Wilkings Moves on to Las Vegas

Ray Wilkings, Saugus Speedway race promoter for 11 years before the track was closed last summer, has been named vice president and general manager of the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, which is under construction.

Lex Dudas, former general manager of Indianapolis Raceway Park, was named vice president for operations.

Wilkings is also president of a Los Angeles company that handles concession sales at four racing facilities in California and Oregon and was also concessionaire for the Super Bowl and Rose Bowl games in Pasadena.

After Saugus was closed by its owners, Wilkings announced plans to build a similar track in the Irwindale area, a project he says will continue under different management.

“I still think a short-track for stock cars is a necessity for the Los Angeles area, after the closing of Saugus and Ascot Park, and I wanted to put it together, but this opportunity in Las Vegas was too challenging to turn down,” Wilkings said.

The Las Vegas facility, a $75-million multi-racing park being built and designed by hotel owner Richie Clyne, is scheduled to open Sept. 15 with the running of the Las Vegas 500, an Indy Racing League event on a 1 1/2-mile paved oval.

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The 19-race NASCAR Featherlite Southwest Tour for late model stock cars will open Sunday at Tucson Raceway Park.

The 150-lap race on Tucson’s three-eighths-mile paved oval will have special meaning for Jim Inglebright, who finished second in last year’s Southwest Tour standings behind champion Lance Hooper.

In 1993, his first full season of racing, the team was preparing for a race at Tucson when Inglebright’s toddler daughter, Jordan, fell off a grandstand, striking support beams on the way down. She wasn’t seriously hurt.

“That was a bittersweet night,’ the Fairfield, Calif., driver said. “It was our 10th wedding anniversary, and Jordan fell right before I was to qualify. I was talking to her in the team trailer and she said she was OK.

“I had to rush out and jump in the car. All I could think about was getting back to her as quickly as I could. I could never duplicate that night, nor would I want to.”

That night Inglebright set a one-lap qualifying record that still stands and also won the race.

The race will be shown at 2 p.m. on ESPN2.

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Motor Racing Notes

INDY CARS--Indianapolis 500 veteran John Paul Jr. will drive a Lola Ford in the Indy Racing League opener Jan. 27 at Walt Disney World. It is the same car Scott Pruett drove to victory last year in the Michigan 500. . . . Alex Zanardi, a veteran of 27 Formula One races, signed with Chip Ganassi to drive a Target Reynard-Honda this season as a teammate of Jimmy Vasser in CART races. . . . Hiro Matsushita, who drove last year for Frank Arciero and Cal Wells, has taken his Panasonic sponsorship to Dale Coyne and Walter Payton for the coming CART season. The team will run Lola Fords.

AWARDS--Winston Cup champion Jeff Gordon received the Jerry Titus Trophy for getting the most votes in the American Auto Racing Writers & Broadcasters Assn. All-American team balloting. The trophy was presented by AARWBA President Dusty Brandel and Rick Titus, son of the late driver-journalist for whom the award is named, at the All-American dinner last Saturday night in Long Beach.

The U.S. Auto Club honored its Western States champions last Saturday night in Bakersfield: Billy Boat, midgets; Scott Hansen, three-quarter midgets; C.J. Mears, Russell Pro Series; and Aaron Justus, Russell championship series. Most improved drivers were Walt Johnson, midgets, and Eric Edenholm, TQs.

MOTOCROSS--Jeremy McGrath of Canyon Lake will open his bid for a third consecutive AMA Supercross championship tonight in the Citrus Bowl at Orlando, Fla. The Supercross will be at Anaheim Stadium on Jan. 27.