Friday, September 30, 2016

DAV Fall Classic rescheduled to October 28th & 29th

Posted by Wayne G. Barber

Sep 29, 2016 — The 2016 DAV Fall Classic scheduled for September 30th & October 1st is being rescheduled to October 28th & 29th due to the impending weather forecast for this weekend. We hope to see everyone out for the last big race in New England before winter at Seekonk Speedway ! This event will follow the same schedule that was planned for this weekend with open practice on Friday the 28th, Fast Friday racing Friday Night and the Saturday Divisions racing a matinee on Saturday, October 29th.

Sources: SeekonkSpeedway.com

Stafford Speedway Re-Schedules Racing Event

Posted by Wayne G. Barber

Rained Out Notification

Stafford Motor Speedway

NAPA Fall Final at Stafford rescheduled to next weekend, Oct. 8 & 9.

Bonsignore Seeks To Slow Coby Once Again

Posted by Wayne G. Barber

Justin Bonsignore will look to take the top spot in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour championship standings this weekend at Stafford Motor Speedway. Michael Ivens/NASCAR via Getty Images
Justin Bonsignore’s second-half surge continued last weekend and now the Holtsville, New York, driver has the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour championship in his sights as the tour heads into the penultimate event on the schedule, the NAPA Fall Final 150 at Stafford Motor Speedway, in Stafford, Connecticut, on Sunday, October 2.

Bonsignore’s first career win at New Hampshire Motor Speedway last weekend cut deeper into three-time Whelen Modified Tour champion Doug Coby’s lead atop the standings. Coby, of Milford, Connecticut, entered Loudon with a 20-point advantage; now, his lead over Bonsignore sits at just 13 markers with two races remaining.

In the eight races since the first race of the season at NHMS in July, Bonsignore has posted seven top-five finishes, including one podium finish. All three of his wins this season have come during the torrid stretch, and he hasn’t finished worse than third in more than a month.

Don’t expect Stafford to slow Bonsignore’s march, either. In three races at the Connecticut half-mile this season, Bonsignore has three top fives.

Race:	NAPA Fall Final 150
Place:	Stafford Motor Speedway, Stafford, Connecticut
When:	Sunday, October 2
Time:	3:15 p.m. ET
Track Layout:	.500-mile slightly-banked asphalt oval
2015 Winner:	Doug Coby
2015 Pole Sitter:	Doug Coby
EVENT SCHEDULE:	Saturday, October 1 – Garage opens: 8 a.m.; Practice: 10:45-11:20 a.m.; 12-12:45 p.m.; Qualifying: 2:30 p.m. Sunday, October 2 — Garage opens: 8:30 a.m.; Driver Autograph Session: 11 a.m.-12 p.m.; NAPA Fall Final 150: 3:15 p.m.
TWITTER:	@StaffordSpeedway
EVENT HASHTAG:	#NAPAFallFinal
TRACK CONTACT:	Scott Running, (860) 684-2783, srunning@staffordspeedway.com
NASCAR IMC CONTACT:	Jason Christley, (386) 547-2469, jchristley@nascar.com

RACE CENTRAL LIVE: EVENT SCHEDULE & ENTRY LIST
FAST FACTS:The Race: The NAPA Fall Final 150 is the 16th of 17 championship points events in the 2016 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season. It is the fourth and final race of the season at Stafford Motor Speedway.
The Procedure: The maximum starting field per the official entry blank is 31 cars, including provisionals. The first 26 cars will have secured starting positions based on two-lap qualifying. The remaining five spots will be awarded through the provisional process. The race is scheduled for 150 laps (75 miles).
The Track: Stafford Motor Speedway has hosted 121 Whelen Modified Tour races in its history, second only to Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park. A half-mile, slightly-banked oval, Stafford originated as a horse racing track in the 1870s. After seven decades as a horse track, the dirt oval started holding automobile races following World War II. Stafford became a NASCAR-sanctioned track in 1959 and was paved for the first time in 1967.
Race Winners: There have been 32 different race winners across 121 races at Stafford all-time, led by Mike Stefanik’s 20 career victories. Three-time Whelen Modified Tour champion Doug Coby is the defending winner of this race.
Pole Winners: There have been 43 different pole winners at Stafford, led by Stefanik’s 17. NASCAR XFINITY Series driver Ryan Preece holds the tour’s track qualifying record at 17.924 seconds (100.424 mph), set during the 2012 Spring Sizzler.
NAPA Fall Final 150 Notes: No Place Like Home: Three-time NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion and current point leader Doug Coby of Milford, Connecticut, has had more than his fair share of success at Stafford — a track where he started his NASCAR Whelen All-American Series career. Coby has nine career wins at Stafford, and he’s twice won three in a row at the track. He won the Fall Final last season and backed that up by winning both the pole and the race in the first two Tour events at Stafford this season. Coby also won the first three events at Stafford in the 2012 season.
Looking For A Rebound: Timmy Solomito, of Islip, New York, lost a little ground in the championship race at Loudon last week. Solomito finished a career-best ninth at NHMS, but with Bonsignore and Coby finishing on the podium, Solomito dropped to 42 points behind Coby for the championship lead. Though he remains third in the standings. Solomito has had mixed results in his career at Stafford — he finished fourth in the first race there this season, but he has only six top 10s in 13 career races at the track.
Championship Mettle: Rowan Pennink of Huntingdon Valley, Pennsylvania, posted one of his two top fives this season in the tour’s first visit to Stafford in the spring with a third-place run in the famed Boehler-owned No. 3 Ole Blue. For his career, Pennink has 12 top fives and 22 top 10s in 36 career starts at Stafford, where he recently clinched his second consecutive NASCAR Whelen All-American Series SK Modified division track championship.
Rookie Uprising: Rookie Matt Swanson heads into Stafford off one of the most impressive performances of his young career — a fifth-place finish at New Hampshire Motor Speedway last weekend. The Acton, Massachusetts, driver sits 10th in the current Whelen Modified Tour standings with five top 10s in 15 races. Swanson’s best career finish to date was third in the second visit of the season to Connecticut's Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park.
Winning: Doug Coby, Timmy Solomito and Justin Bonsignore are the only Whelen Modified Tour drivers with multiple wins this season, with Coby and Solomito having Tour-leading four wins through the first 15 races. Bonsignore has three wins, including the most recent race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Ron Silk, Bobby Santos III, Jimmy Blewett and Eric Goodale won the other events on the schedule.

