There may not be a long history of Whelen Modified Tour racing at Oswego when compared to other tracks, but the history which has been made there played significant roles in determining the Tour championship. This weekend should be no different as the season heads into a hectic stretch run.
Nestled along Lake Ontario, Oswego is steeped in open-wheel racing tradition as the hub of Supermodified racing in the northeast. The .625-mile oval has played host to eight Whelen Modified Tour races, four each in 1988 and 1989, with five-time champion Tony Hirschman of Northampton, Pennsylvania, winning three times at the track. But for all of Hirschman’s dominance there, both Mike McLaughlin and Mike Stefanik won August stops at Oswego en route to their respective championship years in 1988 and 1989.
This season’s race at Oswego could be just as important to the championship for both Doug Coby and Justin Bonsignore. Coby, of Milford, Connecticut, is nursing a 13-point lead over Bonsignore with just five races remaining. Neither driver has competed at Oswego, but both have had plenty of success at the other .625-mile track on the circuit — Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park. Coby has five career wins at Thompson, while Bonsignore has four.
RACE CENTRAL LIVE: EVENT SCHEDULE & ENTRY LIST
Fast Facts:The Race: The Toyota Mod Classic 150 presented by McDonald’s is the 13th of 17 championship points events in the 2016 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season. It is the first and only race of the year at Oswego.The Procedure: The maximum starting field is 36 cars, including provisionals. The first 31 cars will qualify through two-lap qualifying time trials. The remaining five spots will be awarded through the provisional process. The race is scheduled for 150 laps (93.8 miles) and the tire change rule is three tires, any position.
The Track: A .625-mile asphalt oval, Oswego Speedway has operated continuously since its opening in 1951, when a .375-mile dirt oval was built out of an existing track for horses. It was paved a year later, and in 1961 it was expanded to its current size. Considered by many to be the “Indy of the East,” the track’s Supermodifieds have seen Indianapolis 500 winners Gordon Johncock and Mario Andretti compete. The speedway played host to eight NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour races, four each in 1988 and 1989.
Race Winners: There have been five different winners at Oswego, led by Tony Hirschman’s three career wins at the track. Brian Ross won the first two races held at the track, both in 1988, while Mike McLaughlin and MIke Stefanik each won a race there during their respective championship seasons of 1988 and 1989.
Pole Winners: Five different drivers have won poles at Oswego, with Mike McLaughlin winning the pole four times to become the only driver with multiple poles at the track. The track qualifying record of 123.226 mph was set by McLaughlin on Sept. 3, 1988.v
Toyota Mod Classic 150 Notes: Hot Streak: Six races ago, Justin Bonsignore sat third in the Whelen Modified Tour standings, 3
8 points behind leader Doug Coby, and still in search of his first win of 2016. But Bonsignore has rebounded in a big way in the second half of the season — winning two of the last three races to move into second. He’s whittled Coby’s lead down to just 13 points with five events remaining, and he won the most recent stop at Riverhead Raceway on Long Island. Bonsignore has posted four top fives in his last five races to inch closer to his first career championship.
Second-Generation: Matt Hirschman of Northampton, Pennsylvania, returns to the Whelen Modified Tour this weekend for the Toyota Mod Classic 150. Hirschman last competed full-time during the 2011 season, when he finished sixth in the final standings. Owner of two career Whelen Modified Tour victories, Hirschman is the son of Tony Hirschman, the five-time Whelen Modified Tour champion who has three career Oswego victories.
Old Guard: While most of the starting field in the Toyota Mod Classic 150 has never been to Oswego before, Jamie Tomaino has experience on the track in a Whelen Modified Tour car. Tomaino, the 1990 champion who has a Tour-record 609 career starts entering the weekend, competed in all eight previous races at Oswego. Tomaino has two podium finishes and three top fives in his eight starts at the track.
Lia Remains Consistent: Donny Lia doesn’t have a win yet in 2016, but the two-time Whelen Modified Tour champion has been one of the Tour’s most consistent drivers and is still within striking distance of the championship lead. He’s the only driver in the top four in the standings who hasn’t won at least two races this season, but his eight top 10s in 12 races.
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 three wins apiece and Bonsignore two. Ron Silk, Bobby Santos III, Jimmy Blewett and Eric Goodale won the other events on the schedule. Santos also won the non-points Whelen All-Star Shootout at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in July.
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