Kwasniewski, who picked up his first win of the season and third of his career, started from the pole and led every lap in the first NASCAR K&N Pro Series West race at the quarter-mile track since 2006. It was also the sixth time in nine NASCAR K&N Pro Series West races at Stockton since 2002 that a race was extended past its advertised distance.

“It was definitely tough,” said Kwasniewski, who after gaining the lead on the initial start had to fend off challenges in seven restarts during the event. “The Rockstar Energy Ford was great. Everybody at Gene Price Motorsports did a perfect job of putting this car together.”

Kwasniewski was side-by-side with his Gene Price Motorsports teammate, Greg Pursley, for the start and most of the restarts; but three-time series champion Eric Holmes had battled his way to second when the final caution flew. He challenged for the lead, but Kwasniewski once again was able to gain the position and lead the field to the checkered flag.

“Eric Holmes had a chance to take me out and drive me rough, but he’s a great driver and I’m glad he did it respectively,” said the 16-year-old second-year driver from Las Vegas. “It was a great race. It was just perfect. I had a blast.”

Kwasniewski’s No. 03 Rockstar/Royal Purple Ford crossed the finish line with a margin of victory of .490 seconds.

Holmes held on for second, with David Mayhew taking third. Pursley, who held second through Lap 145, ended up fourth, with Jason Fensler fifth. Finishing sixth was Jonathon Gomez, with Derek Thorn seventh and Austin Dyne eighth. Jessica Brunelli and Ronnie Jay completed the top 10.

With his victory, Kwasniewski locked up a spot in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series race at the UNOH Battle At The Beach at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway next February during Speedweeks.

Kwasniewski also took over the lead in the championship standings. He leads with 173 points over Mayhew with 167. Pursley is third with 162 points, followed by Holmes with 160 and Thorn with 156. Completing the top 10 are Cameron Hayley at 126, Daryl Harr at 119, Jonathon Gomez at 118 and Austin Dyne and Michael Self tied with 116 each.

Kwasniewski is following up a record-setting rookie year in the series last season in which he set the mark as the youngest race winner and youngest pole winner. He capped off 2011 by becoming the youngest driver to win the Sunoco Rookie of the Year Award.

With his win at Stockton, he became the fourth different winner in four races this season. And he became the fourth driver to win from the pole this year. The last one to lead wire-to-wire, however, was Mayhew in the season opener.

The Pick-N-Pull 150 will air on SPEED on May 17 at 3 p.m. ET.

The next event on the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West schedule is the Graham Tire 150 NASCAR K&N Pro Series East-West combination race at Iowa Speedway in Newton, Iowa on May 19.

It was the 10th career NASCAR K&N Pro Series West victory for the Newhall, Calif., driver and the first of 2012 for the defending series champion.

Pursley dominated the early portion of the race and led the first 21 laps before stopping for fuel. At one point he had a more than six-second lead on Eric Holmes. After the stop he drove his No. 26 Gene Price Motorsports/Star Nursery Ford through the field and made it to second place before suffering the flat tire on Lap 39. Fortunately, Pursley discovered the tire going down at precisely the best place on the 2.2-mile road course.

“We stopped for fuel and I got back up front where I could see the lead, then I felt the tire going down,” said Pursley. “Luckily, it was right at pit entrance and I was able to come right down pit road. The guys on the crew did a super job at getting it changed quickly and we only dropped to eighth or so.”

After the near disaster, Pursley wasn’t sure if he could make it back to the lead, but the yellow flag came out on Lap 44 when Jack Sellers suffered an ignition problem. The caution tightened up the field and set up a four-lap dash to the finish line giving Pursley a puncher’s chance at the victory.

On the subsequent restart the field roared into Turn 1 where several cars made contact with one another sending everyone scrambling for daylight. Pursley took a chance and it paid off as he was able to wrestle the lead away from Austin Dyne coming to the white flag.

“Cars were everywhere and I just dove to the inside,” Pursley said. “Once I made it through, I just put my head down and tried to reel off some qualifying laps to get the lead.”

Pursley had a clear handle on the race track as he was fastest in the morning practice session before earning his 12th career Coors Light Pole Award in afternoon qualifying.

“Our team really likes road racing and I enjoy racing here,” he stated. “This was a brand new car that we brought here and it was very strong.”

Holmes, like Pursley, was able to make up some ground on that final restart and had to overcome some adversity of his own before finishing second behind the wheel of his No. 20 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota.

