2024
Timmy Solomito Captures Turkey Derby 150 Victory After Wild Finish. Solomito was able to secure the victory after some misfortune by race dominator Matt Hirschman, winning in a green-white-checkered situation.
Joseph Srigley on Nov 30, 2024
Timmy Solomito wasn't the dominant driver by any means in Saturday's Turkey Derby 150 at Wall Stadium Speedway, but after catching a pair of good breaks, the nine-time NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour winner found himself in contention.
"It's unreal, we've been close the last couple of years and we finally made it," Solomito said post-race. "I wanted to win one for my family and I wanted to win one more Tour race before I was done and just happy to be here. This is just as big as a Tour event, we beat the best today."The Islip, New York-native spent the vast majority of the 150-lap contest running inside the top five in his family-owned No. 66 entry, but couldn't quite break the stranglehold that Matt Hirschman, the race's polesitter, had on the field. Hirschman dominated the Thanksgiving weekend event, leading more than 100 laps, and appeared to be well on his way to a ninth Turkey Derby victory, when a late-race caution for Jared DiGiantomasso triggered a shakeup. With the field only permitted to change two tires during the entire 150-lap contest, it was time for many of the front-runners to make a decision -- stay out on older tires, and be a sitting duck, or come into the pits and risk losing track position. Hirschman, Jimmy Blewett, and several of the leaders chose to come down pit road, while Andy Jankowiak, Mark Stewart, and others, who had pitted earlier in the event, chose to stay on track and attempt to hold the field back for eight laps. Jankowiak was nearly successful in holding on to win the Turkey Derby 150, holding back both Hirschman and Blewett in the closing laps, until contact between his two main competitors sent the race dominator spinning to the infield.That set up a green-white-checkered duel between Jankowiak, Blewett, and several others, which ultimately devolved into chaos after the two leaders made contact and crashed mere feet after the start-finish line. Enter Timmy Solomito. Solomito was able to sneak through the carnage and put his family-owned entry into the race lead, then holding off a late challenge from Eddie McCarthy and Max Zachem to win at Wall Stadium Speedway. "I mean, hard racing obviously," Solomito added. "The deal with Andy [Jankowiak], I mean, history repeats itself -- he did the same thing to me last year, so we were kinda ready for it, and just drove straight through the smoke like Days of Thunder, and here we are. Front bumper is straight, kind of, and we're in one piece and we're Turkey Derby winners." McCarthy came home in second place, with Zachem in third. Andrew Krause and Luke Baldwin completed the top five. Jack Baldwin was sixth, with Matt Hirschman finishing a disappointing seventh place in the No. 60. "Honestly, this one might be at the top for me. I've been coming here since I was a little kid watching, and just happy to be here man. I just can't believe - I've got nine Tour wins, I'd like to make it 10 before I'm done, especially winning with my family." "This is a cool one, I won the Turkey Derby in the Legends, got lucky with the SK Wall [Modifieds] last year, and tonight we were there all night, so this one feels good."|
TOUR MODIFIED FEATURE - 150 Laps - TIMMY SOLOMITO, ISLIP, NY, Max Zachem, Eddie McCarthy, Andrew Krause, Luke Baldwin, Jack Baldwin, Matt Hirschman, Sam Rameau, Jarret DiGiantomasso, Austin Beers, Blake Barney, Ryan Flores, Andy Jankowiak, Carsten DiGiantomasso, Stephen Kopcik, Joey Nerlino, Jimmy Blewett, Mark Stewart, Steven Reed, Tommy Martino, Jr., Matt Swanson, Dave Sapienza, Anthony Sesely, Derek Hopkinson
Matt Hirschman Capitalizes on Late Restart, Wins Wall Modified Turkey Derby 100
On the eve of Turkey Derby 51, Matt Hirschman went to victory lane at Wall Stadium Speedway in the Wall Modified 100 ahead of Jimmy Blewett.
Zach Evans on Nov 29, 2024
Matt Hirschman started his Turkey Derby 51 weekend with a trip to victory lane in the Wall Modified 100 on Friday night.
Celebrating his birthday in style, Hirschman took the lead from Jimmy Blewett on a lap 95 restart for the win. A long green-flag run dominated by Kyle Scisco ended with 20 laps to go, and Steven Reed quickly took the lead on the restart. However, Reed lost control of the race five laps later to Blewett, while Hirschman moved into second.On a restart with six laps to go, Hirschman pulled past Blewett on the high side to take the lead and pull away for the win. “It was good, hard racing out there,” said Hirschman in victory lane. “I thought everyone ran pretty good there. We had a long green flag run in the beginning, got stretched out. It took a long time to get past lap 80 there.
“I thought it was all pretty good racing. Reed was leading, and then Jimmy was on him, and then me. I just got a good restart. He got a better one the one prior to that. I got a better one on that. It’s late in the race, a lot of heat cycles on the tires. We got a good one at the right time. I always appreciate Turkey Derby wins.” While it wasn’t a victory, Hirschman raced in the Garden State Classic at Wall Stadium earlier this season. He believed that experience helped him on Friday night. “We were here earlier this year for the Garden State Classic. I’ve never won that. Coming here for that helped us today. It’s tough to come to these tracks once a year and beat the regulars here. Jimmy’s obviously always tough here, no matter how much he races here. It’s his home track.” With the 100-lap win on Friday in his pocket, Hirschman now turns his focus towards the Tour Modified feature on Saturday. The 150-lap event is the headline feature of Turkey Derby 51, as Hirschman seeks his ninth career win in the race. “If it had gone green, that would have worked out for them,” said Hirschman. “I’m glad it didn’t, and we got a win today. Now we’ve got to put our focus on tomorrow.”Blewett finished second, followed by Adam LaCicero, Steven Reed and Eddie McCarthy.
WALL MODFIED FEATURE - 100 Laps - MATT HIRSCHMAN, NORTHAMPTON, PA., Jimmy Blewett, Stephen Kopcik, Steven Ree, Eddie McCarthy, Tommy Martino, Jr., Blake Barney, Derek Hopkinson, Adam LaCiciero, Carsten DiGiantomasso, Jake Nelke, Shanon Mongeau, Tyler Ferris, Eric Lane, Shaun Carrig, Kyle Scisco, Andrew Krause, Jarret DiGiantomasso, Vinny Marone
In only his second start in a Tour-type Open Modified, 17-year-old Chase Grennan wins the #Islip300 at Riverhead on November 16!
After a promising start Islip 300 ends with a disappointing 9th place finish.
Matt Hirschman is now a 10-time winner of the North-South Shootout, and has won four straight editions of the marquee Modified event followinng the November 9th win at Caraway.
by Zach Evans
Matt Hirschman dominated the attrition-filled 22nd Annual John Blewett III Memorial North-South Shootout in Memory of Charles Kepley at Caraway Speedway Saturday. With the win, Hirschman is now a 10-time winner in 21 starts in the event, and has won the last four runnings. "It's kind of hard to believe. It's hard to do something like that four consecutive times," Hirschman told Racing America. "There's just so many variables that can factor in to that. It takes a big effort. It takes a good car. In this race, it takes good pit stops. You have to have the right strategy. You've got to hit the tire staggers. There are so many things that go into it, it's hard to believe you can do that four consecutive times and come out on top." Hirschman is unquestionably one of the most successful Modified racers of this generation. He won his ninth Race of Champions 250 this year, has eight Turkey Derby wins, five Tour-type Modified championships at the World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing and countless other accolades.However, there may not be any event Hirschman has dominated like the North-South Shootout. Hirschman won the race four times at Concord Speedway and is now a six-time winner in the North-South Shootout at Caraway."I just appreciate that kind of run of success in one particular event. There are other events like the Race of Champions, marquee events with lots of history that we've won that same amount of times. I think 10 is more than I've done in any of those races as well."I've always been pretty good here. I've won here not just in North-South Shootouts but in other races, SMART races, different races they've had here over the years. I've always gotten around here. I have a good amount of success here. This particular race, whether it was at Concord or here, just a great track record of success."While it was a dominant showing for HIrschman, it was far from smooth sailing for him or most of the field on a night filled with carnage. Only 14 of the race's 32 starters saw the checkered flag, as the 125-lap race necessitated nearly three hours to complete."I know at least two of the last three years, this race has been a marathon," said Hirschman. "As a whole, something needs to be cleaned up. There may have been one of those years where the officiating or scoring and cleanup was maybe a cause of that."Today, it seemed like it was more on the racers. There seemed to be too many cautions, spins, tangles, wrecks. There's been races like that here in the SMART series, marathon races where cars were running out of gas at the end. I'm not really sure why. It's a good racetrack, there's room out there. It seems to produce some, at times, lengthy events."Hirschman has two more chances to add to his trophy cabinet in 2024, as he will compete in both the Islip 300 at Riverhead Raceway and the Turkey Derby at Wall Stadium Speedway."We won the Tri-Track race last week, this race this week, and we've got two more weekends to go with the Islip 300 at Riverhead and then the Turkey Derby weekend. We'll just approach them like we always have. We're going back with the same teams and cars that we've had success with at them before, just like we did today. We'll see if we can put ourselves in a position to compete for wins."
North-South Shootout Unofficial Results
Fin No Driver Laps Diff
1 60 Matt Hirschman 125 ---
2 12C Jake Crum 125 1.966
3 23 Carson Loftin 125 2.393
4 84NY Tyler Catalano 125 5.233
5 99 Jimmy Blewett 125 5.769
6 45 Gary Young 125 6.165
7 77P Gary Putnam 125 7.280
8 63 Josh Lowder 125 7.916
9 48 Johnny Kievman 125 8.156
10 55 Jeremy Gerstner 125 8.577
11 02 Joey Coulter 125 9.140
12 70 Andy Seuss 125 10.107
13 9NJ Tom Martino, Jr. 125 12.991
14 4 Jason Myers 117 8 Laps
15 10 Mike Speeney 115 10 Laps
16 15 Brian Loftin 113 12 Laps
17 1 Burt Myers 84 41 Laps
18 8 John-Michael Shenette 83 42 Laps
19 12 Cody Norman 83 42 Laps
20 25B Tom Buzze 83 42 Laps
21 25NH Brian Robie 82 43 Laps
22 3 Jeff Fultz 82 43 Laps
23 73 Paulie Hartwig, III 82 43 Laps
24 25JS Jimmy Segar 55 70 Laps
25 79 James Civali 53 72 Laps
26 04 Brandon Ward 31 94 Laps
27 54NY Tommy Catalano 19 106 Laps
28 PJ64 Trevor Catalano 19 106 Laps
29 11R Michael Ritch 19 106 Laps
30 8F Chris Finocchario 19 106 Laps
31 11 Norman Newman 19 106 Laps
32 25 John Smith 17 108 Laps
Matt Hirschman wins the Haunted 100 for the Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series at Seekonk Speedway on November 2nd, grabbing his ninth series title in the process
Hirschman went around Stephen Kopcik on lap 71 and won the 101-lap race over Jon McKennedy. Kopcik finished third, with Matt Swanson and Brett Meservey rounding out the top 3. Hirschman won three of the final five races on his way to the Monoco Tri Track title.
Matt Hirschman, Jon McKennedy, Stephen Kopcik, Matt Swanson, Brett Meservey, Austin Beers, Kyle Bonsignore, Andrew Molleur, Anthony Bello, Woody Pitkat, Keith Rocco, Ronnie Williams, Tyler Rypkema, Teddy Hodgdon, Joey Mucciacciaro, Les Hickley, David Arute, Anthony Nocella, Chris Pasteryak, Avery Stoehr, Ryan Doucette, Dylan Izzo, Blake Barney, Nathan Wenzel, Max Zachem, Jeffrey Battle, Nick Halkowicz, Kevin Folan, Timmy Solomito, Walt Sutcliffe Jr
Justin Bonsignore Joins All-Time Greats With Fourth NASCAR Modified Title after winning at Martinsville Speedway on October 27
Justin Bonsignore wasn’t going to be denied his fourth NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour championship, as he dominated the season finale Virginia is for Racing Lovers 300 at Martinsville Speedway to take home the Grandfather Clock and the year-end title. The championship marks Bonsignore’s fourth title (2018, 2020, 2021, 2024), and the win – his first at Martinsville Speedway – gave him sole possession of second on the all-time Whelen Modified Tour wins list with 45.A late-season surge in which he won the final three races of the season gave Bonsignore the edge over two-time Tour champion Ron Silk, as they carried their season-long contentious championship battle into the final race of season for the second year in a row.“A year of hard work, a lot of ups and downs, the middle of September wasn’t looking good, all of a sudden we got hot,” Bonsignore said in Victory Lane. “Three in a row is something I’ve never done in my career, and to cap it off with a Grandfather Clock is just really awesome.”A year ago, Silk led Bonsignore by 13 points heading into the Martinsville season finale and held on to win the championship, but the tables were turned this year.The pair of wins in the last two races leading into Martinsville gained Bonsignore a 10-point advantage over his rival as the title race loomed. The No. 51 Ken Massa Motorsports team brought the same car – the one with which Bonsignore won those races at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park and North Wilkesboro Speedway — to Martinsville. They unloaded fast again, as he led practice and then won the pole for the championship race.Silk, however, struggled in qualifying and started 13th in the race. And while Silk showed moments of speed, his championship hopes ultimately dissolved when mechanical issues took him out of the race with 60 laps remaining. He was relegated to a 17th-place finish.The championship moment was especially meaningful for Bonsignore after he went home empty-handed following the season finale at Martinsville the last two seasons.“We watched other people celebrate two years in a row here and we lost, and that’s tough to watch back,” said Bonsignore. “Just a lot of hard work by Ryan Stone and Ken Massa to keep things going in the direction we want to go.“It’s really had to put into words just how special this stuff is.”Matt Hirschman finished second, while Jacob Lutz was third. Austin Beers and Ryan Newman rounded out the top five.
1 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communications, Inc. 200 --
2 60 Matt Hirschman PeeDee Motorsports/Colyer Trucking 200 4.897
3 14 Jacob Lutz* Advantage Trucks/Anastasi Trucking/Anastasi Trucking 200 5.379
4 64 Austin Beers G&G Electrical Supply/Dell Electric/Lumiere Electrical 200 6.601
5 8 Ryan Newman Bass Pro Shops/USNE Power/Anglers Choice 200 8.617
6 46 Craig Lutz Riverhead Building Supply 200 10.002
7 7 Luke Baldwin* Baldwin Automotive 200 12.261
8 38 Bobby Labonte Pace-O-Matic/CookOut 200 15.163
9 24 Andrew Krause Supreme Manufacturing 200 19.246
10 1 Patrick Emerling Fleetworks Inc 199 1 Lap
11 22 Kyle Bonsignore MTT/Munn’s Auto/Chalew Performance 199 1 Lap
12 23 Carson Loftin* L&R Transmissions/LeBleu Water/QMF Metal Fabrication 199 1 Lap
13 55 Jake Crum* Cherokee Underground 199 1 Lap
14 70 Andy Seuss Rockingham Boat 199 1 Lap
15 02 Joey Coulter SRI Performance/Bilstein Shocks 199 1 Lap
16 3 Tyler Rypkema USNE/Northeast Drilling 199 1 Lap
17 16 Ron Silk Blue Mountain Machine/Future Homes 141 59 Laps
18 56 Trevor Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 125 75 Laps
19 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood & Restaurant 69 131 Laps
20 84 Tyler Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 51 149 Laps
21 97 Bryan Dauzat Brother-N-Law Motorsports/OB Builders 27 173 Laps
22 4 Tim Connolly Connolly Companies, LLC 13 187 Laps
23 54 Tommy Catalano FX Caprara 13 187 Laps
PEE DEE UPDATE: OCTOBER 20: Good Evening PeeDee Fans. Two races in two nights at North Wilkesboro. Two 2nd place finishes. Night #1 in the SMART Tour race was challenging to say the least. Fastest in practice, won the pole, started second on the invert. Was the victim of over aggressive contact from behind and spun and hit by other cars. The Brown Dogs went to work on the car and Matt worked up a strategy to deal with situation. The race went on with Matt starting in the rear. Raced his way back to the front and was on the leader's back bumper at the checkers for a second place finish with a wounded race car. Impressive! Day #2 for the NWMT race. Fastest in practice, qualified second. The race had an incredible pace. Blistering actually. Matt led some laps and was able to maintain 2nd place for long green flag run. Finished 2nd. Thanks to the crew on their hard work overnight to get the car repaired and ready to race on Sunday. Great job guys. So now what?....Stay Tuned!
Justin Bonsignore Wins At Wilkesboro on October 20 And Takes NASCAR Modified Points
by Rob Blount
North Wilkesboro Speedway is now in the books and it will go down as one of the most dominant performances of Justin Bonsignore’s illustrious career. He may not have started from the pole, and he may not have led every lap, but he left only five cars on the lead lap and won by 6.473 seconds at the historic facility. But more importantly, Bonsignore reclaimed the points lead as he looks for his fourth NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour championship in less than one week’s time at Martinsville Speedway in Virginia on Saturday night. Bonsignore started fourth, but quickly drove to the front of the field, taking the lead for the first time on Lap 11. He lost the lead in the pits on Lap 32, but took it back for good just 10 laps later and led all the way to checkered flag from there. Meanwhile, his main rival for the championship had the exact opposite day on Sunday.Defending champion Ron Silk entered the day with a five-point lead over Bonsignore, but left North Wilkesboro trailing by 10. Silk qualified sixth, ran as high as fifth, and then dropped like a rock through the field on the long green-flag run that decided the race. Silk dropped as far as 12th, but gained one spot back when Kyle Bonsignore spun coming to the checkered flag. Silk finished 11th, two laps down to Bonsignore. Patrick Emerling, who was the hottest driver in the series until one week ago, finished fourth on Sunday and heads to Martinsville with an outside shot at the championship as he is now 24 points back of Bonsignore for the championship lead. So now it all comes down to one night on Saturday at the one of the most historic and legendary short tracks in all of pavement racing at Martinsville Speedway. Bonsignore was strong at Martinsville one year ago, finishing second to Ryan Preece who was in his own zip-code last year. If Bonsignore has that kind of day again, he’ll be celebrating his fourth championship and would join Mike Stefanik, Tony Hirschman, and Doug Coby as the only drivers to win four NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour championships. Race fans can watch the season finale for the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour live on FloRacing with a FloRacing subscription. Fans can subscribe to FloRacing by clicking here.
NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour At North Wilkesboro Speedway Results
Pos. Car No. Driver
1 51 Justin Bonsignore
2 60 Matt Hirschman
3 64 Austin Beers
4 1 Patrick Emerling
5 3 Tyler Rypkema
6 44 Chase Dowling
7 7 Luke Baldwin
8 38 Bobby Labonte
9 23 Carson Loftin
10 22 Kyle Bonsignore
11 16 Ron Silk
12 46 Craig Lutz
13 77 Ryan Newman
14 4 Tim Connolly
15 02 Joey Coulter
16 06 Sam Rameau
17 18 Ken Heagy
18 01 Melissa Fifield
19 09 Christopher Hatton
20 24 Andrew Krause
Justin Bonsignore Tops SMART Tour At North Wilkesboro; Luke Baldwin Gets Series Title on October 19
A trio of the Southeast's top touring series crowned champions at North Wilkesboro Speedway. Both CARS Tour divisions -- Pro Late Models and Late Model Stock Cars -- were joined by the SMART Modified Tour for an action-packed night of racing in Wilkes County. The night began with a drama-filled finale for the CARS Tour Pro Late Models that saw points leader Spencer Davis involved in an early accident. That opened the door for Kaden Honeycutt, who ultimately survived a pair of fierce battles with Tristan McKee and TJ Decaire to claim both the race win and the 2024 championship. From there, the SMART Modified Tour brought the horsepower to North Wilkesboro Speedway. NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour star Justin Bonsignore held off a hard-charging Matt Hirschman to claim his first career SMART win, while 18-year-old modified rookie, Luke Baldwin, is the 2024 SMART Modified Tour powered by Pace-O-Matic champion. The third-generation modified racer secured the title, and the Racing Electronics Rookie of the Year honors, with the SMART Mods by finishing third in the season finale Saturday at North Wilkesboro Speedway in North Carolina. “I told a couple of people that just four years ago I was sitting in my room playing iRacing, praying for something like this,” said Baldwin after he climbed out of his race car and celebrated with his SS Racing team. “I can't say thanks to everyone enough. Pace-O-Matic, Sadler Stanley Racing, I have said it a couple of times but, I don’t know if I would be racing right now if it wasn’t for Hermie Sadler and Bill Stanley. This is unbelievable.” While Baldwin cherished his newly crowned championship, series-invader Justin Bonsignore dominated the race to ride the elevator to the famous victory lane at North Wilkesboro Speedway. Bonsignore, from Holtsville, New York, led all but three laps (96 of 99) enroute to his first series win in his first-career SMART Modified Tour race. Bonsignore held off Matt Hirschman to the checkered flag. “Matt Hirschman is the ultimate at these tire-saving races and he was charging hard on old tires,” said Bonsignore in the Pace-O-Matic Victory Lane. “We had a really good car in the beginning, but Matt (Hirschman) was able to flip the strategy after getting crashed. You never can count him out, even on older tires. I was able to get the lead, but we’re not used to changing just one tire during a race. We don’t do that with our series, so we’re not accustomed to the adjustments you need to make,” added Bonsignore. “The car was just giving up too much there at the end. I think if it was anybody beside Matt Hirschman on the last lap, we would have ended up in the fence.” “Congrats to the whole 7-team (on winning the championship). I’m really happy for Luke, they are a great family,” added Bonsignore. “I wanna thank Ryan Stone and this whole crew. We had a good time with the SMART Tour, so who knows, maybe we’ll run some more next year.” Bonsignore became a 44-time NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour winner by capturing the victory on Sunday at North Wilkesboro as well. He is a three-time champion of that series. Baldwin, from Mooresville, NC, is the champion with two wins on the season, but he was one of five championship contenders in a winner-take-all scenario amongst those drivers during the 99-lap race at Wilkesboro. Carson Loftin, from Lexington, NC, is a five-time winner this year in the number-23 car. The 16 year-old will settle for second in points after finishing seventh in the North Wilkesboro race. Ryan Newman, from South Bend, IN, was a victim of someone else’s mishap early in the race and finished eighth in the event. He ended up third in the championship chase. Burt Myers, from Walnut Cove, NC, and Danny Bohn, from Freehold, NJ, crashed hard after other drivers in front of them triggered a multi-car accident in the latter stages of the race. Myers and Bohn will finish fourth and fifth in the standings.
1 Justin Bonsignore
2 Matt Hirschman
3 Luke Baldwin
4 Jake Crum
5 Austin Beers
6 Bobby Labonte
7 Carson Loftin
8 Ryan Newman
9 Joey Coulter
10 Sammy Rameau
11 Jimmy Wallace
12 Johnny Keivman
13 Jason Myers
14 Daniel Yates
15 Gary Young Jr.
16 John Holleman
17 Anthony Bello
18 Matthew Kimball
19 Norman Newman
20 Jason Tutterow
21 Christopher Hatton
22 Ethan Truell
23 Tom Buzze Jr.
24 Burt Myers
25 Danny Bohn
26 Tim Connolly
27 Andrew Krause
28 Jonathan Cash
29 John-Michael Shenette
Justin Bonsignore won the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour's Sunoco World Series 150 at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park on Sunday, October 13
The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour moved up the schedule for the Sunoco World Series 150 presented by FloRacing with qualifying scrapped under the weather-changed schedule, the Modifieds were lined-up based on season-long points. Ron Silk and Justin Bonsignore faced off side-by-side at the front with Austin Beers and Patrick Emerling in tow under the initial green flag. After hitting the wall during practice, Emerling dropped back to the latter half of the top ten as Bonsignore, Silk and Beers paced the field with a growing lead over Tyler Rypkema and Craig Lutz.Bonsignore took over the lead fifteen laps in with Silk content to ride through the first half of the 150-lap marathon. After conserving through the first third, Craig Lutz began pulling on Bonsignore and Silk and motored around Silk for second on lap 67. The handling seeming to slow up the championship contender, Matt Hirschman also made his way around Silk on lap 87 to take third. The first caution flag flew on lap 92 as Joey Cipriano spun around off turn four with teams hurriedly getting ready on pit road. Craig Lutz won the race off pit road with Hirschman, Austin Beers and Ronnie Silk in tow as Bonsignore lost five spots with a disastrous pit stop. Back under green, Lutz led laps but Silk came back with a vengeance to the front of the field as Bonsignore followed close behind. Bonsignore began to pour down on Silk with 35 laps remaining, testing runs to the inside line before the pair pulled up on lap traffic. Bonsignore powered under Silk to lead lap 121 but the real battle was for third as Anthony Nocella came out of no-where to take on Austin Beers. Nocella finally took over the third-place position on lap 137 and went after Silk’s second-place spot! Time ran out with Justin Bonsignore taking the Sunoco World Series 150 presented by FloRacing win over a hard-charging Anthony Nocella and Ron Silk.
NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour – Sunoco World Series 150 presented by FloRacing
1 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communications, Inc. 150 --
2 17 Anthony Nocella Sontag Motorsports/Bells Septic/Xtreme Autobody 150 0.355
3 16 Ron Silk Blue Mountain Machine/Future Homes 150 2.464
4 64 Austin Beers G&G Electrical Supply/Dell Electric 150 3.335
5 60 Matt Hirschmann Elite 150 10.36
6 44 Chase Dowling Harshaw Paving/Olivas Market 150 10.681
7 1 Patrick Emerling Fleetworks Inc 150 12.325
8 46 Craig Lutz Riverhead Building Supply 150 13.13
9 36 Dave Sapienza Sapienza Racing/Eastport Feed 150 13.32
10 22 Kyle Bonsignore Chalew Performance/MTT/Munns Auto 150 19.763
11 89 Matt Swanson Cervaolos Auto/Casella Snowplows 149 1 Lap
12 82 Woody Pitkat Horton Avenue Materials/Gunsmoke Stables 149 1 Lap
13 3 Tyler Rypkema USNE/Northeast Drilling 149 1 Lap
14 4 Tim Connolly Connolly Companies, LLC 148 2 Laps
15 54 Tommy Catalano FX Caprara/USNE Power 148 2 Laps
16 15 Joey Cipriano III Dependable Energy 148 2 Laps
17 84 Tyler Catalano USNE Power 148 2 Laps
18 56 Trevor Catalano USNE Power 147 3 Laps
19 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood & Restaurant 146 4 Laps
20 00 Tyler Barry Spafco Race Chassis/BNP Machine 145 5 Laps
21 28 Mike Marshall MLM Diagnostics/Jusczak Electric 144 6 Laps
22 10 Bob Reis IronListing.com/B.R. Machineworks 134 16 Laps
Jon McKennedy beat 'Big Money' Matt Hirschman to the line for the $10,000 win in the Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series debut at Thompson Speedway on Sunoco World Series Saturday on October 12
The Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series took over the infield for their Constantine Paving & Sealing 75 on Sunoco World Series Saturday. Stephen Kopcik and Joey Cipriano brought the 33-car field to green with Cipriano getting the opening lead as heavy hitters Patrick Emerling, Jon McKennedy and Woody Pitkat quickly formed on his six o’clock! McKennedy dove to the bottom to lead lap 7 with Cipriano quickly fading to Pitkat the next lap as the balance of the field fell into single file. A pair of cautions set pit strategy in motion for several teams but McKennedy, Emerling, Pitkat and Matt Hirschman kept their machines at the front of the pack in search of the $10,000 payday. After each caution cycle, McKennedy continued to assert his dominance out ahead of Pitkat and Emerling while ‘Big Money Matt’ and Kopcik kept themselves in contention among the top runners. With laps winding down, Anthony Nocella and Ronnie Williams began entering the picture as George Bessett Jr. climbed into the top-10 after an earlier pit stop. With fifteen laps remaining, Hirschman began to gain considerably on McKennedy, pulling to within a car-length in the corners as the two held a straightaway lead over third-place runner Anthony Nocella. With four laps left Hirschman began to look low with lap traffic ahead under the two-to-go popsicle sticks from the chief starter. Jon McKennedy used the lappers to his advantage, holding onto the lead and taking the Constantine Paving & Sealing 75 for the Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series over Matt Hirschman and Anthony Nocella. Stephen Kopcik held on for fourth and Matt Swanson stole fifth.
Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series – Constantine Paving & Sealing 75 (75 Laps)
1. 79 Jon McKennedy Chelmsford, MA
2. 60 Matt Hirschman Northamption, PA
3. 92 Anthony Nocella Woburn, MA
4. 1 Stephen Kopcik Newtown, CT
5. 25 Matt Swanson Harvard, MA
6. 39 George Bessette, Jr. Danbury, CT
7. 07NY Patrick Emerling Mooresville, NC
8. 50 Ronnie Williams Ellington, CT
9. 31 Noah Korner Avon, CT
10. 57 Keith Rocco Berlin, CT
11. 5CT Chris Pasteryak Lisbon, CT
12. 00 Mike Christopher, Jr. Wolcott, CT
13. 36 David Sapienza Riverhead, NY
14. 8 Chris Finocchario Macdeon, NY
15. 55CT Teddy Hodgdon Danbury, CT
16. 88 Woody Pitkat Bellingham, MA
17. 13 Max Zachem Oakdale, CT
18. 19 Jeffrey Battle Dunstable, MA
19. 28 Buddy Charette Woodstock, CT
20. 81NY Mark Stewart Wading River, NY
21. 55x Jacob Perry Kannapolis, NC
22. 8NY Tyler Barry Griswold, CT
23. 15 Jake Johnson Rehoboth, MA
24. 48 Glen Steger Copiague, NY
25. 51CT Joey Cipriano Plymouth, CT
26. 11 Corey DiMatteo Farmington, CT
27. 76 Brett Meservey Brewster, MA
28. 3 Tyler Rypkema Owego, NY
29. 81 Todd Owen Somers, CT
30. 07 Kyle Bonsignore Mooresville, NC
31. 78 Walt Sutcliffe East Haven, CT
32. 55 Ryan Doucette Framingham, MA
DNS 47 Joey Mucciacciaro Wolcott, CT
JAYDEN HARMAN CRUISES TO CAREER FIRST TOUR TYPE MODIFIED WIN SUNDAY OCTOBER 6 AT EVERGREEN RACEWAY
(10-6-24) Jayden Harman has been racing since he was four years old, working up the ranks from go-karts then Micro Sprints on dirt before switching to pavement and Street Stocks and Crate Modifieds. In all those disciplines he succeeded in winning too. The now 15-year old from Sugarloaf used those aforementioned divisions with the one goal in mind of racing a Tour Type Modified, which he gradually started to do last year then focus on a full-bore effort for 2024 and Sunday afternoon at Evergreen Raceway he reached the highpoint of his budding career when he drove to a flawless victory in the 50-lap feature.Harman shared the front row with Allan Pedersen and when the race got started he settled into second spot but not for long as by lap four he took over the lead and from there on he simply showed an uncanny amount of speed and steadiness that enabled him to hold a few car lengths gap no matter who ran second.Veteran Roger Coss moved into the runnerup spot on lap 21 followed soon after by Paulie Hartwig III but make no mistake Harman never had any worries about them or anyone else as his car was spot on all race long.“It feels awesome especially after all the time we spent last night getting this car together and I can’t thank my whole family and crew enough for all that they do for me,” Harman said.The team was forced to burn the midnight oil as the night prior while racing at Mahoning Valley Speedway, Harman slammed the front straight wall. The car suffered heavy damage and when the team returned home they immediately went to work on their secondary mount. Harman then rewarded their efforts the best way he could, with a victory.“It was super good and I was just riding around before that first caution. It did start to free up a little bit near the end but all-in-all it was a great piece today and it stayed good through the whole race,” said Harman.There was only one caution that slowed that pace, coming at the halfway mark and with the extended number of green flag laps it only played into Harman’s hands as he gained a safe distance on Coss as the race wore on, although in the closing circuits that interval was diminishing, but not enough to worry about the outcome.“It was super good and I was just riding around before that first caution. It did start to free up a little bit near the end but as I mentioned it was a great piece and it stayed good through the whole race,” said Harman.“It’s a testament to my guys and all the work they do and all that they put into the car. It’s also great to win it here at Evergreen, this is home for us. We traveled around a lot all year and we struggled to be honest but this makes up for it all.” Harman is stoked for his return to Evergreen and the Tour Type Modifieds that will be back for the King of the Green on October 19 for a 75-lap feature. “I’m super pumped for that weekend. Today I gained a ton of confidence and it was so nice to be able to lead most all the race and still have plenty at the end to drive away from the field.” For Coss it was his second runner-up in less than 24 hours as he took second the night prior to winner Hartwig at Mahoning Valley. Austin Beers and Brian Sones rounded out the top five.
Tour Type Modified feature finish (50 laps): 1. Jayden Harman, 2. Roger Coss, 3. Paulie Hartwig III, 4. Austin Beers, 5. Brian Sones, 6. Matt Swanson, 7. Brian DeFebo, 8. Matt Hirschman, 9. Nick Baer, 10. Allan Pederson, 11. Daren Scherer, 12. Wayne Szerencsits, 13. Brian Romig Jr., 14. Evan Rygielski, 15. Jacob Kerstetter
Paulie Hartwig lll charges his way to victory in the $5,001 to win Kevin Graver Sr. Tribute race at the Mahoning
A stout $45,000 Modified purse with additional bonuses was enough to draw in a full, 24 car field for the already heavily anticipated Fall Brawl at The Mahoning Valley Speedway. The season finale was dedicated to two beloved racing figures who have contributed so much to not only the Mahoning Valley racing community, but also extended their racing passion in the form of helping others at the speedway. Kevin Graver Sr. and Kevin Kromer were both pivotal parts in the local racing community, and with the help of of their families, friends, and sponsors, racers were able to compete for very generous payouts in their respective divisions. Both the 101-Lap Modified event and the 30 lap Pro-4 event were held in memory of Kevin Graver Sr.. Likewise, the long time Street Stock competitor, Kevin Kromer, was honored by holding a 77-lap cone race for the Street Stocks in his name. The 101 lap modified main event started off with the the original pole-sitter, Matt Hirschman, electing to start in the rear in an attempt to capture an additional $1,000 hard charger bonus in the event of a victory. The front row was then reshuffled to become the #41 of Nick Baer and the #8 of Earl Paules. Paules would waste no time utilizing the outside lane to charge to the lead, taking the #19 of Austin Beers right along with him on lap one. Just a few laps in, the first yellow flag would wave, setting up for the ensuing restart with both Paules and Beers on the front row. Beers would make his way by the #8 of Paules by lap 10, which was where he would remain for the ensuing 50 laps. A frightening incident involving the #51 of Jayden Harman who made hard contact with the front stretch wall brought out the yellow on lap 61. Fortunately, Harman exited the vehicle under his own power, and the field would shuffle back together double file for the remaining 41 laps. By this point, it was go time for those who had been saving their equipment, especially so for Matt Hirschman who had found himself in the top ten for the first time all race. While Roger Coss was taking sole position of first place from Austin Beers, contact between the #25 of Brian Robie and the #66 of Austin Kochenash would collect the #60 of Matt Hirschman, cutting his left front tire. From this point on, it was seemingly a two horse race, as the youngest driver of the field, Paulie Hartwig lll, emerged from the tightly contested top 5 and set his sights on the #17 of Roger Coss. Coss, to this point, had seemed untouchable since grabbing the lead from Beers, but as his tires began to fade, Hartwig lll reeled him back in with less than 15 to go. The 13 year old phenom began to apply pressure to Coss as they approached lapped traffic. Coss was using every trick he had up his sleeve to keep the #11 car at bay, using lap cars as picks and timing his corner entry, however, with two laps to go, Hartwig lll was able to give Coss just enough bumper to wash him up the track and sneak underneath for the lead. Hartwig lll would hold on for the last quarter mile to collect his first tour modified victory and come home with a $5,001 paycheck in the 101-lap Kevin Graver Sr. Tribute Race!
MODIFIEDS:
Paulie Hartwig lll, Roger Coss, Brian Robie, Austin Kochenash, Jack Ely, Matt Hirschman, Brian Defebo, Johnny Bennett, Bobby Jones, Austin Beers, Nick Baer, Thomas Flanagan, Rod Snyder Jr., Jaden Brown, Earl Paules, Brian Romig Sr., Kevin Graver Jr., Jacob Kerstetter, Lou Strohl, Jayden Harman, Tyler Wagner, Mark Miller, Brian Shulz, Kyle Strohl
Matt Hirschman Wins NAPA Fall Final Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series Feature at Stafford on September 28, 2024
By Scott Running
(Stafford Springs, CT)—Stafford Motor Speedway welcomed the Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series to the track for the $15,000 to win NAPA Fall Final. Matt Hirschman scored a repeat victory in the race as he won the NAPA Fall Final last season and he took home the $15k winner’s check. The NAPA Fall Final took the green flag with a stackup at the front of the pack as Mikey Flynn didn’t quite come up to speed that saw Ron Silk end his race in the turn 1 wall before a lap could be completed.
The next restart saw the same thing with polesitter Flynn not coming up to speed and he spun to bring the caution flag out before a lap could be put on the board. The third restart attempt saw the car of Keith Rocco not come up to speed on the start and several cars including Marcello Rufrano, Will Lambros, Jacob Perry, and Anthony Bello were all collected to bring the caution flag out before a lap could be completed.The fourth start attempt saw Kyle Bonsignore emerge with the early lead with Joey Cipriano taking second. Anthony Nocella was third in line with Cory DiMatteo fourth and Matt Hirschman fifth. The caution came back out with 3 laps complete as Teddy Hodgdon spun in turn 2 and collected the car of Doug Coby.Nocella took the lead on the next restart with Bonsignore second, Cipriano third, Hirschman fourth, and DiMatteo in fifth. With 15 laps complete, the order was still Nocella out front with Bonsignore, Cipriano, and Hirschman behind him. Matt Swanson was up to fifth with Nick Salva, Ronnie Williams, Jake Johnson, DiMatteo, and Michael Christopher, Jr. making up the top-10.
Nocella was still out front as the field hit the lap-30 mark with Bonsignore, Cipriano, Hirschman, Salva, Ronnie Williamss, Johnson, Swanson, Christopher, and Woody Pitkat making up the top-10 behind Nocella. 10 laps later at the halfway point of the race and Nocella was still at the front of the field with Bonsignore behind him. Hirschman was now up to third with Salva, Williams, Cipriano, Swanson, Marcello Rufrano, Christopher, and Ryan Newman making up the top-10.The caution came out with 61 laps complete as Tyler Hines spun in turn 1 after he and David Arute touched wheels. All the lead lap cars headed to pit road during the caution period for 1 new tire and adjustments. Nocella won the race off pit road followed by Hirschman, Cipriano, Bonsignore, Williams, Pitkat, Newman, Eric Goodale, Christopher, Swanson, Rufrano, Brett Meservey, Salva, and DiMatteo.Hirschman took the lead from Nocella on the restart with Bonsignore, Cipriano, Williams, and Newman lined up behind him. Nocella worked his way back to the inside of Hirschman on lap-63 to retake the lead. Williams took fourth from Cipriano on lap-66 and the caution came back out with 67 laps complete for spins in turn 1 by Goodale and Meservey.
Nocella resumed his place at the front of the pack with Hirschman taking second. Ryan Newman made a 3-wide move on lap-70 to move into third. Williams was right behind Newman in fourth with DiMatteo up to fifth and Bonsignore falling back to sixth. Williams went back by Newman to take third on lap-72 and now DiMatteo and Bonsignore were both looking to get by Newman. Meservey and Charette spun and ended up against the turn 3 wall to bring the caution back out with 75 laps complete and set up a 5 lap dash to the finish. Under the caution, Newman’s car developed a mechanical issue and he retired from the race.Chris Pasteryak spun into the turn 1 wall with Christopher also going around in turn 1 to bring the caution back out before a lap could be completed.Nocella took the lead back under green with Hirschman falling into line in second. The caution came back out with 77 laps complete as Cipriano spun in turn 1 and collected the car of Rufrano.The restart saw Nocella go around in front of the field to bring the caution flag right back out.Hirschman took the lead ahead of DiMatteo, Williams, Bonsignore and Pitkat on the restart. Hirschman led the field to the checkered flag to win the NAPA Fall Final for the second consecutive year. Williams finished second with DiMatteo, Bonsignore, and Pitkat rounding out the top-5.
Finish Name Car Number Start
1 Matt Hirschman 60 6
2 Ronnie Williams 50 19
3 Cory DiMatteo 11 9
4 Kyle Bonsignore 07 5
5 Woody Pitkat 88 21
6 Michael Christopher, Jr. 00 13
7 David Arute 75 24
8 Joey Cipriano 51ct 14
9 Nick Salva 19 18
10 Buddy Charette 28 25
11 Anthony Nocella 92 2
12 Teddy Hodgdon 55ct 11
13 Marcello Rufrano 48 22
14 Matt Swanson 25 8
15 Chris Pasteryak 5ct 28
16 Ryan Newman 8 20
17 Brett Meservey 76 23
18 Eric Goodale 58 16
19 Tyler Hines 99 29
20 Les Hinckley 06 30
21 Jake Johnson 15 10
22 Max Zachem 13 26
23 Doug Coby 44 15
24 Mikey Flynn 24 1
25 Keith Rocco 57 4
26 Jacob Perry 21 12
27 Anthony Bello 51 7
28 Will Lambros 77ny 17
29 Craig Lutz 46 27
30 Ronnie Silk 16 3
Matt Hirschman won the VP Racing Fuels Race of Champions 250 on Sunday, September 22 at Lake Erie Speedway, giving him nine career wins in the historic event.
Following a lap 201 caution for Paulie Hartwig, III, Hirschman won the race off pit road to take the lead in the historic Modified event. From there, Hirschman fended off Andy Jankowiak on the restart and kept a charging Luke Baldwin at bay to secure the win. Hirschman admitted that his ninth Race of Champions victory was mostly a testament to his crew as he hoisted the Al Gerber Trophy. "I think this one, the crew was better than the driver and the car, to be honest," said Hirschman in victory lane. "The car was right when it needed to be. There was just times it wasn't, and there were certainly cars better than us. It was good when it needed to be, but the crew was better than the driver and the car." The first eight of Hirschman's Race of Champions 250 wins came during a nine-year run between 2012 and 2020, with only Chuck Hossfeld in 2014 interrupting the run of dominance. However, Hirschman had not won the event since that 2020 victory. Jankowiak was victorious in 2021, while Patrick Emerling won the race last year. At last, Hirschman has the ninth win, and he's already setting his sights on a 10th to further extend his record in the event. "It feels like it's been a while," said Hirschman. "We didn't have a Race of Champions due to weather one year. It seems like it's been a while. Now that we've got nine, 10 would be a nice round number to get to. You just don't know. I had a great run in this race, but it ended and I wasn't so sure today was going to be our day either. "Happy to get one today and add to our collection with the family and the silver bowls. I appreciate Race of Champions for continuing this tradition. Like I said, we'll try for 10." Like Hirschman, runner-up Luke Baldwin comes from a family with a storied history in Modified racing. However, Baldwin was seeking the first win for his family in the storied event. Still, Baldwin was pleased with a runner-up finish in his debut in the race, thanks in part to a rapid pit stop from the Tommy Baldwin Racing team at the lap 201 caution. "We struggled with the balance all day," said Baldwin. "My guys worked super hard. To be honest with you, I thought we were screwed on that second-to-last run. I was just way too free all throughout the race. I just could never find that lateral or forward grip. "My dad had an outstanding stop on that last stop. I think we went from 11th to third or something. It's got nothing to do with me. I was just behind the wheel trying to take care of it. My guys are the reason it's sitting there right now. I could have driven to a ninth or an eighth-place finish. They put me in the best position I could have been in, and I was able to capitalize."I hear so many stories," added Baldwin. "We're still chasing a Race of Champions win. My grandpa was leading one at Pocono and blew up on the last lap. We're still chasing that infamous Al Gerber Trophy." Austin Beers completed the podium, matching his career best finish in the event. "Kinda surprising with how practice and qualifying went. I was kind of upset with myself there, but my dad did an awesome job with the changes. My crew did an amazing job on the pit stops getting us spots out there. We just had a really good car at the end and we were able to hang with Matt. I almost caught Luke at the end. I was trying to get him. He's a good buddy of mine. He's got some talk he can have for me." Jake Lutz led the race at the time of the lap 201 caution after taking the lead from Zane Zeiner 10 laps prior. However, he fell back to the fourth row for the following restart following pit stops. Lutz recovered for a fourth-place, with Zeiner rounding out the top five.
