5/28/2023
Dereck Ramirez
Trio of USMTS top-10 finishes for Ramirez over Memorial Day weekend
Woodward, Oklahoma’s Dereck Ramirez took part in four straight nights of racing against Summit United States Modified Touring Series (USMTS) foes over the Memorial Day holiday weekend, beginning with the 20th annual Southern Minnesota Spring Challenge.
The three-day program at the 3/8-mile Deer Creek Speedway (Spring Valley, Minnesota) kicked off on Thursday with 46 USMTS Modifieds registered for competition. Ramirez piloted his Koda Services Inc. No. 4R to a seventh-place result in his heat race and 10th in his B-Main, forcing him to use a provisional to qualify for the 30-lap, $3,000-to-win feature. He gained five positions in the race to finish 19th.
After a tenuous start, Ramirez returned to form over the next two nights, which each brought 52 USMTS Modifieds to Deer Creek.
On Friday, Ramirez set the second-quickest qualifying time in his group and drove from fifth to second in his heat race. He began the 40-lap, $5,000-to-win A-Main from the inside of the third row and ran as high as second mid-race before finishing seventh.
Saturday saw another strong outing from Ramirez as he turned in a second-place effort in his heat race and another runner-up result in his B-Main. He rolled off 17th for the night’s 50-lap, $10,000-to-win finale and drove forward eight spots to register a ninth-place result.
USMTS action then shifted to West Union, Iowa, on Sunday for the 10th annual War in West Union at the 3/8-mile Fayette County Speedway. Twenty-seven cars were on hand to compete for the $10,000 winner’s share. Ramirez finished eighth in his heat but transferred to the 40-lap main event with a third-place finish in his B-Main.
From his 17th starting position Ramirez charged forward to gain eight positions and come home ninth.
After the four-day swing, the 2021 series champion is seventh in the USMTS point standings.
Full results are available at www.usmts.com.
Article Credit: Tyler Rinken image