NASCAR Home Tracks: Stafford a busy place for NAPA Fall Final

The NASCAR Whelen All-American Series joins the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour in full force this weekend at Stafford Motor Speedway. Rowan Pennink leads the track’s SK Modified division into the final event of the season, while the SK Lights, Late Models, Limited Late Models and DARE Stocks are also on the schedule for feature events.

Wednesday, September 28, 2016

Jerry Marquis Named Grand Marshal of NAPA Fall Final Weekend at Stafford Motor Speedway

Posted by Wayne G. Barber

(Stafford Springs, CT)---Stafford Motor Speedway has announced that modified great Jerry Marquis will serve as the Grand Marshal of the 44th Annual NAPA Auto Parts Fall Final. Marquis will send the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour to the green flag for their 150-lap race with the most famous words in motorsports.

Marquis has a long and storied career in New England Motorsports. Marquis has collected over 150 feature wins and 23 track championships during his career. Marquis is also a former NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion, wining the title during the 2000 season driving the #44 car owned by Mario Fiore and he is a 2-time NASCAR Whelen All-American Series regional champion, winning the Northeast Region in 1991 and the New England Region in 1999. When it comes to his racing career just at Stafford Speedway, Marquis has some impressive numbers.

Marquis is a 3-time Stafford Speedway track champion, winning the Late Model Sportsman championship in 1980 and 1981 and he was the 1999 SK Modified® track champion driving for Rob Chowansky’s team. Marquis nearly pulled off a championship double during the 2000 season but he came up just short of Ted Christopher in the race for the SK Modified® crown while he won the Whelen Modified Crown. Marquis has won a total of 16 races at Stafford spread across the LM Sportsman, ProStock, K&N Pro Series East, SK Modified®, and Whelen Modified Tour divisions, including the 2004 Spring Sizzler. Marquis will be inducted into the NEAR Hall of Fame this year along with Ken Bouchard, Ricky Craven, Nokie Fornoro, George “Moose” Hewitt, Dwight Jarvis, and Randy LaJoie.

“It’s an honor to be asked to serve as the Grand Marshal and I kid with my wife now that this just means I’m at a point in my career where I’m old,” said Marquis. “But there’s so many drivers who have come through Stafford so this is definitely an honor. You work hard at racing and you have a lot of fun and meet a lot of people, but it’s always nice to be able to meet and talk with the fans when you go back to the track and they still recognize you and appreciate what you’ve done to put on shows for them. Being inducted into the NEAR Hall of Fame is a great honor for me and I have a lot of great memories at Stafford. I think my favorite Stafford memory was when we won the Modified Tour 300-lap race. I was running for Mario Fiore that year and having that team behind me, it was so much fun and those guys put me in position to win in more races than I can remember that season. I remember our final pit stop during that 300 I told all the guys that we’ve got this race in the bag because the car was phenomenal that day. We passed Mike Ewanitsko for the lead and it was a big accomplishment for me to be racing against Art Barry’s car and Mike was one of the hardest charging drivers that I raced against. Winning that race was a huge reward for us and I’ve had a very gratifying 34 years in racing.”

The 2016 NAPA Auto Parts Fall Final Weekend gets underway on Saturday, October 1st with practice sessions for Stafford’s Whelen All-American Series divisions, Legend Cars, TQ Midgets, Mr. Rooter Truck Series, and the Whelen Modified Tour. Action continues with Coors Light Pole Qualifying for the Whelen Modified Tour cars, along with heat races for all divisions with feature events for the SK Light, Limited Late Model, DARE Stock, Legend Cars, TQ Midgets, and Mr. Rooter Truck Series divisions wrapping up Saturday’s on track activities. The Legend Cars feature will be a national qualifier event. The NAPA Fall Final continues on Sunday, October 2nd with the NAPA Auto Parts Pit Party from 11am-12noon followed by Stafford’s SK Modifieds® and Late Models joining the Whelen Modified Tour in feature action.

Tickets for the NAPA Auto Parts Fall Final Weekend are on sale now at the Speedway Box Office. Tickets are priced at $38.50 for adult general admission tickets, $5.00 for children ages 6-14, and children ages 5 and under are admitted free of charge when accompanied by an adult. Reserved seating will be priced at $42.00 for all ages. All ticket prices include 10% CT Admission Tax. Visit your local participating NAPA Auto Parts Store for discount tickets.

Sunday, September 25, 2016

MacDonald on Top for Fifth Time at Bond Auto Parts ACT Invitational

Posted by Wayne G. Barber

Loudon, NH – Eddie MacDonald reigned supreme once again at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on Saturday, September 24, taking the lead from Jimmy Hebert with five laps to go in the Eighth Annual Auto Parts ACT Invitational en route to his fifth career victory in the event.

Rowley, MA’s MacDonald started 31^st on the grid and was running third to Williamstown, VT’s Hebert and Hinesburg, VT’s Bobby Therrien when the event’s fourth caution came out for a four-car wreck in which both Aaron Fellows and Mark Jenison made hard contact with the turn one wall. Therrien got the jump on the initial restart, but the advantage was erased when Brian Tarbell spun in turn two, bringing the caution back out before a lap was completed and thus sending Hebert back to the point.

On the second restart attempt, MacDonald dove three-wide to the inside entering turn one, completing the third-to-first pass on the backstretch. Though Hebert and Alex Labbe dogged MacDonald following a final caution for Jonathan Bouvrette’s backstretch spin on lap 46, “The Outlaw” held strong to take home the win and an $8,100 payday.