74th VP Racing Fuels Race of Champions 250 Unofficial Results
Fin No Driver Laps Diff
1 60 Matt Hirschman 250 ---
2 7NY Luke Baldwin 250 1.220
3 45 Austin Beers 250 1.579
4 14 Jake Lutz 250 2.564
5 22 Zane Zeiner 250 4.428
6 81 Jack Ely 250 9.537
7 65 George Skora, III 250 9.537
8 73H Paulie Hartwig, III 250 10.535
9 73x Andy Jankowiak 250 12.205
10 11L Mike Leaty 250 13.490
11 66 Austin Kochenash 250 14.382
12 11JR Andrew Lewis, Jr. 250 14.549
13 17 Danny Knoll, Jr. 250 15.550
14 3 Daren Scherer 249 1 Lap
15 21 Jimmy Zacharias 249 1 Lap
16 39 Jeremy Haudricourt 249 1 Lap
17 25 Jimmy Seger 248 2 Laps
18 24 Greg Krause 247 3 Laps
19 8 Chris Finocchario 222 28 Laps
20 83 Jeff Szafraniec 212 38 Laps
21 51 Jayden Harman 128 122 Laps
22 0 Randall Richard 89 161 Laps
23 10 Daryl Lewis, Jr. 36 214 Laps
24 17T Kevin Timmerman 19 231 Laps
25 73M Mason Hanel 19 231 Laps
Patrick Emerling earns third win of 2024, takes Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup at Monadnock on September 21
No driver has been as dominant on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour as Patrick Emerling in the last two months. That momentum continued for Emerling in Saturday’s Winchester Fair presented by USNE at Monadnock Speedway. Not only did a spirited drive give Emerling his third victory of 2024, but he also took home a $3,000 bonus by claiming the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup that encompassed the three Monadnock events.
Pursuing and then overtaking Matt Hirschman for the victory was an arduous task for Emerling, who credited everyone within owner Rich Gautreau’s organization for consistently providing stellar cars in their first year together. “That was a really hard race out there,” Emerling said. “We all raced each other like gentlemen up front there. I knew we had a really good car today, but it came down to strategy. There was a lot of stuff going on there at the end, but we stuck to our plan. I’m so grateful to run with this Fleetworks No. 1 team and we’ll keep on rolling.” Two consecutive third-place performances in the previous Monadnock races gave Emerling the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup points lead heading into Saturday. An eighth-place qualifying effort that was not influenced by the redraw meant Emerling would have to fight to maintain his points lead at the end of the evening. Further complicating matters was Hirschman starting in the sixth position, who trailed Emerling by three points in the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup standings. Hirschman successfully took the lead from Craig Lutz after 77 laps, all while Emerling patiently worked his way to second. Emerling kept Hirschman within striking distance, but could not erase enough ground to challenge Hirschman for the top spot.A late caution for Trevor Catalano’s spin in Turn 4 gave teams an opportunity to change a tire of their choice, providing both Emerling and Hirschman with some fresh rubber ahead of a sprint to the finish. It took a second restart for Emerling to get the run he needed on the top line to finally put Hirschman in his rearview mirror.Despite taking control of the race and the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup, Emerling still faced one more challenge from Anthony Nocella in the No. 17 owned by Michelle Davini. Nocella bounced off the wall attempting to chase down Emerling, but ended up settling for a runner-up finish. Nocella wanted to deliver a strong performance for Michele, who lost her husband and team co-owner Mike Davini earlier this year. While he would have loved to bring home a victory, Nocella was satisfied to see the team get rewarded for a weekend of strenuous work. “It means a lot,” Nocella said. “[Michelle] wanted to keep going and let us keep racing. This is my second time out with these guys. We had a good car at Loudon and unloaded here fast all day. We had to keep the car clean and stay up there. We had one shot to move [Emerling], but I didn’t do it. We got a little too tight and he got away.” With the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup points so tight, it was paramount for Emerling to fend off Nocella after rigorously working his way to the front all night. His triumph makes him the third different Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup champion in three years, joining Hirschman and Doug Coby. For Emerling, capturing the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup in year one highlights how quickly Gautreau’s team has matured. Building a notebook has been a crucial part of that development, particularly when it came to perfecting the setup for Saturday’s Winchester Fair. “We just had to execute,” Emerling said. “We knew we were going to have a good car coming into the day and were really fast the last couple of races here. There’s races where the driver doesn’t have to work as hard, but we had to work hard tonight.” Now that they have the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup secured, Emerling and his team are turning their attention towards making a run at the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour championship. Hirschman settled for third after a dominant start to the Winchester Fair. He was followed in the top five by Lutz and Woody Pitkat.
Matthew Kimball came home sixth in front of the two championship contenders, Ron Silk and Justin Bonsignore, who had multiple run-ins with one another during the closing laps. Rounding out the top 10 were Tommy Catalano and Austin Beers.
1 1 Patrick Emerling Fleetworks Inc 200
2 17 Anthony Nocella Xtreme Racing/Sekor Machine/Zilinski Heating & Cooling 200 0.366
3 60 Matt Hirschman Elite 200 0.517
4 46 Craig Lutz Riverhead Building Supply 200 0.884
5 82 Woody Pitkat Horton Avenue Materials/Gunsmoke Stables Racing 200 1.13
6 43 Matthew Kimball J&M Towing and Recovery/Poodlack Wealth Mgmt 200 1.366
7 16 Ron Silk Blue Mountain Machine/Future Homes 200 1.722
8 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communications, Inc. 200 2.11
9 54 Tommy Catalano Catalano Motorsports 200 2.323
10 64 Austin Beers G&G Electrical Supply/Dell Electric/Lumiere Electrical 200 2.643
11 21 Stephen Kopcik* Newtown Pools/Karchner Warehousing 200 4.808
12 56 Trevor Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 200 4.926
13 3 Tyler Rypkema USNE/Northeast Drilling 199 1 Lap
14 15 Joey Cipriano III* Dependable Energy & Bass Plating 199 1 Lap
15 22 Kyle Bonsignore Chalew Performance/MTT/Munns Auto 198 2 Laps
16 81 Nathan Wenzel* 1812 Paint & Auto Body/Gene’s Ford & Chev Serv 197 3 Laps
17 19 Anthony Sesely Franzosa Trucking Co/Karchner Warehousing 196 4 Laps
18 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood & Restaurant 196 4 Laps
19 84 Tyler Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 191 9 Laps
20 10 Bob Reis* IronListing.com/B.R. Machineworks 190 10 Laps
21 79 Jonathan McKennedy McKennedy Racing 94 106 Laps
Woody Pitkat takes the win at Star Speedway for the RaceChoice.com 125. Matt Hirschman and Anthony Nocella round out the top-3 on September 15.
1 1 88 Pitkat, Woody Bellingham, MA 0
2 5 60 Hirschman, Matt Northampton, PA 3
3 6 92 Nocella, Anthony Berlin, MA 3
4 10 1CT Bessette, George Jr. Danbury, CT 6
5 3 07 Christopher, Michael JR Wolcott, CT -2
6 24 13 Zachem, Max Preston, CT 18
7 13 55CT Hodgdon, Teddy Danbury, CT 6
8 18 14 Barney, Blake Jackson, NJ 10
9 15 76 Meservey, Brett Brewster, MA 6
10 9 50 Williams, Ronnie Lebanon, CT -1
11 12 5CT Pasteryak, Chris Moosup, CT 1
12 4 79 McKennedy, Jonathan Chelmsford, MA -8
13 2 43 Kimball, Matthew Bennington, NH -11
14 11 55 Doucette, Ryan Framingham, MA -3
15 14 19W Battle, Jeffrey Dunstable, MA -1
16 19 06 Hinckley, Les Windsor Locks, CT 3
17 8 1 Kopcik, Stephen Newtown, CT -9
18 21 99 Hines, Tyler North Haven, CT 3
19 7 25 Swanson, Matt Harvard, MA -12
20 20 78 Sutcliffe, Walter East Haven, CT 0
21 23 04NH McCormack, Stewart Plaistow, NH 2
22 22 31 Korner, Noah Canton, CT 0
23 17 04CT Izzo, Dylan Monroe, CT -6
24 16 02 Collins, Mike Strafford, NH -8
Kyle Strohl bests Beers, Hirschman, and Barney en route from the outhouse to the penthouse in the 93 lap Bill Swartz Sr. Tribute race at The Mahoning Valley Speedway on September 7
Bill Swartz Sr. was the true embodiment of a racing enthusiast. While Swartz Sr. wasn’t typically in the racing papers for being a driver, it goes without saying that he was a true cornerstone in the racing community, fielding race cars for some of racing’s biggest names for almost 5 whole decades. Bill fielded his first race car all the way back in 1957 at Mahoning Valley Speedway prior to there being a spec of asphalt on the racing surface. After a traffic accident that resulted in needing a metal hip replacement sidelined BIll’s racing career, he shifted his focus to primarily being a car owner.
Countless victories and track championships originated from the Swartz stable, facilitating the careers of many race car drivers. Some of these drivers included Rich Landis, Tim Perry, Rod Snyder Jr., Ryan Preece, George Wambold, Kevin Rex, Ward Krozier Sr., Kenny Hein, Keith Kocher, Tim Laybourn, Cal Snyder, Carl VanHorn, Frankie Schneider, Newk Muffley, George Resh, Steve Drabick, Willard Paules, George Stiegerwalt, Jack Jones, Charlie Hansler, Ron Sauerwine, Stan Landis, Dave Bobst, Jimmy Wismer, Adam Horwith, Dale Bauer, and his son, Billy Swartz Jr.. The Swartz family, led by Bill’s son, Billy Swartz Jr., was able to put together a hefty purse which brought racers from all corners of the east coast forming a full field of ground pounding modifieds. The Swartz family would like to thank all of their family members and sponsors that contributed towards their purse as well as all of the race teams that came out to pay tribute to one of the most prolific car owners in short track racing history.
From the drop of the green flag of the 93 Lap Bill Swartz Sr. Memorial race, tension and aggression was high as Paulie Hartwig lll was shot out of a cannon, leading the 53 of Brian DeFebo and the 8 of Earl Paules early on. Defebo would soon fall back on the outside as “The Hurricane”, Earl Paules, took sole possession of P2 and immediately began knocking on the back door of Hartwig. After a lap 12 caution reshuffled the field, Hartwig would lead Paules and Matt Hirschman to the green. After 7 laps of side by side action throughout the field, a checkup by Earl Paules and Brian DeFebo sent the rest of the field into a frenzy, causing the 03 of Jaden Brown to climb the left rear sail panel of the 19 of Austin Brown, causing significant body damage before parking it on Beers’ roof on the front stretch. Both cars were able to continue on, however, the Beers crew went through a couple rolls of duck tape to ensure the body on the 19 would stay on for the remainder of the race. The 11 of Paulie Hartwig lll would then have Matt Hirschman lined up on his outside, holding him off for the next 8 laps until another caution was brought out by Terry Markovic in the 92. Hartwig wouldn’t be as fortunate on the lap 24 restart, however, as Matt Hirschman was able to make quick work on the outside gaining sole position of the lead for the ensuing 30 laps. While all eyes were on the 60 of Matt Hirschman, “The Real Deal”, Kyle Strohl was methodically picking off the top 10 as he had started deep in the field. Strohl would fight his way through a sea of serious competition until he had the 60 of Hirschman lined up in his crosshairs from the second position. A long green flag run was all the 44 of Strohl needed, as once he tracked down Hirschman, he wasted no time darting to the inside line where he and Hirschman would battle closely for the next five laps. Hirschman, however, surprisingly was unable to keep the momentum rolling on the high side, relinquishing the lead to Strohl and falling further back in the top 5 as the laps dwindled down. Kyle Strohl, another familiar face to victory lane at the quarter mile, was not quite out of the woods yet. While he did shoot out to a commanding lead, the long green flag run seemingly took a toll on his tires as the 19 of Austin Beers miraculously piloted his severely wounded 19 machine to second place with the “Big Red” 14 car of Blake Barney right behind him. Beers had nothing but speed while Strohl was handling a tight race car closing in on the final 10 laps. Beers would eventually track down Strohl, taking a look to the inside as they approached lap traffic. The young talent between the two front runners was certainly on display as they battled side by side, neither driver giving an inch without making any contact with one another. The 44 of Strohl seemingly found a second wind as he was able to rocket by Beers once more on the outside. Coming to the white flag with one lap remaining, Beers had one final glimpse of hope, as Strohl went to the high side to avoid lap traffic. There was a gap on the bottom line for Beers to take, however, in a display of respect for the 44 crew, Beers refrained from sending it through wide, as the move likely would’ve resulted in catastrophe for all parties involved. Coming out of turn 4, Kyle Strohl would cruise onto his third victory on the season at Mahoning Valley Speedway, this time taking home the hardware and the $4,000 paycheck in the Billy Swartz Sr. Tribute race.
MODIFIEDS: Kyle Strohl, Austin Beers, Blake Barney, Matt Hirschman, Lou Strohl, Rod Snyder Jr., Nick Baer, Bobby Jones, Brian Defebo, Don Wagner, Earl Paules, Paulie Hartwig lll, Jayden Harman, Brian Romig Sr., Brian Rygelski, Josh Mooney, Jacob Kerstetter, Jaden Brown, Thomas Flanagan, Kevin Graver Jr., Terry Markovic
Patrick Emerling scores another convincing Modified Tour victory, takes checkered at Oswego on Aug 31
Patrick Emerling’s victory Saturday night in the Toyota Mod Classic 150 at New York’s Oswego Speedway was not as dominant as the win he secured a few weeks ago at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park. The rest of the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour field, though, couldn’t tell much of a difference.The 31-year-old from nearby Orchard Park, New York took the lead on a power move as the race reached its halfway point, and despite multiple restarts and challenges from eventual runner-up Matt Hirschman, Emerling powered to the checkered flag with a strong No. 1 Modified. He did so after leading every lap of the Aug. 14 running of the Thompson 150.Unofficially, Emerling’s second consecutive Modified Tour win brings him within 24 points of leader Justin Bonsignore in the championship battle. He’s just 19 points behind second-place Ron Silk, joining both as multi-time race winners on the Modified Tour in 2024. “The 60 was really fast; he’s super hard to beat here,” Emerling said of Hirschman. “Really solid pit stop, and we did a little dicing on that start there to get us the lead. And then we had the car. “We’re coming on strong as a team. We’re showing up with incredible race cars week in and week out. We just have to continue doing what we’re doing.”The aforementioned pit cycle during a caution just before the race’s halfway point shook up the front of the field. To that point, Hirschman, who was fastest in practice and qualified on the pole, had led every lap as the clear driver to beat.A slower stop, however, pushed Hirschman back to fifth place for the restart. Tim Connolly stayed out to assume the lead, and the presence of the No. 4 Mystic Missile at the front of the field was a major factor in how the proceeding laps developed.Connolly’s slower car caused a bit of a jam on the restart, and Emerling dove to the inside of Connolly to take the lead before Bonsignore had a chance to do so up top.From there, Emerling never looked back.“Unfortunately for us, [Connolly] stayed out on old tires,” Bonsignore said. “Crept into the box and shuffled us out there, and Patrick got the lead. I think if I could have gotten the lead, maybe I would have had the track position to hold them off. Our car was really good the last 25 laps or so.” Hirschman felt satisfied with his run despite the sting of a runner-up finish. Sometimes, he noted, others are just as quick.
“It was a real good day; the only place we got passed all day was the pits, so we lost a few there,” Hirschman said. “The 1 and us were just so close to identical in lap times. There were times when he was a few hundredths better and he opened a little lead, and there was a time when I was a few hundredths better. Two cars were just that close.“We had the advantage early being out front. He had the advantage after halfway being out front.”Silk finished fourth, one spot behind Bonsignore as the two continue a championship battle that now includes Emerling.Austin Beers rebounded from an early pit stop and worked his way back through the field to finish fifth.Jacob Lutz, Tommy Catalano, Kyle Bonsignore, Craig Lutz and Tyler Rypkema finished sixth through 10th, respectively.
Toyota Mod Classic 150
Oswego Speedway
Race results
Pos. No. Name Sponsor Laps Diff.
1 1 Patrick Emerling Fleetworks Inc 150 –
2 60 Matt Hirschmann Elite 150 0.532
3 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communications, Inc. 150 5.155
4 16 Ron Silk Blue Mountain Machine/Future Homes 150 7.537
5 64 Austin Beers G&G Electrical Supply/Dell Electric/Lumiere Electrical 150 8.774
6 14 Jacob Lutz* Advantage Trucks/Anastasi Trucking/Anastasi Trucking 150 10.873
7 54 Tommy Catalano Catalano Motorsports 150 13.489
8 22 Kyle Bonsignore Chalew Performance/MTT/Munns Auto 150 14.784
9 46 Craig Lutz Riverhead Building Supply 150 17.025
10 32 Tyler Rypkema Musco Lighting/Northeast Drilling 149 1 Lap
11 82 Woody Pitkat Horton Avenue Materials/Gunsmoke Stables Racing 149 1 Lap
12 4 Tim Connolly Connolly Companies, LLC 149 1 Lap
13 3 Bobby Santos, III USNE 149 1 Lap
14 56 Trevor Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 149 1 Lap
15 0 Andy Jankowiak Spafco Race Chassis/BNP Machine 148 2 Laps
16 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood & Restaurant 148 2 Laps
17 24 Andrew Krause Supreme Manufacturing 121 29 Laps
18 84 Tyler Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 27 123 Laps
19 10 Bob Reis* IronListing.com/B.R. Machineworks 20 130 Laps
20 1 Melissa Fifield Pine Knoll Auto Sales 6 144 Laps
Ron Silk earned his first career Race of Champions Modified Series win August 30 night in the Maynard Troyer Classic V at Spencer Speedway on August 30.
Zach Evans
After a hard-fought battle with Jake Lutz, Ron Silk tallied his first career Race of Champions (RoC) Modified Series victory in the Maynard Troyer Classic V at Spencer Speedway Friday.Making just his fifth career start with the series, Silk took the lead on a lap 21 restart and held off Lutz in the closing laps for the win."It was pretty intense there," said Silk in victory lane. "He gave me everything I had to hold him off. I'm just really excited to win the Maynard Troyer Memorial. He was a legend of our sport. It's cool that this is the first RoC race I've won. I'm just really happy we came and got to be a part of it, and pumped with the outcome."Silk was fighting two battles in the final circuits of the 60-lap race. Not only was he trying to hold off a quick Jake Lutz, but also his rear brakes were brightly glowing red. In the end, Silk had just enough race car and brake life to stay in front."It was pretty tight the whole race. I was trying to put some rear brake into it to try to help it make it turn. It didn't really do much other than almost start a fire. The car was really good. I think Jake in the 14 was slightly better than us. He made that one mistake on the restart and we were able to get the track position on him. I'm glad we could hold on."I think [Jake]'s a really good driver. Not a lot of experience, so hopefully, he doesn't get too much better," Silk joked. "They have great equipment. It was good to hold him off."Zane Zeiner finished third, with Paulie Hartwig, III and Jack Ely rounding out the top five.There was a lengthy delay for clean-up on lap 37, when Matt Hirschman suffered a dramatic mechanical failure that created a large fire on his No. 60 entry.Following the Maynard Troyer Classic V, the RoC Sportsman Modifieds closed out the night with a 36-lap feature. Kevin Timmerman scored the victory ahead of Eddie Hawkins and Mike Leaty.
"It feels good," said Timmerman in victory lane. "Whenever you start from the pole, you've got to win. Otherwise, it feels like you just gave it up. We had a good car tonight, so we'll take it."With the win, Timmerman now holds a 29-point advantage over Jacob Christman in the series points standings with three races remaining on the schedule."It's going to be a battle," said Timmerman. "I never really think about the points until the last week. You've got to figure out what you've got to do then. Just try to do these consistent, stay up front finishes."Joey VanLare won in the 602 Sportman Modifieds in the first feature event of the evening, finishing ahead of Jeana Dietz and John Sippel.
Unofficial Results - Maynard Troyer Classic V
Fin No Driver Laps Diff
1 16 Ron Silk 60 ---
2 14 Jake Lutz 60 0.175
3 22 Zane Zeiner 60 4.679
4 73H Paulie Hartwig, III 60 6.116
5 81 Jack Ely 60 6.683
6 2 Kevin Miller 60 7.958
7 10 Daryl Lewis, Jr. 60 9.179
8 66 Austin Kochenash 60 10.107
9 65 George Skora, III 60 10.429
10 8 Chris Finocchario 60 12.496
11 95K Jacob Kerstetter 60 13.280
12 99 Neal Dietz 60 16.254
13 11JR Andrew Lewis, Jr. 60 16.412
14 v4 Tim Connolly 59 1 Lap
15 17 Danny Knoll, Jr. 55 5 Laps
16 88 Sean Verwys 42 18 Laps
17 11L Mike Leaty 42 18 Laps
18 20 Chuck Hossfeld 42 18 Laps
19 3 Daren Scherer 42 18 Laps
20 51N Shawn Nye 41 19 Laps
21 60 Matt Hirschman 37 23 Laps
22 73x Andy Jankowiak 37 23 Laps
23 07 Patrick Emerling 37 23 Laps
24 51H Jayden Harman 26 34 Laps
25 95S Bryan Sherwood 26 34 Laps
26 0 Randall Richard 23 37 Laps
27 73M Mason Hanel 5 55 Laps
28 76 Gunnar Zeiner n
Hirschman wins the Wambold Tribute Race followed by Beers and Strohl on August 24 at Mahoning
The night was electric at Mahoning Valley Speedway, where the roaring engines and cheers of the crowd created an atmosphere of pure adrenaline. The grandstands were packed with fans eager to witness the Tribute Race, a heartfelt homage to the legendary George Wambold. This race was more than just an event; it was a celebration of a racing icon whose legacy had inspired countless drivers and fans alike. As the engines roared to life and the green flag waved, a great field of drivers surged each one vying for a place in racing history. Among them was Matt Hirschman, who began the race in a less-than-ideal starting position. However, Hirschman’s reputation as a strategic mastermind shone through as he navigated the challenging track with precision. He skillfully maneuvered through the pack, capitalizing on the timely cautions and making daring passes that left the crowd wanting more.The battle for the lead became a thrilling spectacle as Hirschman worked his way up through the field, closing in on the frontrunners, Beers and Strohl. The duo at the front were fighting loose conditions, their cars sliding as they fought loose race cars. Hirschman, ever the opportunist, seized the moment. With a blend of aggressive yet calculated driving, he closed the gap and soon found himself in the thick of the action.As Beers and Strohl wrestled with their handling issues, Hirschman displayed his mastery of the track, making his move and taking the lead with a decisive pass that had the crowd roaring in approval. The checkered flag waved, and Hirschman crossed the finish line to a thunderous ovation, cementing his victory in the 81 Tribute Race.In a show of humility and sportsmanship, Hirschman took a moment to thank the packed grandstands for their unwavering support. His words of gratitude and admiration for his fellow competitors echoed through the track, underscoring the spirit of camaraderie and respect that defined the night. The celebration of George Wambold’s legacy was complete, as the night closed with a sense of unity and excitement, marking a memorable evening in Mahoning Valley.
Patrick Emerling delivered team owner Rich Gautreau his first NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour victory in perfect fashion on August 14. Matt suffers a flat right front to finish 22nd 5 laps down
Emerling was not only fastest in both practice and qualifying aboard Gautreau’s No. 1 Fleetworks Inc. Modified at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park, he also led every lap of the Thompson 150 presented by FloSports.com to earn his first NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour victory in nearly three years. The win by Emerling makes him the seventh consecutive different winner in NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour competition in as many events.Emerling believed a victory was inevitable based on the consistency they’d displayed leading into Wednesday’s race, but he admitted he was pleasantly surprised with the team’s performance Wednesday evening.
“We’ve had a dominant car the last three races and we’ve been building momentum,” Emerling said. “This is our first year racing as a team and we executed pretty well at [Thompson]. That was probably the fastest car I’ve ever driven in my life and it’s awesome to finally get a win at Thompson.”A lot has changed for Emerling since he earned his last NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour victory at Riverhead Raceway in 2021.Along with shifting his efforts from his family-owned operation to Gautreau’s team, Emerling has also invested copious time and energy into the NASCAR Xfinity Series. He briefly co-owned a team with Joey Gase and has competed in 14 Xfinity Series so far this season.The accumulated track time across different disciplines provided Emerling an advantage as he prepared to tackle his first full-time NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season since 2021. Despite the unknowns with Gautreau’s new team, Emerling was confident they could quickly establish a rhythm.
Emerling’s first race with Gautreau resulted in a fourth-place showing at New Smyrna Speedway in February. Aside from being collected in a crash during the following race at Richmond Raceway, Emerling has finished inside the top-five in every race this year.Three consecutive top fives entering Thompson, each an improvement over the last, only gave Emerling more confidence. With clean air and a stellar car on his side, no one in the field could match Emerling’s pace as he cruised to the most dominant victory of his NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour career.Justin Bonsignore, who trailed Ron Silk by one point in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour standings prior to Wednesday, made a charge on Emerling during the closing laps but had to settle for second. He commended the efforts of Gautreau and Emerling for having such a dominant car, adding he needed more from his own Modified to challenge for the lead.“[Emerling’s] car was just really good,” Bonsignore said. “Track position would have been nice if I could have gotten the lead on the start. We were starting to run him down a little bit with 15 to go, but I got stuck in lap traffic a little worse than he did and then the car gave up on the rear tires. All in all, a really good night.”Bonsignore’s runner-up finish, combined with Silk’s seventh-place finish Wednesday, has allowed Bonsignore to lay claim to the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour championship lead for the first time this season. He leads Silk by four points with six races remaining in the 2024 season.Emerling’s own consistent streak now has him on the cusp of being a title contender. While he would love to have a say over who hoists the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour championship trophy at Martinsville Speedway, Emerling is focused on sustainability so he, Gautreau and the rest of the team can enjoy many similar days going forward.“We have a ton of potential,” Emerling said. “An amazing program has been put together here and I can’t be any more thankful to drive for this team. I wish Rich was here [to celebrate], but he’s back in California. We did it and [this win] is absolutely incredible.”Craig Lutz finished third at Thompson on Wednesday evening, with Jon McKennedy and Tommy Catalano completing the top five. Matt Swanson, Silk, Austin Beers, Trevor Catalano and Eric Goodale rounded out the top-10 finishers.
1 1 Patrick Emerling Fleetworks Inc 150 --
2 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communications, Inc. 150 1.766
3 46 Craig Lutz Riverhead Building Supply 150 4.323
4 79 Jonathan McKennedy Christopher’s Towing 150 7.37
5 54 Tommy Catalano Catalano Motorsports 150 8.387
6 89 Matt Swanson Cervaolos Auto/Casella Snowplows/Mully’s Auto Repair 150 10.034
7 16 Ron Silk Blue Mountain Machine/Future Homes 150 11.199
8 64 Austin Beers AP Marquadt & Sons/G&G Electrical Supply 150 18.769
9 56 Trevor Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 149 1 Lap
10 58 Eric Goodale GAF Roofing 149 1 Lap
11 24 Andrew Krause Supreme Manufacturing 149 1 Lap
12 32 Tyler Rypkema Musco Lighting/Northeast Drilling 149 1 Lap
13 19 Anthony Sesely Franzosa Trucking Co/Karchner Warehousing 149 1 Lap
14 4 Tim Connolly Connolly Companies, LLC 149 1 Lap
15 82 Woody Pitkat Horton Avenue Materials/Gunsmoke Stables Racing 148 2 Laps
16 7 Doug Coby Baldwin Automotive 148 2 Laps
17 00 Andy Jankowiak Spafco Race Chassis/BNP Machine 148 2 Laps
18 88 Roger Turbush Rheem 148 2 Laps
19 84 Tyler Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 147 3 Laps
20 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood & Restaurant 146 4 Laps
21 36 Dave Sapienza Sapienza Racing/Eastport Feed 145 5 Laps
22 60 Matt Hirschman Elite 145 5 Laps
23 21 Stephen Kopcik* Newtown Pools/Karchner Warehousing 129 21 Laps
24 22 Kyle Bonsignore Chalew Performance/MTT/Munns Auto 90 60 Laps
25 44 Chase Dowling Harshaw Paving/Olivas Market 87 63 Laps
26 3 Jake Johnson Propane Plus/Lin’s Propane Trucks 76 74 Laps
Matt Hirschman uses late race pass to get his first Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series victory of the season August 10 in front of a packed house at the New London-Waterford Speedbowl.
60 Hirschman, Matt Northampton, PA 4 2 6 07 Bonsignore, Kyle Mooresville, NC 4 3 4 1 Kopcik, Stephen Newtown, CT 1 4 24 76 Meservey, Brett Brewster, MA 20 5 9 00 Christopher, Michael JR Wolcott, CT 4 6 2 11CT Berndt, Eric Cromwell, CT-4 7 18 92 Nocella, Anthony Berlin, MA 11 8 19 13 Zachem, Max Preston, CT 11 9 7 55CT Hodgdon, Teddy Danbury, CT-2 10 16 88 Pitkat, Woody Bellingham, MA 6 11 1 5CT Pasteryak, Chris Moosup, CT-10 12 11 50 Williams, Ronnie Lebanon, CT-1 13 8 06 Hinckley, Les Windsor Locks, CT-5 14 10 51 Bello, Anthony Newtown, CT-4 15 23 24 Patnode, Todd Swanzey, NH 8 16 12 25 Swanson, Matt Harvard, MA-4 17 14 8NY Barry, Tyler Griswold, CT-3 18 28 96 Brode, Matthew East Islip, NY 10 19 13 57 Rocco, Keith Berlin, CT-6 20 15 04CT Izzo, Dylan Monroe, CT-5 21 25 01 Pedersen, Artie Center Moriches, NY 4 22 3 15 Johnson, Jake Rehoboth, MA-19 23 31 78 Sutcliffe, Walter East Haven, CT 8 24 17 55X Perry, Jacob Kannapolis, NC-7 25 27 11 DiMatteo, Cory Farmington, CT 2 26 20 99 Hines, Tyler North Haven, CT-6 27 21 81 Flannery, Anthony East Hampton, CT-6 28 30 31 Korner, Noah Canton, CT 2 29 26 08 Halkowicz, Nicholas Shelton, CT-3 30 22 75 Arute, David Stafford Springs, CT-8 31 29 51CT Cipriano, Joey Plymouth, CT-2
Austin Beers defends Lancaster triumph for first victory of 2024 on August 3 as Matt grabs 4th
The only two drivers to win a NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour race at Lancaster Motorplex fittingly placed first and second in Saturday’s Nu-Way Auto Parts 150.Austin Beers was the one who prevailed, utilizing strategy during a caution-filled race to gain valuable track position and hold off Patrick Emerling to secure the victory. Not only did Beers defend his triumph at Lancaster from 2023, he also secured his first victory of the 2024 season. Although relieved to break a yearlong winless drought, the first thought on Beers’ mind in Victory Lane was Evan Canfield, a motorsports photographer who passed away earlier in the week. Beers dedicated his victory to Canfield.“This one is for the Canfield family,” Beers said. “Evan Canfield was a great guy and we lost him two days ago. He was just an amazing person and I loved seeing him at the race track. I’m glad to get another victory. It’s been a struggle this year. I’ve been kind of distraught myself, but I’m real happy with how the night went.”
The past year and a half on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour has seen Beers blossom into one of the brightest young stars in the series.Fresh off a two-win sophomore campaign, Beers has come close to replicating his numbers from 2023. Along with earning a pole at Monadnock Speedway in July, Beers also tallied three consecutive runner-up finishes in May and June, yet had been unable to obtain another victory despite his speed.Finally returning to Victory Lane required patience from Beers. Cautions plagued the Nu-Way Auto Parts 150, creating opportunities for diverging pit strategies, with Beers choosing to stay out alongside his Mud Lane neighbor Matt Hirschman following a caution on Lap 51.Beers managed to take the lead from Hirschman immediately after the restart, but would have to enter pit road during the next caution flag. A couple more cautions shifted the strategy back in Beers’ favor after he inherited the top spot when Justin Bonsignore and others came to pit road for tires and adjustments.
A surging Bonsignore was not Beers’ most paramount concern during the closing laps. Emerling, who was on the same strategy, tried vigorously to find a pathway to the lead, which involved fending off Bonsignore after being briefly passed by him.
Emerling’s determination did not yield him an overdue first victory driving for team owner Rich Gautreau. Having a Lancaster NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour win on his resume gave Emerling confidence, but he commended Beers for driving efficiently enough to keep him in his rearview mirror.“[Beers] was rotating a little bit better,” Emerling said. “There were a couple of little mistakes we could almost capitalize on, but the whole Fleetworks team did an excellent job today. This was our first time here as a team and we were second-best. We’ve been having opportunities to win week-in and week-out lately.”
Beers admitted it was difficult to play defense against Emerling. A line of rain showers that impacted Lancaster earlier in the day left behind several treacherous spots on the track, which forced Beers to stay vigilant while trying to maintain the lead.
“It was really tricky down in turns one and two with the weepers and the water,” Beers said. “I’d get free there and have to gather it in. That’s where Patrick would catch up to me, but he ran me really well. It was a really fun race.”
Justin Bonsignore trimmed the margin between himself and Ron Silk in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour point standings to a single point with a third-place finish. Following him in the top five were Hirschman and Tommy Catalano.
Craig Lutz, Andy Jankowiak, Jacob Lutz, Jake Johnson and Silk made up the rest of the top 10 finishers. Silk, who entered the Nu-Way Auto Parts 150 as the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour points leader, lost track position following a late spin.
1 64 Austin Beers G&G Electrical Supply/Dell Electric 150
2 1 Patrick Emerling Fleetworks Inc 150 0.326
3 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communications, Inc. 150 0.791
4 60 Matt Hirschmann Elite 150 1.113
5 54 Tommy Catalano Catalano Motorsports 150 1.713
6 46 Craig Lutz Riverhead Building Supply 150 2.147
7 00 Andy Jankowiak KLAS Motorsports/Florida Safety Systems 150 3.169
8 14 Jacob Lutz* Advantage Trucks/Anastasi Trucking/Anastasi Trucking 150 3.34
9 3 Jake Johnson Propane Plus/Lin’s Propane Trucks 150 4.189
10 16 Ron Silk Blue Mountain Machine/Future Homes 150 4.428
11 4 Tim Connolly Connolly Companies, LLC 150 4.804
12 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood & Restaurant 150 5.882
13 56 Trevor Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 150 10.614
14 72 Andrew Spurback* ProformParts.com/Spurback Motorsports 140 10 Laps
15 01 Melissa Fifield Farm Fueled Nutrition 132 18 Laps
16 22 Kyle Bonsignore Chalew Performance/MTT/Munns Auto 118 32 Laps
17 32 Tyler Rypkema Musco Lighting/Northeast Drilling 96 54 Laps
18 10 Bob Reis* IronListing.com/B.R. Machineworks 82 68 Laps
19 84 Tyler Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 77 73 Laps
The pit area at White Mountain Motorsports Park filled to near capacity on Saturday night for the first-ever Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series event at the quarter-mile facility in North Woodstock, New Hampshire on July 27 - Matt gets 6th
With former 2024 winners Stephen Kopcik and Teddy Hodgdon leading the field to green, the Mighty Modifieds of the Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series took on the White Mountain highbanks in a Series first. Kopcik took the early lead with a rear-view mirror full of Woody Pitkat. ‘The Sultan of Stafford’ would be the first to take the shot down low, taking over the lead on lap 19 from Kopcik at the head of the pack.
Throughout the middle of the 100-lap event, it wasn’t the race to the front for Matt Hirschman, rather the race not to be lapped! Again and again race leader Woody Pitkat closed on Matt Hirschman with Hirschman motored inside and outside of slower cars to maintain a lead-lap position. ‘Big Money Matt’ would be saved with the first caution on lap 73 for the stalled Chris Pasteryak on the backstretch. Pitkat, Hirschman, Ronnie Williams and Kyle Bonsignore were among those who took advantage of the yellow flag to jump pit-side for tires and adjustments. While Hirschman made it to the top-five under the return to green, his luck ran out with the #60 sliding through the infield to bring out the lap 82 caution. Jake ‘The Jet’ Johnson took command of the field and never faltered through the final restart for the lap 89 caution as Les Hinkley kissed the turn four tire barrier. Jake Johnson earned the first ever Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series event in their first trip to White Mountain Motorsports Park followed by Woody Pitkat and Steven Kopcik at the line.
1. 15 Jake Johnson Rehoboth, MA
2. 88 Woody Pitkat Bellingham, MA
3. 1 Stephen Kopcik Newtown, CT
4. 92 Anthony Nocella Woburn, MA
5. 43 Matt Kimball Bennington, NH
6. 60 Matt Hirschman Northamption, PA
7. 79 Jon McKennedy Chelmsford, MA
8. 50 Ronnie Williams Ellington, CT
9. 07 Kyle Bonsignore Hebron, IL
10. 55CT Teddy Hodgdon Danbury, CT
11. 25 Matt Swanson Harvard, MA
12. 06 Les Hinckley Windsor Locks, CT
13. 76 Brett Meservey Brewster, MA
14. 51 Anthony Bello Newtown, CT
15. 55 Teddy Hodgdon Danbury, CT
16. 04 Joey Jarvis Ascutney, VT
17. 5CT Chris Pasteryak Lisbon, CT
18. 99 Tyler Hines North Haven, CT
19. 78 Walter Sutcliffe East Haven, CT
20. 51CT Joey Cipriano Plymouth, CT
21. 66 Gabe Brown Center Conway, NH
One for the family: Trevor Catalano hangs on for emotional Whelen Modified Tour win at Monadnock Speedway on July 20 as Matt has solid 4th place finish after contending early for the lead
By Adam Fenwick
WINCHESTER, N.H. – The Catalano family has been trying to win a NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour race since 2018. On Saturday night at Monadnock Speedway, 17-year-old Trevor Catalano delivered the victory that his entire family so desperately wanted.Trevor, the youngest of three brothers currently racing on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour, held off reigning series champion Ron Silk to win the Duel at the Dog 250.“This is awesome,” Trevor said. “My mom and dad, they give us everything they can to come out here and be competitive. They gave me everything and anything that I know. I just can’t thank my parents enough.“It’s a whole family operation. We all pick off of each other and try to give the best type of car we can give and come out every week and be competitive. Man, this thing was on rails.”Prior to Saturday, the best NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour performance for the Catalano family belonged to 26-year-old Tommy Catalano, a runner-up result at Richmond Raceway during the 2022 season.To improve upon that performance, Trevor and the Catalano Motorsports team had to gamble.When the caution flag waved for the stalled car of Tim Connolly with 71 laps left, most of the leaders opted to head to pit road for a fresh Hoosier Tire.Three drivers – Kyle Bonsignore, Woody Pitkat and Trevor – instead chose to stay out and inherited the top three positions. Patrick Emerling and Ron Silk, who had been the leaders prior to the caution, would line up fourth and fifth for the restart. Once racing resumed, Trevor went to work. He dispatched Pitkat with ease and took the lead from Bonsignore on lap 195. Trevor promptly built a half second lead on the field, but it didn’t last.Behind him, Silk was on the move. After moving past Bonsignore with 53 laps remaining, Silk quickly set off in pursuit of Trevor.The next 50 laps saw Silk hound the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour rookie. He tried to coax him into a mistake and nearly got an opportunity with 23 laps left when Trevor bobbled in Turn 3.Silk got to his inside, but wise beyond his years, Trevor used the lap car of Melissa Fifield as a pick and forced Silk to fall back in behind him in turns one and two.“I messed up a couple times. I thought Ronnie (Silk) was going to get me. He raced me clean,” Trevor said. “I was just trying to drive as hard as I could without messing up.”That was as close as Silk would get to completing the pass. Trevor crossed the finish line .254 seconds ahead of Silk to earn his first NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour win in just his ninth start.Silk, to his credit, said he didn’t want to shoehorn Trevor out of the way. He wanted to beat him clean, but just didn’t have the car to do it.“I probably just needed to turn the center a little bit better,” Silk said. “I would say we were basically even. I didn’t want to knock him out of the way. He did a great job. He didn’t make any mistakes. I was hoping he would make one and I could get my nose under him.“Congratulations to Trevor. He did a phenomenal job.”Four other members of the Catalano had tried to win NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour races prior to Trevor’s win Saturday night. They included his mom, Amy, and his three brothers Timmy, Tommy and Tyler.However, it was Trevor, the youngest of the group currently competing with the series, who got the job done.“This is going to be one I probably remember forever,” Trevor said.After fading through the field during the final restart, Emerling drove back to finish third. Matt Hirschman and Kyle Bonsignore completed the top five.Pitkat, Justin Bonsignore, Matt Kimball, Tommy Catalano and Austin Beers finished sixth through 10th, respectively.
1 56 Trevor Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 250 --
2 16 Ron Silk Blue Mountain Machine/Future Homes 250 0.254
3 1 Patrick Emerling Fleetworks Inc 250 1.779
4 60 Matt Hirschmann Elite 250 2.63
5 22 Kyle Bonsignore Chalew Performance/MTT/Munns Auto 250 3.106
6 82 Woody Pitkat Horton Avenue Materials/Gunsmoke Stables Racing 250 5.771
7 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communications, Inc. 250 7.25
8 43 Matthew Kimball J&M Towing and Recovery/Poodlack Wealth Mgmt 250 7.625
9 54 Tommy Catalano Catalano Motorsports 250 8.021
10 64 Austin Beers G&G Electrical Supply/Dell Electric 250 8.192
11 25 Brian Robie TBD 250 9.274
12 46 Craig Lutz Riverhead Building Supply 250 10.053
13 21 Stephen Kopcik* Newtown Pools/Karchner Warehousing 250 11.779
14 3 Jake Johnson Propane Plus/Lin’s Propane Trucks 249 1 Lap
15 84 Tyler Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 249 1 Lap
16 5 Kyle Ebersole Ebersole Excavating, Inc. 248 2 Laps
17 81 Nathan Wenzel 1812 Auto Body 246 4 Laps
18 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood & Restaurant 246 4 Laps
19 01 Melissa Fifield Farm Fueled Nutrition 235 15 Laps
20 8 John-Michael Shenette* Eighty-Two Services 136 114 Laps
21 4 Tim Connolly Connolly Companies, LLC 55 195 Laps
Matt Hirschman Wins First RoC Modified Event at Evans Mills on July 13
By Zach Evans
Matt Hirschman scored the victory in the RoC Modifieds' first event at Evans Mills Raceway Park, the 59th of his career with the tour. Hirschman has now won at 13 different venues in RoC Modified Series competition. Hirschman took the lead on lap 46 of the 80-lap feature, maintaining his advantage over Andy Jankowiak for the victory. Before that, there was a brief scare for Hirschman as he made contact with Zane Zeiner while attempting to avoid an incident.
