Braden Chiaramonte 3rd Fastest Qualifier at Placerville Last Week – Racing at Stockton on Saturday - Speedway Digest

Braden Chiaramonte began his run for the Sprint Car Challenge Tour “Rookie of the Year” award last Saturday at Placerville Speedway’s “Spring Fever Frenzy.” The young driver will be right back at it this Saturday night for round #2 of the SCCT season in the “Asparagus Cup” at the Stockton Dirt Track.

A talent-laden field of 48 winged sprint cars showed up at the famous red clay banked quarter-mile Placerville track for the 2023 SCCT opener. For Chiaramonte, it would only be his fifth time in a winged 360 sprint car. That was hard for fans to fathom when the 16-year-old set the fastest time in the first group of 12 cars during qualifying with a dazzling lap of 10.703. For those unacquainted with the teen star, that was quite a surprise. However, not quite as startling as that time making the teen the third fastest of all 48 drivers at the conclusion of qualifying.

After the sensational qualifying lap, Chiaramonte, who traveled 552 miles from his El Cajon, California home to compete in Placerville, started on the outside of row two in the first heat race. A fifth place or better finish in that 10-lapper would put him straight into the 35-lap “Spring Fever Frenzy” main event. However, in turn one on the first circuit, the teen slipped over the top lip of the track and came to a halt. That brought out a yellow flag for the field and a trip to the back of the pack for Chiaramonte for the restart.

The second try to start the heat was an almost exact replay of the first as another car slid off the top forcing another yellow flag. The third attempt to start the race ended up worse as two cars got together and flipped necessitating a red flag. Fortunately, neither driver was injured. Finally, the fourth time was the charm and all 10 laps were completed. Unfortunately, Chiaramonte finished eighth. That forced him into the B main.

The talented teen’s last opportunity to get into the A main would come in the B. The top four finishers in the 15-lap race would earn a ticket to race in the main event. The remainder would be done for the night. Pitted against a field of talented, seasoned veterans, Chiaramonte was going to have his work cut out for him. He started on the inside of the fifth row in the ninth position. Midway through the race he advanced up to seventh before he eventually slipped back to 10^th. That ended his night earlier than he wanted.

Each time Chiaramonte took to the red clay surface, he gave a good account of himself. Being that it was only the fifth time he has raced a winged 360 car, it is evident that big things are on the horizon.

This Saturday, Chiaramonte and his team will make another long trek to compete in the SCCT-sanctioned “Asparagus Cup” at the Stockton Dirt Track on the San Joaquin County Fairgrounds. The gates will open at 4:00 p.m. and the first race is at 5:30. Adult tickets are $30.00. It is $25.00 for kids 5-12, and seniors 65 and over. Children age four and under are free. Pit passes are $40.00 and parking costs $10.00. The fairgrounds is located at 1658 S. Airport Way in Stockton, California (95206). The office phone is (209) 466-9999 and the website is http://stocktondirttrack.com/index.html.

Chiaramonte would like to thank all his sponsors who have made this week’s races possible. RTL Traffic Control, AM Ortega, King Racing Products, Tiner-Hirst Enterprises, and Keizer Wheels.

As the full 2023 season is just starting to unfold, Chiaramonte and his team are making plans for a busy year. If you are interested in becoming a marketing partner with one of the most talented and personable young drivers in the sport, please feel free to call or e-mail Daniel Chiaramonte mailto:[email protected] or (619) 988 7563.

Braden Chiaramonte 2023 Results

January 13 Tulsa SageNet Center Chili Bowl Midget Nationals 14^th A Main

January 14 Tulsa SageNet Center Chili Bowl Midget Nationals 12^th C Main

March 11 Imperial Valley Raceway So Cal Non Wing Open Comp Sprints 9^th A Main

March 11 Imperial Valley Raceway Best of the West Lightning Sprints #2 1^st A Main

March 18 Perris Auto Speedway USAC/CRA Sprint Cars 16^th A Main

March 24 Placerville Speedway Sprint Car Challenge Tour 10^th B Main

April 1 Stockton Dirt Track Sprint Car Challenge Tour

Braden Chiaramonte PR