Hebert jumped to the initial lead over polesitter Kyle Welch and looked like the driver to beat for much of the event. Rowland Robinson, Jr. nosed ahead for a circuit following a lap-nine caution for an incident involving Bucky Demers and Donald Theetge, but otherwise it was all Hebert as he and Woody Pitkat drove away from the pack in the middle stages.

Therrien and MacDonald came on strong as the race entered its second half, and both had caught Pitkat when Nick Sweet spun exiting turn four to bring out the third caution on lap 35. Hebert was able to fend off a surge by both on the restart, but the pair of cautions with five laps remaining gave MacDonald the break he needed to capture the victory.

Hebert settled for second, while Labbe came from the 30^th starting position to finish third. Dillon Moltz came home fourth after starting 26^th, with Therrien completing the top-five. Tom Carey III took sixth in his first start at “The Magic Mile”. Robinson, Pitkat, Joey Polewarczyk, Jr., and Ray Parent rounded out the top-10.

The ACT Late Models head to Barre, VT’s Thunder Road Speedbowl next Saturday, October 1 and Sunday, October 2 for the 54^th Vermont Milk Bowl presented by Northfield Savings Bank. Booth Bros./H.P. Hood Qualifying Day on Saturday will feature time trials and Triple 50 qualifying races to set the 30-car starting field, with the three-segment Milk Bowl on Sunday. Mini Milk Bowls for the Bond Auto Tiger Sportsmen and Allen Lumber Street Stocks will also be on the card. Post time is 1:00pm both days. Admission is just $30 for a two-day ticket or $10 for a Saturday-only ticket, with kids 12 and under admitted free.

For more information, contact the ACT offices at 802-244-6963, media@acttour.com, or visit www.acttour.com.

EIGHTH ANNUAL BOND AUTO PARTS ACT INVITATIONAL

UNOFFICIAL RESULTS

Pos Start Pos Driver Car # Hometown Laps

( 31 ) Eddie MacDonald ( 17MA ) , Rowley, MA , 50 Laps
( 2 ) Jimmy Hebert ( 58VT ) , Williamstown, VT , 50 Laps
( 30 ) Alex Labbé ( 48QC ) , St-Albert, QC , 50 Laps
( 26 ) Dillon Moltz ( 5CT ) , Waterford, CT , 50 Laps
( 4 ) Bobby Therrien ( 5VT ) , Hinesburg, VT , 50 Laps
( 13 ) Tom Carey III ( 5MA ) , Petersham, MA , 50 Laps
( 15 ) Rowland Robinson, Jr. ( 28ME ) , Steuben, ME , 50 Laps
( 12 ) Woody Pitkat ( 07MA ) , Sturbridge, MA , 50 Laps
( 28 ) Joey Polewarczyk, Jr. ( 97NH ) , Hudson, NH , 50 Laps
( 25 ) Ray Parent ( 17RI ) , Tiverton, RI , 50 Laps
( 24 ) Jean-François Déry ( 21QC ) , Québec, QC , 50 Laps
( 10 ) Josh Masterson ( 11NY ) , Charlotte, VT , 50 Laps
( 11 ) Ray Christian III ( 93CT ) , Uncasville, CT , 50 Laps
( 21 ) Dany Trépanier ( 19QC ) , St-Edouard, QC , 50 Laps
( 18 ) Mike Ziter ( 54VT ) , Barre Town, VT , 50 Laps
( 3 ) John Donahue ( 31ME ) , Graniteville, VT , 50 Laps
( 39 ) Joel Monahan ( 03MA ) , Whately, MA , 50 Laps
( 19 ) Adam Gray ( 97MA ) , Granby, MA , 50 Laps
( 1 ) Kyle Welch ( 9NH ) , Lempster, NH , 50 Laps
( 5 ) Jeff Marshall ( 32NH ) , Guildhall, NH , 50 Laps
( 7 ) Tyler Cahoon ( 38VT ) , Danville, VT , 50 Laps
( 40 ) Patrick Cliche ( 5QC ) , Levis, QC , 50 Laps
( 20 ) Bucky Demers ( 26NH ) , Cornish, NH , 50 Laps
( 14 ) Matt Anderson ( 49NH ) , Franklin, NH , 50 Laps
( 33 ) Brian Tarbell ( 15ME ) , Springfield, VT , 50 Laps
( 34 ) Jean-Pierre Ouimet ( 59QC ) , Terrebonne, QC , 50 Laps
( 38 ) Simon Roussin ( 6QC ) , Québec, QC , 49 Laps
( 37 ) James Linardy ( 77MA ) , Somerville, MA , 49 Laps
( 32 ) Ricky Roberts ( 3VT ) , Washington, VT , 49 Laps
( 36 ) Jim Zullo II ( 10NY ) , Claremont, NH , 48 Laps
( 9 ) Chris Riendeau ( 4VT ) , Ascutney, VT , 47 Laps
( 27 ) Jonathan Bouvrette ( 41QC ) , Blainville, QC , 46 Laps
( 22 ) Brad Babb ( 15NH ) , Windham, ME , 46 Laps
( 17 ) Aaron Fellows ( 29NH ) , Croydon, NH , 45 Laps
( 16 ) Brian Tagg ( 3MA ) , Oxford, MA , 45 Laps
( 35 ) Mark Jenison ( 22RI ) , Warwick, RI , 45 Laps
( 6 ) Ryan Olsen ( 61NH ) , N. Haverhill, NH , 42 Laps
( 29 ) Nick Sweet ( 40VT ) , Barre, VT , 35 Laps
( 8 ) Quinny Welch ( 78NH ) , Lancaster, NH , 34 Laps
( 41 ) Donald Theetge ( 80QC ) , Boischatel, QC , 9 Laps
( 23 ) Patrick Laperle ( 91QC ) , St-Denis, QC , 6 Laps

