Budweiser ‘King of Beers’ 150 Next on Tap at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park this Thursday, August 14
Thompson, CT- The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour (NWMT) returns to the historic Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park (TSMP) this week, for the Budweiser ‘King of Beers’ 150. Originally scheduled for Wednesday, August 13, the event will be rescheduled for Thursday, August 14 after a forecast for heavy rain on the day of the event.
The Budweiser ‘King of Beers’ 150 marks the 125th return of the NWMT to Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park. Franklin, MA native Bobby Santos will try to make it back to back victories at this event, as the driver of the Tinio Racing/ ImperialCars.com Chevrolet picked up the checkers in this event just a year ago. Santos, who has 4 career victories with the NWMT at Thompson Speedway, and sits third in the point standings entering the event, just 15 ticks off point leader Doug Coby. Coby is holding on to a slim lead over Justin Bonsignore, with Santos, Ted Christopher, and Ryan Preece third through fifth, respectively, in the standings. Bonsignore, from Holtsville, NY, already picked up a victory at TSMP earlier in the year at the Icebreaker in April. The Budweiser ‘King of Beers 150’ is the second of three stops for the NWMT at TSMP in the 2014 season.
Also on the race card for the Budweiser 150 at TSMP, will be double point nights for the Sunoco Modified and Mini Stock divisions. Ryan Preece sits atop the standings in the Sunoco Modified division, with a 20 point cushion over Keith Rocco entering the night. The pilot of the Falmouth Ready Mix/ Locust Street Sign has been nearly unstoppable so far in 2014 at TSMP, as Preece has collected 3 wins out of 4 races at the Thompson, CT speedway. Rocco, the only other driver to pick up a victory in the Sunoco Modified division at TSMP, sits in second, just 20 points outside of first. Todd Ceravolo sits 30 points behind Preece for the top spot in the standings, with Kerry Malone and Keith McDermott tied for the fourth spot.
The Mini Stock division could see the biggest shakeup in the point standings of the night, as the top 5 drivers are separated by a mere 18 points of the top spot. Michael Viens leads the way with 212 points overall, but has Jeff Moffat and Steven Michalski breathing down his neck, just two points separating each driver. Mike D. Viens and Chad Baxter sit fourth and fifth respectively.
Point leader Glenn Boss will look to regain some momentum on Budweiser night at TSMP in the Late Model division during their 25 lap feature. Boss was involved in multiple incidents just a few weeks ago in the feature, giving a chance for second place point man Rick Gentes to make some ground on the Brooklyn Farm + Pet machine. Gentes still sits 38 points outside of first entering the event. John Lowinski-Loh sits only two marks behind Gentes in third, with Chris Curtis and Larry Gelinas rounding out the top 5 respectively.
The final NASCAR Whelen All-American Series division that will be on hand at the 5/8 mile oval on Wednesday is the Xtramart Limited Sportsman division. Corey Hutchins picked up his second victory of the year in dominant fashion just a few weeks ago, fending off multi-feature winner Shawn Monahan in the process. Even with multiple victories, Hutchins is trailing point leader Scott Sundeen by a sizable 66-point margin in the sixth spot. Sundeen has been consistent, and has a 12-point buffer over second place point man Monahan. Steve Kenneway and Ryan Waterman are duking it out for third in the point standings entering Wednesday’s event, both trailing Sundeen by 28 points, while William Wall sits in fifth. The Xtramart Limited Sportsman are scheduled to run 30 laps.
The Vintage Outlaws will also be in attendance at the Budweiser ‘King of Beers’ 150.
Professional drifter Vaughn Gittin JR. will be doing drifting demos around the track and will be signing autographs during the event. Vaughn, one of the most recognizable drivers of his sport, will have his famous machine, the Monster Energy Nitto Tire Ford Racing Mustang. Vaughn is known for his exciting, edge of your seat driving style, and is the only American to win a D1 Grand Prix twice, once in 2005 and again in 2007. In 2010, Vaughn won his first Formula Drift Championship, and solidified his career by winning the championship in China’s premier drift series, WDS the very next year. A few lucky fans will also win a ride-along with him and get to see the action from the front seat!