ThompsonSpeedwayPreece Returns to Winning Form in 3rd Annual Sunoco Modified 20/20 Sprint

(THOMPSON, CT) – Racing action resumed at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park on Wednesday, July 27th as the speedway celebrated “For the Drivers Night” with all drivers receiving free admission to the race as local racing series and the annual Sunoco Modified 20/20 Sprint took center stage.

The 3rd annual Sunoco Modified 20/20 Sprint saw drivers competing to win not only two points paying events, but also an overall victory with a third race helping decide the final outcome. Drivers looked to obtain the least amount of points in a secondary points system based off of finishing spots in the segments to win it all. The feature would see some of the biggest names in the series run up front throughout the evening and a popular name return to the top in victory lane.

The 20/20 event consisted of three segments, two 20 lap races and a third ten-lap feature, with the first event ordered by qualifying, the second inverting the field for the starting lineup based off the finishing positions in the first event and the third and final segment utilizing timing in the first race to set the field. With the first two segments being points paying races, Keith Rocco was looking to defend his undefeated status this season but faced some tough competition as he relinquished his hold of victory lane in the first race to one of the series’ most popular talents, Ryan Preece, who made the trip to Thompson from North Carolina that morning to take part in the main event.

Preece celebrated in victory lane, giving credit to his crew for helping him gain early momentum in the 20/20 feature. “It was pretty tough there,” Preece said. “We’ve just been struggling with the brakes with this car and it’s been making it so free in – To fly up here and win, it’s a lot of fun for me,” Preece said after the first segment.

Preece wouldn’t be able to make it a perfect night in the Sunoco Modifieds however as Keith Rocco made a strong comeback and claimed a win in segment two. In the end Preece held on to not only win segment three but also produced good enough finishes to win the overall 20/20 feature title for the second time in his career, and hopefully put an end to a rough season in the series so far in 2016.

“It’s pretty special,” Preece said. “It’s been a rough year – No matter how bad I wanted to do good it was like something was stopping me. Tonight was the night where we got the monkey off our back hopefully.” Rowan Pennink finished second overall in the 20/20 feature followed by Rocco, Ronnie Williams and Woody Pitkat.

The Late Models started off the night strong with good, close racing throughout the field for their 25-lap feature. The complexion of the race changed several times, including after the race itself was finished, with the early domination by Jared Materas starting off a strange trend for the event when Matera’s dominance was cut short after he lost control of his car six laps into the race. The spin creating a multi-car incident that retired Materas from the race while series regular Brian Tagg took over the lead after an extensive cleanup process.

Tagg would soon find himself under attack by several cars, eventually being involved in a close, hard battle with Marc Curtis before the two made contact, causing Curtis to spin and Tagg to be sent to the back of the field, ruining his chance at a win as well. Meanwhile the stage was set for a dramatic finish as points leader William Wall made a hard charge to the front to compete with his closest rival in the points, Rick Gentes, for third in the final ten laps. Up at the front Lloyd Anderson and Matt Lowinski-Loh added to the action as the two sought their first ever respective wins in the series. In the end it was Lloyd Anderson who came out of top over Lowinski-Loh, or so it appeared. Anderson celebrated in victory lane after crossing the line in a backup car but the win was stripped away as after the event Anderson’s team was informed they were disqualified from the Late Model race due to a right front lower control arm of the car that did not meet specified measurements. This turn of events put an end to an interesting Late Model feature and gave the win to Lowinski-Loh, his first in the series. Gentes finished second in the adjusted results after spinning across the finish line and Wall finished an eventual third.

The fireworks continued with the Xtra Mart Limited Sportsman series as two and three-wide action was commonplace throughout that event. Several drivers found themselves fighting hard for position throughout the 20-lap feature, but it was the #25 car of Jesse Gleason, a car he borrowed from the Waterman family, that held on for the win after leading most of the event despite several strong runs from his competition to take the victory, including a late race push from his brother Brent Gleason who held on for a second place finish.

“This is short track racing. The first one up front is the guy who has the advantage. Maybe you don’t win it on lap one, but maybe on lap two or three,” Gleason said in victory lane. “You’ve got to stab me to get by me. That’s about it.” Gleason added that he was proud to race alongside his brother for the win and praised Brent for the strides he has made in his own racing career.
While Gleason was celebrating in victory lane other drivers found themselves scratching their heads, especially Corey Hutchings who followed up a strong win in his last race at Thompson with another strong run that ended in an early retirement from the race when a battle for position with Phil Jacques resulted in heavy damage to Hutchings’ car. Jacques was penalized for the incident and sent to the rear of the field but still managed a sixth place finish.