"The early part of the race, I was just looking to click some laps off," said Hirschman. "Then, once we were getting to about that halfway point, I was starting to think about making a move and seeing what I could do. About the same time I did, something happened in front of me and I wasn't expecting it. I ended up climbing up the back of the 22 there and bent the front a little bit, smashed the nose a little bit."Hirschman and Zeiner fortunately avoided significant damage in the collision, and Hirschman carried on to the win.
"Luckily, it wasn't any more than that. That could have easily taken us out of it. From that point there, we were in good position there around some front cars. I just had to use the restart to get Andy and pull away. Late, it seemed like he was coming back with traffic there. All in all, a good night."
Jankowiak finished second, enjoying back-to-back weeks at Evans Mills. One week ago, he prepared for this RoC event by competing with Evans Mills' weekly Modified division.
"We put a lot of work into this, coming last week and everything," said Jankowiak. "It's been a pleasure racing with Evans Mill the last two weeks. Made some new fans, and we hope you'll have us back next year. It's been a really good experience. Hopefully you'll be following along with us on the ROC Tour and the rest of our endeavors.""Andy J" noticed he gained some pace in the closing laps, but believes the best car still won on Saturday night.
"You never know until you get racing. We were probably a little bit too tight and he got away. He started getting a little free and we were starting to inch back up there. The lapped cars trying to race for 24th, they got side-by-side and slowed up any chance we might have had. No doubt the best car won. We're getting a little bit better, though. We've been struggling with this thing, so it's nice to get a good finish." Zane Zeiner added to his RoC Modified Series points lead with a third-place finish, in spite of the damage to his car following the contact with Hirschman. Zeiner even wondered if that, along with some big adjustments before the feature race, might have actually benefitted him. "Top three, we'll take it," said Zeiner. "We struggled here today and made a big swing here tonight. It wasn't bad. Not enough for the front two, but better than we had all day. We'll take it.
"I really didn't feel anything. We were a little bit free anyways, it might have helped it a little bit when it stood that spoiler up in the back. Who knows? We had a decent car and were moving forward, so we're pleased with the effort."
RoC Modifieds Summer Sizzler 80 Unofficial Results
FIN NO DRIVER LAPS DIFF
1 60 Matt Hirschman 80 ---
2 73X Andy Jankowiak 80 1.174
3 22 Zane Zeiner 80 4.616
4 95 Bryan Sherwood 80 5.261
5 73L Carson Loftin 80 7.071
6 81 Jack Ely 80 9.685
7 17C Roger Coss 80 9.971
8 11L Mike Leaty 80 11.356
9 23 Bryce Bailey 80 14.687
10 66 Austin Kochenash 80 15.493
11 8F Chris Finocchario 79 1 Lap
12 3 Daren Scherer 79 1 Lap
13 03 Joie Papin 79 1 Lap
14 10 Daryl Lewis, Jr. 79 1 Lap
15 51 Jayden Harman 79 1 Lap
16 11P Paulie Hartwig, III 79 1 Lap
17 72 T.J. Potrzebowski 79 1 Lap
18 00 Tony Pettinelli 79 1 Lap
19 0 Randall Richard 79 1 Lap
20 11T Tony Hanbury 77 3 Laps
21 40 Tommy Rought 77 3 Laps
22 11K Kevin Timmerman 28 52 Laps
23 65L Andy Lewis 5 75 Laps
Hirschman Cashes In Again In Racers Honoring Racers 76 At Star on July 6
By Jeff Brown, for MDP Motorsports Promotions LLC
EPPING, N.H. – Saturday night at Star Speedway was just another day at the office for Matt Hirschman. The Northampton, Penn. open-wheel ace outgunned Anthony Nocella and Brian Robie to win the Racers Honoring Racers 76 Modified open.Hirschman put together a flawless day from start to finish to earn the $7,600 winner’s purse.“That was the best day I’ve had at the track all year,” Hirschman said of his performance. “It just clicked all day.”Saturday night’s show drew together the best of the best from the Northeast’s various Tour-type Modified programs, from the NASCAR Modified Tour and Tri-Track Series to the Modified Racing Series and weekly tracks across the region.But few in the pits had anything for “Big Money Matt,” who set fast time in qualifying and won his heat to set the tone for the evening. Anthony Nocella and Matt Swanson also scored heat wins in setting the lineup for the 24-car field.Hirschman, the winner of the inaugural Racers Honoring Racers event at Claremont Motorsports Park in 2022, wasted no time in getting out front of the field for the 76-lap shootout. New Hampshire favorite Robie filed in behind Nocella for third. But as the pack behind them diced for position, neither could chase down a determined Hirschman out front.Already a winner under multiple banners this season, Hirschman drove to victory with Nocella just over a second behind. Brian Robie finished third, with Mike Collins fourth and Connecticut star Ronnie Williams rounding out the top five.
MDP Motorsports Promotions and The Racing Guys thank their longtime supporters for making these events possible, including Ron Bouchard Auto Stores, Maurice Enterprises of Claremont, N.H., Hoosier Tire East, and George J. Summers Trucking.
RESULTS, Racers Honoring Racers 76, July 6, 2024
1. (60) Matt Hirschman
2. (92) Anthony Nocella
3. (25NH) Brian Robie
4. (02) Mike Collins
5. (50) Ronnie Williams
6. (55) Joe Doucette
7. (04CT) Dylan Izzo
8. (00) Tyler Barry
9. (44) Jesse Jakubajtys
10. (27MA) Derek Robbie
11. (21) Jacob Perry
12. (13) Max Zachem
13. (19) Jeffrey Battle
14. (04VT) Joey Jarvis
15. (25) Matt Swanson
16. (47) Donnie Lashua
17. (8) Woody Pitkat
18. (27MA) Kevin Iannarelli
19. (7MA) Kurt Vigeant
20. (46) Jeremy Zullo
21. (62) Cody Rose
22. (04NH) Stewart McCormack
23. (83) Hayden Grenier
24. (93) Joey Gada
MATT HIRSCHMAN SCORES TOUR TYPE MODIFIED VICTORY AT EVERGREEN RACEWAY ON JUNE 29
Sunday at Evergreen Raceway the day started with a question mark as the morning had remnants of the previous evening’s rain storms that shrouded the area and had some wondering if any racing at all would take place. However, a determined staff remained positive and stuck with the scheduled plan as the show was run off with nary a hint of rain or gloomy clouds by race time. For sure, Northampton’s Matt Hirschman is glad they did too as the star driver from Northampton claimed his first Evergreen win of the season in the Tour Type Modifieds 50 lap feature.The feature began with Brian Romig Sr., and Brian Sones on the front row and at the drop of Chris Walk’s race commencing green Sones darted to the opening lap lead. Hirschman, who started seventh, quickly worked his way through the field as he picked off one after another until gaining second spot by lap 10. He then honed in on leader Sones and from there and bided his time until making what would be his race winning move with 19 laps to go.“I was able to steadily maintain our pace and gain on him (Sones) and he was able to protect the bottom once I got to him,” noted Hirschman.After taking the lead Hirschman then set a steady pace as the race was clicking off caution-free.That was, however, until four laps to go when Paulie Hartwig III lost a power steering line and put liquid down the front straight. It also caused him to spin and bring out the only caution of the race.Before the caution came out Sones was picking up some time on Hirschman. Also, Anthony Sesely was running third and there was thoughts on the restart that a challenge would ensue from either of them on Hirschman.It was to no avail, though, as Hirschman never faltered and cruised to his 52nd Modified win and 55th overall at Evergreen.“It was a good, clean run and it looked like it was going to go green to checker but there was some liquid down and after that we knew it (track) was going to be a little bit slick and with Brian (Sones) still right there. But everyone did a nice job of navigating through it,” said Hirschman.“It was a good track today despite the heat and it was a good race with good passing. Things haven’t gone all that smooth for us this year and so it was nice to come here and have a good clean run and get a win and we’ll build on it as we go through the season.”Sones held on for second with Sesely third, Bobby Jones fourth and Hartwig, who battled back to round out the top five.
“We were definetley down some cars because of the morning forecast that was questionable. Obviously running these cars gets expensive at times and it’s a risk if the forecast is a little iffy. For us there was never a doubt and there was a chance of maybe getting a little wet but the rest of the day looked pretty good,” said Hirschman. “We’re fortunate to be able to race close to home a few times and I want to thank Harry’s U-Pull-It, our sponsor from nearby here in Hazleton, and we look forward to coming back again.”Sones has raced twice this season at Evergreen with a pair of runner-ups each time.“When the caution came out on lap 46 we were gaining on him (Hirschman) a couple tenths every lap. We got to within two car lengths and the caution came out and he was able to cool down his tires a bit,” explained Sones.“He was better definetley on the short run there and the stagger just opened up to much for us there in the end. But we saw that we made good gains and we’ll be back in August to try it again,” he continued.“We now have two second place finishes in two starts, the other with the Late Model and I have to thank my dad, (Kenny Sones) and Dennis Wenner for giving me cars to finish like that and we’ll eventually get one of those wins.”
Tour Type Modified feature finish (50 laps): 1. Matt Hirschman, 2. Brian Sones, 3. Anthony Sesely, 4. Bobby Jones, 5. Paulie Hartwig III, 6. Jacob Kerstetter, 6. Daren Scherer, 8. Jayden Harman, 9. Brian Romig Jr., 10. Micah Adams, 11. Brian Rygielski 12. Thomas Flanagan
Zane Zeiner Wins 'Race 300' for ROC Modified Series at Chemung on June 15
Defending Race of Champions Modified Series champion Zane Zeiner scored the win Saturday night in "Race 300" for the series at Chemung Speedrome, surviving the twists and turns of a dramatic evening of racing.
From the start, the 75-lap race was physical and aggressive, and several big names were caught up in the excitement. After just four laps, Matt Hirschman's race was over following a multi-car incident in turn four. Zeiner stayed clear of the chaos, running in the top three for most of the evening. On lap 58, Zeiner worked his way by Jack Ely to take the lead. "It felt like a real aggressive race up front. I told my brother-in-law, man, this isn't my style of race. He kept me calm under the situation. We work well together. I knew I just needed that long green flag run. I got in a groove. "That last restart, I just had to tighten my belts up a little bit and hit my marks, get pressure to Jack. He slipped up a little bit in four and I got that run going down the frontstretch." The win marks Zeiner's first triumph at Chemung Speedrome in a full-blown Tour Modified. Between the event's stature as "Race 300" in series history and the elusive Chemung trophy, Zeiner carried plenty of motivation for Saturday's race. "I had this race circled for a lot of reasons," said Zeiner. "Right now, it still feels like a dream to me, to be honest with you, for things to work out and us to be in victory lane. A lot of luck went our way and here we are. We've been close last year twice with two seconds, but to finally pull it off feels great." Austin Beers rallied from an incident near the halfway mark of the race to finish second. The Pennsylvania driver worked his way to fourth before gaining two spots in the closing laps, as Jack Ely and Jake Lutz both fell off the pace. "The radio was messed up. I didn't have a spotter the first half of the race. I used it up and Zane got by me. I was like, well, it's not going to hurt at this point to take it down pit road. We swapped lefts, tightened it up a little bit, drove our way back through the field. "We got lucky there with obviously Jack and Jake, so it sucks for them to have that, but they ran a great race. We lucked into a second, but I drove my butt off to get to fourth there." Another driver who recovered from an incident was Paulie Hartwig, III. Hartwig was as far back as 20th after the lap four incident with Hirschman and Bryce Bailey, but bounced back for a podium finish. "When I wrecked there, we got a left-front flat, so that was a pretty good comeback. The car was pretty good, actually. We played the game. This place is alright, but there are a lot of good guys here." Roger Coss finished fourth, with Andy Jankowiak rounding out the top five just one night after a fifth-place finish with the ARCA Menards Series at Iowa Speedway. A busy Father's Day weekend continues on Sunday for the Race of Champions Family of Series. The ROC Sportsman Modifieds hit the track at the Wyoming County BullRing Sunday, along with the ROC Super Stocks, ROC FOAR Score Dash Series, and Wyoming County's G-Dog Pro 4s.
RACE OF CHAMPIONS 'RACE 300' UNOFFICIAL RESULTS
FIN NO DRIVER LAPS DIFF
1 22Z Zane Zeiner 75 ---
2 71 Austin Beers 75 3.336
3 73H Paulie Hartwig, III 75 5.312
4 17 Roger Coss 75 8.170
5 73X Andy Jankowiak 75 9.462
6 11H Tony Hanbury 75 9.893
7 95 Bryan Sherwood 75 11.570
8 11L Mike Leaty 75 12.031
9 53 Brian Defebo 75 12.989
10 3 Daren Scherer 75 13.890
11 23 Bryce Bailey 75 14.173
12 22W Don Wagner 75 16.398
13 81 Jack Ely 75 18.950
14 14L Jake Lutz 73 2 Laps
15 40 Tommy Rought 73 2 Laps
16 94 Zach Curren 72 3 Laps
17 51 Jayden Harman 42 33 Laps
18 88 Lou Strohl 39 36 Laps
19 44 Kyle Strohl 36 39 Laps
20 8 Chris Finocchario 25 50 Laps
21 72 T.J. Potrzebowski 19 56 Laps
22 60 Matt Hirschman 4 71 Laps
23 10 Daryl Lewis, Jr. 4 71 Laps
24 66 Austin Kochenash 4 71 Laps
CARSTEN DIGIANTOMASSO FLIES TO NJ, THEN IN WALL'S GARDEN STATE CLASSIC ON JUNE 29 AS MATT SUFFERS DAMAGE WHILE BATTLING FOR THE LEAD
WALL, NJ - Carsten DiGiantomasso made the two hour flight from his Mooresville, NC home well worth it as he raced to victory in the 125 lap Gardebn State Classic at Wall Stadium Speedway Saturday night. Formerly of Jackson, DiGiantomasso took a job with NASCAR's JR Motorsports after winning the opening night main event here on April 20. Saturday's victory made it two wins in two starts for the popular Modfieid stock car driver. While Holmdel's Andrew Krause and Jarret DiGiantomasso of Jackson wrestled for the lead early Carsten DiGiantomasso immediatly began his climb to the from from an eighth starting spot. By lap 40 Carsten rode in third spot. After tire changes at lap 84, Carsten moved past his brother and to Krauses rear bumper. Meanwhile, prerace favoerite Matt Hirschman of Northampton, Pa. was on the move as he advanced to fourth. Carsten than ovefrtook Krause for the lead on lap 105. At that point Hirschman tried a three wide pass tpo advance that failed and he began to slip back through the field.
Carsten DiGiantomasso then fought off Krause through several late race restarts before nailing down the prestigious win. Krause, Brick's Eddie McCarthy, Anthony Sesely and Ron Frees of Lanoka Harbor wrapped up the top five.
1. CARSTEN DIGIANTOMASSO, 2. Andrew Krause, 3. Eddie McCarthy, 4. Anthony Sesely, 5. Ron Frees, 6. Derek Hopkinson. 7. Tyler Ferris, 8. James Pritchard, 9. Jarret DiGiantomasso, 10. Adam LaCicero, 11. Shaun Carrig, 12. Jake Nelke, 13. Matt Hirschman, 14. Tommy Martino Jr., 15. Tyler Truex, 16. Bryan O'Shea, 17. Teddy Cranmer, 18. Joey Marlino, 19. Tommy Catanzaro
HIRSCHMAN BIG MONEY WINNER IN WINCHESTER OPEN MODIFIED 100 JUNE 8
By Gary Dutton
WINCHESTER, N.H. – Matt Hirschman, known across the northeast as “Big Money Matt, put another notch in his victory belt Saturday at Monadnock Speedway, topping the prestigious purse-rich JDV Open Modified Winchester 100 in front of a huge crowd at the storied high-banked oval. Dedicated to the memory of late Modified good guy Bruce Bachta, Saturday’s JDV Productions second annual biggie pitted 27 of the top Modified teams in the country wheel-to-wheel in 100 ground-pounding laps of excitement with $55,000 in posted awards on the line.In a perfectly scripted story, the retiring hero from just down the road – he of numerous track and series championships and countless feature wins – would sail through the field to win the final race of his career. For Kirk Alexander though, that wasn’t the story Saturday. Caught up in someone else’s blunder in both his heat and then the feature, the Swanzey star had gained no less than 17 positions in the main event, when calamity struck again. Ronnie Williams, on a rail in his qualifying race, led the first 44 laps of the Winchester 100, with Hirschman, a man on a mission, then taking over. And while some in the crowd may have thought it was then all over, last year’s event winner Matt Kimball had other plans.Backpedaling ever so little early, Kimball, the second generation ace who’d began his racing career here on the high banks, rocketed back into second on lap 53, gunning to repeat his 2023 Winchester Open victory.With the two Matts soaring around the track at breakneck speed – no fewer than 11 of the 24 starters turned sub-12 second laps, Hirschman prevailed, taking the checkers two lengths ahead of Kimball. Jon McKennedy, from 11th on the starting grid, was strong in third, just ahead of Andy Jankowiak, from row eight on the 24-car grid, and Teddy Hodgdon.
MONADNOCK SPEEDWAY JUNE 10 WINCHESTER OPEN TOP TENS
JDV OPEN MODIFIED 100 Matt Hirschman, Matt Kimball, John McKennedy, Andy Jankowiak, Teddy Hodgdon, Max Zachem, Brian Robie, Nate Wenzel, Ronnie Williams, Jeffrey Battle.
Matt Hirschman claims Modified Tour win over Austin Beers at Seekonk on June 1, 2024
Matt Hirschman was visibly disappointed when he made his selection during the redraw for the J&R Precast 150 at Seekonk Speedway. After setting the fastest time of the day in qualifying, Hirschman would forgo the pole position by drawing the lowest starting position possible, eighth. This left Hirschman with 150 laps to work his way up from the middle of the pack at a 0.333-mile facility where track position is paramount.Hirschman predominantly relied on skill instead of luck to surge towards the front of the field. After methodically climbing to second, Hirschman emerged victorious in an intense restart duel with his Northampton, Pennsylvania, neighbor Austin Beers to obtain his second consecutive NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour victory at Seekonk. “We had to work for that one for sure,” Hirschman said. “[Seekonk] is always a challenging track. The characteristics change throughout the race, but the characteristics of my car changed throughout the race. It came in good on the restart and I was able to go side-by-side with Austin and get past him.” Hirschman joined an exclusive list of drivers who have multiple Seekonk wins in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour. The only other member of that group is Doug Coby, whose triumphs came in 2017 and 2019, respectively. Even with his odds of a victory hindered by a poor draw, Hirschman never doubted his ability to find his way towards the front. Each pass required diligence and patience around Seekonk’s narrow racing line. Hirschman’s superior speed proved crucial in gaining the valuable track position he needed to chase down Beers. Despite this, Hirschman still faced a heavy deficit to Beers by the time he had climbed to the runner-up position. With Beers facing no serious challengers as he worked through slower traffic, Hirschman needed a caution to mount a challenge for the lead. Unlike earlier at the redraw, luck was on Hirschman’s side when a spin by Tyler Catalano brought out the first and only caution of the night with 30 laps remaining. Hirschman held his own on the top side against Beers, who lost the lead after slight contact with the No. 60 caused him to briefly lose control of his No. 64. Beers held on to finish second, but he felt dejected knowing he was only a few laps away from claiming a win at the same track where his father Eric picked up his maiden NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour victory in 2005. There were several aspects of the J&R Precast 150, including the final restart, that Beers wishes he could repeat, but he departs Seekonk feeling optimistic his first victory of the 2024 season is near. “[Hirschman] was a little bit better,” Beers said. “It was kind of my fault, because I wanted to start a little freer than we usually do and that bit us. I probably should have picked the top and pinched him like he pinched me, but it was a fun side-by-side battle. Three seconds in a row is nothing to hang our heads about.” For Hirschman, winning at Seekonk was a necessary change of pace following an inconsistent start to 2024 by his standards. In his three starts prior to Seekonk, Hirschman only recorded one top five and had failed to lead a lap. Hirschman considered himself lucky his first victory of 2024 came during Seekonk’s tribute weekend to Modified legend Bugsy Stevens, who passed away on May 20. He has long respected Stevens’ ability as a competitor and hopes to keep honoring his legacy with more Seekonk victories. “To finally get out on the road and have a big win, that’s overdue at least in my opinion,” Hirschman said. “Everybody kept working and we got it done tonight on a special night where we remembered Bugsy Stevens. It was an honor to be here.” NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour points leader Ron Silk placed third after starting 11th. He was followed by Stephen Kopcik and Justin Bonsignore. The rest of the top 10 finishers were Jacob Lutz, Kyle Bonsignore, Patrick Emerling, Jake Johnson and Matt Swanson.
Pos. Car No. Driver Sponsor Laps Diff.
1 60 Matt Hirschman PeeDee Motorsports 150 --
2 64 Austin Beers G&G Electrical Supply/Dell Electric 150 1.769
3 16 Ron Silk Blue Mountain Machine/Future Homes 150 2.835
4 21 Stephen Kopcik* Newtown Pools & Karchner Warehousing 150 4.462
5 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communications, Inc. 150 4.515
6 14 Jacob Lutz* Advantage Trucks/Anastasi Trucking/Washtronics 150 4.689
7 22 Kyle Bonsignore Chalew Performance/MTT/Munns Auto 150 4.99
8 1 Patrick Emerling Fleetworks Inc 150 5.613
9 3 Jake Johnson Propane Plus/Lin’s Propane Trucks 150 6.531
10 89 Matt Swanson Cervaolos Auto/Casella Snowplows/Mully’s Auto Repair 150 6.884
11 06 Sam Rameau Rameau Family Motorsports 150 7.387
12 56 Trevor Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 150 10.265
13 54 Tommy Catalano FX Caprara 149 1 Lap
14 44 Doug Coby Baldwin Automotive 149 1 Lap
15 58 Timmy Solomito GAF Roofing 149 1 Lap
16 19 Anthony Sesely Franzosa Trucking Co/Karchner Warehousing 149 1 Lap
17 5 Kyle Ebersole Ebersole Excavating Inc. 149 1 Lap
18 00 Tom Rogers Jr. BNP Machine/SSRP 148 2 Laps
19 46 Craig Lutz Riverhead Building Supply 148 2 Laps
20 4 Tim Connolly Connolly Companies, LLC 148 2 Laps
21 84 Tyler Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 147 3 Laps
22 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood & Restaurant 146 4 Laps
23 01 Melissa Fifield Pine Knoll Auto Sales 128 22 Laps
Kopcik pockets $10K Thunder Road Pay Day - Matt and Williams get together on backstretch - May 26
Former NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion Jon McKennedy brought the Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series Granite City 100 to green. Following several single-car spin cautions, McKennedy continued his dominance with an ever-growing black car in his mirror. ‘Big Money’ Matt Hirschman mashed the peddle and overtook McKennedy on the outside groove to claim the lead on lap 31 and ran away with it until a lap 59 heartbreaker for Matt Swanson, laying down a thick smokescreen from under the hood. Back under green, Ronnie Williams and Woody Pitkat roared back into the top five after jumping pit-side for fresh rubber. Williams continued his melee to the front while McKennedy pulled into the pits on lap 81 after suffering mechanical woes that took his #79 out of contention for the afternoon. The biggest drama would hit on lap 89 as Williams and Hirschman began to get physical for the lead, ending with Hirschman around on the backstretch and Williams sited a penalty on lap 94. The finale set up one last go for the win with Steven Kopcik duking it out with Matt Kimball but at the end Kopcik would steal the win followed by Woody Pitkat and Kimball across the line.
Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series – 3rd annual Granite City 100 – (100 Laps)
1 1 Stephen Kopcik Newtown, CT
2 88 Woody Pitkat Bellingham, MA
3 43 Matt Kimball Bennington, NH
4 55CT Teddy Hodgdon Danbury, CT
5 5CT Chris Pasteryak Moosup, CT
6 76 Brett Meservey Brewster, MA
7 60 Matt Hirschman Northampton
8 50 Ronnie Williams Lebanon, CT
9 99 Tyler Hines North Haven, CT
10 04 Joey Jarvis Windsor, VT
11 24 Todd Patnode Swanzey, NH
12 79 Jon McKennedy Chelmsford, MA
13 25 Matt Swanson Harvard, MA
14 55 Joe Doucette Framingham, MA
15 08 Nick Halkowicz Shelton, CT
16 55x Jacob Perry Kannapolis, NC
17 13 Max Zachem Oakdale, CT
18 06 Les Hinckley Windsor Locks , CT
19 25NH Brian Robie Sunapee, NH
Austin Kochenash scored his second career Race of Champions Modified Series win Sunday at Mahoning Valley, fending off Blake Barney, Earl Paules and Matt Hirschman for the victory.
SPRING ZING 100
Finish Start # Competitor Hometown +/-
1 14 66 Austin Kochenas Danielsville, PA 13
2 3 14B Blake Barney Jackson, NJ 1
3 4 8 Earl Paules Palmertown, PA 1
4 12 60 Matt Hirschman Northampton, PA 8
5 5 76 Zane Zeiner Bath, PA -
6 10 17 Roger Coss Lafayette, NJ 4
7 1 81 Jack Ely Northampton, PA -6
8 11 14L Jake Lutz Hamburg, NY 3
9 6 73H Paulie Hartwig Galloway, NJ -3
10 21 76S Rod Snyder Jr Lehighton, PA 11
11 27 11 Tony Hanbury Owego, NY 16
12 16 95K Jacob Kerstette Allentown, PA 4
13 8 88 Lou Strohl Lou Strohl Palmertown, PA -5
14 15 53 Brian Defebo Berwick, PA 1
15 19 51 Jayden Harman sugarloaf, PA 4
16 18 71 James Pritchard Oak Ridge, NJ 2
17 13 22 Don Wagner Don Wagner Wharton, NJ -4
18 17 3S Daren Scherer Binghamton, NY -1
19 20 3B Jaden Brown Kunkletown, PA 1
20 2 X John Bennett Lehighton, PA -18
21 22 0 Randall Richard 1
22 26 41 Todd Baer New Tripoli, PA 4
23 9 44 Kyle Strohl -14
24 23 29 Cody Kohler Schnecksville, PA -1
25 24 87 Thomas Flanagan Bethlehem, PA -1
26 25 40 Tommy Rought Rome, PA -1
27 7 1 Nick Schaeffer Lehighton, PA
RACE OF CHAMPIONS MODIFIED SERIES SET FOR DIFFERENT TYPE OF EVENT AT MAHONING VALLEY SPEEDWAY SUNDAY, MAY 19, 2024
Race of Champions and Mahoning Valley Speedway Modified competitors are gearing up to return to Mahoning Valley Speedway for a unique event this Sunday, May 19. Series and Track Management are awarding “show up” points to competitors so they may lay it all on the line and go for a victory in the 100-lap event where only one (1) set of tires will be required. The race, the “Spring Zing” 100 will take center stage Sunday afternoon at 4:00 pm.The event will be 100-laps and will not count caution laps with double-file racing through the completion of lap 90. Qualifying will be traditional group green-white-checker qualifying along with ten (10) lap qualifying races and a redraw. Driver’s will have to manage their tires throughout the duration of the event with no tire changes for the race.“We are looking forward to it,” stated Jack Ely from Wall, NJ, who earned his first Series victory last year at Mahoning and finished second in the season ending championship standings. “Mahoning is tricky. It can be a great track or it can jump and bite you. It’s fast and multiple groove and our Series is extremely competitive so Sunday’s race along with the Mahoning regulars will prove to be very exciting.”Qualifying for the 100-lap event will begin at 4:00pm on Sunday, May 19 along with a full card of Mahoning racing. Modified competitors are invited to practice at the track on Saturday.
Ron Silk Wins 52nd Annual NAPA Spring Sizzler on May 10
By Scott Running
(Stafford Springs, CT)—Stafford Motor Speedway hosted the rescheduled 2024 NAPA Spring Sizzler®, “The Greatest Race in the History of Spring,” on Friday, May 10th with Open Modified cars. Ron Silk came up the big winner for the second consecutive year, taking home a grand total of $34,750 for his efforts. Silk won his NAPA Qualifying Duel on Saturday, April 27 for $3,500 and combined with his $20,000 winner’s purse plus $11,250 in lap money from May 10th, his grand total comes to $34,750. Silk’s last three Stafford feature victories, the 2022 NAPA Fall Final plus the 2023 and 2024 NAPA Spring Sizzlers®, has seen him and the #16 Haydt-Yannone team take home nearly $100,000 in prize money. The race took the green flag with Teddy Hodgdon taking the early lead ahead of Matt Swanson, Jon McKennedy and Ronnie Silk. Michael Christopher, Jr. moved from 8th up to 5th on the opening lap and he had Marcello Rufrano, Doug Coby, Max Zachem, Justin Bonsignore, and Ronnie Williams behind him. Swanson took the lead from Hodgdon on lap-4 and Silk took second from Hodgdon on lap-6. Hodgdon slotted into third with McKennedy fourth and Christopher fifth.Silk powered his way by Swanson and into the lead on lap-8 while the rest of the top-5 remained Swanson, Hodgdon, McKennedy, and Christopher. Coby was now sixth followed by Bonsignore, Woody Pitkat, who was on the charge, Matt Hirschman, and Ronnie Williams. With 15 laps complete it was still Silk in command followed by Swanson, Hodgdon, McKennedy, and Christopher. Noah Korner spun coming out of turn 4 to bring the first yellow flag of the event out with 16 laps complete.Silk took the lead with Swanson in second back under green but the caution came right back with 17 laps complete as Tommy Barrett, Buddy Charette, and Joey Mucciacciaro got into the turn 3 wall.On the restart, Nick Halkowicz came to a stop in turn 2 with a flat tire that brought the caution back out before a lap could be completed. The next restart saw Silk again take the lead with McKennedy moving into second. Coby pulled alongside Swanson for third but Swanson was able to hold Coby off. Bonsignore was now fifth behind Coby with Hirschman, Christopher, Pitkat, Hodgdon, and Todd Owen making up the top-10. Halkowicz spun in turn 3 to bring the caution out with 23 laps complete.Silk powered back into the lead on the restart with McKennedy and Swanson still behind him. Coby was now in fourth with Hirschman in fifth. Bonsignore was sixth but he would lose that position to Pitkat on lap-27. Christopher followed Pitkat by Bonsignore on the following lap but before the lap could be completed the caution flew for a spin in turn 2 by George Bessette, Jr.Silk took the lead back under green with Swanson getting around McKennedy for second after several laps of wheel to wheel racing. Coby was fourth with Pitkat up to fifth. Hirschman was sixth in line followed by Bonsignore, Christopher, Williams, and Keith Rocco. Chris Pasteryak and Bessette both spun in the middle of turns 3+4 to bring the caution flag back out with 34 laps complete.Korner spun in turn 1 to bring the caution back out one lap after the restart with Silk still in command and Swanson behind him in second. Silk completed two more laps before the caution came back out for Bessette, who spun in turn 3 and then Coby and Swanson came together in turn 2 with Coby going around. The restart saw McKennedy going around in turn 2, which collected several other cars including Hodgdon, before a lap could be completed. Silk took the lead on the next restart with Pitkat working his way around Swanson to move into second. Christopher was fourth with Bonsignore in fifth. Todd Owen was on the move as he took over fifth place on lap-42 and he had Rocco following in his tire tracks as Rocco moved into sixth on lap-44 to drop Bonsignore back to seventh place. Jacob Perry was up to eighth with Stephen Kopcik in ninth and Matt Galko in tenth. Bonsignore’s car dropped off the pace on lap-47 and he limped back to pit road. Galko and Cory DiMatteo took a hard hit into the turn 1 wall to bring the yellow and red flags out with 49 laps complete. Under the caution period, the leaders came to pit road for tires and adjustments with Silk winning the race off pit road followed by Pitkat, Rocco, Coby, Swanson, Williams, Hirschman, Korner, Goodale, Owen, Christopher, Pasternak, and David Arute. McKennedy and Perry were the new leaders and they occupied the top-2 spots on the restart while Tommy Barrett, Jr. began to slide backwards as Pitkat took third, Coby fourth, and Williams fifth. Korner was sixth but he would lose that spot to Silk on lap-53 with Owen, Rocco, and Pasteryak rounding out the top-10. McKennedy was back in command on the restart but Silk was slicing his way through traffic and he retook the lead on lap-60. Pitkat was third behind Silk and McKennedy with Williams and Coby making up the top-5. Swanson was sixth with Rocco, Goodale, Hirschman, and Perry making up the top-10. With 30 laps to go, it was still Silk out front with McKennedy, Pitkat, Williams, and Swanson giving chase. Rocco was sixth followed by Hirschman, Goodale, Coby, and Pasteryak. Halkowicz brought the caution back out with 81 laps complete with a spin in turn 2. Silk resumed his place at the front of the pack on the restart with McKenendy holding second and Pitkat third. Swanson was fourth in line with Hirschman, Coby Williams, Rocco, Owen, Kopcik, and Pasteryak lined up behind him. Coby moved into sixth on lap-85 and began to hound Williams for fifth place. Coby’s car dropped off the pace on lap-90 and he slowly brought the car back to pit road. With 10 laps to go, Silk was starting to stretch out his lead over McKennedy with Pitkat, Swanson, and Williams still making up the top-5. With one lap to go, Williams dropped off the pace and brought his car to pit road. Silk cruised to the checkered flag to win the NAPA Spring Sizzler® and the $20,000 purse that goes along with it for the second consecutive season. McKenendy finished second with Pitkat, Swanson, and Hirschman rounding out the top-5.
Finish Name Car Number Start
1 Ron Silk 16 2
2 Jon McKennedy 79 5
3 Woody Pitkat 8 15
4 Matt Swanson 25. 3
5 Matt Hirschman 60 8
6 Chris Pasteryak 5ct 19
7 Keith Rocco 57 14
8 Stephen Kopcik 1k 31
9 Todd Owen 81 18
10 Eric Goodale 58 17
11 Buddy Charette 28 33
12 Jacob Perry 55x 30
13 Noah Korner 31 16
14 David Arute 75 21
15 Ronnie Williams 50 11
16 Doug Coby 44ma 9
17 Tommy Barrett, Jr. 9 25
18 Nick Halkokwicz 08 28
19 Michael Christopher, Jr. 00 7
20 Matt Galko 3 26
21 Cory DiMatteo 11 22
22 Justin Bonsignore 7ny 13
23 George Bessette, Jr. 1 27
24 Teddy Hodgdon 55ct 1
25 Anthony Bello 51 12
26 Austin Beers 179 10
27 Joey Mucciacciaro, Jr. 47 23
28 Max Zachem 13 6
29 Marcello Rufrano 48 4
30 Andy Janowiak 73 20
DNS Kyle Ellwood 4 24
DNS Danny Knoll, Jr. 17 29
DNS William Lambros 77ny 32
The return of a legend: Jake Johnson brings Ole Blue back to Victory Lane during Granite State Derby at Monadnock Speedway May 4
WINCHESTER, New Hampshire — In more than 75 years of racing in the NASCAR Modified racing, few cars have developed a reputation like Ole Blue.
Owned by Boehler Racing Enterprises, numerous legends like Ryan Preece, Tony Hirschman, Bugs Stevens and Wayne Anderson have taken trips to Victory Lane in the iconic blue No. 3 Modified. Despite this, Ole Blue had not taken home a checkered flag since Rowan Pennink won in the car at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park in 2017.Jake Johnson wrote another successful, if not overdue, chapter in Ole Blue’s proud story on Saturday evening at Monadnock Speedway. Reaching this milestone required Johnson to fend off a tremendous challenge from defending NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion Ron Silk for what would also be his first series victory.The significance of the moment was not lost on Johnson, who was determined to park the car in Victory Lane once again when he signed on to be the team’s full-time driver for the 2024 season.“There’s so many people behind the scenes when it comes to the No. 3 car that make this happen week in and week out,” Johnson said. “It’s just an honor to be here in Victory Lane with them and get that long awaited win.”
Growing up, Ole Blue was one of the first cars Johnson connected with as he took an interest in racing. A diecast of the car signed by Stevens was on display in Johnson’s living room throughout his childhood.Johnson initially did not imagine one day scoring a victory in the famous Modified. The start of his own racing career saw him pursue several different disciplines, which included winning the Snowflake 100 in a Pro Late Model at Five Flags Speedway in 2020.Once he reached an agreement with the Boehlers to race for them on a part-time basis starting in 2022, Johnson was ready to embrace the heavy expectations of driving such a famous car. He earned two poles in his rookie season, which he followed up with a career-best runner-up finish at Thompson the following year.The momentum from Johnson’s season-ending runner-up carried over into the start of 2024. Prior to Saturday’s Granite State Derby, Johnson had yet to record a finish outside the top 10 and sat third in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour standings behind Silk and Justin Bonsignore. Patience proved to be crucial for Johnson at Monadnock. Starting sixth following a redraw of the top eight starters, Johnson methodically climbed his way to the front of the field before making the race-winning pass on Silk with 48 laps remaining. Silk pressured Johnson tremendously over the closing stages until bouncing off the outside wall during the final restart of the evening on Lap 134. That enabled Austin Beers, who started 17th after a poor qualifying effort, to claim second for himself.Beers believed his poor track position would have been a major detriment on Monadnock’s fresh pavement, but was impressed with his overall speed and how many passing opportunities there were.He was also grateful the Granite State Derby did not exceed its advertised distance.“We were actually blowing up at the end,” Beers said. “It started clicking with three to go and I was losing power hoping it would hold on. It was really fun with this repave. I didn’t think we were going to have passing, but we proved there can be passing here.”Like Beers, Johnson was also pleased with the repave and how competitive the on-track action was all evening.Navigating his way through traffic gave Johnson plenty of notes to study ahead of the next two legs in the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup, which will also take place at Monadnock and feature $20,000 in available bonus money.Considering how strong Ole Blue was in Saturday’s Granite State Derby, Johnson has plenty of reasons to be confident ahead of a return visit to Monadnock on July 20 for the Duel at the Dog 250.“The competition was tough today,” Johnson said. “This is a beautiful facility and I’m excited for these next two races.”For now, Johnson and Boehler Racing Enterprises have plenty to celebrate following their victory at Monadnock, as everyone with the organization knows the legacy of Ole Blue in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour is alive and well after so many decades.Patrick Emerling came home third Saturday evening, with Craig Lutz and Matt Hirschman completing the top five. Rounding out the top 10 were Justin Bonsignore, Brian Robie, Joey Cipriano III, Anthony Nocella and Silk.
Pos. Car No. Driver Sponsor Laps Diff.
1 3 Jake Johnson Propane Plus/Lin’s Propane Trucks 150 --
2 64 Austin Beers G&G Electrical Supply/Dell Electric 150 1.595
3 1 Patrick Emerling Fleetworks Inc 150 2.009
4 46 Craig Lutz Riverhead Building Supply 150 2.335
5 60 Matt Hirschman Elite 150 2.534
6 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communications, Inc. 150 3.446
7 25 Brian Robie Maurice Enterprises 150 3.63
8 15 Joey Cipriano III* Dependable Energy & Bass Plating 150 4.525
9 92 Anthony Nocella Nocella Paving/K and D Associates 150 4.715
10 16 Ron Silk Blue Mountain Machine/Future Homes 150 4.973
11 58 Timmy Solomito GAF Roofing 150 5.231
12 54 Tommy Catalano FX Caprara 150 5.625
13 19 Anthony Sesely Franzosa Trucking Co/Karchner Warehousing 150 6.101
14 84 Tyler Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 150 6.52
15 43 Matthew Kimball J&M Towing and Recovery/Poodlack Wealth Mgmt 150 6.957
16 4 Tim Connolly Connolly Companies, LLC 150 10.429
17 56 Trevor Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 150 11.281
18 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood & Restaurant 150 12.017
19 5 Kyle Ebersole Ebersole Excavating Inc. 149 1 Lap
20 01 Melissa Fifield Pine Knoll Auto Sales 141 9 Laps
21 32 Tyler Rypkema Musco Lighting/Northeast Drilling 91 59 Laps
22 22 Kyle Bonsignore Chalew Performance/MTT/Munns Auto 84 66 Laps
23 79 Jonathan McKennedy Christopher’s Towing 60 90 Laps
24 81 Nathan Wenzel* 1812 Auto Body 34 116 Laps
Hodgdon & Silk Win NAPA Auto Parts Duels at Stafford in Duels on April 27 - Sizzler rained out until May 10
April 27, 2024
By Scott Running
(Stafford Springs, CT)—Stafford Speedway kicked off its 2024 race season with the NAPA Auto Parts Duels as part of the 52nd Annual NAPA Spring Sizzler® Weekend. Feature races were held for Stafford’s weekly Late Model, Limited Late Model, and Street Stock divisions along with two 40-lap NAPA Duel races that set the top-20 lineup for Sunday’s 100-lap NAPA Spring Sizzler® main event. Scoring wins in the two NAPA Duel races were Teddy Hodgdon and Ronnie Silk.
In the first 40-lap NAPA Duel Race, Matt Swanson took the early lead at the drop of the green flag with Teddy Hodgdon quickly moving into second. Michael Christopher, Jr. was third in line with Stephen Kopcik fourth and David Arute fifth. Ronnie Williams took fifth from Arute on lap-4 and that allowed Doug Coby to follow him through and take over sixth and drop Arute back to seventh. Hodgdon hounded Swanson until lap-15 when he was able to take over the lead with a pass going into turn 3. Williams was now in third behind Hodgdon and Swanson with Christopher fourth and Coby in fifth. Jon McKennedy was sixth followed by Eric Goodale, Justin Bonsignore, Woody Pitkat, and Arute. At the halfway point, Hodgdon was still in command with Swanson, Williams, Christopher, and Coby giving chase. McKennedy took fifth from Williams on lap-27 as Hodgdon continued to lead the race with Swanson, Christopher, and Coby behind him. Hodgdon led the field to the checkered flag to win the first NAPA Duel and earn pole position for tomorrow’s NAPA Spring Sizzler® 100-lap main event.. Swanson finished second with McKennedy, Christopher, and Coby rounding out the top-5.
In the second 40-lap NAPA Duel Race, Ronnie Silk took the lead at the green flag with Marcello Rufrano moving into second. Andy Jankowiak took third with Cory DiMatteo fourth and Max Zachem in fifth. With 15 laps complete, it was still Silk in the lead with Rufrano, Jankowiak, Zachem, and Anthony Bello making up the top-5. Keith Rocco was sixth followed by Matt Hirschman, Cory DiMatteo, Todd Owen, and Noah Korner. With 10 laps to go, it was still Silk in the lead with Rufrano, Zachem, Jankowiak, Hirschman, Bello, Rocco, Austin Beers, Owen, and Korner making up the top-10 cars. Beers made a move around Bello on lap-37 to move into fifth and drop Bello back to sixth as Silk was comfortably leading Rufrano, Zachem, and Hirschman. Silk cruised to the checkered flag to win the second NAPA Duel and earn a front row starting position for tomorrow’s NAPA Spring Sizzler® 100-lap main event. Rufrano finished second with Zachem, Hirschman, and Beers rounding out the top-5.
1 Ronnie Silk 16 1
2 Marcello Rufrano 48 3
3 Max Zachem 13 7
4 Matt Hirschman 60 10
5 Austin Beers 179 12
6 Anthony Bello 51 2
7 Keith Rocco 57 6
8 Noah Korner 31 11
9 Todd Owen 81 9
10 Andy Jankowiak 73 4
11 Cory DiMatteo 11 5
12 Kyle Ellwood 4 8
13 Matt Gallo 3 14
14 Nick Halkowicz 08 16
15 Jacob Perry 55x 13
DNS William Lambros 77ny 15
Home cooking agrees with Matt as he wins a thriller at Mahoning Valley Speedway over Roger Coss and Zane Zeiner on April 20. The Spring Meltdown 75 was a barn burner!
