PETERSEN MEDIA- After having a rare weekend off, Tanner Holmes and Tarlton Motorsports returned to action in Chico, CA for one final run in the Golden State before heading towards the Midwest. It was a solid weekend for the team that was highlighted with a thrilling second place finish during Saturday’s Mini Gold Cup finale.

“All weekend long the 21 team was working hard to continue to get our car better,” Tanner Holmes said. “Chico is a placed I have never been able to secure a good finish in a 410ci and it was great to get over that hump.”

Spending two nights at the famed quarter-mile bullring in northern California, Holmes got the action kicked off on Friday night by timing the Tarlton and Son Inc./American Rock and Rent/Executive Auto Sales backed No. 21 in eighth quickest in time trials.

Lining up on the front row of his heat race, the Jacksonville, OR driver secured a second place finish and locked into the feature event where he rolled off the starting grid from the eighth position.

On a very tricky and tough racing surface that was extremely heavy and rough, Holmes wrestled the Drew Warner prepared car around the track and managed to hang on to finish in the sixth spot.

Back in action on Saturday night with NARC for the Mini Gold Cup finale, Holmes and team continued to showcase good speed on the bullring as Holmes timed in sixth quickest in his qualifying flight before securing a win in heat race competition.

Moving into the Dash, a very action packed Dash allowed Holmes to move his way forward and improve his feature event starting position by three rows as he finished second and lined up on the front row alongside Justin Sanders.

When the race came to life, Holmes settled into second as he chased after Sanders who raced out to a comfortable lead. With a few stoppages sprinkled throughout the 40-lap affair, Holmes continued to keep pace with Sanders but wasn’t able to mount a charge for the lead.

That all changed when the white flag flew. Using the highside to his advantage, Holmes was able to charge around Sanders as the field raced through turns one and two.

As they hit the exit of turn two Holmes was able to counter Sanders’ punch and take the lead as they raced through turns three and four. In the final pair of corners Holmes slid up into a slower car and the contact allowed Sanders to drive by to take the win, as Holmes was able to gather his car up to secure a runner up finish at the line.

“I had great forward drive to get to Justin on the last lap, I just didn’t execute my final corner the best way and it cost us,” Holmes added. “Still, very proud of this team for fighting all weekend and being in position to contend for a win late in the race. I really think our wins are coming soon.”

Tarlton Motorsports would like to thank Tarlton and Son Inc., American Rock and Rent, Executive Auto Sales, Durst, Tarlton Estate and Asset Management, Bandy and Associates, FK Shocks, FK Rod Ends, Willwood Brakes, Vortex Wings, and High Performance Lubricants for their support.

BY THE NUMBERS: Races: 11, Wins: 1, Top 5’s: 5, Top 10’s: 6.

ON TAP: Tarlton Motorsports and Holmes now head to the Midwest as they meet up with the World of Outlaws this Friday and Saturday night at Knoxville Raceway.

STAY CONNECTED: Stay connected with Tarlton Motorsports by following  @Tarlton_Racing on Twitter, or becoming a fan on facebook at www.facebook.com/tarltonracing21.

PETERSEN MEDIA: Petersen Media is a PR company that can handle your public relations, marketing, and any other promotional needs. Petersen Media utilizes multiple tactics to help you reach your intended audience,  and boost awareness.

For more information contact [email protected], 916-342-3424, visit www.petersenmediainc.com, www.facebook.com/PetersenMedia or follow @Petersen_Media on twitter.