By Clayton Johns, with Eric Uprichard

Late Models

Jason Witty (No. 19) won an eventful 75-lap Limited Late Model invitational at Sunset Speedway on Father’s Day Sunday.

Witty was the benefactor of a major incident between Dwayne Baker (No. 48) and Tom Walters (No. 47) with two laps to go in the scheduled 75 lap race.

The Queensville, Ont.-based driver was running fourth at the time of the incident, but the top three cars were involved. The incident yielded a red flag on lap 73 and with rain clouds beginning to sprinkle, the race was called complete two laps shy of the intended length and Witty was declared the winner.

Walters took the lead from Mike Bentley (No. 51) on lap 20 and led until he spun in turn two after contact with Bentley on lap 60, who had continued to run second.

After Walters was forced to restart as the last car on the lead lap, he had worked his way back to second.

The story of the night, however, was the incident between Walters and Baker at the closing of the race.

The field was set for a three-lap dash following a caution for Frank Davey (No. 49) who spun in turn four.

On the ensuing restart, with Baker leading the field to green and Walters on his outside, the two raced side-by-side down the backstretch. Walters had the advantage off turn four on the outside. As the pair approached the start/finish line, Baker made contact with Walters, sending him spiraling towards the inside wall.

Chris Morrow (No. 11) was collected in the incident, as both he and Walters suffered heavy damage to the front end of their respective cars.

It was unclear whether Baker intentionally turned Walters towards the wall or whether Walters may have thought he was clear of Baker and moved to the bottom line to block the driver of the 48.

Regardless, both Walters and Morrow suffered heavy damage. It appeared as though most of the damage to Baker.

The race featured several lead changes prior to the incident which ultimately handed the win to Witty.

Bentley got by Morrow on lap 16 using the outside, but just four laps later Walters stole the top spot from Bentley.

Two early race cautions at lap four and lap 14 slowed the field. Nick Goetz (No. 24) spun to cause the first, while Goetz would nudge Mike Brown (No. 2) to cause the second 10 laps later.

Caution would fly again three laps later when Thane Woodside (No.5) got mixed up in turn four.

The race would then run under green flag conditions for 40 laps within which Walters would lap all but eight cars. The caution came out on lap 57 when Gary Elliott (No. 36) went around in turn four, erasing a full straightaway lead for Walters over Bentley.

It was three laps following the ensuing restart when Bentley and Walters made contact, sending them to the back and handing the lead to Baker before the aforementioned drama began with 15 to go.

Witty’s win marks his third in his last three starts at the Innisfil, Ont. oval, dating back to June 8.

Unofficial Results: Limited Late Model 75-Lap Feature (Top-Ten) 1. 19 Jason Witty 2. 10 Gord Shepherd 3. 41 Taylor Holdaway 4. 51 Mike Bentley 5. 11 Chris Morrow 6. 47 Tom Walters 7. 48 Dwayne Baker 8. 73 Ryan Kimball (-1 Lap) 9. 35 Andy Kamrath (-1 Lap) 10. 95 Anthony Simone (-1 Lap)

26 drivers started the 75-lap A-Main.
Super Stock

Matt Bentley (No. 21) battled back from a mid-race pass to earn the victory in the 50-lap Super Stock invitational at Sunset on Sunday evening.

Bentley benefited from a lap 40 restart when he restarted outside the front-row. With Cayden Lapcevich (No. 76) leading the field to green, the two drivers made contact in turn two as Lapcevich moved up the racetrack. Lapcevich would get the worst of it, suffering a flat right-rear and losing the lead he had earned six laps earlier.

The exciting battle for the lead developed from lap 22 to lap 34 between race leader Bentley, Lapcevich and Lane Zardo (No. 46). Lapcevich tracked down Bentley, but the duo had to maneuver around the lapped car of Tommy Morrison (No. 83).

Lapcevich eventually moved his way under Bentley with Zardo in tow. Zardo made it around Bentley as well before a caution on lap 39 for debris re-racked the field. Another caution on lap 40 after Ryan Semple (No. 11) spun in turn four would pit Zardo and Lapcevich against one another for the final ten laps.

Disaster struck for Zardo on the restart as the third-year super stock driver suffered a flat left front tire, resulting in another caution with 10 to go. Zardo would wind up fourth.

Lapcevich and Bentley would go head-to-head on the restart, but contact entering turn one sent Lapcevich spinning in turn two. Bentley, who was on the outside, was the recipient of the contact rather than the donor and would keep his spot.

Kevin Albers (No. 27) also suffered a flat left front as a result of the incident.

Unofficial Super Stock Results
1. 21 Matt Bentley, 2. 39 Travis Hallyburton, 3. 1 Donny Munce, 4. 46 Lane Zardo, 5. 40 Donny Beatty, 6. 07 Dan Archibald, 7. 11 Ryan Semple, 8. 83 Tommy Morrison, 9. 27 Kevin Albers, 10. 48 Coltin Everinham, 11. 09 Dan Price (DNF), 12. 34 Cayden Lapcevich (DNF), 13. 72 Randy Rusnell (DNS)

Mini Stock

Billy Schwartzenburg (No. 86) used an outside line pass with 9 laps remaining to get by Justin Holmes (No. 400) for an impressive victory in the 30-lap Mini Stock invitational at Sunset Speedway.

Schwartzenburg started at the front of the pack, but spent the early portion of the race hunting down Holmes who started outside the front row.

Charlie Smith (No. 9) drove through the field as the Barrie Speedway regular earned the final spot on the podium.

The first of two caution flags flew on lap 4 when Doug Butler (No. 10) got into Ken Townsend (No. 21) and Brandon McFerran (No. 64) in turn three.

The caution would fly again on lap 7 when Townsend went in to turn three heavily as he tried to battle his way back through the field, but tagged a pair of cars in the process.

Danny Benedict (No. 54) and Mike Getliff (No. 15) rounded out the top-five.

Unofficial Mini Stock Results (Top-Five) 1. 86 Billy Schwartzenburg 2. 400 Justin Holmes 3. 9 Charlie Smith 4. 54 Danny Benedict 5. 15 Mike Getliff

27 drivers started the 30-lap feature.

