Thompson, CT- Derek Ramstrom took advantage of a late race flat tire on Wayne Helliwell, JR’s Ford to claim his first victory with the Granite State Pro Stock Series (GSPSS) at the Sunoco World Series, presented by Xtramart, at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park (TSMP).
Helliwell, JR and Dillon Moltz led the field at the drop of the green, as Moltz, the Waterford, Connecticut driver, needed a top 10 finish to secure his spot atop the championship standings in the 2014 season. After Josh King hit the turn 1 wall at the start of the race, Helliwell, JR pulled away on the ensuing restart, and was poised to take his third win in the series. Ramstrom, from West Boylston, Massachusetts kept Helliwell, JR in his sights, riding in the second spot. Moltz was passed by Larry Gelinas and Matt Frahm, both with a chance at the title, as the two put pressure on the RB Performance team of Moltz.
Bad luck would strike Helliwell, JR once more at TSMP, as the Dover, New Hampshire driver ran over debris, rendering the right front tire flat with just 4 laps remaining. Ramstrom took advantage and grabbed the victory, but it was Dillon Moltz wearing the crown as the 2014 champion with a 6th place finish.
A nearly out of breath Moltz said after the race “We really worked our butts off for this. The adversity that we had to go through, we definitely deserved this. I knew I had to be smart, put pride aside and let guys go, run my own race and just run the track. Mark Brackett and Ricky Rolfe, these guys really deserved this championship.”
Ramstrom, who’s been on a tear as of late, winning the PASS 300 at Beech Ridge Speedway and the DAV Pro Stock race at Seekonk Speedway, ended the 2014 season with a bang. “Wayne (Helliwell, JR) was phenominal,” spoke Ramstrom. “I’m not sure I could have caught him. We were way too loose, the stagger was way off, but we lucked out.” Ramstrom, who also had his NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour car to run, was proud of his crew’s efforts. “They worked extremely hard. They’ve been thrashing for weeks trying to get ready for this race.”
Both Frahm and Gelinas did everything they could to put themselves in position to challenge for the championship, just falling short. Frahm took the second spot, with Gelinas in tow in third after both drivers started in the fourth row. Brad Babb stayed hot grabbing fourth, and Jason Boyd survived an early race spin to finish fifth. Moltz, Tommy O’Sullivan, Derek Griffith, Mike Parks, and George Bessette completed the top 10.