1 12 60 Matt Hirschman Northampton, PA
2 8 17C Roger Coss Lafayette, NJ
3 1 76Z Zane Zeiner Bath, PA
4 9 66 Austin Kochenash Danielsville, PA
5 7 44 Kyle Strohl Palmertown, PA
6 2 14 Jake Lutz Hamburg, NY
7 4 11JR Paulie Hartwig III Galloway, NJ
8 11 81 Jack Ely Northampton, PA
9 10 1B Austin Beers Northampton, PA
10 18 11H Tony Hanbury Owego, NY
11 14 8 Earl Paules Palmertown, PA
12 3 22 Don Wagner Wharton, NJ
13 23 95K Jacob Kerstetter Allentown, PA
14 19 95M Terry Markovic Slatington, PA
15 16 88 Lou Strohl Palmertown, PA
16 20 3 Daren Scherer Binghamton, NY
17 6 72W John Bennett Lehighton, PA
18 13 41 Todd Baer New Tripoli, PA
19 26 65 George Skora III Eden, NY
20 21 87 Thomas Flanagan Bethlehem, PA
21 25 0 Randall Richard
22 15 1S Nick Schaeffer Lehighton, PA
23 22 51 Jayden Harman sugarloaf, PA
24 5 76S Rod Snyder Jr Lehighton, PA
25 27 40 Tommy Rought Rome, PA
26 17 29 Cody Kohler Schnecksville, PA
27 24 10 Daryl Lewis Jr Ontario, NY
RACE OF CHAMPIONS MODIFIED SERIES SET TO BEGIN SEASON APRIL 20 AT MAHONING VALLEY SPEEDWAY
Race of Champions Modified Series competitors are gearing up to head to Mahoning Valley Speedway for the Series opener and so are race fans. If opening day at the 1/4-mile facility is any indication of what fans are in store for than Saturday, April 20, at 6:00pm will be one of the most anticipated start times on their 2024 schedules. Matt Hirschman and Austin Beers of Northampton, Pa., will resume their battles at what is their “hometrack”. The duo has battled each other many times on the 1/4-mile track, which has helped shape their careers. “Mahoning is fun to race,” offered Hirschman, who has become one, if not arguably the top-star in Modified racing right now. “It has multiple grooves and because of the size the track, it really levels the playing field. You have to be handling, but you also have to be patient and drive precisely to get the job done. It is a lot of fun for the driver and because of the size of the track, it’s right there in front of the fans.” Austin Beers, who was the 2021 Race of Champions Modified Series titleholder. He has also enjoyed success after continuing his family tradition of racing at the Lehighton oval. Beers claimed two Race of Champions Modified Series victories in 2024 at Chemung (N.Y.) Speedrome and is looking for his first Series victory at Mahoning. “We have been close and it’s really our home track,” stated Beers. ‘We’ve got more experience and been doing a lot of racing. Hopefully, we’ll be in contention at Mahoning and be able to come out on top.. I’m really looking forward to racing on home turf at Mahoming.” Qualifying for the 75-lap Series opener will begin at 6:00pm on Saturday, April 20 along with a full card of Mahoning racing.
Carson Loftin claims fourth SMART Tour win in six races
From Pee Dee Motorsports: Good Morning Race Fans. We sometimes comment on the long nights at the track, especially when we go through post race tech, trying to give some insight into our delayed posts here after the race. Last night was no exception. Matt powered the PeeDee 60 to the pole in qualifying leading many laps in the first half of the race. A late race caution allowed the Brown Dogs to show their talents in getting Matt back out to the competition restarting second. The race ended with Matt finishing third. Respectable but not to our standards. Now comes the long night. SMART officials decided to take the engines from the top three competitors. We will allow them to explain the reasoning for this decision. The Brown Dogs had to work through the next several hours removing the engine from the PeeDee 60. All three engines were loaded into a SMART pickup truck for inspection by competent authority. Thanks to the crew for their travel and overtime hours at the track. Some of us rolled home just before sunrise. Others are still on the road home. Stay Tuned...I am sure there will be more to follow on all of this! Enjoy your Sunday!
by Matt WeaverApril 14, 2024
The SMART Modified Tour remains the personal playground for 16-year-old Carson Loftin. The second-generation short tracker, and emerging Tour Type Modified prodigy, claimed his fourth win in six races this season by reaching Victory Lane in the Hickory Hundred.As has been the case in all of wins, Loftin defeated two of the best in Matt Hirschman and Burt Myers on Saturday at Hickory Motor Speedway. The winning pass was the culmination of a prolonged battled that started around 50 to go and concluded with 32 to go. Loftin got away on a restart with 22 laps to go and that was the race, as it were, as Myers pressured Hirschman and took second. Myers got beside Loftin on several occasions over the final 10 laps but could not override the stronghold Loftin has over this series right now. “I wanted to get by Hirschman early like we did because I knew track position would be key once we all took our tire,” Loftin said. “Burt raced me clean there and so did Matt and I hope it was a good show for the fans.”And he took no exception to Myers attempting a bit of a slide job either.“No, like I said, I hoped it was a good show,” he said. “We’re racing door to door for a win. I can’t thank him enough for keeping it clean and classy like he did there.”Myers thought it was a 100 laps race, and which it’s a fair point, because it’s the Hickory Hundred but it seemingly was a 99 lapper.“The restarts are an issue, 55,000 caution laps and I apologize on behalf of SMART racing fans because we hate it as much as you do,” the charismatic Myers said on the frontstretch. “Everyone is learning. We’re trying our best. “On our end, good run for us … it’s a tough one because I thought we had the best car but it will come back around.”
Unofficial results
Carson Loftin
Burt Myers
Matt Hirschman
Joey Coulter
Jake Crum
https://www.shorttrackscene.com/modifieds/southern-modified-racing-series/carson-loftin-claims-fourth-smart-tour-win-in-six-races/
Matt steady top 10 run at Thompson Speedway for the NASCAR Tour Icebreaker - April 7
Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park has been the site of many milestones for Ron Silk on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour. From tallying his first three
Tour victories at the Connecticut facility to surviving a crucial title tilt against rival Justin Bonsignore in October, Silk regularly rises to the occasion whenever the series visits the historic, 0.625-mile oval The status quo remained in place for Silk in Sunday’s IceBreaker 150. A dominant performance from the defending Modified Tour champion enabled him to secure his seventh Thompson victory and build some crucial early season momentum in the point standings.Once the green flag waved for the IceBreaker 150, Silk knew his silver No. 16 Modified could set a commanding pace as soon as he climbed from the fourth starting position.“I was confident before the pit stop,” Silk said. “I had driven to the lead there and was able to drive away from everybody. This was a fantastic car from the start of the race, and I’m just pumped to be back in Victory Lane.”The only setback Silk endured during his stalwart day at Thompson occurred while in the pits, as a slow stop caused him to lose the lead to fellow Modified Tour veteran Patrick Emerling.It only took Silk one corner to re-assert control over the field. Using the bottom line on the restart, Silk muscled Emerling up the track and claimed the top spot, and he did not receive a significant challenge for the lead during the remaining laps.Emerling, who settled for third, was not pleased with how the final restart played out. Not only did Emerling believe Silk was overly aggressive with his maneuver, but he maintained Silk should have been penalized for a premature launch.“I kind of feel like Martin Truex Jr. the other day at Richmond,” Emerling said. “[Silk] jumped the start and then took us way up the hill. I’m just going to run him like that in the future, but I thought officiating would have caught that.”Despite his frustrations, Emerling found solace in his second top-five performance of the season. After being eliminated in an early crash at Richmond the previous week, Emerling felt the IceBreaker 150 was more indicative of the speed prevalent in his first three starts with Rich Gautreau.With the Thompson race reinforcing the optimism he already had in the program, Emerling believes he can keep tallying strong runs and make a charge for the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour title.“We had the car to beat today,” Emerling said. “It took us a little bit to get going, but we were the fastest car right at the end. Everyone did an awesome job. I did everything right, but I got beat by a jumped start. We’re coming, though.”Just like at Thompson on Sunday, Silk will be standing in the way of a potential championship for Emerling and the rest of the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour field. Aside from a sixth at Martinsville Speedway in November, Silk has not recorded a finish outside the top three in his last seven races.Silk has every reason to believe he can defend his title after winning two of the first three events in 2024. For now, Silk is content with celebrating another milestone at Thompson with everyone at Haydt-Yannone Racing
“[My confidence] is pretty high,” Silk said. “Richmond was a nail-biter, and we could be looking at three in a row. Should of, could of, would have, but we’ll go to the next one and try and get another one.”
In a repeat of the most recent Modified Tour event at Thompson, Jake Johnson placed second behind Silk, matching a career-best finish in the process. Emerling, Justin Bonsignore and Tyler Rypkema made up the rest of the top-five finishers.Rounding out the top 10 were Craig Lutz, Austin Beers, Kyle Bonsignore, Matt Hirschman and Matt Swanson.
1 16 Ron Silk Blue Mountain Machine/Future Homes 150 –
2 3 Jake Johnson Propane Plus/Lin’s Propane Trucks 150 2.169
3 1 Patrick Emerling Fleetworks Inc/LFR 150 4.846
4 51 Justin Bonsignore Coastal Fiber LLC 150 6.322
5 32 Tyler Rypkema Northern Drilling/Musco Lighting/Make-a-Wish 150 7.184
6 46 Craig Lutz Riverhead Building Supply 150 8.826
7 64 Austin Beers G&G Electrical Supply/Dell Electric 150 10.723
8 22 Kyle Bonsignore Munns Automotive/Chalew Performance 150 11.868
9 60 Matt Hirschman Elite 150 12.685
10 89 Matt Swanson Cervaolos Auto/Casella Snowplows/Mully’s Auto Repair 149 1 Lap
11 19 Anthony Sesely Franzosa Trucking Co/Karchner Warehousing 149 1 Lap
12 25 Brian Robie Maurice Enterprises 148 2 Laps
13 54 Tommy Catalano Catalano Motorsports/FX Caprara 148 2 Laps
14 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood & Restaurant 147 3 Laps
15 28 Mike Marshall MLM Diagnostics/Jusczak Electric 139 11 Laps
16 1 Melissa Fifield Pine Knoll Auto Sales 139 11 Laps
17 84 Tyler Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 113 37 Laps
18 2 J.R. Bertuccio Gershow Recycling 87 63 Laps
19 56 Trevor Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 27 123 Laps
20 4 Tim Connolly Connolly Companies, LLC 17 133 Laps
21 44 Bobby Santos Harshaw Paving/Olivas Market 1 149 Laps
22 24 Andrew Krause Supreme Manufacturing Co. 1 149 Laps
23 36 Dave Sapienza Sapienza Racing/Eastport Feeds 1 149 Laps
24 58 Eric Goodale GAF Roofing 1 149 Laps
Icebreaker Pushes Monaco Modifieds from April 6th to Friday of World Series October 2024
Thompson, CT — After rains wreaked havoc with series and track officials at Thompson Speedway on Saturday, all partners made the difficult decision to postpone the rest of Saturday’s show. The Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series Constantine Paving & Sealing 75 has been postponed to Friday, October 11 as the headline to opening day of the 62nd Sunoco World Series of Speedway Racing.
Monaco Modified teams are asked to keep their Icebreaker pit passes for their postponed World Series event in October. “We want to thank Monaco Modified teams and officials for their patience working with the wet weather all afternoon,” said Thompson Speedway co-promoter Cris Michaud.
“Likewise, we’d like to thank the Thompson Speedway track crew for driving their tails off to try and dry the track,” said Monaco Modified Director of Series Development Renee Dupuis. “Once the sun went down, so did our only opportunity to completely dry the track, unfortunately, Mother Nature wins this one but it’s also given us a great opportunity to bring the Constantine Paving & Sealing 75 to the World Series.”
Matt grabs a 2nd place finish at South Boston - March 24
Chilly but dry day yesterday in South Boston, Va. for the SMART "King of the Modifieds" race. Matt was good...just not good enough. Congratulations to Luke Baldwin on the victory. It's been a long year for the Baldwin family so we are sure they can enjoy the positive mojo that comes with a win. Matt started on the pole after the redraw. He controlled the point for the early stages of the race. Under a caution, a car that spun out backed into the front of the PeeDee 60 as Matt was going by causing some minor handling issues. The crew was able to repair it under a later caution. Just not as dominant after that incident. Matt finished second in that two car battle at the front of the field. We move on. We will keep an eye on scheduled races in the northeast and weather. We will be ready to adjust our PeeDee schedule as needed. Stay Tuned!
Carson Loftin Opens 2024 with Back-To-Back Victories at Caraway March 10
From PeeDee Motorsports: For those that watched the SMART Modified event at Caraway Speedway and are questioning what happened and why we went to the tail here is the reasoning. During our pit stop after changing the RR tire it was noticed that the RF tire was going flat. On controlled stop you have a certain amount of time to return to track to maintain position and we did not do this. Also you only have 3 RS tires to work with so we had to put the RR we took off back on the car putting us at a competitive disadvantage. While unfortunate for our team these same rules apply to all teams. We will move on to our next event.
Matt started P4 after the redraw in the Warrior 100. Moved to the point and things looked promising...until a red flag pause around 2/3 through the race. The right front tire went flat. Tire/pit rules for the series put us at a disadvantage. Same rules for all competitors...still disappointing. Congrats to young Carson Loftin on the victory. Matt wound up 9th after fighting back through the field from the back of the pack. The Brown Dogs get a week off to rest up from all the travel. We get back at it again in less than two weeks...Stay Tuned!
Sophia, NC (March 11, 2024) - He’s the youngest winner in the history of the SMART Modified Tour powered by Pace-O-Matic, and now he’s gone back-to-back to open the 2024 season. 15 year-old Carson Loftin was victorious in the Warrior 100 on Sunday (March 10) at Caraway Speedway in Sophia, NC. The Lexington, NC driver took the lead during a restart on lap 64 and held off Ryan Newman and Bobby Labonte, during a couple of late-race restarts, to pick up his second-career victory in as many weeks.
“Mr. Newman is a phenomenal racer. I can’t thank him enough for running me clean,” said Loftin, who drives the L&R Transmissions / LeBleu Bottled Water number-23 Modified. “I used him up a little more than I wanted to going into (turn) one, so I’m glad he kept it classy there. That was fun. I’m just glad we could race hard and get another win.”
“Carson did an excellent job,” said Newman, who drives the SHITI Coolers / Aggressive Hydraulics / Montrose Molders / Capitol Auto Group number-2 for Coulter Motorsports. “I told him, ‘You did exactly what you were supposed to do.’ He said, ‘Sorry about running you up’ and I said, ‘No, you can run me up because you had position.’ He’s a good kid doing a good job; now we gotta try to beat him again.”
In addition to Loftin’s consecutive victories, Newman, from South Bend, IN, now has two podium finishes (third at Florence and second at Caraway). Both drivers are unofficially first and second in the point standings Newman was one of the biggest movers in the Warrior 100. He advanced 8 positions after qualifying 10th. Jimmy Blewett, from Howell, NJ, was another driver with a strong run to the front. After finishing sixth at Florence (SC) last week, Blewett gained 10 spots from his 14th-place starting position to end up fourth at the checkered flag in the Jamie Tomaino owned number-99. The Pace-O-Matic Hard Charger of the Race was Walnut Cover, NC driver Jason Myers. The Greg Butcher Trucking number-4 started 20th and by the end of 100 laps, Myers advanced 14 positions to finish sixth.
Two-time, Tour-Type Modified winner at Caraway, Danny Bohn, was strong in the Ameri-Fast Supply number-24. The Freehold, NJ native rounded out the top-five finishers. Jake Crum, from Statesville, NC, was the Pace-O-Matic Pole Award winner in qualifying. Early in the race, Crum’s number-12pa was in the top-5 until engine problems ended his day.Now drivers from all over the country will converge on a small town in southern Virginia for a chance to be crowned King of the Modifieds. On Saturday, March 23, at South Boston Speedway, the SMART Modified Tour will compete in the Pace-O-Matic King of the Modifieds presented by Dominion Energy. The King of the Modifieds is one of the richest purses in Modified racing, thanks in part to many sponsors, including Vista Installations and the Stanley Law Group. In addition to the $20,000 first place prize, it was announced that the second-place finisher will score $10,000. If you are one of the 36 starters for the event, you will be guaranteed to take home at least $1,200. A total of 32 cars will lock in from qualifying on Saturday, March 23, at South Boston Speedway. The tally will be made up of the top-18 in current SMART Tour owners points that have participated in the first two events of the season, as well as 14 other starters from time trials. That group will be lined up via their qualifying time for the starting order of the race. An additional four cars will earn their way through a last-chance race, which will bring the total to 36 starters. The series reserves the right of an optional provisional starting spot. A tech day for SMART Modified teams will occur on Friday, March 22. Registration will open at 10am. There will be no practice for SMART Modifieds on Friday. Race day, on Saturday, March 23, will see registration open at 7am, qualifying at approximately Noon and the Dominion Energy Last Chance Race for SMART Modifieds to begin shortly after 2pm ET. Discounted tickets for the Pace-O-Matic King of the Modifieds are available though the South Boston Speedway website. General admission tickets are available now for $17. That price will be $20 on race day, Saturday, March 23. Children 12 and under are free for this event. The Sentara Health Late Models and the VSP HEAT Hornets will also be in action.
In 2024, SMART fans will be treated to 15 races at 13 different facilities in the tri-state region of North and South Carolina, as well as Virginia. 15 year-old Carson Loftin won the first event of the season, the Peanut Patch 99, on Saturday, March 2, at Florence Motor Speedway in South Carolina. The season commences at the famed North Wilkesboro Speedway in North Carolina on Saturday, October 19. All races can also be seen on FloRacing, the official streaming broadcast partner of the SMART Modified Tour powered by Pace-O-Matic.
To see the entire schedule for the SMART Modified Tour powered by Pace-O-Matic, as well as all the latest news and information, please visit the series website at www.smartmodtour.com, and be sure to follow the series on social media (Facebook: SMART Modified Tour| Twitter: @SMARTMods_ | IG: @smartmods_).
By Bob Dillner - Twitter: @shorttracklife_
SMART Modified Tour Race #2
UNOFFICIAL Race Results for the Warrior 100 - 03/10/2024
Race Length: 100L - 45.5 M - 63.756 KM
Fin - Car - Driver - Sponsors
1. 23 - Carson Loftin - L&R Transmissions
2. 2 - Ryan Newman - SHITI Coolers / Aggressive Hydraulics
3. 18L - Bobby Labonte - Cookout
4. 99 - Jimmy Blewett - Sponsor Wanted
5. 24 - Danny Bohn - Ameri-Fast Supply
6. 4 - Jason Myers - Greg Butcher Trucking
7. 7VA - Luke Baldwin - Pace-O-Matic
8. 27 - Blake Barney - D-Mac Pools
9. 60 - Matt Hirschman - SMART Chevy
10. 02 - Joey Coulter - TORCH Eyewear
11. 77R - Will Lambrose - Skip Barber Racing School
12. 79 - Anthony Bello - Sun Drop
13. 66 - Austin Kochenash - LOI Kits
14. 16 - Jonathan Cash - Pace-O-Matic
15. 21 - Jimmy Wallace - Carolina Drilling
16. 04 - Brandon Ward - KevinSaysYes.com
17. 1 - Burt Myers - Citrusafe / Peanut Patch
18. 15 - Brian Loftin - L&R Transmissions
19. 77 - Gary Putnam - CURB Records
20. 18 - Daniel Yates - Yates Grading & Paving
21. 25 - Tommy Buzze - Mark III Financial / UNITS
22. 12PA - Jake Crum - Cherokee Unlimited
23. 22 - Jason Tutterow - Carolina Drilling
24. 31 - Cody Norman - Jerry Hunt Supercenter
25. 48 - Jonny Kievman - A-Best Forklift of Millbridge
26. 45 - Gary Young Jr. - Ideal Comfort Heating & Air
March 2 - SMART Tour Race at Florence Speedway doesn't go as planned - 12th place finish
PEE DEE REPORT: Greetings on this Sunday am from South Carolina. The SMART race at Florence Speedway is in the books. An eventful race for sure for the PeeDee 60. Matt had a problem in practice that led to some cosmetic damage to the race car. The Brown Dogs worked feverishly to get her back in race shape. Matt rewarded their efforts with the pole in qualifying. Matt started up front and stayed in the top two for three quarters of the event. Then it got a little rough up front sending Matt into a contact spin. He had to start out back with few laps remaining. He worked his way back to a 12th place finish. Certainly disappointing for Matt and The Dogs as the car was better than the finish. We move on. Stay Tuned...sounds like we may be back sooner than some people think!
RACE REPORT: The old phrase, “The Apple Didn’t Fall Far from the Tree,” could certainly apply to 9-time SMART winner Brian Loftin and his son, Carson. In just his 16th-career series start, the 15-year-old driver won his first race in a Tour-Type Modified. It came Saturday (March 2), in the Peanut Patch 99 at Florence Motor Speedway (SC), which marked the season opener for the SMART Modified Tour powered by Pace-O-Matic. Carson Loftin passed on of the best in the business, Matt Hirschman, to take the lead on lap 81. He then held off Burt Myers and Ryan Newman for the victory. “All of them are great drivers. When I was behind Hirschman, I knew it was going to be tough to get by him. But, these guys gave me a great car and I was able to do it. Man, this feels good,” said Loftin, who drives the number-23 Modified sponsored by L&R Transmissions and LeBlue Bottled Water. With Carson’s victory, he and his father, Brian, become the third, father-son combination in SMART history, to win races. At 15 years, 11 months and 3 days, Carson Loftin is the youngest winner in SMART history. “This means a lot. People don’t know how much goes into putting these race cars together. It’s been a lot of late nights in the shop and it paid off,” continued Loftin. “I’m trying to make racing a career and I gotta win races. I can’t thank these guys enough for sticking behind me. It sure feels good.” Defending series champion Burt Myers led 25 laps enroute to a runner-up finish.“We just lacked overall grip,” said Myers, who drives the Citrusafe Grill Cleaners | Peanut Patch number-1 Modified. “We knew this was coming; Carson is a real talent. He’s smooth and on a track like this, that matters. We were just a little off, but we still led laps, won the stage (Bell Helmets Stage One Dt) and still finished second.” The Jostens Lap Leader of the Race was Hischman, who led 43 circuits. The SMART Chevy number-60 was involved in an intense battle with Myers and Luke Baldwin (finished 5th), which led to his car spinning late in the race. Hirschman also won the Pace-O-Matic Pole Award in qualifying. The Pace-O-Matic Hard Charger of the Race was Joey Coulter, who started 12th and advanced eight positions to finish fourth. In 2024, SMART fans will be treated to 15 races at 13 different facilities in the tri-state region of North and South Carolina, as well as Virginia. The season continues when the 600-horsepower Modifieds tackle the Warrior 100 at Caraway Speedway in Sophia, NC on Sunday, March 10. The SMART Mods will also host one of the biggest Modified races in all of America, on Saturday, March 23, with the Pace-O-Matic King of the Modifieds at South Boston Speedway in Virginia. The season commences at the famed North Wilkesboro Speedway in North Carolina on Saturday, October 19. All races can also be seen on FloRacing, the official streaming broadcast partner of the SMART Modified Tour powered by Pace-O-Matic. Burt Myers captured the 2023 championship for the SMART Modified Tour in the season’s final race in October. The contest at Orange County Speedway in Rougemont, NC was won by Pace-O-Matic driver Bobby Labonte. OCS will host a race with the SMART Modified Tour powered by Pace-O-Matic on Saturday, April 6.
SMART Modified Tour Race #1
Official Race Results for the Peanut Patch 99 - 03/02/2024
Florence Motor Speedway - Timmonsville, SC - 0.4 mile
Race Length: 99L - 39.6 M - 63.756 KM
Fin - Str - Car - Driver - Sponsors - Laps
1 - 5 - 23 - Carson Loftin - L&R Transmissoins - 99
2 - 3 - 1 - Burt Myers - Peanut Patch / Citrusafe - 99
3 - 4 - 2 - Ryan Newman - Shiti Coolers - 99
4 - 12 - 02 - Joey Coulter - TORCH Eyewear - 99
5 - 2 - 7va - Luke Baldwin - Pace-O-Matic - 99
6 - 9 - 99 - Jimmy Blewett - 99
7 - 13 - 24 - Danny Bohn - Ameri-Fast Supply - 99
8 - 11 - 77L - Will Lambros - Skip Barber - 99
9 - 8 - 04 - Brandon Ward - Q-104.1 / KevinSaysYes.com - 99
10 - 16 - 4 - Jason Myers - QRC HVAC / Greg Butcher Trucking - 99
11 - 7 - 15 - Brian Loftin - Steve’s Transmission & Automotive - 99
12 - 1 - 60 - Matt Hirschman SMART Chevy - 99
13 - 18 - 79 - Anthony Bello - Sun Drop - 99
14 - 17 - 25 - Tom Buzze Jr. - UNITS Moving & Storage - 99
15 - 10 - 27 - Blake Barney - Amazing Graphics - 99
16 - 14 - 16va - Jonathan Cash - Pace-O-Matic - 99
17 - 21 - 40 - Frank Fleming - Simmons Powersports - 99
18 - 22 - 0 - Randall Richard - Ringaquared - 99
19 - 19 - 45 - Gary Young Jr. - PSR Products - 99
20 - 23 - 22 - Jason Tutterow - Carolina Drilling - 98
21 - 6 - 23NY - Bryce Bailey - K2 BBQ Sauces - 44
22 - 15 - 77 - Gary Putnam - CURB Records - 29
23 - 20 - 21 - Jimmy Wallace - Carolina Drilling - 29
24 - 24 - 48 - Tovia Grynewicz - A-Best Forklift - 10
Time of Race: 1h:21:50 | Margin of Victory: 1.423 seconds | Cautions:
Lap Leaders: Hirschman 43, C. Loftin 31, B. Myers 25
Pace-O-Matic Pole Award: Matt Hirschman - 17.053 seconds (84.442 mph)
Bell Helmets Stage Winner: Burt Myers
Jostens Lap Leader: Matt Hirschman - 43 Laps Led
Halfway Leader: Matt Hirschman
FEBRUARY 16 - Matt Hirschman Captures Fifth World Series Championship, Seventh Richie Evans Memorial Win
In a race that celebrates one of the greatest Modified drivers to ever compete, another racer continues to etch his name in history. Matt Hirschman left New Smyrna Speedway a five-time World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing champion while capturing his seventh Richie Evans Memorial 100 win. The PeeDee Motorsports driver led the championship standings by 10 points over Ronnie Williams heading into this event. To secure that title, he had to battle one of his biggest competitors of Speedweeks, Ryan Preece. No. 40 of Preece, a multi-time Richie Evans Memorial winner, spent the first part of the race battling for first with Hirschman. On lap 34, Hirschman made a bold choice, dive-bombing under Preece into the bottom of turn three. This aggressive move paid off as Hirschman rocketed to the lead. From there, the Pennsylvania native had to duel with the hard-charging cars of Eric Goodale and Jimmy Blewett. The No. 58 and No. 76 came to life later on in the race and were aided by a few cautions. However, neither driver was able to outrun the No. 60, leaving them with second and third-place finishes. Hirschman ended his week at New Smyrna with his 20th career World Series win, an impressive stat that was made more special by winning this memorial event.
“It always means a lot to win the [Richie] Evans Memorial, and to have your name mentioned in the same category at times is quite an honor,” Hirchman said following the race. “Richie was one of the first guys to dominate down here when they brought the modifieds here a long time ago and in recent years we’ve been the guys doing the same thing that he did in the beginning years. Just great to carry the torch and hopefully we can continue to do this for years to come.” Next year, Hirchman hopes to continue carrying the torch, seeking his seventh consecutive Richie Evans Memorial 100 win. Hirschman has won the event every year since 2019, finishing second to Preece in 2018.
-Story by: Taylor Kitchen
UNOFFICIAL RESULTS
RICHIE EVANS MEMORIAL - TOUR-TYPE MODIFIEDS
FIN NO DRIVER LAPS DIFF
1 60 Matt Hirschman 100 ---
2 58 Eric Goodale 100 1.065
3 76 Jimmy Blewett 100 2.056
4 40 Ryan Preece 100 2.501
5 92 Anthony Nocella 100 3.317
6 20PA Austin Beers 100 3.385
7 54C Tommy Catalano 100 4.096
8 32 Tyler Rypkema 100 5.077
9 46 Craig Lutz 100 5.746
10 50 Ronnie Williams 100 6.214
11 02 Joey Coulter 100 6.368
12 8M Cam McDermott 100 6.613
13 36 David Sapienza 100 7.023
14 11 Norman Newman 100 8.345
15 24 Andrew Krause 92 8 Laps
16 12 Brian Sones 88 12 Laps
17 2 J.R. Bertuccio 77 23 Laps
18 20 Eddie McCarthy 74 26 Laps
19 9 Tom Martino, Jr. 74 26 Laps
20 98 Landon Huffman 74 26 Laps
21 54X Trevor Catalano 70 30 Laps
22 42 Spencer Davis 48 52 Laps
23 00 Brett Meservey 32 68 Laps
24 55 Teddy Hodgdon 23 77 Laps
FEBRUARY 15 - Matt Hirschman starts new World Series streak on Thursday
by Matt Weaver
If history is any indication, Thursday might be the start of a new streak for Matt Hirschman and PeeDee Motorsports in the Tour Type Modified World Series of Asphalt at New Smyrna Speedway. The man they call Big Money Matt entered this World Series of Asphalt on a seven-race winning streak but was shut out of the first two races of the week, and three if counting the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour opener on Saturday night. More so, the No. 60 just didn’t look as stout, so the meticulous Hirschman went to work and figured it out. On Thursday, Hirschman started the race from fourth but was running second behind Patrick Emerling by the backstretch on the first lap. It took just nine laps for Hirschman to take the lead, with Ronnie Williams following, and he wouldn’t give up the spot the rest of the way. “It was a good long run car,” Hirschman said. “Probably still need to get better for tomorrow night. I think actually we were better last night. We’ll take a look at everything and see if we can make it better for tomorrow night. “Williams I think improved, but I think we still need to get a little bit better. I know [Ryan] Preece is coming back tomorrow night and he was real good on Tuesday. We’ll go to work and see what we can do tomorrow night.” Hirschman is seeking his fifth consecutive Richie Evans Memorial 100 on Friday. He has won the week-ending race six times in nine attempts. His 19 World Series wins are fourth on the all-time Tour Type Modified list behind Ted Christopher (43), Richie Evans (38) and Reggie Ruggiero (28). A fifth championship tomorrow, and he currently has a 10 point lead, would inch him closer to Ted Christopher (nine) and Richie Evans (six) on that all-time list.“It’s about getting your stuff right,” Hirschman said. “Depending on the weather, the track and just having everything right. There will be more than just me and Preece for the win tomorrow night, but I know there’s a good chance if we both have our stuff right it could come to down to the two of us.”
Matt Hirschman
Ronnie Williams
Eric Goodale
Jimmy Blewett
Craig Lutz
Eddie McCarthy
Tommy Catalano
J.R. Bertuccio
Patrick Emerling
Joey Coulter
Trevor Catalano
Spencer Davis
Tyler Rypkema
Landon Huffman
Tom Martino, Jr.
Timothy Solomito
Tim Connolly
Norman Newman
Anthony Bello
Anthony Nocella
Andrew Krause
FEBRAURY 14 - Matt Hirschman Wins Third Straight John Blewett, III Memorial
Matt Hirschman scored his fifth career win in the John Blewett, III Memorial Wednesday night at New Smyrna, marking his 18th career World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing win.
By Zach Evans
It may have taken longer than Matt Hirschman hoped, or many fans would have expected. Nonetheless, Hirschman returned to victory lane at New Smyrna Speedway Wednesday night. Hirschman won the John Blewett, III Memorial 76 Wednesday at the World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing, his third consecutive win in the tribute race. Winning at New Smyrna has become standard fare for Hirschman. He is a four-time World Series Tour-type Modified champion, and now has 18 World Series race wins. However, he was winless after three nights of Modified racing at this year's event.While many drivers would have loved to have two top-fives and three top-10s in that stretch, it was not the gold standard Hirschman has set in recent years."The toughest competition you'll ever face is when you beat yourself," said Hirschman in victory lane. "We did that for three nights so far. Results of 10th, fifth and fifth are just not up to our standards. "We got back on track tonight. Everything, hopefully, from here forward goes a little smoother for us and we get on track like we should." Hirschman took the lead with a three-wide pass against Ryan Lutz while negotiating lapped traffic on lap 57, and led the rest of the way for the victory. The John Blewett, III Memorial is always a special race during the World Series. Hirschman was presented with an open-face helmet trophy designed in the style of Blewett, III's own racing helmets, offering more sentimental value to Hirschman. "It's always good to get a win here on the Blewett Memorial tonight. They've got a neat little trophy, a helmet like John used to wear. I used to go to Flemington Speedway to watch him in his earlier days. That's the kind of helmet he'd wear, you could always see his face in the car. Very determined racer, I always enjoyed racing with him." Hirschman now has at least one win in every World Series since 2017. His 18 World Series wins place him fourth on the all-time list in Modified competition, behind Ted Christopher (43), Richie Evans (38) and Reggie Ruggiero (28). With two more chances over the next two nights, including Friday's Richie Evans Memorial 100, Hirschman hopes to add to that total before week's end. "We'll see if we can get any more this week. We got off to a slow start, but hopefully we can finish strong."
TOUR-TYPE MODIFIED JOHN BLEWETT, III MEMORIAL 76
FINISH NO DRIVER
1 60 Matt Hirschman
2 92 Anthony Nocella
3 46 Craig Lutz
4 07 Patrick Emerling
5 58 Eric Goodale
6 24 Andrew Krause
7 54C Tommy Catalano
8 179 Anthony Bello
9 50 Ronnie Williams
10 20PA Austin Beers
11 55CT Teddy Hodgdon
12 8M Cam McDermott
13 2 J.R. Bertuccio
14 14NC Bobby Measmer
15 42 Spencer Davis
16 20 Eddie McCarthy
17 36 David Sapienza
18 12 Brian Sones
19 02 Joey Coulter
20 11 Norman Newman
21 98 Landon Huffman
22 48 Jonny Kay
23 4 Tim connolly
24 25 Brian Robie
25 54X Trevor Catalano
26 32 Tyler Rypkema
27 158 Timmy Solomito
28 76 Jimmy Blewett
FEBRUARY 13 - Ryan Preece Wins Tuesday Night Modified Feature at New Smyrna
By Zach Evans
The NASCAR Cup Series driver for Stewart-Haas Racing picked up a win at the World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing on the eve of Daytona 500 qualifying night. Before Ryan Preece heads to Daytona International Speedway on Wednesday to qualify for the Daytona 500, he made a quick visit to victory lane at New Smyrna Speedway Tuesday night. Preece took the win in Tuesday's 50-lap Tour-type Modified feature at the World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing, finishing ahead of Ron Silk to end his winning streak at the World Series. Preece took the lead on lap 16 from Craig Lutz and maintained the top spot the rest of the way, even as Ron Silk closed in over the closing laps. Tuesday's win was the 13th at the World Series for Preece over the course of his career. Preece was particularly eager to get back to the front after a disappointing showing in Saturday's NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour event at New Smyrna. "We've been really tuning on it. That Tour show on Saturday was a real embarrassing moment for me. I don't think I've ever been lapped in a Modified Tour race. We put our head where it needed to be and made great changes. We were able to beat that 16 [of Silk]. He's been fast all weekend, so it's good to do that. "It's been a lot of fun racing with these guys. I don't get to do it much, so whenever we can all come back and get to victory lane, it feels really good." While the World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing continues on until Saturday, Preece's focus will now turn towards his NASCAR Cup Series obligations starting with Wednesday's pole qualifying night ahead of the Bluegreen Vacations Duels on Thursday. However, Preece isn't completely ruling out the possibility that he'll climb back in his Modified before the end of the week."I had a bet with my crew. I go out fourth for time trials tomorrow in the 500. Maybe I can try and sneak back here. This car has been so good, so maybe we'll try to come back tomorrow." Silk finished second, followed by Ronnie Williams, Anthony Nocella and Matt Hirschman.
TOUR-TYPE MODIFIED, WORLD SERIES NIGHT #5
FINISH NO DRIVER LAPS DIFF
1 40 Ryan Preece 50 ---
2 16 Ron Silk 50 0.601
3 50 Ronnie Williams 50 2.123
4 92 Anthony Nocella 50 2.367
5 60 Matt Hirschman 50 2.482
6 46 Craig Lutz 50 2.801
7 58 Eric Goodale 50 3.191
8 55CT Teddy Hodgdon 50 3.300
9 07 Patrick Emerling 50 3.532
10 36 David Sapienza 50 3.726
11 54 Tommy Catalano 50 4.153
12 9 Tom Martino, Jr. 50 4.841
13 42 Spencer Davis 50 5.533
14 20 Eddie McCarthy 50 6.469
15 2 J.R. Bertuccio 50 6.724
16 98 Landon Huffman 50 7.079
17 11 Norman Newman 50 7.300
18 48 Johnny Kay 50 7.480
19 7P Rich Parker 49 1 Lap
20 09 Christopher Hatton 47 3 Laps
21 76 Jimmy Blewett 44 6 Laps
22 179 Anthony Bello 44 6 Laps
23 14NC Bobby Measmer 40 10 Laps
24 02 Joey Coulter 40 10 Laps
25 32 Tyler Rypkema 27 23 Laps
26 158 Timmy Solomito 25 25 Laps
FEBRURY 12 - Ron Silk stood in victory lane at night's end at New Smyrna Speedway.
By Zach Evans
For the second time in as many Tour Modified races at this year's World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing, Ron Silk stood in victory lane at night's end at New Smyrna Speedway. Silk took the lead on lap seven from Patrick Emerling and led the rest of the way in the 50-lap feature to kick off the races that will count for points towards the Tour-type Modified World Series title with a win. After winning Saturday's NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season opener, Silk is looking like one of the drivers to beat at this year's World Series. "A lot of great people around me and great equipment. The car was fantastic. I think we can make it a little bit better for tomorrow night, but it's fun to be down here racing in February. To get two wins in a row to start off is great, and hopefully we can get another one tomorrow." Preece finished 0.477 seconds ahead of Ryan Preece, while those two drivers distanced themselves from third-place finisher Ronnie Williams. Patrick Emerling finished fourth, with Matt Hirschman rounding out the top five."I was making sure I didn't make a big mistake. I knew when he got to second, I had a pretty good gap. I had to manage some lapped traffic. We'll see, maybe we'll have a battle tomorrow night."
FINISH DRIVER
1 16 Ron Silk
2 40 Ryan Preece
3 50 Ronnie Williams
4 07 Patrick Emerling
5 60 Matt Hirschman
6 92 Anthony Nocella
7 55CT Teddy Hodgdon
8 179 Anthony Bello
9 58 Eric Goodale
10 8M Cam McDermott
11 76 Jimmy Blewett
12 46 Craig Lutz
13 02 Joey Coulter
14 24 Andrew Krause
15 20 Eddie McCarthy
16 42 Spencer Davis
17 36 David Sapienza
18 14NC Bobby Measmer
19 11 Norman Newman
20 4 Tim Connolly
21 09 Christopher Hatton
22 56T Trevor Catalano
23 54 Tommy Catalano
24 9 Tom Martino, Jr.
25 7P Rich Parker
26 2 J.R. Bertuccio
27 48 Johnny Kay
28 32 Tyler Rypkema
FEBRUARY 10 - Ron Silk Defends New Smyrna NWMT Season Opening Victory
By Zach Evans
It was deja vu for 2023 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion Ron Silk, as he opened the new season with another win at New Smyrna Speedway. It's deja vu in more ways than one for Ron Silk. The veteran driver repeated what he did last year, winning the opening race of the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour at New Smyrna Speedway. The defending series champion rolled off third at New Smyrna, right behind Craig Lutz and Austin Beers. When the green flag dropped, the Lutz No. 46 paced the field with ease.When the caution came out on lap 20, several drivers were given an early opportunity to vary their strategy in an attempt to catch up to the 29-year-old. Lutz stayed on track, giving him the clearance to dominate the first 80 laps of the race. However, drivers like Ron Silk gave up track position to head to pit road, a strategy call that worked to his advantage. Over the course of several laps, Lutz saw a silver bullet making its way through the field, lurking in his rearview mirror. It didn’t take much time after the yellow flag for Ron Silk, in a brand new race car, to successfully make a pass for the lead. The veteran racer was challenged through the event by several drivers right behind. One of those was Justin Bonsignore who applied continuous pressure, but never successfully got the lead. On the other hand, Andrew Krause and Doug Coby were the only two drivers to take first from Silk for a short time. And for a moment, when a late caution flew, it looked like Coby could have won the race based on a great strategy call. As the rest of the field went to pit road, Coby and Beers stayed on track, leading the field to green with 10 laps to go. Coby restarted on the preferred line, however, after making contact with the No. 16 of Beers on that restart, the No. 7 machine fell back. This allowed the powerhouse machine of Silk to jolt ahead and cross the line first. “I knew I was sitting in a pretty good spot in third there,” Silk explained, talking about that final restart. “The two guys were on, they weren’t much older tires, but 20 laps makes a difference. So I was able to kind of push Austin (Beers) by Doug (Coby) there and could kind of make quick work of him. Then luckily was just able to get a little bit of a gap that I could manage to the end.” Finishing in the second position, picking up where he left off in the championship standings, was Bonsignore. “I just needed to be a little freer,” Bonsignore said, “He (Silk) obviously got through traffic and had an eight-car length gap on us and I was giving it everything I had but I was just still too tight on that last set of tires and coming to the white. I found something in three and four, I wrapped the yellow line and it hooked really good it’s just too little too late at that point.” The one-two finish between these two drivers is sweet poetry, starting the season how they left it. This opening race at New Smyrna sets the tone for this season for the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour, and if this is any indication, it looks like Silk and Bonsignore are on track to battle for the title yet again.
NEW SMYRNA VISITORS BUREAU 200
FINISH NO DRIVER LAPS DIFF
1 16 Ron Silk 200 ---
2 51 Justin Bonsignore 200 0.425
3 7 Doug Coby 200 1.879
4 1 Patrick Emerling 200 2.073
5 56 Trevor Catalano 200 2.286
6 64 Austin Beers 200 2.530
7 32 Tyler Rypkema 200 2.773
8 24 Andrew Krause 200 2.962
9 3 Jake Johnson 200 3.180
10 60 Matt Hirschman 200 3.402
11 22 Kyle Bonsignore 200 3.597
12 46 Craig Lutz 200 3.791
13 40 Ryan Preece 200 6.399
14 14 Ryan Newman 199 1 Lap
15 99 Ronnie Williams 199 1 Lap
16 36 Dave Sapienza 199 1 Lap
17 25 Brian Robie 199 1 Lap
18 02 Joey Coulter 199 1 Lap
19 4 Tim Connolly 198 2 Laps
20 18 Ken Heagy 197 3 Laps
21 34 J.B. Fortin 196 4 Laps
22 26 Gary McDonald 192 8 Laps
23 00 Brett Meservey 191 9 Laps
24 42 Spencer Davis 190 10 Laps
25 01 Melissa Fifiield 188 12 Laps
26 58 Eric Goodale 178 22 Laps
27 84 Tyler Catalano 176 24 Laps
28 19 Anthony Sesely 175 25 Laps
29 23 Carson Loftin 147 53 Laps
30 54 Tommy Catalano 131 69 Laps
31 09 Christopher Hatton, Jr. 129 71 Laps
32 2 J.R. Bertuccio 40 160 Laps
33 8 John-Michael Shenette 32 168 Laps
34 20 Eddie McCarthy 19 181 Laps
Joseph Srigley on Nov 30, 2024
Timmy Solomito wasn't the dominant driver by any means in Saturday's Turkey Derby 150 at Wall Stadium Speedway, but after catching a pair of good breaks, the nine-time NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour winner found himself in contention.
