One of the most challenging and fastest short tracks in New Hampshire looms large on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour schedule this Memorial Day weekend.
NASCAR’s oldest and only open-wheel division returns to Lee USA Speedway on Saturday, May 27 for the second running of the Granite State Derby, taking center stage on an action-packed afternoon to jump-start the holiday weekend.
Only a short drive from the beaches and boardwalks along the Atlantic Ocean, Lee is the longest and fastest of New Hampshire’s seven paved bullrings. Speed at Lee, though, comes with a cost. The track’s aged and abrasive asphalt punishes tires, and the fastest driver at the checkered flag will be the one who manages their equipment best to outlast the field during 175 laps. The strategy will also come into play, as teams will have two opportunities to visit pit road for fresh Hoosier racing rubber.
60th Mekkelsen RV Memorial Day Classic 125 Starts King of the Road Championship Hunt
Barre, VT — Since 1961, following Thunder Road’s popular inaugural season, the Memorial Day Classic has been a staple event on the calendar of many Vermont and New England racing fans. Such bonafide Northeast legends as Jean-Paul Cabana, Joey Kourafas, Ralph Nason, Robbie Crouch and Dave Dion have stood in Memorial Day Classic victory lane. For the 27th-consecutive event, the folks at Mekkelsen RV Sales & Service once again present the season opening showdown for the Maplewood/Irving Late Models to kick-start the annual King of the Road track championship season and the first of three Monument Races, with the winner’s name etched forever in Barre, Vermont granite.
(Stafford Springs, CT)—After winning the SK Light championship in 2020 at Stafford Speedway and nearly going back to back in 2021, Brian Sullivan moved into the SK Modified® division for the 2022 season. Sullivan ran a partial schedule in 2022 thanks partly to a blown engine that left him with a decision to make for the 2023 season. Sullivan decided to turn his SK Modified® car back into an SK Light car and that decision paid immediate dividends as Sullivan won the season opening SK Light feature during NAPA Spring Sizzler® Weekend behind the wheel of his #46 Monaco Ford Troyer car.
Round Five of NASCAR Whelen Mod Tour Saturday; Monaco Modified Opener Sunday
Race Advance by Souza Media
MILFORD, Conn. – It’s a double-duty kind of weekend for Mayhew Tools driver Doug Coby.
The six-time NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion will compete in the fifth race of the Tour season on Saturday at Lee USA Speedway, set for 175 laps, driving the Tommy Baldwin Racing No. 7NY. On Sunday, the Connecticut native will make a visit to Vermont for his first start at Thunder Road Speedbowl as part of the Monaco Modified Tri-Track Series season-opening race with his own No. 10.
Coby and Baldwin enter the Granite State Derby at Lee as the defending winners of the race. With six change tires in the pit area again this year, strategy and tire conservation will both play a major role in deciding if they can make it back-to-back. The Mayhew Tools No. 7NY has already been in Tour Victory Lane this season at Monadnock Speedway on May 6 in round one of the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup. Saturday’s event at Lee is the second of three in the Cup, with Coby and the Baldwin Racing team currently leading the charge in the points.
There will be plenty of racing action at Lime Rock Park during the Trans Am Memorial Day Classic May 26-29. Here are five things to watch for on the track while you’re at The Park:
1. HOME SWEET HOME: Dyson Racing has found a “home near home” at Lime Rock Park. Ever since Rob Dyson’s victory in the first race for his Porsche 962 in the 1985 Memorial Day Classic, Dyson Racing has enjoyed the short drive from their home near Poughkeepsie, N.Y. to compete in front of family and friends. Dyson Racing is again the team to beat in the featured Trans Am by Pirelli , featuring second-generation star Chris Dyson and Matt Brabham. Brabham is also a part of the Lime Rock family legacy as the grandson of legendary Australian F1 pioneer Jack Brabham and the son of Geoff Brabham. He raced at Lime Rock Park last year, coming in second to his teammate Dyson. Dyson is tied with Dorsey Schroeder with most Trans Am victories at Lime Rock with three apiece. Dyson, driver of the No. 16 Gym Weed Ford Mustang, won the two most recent Trans Am rounds at New Orleans and Road Atlanta in a bid for a second-consecutive title. He has a three-race winning streak at Lime Rock dating back to 2019 (there was no race in 2020 due to the pandemic).
Justin Bonsignore Scores 10th Career Whelen Modified Tour Win at Riverhead Raceway
Race Recap by Souza Media
RIVERHEAD, N.Y. – A classic short-track battle between two of the veterans of the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour ended with Justin Bonsignore’s 10th career Riverhead Raceway win on Sunday afternoon in the Buzz Chew 200. Bonsignore started from the top spot after scoring his 25th career pole in qualifying and ran second for much of the race, but was able to roll the outside lane by Ron Silk on a late restart to get back to Victory Lane.
(Stafford Springs, CT)—Stafford Speedway hosted Stafford Weekly Racing on Friday, May 19th with Open Modified cars on hand for the Call Before You Dig Open 81. Michael Gervais, Jr. was the SK modified® feature winner, his first win of the season and his first SK win at Stafford since June 2015. Ryan Fearn notched the Late Model victory with a dominating driver that saw him lead all 30 laps, George Bessette, Jr. won the SK Light feature, Kevin Cormier won the Limited Late Model feature, and Ryan Waterman won the Street Stock feature to make it two-for-two in 2023 at Stafford.
The New England Super Modified Tour (NESS) is gearing up for an exciting sophomore season in 2023. The anticipation is palpable as drivers prepare their high-powered, big-winged Supermodifieds for the nine-race schedule, starting at the Thunder Road Speed Bowl on June 9th. The track’s steeply banked 1/4-mile oval in Barre, Vermont, will witness these incredible machines blasting around the track in sub-10 second laps.
(Stafford Springs, CT)—Open Modified cars returned to Stafford Motor Speedway for their second of five visits of the 2023 season on Friday, May 19th for the Call Before You Dig Open 81. Reen slowly worked his way to the front and he spent the majority of the second half of the race in the lead and he scored his first Open Modified win at Stafford.