Bonsignore Finds Success At Magic Mile

Justin Bonsignore celebrates in Victory Lane after winning the FW Webb 100 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, his first NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour win at the "Magic Mile." NASCAR via Getty Images

Posted by Wayne G. Barber

LOUDON, N.H. -- Justin Bonsignore knows if he's going to catch Doug Coby in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour championship race, he's going to need to all the points he can get in the final three races.
And that means finding success at a place that's long plagued him: New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Mission accomplished for the Holtsville, New York, driver Saturday afternoon. Bonsignore dominated the FW Webb 100, lead 77 laps and holding off the field in a green-white-checkered finish to score his first win at the "Magic Mile."
"It doesn't get any bigger than this," said Bonsignore. "To do it here at New Hampshire, on the big stage, hasn't sunk in yet. I don't know if it ever will. It's a huge honor to be here at honor and to be called a winner now it unbelievable."
Ron Silk finished second, followed by Coby, Sunoco Rookie of the Year candidate Matt Swanson and NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Ryan Newman.
Rowan Pennink led five laps and was in contention for the win when engine issues on Lap 98 ended his day. It also brought out the race's final caution and pushed the event to 106 laps. On the final restart, Bonsignore was able to get a push from Silk to pull away from him and Coby en route to the checkered flag.
Bonsignore entered the event with an average finish of 17.4 in 14 previous starts at New Hampshire. He had only led two laps on the 1.058-mile oval.
It was Bonsignore's 11th career win. His previous NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour victories came at his home track, Long Island's Riverhead Raceway (four wins), Connecticut's Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park (four wins) and New Hampshire's Monadnock Speedway (two wins).
It was also Bonsignore's third win of the season. More importantly, it allowed him to slice seven more points off Coby's lead. Coby, the three-time tour champion, holds a 13-point advantage on Bonsignore with two races remaining.
The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour will race in the NAPA Fall Final 150 at Connecticut's Stafford Motor Speedway on Sunday, Oct. 2, before concluding the season in Thompson's Sunoco World Series 150 on Sunday, Oct. 16.
Patrick Emerling finished sixth at New Hampshire, while Jimmy Blewett, Max Zachem, Timmy Solomito and Donny Lia rounded out the top 10.

1	9	51	Justin Bonsignore	Phoenix Communications Inc. Chevrolet	106	48	5	Running
2	6	82	Ron Silk	Horton Avenue Materials Chevrolet	106	43	1	Running
3	4	2	Doug Coby	Dunleavy Repair/A&J Romano Const Chevrolet	106	41		Running
4	18	89	Matt Swanson *	Spafco Race Chassis/FMR Racing Chevrolet	106	40		Running
5	5	7	Ryan Newman	Menards/Aggressive Hydraulics Chevrolet	106	39		Running
6	13	7	Patrick Emerling	Buffalo Auto Auction Chevrolet	106	38		Running
7	8	4	Jimmy Blewett	Starrett Tools/Mayhew Tools Dodge	106	37		Running
8	19	20	Max Zachem	Lu-Mac's Package Store/VWS Chevrolet	106	36		Running
9	12	16	Timmy Solomito	Diversified Metals Ford	106	35		Running
10	7	8	Donny Lia	Sypher Construction/Bardahl Chevrolet	106	34		Running
11	15	9	Chase Dowling	S&S Asphalt Paving/Dunleavy's Repair Chevrolet	106	33		Running
12	16	46	Jeff Goodale	Riverhead Building Supply Chevrolet	106	32		Running
13	20	75	Shawn Solomito	Eastport Feeds Chevrolet	106	31		Running
14	21	71	Jimmy Zacharias	Horton Avenue Materials Chevrolet	106	30		Running
15	10	64	Rob Summers	HTE/Dell Electric/Complete Const. Chevrolet	106	29		Running
16	11	58	Eric Goodale	GAF Roofing Chevrolet	106	28		Running
17	22	99	Jamie Tomaino	Dunleavy's Repair/Atlantic Sprinkler Chevrolet	106	27		Running
18	26	26	Gary McDonald	Lakeland Landscape /TRC Electric Chevrolet	106	26		Running
19	23	33	Wade Cole	Perf Engines/Kendall Oil/Johnson Chassis Chevrolet	106	25		Running
20	3	3	Rowan Pennink	Cape Cod Copper/Canto Paving Chevrolet	98	25	1	Engine
21	25	38	Gary Byington *	Perf Engines/Kendall Oil/Johnson Chassis Chevrolet	91	23		Handling
22	17	56	Craig Lutz *	Lutz Motorsports Chevrolet	67	22		Accident
23	14	36	Dave Sapienza	SAP Enterprise/Wine Country Chevrolet	52	21		Accident
24	1	85	Woody Pitkat	Stuart's Automotive Chevrolet	27	21	1	Accident
25	24	1	Melissa Fifield	Eastern Propane & Oil Chevrolet	19	19		Clutch
26	2	44	Bobby Santos	Tinio Corp./Dan Kelley/Curb Records Chevrolet	14	18

Saturday, September 24, 2016

2016 Final Top Division 1 Driver Standings

Posted by Wayne G. Barber

Despite coming up short to Matt Bowling, it was another banner year for Keith ( Kid Rock) Rocco.
The 31-year-old from Wallingford, Connecticut, won 14 races and collected 30 top fives and 39 top 10s in 45 starts in the Modified divisions at Connecticut’s three tracks: Thompson, Stafford Motor Speedway, and New London-Waterford.
RACE-BY-RACE:
Keith Rocco, the 2010 national champion, finished in the top five in the national standings for the ninth straight season. He also won his ninth straight Connecticut championship. Rocco has races remaining at Thompson and New London-Waterford. While they won’t count toward national or state standings, those events do go to the track’s respective championships. If Rocco were to win both – he holds the points lead at each track – it would give him 13 career NASCAR Division I track titles and move him into a tie for third all-time.

Wayne Burroughs Jr.,#20 who has competed in the Mini Stock Division at Connecticut's New London-Waterford Speedbowl and Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park, finished third.