"It's unreal, we've been close the last couple of years and we finally made it," Solomito said post-race. "I wanted to win one for my family and I wanted to win one more Tour race before I was done and just happy to be here. This is just as big as a Tour event, we beat the best today."The Islip, New York-native spent the vast majority of the 150-lap contest running inside the top five in his family-owned No. 66 entry, but couldn't quite break the stranglehold that Matt Hirschman, the race's polesitter, had on the field. Hirschman dominated the Thanksgiving weekend event, leading more than 100 laps, and appeared to be well on his way to a ninth Turkey Derby victory, when a late-race caution for Jared DiGiantomasso triggered a shakeup. With the field only permitted to change two tires during the entire 150-lap contest, it was time for many of the front-runners to make a decision -- stay out on older tires, and be a sitting duck, or come into the pits and risk losing track position. Hirschman, Jimmy Blewett, and several of the leaders chose to come down pit road, while Andy Jankowiak, Mark Stewart, and others, who had pitted earlier in the event, chose to stay on track and attempt to hold the field back for eight laps. Jankowiak was nearly successful in holding on to win the Turkey Derby 150, holding back both Hirschman and Blewett in the closing laps, until contact between his two main competitors sent the race dominator spinning to the infield.That set up a green-white-checkered duel between Jankowiak, Blewett, and several others, which ultimately devolved into chaos after the two leaders made contact and crashed mere feet after the start-finish line. Enter Timmy Solomito. Solomito was able to sneak through the carnage and put his family-owned entry into the race lead, then holding off a late challenge from Eddie McCarthy and Max Zachem to win at Wall Stadium Speedway. "I mean, hard racing obviously," Solomito added. "The deal with Andy [Jankowiak], I mean, history repeats itself -- he did the same thing to me last year, so we were kinda ready for it, and just drove straight through the smoke like Days of Thunder, and here we are. Front bumper is straight, kind of, and we're in one piece and we're Turkey Derby winners." McCarthy came home in second place, with Zachem in third. Andrew Krause and Luke Baldwin completed the top five. Jack Baldwin was sixth, with Matt Hirschman finishing a disappointing seventh place in the No. 60. "Honestly, this one might be at the top for me. I've been coming here since I was a little kid watching, and just happy to be here man. I just can't believe - I've got nine Tour wins, I'd like to make it 10 before I'm done, especially winning with my family." "This is a cool one, I won the Turkey Derby in the Legends, got lucky with the SK Wall [Modifieds] last year, and tonight we were there all night, so this one feels good."|
TOUR MODIFIED FEATURE - 150 Laps - TIMMY SOLOMITO, ISLIP, NY, Max Zachem, Eddie McCarthy, Andrew Krause, Luke Baldwin, Jack Baldwin, Matt Hirschman, Sam Rameau, Jarret DiGiantomasso, Austin Beers, Blake Barney, Ryan Flores, Andy Jankowiak, Carsten DiGiantomasso, Stephen Kopcik, Joey Nerlino, Jimmy Blewett, Mark Stewart, Steven Reed, Tommy Martino, Jr., Matt Swanson, Dave Sapienza, Anthony Sesely, Derek Hopkinson
Matt Hirschman Capitalizes on Late Restart, Wins Wall Modified Turkey Derby 100
On the eve of Turkey Derby 51, Matt Hirschman went to victory lane at Wall Stadium Speedway in the Wall Modified 100 ahead of Jimmy Blewett.
Zach Evans on Nov 29, 2024
Matt Hirschman started his Turkey Derby 51 weekend with a trip to victory lane in the Wall Modified 100 on Friday night.
Celebrating his birthday in style, Hirschman took the lead from Jimmy Blewett on a lap 95 restart for the win. A long green-flag run dominated by Kyle Scisco ended with 20 laps to go, and Steven Reed quickly took the lead on the restart. However, Reed lost control of the race five laps later to Blewett, while Hirschman moved into second.On a restart with six laps to go, Hirschman pulled past Blewett on the high side to take the lead and pull away for the win. “It was good, hard racing out there,” said Hirschman in victory lane. “I thought everyone ran pretty good there. We had a long green flag run in the beginning, got stretched out. It took a long time to get past lap 80 there.
“I thought it was all pretty good racing. Reed was leading, and then Jimmy was on him, and then me. I just got a good restart. He got a better one the one prior to that. I got a better one on that. It’s late in the race, a lot of heat cycles on the tires. We got a good one at the right time. I always appreciate Turkey Derby wins.” While it wasn’t a victory, Hirschman raced in the Garden State Classic at Wall Stadium earlier this season. He believed that experience helped him on Friday night. “We were here earlier this year for the Garden State Classic. I’ve never won that. Coming here for that helped us today. It’s tough to come to these tracks once a year and beat the regulars here. Jimmy’s obviously always tough here, no matter how much he races here. It’s his home track.” With the 100-lap win on Friday in his pocket, Hirschman now turns his focus towards the Tour Modified feature on Saturday. The 150-lap event is the headline feature of Turkey Derby 51, as Hirschman seeks his ninth career win in the race. “If it had gone green, that would have worked out for them,” said Hirschman. “I’m glad it didn’t, and we got a win today. Now we’ve got to put our focus on tomorrow.”Blewett finished second, followed by Adam LaCicero, Steven Reed and Eddie McCarthy.
WALL MODFIED FEATURE - 100 Laps - MATT HIRSCHMAN, NORTHAMPTON, PA., Jimmy Blewett, Stephen Kopcik, Steven Ree, Eddie McCarthy, Tommy Martino, Jr., Blake Barney, Derek Hopkinson, Adam LaCiciero, Carsten DiGiantomasso, Jake Nelke, Shanon Mongeau, Tyler Ferris, Eric Lane, Shaun Carrig, Kyle Scisco, Andrew Krause, Jarret DiGiantomasso, Vinny Marone
In only his second start in a Tour-type Open Modified, 17-year-old Chase Grennan wins the #Islip300 at Riverhead on November 16!
After a promising start Islip 300 ends with a disappointing 9th place finish.
Matt Hirschman is now a 10-time winner of the North-South Shootout, and has won four straight editions of the marquee Modified event followinng the November 9th win at Caraway.
by Zach Evans
Matt Hirschman dominated the attrition-filled 22nd Annual John Blewett III Memorial North-South Shootout in Memory of Charles Kepley at Caraway Speedway Saturday. With the win, Hirschman is now a 10-time winner in 21 starts in the event, and has won the last four runnings. "It's kind of hard to believe. It's hard to do something like that four consecutive times," Hirschman told Racing America. "There's just so many variables that can factor in to that. It takes a big effort. It takes a good car. In this race, it takes good pit stops. You have to have the right strategy. You've got to hit the tire staggers. There are so many things that go into it, it's hard to believe you can do that four consecutive times and come out on top." Hirschman is unquestionably one of the most successful Modified racers of this generation. He won his ninth Race of Champions 250 this year, has eight Turkey Derby wins, five Tour-type Modified championships at the World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing and countless other accolades.However, there may not be any event Hirschman has dominated like the North-South Shootout. Hirschman won the race four times at Concord Speedway and is now a six-time winner in the North-South Shootout at Caraway."I just appreciate that kind of run of success in one particular event. There are other events like the Race of Champions, marquee events with lots of history that we've won that same amount of times. I think 10 is more than I've done in any of those races as well."I've always been pretty good here. I've won here not just in North-South Shootouts but in other races, SMART races, different races they've had here over the years. I've always gotten around here. I have a good amount of success here. This particular race, whether it was at Concord or here, just a great track record of success."While it was a dominant showing for HIrschman, it was far from smooth sailing for him or most of the field on a night filled with carnage. Only 14 of the race's 32 starters saw the checkered flag, as the 125-lap race necessitated nearly three hours to complete."I know at least two of the last three years, this race has been a marathon," said Hirschman. "As a whole, something needs to be cleaned up. There may have been one of those years where the officiating or scoring and cleanup was maybe a cause of that."Today, it seemed like it was more on the racers. There seemed to be too many cautions, spins, tangles, wrecks. There's been races like that here in the SMART series, marathon races where cars were running out of gas at the end. I'm not really sure why. It's a good racetrack, there's room out there. It seems to produce some, at times, lengthy events."Hirschman has two more chances to add to his trophy cabinet in 2024, as he will compete in both the Islip 300 at Riverhead Raceway and the Turkey Derby at Wall Stadium Speedway."We won the Tri-Track race last week, this race this week, and we've got two more weekends to go with the Islip 300 at Riverhead and then the Turkey Derby weekend. We'll just approach them like we always have. We're going back with the same teams and cars that we've had success with at them before, just like we did today. We'll see if we can put ourselves in a position to compete for wins."
North-South Shootout Unofficial Results
Fin No Driver Laps Diff
1 60 Matt Hirschman 125 ---
2 12C Jake Crum 125 1.966
3 23 Carson Loftin 125 2.393
4 84NY Tyler Catalano 125 5.233
5 99 Jimmy Blewett 125 5.769
6 45 Gary Young 125 6.165
7 77P Gary Putnam 125 7.280
8 63 Josh Lowder 125 7.916
9 48 Johnny Kievman 125 8.156
10 55 Jeremy Gerstner 125 8.577
11 02 Joey Coulter 125 9.140
12 70 Andy Seuss 125 10.107
13 9NJ Tom Martino, Jr. 125 12.991
14 4 Jason Myers 117 8 Laps
15 10 Mike Speeney 115 10 Laps
16 15 Brian Loftin 113 12 Laps
17 1 Burt Myers 84 41 Laps
18 8 John-Michael Shenette 83 42 Laps
19 12 Cody Norman 83 42 Laps
20 25B Tom Buzze 83 42 Laps
21 25NH Brian Robie 82 43 Laps
22 3 Jeff Fultz 82 43 Laps
23 73 Paulie Hartwig, III 82 43 Laps
24 25JS Jimmy Segar 55 70 Laps
25 79 James Civali 53 72 Laps
26 04 Brandon Ward 31 94 Laps
27 54NY Tommy Catalano 19 106 Laps
28 PJ64 Trevor Catalano 19 106 Laps
29 11R Michael Ritch 19 106 Laps
30 8F Chris Finocchario 19 106 Laps
31 11 Norman Newman 19 106 Laps
32 25 John Smith 17 108 Laps
Matt Hirschman wins the Haunted 100 for the Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series at Seekonk Speedway on November 2nd, grabbing his ninth series title in the process
Hirschman went around Stephen Kopcik on lap 71 and won the 101-lap race over Jon McKennedy. Kopcik finished third, with Matt Swanson and Brett Meservey rounding out the top 3. Hirschman won three of the final five races on his way to the Monoco Tri Track title.
Matt Hirschman, Jon McKennedy, Stephen Kopcik, Matt Swanson, Brett Meservey, Austin Beers, Kyle Bonsignore, Andrew Molleur, Anthony Bello, Woody Pitkat, Keith Rocco, Ronnie Williams, Tyler Rypkema, Teddy Hodgdon, Joey Mucciacciaro, Les Hickley, David Arute, Anthony Nocella, Chris Pasteryak, Avery Stoehr, Ryan Doucette, Dylan Izzo, Blake Barney, Nathan Wenzel, Max Zachem, Jeffrey Battle, Nick Halkowicz, Kevin Folan, Timmy Solomito, Walt Sutcliffe Jr
Justin Bonsignore Joins All-Time Greats With Fourth NASCAR Modified Title after winning at Martinsville Speedway on October 27
Justin Bonsignore wasn’t going to be denied his fourth NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour championship, as he dominated the season finale Virginia is for Racing Lovers 300 at Martinsville Speedway to take home the Grandfather Clock and the year-end title. The championship marks Bonsignore’s fourth title (2018, 2020, 2021, 2024), and the win – his first at Martinsville Speedway – gave him sole possession of second on the all-time Whelen Modified Tour wins list with 45.A late-season surge in which he won the final three races of the season gave Bonsignore the edge over two-time Tour champion Ron Silk, as they carried their season-long contentious championship battle into the final race of season for the second year in a row.“A year of hard work, a lot of ups and downs, the middle of September wasn’t looking good, all of a sudden we got hot,” Bonsignore said in Victory Lane. “Three in a row is something I’ve never done in my career, and to cap it off with a Grandfather Clock is just really awesome.”A year ago, Silk led Bonsignore by 13 points heading into the Martinsville season finale and held on to win the championship, but the tables were turned this year.The pair of wins in the last two races leading into Martinsville gained Bonsignore a 10-point advantage over his rival as the title race loomed. The No. 51 Ken Massa Motorsports team brought the same car – the one with which Bonsignore won those races at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park and North Wilkesboro Speedway — to Martinsville. They unloaded fast again, as he led practice and then won the pole for the championship race.Silk, however, struggled in qualifying and started 13th in the race. And while Silk showed moments of speed, his championship hopes ultimately dissolved when mechanical issues took him out of the race with 60 laps remaining. He was relegated to a 17th-place finish.The championship moment was especially meaningful for Bonsignore after he went home empty-handed following the season finale at Martinsville the last two seasons.“We watched other people celebrate two years in a row here and we lost, and that’s tough to watch back,” said Bonsignore. “Just a lot of hard work by Ryan Stone and Ken Massa to keep things going in the direction we want to go.“It’s really had to put into words just how special this stuff is.”Matt Hirschman finished second, while Jacob Lutz was third. Austin Beers and Ryan Newman rounded out the top five.
1 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communications, Inc. 200 --
2 60 Matt Hirschman PeeDee Motorsports/Colyer Trucking 200 4.897
3 14 Jacob Lutz* Advantage Trucks/Anastasi Trucking/Anastasi Trucking 200 5.379
4 64 Austin Beers G&G Electrical Supply/Dell Electric/Lumiere Electrical 200 6.601
5 8 Ryan Newman Bass Pro Shops/USNE Power/Anglers Choice 200 8.617
6 46 Craig Lutz Riverhead Building Supply 200 10.002
7 7 Luke Baldwin* Baldwin Automotive 200 12.261
8 38 Bobby Labonte Pace-O-Matic/CookOut 200 15.163
9 24 Andrew Krause Supreme Manufacturing 200 19.246
10 1 Patrick Emerling Fleetworks Inc 199 1 Lap
11 22 Kyle Bonsignore MTT/Munn’s Auto/Chalew Performance 199 1 Lap
12 23 Carson Loftin* L&R Transmissions/LeBleu Water/QMF Metal Fabrication 199 1 Lap
13 55 Jake Crum* Cherokee Underground 199 1 Lap
14 70 Andy Seuss Rockingham Boat 199 1 Lap
15 02 Joey Coulter SRI Performance/Bilstein Shocks 199 1 Lap
16 3 Tyler Rypkema USNE/Northeast Drilling 199 1 Lap
17 16 Ron Silk Blue Mountain Machine/Future Homes 141 59 Laps
18 56 Trevor Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 125 75 Laps
19 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood & Restaurant 69 131 Laps
20 84 Tyler Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 51 149 Laps
21 97 Bryan Dauzat Brother-N-Law Motorsports/OB Builders 27 173 Laps
22 4 Tim Connolly Connolly Companies, LLC 13 187 Laps
23 54 Tommy Catalano FX Caprara 13 187 Laps
PEE DEE UPDATE: OCTOBER 20: Good Evening PeeDee Fans. Two races in two nights at North Wilkesboro. Two 2nd place finishes. Night #1 in the SMART Tour race was challenging to say the least. Fastest in practice, won the pole, started second on the invert. Was the victim of over aggressive contact from behind and spun and hit by other cars. The Brown Dogs went to work on the car and Matt worked up a strategy to deal with situation. The race went on with Matt starting in the rear. Raced his way back to the front and was on the leader's back bumper at the checkers for a second place finish with a wounded race car. Impressive! Day #2 for the NWMT race. Fastest in practice, qualified second. The race had an incredible pace. Blistering actually. Matt led some laps and was able to maintain 2nd place for long green flag run. Finished 2nd. Thanks to the crew on their hard work overnight to get the car repaired and ready to race on Sunday. Great job guys. So now what?....Stay Tuned!
Justin Bonsignore Wins At Wilkesboro on October 20 And Takes NASCAR Modified Points
by Rob Blount
North Wilkesboro Speedway is now in the books and it will go down as one of the most dominant performances of Justin Bonsignore’s illustrious career. He may not have started from the pole, and he may not have led every lap, but he left only five cars on the lead lap and won by 6.473 seconds at the historic facility. But more importantly, Bonsignore reclaimed the points lead as he looks for his fourth NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour championship in less than one week’s time at Martinsville Speedway in Virginia on Saturday night. Bonsignore started fourth, but quickly drove to the front of the field, taking the lead for the first time on Lap 11. He lost the lead in the pits on Lap 32, but took it back for good just 10 laps later and led all the way to checkered flag from there. Meanwhile, his main rival for the championship had the exact opposite day on Sunday.Defending champion Ron Silk entered the day with a five-point lead over Bonsignore, but left North Wilkesboro trailing by 10. Silk qualified sixth, ran as high as fifth, and then dropped like a rock through the field on the long green-flag run that decided the race. Silk dropped as far as 12th, but gained one spot back when Kyle Bonsignore spun coming to the checkered flag. Silk finished 11th, two laps down to Bonsignore. Patrick Emerling, who was the hottest driver in the series until one week ago, finished fourth on Sunday and heads to Martinsville with an outside shot at the championship as he is now 24 points back of Bonsignore for the championship lead. So now it all comes down to one night on Saturday at the one of the most historic and legendary short tracks in all of pavement racing at Martinsville Speedway. Bonsignore was strong at Martinsville one year ago, finishing second to Ryan Preece who was in his own zip-code last year. If Bonsignore has that kind of day again, he’ll be celebrating his fourth championship and would join Mike Stefanik, Tony Hirschman, and Doug Coby as the only drivers to win four NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour championships. Race fans can watch the season finale for the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour live on FloRacing with a FloRacing subscription. Fans can subscribe to FloRacing by clicking here.
NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour At North Wilkesboro Speedway Results
Pos. Car No. Driver
1 51 Justin Bonsignore
2 60 Matt Hirschman
3 64 Austin Beers
4 1 Patrick Emerling
5 3 Tyler Rypkema
6 44 Chase Dowling
7 7 Luke Baldwin
8 38 Bobby Labonte
9 23 Carson Loftin
10 22 Kyle Bonsignore
11 16 Ron Silk
12 46 Craig Lutz
13 77 Ryan Newman
14 4 Tim Connolly
15 02 Joey Coulter
16 06 Sam Rameau
17 18 Ken Heagy
18 01 Melissa Fifield
19 09 Christopher Hatton
20 24 Andrew Krause
Justin Bonsignore Tops SMART Tour At North Wilkesboro; Luke Baldwin Gets Series Title on October 19
A trio of the Southeast's top touring series crowned champions at North Wilkesboro Speedway. Both CARS Tour divisions -- Pro Late Models and Late Model Stock Cars -- were joined by the SMART Modified Tour for an action-packed night of racing in Wilkes County. The night began with a drama-filled finale for the CARS Tour Pro Late Models that saw points leader Spencer Davis involved in an early accident. That opened the door for Kaden Honeycutt, who ultimately survived a pair of fierce battles with Tristan McKee and TJ Decaire to claim both the race win and the 2024 championship. From there, the SMART Modified Tour brought the horsepower to North Wilkesboro Speedway. NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour star Justin Bonsignore held off a hard-charging Matt Hirschman to claim his first career SMART win, while 18-year-old modified rookie, Luke Baldwin, is the 2024 SMART Modified Tour powered by Pace-O-Matic champion. The third-generation modified racer secured the title, and the Racing Electronics Rookie of the Year honors, with the SMART Mods by finishing third in the season finale Saturday at North Wilkesboro Speedway in North Carolina. “I told a couple of people that just four years ago I was sitting in my room playing iRacing, praying for something like this,” said Baldwin after he climbed out of his race car and celebrated with his SS Racing team. “I can't say thanks to everyone enough. Pace-O-Matic, Sadler Stanley Racing, I have said it a couple of times but, I don’t know if I would be racing right now if it wasn’t for Hermie Sadler and Bill Stanley. This is unbelievable.” While Baldwin cherished his newly crowned championship, series-invader Justin Bonsignore dominated the race to ride the elevator to the famous victory lane at North Wilkesboro Speedway. Bonsignore, from Holtsville, New York, led all but three laps (96 of 99) enroute to his first series win in his first-career SMART Modified Tour race. Bonsignore held off Matt Hirschman to the checkered flag. “Matt Hirschman is the ultimate at these tire-saving races and he was charging hard on old tires,” said Bonsignore in the Pace-O-Matic Victory Lane. “We had a really good car in the beginning, but Matt (Hirschman) was able to flip the strategy after getting crashed. You never can count him out, even on older tires. I was able to get the lead, but we’re not used to changing just one tire during a race. We don’t do that with our series, so we’re not accustomed to the adjustments you need to make,” added Bonsignore. “The car was just giving up too much there at the end. I think if it was anybody beside Matt Hirschman on the last lap, we would have ended up in the fence.” “Congrats to the whole 7-team (on winning the championship). I’m really happy for Luke, they are a great family,” added Bonsignore. “I wanna thank Ryan Stone and this whole crew. We had a good time with the SMART Tour, so who knows, maybe we’ll run some more next year.” Bonsignore became a 44-time NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour winner by capturing the victory on Sunday at North Wilkesboro as well. He is a three-time champion of that series. Baldwin, from Mooresville, NC, is the champion with two wins on the season, but he was one of five championship contenders in a winner-take-all scenario amongst those drivers during the 99-lap race at Wilkesboro. Carson Loftin, from Lexington, NC, is a five-time winner this year in the number-23 car. The 16 year-old will settle for second in points after finishing seventh in the North Wilkesboro race. Ryan Newman, from South Bend, IN, was a victim of someone else’s mishap early in the race and finished eighth in the event. He ended up third in the championship chase. Burt Myers, from Walnut Cove, NC, and Danny Bohn, from Freehold, NJ, crashed hard after other drivers in front of them triggered a multi-car accident in the latter stages of the race. Myers and Bohn will finish fourth and fifth in the standings.
1 Justin Bonsignore
2 Matt Hirschman
3 Luke Baldwin
4 Jake Crum
5 Austin Beers
6 Bobby Labonte
7 Carson Loftin
8 Ryan Newman
9 Joey Coulter
10 Sammy Rameau
11 Jimmy Wallace
12 Johnny Keivman
13 Jason Myers
14 Daniel Yates
15 Gary Young Jr.
16 John Holleman
17 Anthony Bello
18 Matthew Kimball
19 Norman Newman
20 Jason Tutterow
21 Christopher Hatton
22 Ethan Truell
23 Tom Buzze Jr.
24 Burt Myers
25 Danny Bohn
26 Tim Connolly
27 Andrew Krause
28 Jonathan Cash
29 John-Michael Shenette
Justin Bonsignore won the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour's Sunoco World Series 150 at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park on Sunday, October 13
The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour moved up the schedule for the Sunoco World Series 150 presented by FloRacing with qualifying scrapped under the weather-changed schedule, the Modifieds were lined-up based on season-long points. Ron Silk and Justin Bonsignore faced off side-by-side at the front with Austin Beers and Patrick Emerling in tow under the initial green flag. After hitting the wall during practice, Emerling dropped back to the latter half of the top ten as Bonsignore, Silk and Beers paced the field with a growing lead over Tyler Rypkema and Craig Lutz.Bonsignore took over the lead fifteen laps in with Silk content to ride through the first half of the 150-lap marathon. After conserving through the first third, Craig Lutz began pulling on Bonsignore and Silk and motored around Silk for second on lap 67. The handling seeming to slow up the championship contender, Matt Hirschman also made his way around Silk on lap 87 to take third. The first caution flag flew on lap 92 as Joey Cipriano spun around off turn four with teams hurriedly getting ready on pit road. Craig Lutz won the race off pit road with Hirschman, Austin Beers and Ronnie Silk in tow as Bonsignore lost five spots with a disastrous pit stop. Back under green, Lutz led laps but Silk came back with a vengeance to the front of the field as Bonsignore followed close behind. Bonsignore began to pour down on Silk with 35 laps remaining, testing runs to the inside line before the pair pulled up on lap traffic. Bonsignore powered under Silk to lead lap 121 but the real battle was for third as Anthony Nocella came out of no-where to take on Austin Beers. Nocella finally took over the third-place position on lap 137 and went after Silk’s second-place spot! Time ran out with Justin Bonsignore taking the Sunoco World Series 150 presented by FloRacing win over a hard-charging Anthony Nocella and Ron Silk.
NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour – Sunoco World Series 150 presented by FloRacing
1 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communications, Inc. 150 --
2 17 Anthony Nocella Sontag Motorsports/Bells Septic/Xtreme Autobody 150 0.355
3 16 Ron Silk Blue Mountain Machine/Future Homes 150 2.464
4 64 Austin Beers G&G Electrical Supply/Dell Electric 150 3.335
5 60 Matt Hirschmann Elite 150 10.36
6 44 Chase Dowling Harshaw Paving/Olivas Market 150 10.681
7 1 Patrick Emerling Fleetworks Inc 150 12.325
8 46 Craig Lutz Riverhead Building Supply 150 13.13
9 36 Dave Sapienza Sapienza Racing/Eastport Feed 150 13.32
10 22 Kyle Bonsignore Chalew Performance/MTT/Munns Auto 150 19.763
11 89 Matt Swanson Cervaolos Auto/Casella Snowplows 149 1 Lap
12 82 Woody Pitkat Horton Avenue Materials/Gunsmoke Stables 149 1 Lap
13 3 Tyler Rypkema USNE/Northeast Drilling 149 1 Lap
14 4 Tim Connolly Connolly Companies, LLC 148 2 Laps
15 54 Tommy Catalano FX Caprara/USNE Power 148 2 Laps
16 15 Joey Cipriano III Dependable Energy 148 2 Laps
17 84 Tyler Catalano USNE Power 148 2 Laps
18 56 Trevor Catalano USNE Power 147 3 Laps
19 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood & Restaurant 146 4 Laps
20 00 Tyler Barry Spafco Race Chassis/BNP Machine 145 5 Laps
21 28 Mike Marshall MLM Diagnostics/Jusczak Electric 144 6 Laps
22 10 Bob Reis IronListing.com/B.R. Machineworks 134 16 Laps
Jon McKennedy beat 'Big Money' Matt Hirschman to the line for the $10,000 win in the Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series debut at Thompson Speedway on Sunoco World Series Saturday on October 12
The Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series took over the infield for their Constantine Paving & Sealing 75 on Sunoco World Series Saturday. Stephen Kopcik and Joey Cipriano brought the 33-car field to green with Cipriano getting the opening lead as heavy hitters Patrick Emerling, Jon McKennedy and Woody Pitkat quickly formed on his six o’clock! McKennedy dove to the bottom to lead lap 7 with Cipriano quickly fading to Pitkat the next lap as the balance of the field fell into single file. A pair of cautions set pit strategy in motion for several teams but McKennedy, Emerling, Pitkat and Matt Hirschman kept their machines at the front of the pack in search of the $10,000 payday. After each caution cycle, McKennedy continued to assert his dominance out ahead of Pitkat and Emerling while ‘Big Money Matt’ and Kopcik kept themselves in contention among the top runners. With laps winding down, Anthony Nocella and Ronnie Williams began entering the picture as George Bessett Jr. climbed into the top-10 after an earlier pit stop. With fifteen laps remaining, Hirschman began to gain considerably on McKennedy, pulling to within a car-length in the corners as the two held a straightaway lead over third-place runner Anthony Nocella. With four laps left Hirschman began to look low with lap traffic ahead under the two-to-go popsicle sticks from the chief starter. Jon McKennedy used the lappers to his advantage, holding onto the lead and taking the Constantine Paving & Sealing 75 for the Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series over Matt Hirschman and Anthony Nocella. Stephen Kopcik held on for fourth and Matt Swanson stole fifth.
Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series – Constantine Paving & Sealing 75 (75 Laps)
1. 79 Jon McKennedy Chelmsford, MA
2. 60 Matt Hirschman Northamption, PA
3. 92 Anthony Nocella Woburn, MA
4. 1 Stephen Kopcik Newtown, CT
5. 25 Matt Swanson Harvard, MA
6. 39 George Bessette, Jr. Danbury, CT
7. 07NY Patrick Emerling Mooresville, NC
8. 50 Ronnie Williams Ellington, CT
9. 31 Noah Korner Avon, CT
10. 57 Keith Rocco Berlin, CT
11. 5CT Chris Pasteryak Lisbon, CT
12. 00 Mike Christopher, Jr. Wolcott, CT
13. 36 David Sapienza Riverhead, NY
14. 8 Chris Finocchario Macdeon, NY
15. 55CT Teddy Hodgdon Danbury, CT
16. 88 Woody Pitkat Bellingham, MA
17. 13 Max Zachem Oakdale, CT
18. 19 Jeffrey Battle Dunstable, MA
19. 28 Buddy Charette Woodstock, CT
20. 81NY Mark Stewart Wading River, NY
21. 55x Jacob Perry Kannapolis, NC
22. 8NY Tyler Barry Griswold, CT
23. 15 Jake Johnson Rehoboth, MA
24. 48 Glen Steger Copiague, NY
25. 51CT Joey Cipriano Plymouth, CT
26. 11 Corey DiMatteo Farmington, CT
27. 76 Brett Meservey Brewster, MA
28. 3 Tyler Rypkema Owego, NY
29. 81 Todd Owen Somers, CT
30. 07 Kyle Bonsignore Mooresville, NC
31. 78 Walt Sutcliffe East Haven, CT
32. 55 Ryan Doucette Framingham, MA
DNS 47 Joey Mucciacciaro Wolcott, CT
JAYDEN HARMAN CRUISES TO CAREER FIRST TOUR TYPE MODIFIED WIN SUNDAY OCTOBER 6 AT EVERGREEN RACEWAY
(10-6-24) Jayden Harman has been racing since he was four years old, working up the ranks from go-karts then Micro Sprints on dirt before switching to pavement and Street Stocks and Crate Modifieds. In all those disciplines he succeeded in winning too. The now 15-year old from Sugarloaf used those aforementioned divisions with the one goal in mind of racing a Tour Type Modified, which he gradually started to do last year then focus on a full-bore effort for 2024 and Sunday afternoon at Evergreen Raceway he reached the highpoint of his budding career when he drove to a flawless victory in the 50-lap feature.Harman shared the front row with Allan Pedersen and when the race got started he settled into second spot but not for long as by lap four he took over the lead and from there on he simply showed an uncanny amount of speed and steadiness that enabled him to hold a few car lengths gap no matter who ran second.Veteran Roger Coss moved into the runnerup spot on lap 21 followed soon after by Paulie Hartwig III but make no mistake Harman never had any worries about them or anyone else as his car was spot on all race long.“It feels awesome especially after all the time we spent last night getting this car together and I can’t thank my whole family and crew enough for all that they do for me,” Harman said.The team was forced to burn the midnight oil as the night prior while racing at Mahoning Valley Speedway, Harman slammed the front straight wall. The car suffered heavy damage and when the team returned home they immediately went to work on their secondary mount. Harman then rewarded their efforts the best way he could, with a victory.“It was super good and I was just riding around before that first caution. It did start to free up a little bit near the end but all-in-all it was a great piece today and it stayed good through the whole race,” said Harman.There was only one caution that slowed that pace, coming at the halfway mark and with the extended number of green flag laps it only played into Harman’s hands as he gained a safe distance on Coss as the race wore on, although in the closing circuits that interval was diminishing, but not enough to worry about the outcome.“It was super good and I was just riding around before that first caution. It did start to free up a little bit near the end but as I mentioned it was a great piece and it stayed good through the whole race,” said Harman.“It’s a testament to my guys and all the work they do and all that they put into the car. It’s also great to win it here at Evergreen, this is home for us. We traveled around a lot all year and we struggled to be honest but this makes up for it all.” Harman is stoked for his return to Evergreen and the Tour Type Modifieds that will be back for the King of the Green on October 19 for a 75-lap feature. “I’m super pumped for that weekend. Today I gained a ton of confidence and it was so nice to be able to lead most all the race and still have plenty at the end to drive away from the field.” For Coss it was his second runner-up in less than 24 hours as he took second the night prior to winner Hartwig at Mahoning Valley. Austin Beers and Brian Sones rounded out the top five.
Tour Type Modified feature finish (50 laps): 1. Jayden Harman, 2. Roger Coss, 3. Paulie Hartwig III, 4. Austin Beers, 5. Brian Sones, 6. Matt Swanson, 7. Brian DeFebo, 8. Matt Hirschman, 9. Nick Baer, 10. Allan Pederson, 11. Daren Scherer, 12. Wayne Szerencsits, 13. Brian Romig Jr., 14. Evan Rygielski, 15. Jacob Kerstetter
Paulie Hartwig lll charges his way to victory in the $5,001 to win Kevin Graver Sr. Tribute race at the Mahoning
A stout $45,000 Modified purse with additional bonuses was enough to draw in a full, 24 car field for the already heavily anticipated Fall Brawl at The Mahoning Valley Speedway. The season finale was dedicated to two beloved racing figures who have contributed so much to not only the Mahoning Valley racing community, but also extended their racing passion in the form of helping others at the speedway. Kevin Graver Sr. and Kevin Kromer were both pivotal parts in the local racing community, and with the help of of their families, friends, and sponsors, racers were able to compete for very generous payouts in their respective divisions. Both the 101-Lap Modified event and the 30 lap Pro-4 event were held in memory of Kevin Graver Sr.. Likewise, the long time Street Stock competitor, Kevin Kromer, was honored by holding a 77-lap cone race for the Street Stocks in his name. The 101 lap modified main event started off with the the original pole-sitter, Matt Hirschman, electing to start in the rear in an attempt to capture an additional $1,000 hard charger bonus in the event of a victory. The front row was then reshuffled to become the #41 of Nick Baer and the #8 of Earl Paules. Paules would waste no time utilizing the outside lane to charge to the lead, taking the #19 of Austin Beers right along with him on lap one. Just a few laps in, the first yellow flag would wave, setting up for the ensuing restart with both Paules and Beers on the front row. Beers would make his way by the #8 of Paules by lap 10, which was where he would remain for the ensuing 50 laps. A frightening incident involving the #51 of Jayden Harman who made hard contact with the front stretch wall brought out the yellow on lap 61. Fortunately, Harman exited the vehicle under his own power, and the field would shuffle back together double file for the remaining 41 laps. By this point, it was go time for those who had been saving their equipment, especially so for Matt Hirschman who had found himself in the top ten for the first time all race. While Roger Coss was taking sole position of first place from Austin Beers, contact between the #25 of Brian Robie and the #66 of Austin Kochenash would collect the #60 of Matt Hirschman, cutting his left front tire. From this point on, it was seemingly a two horse race, as the youngest driver of the field, Paulie Hartwig lll, emerged from the tightly contested top 5 and set his sights on the #17 of Roger Coss. Coss, to this point, had seemed untouchable since grabbing the lead from Beers, but as his tires began to fade, Hartwig lll reeled him back in with less than 15 to go. The 13 year old phenom began to apply pressure to Coss as they approached lapped traffic. Coss was using every trick he had up his sleeve to keep the #11 car at bay, using lap cars as picks and timing his corner entry, however, with two laps to go, Hartwig lll was able to give Coss just enough bumper to wash him up the track and sneak underneath for the lead. Hartwig lll would hold on for the last quarter mile to collect his first tour modified victory and come home with a $5,001 paycheck in the 101-lap Kevin Graver Sr. Tribute Race!
MODIFIEDS:
Paulie Hartwig lll, Roger Coss, Brian Robie, Austin Kochenash, Jack Ely, Matt Hirschman, Brian Defebo, Johnny Bennett, Bobby Jones, Austin Beers, Nick Baer, Thomas Flanagan, Rod Snyder Jr., Jaden Brown, Earl Paules, Brian Romig Sr., Kevin Graver Jr., Jacob Kerstetter, Lou Strohl, Jayden Harman, Tyler Wagner, Mark Miller, Brian Shulz, Kyle Strohl
Matt Hirschman Wins NAPA Fall Final Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series Feature at Stafford on September 28, 2024
By Scott Running
(Stafford Springs, CT)—Stafford Motor Speedway welcomed the Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series to the track for the $15,000 to win NAPA Fall Final. Matt Hirschman scored a repeat victory in the race as he won the NAPA Fall Final last season and he took home the $15k winner’s check. The NAPA Fall Final took the green flag with a stackup at the front of the pack as Mikey Flynn didn’t quite come up to speed that saw Ron Silk end his race in the turn 1 wall before a lap could be completed.
The next restart saw the same thing with polesitter Flynn not coming up to speed and he spun to bring the caution flag out before a lap could be put on the board. The third restart attempt saw the car of Keith Rocco not come up to speed on the start and several cars including Marcello Rufrano, Will Lambros, Jacob Perry, and Anthony Bello were all collected to bring the caution flag out before a lap could be completed.The fourth start attempt saw Kyle Bonsignore emerge with the early lead with Joey Cipriano taking second. Anthony Nocella was third in line with Cory DiMatteo fourth and Matt Hirschman fifth. The caution came back out with 3 laps complete as Teddy Hodgdon spun in turn 2 and collected the car of Doug Coby.Nocella took the lead on the next restart with Bonsignore second, Cipriano third, Hirschman fourth, and DiMatteo in fifth. With 15 laps complete, the order was still Nocella out front with Bonsignore, Cipriano, and Hirschman behind him. Matt Swanson was up to fifth with Nick Salva, Ronnie Williams, Jake Johnson, DiMatteo, and Michael Christopher, Jr. making up the top-10.
Nocella was still out front as the field hit the lap-30 mark with Bonsignore, Cipriano, Hirschman, Salva, Ronnie Williamss, Johnson, Swanson, Christopher, and Woody Pitkat making up the top-10 behind Nocella. 10 laps later at the halfway point of the race and Nocella was still at the front of the field with Bonsignore behind him. Hirschman was now up to third with Salva, Williams, Cipriano, Swanson, Marcello Rufrano, Christopher, and Ryan Newman making up the top-10.The caution came out with 61 laps complete as Tyler Hines spun in turn 1 after he and David Arute touched wheels. All the lead lap cars headed to pit road during the caution period for 1 new tire and adjustments. Nocella won the race off pit road followed by Hirschman, Cipriano, Bonsignore, Williams, Pitkat, Newman, Eric Goodale, Christopher, Swanson, Rufrano, Brett Meservey, Salva, and DiMatteo.Hirschman took the lead from Nocella on the restart with Bonsignore, Cipriano, Williams, and Newman lined up behind him. Nocella worked his way back to the inside of Hirschman on lap-63 to retake the lead. Williams took fourth from Cipriano on lap-66 and the caution came back out with 67 laps complete for spins in turn 1 by Goodale and Meservey.
Nocella resumed his place at the front of the pack with Hirschman taking second. Ryan Newman made a 3-wide move on lap-70 to move into third. Williams was right behind Newman in fourth with DiMatteo up to fifth and Bonsignore falling back to sixth. Williams went back by Newman to take third on lap-72 and now DiMatteo and Bonsignore were both looking to get by Newman. Meservey and Charette spun and ended up against the turn 3 wall to bring the caution back out with 75 laps complete and set up a 5 lap dash to the finish. Under the caution, Newman’s car developed a mechanical issue and he retired from the race.Chris Pasteryak spun into the turn 1 wall with Christopher also going around in turn 1 to bring the caution back out before a lap could be completed.Nocella took the lead back under green with Hirschman falling into line in second. The caution came back out with 77 laps complete as Cipriano spun in turn 1 and collected the car of Rufrano.The restart saw Nocella go around in front of the field to bring the caution flag right back out.Hirschman took the lead ahead of DiMatteo, Williams, Bonsignore and Pitkat on the restart. Hirschman led the field to the checkered flag to win the NAPA Fall Final for the second consecutive year. Williams finished second with DiMatteo, Bonsignore, and Pitkat rounding out the top-5.
Finish Name Car Number Start
1 Matt Hirschman 60 6
2 Ronnie Williams 50 19
3 Cory DiMatteo 11 9
4 Kyle Bonsignore 07 5
5 Woody Pitkat 88 21
6 Michael Christopher, Jr. 00 13
7 David Arute 75 24
8 Joey Cipriano 51ct 14
9 Nick Salva 19 18
10 Buddy Charette 28 25
11 Anthony Nocella 92 2
12 Teddy Hodgdon 55ct 11
13 Marcello Rufrano 48 22
14 Matt Swanson 25 8
15 Chris Pasteryak 5ct 28
16 Ryan Newman 8 20
17 Brett Meservey 76 23
18 Eric Goodale 58 16
19 Tyler Hines 99 29
20 Les Hinckley 06 30
21 Jake Johnson 15 10
22 Max Zachem 13 26
23 Doug Coby 44 15
24 Mikey Flynn 24 1
25 Keith Rocco 57 4
26 Jacob Perry 21 12
27 Anthony Bello 51 7
28 Will Lambros 77ny 17
29 Craig Lutz 46 27
30 Ronnie Silk 16 3
Matt Hirschman won the VP Racing Fuels Race of Champions 250 on Sunday, September 22 at Lake Erie Speedway, giving him nine career wins in the historic event.
Following a lap 201 caution for Paulie Hartwig, III, Hirschman won the race off pit road to take the lead in the historic Modified event. From there, Hirschman fended off Andy Jankowiak on the restart and kept a charging Luke Baldwin at bay to secure the win. Hirschman admitted that his ninth Race of Champions victory was mostly a testament to his crew as he hoisted the Al Gerber Trophy. "I think this one, the crew was better than the driver and the car, to be honest," said Hirschman in victory lane. "The car was right when it needed to be. There was just times it wasn't, and there were certainly cars better than us. It was good when it needed to be, but the crew was better than the driver and the car." The first eight of Hirschman's Race of Champions 250 wins came during a nine-year run between 2012 and 2020, with only Chuck Hossfeld in 2014 interrupting the run of dominance. However, Hirschman had not won the event since that 2020 victory. Jankowiak was victorious in 2021, while Patrick Emerling won the race last year. At last, Hirschman has the ninth win, and he's already setting his sights on a 10th to further extend his record in the event. "It feels like it's been a while," said Hirschman. "We didn't have a Race of Champions due to weather one year. It seems like it's been a while. Now that we've got nine, 10 would be a nice round number to get to. You just don't know. I had a great run in this race, but it ended and I wasn't so sure today was going to be our day either. "Happy to get one today and add to our collection with the family and the silver bowls. I appreciate Race of Champions for continuing this tradition. Like I said, we'll try for 10." Like Hirschman, runner-up Luke Baldwin comes from a family with a storied history in Modified racing. However, Baldwin was seeking the first win for his family in the storied event. Still, Baldwin was pleased with a runner-up finish in his debut in the race, thanks in part to a rapid pit stop from the Tommy Baldwin Racing team at the lap 201 caution. "We struggled with the balance all day," said Baldwin. "My guys worked super hard. To be honest with you, I thought we were screwed on that second-to-last run. I was just way too free all throughout the race. I just could never find that lateral or forward grip. "My dad had an outstanding stop on that last stop. I think we went from 11th to third or something. It's got nothing to do with me. I was just behind the wheel trying to take care of it. My guys are the reason it's sitting there right now. I could have driven to a ninth or an eighth-place finish. They put me in the best position I could have been in, and I was able to capitalize."I hear so many stories," added Baldwin. "We're still chasing a Race of Champions win. My grandpa was leading one at Pocono and blew up on the last lap. We're still chasing that infamous Al Gerber Trophy." Austin Beers completed the podium, matching his career best finish in the event. "Kinda surprising with how practice and qualifying went. I was kind of upset with myself there, but my dad did an awesome job with the changes. My crew did an amazing job on the pit stops getting us spots out there. We just had a really good car at the end and we were able to hang with Matt. I almost caught Luke at the end. I was trying to get him. He's a good buddy of mine. He's got some talk he can have for me." Jake Lutz led the race at the time of the lap 201 caution after taking the lead from Zane Zeiner 10 laps prior. However, he fell back to the fourth row for the following restart following pit stops. Lutz recovered for a fourth-place, with Zeiner rounding out the top five.
