David Taft Wins California Clash #2 – Aiden Lange Takes the Point Lead Torrance, CA — March 10, 2026 — Ramona, California’s David Taft scored the win in round #2 of the California Clash Series, which pits the California Lightning Sprint Cars against the SoCal Lightning Sprints, last Saturday night at Imperial Valley Raceway. 2025 CLS champion Aiden Lange came away from the two nights of racing with both the CLS and California Clash point leads. David Taft on his was to victory in the CLS/SCLS California Clash main. Missy Benker photo. Two drivers who competed on Friday were not back for Saturday’s race. Riverside’s Drake Cardey, who set the fast qualifying time before blowing an engine moments later, and Manu Tatum, who did not get a lap in on Friday, were both absent. However, San Diego’s Landon Dalton made his season debut on Saturday night, bringing the car count to 18—just one fewer than the night before. Lange, who resides in Lakewood, set the fastest time in qualifying with a 12.534. Friday night winner Jeff Dyer of Yucca Valley was second quickest at 12.603. The third-best time was a 12.636 turned in by El Cajon’s Braydin Collie. “Shugah’” Shane Sexton was fourth fastest at 12.638, and 2024 SCLS champion Ryan Dumas of San Diego rounded out the top five with a 12.656. Camarillo's Cody Nigh captured the first eight-lap heat race of the night when he beat Lange and Sexton to the checkers. The second heat race went to Taft, who bested Dumas and Torrance veteran “Rockstar” Jon Robertson. The third and final heat race was taken by three-time Lightning Sprint Car champion Brent Sexton of Lakeside, who finished ahead of his teammate Collie and 2025 SCLS champion Peter Benker of Alpine. Taft, who finished eighth on Friday, started on the pole in his AG Sand Cars/Kitchen Barn/Outhouse Coffee #54. Alongside him was Nigh. The second row was comprised of Sexton-Gatlin Racing teammates Brent Sexton on the inside with Collie to his outside. Champions Lange and Dumas made up row three, with Robertson and Shane Sexton in row four. Taft got the jump at the start and led the opening lap over Dumas, who picked up three positions on the first lap. Brent Sexton and Nigh were third and fourth. However, the driver who made the biggest move on the first lap was rising young open-wheel star Brayden Chiaramonte of El Cajon. Starting 10th, he raced around five cars and was up to fifth by the end of the first circuit. Taft built a small but comfortable lead, but much of the crowd’s attention was focused on Chiaramonte. He hounded Dumas until lap seven when he raced by him for second. Continuing his charge, he pulled up to the back bumper of leader Taft. The teenager tried both high and low lines to get by Taft and kept the pressure on until he slipped high in turn one on the 13th circuit. That allowed Taft to open a small lead, but it disappeared on lap 14 when Parker Dumas, Ryan’s twin brother, went up in smoke in turn one. In a strange twist, Ryan Dumas rolled to a stop in turn three during the caution, and like his brother, he was done for the night. The pair finished 16th and 17th. Unlike the previous night when three yellow and three red flags plagued the race, Parker’s yellow was the first of the 20-lapper. Only one more caution would follow. That second caution came just seconds after the green lights came back on for the restart. As soon as the race resumed, Chiaramonte slowed and the caution came out. He was done for the night with an electrical problem in the Sexton-Gatlin Racing #3C. For the second and final restart, Collie, Lange, Nigh, and Shane Sexton were stacked behind the leader. Taft, Collie, and Lange soon pulled away from the rest of the field, with Taft and Collie breaking away by themselves with four laps remaining. Collie hounded Taft until a slip up the track gave Taft a comfortable lead on the final lap. The mistake nearly cost Collie second place as Lange charged hard when the white flag waved. Out front, Taft cruised around the final lap and won with nearly half a straightaway to spare. Collie managed to hold off Lange for second. Veteran Nigh was fourth, and fifth went to USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series star AJ Bender of San Diego, who started 13th. That charge through the field earned Bender the Hard Charger Award. Taft’s victory was his first with the CLS. His other Lightning Sprint win came at an SCLS race at Barona on June 8, 2024. Defending CLS champion Lange’s pair of third-place finishes over the weekend placed him in the CLS and California Clash Series point leads. California Highway Patrol Officer Jeff Dyer sits second and trails the leader by 17 points. Taft, Benker, and Shane Sexton round out the top five. Next up for the CLS will be its first race in 2026 at its home track, Ventura Raceway, on March 21. Round three of the six-race California Clash Series between the CLS and the SCLS will take