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A Perfect Ending For Manteca Mini Cup Driver
By KELLY JONES
BEE STAFF WRITER
Last Updated: August 31, 2005, 04:45:27 AM PDT
Manteca's
Jacob Gomes won his quota of mini-cup races long before Saturday.
The 12-year-old capped a perfect season by winning the West Coast Nationals at Roseville's All-American Speedway.
Gomes cruised to an uncontested victory in the 50-lap race, beating racers from California, Oregon and Washington.
Brother Josh Gomes, 10, finished ninth.
Gomes was supposed to be tested by Arron Stanley, who was dominating the American Mini Cup Racing series in Washington.
Jacob Gomes made it play like all hype.
He
qualified fastest at 15.23 seconds around the quarter-mile track, won the trophy
dash and sped away with the
victory.
"I looked up in the mirror and saw the second-place guy going up the straightaway when I turned," Jacob Gomes said. "I wanted there to be a lot more competition."
But he's not complaining. Last year Gomes won just four races during the 2004 California Minicup Racing Association season.
He surprised himself by winning his first four races in 2005.
"I got to
beat my record, so I thought I might as well win 'em all," Gomes said.
"All" equaled 13 races, including Saturday's. It probably would have been 14, but one race got rained out.
The only directive from his father Paul” Don't wreck the car.”
"It's like 'Okay dad,'" Gomes said. "We'll be winning and he's been saying it for 13 weeks, “Don't wreck the car.' Like it's a curse or something that makes you win."
Paul Gomes let his eldest son play spotter for Josh during the B main Saturday.
Jacob took some credit for telling Josh where to go as he moved up from 10th to third place in the first five laps.
Then Jacob gave the radio back to his father.
"I couldn't take it," Jacob said. "I couldn't talk to him and run the stopwatch at the same time."
Josh finished fourth in the B main.
Jacob isn't sure he'll race an entire season next year. He wants to help his little brother and possibly move up a division to baby grands.
Next up for the boys may be an open show Sept. 17 in Roseburg, Ore., the same weekend the NASCAR Grand National West and Southwest Series are at Douglas County Speedway.
"We're still going to go there for the win," Jacob Gomes said. "We want to win them all."