74th VP Racing Fuels Race of Champions 250 Unofficial Results
Fin No Driver Laps Diff
1 60 Matt Hirschman 250 ---
2 7NY Luke Baldwin 250 1.220
3 45 Austin Beers 250 1.579
4 14 Jake Lutz 250 2.564
5 22 Zane Zeiner 250 4.428
6 81 Jack Ely 250 9.537
7 65 George Skora, III 250 9.537
8 73H Paulie Hartwig, III 250 10.535
9 73x Andy Jankowiak 250 12.205
10 11L Mike Leaty 250 13.490
11 66 Austin Kochenash 250 14.382
12 11JR Andrew Lewis, Jr. 250 14.549
13 17 Danny Knoll, Jr. 250 15.550
14 3 Daren Scherer 249 1 Lap
15 21 Jimmy Zacharias 249 1 Lap
16 39 Jeremy Haudricourt 249 1 Lap
17 25 Jimmy Seger 248 2 Laps
18 24 Greg Krause 247 3 Laps
19 8 Chris Finocchario 222 28 Laps
20 83 Jeff Szafraniec 212 38 Laps
21 51 Jayden Harman 128 122 Laps
22 0 Randall Richard 89 161 Laps
23 10 Daryl Lewis, Jr. 36 214 Laps
24 17T Kevin Timmerman 19 231 Laps
25 73M Mason Hanel 19 231 Laps
Patrick Emerling earns third win of 2024, takes Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup at Monadnock on September 21
No driver has been as dominant on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour as Patrick Emerling in the last two months. That momentum continued for Emerling in Saturday’s Winchester Fair presented by USNE at Monadnock Speedway. Not only did a spirited drive give Emerling his third victory of 2024, but he also took home a $3,000 bonus by claiming the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup that encompassed the three Monadnock events.
Pursuing and then overtaking Matt Hirschman for the victory was an arduous task for Emerling, who credited everyone within owner Rich Gautreau’s organization for consistently providing stellar cars in their first year together. “That was a really hard race out there,” Emerling said. “We all raced each other like gentlemen up front there. I knew we had a really good car today, but it came down to strategy. There was a lot of stuff going on there at the end, but we stuck to our plan. I’m so grateful to run with this Fleetworks No. 1 team and we’ll keep on rolling.” Two consecutive third-place performances in the previous Monadnock races gave Emerling the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup points lead heading into Saturday. An eighth-place qualifying effort that was not influenced by the redraw meant Emerling would have to fight to maintain his points lead at the end of the evening. Further complicating matters was Hirschman starting in the sixth position, who trailed Emerling by three points in the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup standings. Hirschman successfully took the lead from Craig Lutz after 77 laps, all while Emerling patiently worked his way to second. Emerling kept Hirschman within striking distance, but could not erase enough ground to challenge Hirschman for the top spot.A late caution for Trevor Catalano’s spin in Turn 4 gave teams an opportunity to change a tire of their choice, providing both Emerling and Hirschman with some fresh rubber ahead of a sprint to the finish. It took a second restart for Emerling to get the run he needed on the top line to finally put Hirschman in his rearview mirror.Despite taking control of the race and the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup, Emerling still faced one more challenge from Anthony Nocella in the No. 17 owned by Michelle Davini. Nocella bounced off the wall attempting to chase down Emerling, but ended up settling for a runner-up finish. Nocella wanted to deliver a strong performance for Michele, who lost her husband and team co-owner Mike Davini earlier this year. While he would have loved to bring home a victory, Nocella was satisfied to see the team get rewarded for a weekend of strenuous work. “It means a lot,” Nocella said. “[Michelle] wanted to keep going and let us keep racing. This is my second time out with these guys. We had a good car at Loudon and unloaded here fast all day. We had to keep the car clean and stay up there. We had one shot to move [Emerling], but I didn’t do it. We got a little too tight and he got away.” With the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup points so tight, it was paramount for Emerling to fend off Nocella after rigorously working his way to the front all night. His triumph makes him the third different Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup champion in three years, joining Hirschman and Doug Coby. For Emerling, capturing the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup in year one highlights how quickly Gautreau’s team has matured. Building a notebook has been a crucial part of that development, particularly when it came to perfecting the setup for Saturday’s Winchester Fair. “We just had to execute,” Emerling said. “We knew we were going to have a good car coming into the day and were really fast the last couple of races here. There’s races where the driver doesn’t have to work as hard, but we had to work hard tonight.” Now that they have the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup secured, Emerling and his team are turning their attention towards making a run at the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour championship. Hirschman settled for third after a dominant start to the Winchester Fair. He was followed in the top five by Lutz and Woody Pitkat.
Matthew Kimball came home sixth in front of the two championship contenders, Ron Silk and Justin Bonsignore, who had multiple run-ins with one another during the closing laps. Rounding out the top 10 were Tommy Catalano and Austin Beers.
1 1 Patrick Emerling Fleetworks Inc 200
2 17 Anthony Nocella Xtreme Racing/Sekor Machine/Zilinski Heating & Cooling 200 0.366
3 60 Matt Hirschman Elite 200 0.517
4 46 Craig Lutz Riverhead Building Supply 200 0.884
5 82 Woody Pitkat Horton Avenue Materials/Gunsmoke Stables Racing 200 1.13
6 43 Matthew Kimball J&M Towing and Recovery/Poodlack Wealth Mgmt 200 1.366
7 16 Ron Silk Blue Mountain Machine/Future Homes 200 1.722
8 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communications, Inc. 200 2.11
9 54 Tommy Catalano Catalano Motorsports 200 2.323
10 64 Austin Beers G&G Electrical Supply/Dell Electric/Lumiere Electrical 200 2.643
11 21 Stephen Kopcik* Newtown Pools/Karchner Warehousing 200 4.808
12 56 Trevor Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 200 4.926
13 3 Tyler Rypkema USNE/Northeast Drilling 199 1 Lap
14 15 Joey Cipriano III* Dependable Energy & Bass Plating 199 1 Lap
15 22 Kyle Bonsignore Chalew Performance/MTT/Munns Auto 198 2 Laps
16 81 Nathan Wenzel* 1812 Paint & Auto Body/Gene’s Ford & Chev Serv 197 3 Laps
17 19 Anthony Sesely Franzosa Trucking Co/Karchner Warehousing 196 4 Laps
18 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood & Restaurant 196 4 Laps
19 84 Tyler Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 191 9 Laps
20 10 Bob Reis* IronListing.com/B.R. Machineworks 190 10 Laps
21 79 Jonathan McKennedy McKennedy Racing 94 106 Laps
Woody Pitkat takes the win at Star Speedway for the RaceChoice.com 125. Matt Hirschman and Anthony Nocella round out the top-3 on September 15.
1 1 88 Pitkat, Woody Bellingham, MA 0
2 5 60 Hirschman, Matt Northampton, PA 3
3 6 92 Nocella, Anthony Berlin, MA 3
4 10 1CT Bessette, George Jr. Danbury, CT 6
5 3 07 Christopher, Michael JR Wolcott, CT -2
6 24 13 Zachem, Max Preston, CT 18
7 13 55CT Hodgdon, Teddy Danbury, CT 6
8 18 14 Barney, Blake Jackson, NJ 10
9 15 76 Meservey, Brett Brewster, MA 6
10 9 50 Williams, Ronnie Lebanon, CT -1
11 12 5CT Pasteryak, Chris Moosup, CT 1
12 4 79 McKennedy, Jonathan Chelmsford, MA -8
13 2 43 Kimball, Matthew Bennington, NH -11
14 11 55 Doucette, Ryan Framingham, MA -3
15 14 19W Battle, Jeffrey Dunstable, MA -1
16 19 06 Hinckley, Les Windsor Locks, CT 3
17 8 1 Kopcik, Stephen Newtown, CT -9
18 21 99 Hines, Tyler North Haven, CT 3
19 7 25 Swanson, Matt Harvard, MA -12
20 20 78 Sutcliffe, Walter East Haven, CT 0
21 23 04NH McCormack, Stewart Plaistow, NH 2
22 22 31 Korner, Noah Canton, CT 0
23 17 04CT Izzo, Dylan Monroe, CT -6
24 16 02 Collins, Mike Strafford, NH -8
Kyle Strohl bests Beers, Hirschman, and Barney en route from the outhouse to the penthouse in the 93 lap Bill Swartz Sr. Tribute race at The Mahoning Valley Speedway on September 7
Bill Swartz Sr. was the true embodiment of a racing enthusiast. While Swartz Sr. wasn’t typically in the racing papers for being a driver, it goes without saying that he was a true cornerstone in the racing community, fielding race cars for some of racing’s biggest names for almost 5 whole decades. Bill fielded his first race car all the way back in 1957 at Mahoning Valley Speedway prior to there being a spec of asphalt on the racing surface. After a traffic accident that resulted in needing a metal hip replacement sidelined BIll’s racing career, he shifted his focus to primarily being a car owner.
Countless victories and track championships originated from the Swartz stable, facilitating the careers of many race car drivers. Some of these drivers included Rich Landis, Tim Perry, Rod Snyder Jr., Ryan Preece, George Wambold, Kevin Rex, Ward Krozier Sr., Kenny Hein, Keith Kocher, Tim Laybourn, Cal Snyder, Carl VanHorn, Frankie Schneider, Newk Muffley, George Resh, Steve Drabick, Willard Paules, George Stiegerwalt, Jack Jones, Charlie Hansler, Ron Sauerwine, Stan Landis, Dave Bobst, Jimmy Wismer, Adam Horwith, Dale Bauer, and his son, Billy Swartz Jr.. The Swartz family, led by Bill’s son, Billy Swartz Jr., was able to put together a hefty purse which brought racers from all corners of the east coast forming a full field of ground pounding modifieds. The Swartz family would like to thank all of their family members and sponsors that contributed towards their purse as well as all of the race teams that came out to pay tribute to one of the most prolific car owners in short track racing history.
From the drop of the green flag of the 93 Lap Bill Swartz Sr. Memorial race, tension and aggression was high as Paulie Hartwig lll was shot out of a cannon, leading the 53 of Brian DeFebo and the 8 of Earl Paules early on. Defebo would soon fall back on the outside as “The Hurricane”, Earl Paules, took sole possession of P2 and immediately began knocking on the back door of Hartwig. After a lap 12 caution reshuffled the field, Hartwig would lead Paules and Matt Hirschman to the green. After 7 laps of side by side action throughout the field, a checkup by Earl Paules and Brian DeFebo sent the rest of the field into a frenzy, causing the 03 of Jaden Brown to climb the left rear sail panel of the 19 of Austin Brown, causing significant body damage before parking it on Beers’ roof on the front stretch. Both cars were able to continue on, however, the Beers crew went through a couple rolls of duck tape to ensure the body on the 19 would stay on for the remainder of the race. The 11 of Paulie Hartwig lll would then have Matt Hirschman lined up on his outside, holding him off for the next 8 laps until another caution was brought out by Terry Markovic in the 92. Hartwig wouldn’t be as fortunate on the lap 24 restart, however, as Matt Hirschman was able to make quick work on the outside gaining sole position of the lead for the ensuing 30 laps. While all eyes were on the 60 of Matt Hirschman, “The Real Deal”, Kyle Strohl was methodically picking off the top 10 as he had started deep in the field. Strohl would fight his way through a sea of serious competition until he had the 60 of Hirschman lined up in his crosshairs from the second position. A long green flag run was all the 44 of Strohl needed, as once he tracked down Hirschman, he wasted no time darting to the inside line where he and Hirschman would battle closely for the next five laps. Hirschman, however, surprisingly was unable to keep the momentum rolling on the high side, relinquishing the lead to Strohl and falling further back in the top 5 as the laps dwindled down. Kyle Strohl, another familiar face to victory lane at the quarter mile, was not quite out of the woods yet. While he did shoot out to a commanding lead, the long green flag run seemingly took a toll on his tires as the 19 of Austin Beers miraculously piloted his severely wounded 19 machine to second place with the “Big Red” 14 car of Blake Barney right behind him. Beers had nothing but speed while Strohl was handling a tight race car closing in on the final 10 laps. Beers would eventually track down Strohl, taking a look to the inside as they approached lap traffic. The young talent between the two front runners was certainly on display as they battled side by side, neither driver giving an inch without making any contact with one another. The 44 of Strohl seemingly found a second wind as he was able to rocket by Beers once more on the outside. Coming to the white flag with one lap remaining, Beers had one final glimpse of hope, as Strohl went to the high side to avoid lap traffic. There was a gap on the bottom line for Beers to take, however, in a display of respect for the 44 crew, Beers refrained from sending it through wide, as the move likely would’ve resulted in catastrophe for all parties involved. Coming out of turn 4, Kyle Strohl would cruise onto his third victory on the season at Mahoning Valley Speedway, this time taking home the hardware and the $4,000 paycheck in the Billy Swartz Sr. Tribute race.
MODIFIEDS: Kyle Strohl, Austin Beers, Blake Barney, Matt Hirschman, Lou Strohl, Rod Snyder Jr., Nick Baer, Bobby Jones, Brian Defebo, Don Wagner, Earl Paules, Paulie Hartwig lll, Jayden Harman, Brian Romig Sr., Brian Rygelski, Josh Mooney, Jacob Kerstetter, Jaden Brown, Thomas Flanagan, Kevin Graver Jr., Terry Markovic
Patrick Emerling scores another convincing Modified Tour victory, takes checkered at Oswego on Aug 31
Patrick Emerling’s victory Saturday night in the Toyota Mod Classic 150 at New York’s Oswego Speedway was not as dominant as the win he secured a few weeks ago at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park. The rest of the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour field, though, couldn’t tell much of a difference.The 31-year-old from nearby Orchard Park, New York took the lead on a power move as the race reached its halfway point, and despite multiple restarts and challenges from eventual runner-up Matt Hirschman, Emerling powered to the checkered flag with a strong No. 1 Modified. He did so after leading every lap of the Aug. 14 running of the Thompson 150.Unofficially, Emerling’s second consecutive Modified Tour win brings him within 24 points of leader Justin Bonsignore in the championship battle. He’s just 19 points behind second-place Ron Silk, joining both as multi-time race winners on the Modified Tour in 2024. “The 60 was really fast; he’s super hard to beat here,” Emerling said of Hirschman. “Really solid pit stop, and we did a little dicing on that start there to get us the lead. And then we had the car. “We’re coming on strong as a team. We’re showing up with incredible race cars week in and week out. We just have to continue doing what we’re doing.”The aforementioned pit cycle during a caution just before the race’s halfway point shook up the front of the field. To that point, Hirschman, who was fastest in practice and qualified on the pole, had led every lap as the clear driver to beat.A slower stop, however, pushed Hirschman back to fifth place for the restart. Tim Connolly stayed out to assume the lead, and the presence of the No. 4 Mystic Missile at the front of the field was a major factor in how the proceeding laps developed.Connolly’s slower car caused a bit of a jam on the restart, and Emerling dove to the inside of Connolly to take the lead before Bonsignore had a chance to do so up top.From there, Emerling never looked back.“Unfortunately for us, [Connolly] stayed out on old tires,” Bonsignore said. “Crept into the box and shuffled us out there, and Patrick got the lead. I think if I could have gotten the lead, maybe I would have had the track position to hold them off. Our car was really good the last 25 laps or so.” Hirschman felt satisfied with his run despite the sting of a runner-up finish. Sometimes, he noted, others are just as quick.
“It was a real good day; the only place we got passed all day was the pits, so we lost a few there,” Hirschman said. “The 1 and us were just so close to identical in lap times. There were times when he was a few hundredths better and he opened a little lead, and there was a time when I was a few hundredths better. Two cars were just that close.“We had the advantage early being out front. He had the advantage after halfway being out front.”Silk finished fourth, one spot behind Bonsignore as the two continue a championship battle that now includes Emerling.Austin Beers rebounded from an early pit stop and worked his way back through the field to finish fifth.Jacob Lutz, Tommy Catalano, Kyle Bonsignore, Craig Lutz and Tyler Rypkema finished sixth through 10th, respectively.
Toyota Mod Classic 150
Oswego Speedway
Race results
Pos. No. Name Sponsor Laps Diff.
1 1 Patrick Emerling Fleetworks Inc 150 –
2 60 Matt Hirschmann Elite 150 0.532
3 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communications, Inc. 150 5.155
4 16 Ron Silk Blue Mountain Machine/Future Homes 150 7.537
5 64 Austin Beers G&G Electrical Supply/Dell Electric/Lumiere Electrical 150 8.774
6 14 Jacob Lutz* Advantage Trucks/Anastasi Trucking/Anastasi Trucking 150 10.873
7 54 Tommy Catalano Catalano Motorsports 150 13.489
8 22 Kyle Bonsignore Chalew Performance/MTT/Munns Auto 150 14.784
9 46 Craig Lutz Riverhead Building Supply 150 17.025
10 32 Tyler Rypkema Musco Lighting/Northeast Drilling 149 1 Lap
11 82 Woody Pitkat Horton Avenue Materials/Gunsmoke Stables Racing 149 1 Lap
12 4 Tim Connolly Connolly Companies, LLC 149 1 Lap
13 3 Bobby Santos, III USNE 149 1 Lap
14 56 Trevor Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 149 1 Lap
15 0 Andy Jankowiak Spafco Race Chassis/BNP Machine 148 2 Laps
16 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood & Restaurant 148 2 Laps
17 24 Andrew Krause Supreme Manufacturing 121 29 Laps
18 84 Tyler Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 27 123 Laps
19 10 Bob Reis* IronListing.com/B.R. Machineworks 20 130 Laps
20 1 Melissa Fifield Pine Knoll Auto Sales 6 144 Laps
Ron Silk earned his first career Race of Champions Modified Series win August 30 night in the Maynard Troyer Classic V at Spencer Speedway on August 30.
Zach Evans
After a hard-fought battle with Jake Lutz, Ron Silk tallied his first career Race of Champions (RoC) Modified Series victory in the Maynard Troyer Classic V at Spencer Speedway Friday.Making just his fifth career start with the series, Silk took the lead on a lap 21 restart and held off Lutz in the closing laps for the win."It was pretty intense there," said Silk in victory lane. "He gave me everything I had to hold him off. I'm just really excited to win the Maynard Troyer Memorial. He was a legend of our sport. It's cool that this is the first RoC race I've won. I'm just really happy we came and got to be a part of it, and pumped with the outcome."Silk was fighting two battles in the final circuits of the 60-lap race. Not only was he trying to hold off a quick Jake Lutz, but also his rear brakes were brightly glowing red. In the end, Silk had just enough race car and brake life to stay in front."It was pretty tight the whole race. I was trying to put some rear brake into it to try to help it make it turn. It didn't really do much other than almost start a fire. The car was really good. I think Jake in the 14 was slightly better than us. He made that one mistake on the restart and we were able to get the track position on him. I'm glad we could hold on."I think [Jake]'s a really good driver. Not a lot of experience, so hopefully, he doesn't get too much better," Silk joked. "They have great equipment. It was good to hold him off."Zane Zeiner finished third, with Paulie Hartwig, III and Jack Ely rounding out the top five.There was a lengthy delay for clean-up on lap 37, when Matt Hirschman suffered a dramatic mechanical failure that created a large fire on his No. 60 entry.Following the Maynard Troyer Classic V, the RoC Sportsman Modifieds closed out the night with a 36-lap feature. Kevin Timmerman scored the victory ahead of Eddie Hawkins and Mike Leaty.
"It feels good," said Timmerman in victory lane. "Whenever you start from the pole, you've got to win. Otherwise, it feels like you just gave it up. We had a good car tonight, so we'll take it."With the win, Timmerman now holds a 29-point advantage over Jacob Christman in the series points standings with three races remaining on the schedule."It's going to be a battle," said Timmerman. "I never really think about the points until the last week. You've got to figure out what you've got to do then. Just try to do these consistent, stay up front finishes."Joey VanLare won in the 602 Sportman Modifieds in the first feature event of the evening, finishing ahead of Jeana Dietz and John Sippel.
Unofficial Results - Maynard Troyer Classic V
Fin No Driver Laps Diff
1 16 Ron Silk 60 ---
2 14 Jake Lutz 60 0.175
3 22 Zane Zeiner 60 4.679
4 73H Paulie Hartwig, III 60 6.116
5 81 Jack Ely 60 6.683
6 2 Kevin Miller 60 7.958
7 10 Daryl Lewis, Jr. 60 9.179
8 66 Austin Kochenash 60 10.107
9 65 George Skora, III 60 10.429
10 8 Chris Finocchario 60 12.496
11 95K Jacob Kerstetter 60 13.280
12 99 Neal Dietz 60 16.254
13 11JR Andrew Lewis, Jr. 60 16.412
14 v4 Tim Connolly 59 1 Lap
15 17 Danny Knoll, Jr. 55 5 Laps
16 88 Sean Verwys 42 18 Laps
17 11L Mike Leaty 42 18 Laps
18 20 Chuck Hossfeld 42 18 Laps
19 3 Daren Scherer 42 18 Laps
20 51N Shawn Nye 41 19 Laps
21 60 Matt Hirschman 37 23 Laps
22 73x Andy Jankowiak 37 23 Laps
23 07 Patrick Emerling 37 23 Laps
24 51H Jayden Harman 26 34 Laps
25 95S Bryan Sherwood 26 34 Laps
26 0 Randall Richard 23 37 Laps
27 73M Mason Hanel 5 55 Laps
28 76 Gunnar Zeiner n
Hirschman wins the Wambold Tribute Race followed by Beers and Strohl on August 24 at Mahoning
The night was electric at Mahoning Valley Speedway, where the roaring engines and cheers of the crowd created an atmosphere of pure adrenaline. The grandstands were packed with fans eager to witness the Tribute Race, a heartfelt homage to the legendary George Wambold. This race was more than just an event; it was a celebration of a racing icon whose legacy had inspired countless drivers and fans alike. As the engines roared to life and the green flag waved, a great field of drivers surged each one vying for a place in racing history. Among them was Matt Hirschman, who began the race in a less-than-ideal starting position. However, Hirschman’s reputation as a strategic mastermind shone through as he navigated the challenging track with precision. He skillfully maneuvered through the pack, capitalizing on the timely cautions and making daring passes that left the crowd wanting more.The battle for the lead became a thrilling spectacle as Hirschman worked his way up through the field, closing in on the frontrunners, Beers and Strohl. The duo at the front were fighting loose conditions, their cars sliding as they fought loose race cars. Hirschman, ever the opportunist, seized the moment. With a blend of aggressive yet calculated driving, he closed the gap and soon found himself in the thick of the action.As Beers and Strohl wrestled with their handling issues, Hirschman displayed his mastery of the track, making his move and taking the lead with a decisive pass that had the crowd roaring in approval. The checkered flag waved, and Hirschman crossed the finish line to a thunderous ovation, cementing his victory in the 81 Tribute Race.In a show of humility and sportsmanship, Hirschman took a moment to thank the packed grandstands for their unwavering support. His words of gratitude and admiration for his fellow competitors echoed through the track, underscoring the spirit of camaraderie and respect that defined the night. The celebration of George Wambold’s legacy was complete, as the night closed with a sense of unity and excitement, marking a memorable evening in Mahoning Valley.
Patrick Emerling delivered team owner Rich Gautreau his first NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour victory in perfect fashion on August 14. Matt suffers a flat right front to finish 22nd 5 laps down
Emerling was not only fastest in both practice and qualifying aboard Gautreau’s No. 1 Fleetworks Inc. Modified at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park, he also led every lap of the Thompson 150 presented by FloSports.com to earn his first NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour victory in nearly three years. The win by Emerling makes him the seventh consecutive different winner in NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour competition in as many events.Emerling believed a victory was inevitable based on the consistency they’d displayed leading into Wednesday’s race, but he admitted he was pleasantly surprised with the team’s performance Wednesday evening.
“We’ve had a dominant car the last three races and we’ve been building momentum,” Emerling said. “This is our first year racing as a team and we executed pretty well at [Thompson]. That was probably the fastest car I’ve ever driven in my life and it’s awesome to finally get a win at Thompson.”A lot has changed for Emerling since he earned his last NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour victory at Riverhead Raceway in 2021.Along with shifting his efforts from his family-owned operation to Gautreau’s team, Emerling has also invested copious time and energy into the NASCAR Xfinity Series. He briefly co-owned a team with Joey Gase and has competed in 14 Xfinity Series so far this season.The accumulated track time across different disciplines provided Emerling an advantage as he prepared to tackle his first full-time NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season since 2021. Despite the unknowns with Gautreau’s new team, Emerling was confident they could quickly establish a rhythm.
Emerling’s first race with Gautreau resulted in a fourth-place showing at New Smyrna Speedway in February. Aside from being collected in a crash during the following race at Richmond Raceway, Emerling has finished inside the top-five in every race this year.Three consecutive top fives entering Thompson, each an improvement over the last, only gave Emerling more confidence. With clean air and a stellar car on his side, no one in the field could match Emerling’s pace as he cruised to the most dominant victory of his NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour career.Justin Bonsignore, who trailed Ron Silk by one point in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour standings prior to Wednesday, made a charge on Emerling during the closing laps but had to settle for second. He commended the efforts of Gautreau and Emerling for having such a dominant car, adding he needed more from his own Modified to challenge for the lead.“[Emerling’s] car was just really good,” Bonsignore said. “Track position would have been nice if I could have gotten the lead on the start. We were starting to run him down a little bit with 15 to go, but I got stuck in lap traffic a little worse than he did and then the car gave up on the rear tires. All in all, a really good night.”Bonsignore’s runner-up finish, combined with Silk’s seventh-place finish Wednesday, has allowed Bonsignore to lay claim to the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour championship lead for the first time this season. He leads Silk by four points with six races remaining in the 2024 season.Emerling’s own consistent streak now has him on the cusp of being a title contender. While he would love to have a say over who hoists the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour championship trophy at Martinsville Speedway, Emerling is focused on sustainability so he, Gautreau and the rest of the team can enjoy many similar days going forward.“We have a ton of potential,” Emerling said. “An amazing program has been put together here and I can’t be any more thankful to drive for this team. I wish Rich was here [to celebrate], but he’s back in California. We did it and [this win] is absolutely incredible.”Craig Lutz finished third at Thompson on Wednesday evening, with Jon McKennedy and Tommy Catalano completing the top five. Matt Swanson, Silk, Austin Beers, Trevor Catalano and Eric Goodale rounded out the top-10 finishers.
1 1 Patrick Emerling Fleetworks Inc 150 --
2 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communications, Inc. 150 1.766
3 46 Craig Lutz Riverhead Building Supply 150 4.323
4 79 Jonathan McKennedy Christopher’s Towing 150 7.37
5 54 Tommy Catalano Catalano Motorsports 150 8.387
6 89 Matt Swanson Cervaolos Auto/Casella Snowplows/Mully’s Auto Repair 150 10.034
7 16 Ron Silk Blue Mountain Machine/Future Homes 150 11.199
8 64 Austin Beers AP Marquadt & Sons/G&G Electrical Supply 150 18.769
9 56 Trevor Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 149 1 Lap
10 58 Eric Goodale GAF Roofing 149 1 Lap
11 24 Andrew Krause Supreme Manufacturing 149 1 Lap
12 32 Tyler Rypkema Musco Lighting/Northeast Drilling 149 1 Lap
13 19 Anthony Sesely Franzosa Trucking Co/Karchner Warehousing 149 1 Lap
14 4 Tim Connolly Connolly Companies, LLC 149 1 Lap
15 82 Woody Pitkat Horton Avenue Materials/Gunsmoke Stables Racing 148 2 Laps
16 7 Doug Coby Baldwin Automotive 148 2 Laps
17 00 Andy Jankowiak Spafco Race Chassis/BNP Machine 148 2 Laps
18 88 Roger Turbush Rheem 148 2 Laps
19 84 Tyler Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 147 3 Laps
20 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood & Restaurant 146 4 Laps
21 36 Dave Sapienza Sapienza Racing/Eastport Feed 145 5 Laps
22 60 Matt Hirschman Elite 145 5 Laps
23 21 Stephen Kopcik* Newtown Pools/Karchner Warehousing 129 21 Laps
24 22 Kyle Bonsignore Chalew Performance/MTT/Munns Auto 90 60 Laps
25 44 Chase Dowling Harshaw Paving/Olivas Market 87 63 Laps
26 3 Jake Johnson Propane Plus/Lin’s Propane Trucks 76 74 Laps
Matt Hirschman uses late race pass to get his first Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series victory of the season August 10 in front of a packed house at the New London-Waterford Speedbowl.
60 Hirschman, Matt Northampton, PA 4 2 6 07 Bonsignore, Kyle Mooresville, NC 4 3 4 1 Kopcik, Stephen Newtown, CT 1 4 24 76 Meservey, Brett Brewster, MA 20 5 9 00 Christopher, Michael JR Wolcott, CT 4 6 2 11CT Berndt, Eric Cromwell, CT-4 7 18 92 Nocella, Anthony Berlin, MA 11 8 19 13 Zachem, Max Preston, CT 11 9 7 55CT Hodgdon, Teddy Danbury, CT-2 10 16 88 Pitkat, Woody Bellingham, MA 6 11 1 5CT Pasteryak, Chris Moosup, CT-10 12 11 50 Williams, Ronnie Lebanon, CT-1 13 8 06 Hinckley, Les Windsor Locks, CT-5 14 10 51 Bello, Anthony Newtown, CT-4 15 23 24 Patnode, Todd Swanzey, NH 8 16 12 25 Swanson, Matt Harvard, MA-4 17 14 8NY Barry, Tyler Griswold, CT-3 18 28 96 Brode, Matthew East Islip, NY 10 19 13 57 Rocco, Keith Berlin, CT-6 20 15 04CT Izzo, Dylan Monroe, CT-5 21 25 01 Pedersen, Artie Center Moriches, NY 4 22 3 15 Johnson, Jake Rehoboth, MA-19 23 31 78 Sutcliffe, Walter East Haven, CT 8 24 17 55X Perry, Jacob Kannapolis, NC-7 25 27 11 DiMatteo, Cory Farmington, CT 2 26 20 99 Hines, Tyler North Haven, CT-6 27 21 81 Flannery, Anthony East Hampton, CT-6 28 30 31 Korner, Noah Canton, CT 2 29 26 08 Halkowicz, Nicholas Shelton, CT-3 30 22 75 Arute, David Stafford Springs, CT-8 31 29 51CT Cipriano, Joey Plymouth, CT-2
Austin Beers defends Lancaster triumph for first victory of 2024 on August 3 as Matt grabs 4th
The only two drivers to win a NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour race at Lancaster Motorplex fittingly placed first and second in Saturday’s Nu-Way Auto Parts 150.Austin Beers was the one who prevailed, utilizing strategy during a caution-filled race to gain valuable track position and hold off Patrick Emerling to secure the victory. Not only did Beers defend his triumph at Lancaster from 2023, he also secured his first victory of the 2024 season. Although relieved to break a yearlong winless drought, the first thought on Beers’ mind in Victory Lane was Evan Canfield, a motorsports photographer who passed away earlier in the week. Beers dedicated his victory to Canfield.“This one is for the Canfield family,” Beers said. “Evan Canfield was a great guy and we lost him two days ago. He was just an amazing person and I loved seeing him at the race track. I’m glad to get another victory. It’s been a struggle this year. I’ve been kind of distraught myself, but I’m real happy with how the night went.”
The past year and a half on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour has seen Beers blossom into one of the brightest young stars in the series.Fresh off a two-win sophomore campaign, Beers has come close to replicating his numbers from 2023. Along with earning a pole at Monadnock Speedway in July, Beers also tallied three consecutive runner-up finishes in May and June, yet had been unable to obtain another victory despite his speed.Finally returning to Victory Lane required patience from Beers. Cautions plagued the Nu-Way Auto Parts 150, creating opportunities for diverging pit strategies, with Beers choosing to stay out alongside his Mud Lane neighbor Matt Hirschman following a caution on Lap 51.Beers managed to take the lead from Hirschman immediately after the restart, but would have to enter pit road during the next caution flag. A couple more cautions shifted the strategy back in Beers’ favor after he inherited the top spot when Justin Bonsignore and others came to pit road for tires and adjustments.
A surging Bonsignore was not Beers’ most paramount concern during the closing laps. Emerling, who was on the same strategy, tried vigorously to find a pathway to the lead, which involved fending off Bonsignore after being briefly passed by him.
Emerling’s determination did not yield him an overdue first victory driving for team owner Rich Gautreau. Having a Lancaster NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour win on his resume gave Emerling confidence, but he commended Beers for driving efficiently enough to keep him in his rearview mirror.“[Beers] was rotating a little bit better,” Emerling said. “There were a couple of little mistakes we could almost capitalize on, but the whole Fleetworks team did an excellent job today. This was our first time here as a team and we were second-best. We’ve been having opportunities to win week-in and week-out lately.”
Beers admitted it was difficult to play defense against Emerling. A line of rain showers that impacted Lancaster earlier in the day left behind several treacherous spots on the track, which forced Beers to stay vigilant while trying to maintain the lead.
“It was really tricky down in turns one and two with the weepers and the water,” Beers said. “I’d get free there and have to gather it in. That’s where Patrick would catch up to me, but he ran me really well. It was a really fun race.”
Justin Bonsignore trimmed the margin between himself and Ron Silk in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour point standings to a single point with a third-place finish. Following him in the top five were Hirschman and Tommy Catalano.
Craig Lutz, Andy Jankowiak, Jacob Lutz, Jake Johnson and Silk made up the rest of the top 10 finishers. Silk, who entered the Nu-Way Auto Parts 150 as the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour points leader, lost track position following a late spin.
1 64 Austin Beers G&G Electrical Supply/Dell Electric 150
2 1 Patrick Emerling Fleetworks Inc 150 0.326
3 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communications, Inc. 150 0.791
4 60 Matt Hirschmann Elite 150 1.113
5 54 Tommy Catalano Catalano Motorsports 150 1.713
6 46 Craig Lutz Riverhead Building Supply 150 2.147
7 00 Andy Jankowiak KLAS Motorsports/Florida Safety Systems 150 3.169
8 14 Jacob Lutz* Advantage Trucks/Anastasi Trucking/Anastasi Trucking 150 3.34
9 3 Jake Johnson Propane Plus/Lin’s Propane Trucks 150 4.189
10 16 Ron Silk Blue Mountain Machine/Future Homes 150 4.428
11 4 Tim Connolly Connolly Companies, LLC 150 4.804
12 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood & Restaurant 150 5.882
13 56 Trevor Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 150 10.614
14 72 Andrew Spurback* ProformParts.com/Spurback Motorsports 140 10 Laps
15 01 Melissa Fifield Farm Fueled Nutrition 132 18 Laps
16 22 Kyle Bonsignore Chalew Performance/MTT/Munns Auto 118 32 Laps
17 32 Tyler Rypkema Musco Lighting/Northeast Drilling 96 54 Laps
18 10 Bob Reis* IronListing.com/B.R. Machineworks 82 68 Laps
19 84 Tyler Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 77 73 Laps
The pit area at White Mountain Motorsports Park filled to near capacity on Saturday night for the first-ever Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series event at the quarter-mile facility in North Woodstock, New Hampshire on July 27 - Matt gets 6th
With former 2024 winners Stephen Kopcik and Teddy Hodgdon leading the field to green, the Mighty Modifieds of the Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series took on the White Mountain highbanks in a Series first. Kopcik took the early lead with a rear-view mirror full of Woody Pitkat. ‘The Sultan of Stafford’ would be the first to take the shot down low, taking over the lead on lap 19 from Kopcik at the head of the pack.
Throughout the middle of the 100-lap event, it wasn’t the race to the front for Matt Hirschman, rather the race not to be lapped! Again and again race leader Woody Pitkat closed on Matt Hirschman with Hirschman motored inside and outside of slower cars to maintain a lead-lap position. ‘Big Money Matt’ would be saved with the first caution on lap 73 for the stalled Chris Pasteryak on the backstretch. Pitkat, Hirschman, Ronnie Williams and Kyle Bonsignore were among those who took advantage of the yellow flag to jump pit-side for tires and adjustments. While Hirschman made it to the top-five under the return to green, his luck ran out with the #60 sliding through the infield to bring out the lap 82 caution. Jake ‘The Jet’ Johnson took command of the field and never faltered through the final restart for the lap 89 caution as Les Hinkley kissed the turn four tire barrier. Jake Johnson earned the first ever Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series event in their first trip to White Mountain Motorsports Park followed by Woody Pitkat and Steven Kopcik at the line.
1. 15 Jake Johnson Rehoboth, MA
2. 88 Woody Pitkat Bellingham, MA
3. 1 Stephen Kopcik Newtown, CT
4. 92 Anthony Nocella Woburn, MA
5. 43 Matt Kimball Bennington, NH
6. 60 Matt Hirschman Northamption, PA
7. 79 Jon McKennedy Chelmsford, MA
8. 50 Ronnie Williams Ellington, CT
9. 07 Kyle Bonsignore Hebron, IL
10. 55CT Teddy Hodgdon Danbury, CT
11. 25 Matt Swanson Harvard, MA
12. 06 Les Hinckley Windsor Locks, CT
13. 76 Brett Meservey Brewster, MA
14. 51 Anthony Bello Newtown, CT
15. 55 Teddy Hodgdon Danbury, CT
16. 04 Joey Jarvis Ascutney, VT
17. 5CT Chris Pasteryak Lisbon, CT
18. 99 Tyler Hines North Haven, CT
19. 78 Walter Sutcliffe East Haven, CT
20. 51CT Joey Cipriano Plymouth, CT
21. 66 Gabe Brown Center Conway, NH
One for the family: Trevor Catalano hangs on for emotional Whelen Modified Tour win at Monadnock Speedway on July 20 as Matt has solid 4th place finish after contending early for the lead
By Adam Fenwick
WINCHESTER, N.H. – The Catalano family has been trying to win a NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour race since 2018. On Saturday night at Monadnock Speedway, 17-year-old Trevor Catalano delivered the victory that his entire family so desperately wanted.Trevor, the youngest of three brothers currently racing on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour, held off reigning series champion Ron Silk to win the Duel at the Dog 250.“This is awesome,” Trevor said. “My mom and dad, they give us everything they can to come out here and be competitive. They gave me everything and anything that I know. I just can’t thank my parents enough.“It’s a whole family operation. We all pick off of each other and try to give the best type of car we can give and come out every week and be competitive. Man, this thing was on rails.”Prior to Saturday, the best NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour performance for the Catalano family belonged to 26-year-old Tommy Catalano, a runner-up result at Richmond Raceway during the 2022 season.To improve upon that performance, Trevor and the Catalano Motorsports team had to gamble.When the caution flag waved for the stalled car of Tim Connolly with 71 laps left, most of the leaders opted to head to pit road for a fresh Hoosier Tire.Three drivers – Kyle Bonsignore, Woody Pitkat and Trevor – instead chose to stay out and inherited the top three positions. Patrick Emerling and Ron Silk, who had been the leaders prior to the caution, would line up fourth and fifth for the restart. Once racing resumed, Trevor went to work. He dispatched Pitkat with ease and took the lead from Bonsignore on lap 195. Trevor promptly built a half second lead on the field, but it didn’t last.Behind him, Silk was on the move. After moving past Bonsignore with 53 laps remaining, Silk quickly set off in pursuit of Trevor.The next 50 laps saw Silk hound the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour rookie. He tried to coax him into a mistake and nearly got an opportunity with 23 laps left when Trevor bobbled in Turn 3.Silk got to his inside, but wise beyond his years, Trevor used the lap car of Melissa Fifield as a pick and forced Silk to fall back in behind him in turns one and two.“I messed up a couple times. I thought Ronnie (Silk) was going to get me. He raced me clean,” Trevor said. “I was just trying to drive as hard as I could without messing up.”That was as close as Silk would get to completing the pass. Trevor crossed the finish line .254 seconds ahead of Silk to earn his first NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour win in just his ninth start.Silk, to his credit, said he didn’t want to shoehorn Trevor out of the way. He wanted to beat him clean, but just didn’t have the car to do it.“I probably just needed to turn the center a little bit better,” Silk said. “I would say we were basically even. I didn’t want to knock him out of the way. He did a great job. He didn’t make any mistakes. I was hoping he would make one and I could get my nose under him.“Congratulations to Trevor. He did a phenomenal job.”Four other members of the Catalano had tried to win NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour races prior to Trevor’s win Saturday night. They included his mom, Amy, and his three brothers Timmy, Tommy and Tyler.However, it was Trevor, the youngest of the group currently competing with the series, who got the job done.“This is going to be one I probably remember forever,” Trevor said.After fading through the field during the final restart, Emerling drove back to finish third. Matt Hirschman and Kyle Bonsignore completed the top five.Pitkat, Justin Bonsignore, Matt Kimball, Tommy Catalano and Austin Beers finished sixth through 10th, respectively.
1 56 Trevor Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 250 --
2 16 Ron Silk Blue Mountain Machine/Future Homes 250 0.254
3 1 Patrick Emerling Fleetworks Inc 250 1.779
4 60 Matt Hirschmann Elite 250 2.63
5 22 Kyle Bonsignore Chalew Performance/MTT/Munns Auto 250 3.106
6 82 Woody Pitkat Horton Avenue Materials/Gunsmoke Stables Racing 250 5.771
7 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communications, Inc. 250 7.25
8 43 Matthew Kimball J&M Towing and Recovery/Poodlack Wealth Mgmt 250 7.625
9 54 Tommy Catalano Catalano Motorsports 250 8.021
10 64 Austin Beers G&G Electrical Supply/Dell Electric 250 8.192
11 25 Brian Robie TBD 250 9.274
12 46 Craig Lutz Riverhead Building Supply 250 10.053
13 21 Stephen Kopcik* Newtown Pools/Karchner Warehousing 250 11.779
14 3 Jake Johnson Propane Plus/Lin’s Propane Trucks 249 1 Lap
15 84 Tyler Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 249 1 Lap
16 5 Kyle Ebersole Ebersole Excavating, Inc. 248 2 Laps
17 81 Nathan Wenzel 1812 Auto Body 246 4 Laps
18 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood & Restaurant 246 4 Laps
19 01 Melissa Fifield Farm Fueled Nutrition 235 15 Laps
20 8 John-Michael Shenette* Eighty-Two Services 136 114 Laps
21 4 Tim Connolly Connolly Companies, LLC 55 195 Laps
Matt Hirschman Wins First RoC Modified Event at Evans Mills on July 13
By Zach Evans
Matt Hirschman scored the victory in the RoC Modifieds' first event at Evans Mills Raceway Park, the 59th of his career with the tour. Hirschman has now won at 13 different venues in RoC Modified Series competition. Hirschman took the lead on lap 46 of the 80-lap feature, maintaining his advantage over Andy Jankowiak for the victory. Before that, there was a brief scare for Hirschman as he made contact with Zane Zeiner while attempting to avoid an incident.
