson with 50.

With the victory, Chevrolet has moved back into the lead in the chase for this year’s Manufacturers’ Championship. Chevrolet has 45 points and three wins, while Ford has 43 points and also three wins. Pontiac follows with 26 points, while Dodge trails with six points.

The next event on the NASCAR Winston West Series schedule is the Stockton Speedway Dodge Country NAPA Auto Parts 200 presented by JaniKing and ProLong at Stockton (Calif.) 99 Speedway on Aug. 17.

View The Winston West Series On NASCAR.com With Results - Standings & Driver Profiles