1	Matt Bowling	Southern Natl, East Carolina, Motor Mile, S Boston, Kingsport, Anderson, Caraway, Dominion	49	14	35	42	678
2	Keith Rocco	Stafford, Waterford, Thompson	45	14	30	39	672
3	Ty Majeski	Lacrosse, Madison Intl,Rockford, Elko, New Smyrna	26	14	21	25	669
4	Nick Smith	Dominion, S Boston	21	12	18	19	638
5	Lee Pulliam	S Boston, Myrtle, Southern Natl, Motor Mile, Caraway	35	16	26	29	629
6	Trevor Huddleston	Irwindale, Tucson	22	11	21	22	627
7	Ted Christopher	Waterford, Stafford, Thompson	36	3	21	30	607
8	Rowan Pennink	Thompson, Stafford, Waterford	29	6	19	26	606
9	Taylor Holdaway	Sunset	24	7	14	19	605
10	Nick Joanides	Irwindale	21	9	19	20	595

Wednesday, September 21, 2016

Whelen Mod Tour News & Notes: NHMS

Posted by Wayne G. Barber

Doug Coby continues to pace the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour field as they head back to New Hampshire Motor Speedway this weekend. Adam Glanzman/NASCAR via Getty Images

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Separated by just 36 points at the top, the top three drivers in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour standings are putting on a show as the season roars through its stretch run into the F.W. Webb 100 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, New Hampshire, this weekend.
In each of the last two races on the schedule, Doug Coby, Justin Bonsignore and Timmy Solomito have occupied all three of the podium spots at the checkered flag. Coby and Solomito have four wins apiece this season — including Coby’s win at Oswego Speedway and Solomito’s win at Seekonk Speedway in the two most recent races — with Bonsignore sandwiched between the two of them. Coby, of Milford, Connecticut, leads Bonsignore by 20 points and Solomito by 37.
Coby, Bonsignore and Solomito finished 1-2-3 at Oswego, and then the trio finished 3-2-1, respectively, at Seekonk. In the race at Riverhead, prior to the stop at Oswego, Bonsignore and Solomito finished first and second.
Nobody is giving an inch, and they now take the championship battle to Loudon, one of the few tracks on the schedule where wild point swings are common. Last season, for instance, Coby — who has four career Loudon wins — qualified on the pole but was caught up in a mid-race accident and finished 30th.
Even though Bonsignore and Solomito are searching for their first wins on the largest oval on the schedule, everyone knows that Loudon is once again key to any serious championship aspirations.

Race:	F.W. Webb 100
Place:	New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Loudon, New Hampshire
When:	Saturday, September 24
Time:	3:30 p.m. ET
Track Layout:	1.058-mile asphalt oval
2015 Winner:	Doug Coby
2015 Pole Sitter:	Doug Coby
EVENT SCHEDULE:	Friday, September 23 – Garage opens: 6 a.m.; Practice: 10-11:20 a.m.; Qualifying: 2:30 p.m. Saturday, September 24 — Garage opens: 10:30 a.m.; Driver Autograph Session: 11-11:45 a.m.; F.W. Webb 100: 3:30 p.m.
TWITTER:	@NHMS
EVENT HASHTAG:	#FWWebb100
TRACK CONTACT:	Kristen Lestock, (603) 513-5708, klestock@nhms.com
NASCAR IMC CONTACT:	Jason Christley, (386) 547-2469, jchristley@nascar.com

FAST FACTS:
The Race: The F.W. Webb 100 is the 15th of 17 championship points events in the 2016 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season. It is the second and final race of the season at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
The Procedure: The starting field is 36 cars, including provisionals. The first 32 cars will qualify through the two-lap time trial qualifying process while the remaining four spots will be awarded through the provisional process. The race will be 100 laps, spanning 105.8 miles, and there will be a 5-minute break at or near Lap 51.
The Track: This is the 65th race for the Whelen Modified Tour at the 1.058-mile slightly banked oval, dating back to September 1990. The Tour has held two races annually at the the track every year since 2001, with the lone exception coming in 2011 when three races were contested at the track.
Race Winners: There have been 20 different winners in the 64 previous Whelen Modified Tour races at Loudon. Mike Stefanik leads all drivers with eight career NHMS wins.
Pole Winners: There have been 26 different pole winners at NHMS, led by Jan Leaty with six career poles. Doug Coby has four career starts from the top spot.
F.W. Webb 100 Notes:
Coby Is ‘Magic’: Three-time NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion and current point leader Doug Coby of Milford, Connecticut, has won the last two Tour races at ‘The Magic Mile,’ including the most recent race at the track in July. In this race last year, Coby started on the pole and led 88 laps en route to the victory. He has won four of the last eight races held at New Hampshire dating back to this race in 2012.
Not Much History: While New Hampshire Motor Speedway held it’s first Whelen Modified Tour race in 1990, Timmy Solomito doesn’t have a lot of experience with the track. Solomito, of Islip, New York, has made five career starts at Loudon and has yet to post a top-10 finish. He has three consecutive finishes of 12th at NHMS dating back to the start of last season. But, Solomito’s breakout season this year hasn’t slowed — he earned his first career Tour win at Thompson in the season opener in April, and he’s currently tied with Coby for the series lead with four wins this season, including the most recent race at Seekonk.
Kryptonite: New Hampshire Motor Speedway hasn’t been kind to Justin Bonsignore’s championship hopes over the years. The Holtsville, New York, driver has made 14 career starts at NHMS with only three top fives and five top 10s. The good news for Bonsignore is that recent history suggests he’s turning a corner — he finished fifth in this race a year ago and was eighth in the July event this summer. In 2014, Bonsignore finished third in the final Tour standings, his best career championship finish, but he finished 25th in this race that year to derail his title hopes.
He’s An All-Star: Bobby Santos III only has one official win this season, at Thompson in the second race of the season there, but he also has a win at Loudon. Santos won the annual Whelen All-Star Shootout at NHMS in July, the day before the New England 100 points-paying event. Santos might be on an upswing heading into Loudon, where he has one win and 10 top 10s in 20 career starts, after finishing fifth in the most recent race at Seekonk. That finish was the first top five for the Franklin, Massachusetts, driver since finishing third at Thompson in August.
Winning: Doug Coby, Timmy Solomito and Justin Bonsignore are the only Whelen Modified Tour drivers with multiple wins this season, with Coby and Solomito having Tour-leading four wins through the first 14 races. Bonsignore has two wins, both in the second half of the season. Ron Silk, Bobby Santos III, Jimmy Blewett and Eric Goodale won the other events on the schedule.
NASCAR Home Tracks: New Hampshire plays host to K&N Pro Series East annually
While this weekend’s F.W. Webb 100 is a companion event to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, New Hampshire Motor Speedway also plays host to the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East once each summer. The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour races there twice a season.