"The early part of the race, I was just looking to click some laps off," said Hirschman. "Then, once we were getting to about that halfway point, I was starting to think about making a move and seeing what I could do. About the same time I did, something happened in front of me and I wasn't expecting it. I ended up climbing up the back of the 22 there and bent the front a little bit, smashed the nose a little bit."Hirschman and Zeiner fortunately avoided significant damage in the collision, and Hirschman carried on to the win.
"Luckily, it wasn't any more than that. That could have easily taken us out of it. From that point there, we were in good position there around some front cars. I just had to use the restart to get Andy and pull away. Late, it seemed like he was coming back with traffic there. All in all, a good night."
Jankowiak finished second, enjoying back-to-back weeks at Evans Mills. One week ago, he prepared for this RoC event by competing with Evans Mills' weekly Modified division.
"We put a lot of work into this, coming last week and everything," said Jankowiak. "It's been a pleasure racing with Evans Mill the last two weeks. Made some new fans, and we hope you'll have us back next year. It's been a really good experience. Hopefully you'll be following along with us on the ROC Tour and the rest of our endeavors.""Andy J" noticed he gained some pace in the closing laps, but believes the best car still won on Saturday night.
"You never know until you get racing. We were probably a little bit too tight and he got away. He started getting a little free and we were starting to inch back up there. The lapped cars trying to race for 24th, they got side-by-side and slowed up any chance we might have had. No doubt the best car won. We're getting a little bit better, though. We've been struggling with this thing, so it's nice to get a good finish." Zane Zeiner added to his RoC Modified Series points lead with a third-place finish, in spite of the damage to his car following the contact with Hirschman. Zeiner even wondered if that, along with some big adjustments before the feature race, might have actually benefitted him. "Top three, we'll take it," said Zeiner. "We struggled here today and made a big swing here tonight. It wasn't bad. Not enough for the front two, but better than we had all day. We'll take it.
"I really didn't feel anything. We were a little bit free anyways, it might have helped it a little bit when it stood that spoiler up in the back. Who knows? We had a decent car and were moving forward, so we're pleased with the effort."
RoC Modifieds Summer Sizzler 80 Unofficial Results
FIN NO DRIVER LAPS DIFF
1 60 Matt Hirschman 80 ---
2 73X Andy Jankowiak 80 1.174
3 22 Zane Zeiner 80 4.616
4 95 Bryan Sherwood 80 5.261
5 73L Carson Loftin 80 7.071
6 81 Jack Ely 80 9.685
7 17C Roger Coss 80 9.971
8 11L Mike Leaty 80 11.356
9 23 Bryce Bailey 80 14.687
10 66 Austin Kochenash 80 15.493
11 8F Chris Finocchario 79 1 Lap
12 3 Daren Scherer 79 1 Lap
13 03 Joie Papin 79 1 Lap
14 10 Daryl Lewis, Jr. 79 1 Lap
15 51 Jayden Harman 79 1 Lap
16 11P Paulie Hartwig, III 79 1 Lap
17 72 T.J. Potrzebowski 79 1 Lap
18 00 Tony Pettinelli 79 1 Lap
19 0 Randall Richard 79 1 Lap
20 11T Tony Hanbury 77 3 Laps
21 40 Tommy Rought 77 3 Laps
22 11K Kevin Timmerman 28 52 Laps
23 65L Andy Lewis 5 75 Laps
Hirschman Cashes In Again In Racers Honoring Racers 76 At Star on July 6
By Jeff Brown, for MDP Motorsports Promotions LLC
EPPING, N.H. – Saturday night at Star Speedway was just another day at the office for Matt Hirschman. The Northampton, Penn. open-wheel ace outgunned Anthony Nocella and Brian Robie to win the Racers Honoring Racers 76 Modified open.Hirschman put together a flawless day from start to finish to earn the $7,600 winner’s purse.“That was the best day I’ve had at the track all year,” Hirschman said of his performance. “It just clicked all day.”Saturday night’s show drew together the best of the best from the Northeast’s various Tour-type Modified programs, from the NASCAR Modified Tour and Tri-Track Series to the Modified Racing Series and weekly tracks across the region.But few in the pits had anything for “Big Money Matt,” who set fast time in qualifying and won his heat to set the tone for the evening. Anthony Nocella and Matt Swanson also scored heat wins in setting the lineup for the 24-car field.Hirschman, the winner of the inaugural Racers Honoring Racers event at Claremont Motorsports Park in 2022, wasted no time in getting out front of the field for the 76-lap shootout. New Hampshire favorite Robie filed in behind Nocella for third. But as the pack behind them diced for position, neither could chase down a determined Hirschman out front.Already a winner under multiple banners this season, Hirschman drove to victory with Nocella just over a second behind. Brian Robie finished third, with Mike Collins fourth and Connecticut star Ronnie Williams rounding out the top five.
MDP Motorsports Promotions and The Racing Guys thank their longtime supporters for making these events possible, including Ron Bouchard Auto Stores, Maurice Enterprises of Claremont, N.H., Hoosier Tire East, and George J. Summers Trucking.
RESULTS, Racers Honoring Racers 76, July 6, 2024
1. (60) Matt Hirschman
2. (92) Anthony Nocella
3. (25NH) Brian Robie
4. (02) Mike Collins
5. (50) Ronnie Williams
6. (55) Joe Doucette
7. (04CT) Dylan Izzo
8. (00) Tyler Barry
9. (44) Jesse Jakubajtys
10. (27MA) Derek Robbie
11. (21) Jacob Perry
12. (13) Max Zachem
13. (19) Jeffrey Battle
14. (04VT) Joey Jarvis
15. (25) Matt Swanson
16. (47) Donnie Lashua
17. (8) Woody Pitkat
18. (27MA) Kevin Iannarelli
19. (7MA) Kurt Vigeant
20. (46) Jeremy Zullo
21. (62) Cody Rose
22. (04NH) Stewart McCormack
23. (83) Hayden Grenier
24. (93) Joey Gada
MATT HIRSCHMAN SCORES TOUR TYPE MODIFIED VICTORY AT EVERGREEN RACEWAY ON JUNE 29
Sunday at Evergreen Raceway the day started with a question mark as the morning had remnants of the previous evening’s rain storms that shrouded the area and had some wondering if any racing at all would take place. However, a determined staff remained positive and stuck with the scheduled plan as the show was run off with nary a hint of rain or gloomy clouds by race time. For sure, Northampton’s Matt Hirschman is glad they did too as the star driver from Northampton claimed his first Evergreen win of the season in the Tour Type Modifieds 50 lap feature.The feature began with Brian Romig Sr., and Brian Sones on the front row and at the drop of Chris Walk’s race commencing green Sones darted to the opening lap lead. Hirschman, who started seventh, quickly worked his way through the field as he picked off one after another until gaining second spot by lap 10. He then honed in on leader Sones and from there and bided his time until making what would be his race winning move with 19 laps to go.“I was able to steadily maintain our pace and gain on him (Sones) and he was able to protect the bottom once I got to him,” noted Hirschman.After taking the lead Hirschman then set a steady pace as the race was clicking off caution-free.That was, however, until four laps to go when Paulie Hartwig III lost a power steering line and put liquid down the front straight. It also caused him to spin and bring out the only caution of the race.Before the caution came out Sones was picking up some time on Hirschman. Also, Anthony Sesely was running third and there was thoughts on the restart that a challenge would ensue from either of them on Hirschman.It was to no avail, though, as Hirschman never faltered and cruised to his 52nd Modified win and 55th overall at Evergreen.“It was a good, clean run and it looked like it was going to go green to checker but there was some liquid down and after that we knew it (track) was going to be a little bit slick and with Brian (Sones) still right there. But everyone did a nice job of navigating through it,” said Hirschman.“It was a good track today despite the heat and it was a good race with good passing. Things haven’t gone all that smooth for us this year and so it was nice to come here and have a good clean run and get a win and we’ll build on it as we go through the season.”Sones held on for second with Sesely third, Bobby Jones fourth and Hartwig, who battled back to round out the top five.
“We were definetley down some cars because of the morning forecast that was questionable. Obviously running these cars gets expensive at times and it’s a risk if the forecast is a little iffy. For us there was never a doubt and there was a chance of maybe getting a little wet but the rest of the day looked pretty good,” said Hirschman. “We’re fortunate to be able to race close to home a few times and I want to thank Harry’s U-Pull-It, our sponsor from nearby here in Hazleton, and we look forward to coming back again.”Sones has raced twice this season at Evergreen with a pair of runner-ups each time.“When the caution came out on lap 46 we were gaining on him (Hirschman) a couple tenths every lap. We got to within two car lengths and the caution came out and he was able to cool down his tires a bit,” explained Sones.“He was better definetley on the short run there and the stagger just opened up to much for us there in the end. But we saw that we made good gains and we’ll be back in August to try it again,” he continued.“We now have two second place finishes in two starts, the other with the Late Model and I have to thank my dad, (Kenny Sones) and Dennis Wenner for giving me cars to finish like that and we’ll eventually get one of those wins.”
Tour Type Modified feature finish (50 laps): 1. Matt Hirschman, 2. Brian Sones, 3. Anthony Sesely, 4. Bobby Jones, 5. Paulie Hartwig III, 6. Jacob Kerstetter, 6. Daren Scherer, 8. Jayden Harman, 9. Brian Romig Jr., 10. Micah Adams, 11. Brian Rygielski 12. Thomas Flanagan
Zane Zeiner Wins 'Race 300' for ROC Modified Series at Chemung on June 15
Defending Race of Champions Modified Series champion Zane Zeiner scored the win Saturday night in "Race 300" for the series at Chemung Speedrome, surviving the twists and turns of a dramatic evening of racing.
From the start, the 75-lap race was physical and aggressive, and several big names were caught up in the excitement. After just four laps, Matt Hirschman's race was over following a multi-car incident in turn four. Zeiner stayed clear of the chaos, running in the top three for most of the evening. On lap 58, Zeiner worked his way by Jack Ely to take the lead. "It felt like a real aggressive race up front. I told my brother-in-law, man, this isn't my style of race. He kept me calm under the situation. We work well together. I knew I just needed that long green flag run. I got in a groove. "That last restart, I just had to tighten my belts up a little bit and hit my marks, get pressure to Jack. He slipped up a little bit in four and I got that run going down the frontstretch." The win marks Zeiner's first triumph at Chemung Speedrome in a full-blown Tour Modified. Between the event's stature as "Race 300" in series history and the elusive Chemung trophy, Zeiner carried plenty of motivation for Saturday's race. "I had this race circled for a lot of reasons," said Zeiner. "Right now, it still feels like a dream to me, to be honest with you, for things to work out and us to be in victory lane. A lot of luck went our way and here we are. We've been close last year twice with two seconds, but to finally pull it off feels great." Austin Beers rallied from an incident near the halfway mark of the race to finish second. The Pennsylvania driver worked his way to fourth before gaining two spots in the closing laps, as Jack Ely and Jake Lutz both fell off the pace. "The radio was messed up. I didn't have a spotter the first half of the race. I used it up and Zane got by me. I was like, well, it's not going to hurt at this point to take it down pit road. We swapped lefts, tightened it up a little bit, drove our way back through the field. "We got lucky there with obviously Jack and Jake, so it sucks for them to have that, but they ran a great race. We lucked into a second, but I drove my butt off to get to fourth there." Another driver who recovered from an incident was Paulie Hartwig, III. Hartwig was as far back as 20th after the lap four incident with Hirschman and Bryce Bailey, but bounced back for a podium finish. "When I wrecked there, we got a left-front flat, so that was a pretty good comeback. The car was pretty good, actually. We played the game. This place is alright, but there are a lot of good guys here." Roger Coss finished fourth, with Andy Jankowiak rounding out the top five just one night after a fifth-place finish with the ARCA Menards Series at Iowa Speedway. A busy Father's Day weekend continues on Sunday for the Race of Champions Family of Series. The ROC Sportsman Modifieds hit the track at the Wyoming County BullRing Sunday, along with the ROC Super Stocks, ROC FOAR Score Dash Series, and Wyoming County's G-Dog Pro 4s.
RACE OF CHAMPIONS 'RACE 300' UNOFFICIAL RESULTS
FIN NO DRIVER LAPS DIFF
1 22Z Zane Zeiner 75 ---
2 71 Austin Beers 75 3.336
3 73H Paulie Hartwig, III 75 5.312
4 17 Roger Coss 75 8.170
5 73X Andy Jankowiak 75 9.462
6 11H Tony Hanbury 75 9.893
7 95 Bryan Sherwood 75 11.570
8 11L Mike Leaty 75 12.031
9 53 Brian Defebo 75 12.989
10 3 Daren Scherer 75 13.890
11 23 Bryce Bailey 75 14.173
12 22W Don Wagner 75 16.398
13 81 Jack Ely 75 18.950
14 14L Jake Lutz 73 2 Laps
15 40 Tommy Rought 73 2 Laps
16 94 Zach Curren 72 3 Laps
17 51 Jayden Harman 42 33 Laps
18 88 Lou Strohl 39 36 Laps
19 44 Kyle Strohl 36 39 Laps
20 8 Chris Finocchario 25 50 Laps
21 72 T.J. Potrzebowski 19 56 Laps
22 60 Matt Hirschman 4 71 Laps
23 10 Daryl Lewis, Jr. 4 71 Laps
24 66 Austin Kochenash 4 71 Laps
CARSTEN DIGIANTOMASSO FLIES TO NJ, THEN IN WALL'S GARDEN STATE CLASSIC ON JUNE 29 AS MATT SUFFERS DAMAGE WHILE BATTLING FOR THE LEAD
WALL, NJ - Carsten DiGiantomasso made the two hour flight from his Mooresville, NC home well worth it as he raced to victory in the 125 lap Gardebn State Classic at Wall Stadium Speedway Saturday night. Formerly of Jackson, DiGiantomasso took a job with NASCAR's JR Motorsports after winning the opening night main event here on April 20. Saturday's victory made it two wins in two starts for the popular Modfieid stock car driver. While Holmdel's Andrew Krause and Jarret DiGiantomasso of Jackson wrestled for the lead early Carsten DiGiantomasso immediatly began his climb to the from from an eighth starting spot. By lap 40 Carsten rode in third spot. After tire changes at lap 84, Carsten moved past his brother and to Krauses rear bumper. Meanwhile, prerace favoerite Matt Hirschman of Northampton, Pa. was on the move as he advanced to fourth. Carsten than ovefrtook Krause for the lead on lap 105. At that point Hirschman tried a three wide pass tpo advance that failed and he began to slip back through the field.
Carsten DiGiantomasso then fought off Krause through several late race restarts before nailing down the prestigious win. Krause, Brick's Eddie McCarthy, Anthony Sesely and Ron Frees of Lanoka Harbor wrapped up the top five.
1. CARSTEN DIGIANTOMASSO, 2. Andrew Krause, 3. Eddie McCarthy, 4. Anthony Sesely, 5. Ron Frees, 6. Derek Hopkinson. 7. Tyler Ferris, 8. James Pritchard, 9. Jarret DiGiantomasso, 10. Adam LaCicero, 11. Shaun Carrig, 12. Jake Nelke, 13. Matt Hirschman, 14. Tommy Martino Jr., 15. Tyler Truex, 16. Bryan O'Shea, 17. Teddy Cranmer, 18. Joey Marlino, 19. Tommy Catanzaro
HIRSCHMAN BIG MONEY WINNER IN WINCHESTER OPEN MODIFIED 100 JUNE 8
By Gary Dutton
WINCHESTER, N.H. – Matt Hirschman, known across the northeast as “Big Money Matt, put another notch in his victory belt Saturday at Monadnock Speedway, topping the prestigious purse-rich JDV Open Modified Winchester 100 in front of a huge crowd at the storied high-banked oval. Dedicated to the memory of late Modified good guy Bruce Bachta, Saturday’s JDV Productions second annual biggie pitted 27 of the top Modified teams in the country wheel-to-wheel in 100 ground-pounding laps of excitement with $55,000 in posted awards on the line.In a perfectly scripted story, the retiring hero from just down the road – he of numerous track and series championships and countless feature wins – would sail through the field to win the final race of his career. For Kirk Alexander though, that wasn’t the story Saturday. Caught up in someone else’s blunder in both his heat and then the feature, the Swanzey star had gained no less than 17 positions in the main event, when calamity struck again. Ronnie Williams, on a rail in his qualifying race, led the first 44 laps of the Winchester 100, with Hirschman, a man on a mission, then taking over. And while some in the crowd may have thought it was then all over, last year’s event winner Matt Kimball had other plans.Backpedaling ever so little early, Kimball, the second generation ace who’d began his racing career here on the high banks, rocketed back into second on lap 53, gunning to repeat his 2023 Winchester Open victory.With the two Matts soaring around the track at breakneck speed – no fewer than 11 of the 24 starters turned sub-12 second laps, Hirschman prevailed, taking the checkers two lengths ahead of Kimball. Jon McKennedy, from 11th on the starting grid, was strong in third, just ahead of Andy Jankowiak, from row eight on the 24-car grid, and Teddy Hodgdon.
MONADNOCK SPEEDWAY JUNE 10 WINCHESTER OPEN TOP TENS
JDV OPEN MODIFIED 100 Matt Hirschman, Matt Kimball, John McKennedy, Andy Jankowiak, Teddy Hodgdon, Max Zachem, Brian Robie, Nate Wenzel, Ronnie Williams, Jeffrey Battle.
Matt Hirschman claims Modified Tour win over Austin Beers at Seekonk on June 1, 2024
Matt Hirschman was visibly disappointed when he made his selection during the redraw for the J&R Precast 150 at Seekonk Speedway. After setting the fastest time of the day in qualifying, Hirschman would forgo the pole position by drawing the lowest starting position possible, eighth. This left Hirschman with 150 laps to work his way up from the middle of the pack at a 0.333-mile facility where track position is paramount.Hirschman predominantly relied on skill instead of luck to surge towards the front of the field. After methodically climbing to second, Hirschman emerged victorious in an intense restart duel with his Northampton, Pennsylvania, neighbor Austin Beers to obtain his second consecutive NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour victory at Seekonk. “We had to work for that one for sure,” Hirschman said. “[Seekonk] is always a challenging track. The characteristics change throughout the race, but the characteristics of my car changed throughout the race. It came in good on the restart and I was able to go side-by-side with Austin and get past him.” Hirschman joined an exclusive list of drivers who have multiple Seekonk wins in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour. The only other member of that group is Doug Coby, whose triumphs came in 2017 and 2019, respectively. Even with his odds of a victory hindered by a poor draw, Hirschman never doubted his ability to find his way towards the front. Each pass required diligence and patience around Seekonk’s narrow racing line. Hirschman’s superior speed proved crucial in gaining the valuable track position he needed to chase down Beers. Despite this, Hirschman still faced a heavy deficit to Beers by the time he had climbed to the runner-up position. With Beers facing no serious challengers as he worked through slower traffic, Hirschman needed a caution to mount a challenge for the lead. Unlike earlier at the redraw, luck was on Hirschman’s side when a spin by Tyler Catalano brought out the first and only caution of the night with 30 laps remaining. Hirschman held his own on the top side against Beers, who lost the lead after slight contact with the No. 60 caused him to briefly lose control of his No. 64. Beers held on to finish second, but he felt dejected knowing he was only a few laps away from claiming a win at the same track where his father Eric picked up his maiden NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour victory in 2005. There were several aspects of the J&R Precast 150, including the final restart, that Beers wishes he could repeat, but he departs Seekonk feeling optimistic his first victory of the 2024 season is near. “[Hirschman] was a little bit better,” Beers said. “It was kind of my fault, because I wanted to start a little freer than we usually do and that bit us. I probably should have picked the top and pinched him like he pinched me, but it was a fun side-by-side battle. Three seconds in a row is nothing to hang our heads about.” For Hirschman, winning at Seekonk was a necessary change of pace following an inconsistent start to 2024 by his standards. In his three starts prior to Seekonk, Hirschman only recorded one top five and had failed to lead a lap. Hirschman considered himself lucky his first victory of 2024 came during Seekonk’s tribute weekend to Modified legend Bugsy Stevens, who passed away on May 20. He has long respected Stevens’ ability as a competitor and hopes to keep honoring his legacy with more Seekonk victories. “To finally get out on the road and have a big win, that’s overdue at least in my opinion,” Hirschman said. “Everybody kept working and we got it done tonight on a special night where we remembered Bugsy Stevens. It was an honor to be here.” NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour points leader Ron Silk placed third after starting 11th. He was followed by Stephen Kopcik and Justin Bonsignore. The rest of the top 10 finishers were Jacob Lutz, Kyle Bonsignore, Patrick Emerling, Jake Johnson and Matt Swanson.
Pos. Car No. Driver Sponsor Laps Diff.
1 60 Matt Hirschman PeeDee Motorsports 150 --
2 64 Austin Beers G&G Electrical Supply/Dell Electric 150 1.769
3 16 Ron Silk Blue Mountain Machine/Future Homes 150 2.835
4 21 Stephen Kopcik* Newtown Pools & Karchner Warehousing 150 4.462
5 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communications, Inc. 150 4.515
6 14 Jacob Lutz* Advantage Trucks/Anastasi Trucking/Washtronics 150 4.689
7 22 Kyle Bonsignore Chalew Performance/MTT/Munns Auto 150 4.99
8 1 Patrick Emerling Fleetworks Inc 150 5.613
9 3 Jake Johnson Propane Plus/Lin’s Propane Trucks 150 6.531
10 89 Matt Swanson Cervaolos Auto/Casella Snowplows/Mully’s Auto Repair 150 6.884
11 06 Sam Rameau Rameau Family Motorsports 150 7.387
12 56 Trevor Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 150 10.265
13 54 Tommy Catalano FX Caprara 149 1 Lap
14 44 Doug Coby Baldwin Automotive 149 1 Lap
15 58 Timmy Solomito GAF Roofing 149 1 Lap
16 19 Anthony Sesely Franzosa Trucking Co/Karchner Warehousing 149 1 Lap
17 5 Kyle Ebersole Ebersole Excavating Inc. 149 1 Lap
18 00 Tom Rogers Jr. BNP Machine/SSRP 148 2 Laps
19 46 Craig Lutz Riverhead Building Supply 148 2 Laps
20 4 Tim Connolly Connolly Companies, LLC 148 2 Laps
21 84 Tyler Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 147 3 Laps
22 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood & Restaurant 146 4 Laps
23 01 Melissa Fifield Pine Knoll Auto Sales 128 22 Laps
Kopcik pockets $10K Thunder Road Pay Day - Matt and Williams get together on backstretch - May 26
Former NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion Jon McKennedy brought the Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series Granite City 100 to green. Following several single-car spin cautions, McKennedy continued his dominance with an ever-growing black car in his mirror. ‘Big Money’ Matt Hirschman mashed the peddle and overtook McKennedy on the outside groove to claim the lead on lap 31 and ran away with it until a lap 59 heartbreaker for Matt Swanson, laying down a thick smokescreen from under the hood. Back under green, Ronnie Williams and Woody Pitkat roared back into the top five after jumping pit-side for fresh rubber. Williams continued his melee to the front while McKennedy pulled into the pits on lap 81 after suffering mechanical woes that took his #79 out of contention for the afternoon. The biggest drama would hit on lap 89 as Williams and Hirschman began to get physical for the lead, ending with Hirschman around on the backstretch and Williams sited a penalty on lap 94. The finale set up one last go for the win with Steven Kopcik duking it out with Matt Kimball but at the end Kopcik would steal the win followed by Woody Pitkat and Kimball across the line.
Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series – 3rd annual Granite City 100 – (100 Laps)
1 1 Stephen Kopcik Newtown, CT
2 88 Woody Pitkat Bellingham, MA
3 43 Matt Kimball Bennington, NH
4 55CT Teddy Hodgdon Danbury, CT
5 5CT Chris Pasteryak Moosup, CT
6 76 Brett Meservey Brewster, MA
7 60 Matt Hirschman Northampton
8 50 Ronnie Williams Lebanon, CT
9 99 Tyler Hines North Haven, CT
10 04 Joey Jarvis Windsor, VT
11 24 Todd Patnode Swanzey, NH
12 79 Jon McKennedy Chelmsford, MA
13 25 Matt Swanson Harvard, MA
14 55 Joe Doucette Framingham, MA
15 08 Nick Halkowicz Shelton, CT
16 55x Jacob Perry Kannapolis, NC
17 13 Max Zachem Oakdale, CT
18 06 Les Hinckley Windsor Locks , CT
19 25NH Brian Robie Sunapee, NH
Austin Kochenash scored his second career Race of Champions Modified Series win Sunday at Mahoning Valley, fending off Blake Barney, Earl Paules and Matt Hirschman for the victory.
SPRING ZING 100
Finish Start # Competitor Hometown +/-
1 14 66 Austin Kochenas Danielsville, PA 13
2 3 14B Blake Barney Jackson, NJ 1
3 4 8 Earl Paules Palmertown, PA 1
4 12 60 Matt Hirschman Northampton, PA 8
5 5 76 Zane Zeiner Bath, PA -
6 10 17 Roger Coss Lafayette, NJ 4
7 1 81 Jack Ely Northampton, PA -6
8 11 14L Jake Lutz Hamburg, NY 3
9 6 73H Paulie Hartwig Galloway, NJ -3
10 21 76S Rod Snyder Jr Lehighton, PA 11
11 27 11 Tony Hanbury Owego, NY 16
12 16 95K Jacob Kerstette Allentown, PA 4
13 8 88 Lou Strohl Lou Strohl Palmertown, PA -5
14 15 53 Brian Defebo Berwick, PA 1
15 19 51 Jayden Harman sugarloaf, PA 4
16 18 71 James Pritchard Oak Ridge, NJ 2
17 13 22 Don Wagner Don Wagner Wharton, NJ -4
18 17 3S Daren Scherer Binghamton, NY -1
19 20 3B Jaden Brown Kunkletown, PA 1
20 2 X John Bennett Lehighton, PA -18
21 22 0 Randall Richard 1
22 26 41 Todd Baer New Tripoli, PA 4
23 9 44 Kyle Strohl -14
24 23 29 Cody Kohler Schnecksville, PA -1
25 24 87 Thomas Flanagan Bethlehem, PA -1
26 25 40 Tommy Rought Rome, PA -1
27 7 1 Nick Schaeffer Lehighton, PA
RACE OF CHAMPIONS MODIFIED SERIES SET FOR DIFFERENT TYPE OF EVENT AT MAHONING VALLEY SPEEDWAY SUNDAY, MAY 19, 2024
Race of Champions and Mahoning Valley Speedway Modified competitors are gearing up to return to Mahoning Valley Speedway for a unique event this Sunday, May 19. Series and Track Management are awarding “show up” points to competitors so they may lay it all on the line and go for a victory in the 100-lap event where only one (1) set of tires will be required. The race, the “Spring Zing” 100 will take center stage Sunday afternoon at 4:00 pm.The event will be 100-laps and will not count caution laps with double-file racing through the completion of lap 90. Qualifying will be traditional group green-white-checker qualifying along with ten (10) lap qualifying races and a redraw. Driver’s will have to manage their tires throughout the duration of the event with no tire changes for the race.“We are looking forward to it,” stated Jack Ely from Wall, NJ, who earned his first Series victory last year at Mahoning and finished second in the season ending championship standings. “Mahoning is tricky. It can be a great track or it can jump and bite you. It’s fast and multiple groove and our Series is extremely competitive so Sunday’s race along with the Mahoning regulars will prove to be very exciting.”Qualifying for the 100-lap event will begin at 4:00pm on Sunday, May 19 along with a full card of Mahoning racing. Modified competitors are invited to practice at the track on Saturday.
Ron Silk Wins 52nd Annual NAPA Spring Sizzler on May 10
By Scott Running
(Stafford Springs, CT)—Stafford Motor Speedway hosted the rescheduled 2024 NAPA Spring Sizzler®, “The Greatest Race in the History of Spring,” on Friday, May 10th with Open Modified cars. Ron Silk came up the big winner for the second consecutive year, taking home a grand total of $34,750 for his efforts. Silk won his NAPA Qualifying Duel on Saturday, April 27 for $3,500 and combined with his $20,000 winner’s purse plus $11,250 in lap money from May 10th, his grand total comes to $34,750. Silk’s last three Stafford feature victories, the 2022 NAPA Fall Final plus the 2023 and 2024 NAPA Spring Sizzlers®, has seen him and the #16 Haydt-Yannone team take home nearly $100,000 in prize money. The race took the green flag with Teddy Hodgdon taking the early lead ahead of Matt Swanson, Jon McKennedy and Ronnie Silk. Michael Christopher, Jr. moved from 8th up to 5th on the opening lap and he had Marcello Rufrano, Doug Coby, Max Zachem, Justin Bonsignore, and Ronnie Williams behind him. Swanson took the lead from Hodgdon on lap-4 and Silk took second from Hodgdon on lap-6. Hodgdon slotted into third with McKennedy fourth and Christopher fifth.Silk powered his way by Swanson and into the lead on lap-8 while the rest of the top-5 remained Swanson, Hodgdon, McKennedy, and Christopher. Coby was now sixth followed by Bonsignore, Woody Pitkat, who was on the charge, Matt Hirschman, and Ronnie Williams. With 15 laps complete it was still Silk in command followed by Swanson, Hodgdon, McKennedy, and Christopher. Noah Korner spun coming out of turn 4 to bring the first yellow flag of the event out with 16 laps complete.Silk took the lead with Swanson in second back under green but the caution came right back with 17 laps complete as Tommy Barrett, Buddy Charette, and Joey Mucciacciaro got into the turn 3 wall.On the restart, Nick Halkowicz came to a stop in turn 2 with a flat tire that brought the caution back out before a lap could be completed. The next restart saw Silk again take the lead with McKennedy moving into second. Coby pulled alongside Swanson for third but Swanson was able to hold Coby off. Bonsignore was now fifth behind Coby with Hirschman, Christopher, Pitkat, Hodgdon, and Todd Owen making up the top-10. Halkowicz spun in turn 3 to bring the caution out with 23 laps complete.Silk powered back into the lead on the restart with McKennedy and Swanson still behind him. Coby was now in fourth with Hirschman in fifth. Bonsignore was sixth but he would lose that position to Pitkat on lap-27. Christopher followed Pitkat by Bonsignore on the following lap but before the lap could be completed the caution flew for a spin in turn 2 by George Bessette, Jr.Silk took the lead back under green with Swanson getting around McKennedy for second after several laps of wheel to wheel racing. Coby was fourth with Pitkat up to fifth. Hirschman was sixth in line followed by Bonsignore, Christopher, Williams, and Keith Rocco. Chris Pasteryak and Bessette both spun in the middle of turns 3+4 to bring the caution flag back out with 34 laps complete.Korner spun in turn 1 to bring the caution back out one lap after the restart with Silk still in command and Swanson behind him in second. Silk completed two more laps before the caution came back out for Bessette, who spun in turn 3 and then Coby and Swanson came together in turn 2 with Coby going around. The restart saw McKennedy going around in turn 2, which collected several other cars including Hodgdon, before a lap could be completed. Silk took the lead on the next restart with Pitkat working his way around Swanson to move into second. Christopher was fourth with Bonsignore in fifth. Todd Owen was on the move as he took over fifth place on lap-42 and he had Rocco following in his tire tracks as Rocco moved into sixth on lap-44 to drop Bonsignore back to seventh place. Jacob Perry was up to eighth with Stephen Kopcik in ninth and Matt Galko in tenth. Bonsignore’s car dropped off the pace on lap-47 and he limped back to pit road. Galko and Cory DiMatteo took a hard hit into the turn 1 wall to bring the yellow and red flags out with 49 laps complete. Under the caution period, the leaders came to pit road for tires and adjustments with Silk winning the race off pit road followed by Pitkat, Rocco, Coby, Swanson, Williams, Hirschman, Korner, Goodale, Owen, Christopher, Pasternak, and David Arute. McKennedy and Perry were the new leaders and they occupied the top-2 spots on the restart while Tommy Barrett, Jr. began to slide backwards as Pitkat took third, Coby fourth, and Williams fifth. Korner was sixth but he would lose that spot to Silk on lap-53 with Owen, Rocco, and Pasteryak rounding out the top-10. McKennedy was back in command on the restart but Silk was slicing his way through traffic and he retook the lead on lap-60. Pitkat was third behind Silk and McKennedy with Williams and Coby making up the top-5. Swanson was sixth with Rocco, Goodale, Hirschman, and Perry making up the top-10. With 30 laps to go, it was still Silk out front with McKennedy, Pitkat, Williams, and Swanson giving chase. Rocco was sixth followed by Hirschman, Goodale, Coby, and Pasteryak. Halkowicz brought the caution back out with 81 laps complete with a spin in turn 2. Silk resumed his place at the front of the pack on the restart with McKenendy holding second and Pitkat third. Swanson was fourth in line with Hirschman, Coby Williams, Rocco, Owen, Kopcik, and Pasteryak lined up behind him. Coby moved into sixth on lap-85 and began to hound Williams for fifth place. Coby’s car dropped off the pace on lap-90 and he slowly brought the car back to pit road. With 10 laps to go, Silk was starting to stretch out his lead over McKennedy with Pitkat, Swanson, and Williams still making up the top-5. With one lap to go, Williams dropped off the pace and brought his car to pit road. Silk cruised to the checkered flag to win the NAPA Spring Sizzler® and the $20,000 purse that goes along with it for the second consecutive season. McKenendy finished second with Pitkat, Swanson, and Hirschman rounding out the top-5.
Finish Name Car Number Start
1 Ron Silk 16 2
2 Jon McKennedy 79 5
3 Woody Pitkat 8 15
4 Matt Swanson 25. 3
5 Matt Hirschman 60 8
6 Chris Pasteryak 5ct 19
7 Keith Rocco 57 14
8 Stephen Kopcik 1k 31
9 Todd Owen 81 18
10 Eric Goodale 58 17
11 Buddy Charette 28 33
12 Jacob Perry 55x 30
13 Noah Korner 31 16
14 David Arute 75 21
15 Ronnie Williams 50 11
16 Doug Coby 44ma 9
17 Tommy Barrett, Jr. 9 25
18 Nick Halkokwicz 08 28
19 Michael Christopher, Jr. 00 7
20 Matt Galko 3 26
21 Cory DiMatteo 11 22
22 Justin Bonsignore 7ny 13
23 George Bessette, Jr. 1 27
24 Teddy Hodgdon 55ct 1
25 Anthony Bello 51 12
26 Austin Beers 179 10
27 Joey Mucciacciaro, Jr. 47 23
28 Max Zachem 13 6
29 Marcello Rufrano 48 4
30 Andy Janowiak 73 20
DNS Kyle Ellwood 4 24
DNS Danny Knoll, Jr. 17 29
DNS William Lambros 77ny 32
The return of a legend: Jake Johnson brings Ole Blue back to Victory Lane during Granite State Derby at Monadnock Speedway May 4
WINCHESTER, New Hampshire — In more than 75 years of racing in the NASCAR Modified racing, few cars have developed a reputation like Ole Blue.
Owned by Boehler Racing Enterprises, numerous legends like Ryan Preece, Tony Hirschman, Bugs Stevens and Wayne Anderson have taken trips to Victory Lane in the iconic blue No. 3 Modified. Despite this, Ole Blue had not taken home a checkered flag since Rowan Pennink won in the car at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park in 2017.Jake Johnson wrote another successful, if not overdue, chapter in Ole Blue’s proud story on Saturday evening at Monadnock Speedway. Reaching this milestone required Johnson to fend off a tremendous challenge from defending NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion Ron Silk for what would also be his first series victory.The significance of the moment was not lost on Johnson, who was determined to park the car in Victory Lane once again when he signed on to be the team’s full-time driver for the 2024 season.“There’s so many people behind the scenes when it comes to the No. 3 car that make this happen week in and week out,” Johnson said. “It’s just an honor to be here in Victory Lane with them and get that long awaited win.”
Growing up, Ole Blue was one of the first cars Johnson connected with as he took an interest in racing. A diecast of the car signed by Stevens was on display in Johnson’s living room throughout his childhood.Johnson initially did not imagine one day scoring a victory in the famous Modified. The start of his own racing career saw him pursue several different disciplines, which included winning the Snowflake 100 in a Pro Late Model at Five Flags Speedway in 2020.Once he reached an agreement with the Boehlers to race for them on a part-time basis starting in 2022, Johnson was ready to embrace the heavy expectations of driving such a famous car. He earned two poles in his rookie season, which he followed up with a career-best runner-up finish at Thompson the following year.The momentum from Johnson’s season-ending runner-up carried over into the start of 2024. Prior to Saturday’s Granite State Derby, Johnson had yet to record a finish outside the top 10 and sat third in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour standings behind Silk and Justin Bonsignore. Patience proved to be crucial for Johnson at Monadnock. Starting sixth following a redraw of the top eight starters, Johnson methodically climbed his way to the front of the field before making the race-winning pass on Silk with 48 laps remaining. Silk pressured Johnson tremendously over the closing stages until bouncing off the outside wall during the final restart of the evening on Lap 134. That enabled Austin Beers, who started 17th after a poor qualifying effort, to claim second for himself.Beers believed his poor track position would have been a major detriment on Monadnock’s fresh pavement, but was impressed with his overall speed and how many passing opportunities there were.He was also grateful the Granite State Derby did not exceed its advertised distance.“We were actually blowing up at the end,” Beers said. “It started clicking with three to go and I was losing power hoping it would hold on. It was really fun with this repave. I didn’t think we were going to have passing, but we proved there can be passing here.”Like Beers, Johnson was also pleased with the repave and how competitive the on-track action was all evening.Navigating his way through traffic gave Johnson plenty of notes to study ahead of the next two legs in the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup, which will also take place at Monadnock and feature $20,000 in available bonus money.Considering how strong Ole Blue was in Saturday’s Granite State Derby, Johnson has plenty of reasons to be confident ahead of a return visit to Monadnock on July 20 for the Duel at the Dog 250.“The competition was tough today,” Johnson said. “This is a beautiful facility and I’m excited for these next two races.”For now, Johnson and Boehler Racing Enterprises have plenty to celebrate following their victory at Monadnock, as everyone with the organization knows the legacy of Ole Blue in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour is alive and well after so many decades.Patrick Emerling came home third Saturday evening, with Craig Lutz and Matt Hirschman completing the top five. Rounding out the top 10 were Justin Bonsignore, Brian Robie, Joey Cipriano III, Anthony Nocella and Silk.
Pos. Car No. Driver Sponsor Laps Diff.
1 3 Jake Johnson Propane Plus/Lin’s Propane Trucks 150 --
2 64 Austin Beers G&G Electrical Supply/Dell Electric 150 1.595
3 1 Patrick Emerling Fleetworks Inc 150 2.009
4 46 Craig Lutz Riverhead Building Supply 150 2.335
5 60 Matt Hirschman Elite 150 2.534
6 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communications, Inc. 150 3.446
7 25 Brian Robie Maurice Enterprises 150 3.63
8 15 Joey Cipriano III* Dependable Energy & Bass Plating 150 4.525
9 92 Anthony Nocella Nocella Paving/K and D Associates 150 4.715
10 16 Ron Silk Blue Mountain Machine/Future Homes 150 4.973
11 58 Timmy Solomito GAF Roofing 150 5.231
12 54 Tommy Catalano FX Caprara 150 5.625
13 19 Anthony Sesely Franzosa Trucking Co/Karchner Warehousing 150 6.101
14 84 Tyler Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 150 6.52
15 43 Matthew Kimball J&M Towing and Recovery/Poodlack Wealth Mgmt 150 6.957
16 4 Tim Connolly Connolly Companies, LLC 150 10.429
17 56 Trevor Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 150 11.281
18 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood & Restaurant 150 12.017
19 5 Kyle Ebersole Ebersole Excavating Inc. 149 1 Lap
20 01 Melissa Fifield Pine Knoll Auto Sales 141 9 Laps
21 32 Tyler Rypkema Musco Lighting/Northeast Drilling 91 59 Laps
22 22 Kyle Bonsignore Chalew Performance/MTT/Munns Auto 84 66 Laps
23 79 Jonathan McKennedy Christopher’s Towing 60 90 Laps
24 81 Nathan Wenzel* 1812 Auto Body 34 116 Laps
Hodgdon & Silk Win NAPA Auto Parts Duels at Stafford in Duels on April 27 - Sizzler rained out until May 10
April 27, 2024
By Scott Running
(Stafford Springs, CT)—Stafford Speedway kicked off its 2024 race season with the NAPA Auto Parts Duels as part of the 52nd Annual NAPA Spring Sizzler® Weekend. Feature races were held for Stafford’s weekly Late Model, Limited Late Model, and Street Stock divisions along with two 40-lap NAPA Duel races that set the top-20 lineup for Sunday’s 100-lap NAPA Spring Sizzler® main event. Scoring wins in the two NAPA Duel races were Teddy Hodgdon and Ronnie Silk.
In the first 40-lap NAPA Duel Race, Matt Swanson took the early lead at the drop of the green flag with Teddy Hodgdon quickly moving into second. Michael Christopher, Jr. was third in line with Stephen Kopcik fourth and David Arute fifth. Ronnie Williams took fifth from Arute on lap-4 and that allowed Doug Coby to follow him through and take over sixth and drop Arute back to seventh. Hodgdon hounded Swanson until lap-15 when he was able to take over the lead with a pass going into turn 3. Williams was now in third behind Hodgdon and Swanson with Christopher fourth and Coby in fifth. Jon McKennedy was sixth followed by Eric Goodale, Justin Bonsignore, Woody Pitkat, and Arute. At the halfway point, Hodgdon was still in command with Swanson, Williams, Christopher, and Coby giving chase. McKennedy took fifth from Williams on lap-27 as Hodgdon continued to lead the race with Swanson, Christopher, and Coby behind him. Hodgdon led the field to the checkered flag to win the first NAPA Duel and earn pole position for tomorrow’s NAPA Spring Sizzler® 100-lap main event.. Swanson finished second with McKennedy, Christopher, and Coby rounding out the top-5.
In the second 40-lap NAPA Duel Race, Ronnie Silk took the lead at the green flag with Marcello Rufrano moving into second. Andy Jankowiak took third with Cory DiMatteo fourth and Max Zachem in fifth. With 15 laps complete, it was still Silk in the lead with Rufrano, Jankowiak, Zachem, and Anthony Bello making up the top-5. Keith Rocco was sixth followed by Matt Hirschman, Cory DiMatteo, Todd Owen, and Noah Korner. With 10 laps to go, it was still Silk in the lead with Rufrano, Zachem, Jankowiak, Hirschman, Bello, Rocco, Austin Beers, Owen, and Korner making up the top-10 cars. Beers made a move around Bello on lap-37 to move into fifth and drop Bello back to sixth as Silk was comfortably leading Rufrano, Zachem, and Hirschman. Silk cruised to the checkered flag to win the second NAPA Duel and earn a front row starting position for tomorrow’s NAPA Spring Sizzler® 100-lap main event. Rufrano finished second with Zachem, Hirschman, and Beers rounding out the top-5.
1 Ronnie Silk 16 1
2 Marcello Rufrano 48 3
3 Max Zachem 13 7
4 Matt Hirschman 60 10
5 Austin Beers 179 12
6 Anthony Bello 51 2
7 Keith Rocco 57 6
8 Noah Korner 31 11
9 Todd Owen 81 9
10 Andy Jankowiak 73 4
11 Cory DiMatteo 11 5
12 Kyle Ellwood 4 8
13 Matt Gallo 3 14
14 Nick Halkowicz 08 16
15 Jacob Perry 55x 13
DNS William Lambros 77ny 15
Home cooking agrees with Matt as he wins a thriller at Mahoning Valley Speedway over Roger Coss and Zane Zeiner on April 20. The Spring Meltdown 75 was a barn burner!