Late Model Qualifying Results

Position: Car Number, Driver, Time (Seconds)

1. 51 Mike Bentley 14.846
2. 47 Tom Walters 14.875
3. 19 Jason Witty 15.024
4. 48 Dwayne Baker 15.050
5. 11 Chris Morrow 15.057
6. 95 Anthony Simone 15.070
7. 24 Nick Goetz 15.085
8. 37 Marvin Freiberger 15.106
9. 70 Gord Shepherd 15.118
10. 41 Taylor Holdaway 15.120
11. 40 Kerry Micks 15.122
12. 17 Josh Stade 15.138
13. 8 Jason Parker 15.148
14. 46 Billy Zardo III 15.157
15. 44 Steve Laking 15.273
16. 36 Gary Elliott 15.305
17. 49 Frank Davey 15.306
18. 14 Thayne Hallyburton 15.319
19. 73 Ryan Kimball 15.322
20. 79 Cory Horner 15.347
21. 2 Mike Brown 15.398
22. 35 Andy Kamrath 15.406
23. 02 Shawn Murray 15.415
24. 5 Thayne Woodside 15.465
25. 10 Ernie Fumerton 15.553
26. 81 Britney Gresel 15.698

Photo gallery by Eric Uprichard / www.SpeedwayPhoto.ca

By Eric Uprichard – Flamboro Speedway played host to the first round of the 12^th Annual Grisdale Triple Crown on Saturday night. The highly anticipated three race spectacle has been deemed one of the “Crown Jewls” of Late Model racing here in Ontario and has been a staple on many racing fanatics schedules respectively.

Four different drivers snagged a checkered on their quest for top starting spot in the feature. Getting the night started on the right foot – pardon the pun – and no stranger to Victory Lane at Flamboro Speedway, was the No. 05 of Brad Corcoran. The second qualifying heat win went to the No. 44 of Steve Laking. Round two of the qualifying heats saw former track champion No. 8 Paul Howse take down a ‘W’, finished by a dominating heat win by the current Flamboro Speedway Late Model points leader No. 89c of Shawn Chenoweth.

Starting on pole for the main event was the aforementioned Steve Laking. Not one of the 19 starting Late Model drivers would get in front of him as he was perfect leading all 75 laps. A late race caution on lap 56 put the No. 89c of Shawn Chenoweth, who started back in 7th, on the outside of Laking, setting up a dash to the finish. The two drivers would make contact as the battle developed over the dying laps. Laking would ultimately prevail and take round one. The ‘King of Speed’, and last year’s Triple Crown Champion, Jason Shaw rounded out the podium in 3rd.

Unofficial Top 10:

1)     44. Steve Laking

2)     89c. Shawn Chenoweth

3)     82. Jason Shaw

4)     05. Brad Corcoran

5)     52. Scott Lyons

6)     56. Jeff Stewart

7)     8. Paul Howse

8)     3. Chris Bochler

9)     95. Kevin Benish

10) 7. Trevor Monaghan

Round two of the Grisdale Triple Crown is set for July 6th at Flamboro Speedway. Be sure to check out the new www.flamborospeedway.ca for more news and Triple Crown Schedules.

OntarioOval.com Exclusive – By: Eric Uprichard ( www.speedwayphoto.ca )

Sauble Beach, ON – The Victoria Day long weekend marks the ‘unofficial’ kick off of summer in Ontario. Sauble Beach, voted the no. 1 beach in Ontario, is known for its action on the shores and City Slickers escaping the nine-to-five for some downtime. While some relaxed this long weekend, some were brave enough to venture into the ice bath know as Lake Huron for a Polar Bear Dip, but the real action was on track Saturday night for the season opener at Sauble Speedway. The four regular divisions that took to the ¼ mile oval, where the Sauble Falls Late Models, Thunder Cars, Street Stocks and 4 Cylinders.

The 4 Cylinder division ( Mini Stocks ) hit the track for the first feature race of 2013 at The Beach. Like many tracks in Ontario, the 4 Cylinder division is as competitive as it’s ever been. Billy Schwartzenburg made the journey for opening night but would start at the rear of the field as top qualifier. It didn’t take long for the bright green Mustang to make his way through the field, but was met by then leader Kevin Bridge, as the two would battle side by side for a handful of laps. A few late race cautions would make it interesting, but the Sauble regulars didn’t have anything for the 2012 Flamboro Speedway track champion, as Schwartzenburg would complete the hat-track.

Unofficial Top Five:

1)      86 – Billy Schwartzenburg

2)      17 – Kevin Bridge

3)      52 – Kevin Paupst

4)      51 – Chris Ruigrok

5)      46 – Nick Vermillea

Next on track were the Street Stocks for their 20-lap feature. Jake Zevenburgen, third generation driver, took home his first career feature win after passing pole sitter Jamie Adams early on. Jason Lawrence made his way through the field and looked like he may have had something for Zevenburgen, but ran out of laps.

Unofficial Top Five:

1)      77 – Jake Zevenburgen

2)      47 – Jason Lawrence

3)      5 – Corey Adams

4)      16 – Zack Casemore

5)      4 – John McCartney

The Thunder Cars were dominated on this night by the 00 of Smokin` Joe Adams. Adams took both of his heat wins and came all the way through the field from the back. Most of the race was led by Ken Grubb, but a late race caution bunched the crowd up. Adams, running fourth, would find himself in the right place at the right time avoiding two spinning cars in front of him on the restart going into one and two. He would go on to collect his third checkered flag of the night to complete his hat-trick as well.

Unofficial Top Five:

1)      00 – Joe Adams

2)      36 – Ken Grubb

3)      30 – Todd Davenport

4)      61 – Chad Edan

5)      68 – Kent Cruickshank

The night wrapped up with a 30-lap feature for the Late Model division. A scary incident involving best appearing car contenders, Marvin Fryburger and Nick Goetz, brought out a red flag on lap seven. Both drivers would be ok after the lengthy clean up. Jason Parker came from firth place to take home the trophy. Scott McTeer came home a strong second after challenging Parker briefly in the dying laps.

Unofficial Top Five:

1)      8 – Jason Parker

2)      49 – Scott McTeer

3)      10 – Tom Gibbons

4)      17 – Josh Stade

5)      81 – Brittney Gresel

For a look at all the nights action, visit www.twrobartsphotos.com and www.speedwayphoto.ca.

Gallery by Eric Uprichard / www.speedwayphoto.ca

OntarioOval.com Exclusive – By Clayton Johns (@cjohnsmedia)

Oro Station, Ont. – A full card of racing action was set for Barrie Speedway’s third week of action in 2013, including the Wahta Springs Late Models, Canestoga Sprayers & Asphalt Repair Thunder Cars, and St. Onge Recreation Pure Stocks.