Nocella & McKennedy Share Maine Twin 50’s Again

Posted by Wayne G. Barber & Photos by Simply the Best, Crystal Snape

Scarborough, ME-- For the second time this season, at speedways in the State of Maine, Anthony Nocella, of Woburn, Massachusetts, and Jon McKennedy, of E. Chelmsford, Massachusetts, each captured Valenti Modified Racing Series Twin 50-lap feature races this time at Beech Ridge Motor Speedway, in Scarborough, on Saturday.

Earlier this season, in June, the pair pulled off the feat at Oxford Plains Speedway.

Both races were caution flag free and run off in 13-minutes.

In the first 50-lap go, Nocella started 12^th in a 19 car field, and smoothly worked his way to the front besting early race leader Richard Savary, of Canton, MA, and Todd Annarummo, of Swansea, MA, at the checkered flag.

The win was Nocella’s fourth of the season and his sixth VMRS win.

“ We wanted to take our time a bit and save the tires,” Nocella said in victory lane. “50-laps you have to work for it especially coming from the back. Just tried to pace ourselves. When we realized no cautions my spotter said you better get going so we went for it,” Nocella said.

Woody Pitkat, of Sturbridge, MA, and McKennedy, rounded out

the top five.

In the second 50-lap race, McKennedy rolled off in the seventh starting spot quickly making his way to the point with Nocella in hot pursuit from his 11^th starting position. Annarummo moved into third where he would finish. McKennedy would nail down his seventh win of the year and 22^nd career series victory.

For McKennedy the beat goes on.“ In the first race we started further back and finished fifth so we made some changes for the second race and obviously the car was really good. The starting spot obviously helped. We got the lead and I set my own pace.”

Nocella was runner-up “Decent car but going hard the first time the car got free we got to him and got along side but I couldn’t get by him. The guys gave me a good car. It was a good run, concluded Nocella.

Annarummo drew a few laughs from the podium. “I got the same trophy. (third place) One each for the kids so they don’t have to fight over it,” said a smiling Dad pleased with a second top three finish.

Les Hinckley, of Windsor Locks, CT, and Donnie Lashua, of Canaan, NH, finished fourth and fifth

Bill Dixon and Savary nabbed heat races.

Next event: Lee USA Speedway October 8 & 9

Beech Ridge Motor Speedway

Scarborough, ME.

Race 1 (50-Laps)

Entries- (20) 19- cars started race

Did Not Start: Matt Mead # 77 (Engine)
Cautions: None

Time of Race: 13:05:496

Average Speed: 77.754

Best Lap Time: 14.977 (Savary)

Best Speed: 80.043 (Savary)

Margin of Victory: 0.841

Unofficial Order Of Finish: (Race # 1) 1. Nocella, (2) Savary, (3) Annarummo,

(4) Pitkat, (5) McKennedy, (6) Kay, (7) Cantara, (8) Ianarelli, (9) Lashua, (10) Hinckley, (11) Schneider, (12) Willis Jr, (13) Fournier, (14) Haley, (15) Doucette, (16) Richardi, (17) Dixon, (18) Dion, (19) Sherman.

Race 2 (50-Laps)

Entries- (20) 17-cars started race

Did Not Start: Brandon Dion (Engine) George Sherman (Engine)
Cautions: None

Time of Race: 13:07:884

Average Speed: 76.907

Best Lap Time: 15.343 (McKennedy)

Best Speed: 78:133 (McKennedy)

Margin of Victory: 0.945

Unofficial Order of Finish: (Race #2) 1. (McKennedy, (2) Nocella, (3) Annarummo, (4) Hinckley, (5) Lashua, (6) Fournier, (7) Pitkat, (8) Schneider, (9) Savary, (10) Cantara, (11) Doucette, (12) Willis Jr, (13) Haley, (14) Richardi, (15) Dixon, (16) Kay, (17) Ianarelli

Tuesday, September 20, 2016

Seekonk Sports Trucks Championship Race with 1 to Go !

Posted by Wayne G. Barber

Trucks

Pos

Driver

Car #

City, State

Points

Behind

Michael Cavallaro (8 wins)

Seekonk MA

1013

Leader

Chase Belcher (2 wins)

W. Wareham MA

1000

-13

Mike Duarte (1 win)

Dighton MA

952

-61

Leonard Guy (1 win )

New Bedford MA

893

-120

Josh Hedges (1 win )

ROCHEST MA

822

50 points for win and 5 points for a heat win

Monday, September 19, 2016

Championship Line-Up starts on the Race Chatter

Posted by Wayne G. Barber

News, Results, and drivers interviews too. Live e-mail at waynewnri@yahoo.com

Tentatively scheduled for tonight at 6:15pm will be he 2016 Stafford Speedway SK Modified Champion, Rowan Pennink

Kimball Takes the Championship, Rookie Sontag Scores Second Victory

Posted by Wayne G. Barber

Photo Courtesy of NE Graphix - Cameron Sontag (Sportsman Modifieds)

Winchester, NH: This past Saturday, the fans were treated to hot racing action from all the weekly racing divisions plus the Granite State Pro Stock Tour and NE Classic Lites at Monadnock Speedway. Mike Parks won the JBH 100 race event in the Granite State Pro Stock Series followed by Barry Gray and Mike O’Sullivan. Robbie Bryant took the checkers in the NE Classic Lites.

