Preston Peltier Looks to Add Fifth Showdown to his Resume But First at Kern County Raceway

For immediate Release: Spears Srl Southwest Tour Series

Bakersfield, CA – Preston Peltier enjoys a good Showdown Throw down, as he has four victories in the big money Showdown events on the West Coast. He has three victories in the Summer Showdown at Evergreen Speedway, and scored the victory in last February’s All-Star Showdown at Irwindale Speedway. But the one Showdown that has evaded the now Las Vegas, NV resident, is the Winter Showdown at Kern County Raceway. On March 20th, Peltier will have another shot at knocking off the third West Coast Showdown event victory, in a bullet of his own making.

Peltier will return to Kern County Raceway, looking to score another $10,000 in his Sigma Performance Services Super Late Model, with a chassis of his own design. It will be Peltier’s sixth appearance in the event where he has two top-five and three top-10’s. His best effort was in the 2019 edition of the event where he finished third. The 2010 PASS National and Southern Series Tour Champion debuted his new Super Late Model chassis at the October Classic, also at Kern County Raceway last season. The car  was fast, setting the Performance Friction Brakes Zero Drag Fast Time Award. He challenged Derek Thorn for the win in the event, until a flat tire ended his effort.

The Sigma Performance Services Team has been working on the new chassis with starts at the SRL LVMS Bullring and Dirt Track race followed by the Snowball Derby at 5 Flags Speedway. Their efforts paid off in spades when Preston scored the $30,000 victory in the All-Star Showdown. The former World Crown 300 winner will now ride that momentum into the Winter Showdown, where the car has already proven to be potent.

“Well, momentum is a real thing, and it works both ways”, Peltier stated. “With that said, I really feel like we have a great SPS (Sigma Performance Services) setup for Kern. It would be great to keep the streak up, but I look at it a little different. We may win or may not, more importantly is we need to learn every time we hit the track with this new P1 (Peltier Chassis #1).”

To win the Winter Showdown, the five-time Easter Bunny 150 winner at Hickory Motor Speedway, knows if is critical to qualify well and position yourself near the front of the field. In a field full of fast Super Late Models, track position is of high importance.

“Track position is critical at Kern” Peltier explained. “It is hard to pass even if you’re faster. Some guys know how to hold you down and keep you held at bay. The other is tire management, you can hurt these tire very quickly if you’re not careful.”

Peltier will have a strong team behind him at the Winter Showdown, and he will be one of the favorites. He is thankful for his team and the sponsors that support him.

“I would really like to thank Joe Farre’ and the entire SPS Team for this opportunity”, Peltier expressed. “I would like to also thank our sponsors Swift Springs, Buzze Racing and Tilton Engineering.”

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.

The Sixth Annual Winter Showdown will be the first event at the paved ½-mile to allow fans in the grandstands, since the Covid-19 shutdowns. Fans can purchase a “Fan Pass” at the front gate for $30. Those gates will open at 11:00 am. 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”.