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Industry RacingThe Grand Industry Hills Expo Center 2018 Kids Gumball Rally Sebastian “Big Daddy” Palmese overcame adversity to capture the 2018 Junior 250 Gumball Rally Championship. “Gentleman” Jake Isaac’s 14 points made him top scorer and afforded him the first opportunity to pick his starting gate. Isaac didn’t wait long before picking gate one. Landon Norton was next and he chose gate two. Anthony Dion selected gate four which left Palmese with gate three. One start wasn’t going to be enough to complete the main as a crash in turn three brought out the red flag and forced a restart. Palmese made the usually difficult gate three work as he shot to the lead as the field entered turn one. Isaac and Norton battled for second place as they raced down the back straight. Palmese led through lap one and Norton secured second and set his sights on the leader. Palmese wasn’t going to be denied, though, and the defending Junior 250 National Champion led comfortably to the finish. Norton settled for second, Isaac finished third, and Anthony Dion was fourth. Alex Martin opened the day with a win over Timmy Dion. Isaac was victorious in the second heat despite needing three starts to complete. Anthony Dion led the third heat but Palmese used the outside to take the lead on lap two and race away with the win. Norton finished the first round with his first win. Enzo “The Rabbit” Sorani began the second round with a victory. Anthony Dion defeated Isaac in the next heat. Palmese made it two straight wins by defeating Norton. Landon Collins beat Dylan Wagner to end round two. Isaac started round three by defeating Palmese who finished second despite losing his right foot peg. Norton scored his second victory in the next heat. Lightcap beat Greg Moore in event 21. Anthony Dion earned his second consecutive victory to complete the third round. Wagner began the fourth round by holding off Lightcap for the win. Palmese was cruising to victory when he suffered an expensive engine failure and handed the victory to Collins. Anthony Dion defeated Aidan McNutt for his third straight win. Isaac scored a pivotal victory over Norton to end round four. Norton held off Anthony Dion for his third win to start the final round of heats. Moore defeated Andrew Russell in event 38. Isaac secured first choice in the main with a win in the penultimate heat. Palmese finally shook the mechanical gremlins and won the final heat to secure a place in the Final. Travis Horn led all four laps en route to victory in the Mini 150 Gumball Final. Owen Williams finished second, Jose Navarrete was third, and Colton Nelson finished fourth. The Mini 150 heats commenced with Harley Fisher scoring the victory. Nelson defeated Navarrete in the next heat. Horn ended the first round with his first win. Nelson started the second round with a win over Horn. Navarrete scored his first win in the next heat. Gordon Teuber III finished round two with an impressive victory. Wilbur Hancock went from third to first in two laps for a hard-earned victory to begin round three. Fisher beat Navarrete for his second win. Williams completed the third round by defeating Horn. Navarrete started the final round of heats with a victory that placed him in the Final. Williams won the next race followed by Nelson with both racers making the Final. Horn held off Justin Almon to win the last heat and earn his place in the Final. The Pee Wee Gumball Final featured a battle that was only made greater by the fact that it happened twice. Drake Conner and Ken Matsudaira raced side-by-side for three laps but a crash by Conner Salazar brought out the red flag. Despite seeing the white flag, the close proximity of the two racers meant the referee couldn’t declare a clear winner and he ordered a restart. Once again, the two racers were wheel-to-wheel the entire distance. One race would edge ahead only for the other to take the lead back. When the checkered flag was shown it was Conner who got to the finish first. Matsudaira was a close second, Nick Hohlbein finished third, and Salazar was credited with fourth. The Gumball Rally is one of the most prestigious events on the American Speedway calendar. It was first held in 1983 at Ken Maely’s ranch in Corona, California. The event was the brainchild of youth speedway parents John Gordon and Bill Felts. The winner that day, Bobby Cody, received a gumball machine as the trophy. The event was held at that location for the better part of a decade before going on hiatus when the Southern California junior program became almost non-existent. World Champion Billy Hamill, whose first competitive race was at the inaugural event, resurrected it in 2003. After moving from Maely's Ranch, Perris Raceway, and Pirate Speedway, the event has found a permanent home at Industry Racing. Gumball machines continue to serve as the jewel the victors take home. In addition, money is raised and many sponsors donate product to distribute to the participants. It has truly become a can’t miss event. Junior 250 Gumball Final (restarted) Mini 150 Gumball Final Pee Wee Gumball Final (restarted) Mini 150 Heat Scoring 1 2 3 4 T Pee Wee Heat Scoring 1 2 3 4 T
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