The NASCAR Whelen All American Racing Series Championship titles were also settled with the following competitors capturing the crown; Bill Kimball (Sportsman Modifieds), Joel Monahan (Super Stocks), Solomon Brow (Mini Stocks), James Nowakowski (Thunder Stocks) and Pat Houle (Lightning Stocks).

The first division to roll onto the track were the Young Guns as Alex Barden brought the field to the green flag start. Barden held onto the lead until lap four where Shelby Avery made the pass for the number one spot as Chase Curtis followed for second. The two battled for the top spot with brother Jaret Curtis getting into the mix as he took over third. The top three ran nose to tail as Chase Curtis took the lead on lap six and Jaret Curtis moved into second. The battle continued as the top runners worked their way through lap traffic. At the checkers it was Chase Curtis followed by Jaret Curtis, Avery, Barden and Chris Sontag.

Dan Starkweather and Tim Paquette set the pace for the twenty lap feature. Paquette wasted no time to take over the lead as Ricky Whipple and Mike Stebbins followed suit for second and third. On lap five, the 2016 Champion of Pat Houle pulled off the track under green and retired for the night suffering from a flat tire. On lap seven, Paquette secure a good lead as the wheel to wheel showdown for second was between Whipple and Stebbins. Louis Maher made his move to fourth despite strong efforts from Eric Silvernale defending the spot. Paquette, on cruise control and hoping for no caution, continued to lead as Stebbins secured the second spot from Whipple. Five laps left to go, Renaud put the charge on Silvernale for fifth. Devin Guy, moving up from the Young Guns, made the pass on Silvernale and battled with Renaud for the top five as he made several attempts to make an inside pass. At the end, it was Paquette capturing his first of the season checkers followed by Stebbins, Whipple, Maher and Renaud.

Rookies Justin Littlewood and Alexander Pearl sat side by side for the start of the Mini Stock main event. At the start, Littlewood was shuffled back to third as Pearl had to defend the lead from championship contender Matt Kimball who started in fourth. On lap three, Kimball charged to the front in hopes of a win and the championship. Kimball had to finish nine spots in front of Solomon Brow. Brow, however, kept Kimball in his sight as he moved into the third spot by lap three. Louis Maher and Julia Raymond followed in the top five. On lap nine, Brow and Raymond both advanced a spot leaving Pearl in a battle with Maher for fourth. The first and only caution of the race came out on lap eleven, a caution Kimball did not want to see. On the restart, Kimball continued to lead as Raymond maneuvered around Brow for second. The top three were glued together, bumper to bumper, as Raymond attempted several times for the inside pass on Kimball. On the final lap, out of turn four, Raymond power charged the orange race machine under Kimball to take the checkered flag. Kimball, Brow, Maher and Pearl rounded out the top five.

The Thunder Stocks rolled onto the track with Rookie Bruce Clark setting the pace side by side with Dan Comeau. On lap one, Clark was shuffled back to fifth in a three wide move. Comeau inherited the lead as Jason Kozacka, Craig Chaffee and Richard Vincent followed. On lap four, Kozacka looked to the outside of Comeau and made the pass as Chaffee put the pressure on Comeau for second. A battle for fourth developed between the two championship contenders of Vincent and James Nowakowski as they ran wheel to wheel. By lap ten, Nowakowski ran third as Vincent dropped to sixth. Comeau and Paul Barnard had a side by side challenge for fourth. As the laps winded down, Chaffee made many attempts to take the lead while protecting his spot from Nowakowski. On the final lap, Chaffee made one last charge for the checkers but was denied as Kozacka took the win followed by Chaffee, Nowakowski, Vincent and Marshall Usher.

The Sportsman Modifieds took to the track with Eric Leclair as the pole sitter and Kim Rivet on the outside. At the green, Leclair took the lead with Rivet in an early challenge from Cameron Sontag for second. On lap three, Sontag secured second and placed pressure on Leclair for the lead. Leclair and Sontag ran wheel to wheel for the number one spot for several laps as did Rivet and Nathan Johnson for third. On lap eight, Sontag made his move as he muscled his way on the outside of Leclair. On the next lap, Kimball looked to get into the top five in a three wide move as he approached turn three with Carzello and Rivet. Unfortunately, the move was costly as Rivet went around on the front stretch and Kimball was penalized to the rear. On the restart, Sontag held the lead as Lecalir felt the heat of Carzello on his back bumper. Johnson and Geoff Rollins battled for third as Ben Byrne took over fifth from Leclair. Half way to go, Rollins made his move and took over third as Sontag continued to be challenged by Carzello for the lead. Kimball worked himself up to sixth knocking on the back bumper of Byrne for the top five spot. On lap twenty-three, the caution flew as Rollins who ran in second went too high out of turn two and bounced off Carzello as he tried to straightened his car out. Sontag, once again, had to defend the lead on another restart as green was shown. The top three of Sontag, Carzello and Ben Byrne settled as Kimball charged up to fourth with Johnson in fifth. On the final turn, Carzello gave it his all for the checkers but Sontag took the victory by only inches. Kimball made a late pass and took over third from Byrne. Johnson followed for fifth.