“We had some sort of penalty with the catch can when we stopped for fuel,” said the three-time series champion out of Escalon, Calif. “I’m still not sure what that was about, but we were able to overcome that and get a solid finish. We’ve struggled a bit to start the season, so we’ll take second place.”

Had it not been for that last caution Dyne, more than likely, would have driven to Victory Lane in just his second series start, but he was relegated to third-place finish after the Lap 47 melee.

“It went better than I thought it might in our first road-course race,” said Dyne. “But without that last caution, I think we had enough to hold everybody off.”

Pursley’s teammate Dylan Kwasniewski and Austin Cameron finished fourth and fifth, respectively. For Cameron, it was his first NASCAR K&N Pro Series West start since 2008.

Scott Ivie, Kyle Heckman, Cameron Hayley, David Mayhew and Carl Harr rounded out the top 10.

With the win, Pursley secured a locked-in starting position for the inaugural UNOH Battle at the Beach during 2013 Speedweeks on a temporary short track at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway.

After three races, Mayhew leads Kwasniewski by one point and Pursley by three in the championship point standings.

The NASCAR K&N Pro Series West will race next in the Pick-N-Pull 150 at Stockton (Calif.) 99 Speedway on Saturday, May 5.

A three-way battle between Moffitt, Elliott and Corey LaJoie developed just after the final restart, and on the white flag lap it turned into a two-horse race that saw Moffitt just nip Elliott at the line. The margin of victory was .011 seconds.

From Grimes, Iowa, Moffitt earned his eighth career victory with the Blue Ox 100 checkers. In his fourth year in K&N Pro Series East action, Moffitt has shown an ability to perform best in the largest venues. Of those eight wins, seven have come on tracks where NASCAR’s national series compete.

For Elliott, the runner-up effort was the best finish of his young K&N Pro Series East career, now with just 15 starts. He also took the points lead by four over Ben Kennedy and nine over LaJoie. LaJoie finished third, as he did at Richmond in 2011.

Rookie Kyle Larson was fourth and Brandon Gdovic fifth.

Kennedy, Bryan Ortiz, Eddie MacDonald, Sergio Pena and Michael McGuire brought home the rest of the top 10.

With the victory, Moffitt secured a locked-in starting position for the inaugural UNOH Battle at the Beach during 2013 Speedweeks on a temporary short track at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway.

Gdovic moved to fourth in points and Larson is fifth. Larson is one of three NASCAR Drive for Diversity drivers in the top 10, joined by his Rev Racing teammates Ortiz (seventh) and Gifford (eighth). The win moved Moffitt up to sixth, while previous points leader Darrell Wallace Jr. — the 2011 race winner — dropped out of the top 10 with a 28th-place finish.

The K&N Pro Series East will return to action on May 19 at Iowa Speedway in Newton, Iowa.

Thorn, who recorded his first career Coors Light Pole Award earlier in the day, waged a race-long, back-and-forth battle with Dylan Kwasniewski before charging ahead for the win in the closing laps of the Toyota/NAPA 150 presented by Gene Price Motorsports.

Thorn and Kwasniewski traded the lead back and forth in side-by-side action around the tight, quarter-mile oval following several restarts, with the pair exchanging the lead six times. Thorn eventually pulled away in the No. 6 Sunrise Ford/Lucas Oil/Eibach Ford to win by 1.010 seconds. He led four times for 141 laps, while Kwasniewski took the lead three times for nine laps.

“I’ve got to pay a tribute to the Sunrise Ford team, (car owner) Bob Bruncati and (crew chief) Bill Sedgwick and all the guys at the shop,” Thorn said of the team. “It was really hard coming here to this track, because no one had raced here. It’s hard to take something from practice and prepare yourself for a 150-lap race, because at 125 laps the car is doing something completely different than it was at Lap 50. It was a lot of guess-work, but the guys did an awesome job of putting an awesome car underneath me. I’m so thankful to be here and get this victory in (the) K&N (Pro Series).”

Thorn – who called Lakeport, Calif., home, but now resides in Bakersfield – made a point of thanking those who have helped him in his career, particularly his parents and Bruncati.

“There’s been a lot of people help me get to this point,” said Thorn, who turns 26 later this month. “I’ve got to thank my mom and dad, especially. The list is endless for the amount of people that have helped me out to get to this point in my career. I can’t thank them enough, especially Bob Bruncati.”

