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New Era, Old Rivalry

By Kevin W. Green
March 26, 2008 - 1:15pm

The new era of the NASCAR Camping World Series West will feature the resumption of an on-track battle that is very familiar to fans of the series.

The return of Eric Holmes to a full-time ride in the West, has set the stage for his rivalry to be renewed with long-time friend Mike David. The drivers have accounted for the last two championships, with Holmes winning in 2006 and David breaking through in 2007.

Both drivers are second-generation competitors who hail from California’s Central Valley – Holmes from Escalon and David from Modesto.

Holmes edged David by 83 points to capture the 2006 championship. While Holmes concentrated on competing in the NASCAR Camping World Series East last year, David took an early lead and maintained that margin en route to winning the title.

When Holmes’ deal in the on the East Coast did not work out and ended after seven events last season, he returned to the NASCAR Camping World Series West. Ironically, he ended up in Victory Lane in the season finale at Altamont (Calif.) Motorsports Park — sharing the spotlight with David’s series championship celebration.

David is out to defend his championship this season, remaining with the car owner Randy Lynch and his Bennett Lane Winery-sponsored team headed by crew chief Mario Isola. Holmes, meanwhile, returns to the circuit full-time with a different team and sponsor – joining the Bill McAnally Racing team as the driver of the NAPA Auto Parts entry.

David grew up watching his father, Norman, compete at the now-shuttered Stockton (Calif.) 99 Speedway. David, who operates a race car parts and fabrication business during the week, began racing in the modified class at Stockton in 1993. He captured the rookie title in the late model class there a year later. David won the late model title at Madera (Calif.) Speedway in 1998, as well as a regional series for late models, and won the championship in a regional truck series a year later.

He made his debut in the NASCAR Camping World Series in 2001 – scoring top-five finishes in two of five races he ran that year. In his first full season in 2002, he won the Sunoco Rookie of the Year title. He moved up in the championship standings in each of the five full seasons he competed, leading up to his championship (seventh in 2002, sixth in 2004, fifth in 2005, second in 2006).

Holmes had a similar upbringing – watching his father, Steve, compete at Stockton 99 Speedway. The younger Holmes spent much of his early racing career competing in late model stock cars at tracks throughout California. He focused primarily on the Southwest Series in NASCAR’s Elite Division between 2003 and 2006. In addition to finishing second in the series standings those years, he won the Elite Division portion of the NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown in 2004.

Holmes ran a handful of races in the NASCAR Camping World Series West between 1997 and 2003. His 2006 championship season was his first full year on the circuit.