April 22nd Stockton Calif
Alex Pruett delivered a solid drive in the "Gerhardt Open Wheel Classic" 100 lap feature at Stockton 99 Speedway Saturday night. In his first pavement appearance in the Western Speed Racing ride Alex delivered on his promised potential as a young development driver for a team that is considered by most to be the best USAC midget team in the country.
Against a tough field of Western Regional hot shoes who race regularly on this track Pruett put on a quietly impressive show by qualifying 5th and finishing fourth. Knowing that 100 laps can hold a lot of surprises he rode comfortably around 7th or 8th all night and then mounted a charge with 20 laps to go that got him to fourth and in a position to challenge for 3rd and even 2nd when the checker came out and fixed his fourth place status. The field included national stars such as Alex's teammates Michael Lewis and Billy Wease as well as several past Western States Champions such as Tony Hunt, Jerome Rodella and Chase Barber.
Rick Lew and Rick Gehardt, owners of Western Speed Racing. were very pleased with the young driver echoing " Alex ran the exact race we asked him too and followed direction very well. He showed patience and maturity as well as speed and outstanding car control." Many of the young guns lost their chances of a good run early with self induced spins on the tricky banked oval. "For Alex to come in here and beat many of the best in the West on their home track was impressive especially since he did not test at Stockton prior to this weekends event" said one fan who had observed Alex for the first time when he raced SCRA sprintcars.
Alex fought off a late race charge by Chase Barber 2005 Focus Champion who in frustration rammed Pruett several times in the late laps of the race but couldn't mount enough speed to pass cleanly. Pruett just smiled when asked about this and said " after racing USAC sprint cars in Indiana it takes more than that to break my focus"
Alex expects to compete in several USAC national races this year in sprints and midgets.
