by RacingNews | Oct 17, 2014 | Connecticut, Granite State Pro Stock, Thompson
(Thompson, CT) – 17 year-old Derek Griffith and the Griffith race team is excited to be competing at the 2014 World Series, at the prestigious Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park on Oct 17-19.
Griffith, a Hudson, NH native will complete his third full season with the Granite State Pro Stock Series (GSPSS) by racing in their season finale 50-lap race. Derek currently sits fourth in the point’s battle, just 38 points out of the top spot.
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by | Apr 11, 2014 | Connecticut, Thompson
Thompson, CT- Mike O’Sullivan fends off Larry Gelinas and Jeff Connors to pick up his third win in the Granite State Pro Stock Series.
Wayne Helliwell, JR pulled away from Keith Caruso and looked strong to begin the race. Defending race winner George Bessette had picked up a couple of spots before falling off the pace on the back stretch with a terminal issue. O’Sullivan, Gelinas, and Connors sat single file in pursuit of Helliwell, who was amongst the fastest cars all weekend. Home track hero Tommy O’Sullivan battled bad luck all weekend long, suffering a failed plug wire a day after his motor let go during practice, taking him out of contention on lap 16. Helliwell’s day would turn sour as the two-time defending ACT champion blew a right front tire in turn 1 and came to rest on the top of turn 3, bringing out the first caution of the day.
On the restart, Mike O’Sullivan jumped to the lead leaving Connors and Gelinas to try and hunt the Springfield, MA driver down. A great battle ensued behind him, as Dillon Moltz and Brad Babb swapped the fourth position multiple times, while Matt Frahm watched from the sixth spot. The outside pole sitter Keith Caruso and Ron Smith made contact in the middle of turns 3 and 4, bringing out the second caution of the day.
O’Sullivan would hold the lead on the restart as Jeff Connors had a handful of race car, and veteran Gelinas took advantage and grabbed the second spot in the closing laps. Neither driver could reel in O’Sullivan, however, as the Flamingo Motorsports Chevrolet cruised to the line for the victory. O’Sullivan now has a pair of second place finishes to go along with today’s win in the Granite State Pro Stock Series at the track he considers home. O’Sullivan commented about the day, “Flawless race car from top to bottom. I knew I could race Jeff on the short run, but he was a little better on the longer run. When the second caution came out, I knew if I could hustle out front for the first few laps and cut the distance in half before he started to catch me, I knew I’d be alright.”
Larry Gelinas ended his double-duty weekend with a second place finish in the Icebreaker. Gelinas was involved in a caution earlier in the day in the Late Model division, a weekly division at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park. “I tried to save a bit throughout the race and hope for some cautions and see what happened,” Gelinas stated. “A top three finish is pretty good because we are a low-buck team, so I’m happy with second.”
Connors’ return behind the wheel after a few year hiatus was a successful one with his third place finish. Connors remarked, “Cautions hurt us. If we didn’t have the cautions, I was good reeling him in and I was just waiting. Unfortunately, the car tightened up on me that last caution.” Connors will be sharing the Cassagrande Builders Chevrolet with youngster Cory Cassagrande, and the duo look to make their next appearance at Hudson Speedway on June 15th.
Brad Babb would win the battle for the fourth spot, with Dillon Moltz taking fifth. Matt Frahm, Barry Gray, Derek Griffith, Cory Robert, and Keith Caruso completed the top ten. Moltz and Babb won their respective heat races on Saturday.
The Granite State Pro Stock Series returns to action at Monadnock Speedway in Winchester, NH on May 24th for their fifth race at the facility.
