RJ Johnson wins second straight NASCAR Late Model race at Irwindale

R.J. Johnson of Canyon Country won his second NASCAR Late Model race in a row and extended his lead in the Late Model standings at the Toyota Speedway at Irwindale on Saturday night.
Johnson took the lead on lap 15, passing Nick Joanides who started on the pole. Joanides, the reigning Late Model champion at the track, was second, followed by Chris Holloway of Bakersfield in third.
“There is always good racing in this class,” Johnson said. “When you surround yourself with good people, it just takes the whole package to make everything right.”
Johnson maintained his lead after Joey Licata of Van Nuys spun out on lap 21. He crashed into High Point Racing teammate Brandon Davis and brought out a caution flag. Johnson has a 26-point lead over Travis Irving from Norco.
Irving won the opening night race, but was 12th in Saturday night’s race.
Joanides said his clutch was slipping and it prevented him from challenging Johnson on the restarts.
“He was just a little bit better,” Joanides said of Johnson on the restarts. “We were both close. When he was in front, he was probably safe. I was happy lose more spots. I didn’t want to see anymore restarts.”
Holloway had his best finish since finishing second on opening night.
“It’s fun,” Holloway said. “I’m not used to being in this position. It’s just a learning experience basically.”
Ryan Partridge of Rancho Cucamonga won his fourth NASCAR Super Trucks race in a row. Todd Cameron of Monrovia was second and Pat Mintey Jr. of Quartz Hill, a two-time Super Trucks champ at the track, was third.
Bill Sedgwick of Acton, a former driver in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, was sixth.
Partridge has a 12-point lead over Cameron, who has two runner-up and two third-place finishes in four races at the track.
Rich De Long III of Santa Clarita won the NASCAR Super Stocks race. It was his fourth of the season.
He won the first three races of the year and was second two weeks ago. De Long leads the Super Stocks standings at the track by 22 points over Bryan Harrell of Riverside.
Harrell finished second in the Super Stocks race, his third runner-up finish. Gary Frankovich of Barstow was third.
Eric Sunness of Chatsworth, who won the Super Stocks race two weeks ago at Irwindale, was fourth.
 Steve Stewart of Long Beach won the figure 8s race. Billy Ziemann of Bloomington was second followed by Andy Schoening of Corona was third.

Photo: R.J. Johnson of Canyon Country won his second NASCAR Late Model race in a row at Toyota Speedway at Irwindale.