Wahta Springs Limited Late Models Feature 1

The first of two 30-lap main events for the limited late models would start the feature portion of the night. Mike Langley (#5) held down the pole position in a handicapped starting grid.

However, it was clear from the early laps that Shawn Murray (#02) had the car to beat to start the evening, charging from his sixth-place starting spot to the front in just a handful of laps. Murray moved around Roy Manary (#74) to take the lead before the ten-lap mark.

Murray would be challenged in the closing laps by Ron Quesnelle (#57) and previous week’s winner Gord Shepherd (#10). Murray was able to fend off the pair as they dueled for the second spot on the podium over the final five laps, to earn his first feature victory of the season.

Results: 1. #02 Shawn Murray; 2. #10 Gord Shepherd; 3. #57 Ron Quesnelle; 4. #24 Leonard Johnston; 5. #74 Roy Manary; 6. #91 Andre Pepin; 7. #14 Thayne Hallyburton; 8. #69 Al Inglis; 9. #83 Ian Bourque; 10. #54 Randy Bull; 11. #43 Darrin Malcolm; 12. #5 Mike Langley; 13. #4 Glenn Lloyd; 14. #27 Sam Reckzin, 15. #44x Rick Meyer (DNS).

St. Onge Recreation Pure Stock Feature

Mike Getliffe (#77) stole the show in the pure stock feature, emerging from his mid-pack starting position to find victory lane. Getliffe wasted little time, taking the lead on lap five of the 20-lap affair. Getliffe worked around Dean Currie’s #09 in the early going before pulling away from the remainder of the 12-car field.

Getliffe would be reeled in late in the race by Charlie Smith (#9). Smith dueled with Doug Butler (#10) for the second spot over the final laps. The war for the second spot on the podium would allow Getliffe to hold off his challengers to earn the victory. Butler would narrowly edge Smith at the line, using momentum on the outside line to his advantage.

Top five finishers included Getliffe, Butler, Smith, Ryan Toon (#57), and Currie.

Doug Butler and Dean Currie each won a pair of heat races.

Canestoga Sprayers and Asphalt Repair Thunder Car Feature

A tough field of 13 thunder cars took the green flag for the division’s third feature of the season. Darryl St. Onge (#00) stole the show, after starting sixth, to earn his second win of the season.

Donny Brandon (#40) jumped out to an early lead after starting fourth, but St. Onge quickly drew to the back bumper of Brandon’s Monte Carlo. St. Onge would take the lead on lap eight, and would never surrender it.

A caution on lap 12 for a spinning Bryan Penny (#16), tightened the field for the second-half of the 30-lap feature, but the real battle would be for second place as St. Onge dominated the remainder of the night.

Dave Doucette (#44) would work his way from the back of the field he got tangled up with Rick Walt (#10) in the opening laps. Doucette would battle his way back to the front, challenging second-place runner Travis Hallyburton for the middle-step on the podium. Doucette, however, would run out of laps and settle for third.

Former Barrie champion Jim Belesky would finish fourth, while Walt would round out the top-five.

Wahta Springs Limited Late Models Feature 2

Darrin Malcolm (#43) lead early on in the second 30-lap feature of the night after starting second, but it would be Gord Shepherd to earn his third feature win in six starts at Barrie to start the season.

Malcolm would lead until lap six when Al Inglis (#69) would steal the lead after starting fourth.

The story was all Shepherd though, who was quickly moving up from his 10^th-place starting spot. Shepherd needed just three laps to find fifth place, and five more before he sat third. Shepherd utilized the highline to his advantage, as many drivers had glued their cars to the bottom of the speedway.

Shepherd stole second from Malcolm on lap 14, setting up a battle for the lead with Inglis. Shepherd took until lap 19 to track down ‘The Red Rocket’, but once again used the outside. With Inglis on the bottom, the duo battled for two full laps before Shepherd would eventually take the lead on lap 21. He wouldn’t  look back from there, cruising to his third victory in as many weeks.

Malcolm would fend off week two winner Thayne Hallyburton (#14) to hold on to the third spot, while Ron Quesnelle (#57) would earn his second top-five of the night.

Results: 1. #10 Gord Shepherd; 2. #69 Al Inglis; 3. #43 Darrin Malcolm; 4. #14 Thayne Hallyburton; 5. #57 Ron Quesnelle; 6. #24 Leonard Johnston; 7. #91 Andre Pepin; 8. #54 Randy Bull; 9.#02 Shawn Murray; 10. #83 Ian Bourque; 11. #4 Glenn Lloyd; 12. #5 Mike Langley; 13. #74 Roy Manary; 14. #27 Sam Reckzin; 15. #44x Rick Meyer (DNS).

Barrie Speedway will be back in action on Saturday May 25, 2013 with full nights of racing for the Pure Stocks, Thunder Cars, and Limited Late Models, as well as a visit from the Ontario Legends Series.

Photo gallery courtesy Mike Kiers / www.cableguyphotos.com

By Clayton Johns (@cjohnsmedia)

Ontario Oval Exclusive

Sunset Speedway opened its 2013 racing campaign with a full card of action including mini stock, super stock, and the track’s featured limited late model division. A solid turn out of cars combined with a warm weather evening provided an excellent setting to start to the season.

Limited Late Model

Mike Bentley (#51 Latitude Land Effects Chevrolet SS) was perfect on opening night, cruising to a win in the 35-lap A-main feature. Back-to-back heat wins put Bentley on the outside of the front row for the feature event, with 7-time champion Chris Morrow (#11 Morrow Electric Chevrolet SS) holding down the top spot after his pair of heat wins.

Bentley took the lead from Morrow after a three lap battle to start the race saw him use the high line to his advantage.

Caution flew for the second time on lap eight when Anthony Simone (#95 Chevrolet SS) appeared to have something go wrong in the right front of the car. Simone stopped just short of contact with the turn one wall and had been running fourth at the time. The incident ended Simone’s Sunset debut.

Bentley toyed with Morrow on the final two restarts, including the final one of the night on lap 10. From that point on, Bentley cruised to his first win of the year, starting the season where he ended at the 2012 Autumn Colours Classic.

