Mitchell Faccinto snags Sprint Car Challenge Tour opener in front of sold out Placerville Speedway crowd

Placerville, CA – Hanford’s Mitchell Faccinto won twice last season with the Sprint Car Challenge Tour presented by Elk Grove Ford and Abreu Vineyards and opened 2018 in stellar fashion, claiming victory in front of a sellout crowd at the Placerville Speedway on Saturday.

Faccinto put together a near perfect night aboard the Western Metal Company/ TSG Recycling No. 37, after winning the BR Motorsports heat race, the Race Punk dash and earning the Metal Works fastest lap in the A-main. The victory was a career first in Placerville for Faccinto and awarded him $4500 thanks to extra money from Elk Grove Ford and Kyle Larson Racing. Adding in the contingency prizes it bumped that number up to a solid $4800 in winnings.

“It feels great to get our first win at Placerville Speedway tonight and even better to do it on opening night with the Sprint Car Challenge Tour,” Faccinto said on the front stretch. “This place hasn’t always been our best, but my guys gave me an outstanding car tonight, so I can’t thank them enough. We had a really good year last season and hope this is a sign of things to come in 2018. We’ll use this momentum and hopefully do it again with SCCT in Stockton on April 14.”

The 35-lap feature began with Faccinto jumping into the lead ahead of fellow front row starter Michael “Buddy” Kofoid. A couple of cautions early on slowed the pace, but once lapped traffic came into play things became interesting. As Faccinto caught traffic it allowed Kofoid and Grass Valley’s Brad Sweet the opportunity to close in and make it a three-car fight for the lead. A caution on lap 21 brought the party to a stop however and gave the leaders an open track.

The remainder of the race saw Faccinto put together smooth and consistent laps and even despite catching traffic towards the end, was able to keep the field at bay and cross under the Ron Stahl checkered flag by 0.737 seconds in front of Kofoid. Faccinto also becomes the first driver to reach three career wins with the Sprint Car Challenge Tour presented by Elk Grove Ford and Abreu Vineyards.

Kofoid’s runner up finish capped off a solid night in the Van Dyke Motorsports/ Gary Silva Ranches No. 5H machine. The 16-year-old last season finished fifth in the tour standings, ironically one position behind Faccinto. T