Points leader David Mayhew, who started seventh on the grid, got by Kwasniewski in the late stages of the race for second. Michael Self and Eric Holmes rounded out the top five.

“When the sun went down the thing came alive,” Mayhew said of his No. 17 MMI Services/Ron’s Rear Ends Chevrolet. “It was fun to come out of here with a second.”

Kwasniewski, who had previously won at Havasu in other divisions, was upbeat about the event.

“It was a great race,” he said. “I love all the fans here. I was trying as hard as I could, but it was getting a little too loose.”

Several newcomers to the series came away with a top 10 finish, meanwhile. Series rookie Cameron Hayley finished sixth, with Austin Dyne coming home seventh in his series debut. Braeden Havens was eighth, in only his second series start, while Ryan Partridge was ninth in his series debut. Defending series champion Greg Pursley was 10th.

With the victory, Thorn locked up a spot in the UNOH Battle At The Beach, to be held on a temporary oval on the back stretch of Daytona International Speedway during Speedweeks 2013.

The Toyota/NAPA Auto Parts 150 presented by Gene Price Motorsports will air on SPEED on May 10 at 3 p.m. ET.

Mayhew leads Thorn by three points and Kwasniewski by six after two races.

The next event on the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West schedule is the Utah Grand Prix at Miller Motorsports Park on April 28.

Wallace, out of Mobile, Ala., led every lap but one on the way to his first win of the 2012 season and the sixth of his series career.  Wallace’s first win came at the Greenville track to open the 2010 season.

He jumped out to an early lead and withstood challenges from Travis Pastrana and Carlos Iaconelli on a couple of early restarts. Wallace started from the pole position after qualifying was rained out and the field was set per the rule book.

Brett Moffitt, who started 21st, charged through the field and into the top five before the race’s halfway point. He took an opportunity on a Lap 126 restart to apply some pressure to Wallace. Coming out of Turn 4 Lap 128, Moffitt muscled his way into the lead, but Wallace was up to the challenge and regained the lead before the two came back around to the line.  Moffitt fell back to finish fourth.

Corey LaJoie crossed the line in the second position .868 seconds behind the race winner. Brandon Gdovic scored a career-best third-place finish while Eddie MacDonald finished in fifth, behind Moffitt.

Chase Elliott, Dylan Kwasniewski, rookie Dylan Presnell, Ben Kennedy and Daniel Suarez rounded out the top 10. Kwasniewski charged from 29th on the grid to finish seventh in his first appearance in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East. the 16-year-old had a record-setting season as a rookie in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West last year.

With his victory, Wallace locked up a spot in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series race at the UNOH Battle at the Beach at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway during next February’s Speedweeks.

The Greenville race was slowed due to caution just six times for 30 laps.

The Kevin Whitaker Chevrolet 150 will be broadcast by SPEED on May 3 at 3 p.m. ET.

The NASCAR K&N Pro Series East returns to action on Thursday, April 26 at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway.

Piquet held off a hard-charging Ryan Blaney for the victory in the season-opener for the series. Ryan Gifford finished third.

This was the first NASCAR victory for Piquet, a regular in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, and first win for a Brazilian in K&N Pro Series East history.

Driving for X Team Racing, the native of Brasilia, Brazil was the fastest across a pair of practice sessions on Friday and led the first 35 laps Saturday evening at the “World’s Fastest Half Mile” following his Coors Light Pole-winning run. Piquet inherited the lead from Corey LaJoie – who cut a tire – on Lap 101 and had to come to pit road.

Andrew Smith was fourth, followed by Derek Ramstrom, Ben Kennedy, Chad Finchum, Michael McGuire, Kyle Larson and Chase Elliott.

Action sports star Travis Pastrana finished 12th while LaJoie ended up two laps down in 22nd following his late-race misfortune.

The K&N Pro Series East will return to action on March 31 at Greenville (S.C.) Pickens Speedway

Mayhew, who split time between the series and the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series last year, collected his fourth career win. It was a near perfect weekend for the Atascadero, Calif., driver – who posted the fastest lap in practice Friday and earned his seventh Coors Light Pole Award Saturday morning. Mayhew had led 162 laps in four series races at Phoenix, but his best finish was fifth in 2010.