Defending division champion Tom Walters (#47 Barrie Pro Floor Ford Mustang) battled Morrow for second spot for nearly 15 laps before eventually taking the spot. The battle between the two, however, allowed Bentley to pull away and take the win.

Scott Beatty (#88 Impala SS) made an impressive move on Andy Kamrath (#35 AM Roofing /All Star Wings Ford Mustang) for the fourth spot early in the race after starting eighth, and would hold down the spot right to the checkered flag.

Dwayne Baker (#48 Centennical Chrysler Dodge Charger) rounded out the top-five in his Sunset return following a 2012 championship season at Barrie Speedway.

Kerry Micks (#40 Baker Performance Ford), Kamrath, Taylor Holdaway (#41 Downing Roofing Ford Fusion), Billy Zardo III (#46 Holmes on Homes Impala SS), and Sean Grosman (#29 Landing Strip Chevrolet SS) rounded out the top-ten.

The ‘feel good’ story of the night belonged to Jason Witty (#19 Chevrolet SS). The Sunset regular Witty was collected in an unfortunate wreck on the first lap of his first heat of 2013 after Gary Elliott (#36 Quaker State Chevrolet SS) touched the wall on the front straightaway.

Witty’s crew thrashed to have to car start the feature, albeit without any nose to the car. While Witty would have preferred the car had gone home in one piece, the silver lining is the car does not need a new front clip.

Super Stock

Randy Rusnell (#72 Monte Carlo SS) led every lap of the 30-lap Super Stock feature en route to his opening night victory. The defending track champion completed the hat-trick in the division’s main event after two decisive heat victories as well.

Rusnell was challenged throughout the race by Lane Zardo (#46 Monte Carlo SS) and Cayden Lapcevich (#76 Toyota Camry), and especially so on a restart with five laps remaining. Zardo held the outside line with Rusnell for two full laps, with Lapcevich knocking at the back bumper of each driver multiple times, before Rusnell eventually took the spot.

Matt Bentley (#21 Chevrolet Nova) and Paul Maltese (#28 Monte Carlo SS) dueled for the fourth spot throughout the night, holding off Paul Geniole Jr. (#81 Nova SS) for the final top-five spots.

Dan Archibald (#07 Monte Carlo SS), Kevin Albers (#27 Camaro SS), Steven Wilson (#71 Monte Carlo SS), and Donnie Munce (#1 Camaro SS) completed the top-five.

Mini Stock

Peterborough Speedway mini stock regular Ryan Oosterholt (#07) was the on-track winner in the 25-lap A-main followed by teammate Chris Mulders (#99), but Warren Paxton (#33) was declared the winner following technical inspection.

Oosterholt and Mulders were both disqualified following technical inspection for illegal motor compression. As a result, the Sunset regular Paxton was declared the winner.

Ben Melenhorst (#26) and Ken Townsend (#21) initially rounded out the top-five, but would move up to second and third positions, respectively when all was finished.

Veteran Billy Schwartzenburg (#86) won both of his heat races and started on the pole for the feature event. Schwartzenburg jumped out to an early lead before pulling pit side with trouble on lap three to end his night and eliminate his chance for a hat-trick.

Defending champion Eric Yorke (#51) appeared to run in to trouble midway through the race as well. Yorke was running inside the top-five before falling back through the field to finish outside the top-ten.

UNOFFICIAL Results – Sunset Speedway (May 4, 2013)

Limited Late Models

Feature: 1. #51 Mike Bentley, 2. #47 Tom Walters, 3. #11 Chris Morrow, 4. #88 Scott Beatty, 5. #48 Dwayne Baker, 6. #40 Kerry Micks, 7. #35 Andy Kamrath, 8. #41 Taylor Holdaway, 9. #46 Billy Zardo III, 10. #29 Sean Grosman, 11. #49 Frank Davey, 12. #21 Dario Capirchio, 13. #36 Gary Elliott, 14. #55 Bruce Rankin, 15. #77 Herb Walters, 16. #00 Brian Wilson Jr. (DNF), 17. #19 Jason Witty (DNF), 18. #10 Ernie Fumerton (DNF), 19. #95 Anthony Simone (DNF).

Heat Winners: #11 Chris Morrow (2), #51 Mike Bentley (2)

Super Stock

Feature: 1. #72 Randy Rusnell, 2. #46 Lane Zardo, 3. #76 Cayden Lapcevich, 4. #21 Matt Bentley, 5. #28 Paul Maltese, 6. #81 Paul Geniole Jr., 7. #07 Dan Archibald, 8. #27 Kevin Albers, 9. #71 Steven Wilson, 10. #1 Donnie Munce, 11. #25 Nicole Johnston, 12. #82 Nick Tooley, 13. #10 Dennis Cybalski (DNF), 14. #48 Coltin Everingham (DNF), 15. #11 Kent Constable (DNF).

Heat Winners: #46 Lane Zardo, #28 Paul Maltese, #72 Randy Rusnell (2)

Mini Stock

Feature: 1. #33 Warren Paxton, 2. #26 Ben Melenhorst, 3. #21 Ken Townsend (Incomplete Results)

Heat Winners: #51 Eric Yorke, #26 Ben Melenhorst, #86 Billy Schwartzenburg (2), #06 Chris Free (2) (Rookie Heat)

Photos by Eric Uprichard / www.SpeedwayPhoto.ca

Eric Uprichard / www.speedwayphoto.ca - If there was a night the ‘Racing Snowbirds’ had a home track advantage it would have been night three at the New Smyrna Speedway. Temperatures plummeted to the freezing mark on Sunday turning the Florida air into what felt like mid-October. Despite the ‘home like’ conditions, it was an off night for many for many of the racers from Ontario.

In the Pro Late Model division, Delaware regulars Marc and Jaxson Jacobs have had an impressive start to their World Series of Asphalt Racing. Marc Jacobs has completed every lap so far in no.8 machine, and has not had any major incidents beyond a spin on opening night. Marc has not finished outside the top seventeen in all three nights of competition. Jaxson has also fared well considering his mechanical issues on Night Two. Jaxson drove through the impressive field to an eleventh place finish on the opening night.

Kirk Hooker disguised as Steve Laking has had his share of difficulties. Both nights two and three, Laking was involved in on track incidents after driving the no. 38 all the way from scratch to a top five finish on opening night.

In the Super Late Model division, the no.18 of Bruce Gowland has had mechanical issues on all three nights. After taking the green flag on night three, the OSCAAR Super Later Model driver would leave the track in a cloud of smoke on lap one.