In the Mini Stocks reigning champion Dave Trudeau celebrated his fourth victory of the season in his mission to defend his 2015 series title, but it was not an easy trip to victory lane. Trudeau started the event on a low note after mechanical issues forced him to pit and restart in the back of the field after a lap one caution. Trudeau would overcome adversity, and a significant lead by Christopher Viens, to take the win and return to victory lane in Thompson.

“I have no idea how I got back up there. I was fast. I’ve got an awesome crew. I can’t thank everyone enough,” Trudeau said.
The event was made even more special as it also marked the debut race for Trudeau’s son, Dave Trudeau, Jr., in the Mini Stock Series. Trudeau, Jr. sprinted to victory lane after the conclusion of the event to embrace his dad and celebrate possibly the most unpredictable victory of the evening.

In the Lite Modifieds Corey Barry took advantage of a mid race caution and strong restarts to claim a dominating victory in a 20-lap dash. Damon Tinio had control of much of the first half of the event before he lost control of his car in turns one and two after the halfway point, leaving the door open for Barry to claim the win while Wesley Prucker and Marcello Rufrano rounded out the top three.

Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park will welcome the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour back to Northeastern Connecticut on August 10th for more racing action with the 27th annual Bud “King of Beers” 150. The event will also include the NEMA Midgets as well as Thompson’s own four divisions.

SUNOCO MODIFIED 20/20 SPRINT SEGMENT ONE FINISH: 1. Ryan Preece (Berlin, CT); 2. Rowan Pennink (New Egypt, New Jersey); 3. Ronnie Williams (Tolland, CT); 4. Keith Rocco (Berlin, CT); 5. Woody Pitkat (Stafford, CT); 6. Adam Norton (Palmer, MA); 7. Jason Sundeen (Douglas, MA); 8. Jeff Gallup (Agawam, MA); 9. Andrew Charron (East Greenwich, RI); 10. Steven Kopcik (Newtown, CT); 11. Mike Benevides (Westerly, RI); 12. Nicholas Giardina (South Salem, MA); 13. Eddie LeClerc (Taunton, MA); 14. Kyle Cafro (North Windham, CT); 15. Kyle Trainor (Marlboro, MA); 16. Joey Parker (Weymouth, MA); 17. John Catania (Agawam, MA); 18. . John Studley (Framingham, MA); 19. Renee Dupuis (Hebron, CT); DNS – Paul LaPlante (North Attleboro, MA)

SUNOCO MODIFIED 20/20 SPRINT SEGMENT TWO FINISH: 1. Keith Rocco (Berlin, CT); 2. Rowan Pennink (New Egypt, New Jersey); 3. Woody Pitkat (Stafford, CT); 4. Ryan Preece (Berlin, CT); 5. Ronnie Williams (Tolland, CT); 6. Steven Kopcik (Newtown, CT); 7. Jason Sundeen (Douglas, MA); 8. Jeff Gallup (Agawam, MA); 9. Kyle Trainor (Marlboro, MA); 10. Eddie LeClerc (Taunton, MA); 11. Kyle Cafro (North Windham, CT); 12. Joey Parker (Weymouth, MA); 13. Nicholas Giardina (South Salem, MA); 14. Mike Benevides (Westerly, RI); 15. Adam Norton (Palmer, MA); 16. Andrew Charron (East Greenwich, RI); DNS – John Catania (Agawam, MA); John Studley (Framingham, MA); Renee Dupuis (Hebron, CT); Paul LaPlante (North Attleboro, MA)

SUNOCO MODIFIED 20/20 SPRINT SEGMENT THREE FINISH: 1. Ryan Preece (Berlin, CT); 2. Rowan Pennink (New Egypt, New Jersey); 3. Keith Rocco (Berlin, CT); 4. Ronnie Williams (Tolland, CT); 5. Steven Kopcik (Newtown, CT); 6. Jason Sundeen (Douglas, MA); 7. Jeff Gallup (Agawam, MA); 8. Woody Pitkat (Stafford, CT); 9. Andrew Charron (East Greenwich, RI); 10. Kyle Trainor (Marlboro, MA); 11. Eddie LeClerc (Taunton, MA); 12. Kyle Cafro (North Windham, CT); 13. Joey Parker (Weymouth, MA); 14. Nicholas Giardina (South Salem, MA); DNS – Mike Benevides (Westerly, RI); John Catania (Agawam, MA); John Studley (Framingham, MA); Renee Dupuis (Hebron, CT); Paul LaPlante (North Attleboro, MA); Adam Norton (Palmer, MA)

