Catchfence

D.J. Kennington and Ron Sheridan are off to sunny California in late January to join other top drivers from across North America in the NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown.

NASCAR announced Friday its short-track racing showcase will return to Toyota Speedway in Irwindale on Jan. 28-29.

This is the eighth running of the event that’s grown into the “Daytona 500 of short-track racing” and will be highlighted by the 225-lap all-star race.

“The NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown is the premier event of our short-track calendar,” said George Silbermann, NASCAR managing director of racing operations. “This weekend shines the spotlight on our champions and the sport’s rising stars.”

The main event is in three sections — two 100-lap segments preceding a 25-lap dash to the finish. Last year, Joe Gibbs Racing driver Joey Logano, 20, became just the second driver to win two Showdowns.

The race features secured starting spots for the 2010 champions of NASCAR’s developmental series and race winners of the NASCAR K&N Pro Series from the 2010 season. Kennington, from St. Thomas, won the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series and has a guaranteed starting spot.

His next race is the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Kroger 200 at Martinsville, Va., on Oct. 23. He was 17th out of 36 drivers in the March race at Martinsville, won by Kevin Harvick.

- Jim Cressman / The London Free Press