Another OSCAAR regular in the no.17 Super Late Model has had a great start to the World Series; finishing on the lead lap in all three nights despite the extensive list of heavy hitters. Passer has finished no lower than eighteenth and had a solid twelfth place finish on opening night.

Cole Powell took the green flag on night one of the World Series in his no.73 Super Late Model but has not returned to action since. Powell drove to a solid fourteenth place finish. It has been reported that Powell has been over at Daytona International Speedway preparing for the inaugural UNOH Battle at the Beach in his Nascar Whelen Modified.

For all official results and other Canadian results, you can check out the New Smyrna Speedway website at www.newsmyrnaspeedway.org.

To view all the racing action, please visit www.speedwayphoto.ca for New Smyrna Speedway Photos.

Eric Uprichard / www.SpeedwayPhoto.ca – Rain shortened practice can only mean one thing for a new driver at Daytona; trouble. After the sea t time was drastically reduced due to the wet stuff during Thursday afternoons four hour practice, it left many teams scrambling to nail their setups for Fridays qualifying session. Andrew Gresel and the Wes Gonder Racing crew were one of those teams.

After clocking in 35^th quickest of the 44 cars at 51.995sec (173.094mph), it was going to be close for the local star. The anxiety in the garage area was intense as the teams got the word from the Arca trailer who made the show and who was going home. Unfortunately for Gresel and the team, the rain and provisional positions proved to be the end to the weekend.

Other Canadian notables include long time Arca regular Terry Jones and Quebec’s Dexter Stacey. While Jones qualified in at 51.243 (175.634mph), Stacey would need use a provisional to race Saturday. John Wes Townley took top honors for Venturini  Motorsports at 49.638 (181.313mph) with his teammate Milka Duno a close second.

The Lucas Oil 200 goes tomorrow at 4:30pm and will be live on Speed. You can also stream live data on the Arca Racing website at www.arcaracing.com.

By Eric Uprichard/www.SpeedwayPhoto.ca  – For those lucky enough to get some much needed relief from the Ontario winter and travel down to Florida for Speedweeks 2013, they were greeted with the wet stuff and more cancellations. “At least it’s not snow” was the theme around the garage for local Ontario race enthusiasts; but for Andrew Gresel and other rookies in the field, seat time is at a premium.

The first four hour practice was delayed and finally cancelled after the skies opened up only a few hours into virtually the only single car practice available. With only one 45 minute practice session remaining on Saturday, Hepworth Ontario’s Andrew Gresel is getting comfortable with the car and the speeds of Daytona.  He admits the time in the garage is no good, and “Just wants to get better”. At the end of the session, Gresel and the WGR team posted a time of 50.887 slotting them in at 24^th quickest of the 43 car field. Terry Jones finished the session 36^th quickest and Dexter Stacey 38^th quickest respectably.

Qualifying goes Friday at 2:00pm if the skies break. More rain is in the forecast, but should clear in time for the two lap runs. You can follow all the qualifying action online at www.arcaracing.com to see how our Canucks stack up.

You can also view all the ARCA Racing action at www.SpeedwayPhoto.ca.

By Randy Spencer for OntarioOval.com – The weather for round two of the Oktoberfest Classic weekend at Flamboro was much improved Sunday with lots of great racing action in store. A good crowd was on hand to see second round qualifying as well as the regular scheduled feature races. The Hurricane Midgets, Lucas Oil Sportsman Cup series, the Pure Stocks, the Pro 4 Modifieds and the TECHTONIX Open Wheel Modifieds all completed their heat and feature races Saturday before the rain set in so the pits were not quite as full as Saturday. A few new cars in the pits for Sunday as action got underway at 2:30pm.

The Ponderosa Nature Resort Mini Stock second round qualifying race winners were, Nick Clarke, Brad Martin and Russ Aicken. The Ray’s Auto Center & Towing Thunder Car heat winners were, Nick Troback, Nick Roth and Kevin Albers. The Mini Stocks then ran a B feature with the #03 of Rodney Rutherford taking the checkers. The Thunder Car B feature winner was #21 Matt Bentley.

After a brief intermission, the first 50 lap Late Model feature took to the track. The race went off quick with just a couple cautions early, one at about lap 40 saw Paul Howse slow going down the back stretch and coming to a stop in turn 4. He was removed by Ray’s Towing but whatever the problem was, he was back when another caution flew on lap 42. From their, the old adage, cautions breed cautions. Gary Elliott sustained some front end damage, left and returned a little lighter. Brennan Didero went around in four and had a flat rear tire as well as Steve Laking getting involved. They all returned and took their place at the rear of the field. On the restart, Scott Lyons and Jason Shaw took the green but both got tangled and went around coming out of turn four. it was amazing that the rest of the field didn’t pile in the back of both cars. On lap 45, Lyons got a little close to another car and rode up with his right side. A couple laps later, something broke as Lyons crossed the start finish line and he ended up in the turn one wall. As the checkered flag flew, it was Brad Corcoran crossing the line first followed by Jeff Stewart, Brennan Didero, Steve Laking and Jason Shaw.

The 50 lap Limited Late Model feature was the next race to hit the track. A long haul for most from around the province so just 8 cars took the green. It was a good clean and quick race and as the checkered flag came out, it was the #49 of Scott McTeer crossing first. Nick Goetz took second, and was followed by Cole Weber, Tommy Robb and Corey Horner. The Ray’s Auto Center & Towing Thunder Car had 24 cars take the green flag for their 40 lap feature and action got hot and heavy quick. On lap one, four cars became involved as cars jockeyed for position going down the back stretch. Nick Troback, Dennis Cybalski, Steve Cashmore and Rob Istead all had damage and headed for the pits. The race got back under green and stayed that way until the #33 car of Mike Gilmour blew and engine and spun to the infield and ended up at the edge of the track in turns 3 and 4 bringing out the red flag. Another red flag on lap 22 when the #83 of Scott Way had some flames under his hood. By this time Shawn Chenoweth had the lead and was putting some distance between himself and Brad Collison. A caution with 5 laps to go tightened the field but Chenoweth proved too strong and took the checkered flag by a good margin. Brad Collison finished second followed by Kevin Albers, Nick Roth and Matt Muholland.