Icebreaker Results
4/6/14
POS Car Driver Hometown
1- 08 Mike O’Sullivan Springfield, MA
2- 37ME Larry Gelinas Buxton, ME
3- 51 Jeff Connors Ellington, CT
4- 4 Brad Babb Windham, ME
5- 5 Dillon Moltz Waterbury, CT
6- 14 Matt Frahm Hampstead, NH
7- 29 Barry Gray Belchertown, MA
8- 12 Derek Griffith Hudson, NH
9- 71NH Cory Robert Canaan, NH
10- 2 Keith Caruso Milbury, MA
11- 28MA Greg Nanigian Braintree, MA
12- 48 Ryan Lineham Coventry, RI
13- 92 Billy Brady Marston Mills, MA
14- 95 Ron Smith Oakham, MA
15- 71 Carl Eriksson Deep River, CT
16- 66 Mike Parks Walpole, NH
17- 27NH Wayne Helliwell, JR Dover, NH
18- 16 Tommy O’Sullivan Wilbraham, MA
19- 87 Eric Sands Farmington, NH
20- 15 George Bessette Danbury, CT
CONTINGENCY AWARDS Winner
Sunoco Race Fuels (Heat Win) Dillon Moltz, Brad Babb
MacLellan Metal Finishing Dillon Moltz, Brad Babb
AR Bodies (Hard Luck) Wayne Helliwell, JR
Sherwood Wheels (10th place finisher) Keith Caruso
Bond Auto Parts (Last car on lead lap) Billy Brady
RB Performance (4th place finisher) Brad Babb
RB Performance (7th place finisher) Barry Gray
5 Star Stock Car Bodies (5th place finisher) Dillon Moltz
Crazy Ed’s Powersports (Hard Charger) Derek Griffith
Draco Springs Award (Most positions gained) Derek Griffith
Racer’s Depot (Random drawing) Jeff Connors
by | Mar 22, 2014 | Connecticut, Thompson
(Thompson, CT) – The historic Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park has announced that Spencer, MA based Victory Lane Radio will embark on a first-of-its-kind program which will allow fans to listen to live lap-by-lap coverage, from the drop of the first green flag to the waving of the last checker flag, free of charge.
Never before has a NASCAR sanctioned track provided live, free coverage, which is available world-wide. Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park General Manager, Josh Vanada had this to say, “We are excited about this partnership with Victory Lane Radio. Since we started discussing it, they have gone at it with a great deal of enthusiasm and professionalism. I am confident that this will be a high quality product, and a great opportunity for our fans to listen in on their smart phones while they are here, or from anywhere worldwide if they cannot make it to one of our events. All of us at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park look forward to offering this added coverage with Victory Lane Radio, beginning in a few weeks at the Icebreaker presented by Town Fair Tire.”
To listen to the live broadcast, simply go to www.victorylaneradio.com and click the ‘listen live’ button at the top of the page, or go to www.thompsonspeedway and click the link. All of these broadcasts will also be available, free of charge as a podcast, if you cannot listen live. The podcasts will be located on www.victorylaneradio.com and www.thompsonspeedway.com
Eric LaFleche of Victory Lane Radio remarked, “I really think this is a great opportunity for both parties. The coverage will be provided by Alan Ward, Patrick Brooks and I, it will include an in the pits reporter who will be tied into the live broadcast to provide the latest news and happenings behind the scenes, which will give the listener a more, in-depth experience.
I believe the days of having to be glued to your portable device or home computer to follow an event that you can’t be there for live is over. Now you can simply listen to the action on any device with an internet connection. Another advantage is you can even hear it again on the podcast, all free of charge.”
The first live broadcast is slated for April 5-6 during the Ice Breaker season opening event. We will go live Saturday, April 5th at around 2 PM EST.
by | Feb 11, 2014 | Connecticut, Thompson
Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park (TSMP) Officials announced today that, as a way to say thank you to each of the track’s four NASCAR Whelen All-American Series divisions, they will be offering complimentary use of the garages during selected events of the 2014 season. The Sunoco Modified, Late Model, Limited Sportsman, and Mini Stock Divisions will all be in one of the garage’s 30 stalls during one of the track’s seven events.
“We are delighted to showcase our oval track competitors, who have been with us for nearly 75 years, in our brand new garage building,” said TSMP’s General Manager, Josh Vanada.
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by | Nov 30, 2013 | Connecticut, Thompson
Thompson, Conn: Thompson Speedway honored its 2013 track champions and celebrated its 73rd season of racing at its annual awards banquet Friday evening. Champions in all five NASCAR Whelen All-American Series divisions took center stage as they put an exclamation point on a season defined by competitive racing in spite of a rain-plagued year. Keith Rocco of Meriden, Conn. led a contingent of drivers to earn series crowns with a championship in the coveted Sunoco Modified division.
Other champions included: Rick Gentes of Burriville, RI in the Late Models, Cam McDermott in the Lite Modified division, Steve Kenneway in the Xtra Mart Limited Sportsman division, and Monster Mini Stock Champion Eric Bourgeois.
Mini Stock driver Mike Viens of Seekonk, Mass. and Late Model driver Marc Curtis, Jr. of Worcester, Mass. were the recipients of the Chief Starter’s Award presented by Tim Bennett. The award recognizes sportsmanship displayed by drivers in the NASCAR Whelen All American Series divisions.
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(Thompson, CT) – 17 year-old Derek Griffith and the Griffith race team is excited to be competing at the 2014 World Series, at the prestigious Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park on Oct 17-19.