A head-on crash on the road severely injured Tony Noceti and his wife, Rowena, on Sunday. The promoters of Stockton 99 Speedway and the Stockton Dirt Track remain in critical condition.
“Ro is making progress,” the Nocetis’ daughter, Danica, told us on Tuesday. “Dad pulled through on his surgeries today, but still remains in critical condition in the ICU. He will have to have other surgeries. All we are asking for is prayers!”
The California Highway Patrol said that the Nocetis were driving on State Route 88 in dense fog when an oncoming vehicle passed another oncoming car and collided head-on with the Nocetis’ car. All involved, including the other driver, incurred critical injuries. A bystander stopped to aid them immediately after the crash occurred. First responders took the Nocetis to San Joaquin General Hospital.
The Noceti family asked for privacy and did not want visitors at the hospital where the Nocetis are being treated.
Tony Noceti revitalized several events and institutions in Stockton. He reopened Stockton 99 Speedway in 2011 and then opened the Stockton Dirt Track in 2013. Outside of racing, Tony Noceti, a wheat and hay farmer, is well known, too.
Stockton Mayor Christina Fugazi acknowledged their contributions to the Stockton community.
“The work they did at the Stockton 99 Speedway, they are the ones who brought back the Asparagus Festival, and they brought the Garlic Festival to Stockton. They are just amazing community partners,” Fugazi told CBS Sacramento.
At the San Joaquin County Fairgrounds, where the Stockton Dirt Track is, the Nocetis brought the World of Outlaws sprint cars, monster trucks and tractor pulls into the area.
“The fairground would not have survived its most turbulent times without Tony,” fairgrounds CEO Daniel Castillo told CBS Sacramento. “The community owes not just him, but the family a really big gratitude.”
How can you help Tony Noceti and his wife, Rowena?
“Truly, the most meaningful thing you can offer is your continued prayers for our parents,” Danica said.
Mike Adaskaveg has written hundreds of stories since the website’s inception. This year marks his 54th year of covering auto racing. Adaskaveg got his start working for track photographer Lloyd Burnham at Connecticut’s Stafford Motor Speedway in 1970. Since then, he’s been a columnist, writer, and photographer, in racing and in mainstream media, for several outlets, including the Journal Inquirer, Boston Herald, Stock Car Racing, and Speedway Illustrated. Among Adaskaveg’s many awards are the 1992 Eastern Motorsport Press Association (EMPA) Ace Lane Photographer of the Year and the 2019 National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) George Cunningham Writer of the Year.