The Ponderosa Nature Resort Mini Stocks had 30 cars take the green for their  30 lap finale and before one lap was in the books, Mini Stock champ Billy Schwartzenburg spun out coming out of turn four after it seemed he made some contact with another car. Russ Aicken was close behind and had no where to go. Couple more cautions on laps 2 and 14 tightened the field once again. On lap 26 a four car sandwich down the back stretch brought out yet another red flag and saw the 44 of Scott Simmons take the worst of it. Simmons said later it was the hardest hit he’s taken and it was lucky for his good quality race seat and hans device, they sure paid off. The green flew once again and the young up and comer Brandon McFerran took off like a bolt of lightning and managed to lap 18 cars in the field and cruised to the checkered flag. Second place went to Brad Martin, followed by Dave Bailey, #36 and Russ Aicken. McFerran had a break out year in 2012 and stirs memories of two other up and comers who got there start at Flamboro at the age of 13…J.R. Fitzpatrick and Petey Shepherd, both doing very well for themselves in the NASCAR Canadian Tire series these days.

The final race of the evening was the second 50 lap feature for the Grisdale Late Models. The Iron Man, Gary Elliott and #9 Steve Ruddy let the field to green. The race got off quick and some great action saw very few cautions, unlike race #1. Closing in on 10 laps to go, it looked like the Grisdale series champion and Flamboro Late Model champion, Jason Shaw was going to take the checkered flag to end a great 2012 campaign. However, not sure what happened but coming out of turn 4 on lap 46, Paul Howse got a burst of power and managed to get by Shaw and Howse wouldn’t relinquish the lead to take the win. Coming in third once again was Brennan Didero followed by Scott Lyons and Brad Corcoran. Unofficially, Brennan Didero was declared the winner, however upon further review, it was declared a tie between Didero and the
#05 of Brad Corcoran.

Congratulations to all the feature race winners. That brought to a close, the 2012 season but it was announced however that the annual Frostfest will be run once again this year. Flamboro Speedway in partnership with London Recreational Concrete Pools & Spas announced the continuation of the 2012 racing season, with the added Frost Fest 120 event to be run on Saturday October 20th.  Twin 30 lap main event feature races for Mini Stocks and Thunder Cars will headline the event. $10,000 in prize money is up for grabs. $1500 goes to the winner of the Thunder Car overall winner, 2nd place $1000 , 3rd $700 , 4th $500 and 5th $280. The Mini Stock overall winner will collect $650, 2nd $450 , 3rd $320 , 4th $270 and 5th $160. For further details please check the website, http://www.flamborospeedway.itgo.com/

Photos by Randy Spencer

By Randy Spencer for OntarioOval.com – Round one of the Oktoberfest Classic weekend at Flamboro was plagued by cool weather and light showers that in the end effected the outcome of the Lucas Oil Sportsman Cup 100 feature.

Over 140 cars were in the pits and eight different divisions were on hand. Due to the rain the second round of qualifying was postponed and will be run Sunday. Round one qualifying winners included, Late Models-Steve Laking and Nick Goetz, Limited Late Model-Corey Horner, Open Wheel Modifieds-Brent McLean, Pro 4 Modifieds-Rob Divenanzo and Cliff Hodgkinson, Pure Stocks-Davey Boughton, Ponderosa Nature Resort Mini Stocks-Tim Tolton, Mike Holmes and Billy Schwartzenburg, Ray’s Auto Center & Towing Thunder Cars-Kevin Gallant, Nick Roth and Matt Mulholland and Hurricane Midgets-Adam Tyo and Ryan Fraser. Light rain plagued the evening with a break for drying the track. Nice to see so many of the visiting racers out to help!

After a brief intermission and second round qualifying postponed, features got under way with the Hurricane Midgets up first. A great race, with so many little cars made it very exciting. Ryan Fraser, who was celebrating his 16th birthday not only won his heat but won the feature, his 7th heat win and 8th feature win of the year. The Pure Stocks closed their 2012 season with Davey Boughton completing the sweep winning the heat and then taking the feature. The Pro 4 feature was a great race as well as Ryan Hunsinger took the checkered flag closing out a very successful season for the Pro 4 division. Great job by everyone in the club for growing the division from less than 10 cars to double that by the end of the year. The Open Wheel Modifieds are a great division and I really wish we saw them more at Flamboro. Brent MacLean won the heat and dominated the feature and almost lapped the entire field until a late caution came out. Robert Warnes got close at the end but McLean still came up victorious. The final race of Lucas Oil Sportsman Cup race was the final race of the night. Time trials were cancelled earlier in the night due to rain so they were lined up by points. Light rain fell on and off throughout but they got in underway. A great battle by Josh Wood, Jake Ott, Shawn McGlynn and Jay Doerr made it a great race. With Wood leading and Ott close on his bumper on lap 75, the rain got harder and the race was called. Congratulations to Josh Wood on the win. Jake Ott ran a great race as well and if not for the rain the team was confident they would have taken the checkers.

That’s all for this report, off to the track for day two. Hope to see you all their. Racing gets underway at 3pm at Flamboro Speedway!!

By Eric Uprichard for OntarioOval.com – This year’s 250 lap extravaganza is in the books as Sunset Speedway puts the brakes on another great season. The third annual year end invitational drew an impressive number of cars, upwards of 160, as well great crowd considering the less than stellar weather forecast. The rain did hold off despite the meteorologists calling for a little precipitation. This year’s lineup included the Ontario Pro Challenge, OSCAAR Modifieds, OSCAAR Super Late Models, Mini Stocks, Super Stocks and Limited Late Models.

Feature racing kicked off on Saturday night with the Ontario Pro Challenge. Tim Norris in the no.88 Lucas Oil machine took top honors en route to his second championship in as many years. Dennis Thomson, Ken Nicholson would round out the top three.

The very cool OSCAAR Mod’s took to the main stage early Sunday for their 30 lap feature. When the over anxious drivers were able to settle down and put the caution flag away, the dust settled with one of the most accomplished modified drivers in Ontario Gary Maclean crossing the finish line first, followed by Dave Terry and Brent Maclean. The win is Maclean’s second win at Sunset this season.

The afternoon kept on flowing with the familiar sounds of the Mini Stocks. The action started on lap one with four wide action! This year’s event drew championship caliber from all over Ontario. Kawartha Speedway’s Brad Martin and his Dodge Neon took the checkered followed by Sauble Speedway’s Cory Young and Barrie Speedway’s Justin Holmes.

