Jacob Gomes Rolls into Winter Showdown with Momentum and Confidence

For Immediate Release: SPEARS SRL Southwest Tour Series

Bakersfield, CA – 2015 Spears Srl Southwest Tour Series Champion Jacob Gomes has returned to championship form over his last five SPEARS SRL Southwest Tour Series starts, scoring top-five finishes in each of those events. Gomes will now turn his attention to the Spears Manufacturing “Winter Showdown 150” at Kern County Raceway, hoping to take home $10,000 for his efforts on March 20th. The event will follow up the $30,000-to-win “Sunrise Ford All-Star Showdown 200” at Irwindale Speedway, where he finished fifth, after qualifying second of the 44 participants.

Gomes has recently found success on the fast ½-mile tri-oval, finishing fifth at the October Classic and then third in the 2020 season finale. Prior to that, Gomes had registered only three top-five finishes in 18 career starts. Those included four Winter Showdown appearances, with a best finish of 15th in 2016. With his recent success at Kern and his strong run at Irwindale, Gomes is anticipating a strong effort at this year’s Winter Showdown.

“I’m looking forward to it, after we have had some great runs”, Gomes stated. “We have really been enjoying our performance as of late, since we had a huge back luck streak. I really think we have a better chance than ever at winning the Showdown, since our performance over these last two or so races.”

The 2021 version of the Winter Showdown will include a different format with Qualifying setting the line-up for the Qualifying Heat Races. The top-eight will redraw for position in the Fast Heat and race for position at the front of the field. The remainder of the field will be split into “Odd” and “Even” Heat races. The remainder of the line-up will be determined by the finish of these events.

For Gomes, the Heat Races will be an additional challenge, but with 150 laps of competition in the feature, it will not be the most critical element of the weekend, as getting to the end of the event will be paramount.

“I think starting position might be harder (with the Heat Races), but overall, you’ve got to be there at the end”, Gomes replied.

The seven-time winner in the series will be making series start number 109, an all-time SRL record. Gomes sits third in all-time top-five’s with 39, and second in top-10s with 67. He also has six poles, which ties him for fifth all-time. He has been quite successful during qualifying, placing inside the top-five 51 times, behind only Derek Thorn. If Gomes can take home the checkered flag for win number eight, as well as lead at the halfway break, he can increase his career earnings to $147,500.

With all his success in the series, the 2009 NASCAR Advanced Auto Parts National Rookie-of-the-Year is thankful for the support he has received, allowing him to continue to set new standards in his career.

“I’d like to thank the same supporters that we always do: Sunnyvalley Smoked Meats, Dell’Osso Farms, my mom and dad as well as Dennis and Julie Arbini, Studio 10 Wraps, and David’s Racing Products.”

The Sixth Annual Winter Showdown will see 150 laps of competition, with a halfway break at lap 75. Half of the purse will be awarded at that juncture. Championship points will not be awarded until the completion of 150 laps. $5,000 will be paid to the leader at both lap 75 and 150, for a possible $10,000 payday. Single car qualifying will be followed by three Qualifying Heat Races to set the line-up for the Feature event. The top eight cars in qualifying will draw for position in their Heat Race, then race for their opportunity to sit on the pole for the prestigious event. The remaining cars will be split into “odd’ and “even” Heat Races, to set the remainder of the scheduled 36-car field. The Spears Modified Series and Kern County Raceway Super stocks will join the action.

For those who are unable to attend, you can catch all the action live at www.SpearsRacing.TV and on a delayed basis on MAVTV, the Motorsports Network.

Celebrating its twenty-first season in 2021, the SPEARS Southwest Tour Series is a regional stock car series competing on paved ovals in the southwestern portion of the U.S. “The SPEARS Southwest Tour Series…Where the Champions Race”.