1 12 60 Matt Hirschman Northampton, PA
2 8 17C Roger Coss Lafayette, NJ
3 1 76Z Zane Zeiner Bath, PA
4 9 66 Austin Kochenash Danielsville, PA
5 7 44 Kyle Strohl Palmertown, PA
6 2 14 Jake Lutz Hamburg, NY
7 4 11JR Paulie Hartwig III Galloway, NJ
8 11 81 Jack Ely Northampton, PA
9 10 1B Austin Beers Northampton, PA
10 18 11H Tony Hanbury Owego, NY
11 14 8 Earl Paules Palmertown, PA
12 3 22 Don Wagner Wharton, NJ
13 23 95K Jacob Kerstetter Allentown, PA
14 19 95M Terry Markovic Slatington, PA
15 16 88 Lou Strohl Palmertown, PA
16 20 3 Daren Scherer Binghamton, NY
17 6 72W John Bennett Lehighton, PA
18 13 41 Todd Baer New Tripoli, PA
19 26 65 George Skora III Eden, NY
20 21 87 Thomas Flanagan Bethlehem, PA
21 25 0 Randall Richard
22 15 1S Nick Schaeffer Lehighton, PA
23 22 51 Jayden Harman sugarloaf, PA
24 5 76S Rod Snyder Jr Lehighton, PA
25 27 40 Tommy Rought Rome, PA
26 17 29 Cody Kohler Schnecksville, PA
27 24 10 Daryl Lewis Jr Ontario, NY
RACE OF CHAMPIONS MODIFIED SERIES SET TO BEGIN SEASON APRIL 20 AT MAHONING VALLEY SPEEDWAY
Race of Champions Modified Series competitors are gearing up to head to Mahoning Valley Speedway for the Series opener and so are race fans. If opening day at the 1/4-mile facility is any indication of what fans are in store for than Saturday, April 20, at 6:00pm will be one of the most anticipated start times on their 2024 schedules. Matt Hirschman and Austin Beers of Northampton, Pa., will resume their battles at what is their “hometrack”. The duo has battled each other many times on the 1/4-mile track, which has helped shape their careers. “Mahoning is fun to race,” offered Hirschman, who has become one, if not arguably the top-star in Modified racing right now. “It has multiple grooves and because of the size the track, it really levels the playing field. You have to be handling, but you also have to be patient and drive precisely to get the job done. It is a lot of fun for the driver and because of the size of the track, it’s right there in front of the fans.” Austin Beers, who was the 2021 Race of Champions Modified Series titleholder. He has also enjoyed success after continuing his family tradition of racing at the Lehighton oval. Beers claimed two Race of Champions Modified Series victories in 2024 at Chemung (N.Y.) Speedrome and is looking for his first Series victory at Mahoning. “We have been close and it’s really our home track,” stated Beers. ‘We’ve got more experience and been doing a lot of racing. Hopefully, we’ll be in contention at Mahoning and be able to come out on top.. I’m really looking forward to racing on home turf at Mahoming.” Qualifying for the 75-lap Series opener will begin at 6:00pm on Saturday, April 20 along with a full card of Mahoning racing.
Carson Loftin claims fourth SMART Tour win in six races
From Pee Dee Motorsports: Good Morning Race Fans. We sometimes comment on the long nights at the track, especially when we go through post race tech, trying to give some insight into our delayed posts here after the race. Last night was no exception. Matt powered the PeeDee 60 to the pole in qualifying leading many laps in the first half of the race. A late race caution allowed the Brown Dogs to show their talents in getting Matt back out to the competition restarting second. The race ended with Matt finishing third. Respectable but not to our standards. Now comes the long night. SMART officials decided to take the engines from the top three competitors. We will allow them to explain the reasoning for this decision. The Brown Dogs had to work through the next several hours removing the engine from the PeeDee 60. All three engines were loaded into a SMART pickup truck for inspection by competent authority. Thanks to the crew for their travel and overtime hours at the track. Some of us rolled home just before sunrise. Others are still on the road home. Stay Tuned...I am sure there will be more to follow on all of this! Enjoy your Sunday!
by Matt WeaverApril 14, 2024
The SMART Modified Tour remains the personal playground for 16-year-old Carson Loftin. The second-generation short tracker, and emerging Tour Type Modified prodigy, claimed his fourth win in six races this season by reaching Victory Lane in the Hickory Hundred.As has been the case in all of wins, Loftin defeated two of the best in Matt Hirschman and Burt Myers on Saturday at Hickory Motor Speedway. The winning pass was the culmination of a prolonged battled that started around 50 to go and concluded with 32 to go. Loftin got away on a restart with 22 laps to go and that was the race, as it were, as Myers pressured Hirschman and took second. Myers got beside Loftin on several occasions over the final 10 laps but could not override the stronghold Loftin has over this series right now. “I wanted to get by Hirschman early like we did because I knew track position would be key once we all took our tire,” Loftin said. “Burt raced me clean there and so did Matt and I hope it was a good show for the fans.”And he took no exception to Myers attempting a bit of a slide job either.“No, like I said, I hoped it was a good show,” he said. “We’re racing door to door for a win. I can’t thank him enough for keeping it clean and classy like he did there.”Myers thought it was a 100 laps race, and which it’s a fair point, because it’s the Hickory Hundred but it seemingly was a 99 lapper.“The restarts are an issue, 55,000 caution laps and I apologize on behalf of SMART racing fans because we hate it as much as you do,” the charismatic Myers said on the frontstretch. “Everyone is learning. We’re trying our best. “On our end, good run for us … it’s a tough one because I thought we had the best car but it will come back around.”
Unofficial results
Carson Loftin
Burt Myers
Matt Hirschman
Joey Coulter
Jake Crum
https://www.shorttrackscene.com/modifieds/southern-modified-racing-series/carson-loftin-claims-fourth-smart-tour-win-in-six-races/
Matt steady top 10 run at Thompson Speedway for the NASCAR Tour Icebreaker - April 7
Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park has been the site of many milestones for Ron Silk on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour. From tallying his first three
Tour victories at the Connecticut facility to surviving a crucial title tilt against rival Justin Bonsignore in October, Silk regularly rises to the occasion whenever the series visits the historic, 0.625-mile oval The status quo remained in place for Silk in Sunday’s IceBreaker 150. A dominant performance from the defending Modified Tour champion enabled him to secure his seventh Thompson victory and build some crucial early season momentum in the point standings.Once the green flag waved for the IceBreaker 150, Silk knew his silver No. 16 Modified could set a commanding pace as soon as he climbed from the fourth starting position.“I was confident before the pit stop,” Silk said. “I had driven to the lead there and was able to drive away from everybody. This was a fantastic car from the start of the race, and I’m just pumped to be back in Victory Lane.”The only setback Silk endured during his stalwart day at Thompson occurred while in the pits, as a slow stop caused him to lose the lead to fellow Modified Tour veteran Patrick Emerling.It only took Silk one corner to re-assert control over the field. Using the bottom line on the restart, Silk muscled Emerling up the track and claimed the top spot, and he did not receive a significant challenge for the lead during the remaining laps.Emerling, who settled for third, was not pleased with how the final restart played out. Not only did Emerling believe Silk was overly aggressive with his maneuver, but he maintained Silk should have been penalized for a premature launch.“I kind of feel like Martin Truex Jr. the other day at Richmond,” Emerling said. “[Silk] jumped the start and then took us way up the hill. I’m just going to run him like that in the future, but I thought officiating would have caught that.”Despite his frustrations, Emerling found solace in his second top-five performance of the season. After being eliminated in an early crash at Richmond the previous week, Emerling felt the IceBreaker 150 was more indicative of the speed prevalent in his first three starts with Rich Gautreau.With the Thompson race reinforcing the optimism he already had in the program, Emerling believes he can keep tallying strong runs and make a charge for the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour title.“We had the car to beat today,” Emerling said. “It took us a little bit to get going, but we were the fastest car right at the end. Everyone did an awesome job. I did everything right, but I got beat by a jumped start. We’re coming, though.”Just like at Thompson on Sunday, Silk will be standing in the way of a potential championship for Emerling and the rest of the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour field. Aside from a sixth at Martinsville Speedway in November, Silk has not recorded a finish outside the top three in his last seven races.Silk has every reason to believe he can defend his title after winning two of the first three events in 2024. For now, Silk is content with celebrating another milestone at Thompson with everyone at Haydt-Yannone Racing
“[My confidence] is pretty high,” Silk said. “Richmond was a nail-biter, and we could be looking at three in a row. Should of, could of, would have, but we’ll go to the next one and try and get another one.”
In a repeat of the most recent Modified Tour event at Thompson, Jake Johnson placed second behind Silk, matching a career-best finish in the process. Emerling, Justin Bonsignore and Tyler Rypkema made up the rest of the top-five finishers.Rounding out the top 10 were Craig Lutz, Austin Beers, Kyle Bonsignore, Matt Hirschman and Matt Swanson.
1 16 Ron Silk Blue Mountain Machine/Future Homes 150 –
2 3 Jake Johnson Propane Plus/Lin’s Propane Trucks 150 2.169
3 1 Patrick Emerling Fleetworks Inc/LFR 150 4.846
4 51 Justin Bonsignore Coastal Fiber LLC 150 6.322
5 32 Tyler Rypkema Northern Drilling/Musco Lighting/Make-a-Wish 150 7.184
6 46 Craig Lutz Riverhead Building Supply 150 8.826
7 64 Austin Beers G&G Electrical Supply/Dell Electric 150 10.723
8 22 Kyle Bonsignore Munns Automotive/Chalew Performance 150 11.868
9 60 Matt Hirschman Elite 150 12.685
10 89 Matt Swanson Cervaolos Auto/Casella Snowplows/Mully’s Auto Repair 149 1 Lap
11 19 Anthony Sesely Franzosa Trucking Co/Karchner Warehousing 149 1 Lap
12 25 Brian Robie Maurice Enterprises 148 2 Laps
13 54 Tommy Catalano Catalano Motorsports/FX Caprara 148 2 Laps
14 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood & Restaurant 147 3 Laps
15 28 Mike Marshall MLM Diagnostics/Jusczak Electric 139 11 Laps
16 1 Melissa Fifield Pine Knoll Auto Sales 139 11 Laps
17 84 Tyler Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 113 37 Laps
18 2 J.R. Bertuccio Gershow Recycling 87 63 Laps
19 56 Trevor Catalano* Catalano Motorsports 27 123 Laps
20 4 Tim Connolly Connolly Companies, LLC 17 133 Laps
21 44 Bobby Santos Harshaw Paving/Olivas Market 1 149 Laps
22 24 Andrew Krause Supreme Manufacturing Co. 1 149 Laps
23 36 Dave Sapienza Sapienza Racing/Eastport Feeds 1 149 Laps
24 58 Eric Goodale GAF Roofing 1 149 Laps
Icebreaker Pushes Monaco Modifieds from April 6th to Friday of World Series October 2024
Thompson, CT — After rains wreaked havoc with series and track officials at Thompson Speedway on Saturday, all partners made the difficult decision to postpone the rest of Saturday’s show. The Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series Constantine Paving & Sealing 75 has been postponed to Friday, October 11 as the headline to opening day of the 62nd Sunoco World Series of Speedway Racing.
Monaco Modified teams are asked to keep their Icebreaker pit passes for their postponed World Series event in October. “We want to thank Monaco Modified teams and officials for their patience working with the wet weather all afternoon,” said Thompson Speedway co-promoter Cris Michaud.
“Likewise, we’d like to thank the Thompson Speedway track crew for driving their tails off to try and dry the track,” said Monaco Modified Director of Series Development Renee Dupuis. “Once the sun went down, so did our only opportunity to completely dry the track, unfortunately, Mother Nature wins this one but it’s also given us a great opportunity to bring the Constantine Paving & Sealing 75 to the World Series.”
Matt grabs a 2nd place finish at South Boston - March 24
Chilly but dry day yesterday in South Boston, Va. for the SMART "King of the Modifieds" race. Matt was good...just not good enough. Congratulations to Luke Baldwin on the victory. It's been a long year for the Baldwin family so we are sure they can enjoy the positive mojo that comes with a win. Matt started on the pole after the redraw. He controlled the point for the early stages of the race. Under a caution, a car that spun out backed into the front of the PeeDee 60 as Matt was going by causing some minor handling issues. The crew was able to repair it under a later caution. Just not as dominant after that incident. Matt finished second in that two car battle at the front of the field. We move on. We will keep an eye on scheduled races in the northeast and weather. We will be ready to adjust our PeeDee schedule as needed. Stay Tuned!
Carson Loftin Opens 2024 with Back-To-Back Victories at Caraway March 10
From PeeDee Motorsports: For those that watched the SMART Modified event at Caraway Speedway and are questioning what happened and why we went to the tail here is the reasoning. During our pit stop after changing the RR tire it was noticed that the RF tire was going flat. On controlled stop you have a certain amount of time to return to track to maintain position and we did not do this. Also you only have 3 RS tires to work with so we had to put the RR we took off back on the car putting us at a competitive disadvantage. While unfortunate for our team these same rules apply to all teams. We will move on to our next event.
Matt started P4 after the redraw in the Warrior 100. Moved to the point and things looked promising...until a red flag pause around 2/3 through the race. The right front tire went flat. Tire/pit rules for the series put us at a disadvantage. Same rules for all competitors...still disappointing. Congrats to young Carson Loftin on the victory. Matt wound up 9th after fighting back through the field from the back of the pack. The Brown Dogs get a week off to rest up from all the travel. We get back at it again in less than two weeks...Stay Tuned!
Sophia, NC (March 11, 2024) - He’s the youngest winner in the history of the SMART Modified Tour powered by Pace-O-Matic, and now he’s gone back-to-back to open the 2024 season. 15 year-old Carson Loftin was victorious in the Warrior 100 on Sunday (March 10) at Caraway Speedway in Sophia, NC. The Lexington, NC driver took the lead during a restart on lap 64 and held off Ryan Newman and Bobby Labonte, during a couple of late-race restarts, to pick up his second-career victory in as many weeks.
“Mr. Newman is a phenomenal racer. I can’t thank him enough for running me clean,” said Loftin, who drives the L&R Transmissions / LeBleu Bottled Water number-23 Modified. “I used him up a little more than I wanted to going into (turn) one, so I’m glad he kept it classy there. That was fun. I’m just glad we could race hard and get another win.”
“Carson did an excellent job,” said Newman, who drives the SHITI Coolers / Aggressive Hydraulics / Montrose Molders / Capitol Auto Group number-2 for Coulter Motorsports. “I told him, ‘You did exactly what you were supposed to do.’ He said, ‘Sorry about running you up’ and I said, ‘No, you can run me up because you had position.’ He’s a good kid doing a good job; now we gotta try to beat him again.”
In addition to Loftin’s consecutive victories, Newman, from South Bend, IN, now has two podium finishes (third at Florence and second at Caraway). Both drivers are unofficially first and second in the point standings Newman was one of the biggest movers in the Warrior 100. He advanced 8 positions after qualifying 10th. Jimmy Blewett, from Howell, NJ, was another driver with a strong run to the front. After finishing sixth at Florence (SC) last week, Blewett gained 10 spots from his 14th-place starting position to end up fourth at the checkered flag in the Jamie Tomaino owned number-99. The Pace-O-Matic Hard Charger of the Race was Walnut Cover, NC driver Jason Myers. The Greg Butcher Trucking number-4 started 20th and by the end of 100 laps, Myers advanced 14 positions to finish sixth.
Two-time, Tour-Type Modified winner at Caraway, Danny Bohn, was strong in the Ameri-Fast Supply number-24. The Freehold, NJ native rounded out the top-five finishers. Jake Crum, from Statesville, NC, was the Pace-O-Matic Pole Award winner in qualifying. Early in the race, Crum’s number-12pa was in the top-5 until engine problems ended his day.Now drivers from all over the country will converge on a small town in southern Virginia for a chance to be crowned King of the Modifieds. On Saturday, March 23, at South Boston Speedway, the SMART Modified Tour will compete in the Pace-O-Matic King of the Modifieds presented by Dominion Energy. The King of the Modifieds is one of the richest purses in Modified racing, thanks in part to many sponsors, including Vista Installations and the Stanley Law Group. In addition to the $20,000 first place prize, it was announced that the second-place finisher will score $10,000. If you are one of the 36 starters for the event, you will be guaranteed to take home at least $1,200. A total of 32 cars will lock in from qualifying on Saturday, March 23, at South Boston Speedway. The tally will be made up of the top-18 in current SMART Tour owners points that have participated in the first two events of the season, as well as 14 other starters from time trials. That group will be lined up via their qualifying time for the starting order of the race. An additional four cars will earn their way through a last-chance race, which will bring the total to 36 starters. The series reserves the right of an optional provisional starting spot. A tech day for SMART Modified teams will occur on Friday, March 22. Registration will open at 10am. There will be no practice for SMART Modifieds on Friday. Race day, on Saturday, March 23, will see registration open at 7am, qualifying at approximately Noon and the Dominion Energy Last Chance Race for SMART Modifieds to begin shortly after 2pm ET. Discounted tickets for the Pace-O-Matic King of the Modifieds are available though the South Boston Speedway website. General admission tickets are available now for $17. That price will be $20 on race day, Saturday, March 23. Children 12 and under are free for this event. The Sentara Health Late Models and the VSP HEAT Hornets will also be in action.
In 2024, SMART fans will be treated to 15 races at 13 different facilities in the tri-state region of North and South Carolina, as well as Virginia. 15 year-old Carson Loftin won the first event of the season, the Peanut Patch 99, on Saturday, March 2, at Florence Motor Speedway in South Carolina. The season commences at the famed North Wilkesboro Speedway in North Carolina on Saturday, October 19. All races can also be seen on FloRacing, the official streaming broadcast partner of the SMART Modified Tour powered by Pace-O-Matic.
To see the entire schedule for the SMART Modified Tour powered by Pace-O-Matic, as well as all the latest news and information, please visit the series website at www.smartmodtour.com, and be sure to follow the series on social media (Facebook: SMART Modified Tour| Twitter: @SMARTMods_ | IG: @smartmods_).
By Bob Dillner - Twitter: @shorttracklife_
SMART Modified Tour Race #2
UNOFFICIAL Race Results for the Warrior 100 - 03/10/2024
Race Length: 100L - 45.5 M - 63.756 KM
Fin - Car - Driver - Sponsors
1. 23 - Carson Loftin - L&R Transmissions
2. 2 - Ryan Newman - SHITI Coolers / Aggressive Hydraulics
3. 18L - Bobby Labonte - Cookout
4. 99 - Jimmy Blewett - Sponsor Wanted
5. 24 - Danny Bohn - Ameri-Fast Supply
6. 4 - Jason Myers - Greg Butcher Trucking
7. 7VA - Luke Baldwin - Pace-O-Matic
8. 27 - Blake Barney - D-Mac Pools
9. 60 - Matt Hirschman - SMART Chevy
10. 02 - Joey Coulter - TORCH Eyewear
11. 77R - Will Lambrose - Skip Barber Racing School
12. 79 - Anthony Bello - Sun Drop
13. 66 - Austin Kochenash - LOI Kits
14. 16 - Jonathan Cash - Pace-O-Matic
15. 21 - Jimmy Wallace - Carolina Drilling
16. 04 - Brandon Ward - KevinSaysYes.com
17. 1 - Burt Myers - Citrusafe / Peanut Patch
18. 15 - Brian Loftin - L&R Transmissions
19. 77 - Gary Putnam - CURB Records
20. 18 - Daniel Yates - Yates Grading & Paving
21. 25 - Tommy Buzze - Mark III Financial / UNITS
22. 12PA - Jake Crum - Cherokee Unlimited
23. 22 - Jason Tutterow - Carolina Drilling
24. 31 - Cody Norman - Jerry Hunt Supercenter
25. 48 - Jonny Kievman - A-Best Forklift of Millbridge
26. 45 - Gary Young Jr. - Ideal Comfort Heating & Air
March 2 - SMART Tour Race at Florence Speedway doesn't go as planned - 12th place finish
PEE DEE REPORT: Greetings on this Sunday am from South Carolina. The SMART race at Florence Speedway is in the books. An eventful race for sure for the PeeDee 60. Matt had a problem in practice that led to some cosmetic damage to the race car. The Brown Dogs worked feverishly to get her back in race shape. Matt rewarded their efforts with the pole in qualifying. Matt started up front and stayed in the top two for three quarters of the event. Then it got a little rough up front sending Matt into a contact spin. He had to start out back with few laps remaining. He worked his way back to a 12th place finish. Certainly disappointing for Matt and The Dogs as the car was better than the finish. We move on. Stay Tuned...sounds like we may be back sooner than some people think!
RACE REPORT: The old phrase, “The Apple Didn’t Fall Far from the Tree,” could certainly apply to 9-time SMART winner Brian Loftin and his son, Carson. In just his 16th-career series start, the 15-year-old driver won his first race in a Tour-Type Modified. It came Saturday (March 2), in the Peanut Patch 99 at Florence Motor Speedway (SC), which marked the season opener for the SMART Modified Tour powered by Pace-O-Matic. Carson Loftin passed on of the best in the business, Matt Hirschman, to take the lead on lap 81. He then held off Burt Myers and Ryan Newman for the victory. “All of them are great drivers. When I was behind Hirschman, I knew it was going to be tough to get by him. But, these guys gave me a great car and I was able to do it. Man, this feels good,” said Loftin, who drives the number-23 Modified sponsored by L&R Transmissions and LeBlue Bottled Water. With Carson’s victory, he and his father, Brian, become the third, father-son combination in SMART history, to win races. At 15 years, 11 months and 3 days, Carson Loftin is the youngest winner in SMART history. “This means a lot. People don’t know how much goes into putting these race cars together. It’s been a lot of late nights in the shop and it paid off,” continued Loftin. “I’m trying to make racing a career and I gotta win races. I can’t thank these guys enough for sticking behind me. It sure feels good.” Defending series champion Burt Myers led 25 laps enroute to a runner-up finish.“We just lacked overall grip,” said Myers, who drives the Citrusafe Grill Cleaners | Peanut Patch number-1 Modified. “We knew this was coming; Carson is a real talent. He’s smooth and on a track like this, that matters. We were just a little off, but we still led laps, won the stage (Bell Helmets Stage One Dt) and still finished second.” The Jostens Lap Leader of the Race was Hischman, who led 43 circuits. The SMART Chevy number-60 was involved in an intense battle with Myers and Luke Baldwin (finished 5th), which led to his car spinning late in the race. Hirschman also won the Pace-O-Matic Pole Award in qualifying. The Pace-O-Matic Hard Charger of the Race was Joey Coulter, who started 12th and advanced eight positions to finish fourth. In 2024, SMART fans will be treated to 15 races at 13 different facilities in the tri-state region of North and South Carolina, as well as Virginia. The season continues when the 600-horsepower Modifieds tackle the Warrior 100 at Caraway Speedway in Sophia, NC on Sunday, March 10. The SMART Mods will also host one of the biggest Modified races in all of America, on Saturday, March 23, with the Pace-O-Matic King of the Modifieds at South Boston Speedway in Virginia. The season commences at the famed North Wilkesboro Speedway in North Carolina on Saturday, October 19. All races can also be seen on FloRacing, the official streaming broadcast partner of the SMART Modified Tour powered by Pace-O-Matic. Burt Myers captured the 2023 championship for the SMART Modified Tour in the season’s final race in October. The contest at Orange County Speedway in Rougemont, NC was won by Pace-O-Matic driver Bobby Labonte. OCS will host a race with the SMART Modified Tour powered by Pace-O-Matic on Saturday, April 6.
SMART Modified Tour Race #1
Official Race Results for the Peanut Patch 99 - 03/02/2024
Florence Motor Speedway - Timmonsville, SC - 0.4 mile
Race Length: 99L - 39.6 M - 63.756 KM
Fin - Str - Car - Driver - Sponsors - Laps
1 - 5 - 23 - Carson Loftin - L&R Transmissoins - 99
2 - 3 - 1 - Burt Myers - Peanut Patch / Citrusafe - 99
3 - 4 - 2 - Ryan Newman - Shiti Coolers - 99
4 - 12 - 02 - Joey Coulter - TORCH Eyewear - 99
5 - 2 - 7va - Luke Baldwin - Pace-O-Matic - 99
6 - 9 - 99 - Jimmy Blewett - 99
7 - 13 - 24 - Danny Bohn - Ameri-Fast Supply - 99
8 - 11 - 77L - Will Lambros - Skip Barber - 99
9 - 8 - 04 - Brandon Ward - Q-104.1 / KevinSaysYes.com - 99
10 - 16 - 4 - Jason Myers - QRC HVAC / Greg Butcher Trucking - 99
11 - 7 - 15 - Brian Loftin - Steve’s Transmission & Automotive - 99
12 - 1 - 60 - Matt Hirschman SMART Chevy - 99
13 - 18 - 79 - Anthony Bello - Sun Drop - 99
14 - 17 - 25 - Tom Buzze Jr. - UNITS Moving & Storage - 99
15 - 10 - 27 - Blake Barney - Amazing Graphics - 99
16 - 14 - 16va - Jonathan Cash - Pace-O-Matic - 99
17 - 21 - 40 - Frank Fleming - Simmons Powersports - 99
18 - 22 - 0 - Randall Richard - Ringaquared - 99
19 - 19 - 45 - Gary Young Jr. - PSR Products - 99
20 - 23 - 22 - Jason Tutterow - Carolina Drilling - 98
21 - 6 - 23NY - Bryce Bailey - K2 BBQ Sauces - 44
22 - 15 - 77 - Gary Putnam - CURB Records - 29
23 - 20 - 21 - Jimmy Wallace - Carolina Drilling - 29
24 - 24 - 48 - Tovia Grynewicz - A-Best Forklift - 10
Time of Race: 1h:21:50 | Margin of Victory: 1.423 seconds | Cautions:
Lap Leaders: Hirschman 43, C. Loftin 31, B. Myers 25
Pace-O-Matic Pole Award: Matt Hirschman - 17.053 seconds (84.442 mph)
Bell Helmets Stage Winner: Burt Myers
Jostens Lap Leader: Matt Hirschman - 43 Laps Led
Halfway Leader: Matt Hirschman
FEBRUARY 16 - Matt Hirschman Captures Fifth World Series Championship, Seventh Richie Evans Memorial Win
In a race that celebrates one of the greatest Modified drivers to ever compete, another racer continues to etch his name in history. Matt Hirschman left New Smyrna Speedway a five-time World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing champion while capturing his seventh Richie Evans Memorial 100 win. The PeeDee Motorsports driver led the championship standings by 10 points over Ronnie Williams heading into this event. To secure that title, he had to battle one of his biggest competitors of Speedweeks, Ryan Preece. No. 40 of Preece, a multi-time Richie Evans Memorial winner, spent the first part of the race battling for first with Hirschman. On lap 34, Hirschman made a bold choice, dive-bombing under Preece into the bottom of turn three. This aggressive move paid off as Hirschman rocketed to the lead. From there, the Pennsylvania native had to duel with the hard-charging cars of Eric Goodale and Jimmy Blewett. The No. 58 and No. 76 came to life later on in the race and were aided by a few cautions. However, neither driver was able to outrun the No. 60, leaving them with second and third-place finishes. Hirschman ended his week at New Smyrna with his 20th career World Series win, an impressive stat that was made more special by winning this memorial event.
“It always means a lot to win the [Richie] Evans Memorial, and to have your name mentioned in the same category at times is quite an honor,” Hirchman said following the race. “Richie was one of the first guys to dominate down here when they brought the modifieds here a long time ago and in recent years we’ve been the guys doing the same thing that he did in the beginning years. Just great to carry the torch and hopefully we can continue to do this for years to come.” Next year, Hirchman hopes to continue carrying the torch, seeking his seventh consecutive Richie Evans Memorial 100 win. Hirschman has won the event every year since 2019, finishing second to Preece in 2018.
-Story by: Taylor Kitchen
UNOFFICIAL RESULTS
RICHIE EVANS MEMORIAL - TOUR-TYPE MODIFIEDS
FIN NO DRIVER LAPS DIFF
1 60 Matt Hirschman 100 ---
2 58 Eric Goodale 100 1.065
3 76 Jimmy Blewett 100 2.056
4 40 Ryan Preece 100 2.501
5 92 Anthony Nocella 100 3.317
6 20PA Austin Beers 100 3.385
7 54C Tommy Catalano 100 4.096
8 32 Tyler Rypkema 100 5.077
9 46 Craig Lutz 100 5.746
10 50 Ronnie Williams 100 6.214
11 02 Joey Coulter 100 6.368
12 8M Cam McDermott 100 6.613
13 36 David Sapienza 100 7.023
14 11 Norman Newman 100 8.345
15 24 Andrew Krause 92 8 Laps
16 12 Brian Sones 88 12 Laps
17 2 J.R. Bertuccio 77 23 Laps
18 20 Eddie McCarthy 74 26 Laps
19 9 Tom Martino, Jr. 74 26 Laps
20 98 Landon Huffman 74 26 Laps
21 54X Trevor Catalano 70 30 Laps
22 42 Spencer Davis 48 52 Laps
23 00 Brett Meservey 32 68 Laps
24 55 Teddy Hodgdon 23 77 Laps
FEBRUARY 15 - Matt Hirschman starts new World Series streak on Thursday
by Matt Weaver
If history is any indication, Thursday might be the start of a new streak for Matt Hirschman and PeeDee Motorsports in the Tour Type Modified World Series of Asphalt at New Smyrna Speedway. The man they call Big Money Matt entered this World Series of Asphalt on a seven-race winning streak but was shut out of the first two races of the week, and three if counting the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour opener on Saturday night. More so, the No. 60 just didn’t look as stout, so the meticulous Hirschman went to work and figured it out. On Thursday, Hirschman started the race from fourth but was running second behind Patrick Emerling by the backstretch on the first lap. It took just nine laps for Hirschman to take the lead, with Ronnie Williams following, and he wouldn’t give up the spot the rest of the way. “It was a good long run car,” Hirschman said. “Probably still need to get better for tomorrow night. I think actually we were better last night. We’ll take a look at everything and see if we can make it better for tomorrow night. “Williams I think improved, but I think we still need to get a little bit better. I know [Ryan] Preece is coming back tomorrow night and he was real good on Tuesday. We’ll go to work and see what we can do tomorrow night.” Hirschman is seeking his fifth consecutive Richie Evans Memorial 100 on Friday. He has won the week-ending race six times in nine attempts. His 19 World Series wins are fourth on the all-time Tour Type Modified list behind Ted Christopher (43), Richie Evans (38) and Reggie Ruggiero (28). A fifth championship tomorrow, and he currently has a 10 point lead, would inch him closer to Ted Christopher (nine) and Richie Evans (six) on that all-time list.“It’s about getting your stuff right,” Hirschman said. “Depending on the weather, the track and just having everything right. There will be more than just me and Preece for the win tomorrow night, but I know there’s a good chance if we both have our stuff right it could come to down to the two of us.”
Matt Hirschman
Ronnie Williams
Eric Goodale
Jimmy Blewett
Craig Lutz
Eddie McCarthy
Tommy Catalano
J.R. Bertuccio
Patrick Emerling
Joey Coulter
Trevor Catalano
Spencer Davis
Tyler Rypkema
Landon Huffman
Tom Martino, Jr.
Timothy Solomito
Tim Connolly
Norman Newman
Anthony Bello
Anthony Nocella
Andrew Krause
FEBRAURY 14 - Matt Hirschman Wins Third Straight John Blewett, III Memorial
Matt Hirschman scored his fifth career win in the John Blewett, III Memorial Wednesday night at New Smyrna, marking his 18th career World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing win.
By Zach Evans
It may have taken longer than Matt Hirschman hoped, or many fans would have expected. Nonetheless, Hirschman returned to victory lane at New Smyrna Speedway Wednesday night. Hirschman won the John Blewett, III Memorial 76 Wednesday at the World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing, his third consecutive win in the tribute race. Winning at New Smyrna has become standard fare for Hirschman. He is a four-time World Series Tour-type Modified champion, and now has 18 World Series race wins. However, he was winless after three nights of Modified racing at this year's event.While many drivers would have loved to have two top-fives and three top-10s in that stretch, it was not the gold standard Hirschman has set in recent years."The toughest competition you'll ever face is when you beat yourself," said Hirschman in victory lane. "We did that for three nights so far. Results of 10th, fifth and fifth are just not up to our standards. "We got back on track tonight. Everything, hopefully, from here forward goes a little smoother for us and we get on track like we should." Hirschman took the lead with a three-wide pass against Ryan Lutz while negotiating lapped traffic on lap 57, and led the rest of the way for the victory. The John Blewett, III Memorial is always a special race during the World Series. Hirschman was presented with an open-face helmet trophy designed in the style of Blewett, III's own racing helmets, offering more sentimental value to Hirschman. "It's always good to get a win here on the Blewett Memorial tonight. They've got a neat little trophy, a helmet like John used to wear. I used to go to Flemington Speedway to watch him in his earlier days. That's the kind of helmet he'd wear, you could always see his face in the car. Very determined racer, I always enjoyed racing with him." Hirschman now has at least one win in every World Series since 2017. His 18 World Series wins place him fourth on the all-time list in Modified competition, behind Ted Christopher (43), Richie Evans (38) and Reggie Ruggiero (28). With two more chances over the next two nights, including Friday's Richie Evans Memorial 100, Hirschman hopes to add to that total before week's end. "We'll see if we can get any more this week. We got off to a slow start, but hopefully we can finish strong."
TOUR-TYPE MODIFIED JOHN BLEWETT, III MEMORIAL 76
FINISH NO DRIVER
1 60 Matt Hirschman
2 92 Anthony Nocella
3 46 Craig Lutz
4 07 Patrick Emerling
5 58 Eric Goodale
6 24 Andrew Krause
7 54C Tommy Catalano
8 179 Anthony Bello
9 50 Ronnie Williams
10 20PA Austin Beers
11 55CT Teddy Hodgdon
12 8M Cam McDermott
13 2 J.R. Bertuccio
14 14NC Bobby Measmer
15 42 Spencer Davis
16 20 Eddie McCarthy
17 36 David Sapienza
18 12 Brian Sones
19 02 Joey Coulter
20 11 Norman Newman
21 98 Landon Huffman
22 48 Jonny Kay
23 4 Tim connolly
24 25 Brian Robie
25 54X Trevor Catalano
26 32 Tyler Rypkema
27 158 Timmy Solomito
28 76 Jimmy Blewett
FEBRUARY 13 - Ryan Preece Wins Tuesday Night Modified Feature at New Smyrna
By Zach Evans
The NASCAR Cup Series driver for Stewart-Haas Racing picked up a win at the World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing on the eve of Daytona 500 qualifying night. Before Ryan Preece heads to Daytona International Speedway on Wednesday to qualify for the Daytona 500, he made a quick visit to victory lane at New Smyrna Speedway Tuesday night. Preece took the win in Tuesday's 50-lap Tour-type Modified feature at the World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing, finishing ahead of Ron Silk to end his winning streak at the World Series. Preece took the lead on lap 16 from Craig Lutz and maintained the top spot the rest of the way, even as Ron Silk closed in over the closing laps. Tuesday's win was the 13th at the World Series for Preece over the course of his career. Preece was particularly eager to get back to the front after a disappointing showing in Saturday's NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour event at New Smyrna. "We've been really tuning on it. That Tour show on Saturday was a real embarrassing moment for me. I don't think I've ever been lapped in a Modified Tour race. We put our head where it needed to be and made great changes. We were able to beat that 16 [of Silk]. He's been fast all weekend, so it's good to do that. "It's been a lot of fun racing with these guys. I don't get to do it much, so whenever we can all come back and get to victory lane, it feels really good." While the World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing continues on until Saturday, Preece's focus will now turn towards his NASCAR Cup Series obligations starting with Wednesday's pole qualifying night ahead of the Bluegreen Vacations Duels on Thursday. However, Preece isn't completely ruling out the possibility that he'll climb back in his Modified before the end of the week."I had a bet with my crew. I go out fourth for time trials tomorrow in the 500. Maybe I can try and sneak back here. This car has been so good, so maybe we'll try to come back tomorrow." Silk finished second, followed by Ronnie Williams, Anthony Nocella and Matt Hirschman.
TOUR-TYPE MODIFIED, WORLD SERIES NIGHT #5
FINISH NO DRIVER LAPS DIFF
1 40 Ryan Preece 50 ---
2 16 Ron Silk 50 0.601
3 50 Ronnie Williams 50 2.123
4 92 Anthony Nocella 50 2.367
5 60 Matt Hirschman 50 2.482
6 46 Craig Lutz 50 2.801
7 58 Eric Goodale 50 3.191
8 55CT Teddy Hodgdon 50 3.300
9 07 Patrick Emerling 50 3.532
10 36 David Sapienza 50 3.726
11 54 Tommy Catalano 50 4.153
12 9 Tom Martino, Jr. 50 4.841
13 42 Spencer Davis 50 5.533
14 20 Eddie McCarthy 50 6.469
15 2 J.R. Bertuccio 50 6.724
16 98 Landon Huffman 50 7.079
17 11 Norman Newman 50 7.300
18 48 Johnny Kay 50 7.480
19 7P Rich Parker 49 1 Lap
20 09 Christopher Hatton 47 3 Laps
21 76 Jimmy Blewett 44 6 Laps
22 179 Anthony Bello 44 6 Laps
23 14NC Bobby Measmer 40 10 Laps
24 02 Joey Coulter 40 10 Laps
25 32 Tyler Rypkema 27 23 Laps
26 158 Timmy Solomito 25 25 Laps
FEBRURY 12 - Ron Silk stood in victory lane at night's end at New Smyrna Speedway.
By Zach Evans
For the second time in as many Tour Modified races at this year's World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing, Ron Silk stood in victory lane at night's end at New Smyrna Speedway. Silk took the lead on lap seven from Patrick Emerling and led the rest of the way in the 50-lap feature to kick off the races that will count for points towards the Tour-type Modified World Series title with a win. After winning Saturday's NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season opener, Silk is looking like one of the drivers to beat at this year's World Series. "A lot of great people around me and great equipment. The car was fantastic. I think we can make it a little bit better for tomorrow night, but it's fun to be down here racing in February. To get two wins in a row to start off is great, and hopefully we can get another one tomorrow." Preece finished 0.477 seconds ahead of Ryan Preece, while those two drivers distanced themselves from third-place finisher Ronnie Williams. Patrick Emerling finished fourth, with Matt Hirschman rounding out the top five."I was making sure I didn't make a big mistake. I knew when he got to second, I had a pretty good gap. I had to manage some lapped traffic. We'll see, maybe we'll have a battle tomorrow night."
FINISH DRIVER
1 16 Ron Silk
2 40 Ryan Preece
3 50 Ronnie Williams
4 07 Patrick Emerling
5 60 Matt Hirschman
6 92 Anthony Nocella
7 55CT Teddy Hodgdon
8 179 Anthony Bello
9 58 Eric Goodale
10 8M Cam McDermott
11 76 Jimmy Blewett
12 46 Craig Lutz
13 02 Joey Coulter
14 24 Andrew Krause
15 20 Eddie McCarthy
16 42 Spencer Davis
17 36 David Sapienza
18 14NC Bobby Measmer
19 11 Norman Newman
20 4 Tim Connolly
21 09 Christopher Hatton
22 56T Trevor Catalano
23 54 Tommy Catalano
24 9 Tom Martino, Jr.
25 7P Rich Parker
26 2 J.R. Bertuccio
27 48 Johnny Kay
28 32 Tyler Rypkema
FEBRUARY 10 - Ron Silk Defends New Smyrna NWMT Season Opening Victory
By Zach Evans
It was deja vu for 2023 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion Ron Silk, as he opened the new season with another win at New Smyrna Speedway. It's deja vu in more ways than one for Ron Silk. The veteran driver repeated what he did last year, winning the opening race of the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour at New Smyrna Speedway. The defending series champion rolled off third at New Smyrna, right behind Craig Lutz and Austin Beers. When the green flag dropped, the Lutz No. 46 paced the field with ease.When the caution came out on lap 20, several drivers were given an early opportunity to vary their strategy in an attempt to catch up to the 29-year-old. Lutz stayed on track, giving him the clearance to dominate the first 80 laps of the race. However, drivers like Ron Silk gave up track position to head to pit road, a strategy call that worked to his advantage. Over the course of several laps, Lutz saw a silver bullet making its way through the field, lurking in his rearview mirror. It didn’t take much time after the yellow flag for Ron Silk, in a brand new race car, to successfully make a pass for the lead. The veteran racer was challenged through the event by several drivers right behind. One of those was Justin Bonsignore who applied continuous pressure, but never successfully got the lead. On the other hand, Andrew Krause and Doug Coby were the only two drivers to take first from Silk for a short time. And for a moment, when a late caution flew, it looked like Coby could have won the race based on a great strategy call. As the rest of the field went to pit road, Coby and Beers stayed on track, leading the field to green with 10 laps to go. Coby restarted on the preferred line, however, after making contact with the No. 16 of Beers on that restart, the No. 7 machine fell back. This allowed the powerhouse machine of Silk to jolt ahead and cross the line first. “I knew I was sitting in a pretty good spot in third there,” Silk explained, talking about that final restart. “The two guys were on, they weren’t much older tires, but 20 laps makes a difference. So I was able to kind of push Austin (Beers) by Doug (Coby) there and could kind of make quick work of him. Then luckily was just able to get a little bit of a gap that I could manage to the end.” Finishing in the second position, picking up where he left off in the championship standings, was Bonsignore. “I just needed to be a little freer,” Bonsignore said, “He (Silk) obviously got through traffic and had an eight-car length gap on us and I was giving it everything I had but I was just still too tight on that last set of tires and coming to the white. I found something in three and four, I wrapped the yellow line and it hooked really good it’s just too little too late at that point.” The one-two finish between these two drivers is sweet poetry, starting the season how they left it. This opening race at New Smyrna sets the tone for this season for the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour, and if this is any indication, it looks like Silk and Bonsignore are on track to battle for the title yet again.
NEW SMYRNA VISITORS BUREAU 200
FINISH NO DRIVER LAPS DIFF
1 16 Ron Silk 200 ---
2 51 Justin Bonsignore 200 0.425
3 7 Doug Coby 200 1.879
4 1 Patrick Emerling 200 2.073
5 56 Trevor Catalano 200 2.286
6 64 Austin Beers 200 2.530
7 32 Tyler Rypkema 200 2.773
8 24 Andrew Krause 200 2.962
9 3 Jake Johnson 200 3.180
10 60 Matt Hirschman 200 3.402
11 22 Kyle Bonsignore 200 3.597
12 46 Craig Lutz 200 3.791
13 40 Ryan Preece 200 6.399
14 14 Ryan Newman 199 1 Lap
15 99 Ronnie Williams 199 1 Lap
16 36 Dave Sapienza 199 1 Lap
17 25 Brian Robie 199 1 Lap
18 02 Joey Coulter 199 1 Lap
19 4 Tim Connolly 198 2 Laps
20 18 Ken Heagy 197 3 Laps
21 34 J.B. Fortin 196 4 Laps
22 26 Gary McDonald 192 8 Laps
23 00 Brett Meservey 191 9 Laps
24 42 Spencer Davis 190 10 Laps
25 01 Melissa Fifiield 188 12 Laps
26 58 Eric Goodale 178 22 Laps
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30 54 Tommy Catalano 131 69 Laps
31 09 Christopher Hatton, Jr. 129 71 Laps
32 2 J.R. Bertuccio 40 160 Laps
33 8 John-Michael Shenette 32 168 Laps
34 20 Eddie McCarthy 19 181 Laps
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