Lined up along the back straight awaiting their chance to hit the high banks were the Super Stocks. Like the Mini Stocks, top caliber drivers have been attracted to the invitational since its formation. Starting on pole was 2012 Sunset Speedway track champion Randy Rusnell. The former Flamboro Speedway champion was fresh off a point’s battle with Nick Roth just one week ago. Rusnell pulled out to an early lead and was on a mission. After an extensive green flag run, Roth was given his shot at redemption on a couple restarts on lap 48. The newly crowned champion proved difficult to pass and lead all 50 laps. Roth finished a familiar second in front of Sauble Speedway’s Joe Adams.

The Limited Late Models were up next for their Sunday afternoon drive. Saturday’s qualifying heats saw thirty time champion Tom Walters, up-and-coming star Mike Bentley and Andy Kamrath in a three way tie for the top spot. Twenty seven cars took the green flag for the 75 lap ‘A’ Main. The first thirty laps were extremely exciting as Tom Walters and Chris Morrow ran door handle to door handle for twenty of them. Like the Super Stock ‘A’ Main, the Sunset Speedway regular Late Model top runners were where they ran all year. Mike Bentley made it interesting as he came all the way from the back of the pack in under fifty laps to make a late race pass for the win. Tom Walters and Taylor Holdaway rounded out the top three.

The weekend was headlined by the fastest Stock Cars in Ontario, the OSCAAR Super Late Models. Twenty six cars took the green flag, but the field was quickly diminished by all the early contact, including the hard hit off a restart when George Wilson smacked the inside retaining wall. The race continued to be plagued by cautions which took the flow out of the race. At lap fifty, Jeff Hanley was leading the pack, followed by Rob Clarke and Jesse Kennedy. J.R Fitzpatrick’s no. 27 Camaro finished fourth.

All results are unofficial. Please visit www.sunsetspeedway.ca for details.

Photos by Eric Uprichard / www.speedwayphoto.ca

By Eric Uprichard for OntarioOval.com – It was deja-vu all over again for the fans in the London area this weekend as ‘Downtown’ Mark Watson put on a fine display of donuts after his big Keystone Light 200 win on Sunday afternoon at Delaware Speedway. For those who aren’t current on last week’s events, Watson was handed a ticket downtown London for lighting up an intersection during a promotional rally for the Speedway!

The afternoon got started off with group qualifying. Each segment was ten minutes with a five minute intermission between the four groups. Mark Watson was the quickest with a time of 18.963, snagging the $500 bonus for the pole. All cars were impounded and no changes could be made after the session and, with no inversion, qualifiers remained in the position they timed in at. The qualifying format was exciting, much more interesting than standard time trials with lots of action.

When the green flag dropped it was all business. The Great Canadian Race is the highest paid single event for paved Late Models in Ontario. It is also the longest distance, forcing drivers to blend aggression with patience, two traits we don’t normally talk about in the same sentence at a race track. The first portion of the event was highlighted by patience. There was a little more giving then taking as Mark Watson led the field to the competition yellow at lap 100. Matt Pritiko and Brandon Watson also had stints at the top spot during the first half.

Much of the second half of the Keystone Light 200 was led by Matt Pritiko. A long green flag run early on allowed him to pull away comfortably from the pack of chasers. The leaders sliced through lap traffic until a string of cautions late in the going would bunch up the field for an exciting 30 lap Saturday night shootout. Pritiko and Watson swapped lead changes off restarts on a couple occasions. Jon Urlin, Summer Shootout winner, had come all the way from the back of the pack to join the mix as well. On the final restart of the afternoon, Watson would take the lead and allow Urlin and Pritiko to sort out second place. On the payout lap, Mark Watson crossed the line first, 1.6 seconds ahead of Matt Pritiko.

The $10,000 win is Watson’s third big invitational of the 2012 campaign. Keystone Light 200 unofficial top ten:

1. 3 – Mark Watson
2. 21 – Matt Pritiko
3. 44 – Jon Urlin
4. 72 – Shawn Thomson
5. 9 – Brandon Watson
6. 38H – Kirk Hooker
7. 27 – Matt Box
8. 22 – Jamie Cox
9. 37 – David Elliott
10. 24 – Stephen Richmond

Photos by Eric Uprichard / www.SpeedwayPhoto.ca

By Eric Uprichard for OntarioOval.com – Sunset Speedway played host to the final round of the McColl Racing Enterprises Pro Series Sunday afternoon. This was a rescheduled rain out from a previous round and the weather could not have been any better. The fourth and final round of the invitational series drew over 21 cars in each of the three divisions, with the Late Models and Super Stocks filling all 24 spots.

Like the previous Wednesday night show, the Mini Stocks started the night off with their first round of qualifying along with the Super Stocks. The Late Models had to time trial into their event. Tom Walters was quickest with a 14.550 second lap around the high banked oval. Point’s leader Mike Bentley drew and mechanical black flag for what looked to be fuel leaking from the rear of the car. Bentley’s time would be thrown out and would have to start from the rear of the field; a tough spot to defend the points lead from.

The Mini Stock division saw the no. 44x of Daryl Fice leading the points going into the 35 lap event with last year’s Summer Shootout Champion Doug Butler a close second. The ultra-competitive division would eventually collect the point’s leader in the dying stages of the race. The no.10 of Doug Butler would take home the hardware for the night’s win and for the series championship.

Unofficial Mini Stock top three: Doug Butler, Tyler Johnston, Brandon McFerran.

Things got a little quicker with the Super Stocks on tap for their 50 lap main event. ‘The Rocket’ Randy Rusnell had a commanding lead going into the nights event over Nick Roth. Both Roth and Rusnell would have their share of problems throughout the affair. The night however belonged to Sauble Speedway regular ‘Smokin’ Joe Adams. Adams went flag to flag leading every lap and holding off the hard charging Matt Bentley. Randy Rusnell was crowned the MRE Super Stock champion.

Unofficial Super Stock top three: Joe Adams, Matt Bentley, Lane Zardo.

As you can very well imagine, everyone was waiting to see what would transpire on the track in the Late Model finale between heavy weights Mike Bentley and Tom Walters. The first two events were dominated by Tom Walters, but Mike Bentley came back strong in the third event to take the series points lead by only a slim margin over Walters. With Bentley having troubles in time trials, and Walters setting the pace with the quickest time but rolling an eight and inverting the field, things were setting up for an epic finish of the four race mini-series.