“We had a really fast car yesterday in practice and backed it up this morning in qualifying,” said Mayhew, who qualified late in the session. “Going out was a little sketchy. A couple of guys were getting loose down in (Turn) 1. I was watching all those guys go through the corner thinking, ‘oh man, this isn’t good.’ We got through the first lap. The second lap was awesome.”

Mayhew emphasized the importance of starting up front in this event.

“Getting the pole was really the key to the race; starting up front, getting clean air and getting out and getting away from everybody,” he said. “There were quite a few lappers, so being able to take your time when you got to them was the biggest thing – some high, some low, some both. It was definitely entertaining out there.”   

Although the second and third-place cars closed in on Mayhew at one point of the event, he pulled away to win by a margin of 1.198 seconds. Sixteen-year-old Dylan Kwasniewski came from fourth to finish second, while Daniel Suarez took third.

“It was a great race,” Kwasniewski said. “Mayhew was just way far ahead and he had a pretty good car. So it was going to be pretty hard to catch back up to him. Second place is a good finish for point standings. We’re going for the championship this year, so it will definitely start me off on the right foot.”

Defending race winner and series champion Greg Pursley finished fourth and Derek Thorn rounded out the top five. Rookie Carlos Iaconelli finished sixth, followed by Chad Boat, Eric Holmes, David Gilliland and DJ Kennington.

With his victory, Mayhew became the first to lock himself into the NASCAR K&N Pro Series race at the UNOH Battle At The Beach at Daytona International Speedway next February during Speedweeks 2013.

The NASCAR K&N Pro Series West will return to action on Saturday, April 14 at Havasu (Ariz.) 95 Speedway.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — The bright lights of the “World Center of Racing” will shine on the stars of NASCAR’s regional and touring series, as NASCAR announced today Daytona International Speedway will host the inaugural “UNOH Battle At The Beach” on Feb. 18-19, 2013.

The two-days of racing will be headlined by three non-points special events: the NASCAR K&N Pro Series, NASCAR Whelen Modified tours, and the Late Model division of the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series.

A temporary oval will be set up on Daytona’s Superstretch to host the races, It is tentatively slated to be approximately .4-mile.

“This is all about the stars of tomorrow vying for glory at Daytona International Speedway,” said George Silbermann, NASCAR vice president of regional and touring series. “During two days and nights of intense competition, fans will be able to see today’s aces of short track racing and some great young talent.”

The event will include live television coverage on Speed.

The process for setting the field for the 2013 UNOH Battle At The Beach will be:
• Winners of 2012 NASCAR K&N Pro Series East and West events as well as the series champions will automatically be locked into that series’ race at Daytona next year.
• Similarly, winners of 2012 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour or NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour races and series champions will be locked into the Modified race next February at Daytona.
• The top 10 finishers in the 2012 NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Division I national standings will earn a starting spot in the 2013 Late Model race.
• In addition, the champions of the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series, NASCAR Toyota Series from Mexico, and Euro Racecar NASCAR Touring Series in 2012 will earn a protected starting spot in whichever one of the three 2013 Daytona races they choose to run.
• The remaining spots in the 2013 Daytona features will be filled through time trials and heat races during the two days of racing next February.

”Grassroots short track racing is the foundation of this great sport and we are thrilled to give these young drivers the opportunity to fight for a win at the ‘World Center of Racing,’ ” said Daytona International Speedway President Joie Chitwood. “Many of NASCAR’s greatest stars cut their teeth on short tracks around the country and we look forward to hosting the stars of tomorrow in 2013.”

Chitwood also announced that Daytona has reached an agreement with a number of area hotels to secure special room rates for those nights next February to make it more affordable for racers and fans to attend the Battle At The Beach.

Event entitlement sponsor, the University of Northwestern Ohio, has been heavily involved with NASCAR’s grassroots racing programs. The school, which offers a degree in High Performance Motorsports, owns NASCAR-sanctioned Limaland Motorsports Park and is the sponsor of several NASCAR touring races.

Next season’s schedule features 12 dates at 12 different tracks across six provinces. The slate includes tracks and events familiar to the series, with Edmonton returning to the schedule after a one-year hiatus.

“The 2012 schedule has a great mix of tracks that will deliver the exciting racing that our Canadian fans have become accustomed,” said George Silbermann, NASCAR vice president, regional and touring series. “Each year with the help from our friends at Canadian Tire, this series continues to grow and evolve. This upcoming season should be the best yet.”