The final Monadnock Speedway weekly division to compete for the night were the Super Stocks, where Dennis Stange, Joel Monahan and Tyler Leary came into the event with only four points separating the three for the championship. Tyler Lescord and Nancy Muni brought the field to the green flag. On lap one, the caution was thrown as Muni spun. On the restart, Monahan moved into the lead followed Cole Littlewood and Robert Hagar. Lescord dropped back to the fourth spot. Stange ran in fifth. On lap six, Stange moved into third and placed pressure on Littlewood in effort to catch the leader of Monahan. Hagar felt Chris Curtis on his back bumper for fourth. Curtis with a bump on Hagar made the pass as Hagar tried to hold off Leary for the top five. In the next lap, Hagar and Leary made side by side contact resulting in both losing positions out of the top five as Duane Noll took over fifth. On lap ten, Hagar was shown the black flag for being under powered. Hagar disobeyed the black flag and what was thought of having a mechanical problem was not the case as he intentionally slowed to spin Leary. The caution flag flew, Leary’s championship run was over as he suffered extensive damage to his car. Hagar was ejected from the event. On the restart, Monahan continued to lead as Stange took over second. Ryan Bell made his way into the top five followed by Noll. Curtis drove hard into the second as Stange attempted to defend third from Bell. Three laps to go, the caution came out setting the field up for a green white checkered finish. On the restart, Monahan showed the way to the checkered flag capturing his first championship at Monadnock Speedway. Curtis, Bell, Stange and Noll rouned out the top five.

Monadnock Speedway’s final race event of the season will be held on Saturday, October 1^st. The event will include all the weekly divisions, the North East Street Stock Tour, Spectator Drags, Championship Ceremonies and the Great School Bus Race. Race time is at 2pm. For more information, log onto the speedway’s website at www.monadnockspeedway.com.

Young Guns: Chase Curtis,Jaret Curtis,Shelby Avery,Alex Barden,Chris Sontag,Kevin Pittsinger,Colby Lambert, Cale Skillings, Chloe Wright

Lightning Stocks: Tim Paquette,Mike Stebbins,Richard Whipple,Louis Maher,Hillary Renaud,Devin Guy,Eric Silvernale,Alex Poisson, Dan Starkweather,Pat Houle,Tim Leblanc

Mini Stocks: Julia Raymond, Matt Kimball,Solomon Brow,Louis Maher,Alexander Pearl,Justin Littlewood, Desmond Skillings, Eric Pomasko,Kevin Mcknight,Mike Mcgoldrick ,Ethan Marsh,Bill Lambert

Thunder Stocks: Jason Kozacka,Craig Chaffee,James Nowakowski,Richard Vincent,Marshall Usher,Bruce Clark,Dan Comeau,Paul Smith,Michelle Leh,Stanley Kuklewicz,Paul Barnard,Jason Barden

Super Stocks: Joel Monahan, Chris Curtis, Ryan Bell, Dennis Stange, Duane Noll,Nancy Muni, Tyler Lescord, Cole Littlewood,James Thompson,Mike Heffernan,Tyler Leary,Scott Beck Sr

Sportsman Modifieds: Cameron Sontag,Keith Carzello,Bill Kimball,Ben Byrne,Nathan Johnson,Kim Rivet,Eric Leclair,Scott Macmichael,Geoff Rollins,Paul Smith,Chris Ignazio,Ralph Flannery, Dylan Campbell, Brian Robie, Kirk Alexander

Sunday, September 18, 2016

Parks Celebrates JBH 100 Victory

Posted by Wayne G. Barber

John Boy must have been smiling down on good friend Mike Parks, as he paraded across the finish line in first in the JBH 100 at Monadnock Speedway Saturday night. In practice Mike O’Sullivan of Springfield, MA, Craig Weinstein of East Walpole, MA, and Mike Parks of Walpole, NH all posted the fast times. All three drivers did well in their heats Weinstein winning his, putting them in good positions to start the feature.

After the redraw Parks started on the poll with Mike O’Sullivan on the outside. Barry Gray of Belchertown, MA who was second in points started seventh. Parks and O’Sullivan raced hard all night, making Parks work hard for his win, even from the poll. The first caution came out on lap 27 for Chris McGuire of Wading River, NY. Another caution brought out when Adam Norton of Ludlow, MA spun entering turn 3 on the back stretch. Parks and O’Sullivan battled for the lead in each restart with Parks coming out on top each time.

By the half way mark the field had strung out with Parks in the lead and O’Sullivan following. Gray worked his way through the field until lap 86 when Ryan Bell of Acworth, NH brought out the caution when his motor blew, taking him into the turn 4 wall. Gray had worked himself up to third at this point, which would give him the chance he needed to take second away from O’Sullivan.

Lap 97 saw Craig Weinstein spin coming out of turn four bringing out a caution that pitted Parks and Gray against each other for the restart. Parks came out on top and won on a checkered yellow as John Selemi spun on the back stretch as they came across the finish line.

The Granite State Pro Stock Series will race their final race of the season at Waterford Speed Bowl in Waterford, CT on October 22, 1016. For more information follow the Granite State Pro Stock Series on Facebook or at www.gspss.net

Unofficial Finish

1 66 Mike Parks

2 29 Barry Gray

3 08 Mike O’Sullivan

4 71 Scott MacMichael

5 15 George Bassette

6 21 Josh King

7 40 Mike Mitchell

8 60 Craig Weinstein

9 4 Tommy O’Sullivan

10 1 Cory Casagrande

11 63 John Salemi

12 8 Ryan Bell

13 89 Chris McGuire

14 87 Adam Norton

15 61 Cole Littlewood

DNS 42 Guy Caron

Driver Watch !

Thank You to the Race Fans for supporting the Race Chatter Nation and the short tracks on the East Coast. Congratulations to Joe Arena NESST only Champion. Is the Friday night SK Modified Race at Stafford Speedway the most competitive in the Country ? Can Rowan Pennink make it three in a row as Champion ? Our 2nd Choice is the Late Models at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park with William Wall, Rick Gentes, Brian Tagg ,Gelinas, Curtis and our 3rd choice go's to the Sports Trucks at Seekonk Speedway with Mike Cavallaro Chase Belcher, John Paiva Rob (Dropkick) Murphy I think the NEMA Midgets and NEMA Lite's are the best touring division in New England. I think that Monadnock Speedway employers are the most fan family friendly every week. My Opinion, What's your's ?