place at Perris Auto Speedway on August 29. For updates and complete series information, follow the California Lightning Sprint Car Series on Facebook or visit the official website at racecls.com. The CLS would like to thank the following companies for being partners in the 2026 season. Motor City Buick/GMC, American Racer Tires, T Shirts By Timeless, Advanced Racing Suspension, BR Motorsports, Competition Suspension Incorporated, Diablo Fabrication and Design, Eibach Springs, Extreme Mufflers, EZ UP, The Joie of Seating, King Racing Products, Outlaw Wings, RacingJunk.com, RC Fuel Injection, Rod End Supply, Saldana Racing Products, SpeedMart, and Triple X Race Components. If you would like to join the CLS and be a marketing partner, please contact Jon Robertson via email at jon.robertson@sbcglobal.net or by calling (310) 367-9050. Qualifying: 1. Aiden Lange, 12.534; 2. Jeff Dyer, 12.603; 3. Braydin Collie, 12.636; 4. Shane Sexton, 12.638; 5. Ryan Dumas, 12.656; 6. Brayden Chiaramonte, 12.727; 7. Cody Ngh, 12.803; 8. Jon Robertson, 12.828; 9. Brent Sexton, 12.841; 10. Parker Dumas, 12.899; 11. David Taft, 13.025; 12. Peter Benker, 13.095; 13. AJ Bender, 13.104; 14. Landon Dalton, 13.224; 15. Tyler Warner, 13.287; 16. Cody Benker, 13.400; 16. 17. Kelly Weitzel, 14.021; 18. Liam Coffey, No Time Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. Nigh, 2. Lange, 3. Shane Sexton, 4. Cody Benker,5. AJ Bender, 6 Parker Dumas Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. Taft, 2. Ryan Dumas, 3. Robertson, 4. Dyer, 5. Dalton, 6. Weitzel Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. Brent Sexton 2. Collie, 3 Peter Benker, 4. Chiaramonte, 5. Warner, 6. Coffey Main Event – 18 Laps 1. David Taft, Ramona, CA (1st) 2. Braydin Collie, El Cajon, CA (3rd) …+1.230 3. Aiden Lange, Lakewood, CA (6th) … +2.286 4. Cody Nigh, Camarillo, CA (2nd) … +2.974 5. AJ Bender, San Diego, CA (13th) … +4.074 6. Shane Sexton, Warner Springs, CA (8th) … +4.837 7. Brent Sexton, Lakeside, CA (4th) … +6.043 8. Jeff Dyer, Yucca, Valley, CA (9th) … +6.528 9. Peter Benker, Alpine, CA (11th) … +7.119 10. Cody Benker, Alpine, CA (12th) … +7.662 11. Jon Robertson, Torrance, CA (7th) … +8.151 12. Tyler Warner, Alpine, CA (15th) … +8.885 13. Landon Dalton, San Diego, CA (14th) … +9.375 14. Kelly Weitzel, El Cajon, CA (16th) … +1 Lap 15. Brayden Chiaramonte, El Cajon, CA (10th) … +7 Laps 16. Ryan Dumas, San Diego, CA, (5th) … +7 Laps 17. Parker Dumas, San Diego, CA (17th) … +7 Laps 18. Liam Coffey, Riverside, CA (18th) … +20 Laps Motor City Buick/GMC California Lightning Sprint Car Point Standings 1. Aiden Lange … 252 2. Jeff Dyer … 235 3. David Taft … 224 4. Peter Benker … 223 5. Shane Sexton … 216 6. Braydin Collie … 206 7. Cody Benker … 195 8. Brent Sexton … 189 8. Cody Nigh … 189 9. AJ Bender … 189 CLS vs SCLS California Clash Points 1. Aiden Lange … 252 2. Jeff Dyer … 235 3. David Taft … 224 4. Peter Benker … 223 5. Shane Sexton … 216 6. Braydin Collie … 206 7. Cody Benker … 195 8. Brent Sexton … 189 8. Cody Nigh … 189 9. AJ Bender … 189 2026 Motor City Buick/GMC California Lightning Sprint Car Series Schedule March 6 CLS/SCLS Clash #1 Imperial Valley Raceway - Jeff Dyer March 7 CLS/SCLS Clash #2 Imperial Valley Raceway – David Taft March 21 CLS Ventura Raceway April 4 CLS & 305 Sprint Cars Santa Maria Speedway April 18 CLS Bakersfield Speedway/Kern May 30 CLS Ventura Raceway June 13 CLS Ventura Raceway June 27 CLS vs BCRA Civil War Race Merced Speedway July 4 CLS & USAC/CRA Sprint Cars Santa Maria Speedway August 29 CLS/SCLS Clash Race #3 Perris Auto Speedway September 19 CLS vs BCRA Civil War Race Merced Speedway September 25 CLS with World of Outlaws CLS/SCLS Clash #4 Bakersfield Speedway September 26 CLS with World of Outlaws CLS/SCLS Clash #5 Ventura Raceway October 17 CLS Ventura Raceway October 24 CLS Ventura Raceway November 21 CLS/SCLS Clash Race #6 Barona Speedway To keep up with the CLS online, please visit the website at http://racecls.com/ and follow on the club’s Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/californialightningsprints. PAST CALIFORNIA LIGHTNING SPRINT CAR CHAMPIONS 1994 Tony Everhart, 1995 Gary Sexton, 1996 Rob Sczymczak, 1997 Jon Rahe, 1998 Chris Rahe, 1999 Brent Sexton, 2000 Greg Bragg, 2001 Greg Bragg, 2002 Greg Bragg, 2003 David Cardey, 2004 Keith Janca, 2005 Johnny Bates, 2006 Donny Gansen, 2007 Shane Rossen, 2008 Brent Sexton, 2009 Stuart Hielschier Sr., 2010 Jarrett Kramer, 2011 Tim Brown, 2012 Bobby Michnowicz, 2013 Stephen Limon, 2014 Bobby Michnowicz, 2015 Bobby Michnowicz, 2016 Bobby Michnowicz, 2017 Bobby Michnowicz, 2018 Jarrett Kramer, 2019 Jarrett Kramer, 2021 David Gasper, 2022 David Gasper, 2023 Bobby Michnowicz, 2024 Bobby Michnowicz, 2025 Aiden Lange Special Thanks to Wendy Michnowicz and Ed Haney Video. This press release was produced by Scott Daloisio Sports (909) 226-7768 mailto:sdaloisiosports@gmail.com