Thompson, CT — Defending NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion Austin Beers earned the pole position Wednesday night with the 19.154-second fast lap and quickly ran with the lead at the start of the Thompson 150. Matt Hirschman followed on the tail of Beers throughout the opening circuits while mechanical trouble took fan-favorite Jon McKennedy out of action early on.
Matt Hirschman made his way into the lead around a loose Austin Beers in turn two, slowly but surely extending that lead through the first third of the event. Andrew Krause met an early end on lap 60 as he slammed the turn one wall to call out the first caution. All but three lapped cars took the chance to jump to pit road with Hirschman winning the race to the backstretch while Eric Goodale and Matt Swanson nearly collided for the runner-up spot.
After hanging around sixth, Patrick Emerling entered the top-five picture to chase down Mike Christopher Jr., Beers and Hirschman. It was all for not as Matt Hirschman ran away in the 80+ green flag run to the checkered flags to take his first career Thompson Speedway NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour win over Austin Beers and Patrick Emerling. Chase Dowling kept it clean all race long to finish fourth with Matt Swanson climbing back from a pit-road gamble to finish fifth.
The Crown Vics kicked off Wednesday’s racing action with their feature event. Ethan Williams looked strong enough to take his first win of the season but it was July’s winner Jack Emerson who took over at the halfway point. Emerson ran away with it to take win number two with Williams relegated to second over John Dulac.
The SK Light Modifieds got things started with a bang as Dennis Sneade and Milania Shilosky made contact coming off turn four, plowing up the infield grass and pit wall before coming to a halt on lap 4. Back under green, Austin Goff got the jump on Corey Caddick and began to run from RJ Marcotte. Marcotte made contact with Goff, spinning the 07 into the turn one wall to call up the lap 17 caution. With Marcotte sent to the rear, Caddick and point leader Kevin Davis went to war at the front for the final three circuits with Davis getting the win over Caddick with John O’Sullivan taking third.
It was a battle for the ages between top Late Model aces Jake Johnson and Matt Lowinski-Loh throughout their 25 lap feature. The two top guns ran side-by-side, slamming doors on one another, beating and banging around the Thompson highbanks for twenty-three laps until Jared Roy’s spin in turn four. The green-white-checkers sealed the fate for Johnson, who slid sideways on the final lap to give Matt Lowinski-Loh the Wednesday night victory.
Following NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour time trial qualifying, Derek Ramstrom took the lead early in the Thompson Sunoco Modified feature with Bryan Narducci and Todd Owen in hot pursuit. Point leader Keith Rocco made his way into third and then second as Ramstrom fell back behind Narducci. Bryan Narducci never faltered in the caution-free feature to take his first win of the season over Rocco and Owen at the line.
Rookie Charles Beal lost the pole position on the initial green, falling back through the top five leaving Ryan Lineham and Al Stone III out front. Jarrod Soucy motored his way underneath Stone by the halfway point as former track champion Ryan Waterman and former Thunder Road Speedbowl champ Jason Woodard battled for fourth. In the end, no-one had any steam for Lineham who took the night-ending win over Soucy and Stone.
Thompson Speedway roars back to life on Wednesday, September 16 for the Eden Raferty Attorneys Fall Showdown Late Model Special! The Late Models take center stage in their extra-distance showdown alongside the Thompson Sunoco Modifieds, SK Light Modifieds, Street Stocks and Crown Vics with a 6:00pm Post Time.