SUNOCO MODIFIED 20/20 SPRINT FINAL FEATURE RESULTS: 1. Ryan Preece (Berlin, CT) 6 pts; 2. Rowan Pennink (New Egypt, New Jersey) 6 pts; 3. Keith Rocco (Berlin, CT) 8 pts; 4. Ronnie Williams (Tolland, CT) 12 pts; 5. Woody Pitkat (Stafford, CT) 16 pts; 6. Jason Sundeen (Douglas, MA) 20 pts; 7. Steven Kopcik (Newtown, CT) 21 pts; 8. Jeff Gallup (Agawam, MA) 21 pts; 9. Andrew Charron (East Greenwich, RI) 34 pts; 10. Kyle Trainor (Marlboro, MA) 34 pts; 11. Eddie LeClerc (Taunton, MA) 34 pts; 12. Kyle Cafro (North Windham, CT) 37 pts; 13. Nicholas Giardina (South Salem, MA) 39 pts; 14. Joey Parker (Weymouth, MA) 41 pts; 15. Adam Norton (Palmer, MA) 120 pts; 16. Mike Benevides (Westerly, RI) 124 pts; 17. John Catania (Agawam, MA) 215 pts; 18. John Studley (Framingham, MA) 216 pts; 19. Renee Dupuis (Hebron, CT) 217 pts; DNS – Paul LaPlante (North Attleboro, MA) 297 Pts

LATE MODEL FINISH: 1. Matt Lowinski-Loh (Milford, MA); 2. Rick Gentes (Harrisville, RI); 3. William Wall (Shrewsbury, MA); 4. Mark Curtis (Brookfield, MA); 5. Ryan Lineham (Hope Valley, RI); 6. Nick Johnson (Rehoboth, MA); 7. Brian Tagg (Oxford, MA); 8. Larry Gelinas (Buxton, ME); 9. Michael Bennett (Willington, CT); 10. Walt Sutcliffe (East Haven, CT); 11. Brandon Warren (Chicopee, MA); 12. Jared Materas (Westfield, MA); 13. Tom Carey, III (Orange, MA); 14. Scott Serydyniski; Disqualified – John Studley (Framingham, MA);

XTRAMART LIMITED SPORTSMAN FINISH: 1. Jesse Gleason (Lisbon, CT); 2. Brent Gleason (Griswold, CT); 3. Scott Sundeen (Sutton, MA); 4. Ryan Waterman (Danielson, CT); 5. Ed Puleo (Branford, CT); 6. Phil Jacques (Dudley, MA); 7. Mike Palin (Dudley, MA); 8. Tommy Shea (New London, CT); 9. Troy Waterman (Killingly, CT); 10. Corey Fanning (Mapleville, RI); 11. Hank Stott (Medway, MA); 12. Zack Robinson (Putnam, CT); 13. Nick Anderson (Oxford, MA); 14. . Larry Barnett (Moosup, CT); 15. Corey Hutchings (Salem, CT); 16. Dan Coutu (Canterbury, CT); 17. John Carpenter (North Grosvenordale, CT); 18. James Bendiak (Hopkinton, MA); 19. Joshua Wood (Palmer, MA); 20. Ed Correia (Raynhyam, MA)

MINI STOCK FINISH: 1. Dave Trudeau (Mansfield, CT); 2. Christopher Viens (Putnam, CT); 3. Wayne Burroughs, Jr. (Oakdale, CT); 4. Eric Bourgeois (East Haaddam, CT); 5. Brad Caddick (Wyoming, RI); 6. Roger Ducharme (Foster, RI); 7. Nathan Taylor (Brooklyn, CT); 8. Ed Field (Deep River, CT); 9. Nick Matera (Warwick, RI) 10. Scott Michalski (South Killingly CT); 11. Mitch Bombard (Willimantic, CT); 12. Keith Ballou (Pascoag, RI); 13. Mike Viens (Putnam, CT); 14. Dave Trudeau, Jr. (Mansfield, CT)

LITE MODIFIED FINISH: 1. Corey Barry (Plainfield, CT); 2. Wesley Prucker (Stafford, CT); 3. Marcello Rufrano (North Haven, CT); 4. Cam Sontag (Sterling, MA); 5. Matt Rzewnicki (Chicopee, MA); 6. Damon Tinio (Mendon, MA)