For the first time in series history, on May 20, the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series opens its season at the 2.459-mile Mosport International Raceway road course near Bowmanville, Ont. 

For the sixth consecutive year, the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series will share Montreal’s legendary Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on IÎe Notre Dame with the NASCAR Nationwide Series on Saturday, Aug. 18.

Additionally, in a pairing with the IZOD IndyCar Series, the series returns to Edmonton on the new 2.256-mile Edmonton (Alberta) City Centre Airport course that debuted last year.

Joining the Edmonton event, the annual swing through Western Canada includes two other stops: At Motoplex Speedway in Vernon, B.C., and Auto Clearing Motor Speedway in Saskatoon, Sask.

In what has become a tradition, the season will close with a new champion crowned at Kawartha Speedway, the .375-mile oval near Peterborough, Ont., on Saturday, Sept. 22.

“Canadian Tire has been a proud sponsor of the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series since 2006,” said Allan MacDonald, Senior Vice-President of Automotive for Canadian Tire. “It’s thrilling to see how the sport of racing has continued to grow over the years alongside the enthusiasm of Canadian racing fans. We’re looking forward to yet another exciting season on the track in 2012.”

Other 2012 highlights include:
•  The 2012 schedule includes races on seven ovals: Auto Clearing, Barrie Speedway, Delaware Speedway, Kawartha, Mosport Speedway, Motoplex and Riverside International Speedway; and five road courses: Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, Circuit ICAR, Circuit de Trois-Rivieres, Edmonton, and Mosport.
•  On June 2-3, the series returns to Circuit ICAR in Mirabel, Que., for the second straight season.
•  June 16 will be the series’ sixth consecutive year of competing at Mosport Speedway.
•  June 23 will mark the fourth consecutive visit to Delaware (Ont.) Speedway.
•  The wildly popular Grand Prix de Trois-Rivieres in Quebec is on tap for Aug. 4-5.
•  The Barrie (Ont.) Speedway date is set for Saturday, Sept. 8. Each of the past five trips to Barrie on this weekend has resulted in overflow crowds.
•  Riverside International Speedway, in Antigonish, hosts the series on Sept. 15. Riverside, with its high-banked turns, is a .333-mile scale version of the legendary Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway.

Subject To Change

The schedule stretches from March to November and includes visits to 13 venues in 10 states as the West’s oldest stock car racing circuit celebrates its 59th season.

“The 2012 schedule for the NASCAR K&N Pro Series reflects the continued growth of the series, with the addition of some first-time events,” said George Silbermann, NASCAR vice president, regional and touring series. “This slate of races will allow the drivers and teams to showcase their talent and provide exposure for their sponsors in key major markets across the country.”

The schedule for NASCAR’s top developmental series features the first series visit to the state of New Mexico, with an event at Sandia Motor Speedway in Albuquerque on Saturday, Sept. 29. The series will also make its first visit to Havasu 95 Speedway in Lake Havasu City, Ariz., on Saturday, April 14.

An inaugural race at Brainerd (Minn.) International Raceway on Saturday, May 26, will mark one of four road course events on tap for 2012. In addition to the Minnesota race, the schedule includes visits to Miller Motorsports Park in Tooele, Utah on Saturday, April 28; Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif., on Saturday, June 23; and Portland (Ore.) International Raceway on Sunday, Aug. 26.

The 2012 season will feature a return on Saturday, May 5, to Stockton (Calif.) 99 Speedway, which the series last visited in 2006.

A key addition to the schedule is a second NASCAR K&N Pro Series East-West combination race at Iowa Speedway in Newton, Iowa. The first combination race is set for Saturday, May 19, with a return engagement on the .875-mile track east of Des Moines on Friday, Aug. 3. Both events are in conjunction with NASCAR Nationwide Series races at Iowa Speedway.

The NASCAR K&N Pro Series West begins its 2012 campaign at Phoenix International Raceway on Saturday, March 3, and concludes the season back at the one-mile track on Saturday, Nov. 10. The Phoenix races are two of three series events in conjunction with NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.

Other 2012 highlights include:
• Four other popular short-track events on the 2012 schedule include The Bullring at Las Vegas Motors Speedway on Saturday, June 2; Evergreen Speedway in Monroe, Wash., on Saturday, July 14; Colorado National Speedway in Dacono, Colo., on Saturday, July 28; and All American Speedway in Roseville, Calif., on Saturday, Oct. 13.

2012 SCHEDULE