The main event of the evening started off quick. Both the 47 of Walters and the 51 of Bentley moved their way through the field with tremendous patience.  With the championship on the line, both drivers were set to do battle; and that they did. For several laps they fought back and forth swapping the second place position behind race leader Brandon Watson. Several late race cautions set up very tense restarts at the front of the field. With four laps to go Bentley’s night and championship effort would come to an end after being penalized for rough driving on the restart. Brandon Watson would hang on and hold off Walters for his first MRE Pro Late Model win of the year. Tom Walter’s would claim his 29^th championship title of his career with his second place finish.

Unofficial Late Model top three: Brandon Watson, Tom Walters, Jason Shaw.

By Eric Uprichard for OntarioOval.com -  Monday night Flamboro Speedway played host to their first annual Gold Rush 100. The excitement of the event charmed NASCAR star Kenny Wallace back for his second Ontario short track visit in as many weeks. Also in attendance were Twenty-nine of the best Late Models from around the province in hopes of striking gold and taking home the $10,000 pay cheque. That’s right; $10,000 to win… one stipulation though, you had to come from the very back of the field to earn your $5000 bonus!

Time Trials got the evening started. With more cars in the pits than spots in the race, it was important to stay in the top sixteen with time trials and lock yourself into the field. Marc Jacobs from Delaware Speedway surprised everyone and put the no. 81 on pole for the main event. Jason Shaw, Kenny Wallace ( Driving the no. 39 of Shane Gowan ), Paul Howse and Brennan Didero would round out the top five qualifying positions. The remaining cars had to fight in the ‘B’ Main for the last ten spots. It was an exciting finish as Gary Elliott from Sunset Speedway took the final transfer position after being spun out early in the race.

The field was set for the 100 lap Gold Rush,  and the anticipation was buzzing around who would accept the challenge and take their Late Model to the rear of the twenty-six car field and fight to the front for the $5000 bonus. Many drivers said they would accept, but Jason Shaw was the top qualifier to accept and move to the back. Steve Laking, originally starting 6^th, made some great moves early on and led a majority of the first half of the race. He looked like the car to beat but had an issue eventually bringing out a caution. This would turn the lead over to veteran Paul Howse for his turn in the top spot. However, all eyes were on the no. 82 of Jason Shaw after cutting through almost the entire field. The closing laps would stay green and set up a very exciting finish. The two past Flamboro champions sifted through traffic in an awesome dash to the checkers. Howse hung on for the victory with Jason Shaw right behind him at the line. Kenny Wallace, Scott Lyons and Jamie Cox would round out the top five on the evening.

UNOFFICIAL Results (scored finish, not official)

Late Model Consi: #43 Jay Doerr, #9 Jeff Ruddy, #33 Jeff Lancaster, #98 Bill Hollis, #09 Kent Nuhn, #1 Jaxson Jacobs, #61 Brent Wheller, #77 Matt Balog, #5 Jay Cristie, #36 Gary Elliott, #71 Tim Gordon, #58 Paul Dudnick

Late Model 100 lap feature: #8 Paul Howse, #82 Jason Shaw, #39 Kenny Wallace, #52 Scott Lyons, #72 Jamie Cox, #31 Mark Watson, #37 David Elliott, #43 Jay Doerr, #67 Gord Bennett, #1 Jaxson Jacobs, #22 Bill Lassaline, #44 Steve Laking, #09 Kent Nuhn, #61 Brent Wheller, #83 Dale Shaw, #36 Gary Elliott, #33 Jeff Lancaster, #49 Ted Horsfall, #81 Marc Jacobs, #9 Jeff Ruddy (DNF), #24 Brennan Didero (DNF), #77 Matt Balog (DNF), #98 Bill Hollis (DNF), #56 Jeff Stewart (DNF), #7 Trevor Monaghan (DNF), #5 Jay Christie (DNF)

By Randy Spencer for OntarioOval.com – Sunset Speedway played host to the third round of the MRE Pro Series on Wednesday, August 15th. As practice got underway the sky started to get dark and practice was interrupted with rain. After a brief delay, the sun re-appeared and the track quickly dried forcing a short 30 minute delay in getting the night’s races underway.

Nice to see cars from different tracks around the area like Flamboro, Delaware, Peterborough, Kawartha and Varney among others. Double qualifying for all divisions took place. Thunder Car heat winners were Matt Bentley, Lane Zardo, Nick Roth and Randy Rusnell. Mini Stock Heat winners were Daryl Fice, Lance Foster, Warren Paxton and Rob Hoskins. In between round one and two of qualifying, the Late Models lined up in the middle in order and ready for time trials. It was set up and handled very professionally as one car was heading down the back stretch on their second of two laps, the next car would head off set to take the green for their first lap. Twenty one cars took to the track with some great times. This is the way they the top five lined up. Brandon Watson was the quickest in time trials with a time of 14.336 seconds. Mike Bentley, Johnathan Urlin, Jamie Cox, Tom Walters completed the top five.

As the green flag flew for the 75 lap Late Model main event, Jonathan Urlin shot out to the front and stayed there for a good part of the race. An early caution on lap 5 as the 24 car of Nick Goetz went around with a flat. Urlin stayed in front until lap 50 when the #51 of Mike Bentley finally was able to solve Urlin and got by him coming out of turn two and took the lead. A couple of cautions on lap 54 and 56 tightened the pack but Bentley was able to get his foot in it early enough to hold off the pack and held on to take the win. Top five in the feature were Mike Bentley, Jonathan Urlin, Dwayne Baker, Tom Walters and Brandon Watson.

The Thunder Cars took to the track for their feature race, and I was off doing some interviews so missed the majority but just one caution made it a fast race. Nick Roth raced a tremendous race picking up the checkered flag followed by Shawn Chenoweth and Randy Rusnell. The Mini Stocks had a great quick race as well with Daryl Fice completing the evenings racing card picking up the feature with Billy Schwartzenburg coming home second and Warren Paxton taking third place.

Thanks to all at Sunset Speedway for a great time and some great racing. Your hospitality was appreciated, the racing some of the most exciting I’ve seen to date and we hope to be back again real soon.

See videos below courtesy Clayton Johns. For official results visit www.SunsetSpeedway.ca

Victory Lane photos by Ashley McCubbin / Sunset Informative
Photos by Eric Uprichard / www.SpeedwayPhoto.ca