Hinckley Outruns Annarummo To Capture Airgas 100 At Seekonk Speedway

Seekonk, MA — Windsor Locks, CT’s Les Hinckley overpowered local favorite Vinnie Annarummo on a lap 84 restart and held off the veteran to capture the Airgas 100 for the visiting True Value Modified Racing Series at the 1/3-mile Seekonk Speedway oval on Saturday night, August 18. 

Annarummo, 58, of Swansea, MA, started on the outside pole after winning his qualifying heat and blasted off into the lead with Jack Bateman, Jimmy Dolan, Andy Seuss, and Jimmy Kuhn following in the early going. The 24-car field reeled off the first 50 laps in just 10 minutes, with the first of two cautions waving for a single-car spin at lap 56. By this point Hinckley, who started 15th, had made his way to fourth, taking eighth on lap 25 and fifth from ’06 Seekonk winner Louie Mechalides on the 43rd circuit. Hinckley, who won the initial True Value Seekonk event in 2004, took third on the restart and claimed second on lap 62. 

Hinckley could alongside Annarummo’s right rear fender in the outside groove but was unable to execute a pass for the lead as the pair navigated lapped traffic and battled one another into the event’s final stages. Richard Savary and Mike Douglas locked horns to bring out the second caution with 84 laps complete, setting up the final restart with Annarummo and Hinckley alongside one another. 

When the green was displayed, Hinckley simply roared off into first and never looked back. Dwight Jarvis, who started 22nd, came to the front in impressive fashion, running 11th at halfway, seventh at lap 58, and third at lap 71. The veteran was overtaken by Tony Ricci for third after a fierce side-by-side duel in the closing laps, while Kirk Alexander charged past Jon McKennedy into fifth. 

At the checkers, Hinckley bested Annarummo by 0.166 seconds, with Ricci, Jarvis, and Alexander comprising the balance of the top five. McKennedy, Bateman, Mechalides, Dale Evonsion, and Ed Dachenhausen rounded out the top ten. 

“This race is for Johnny,” the winner announced, referring to Modified ace John Blewett III who was killed in a racing accident at Thompson, CT 48 hours earlier. “My thoughts, and those of my whole team are with him and his family.” Seekonk fans observed a moment of silence for Blewett, who finished second in a hotly contested race at the Bay State facility in 2005, and stood en masse and removed their hats in tribute to the late 33 year-old racer at lap 66, acknowleding the Howell, NJ native’s car number. 

“To win (this race), I needed a restart to keep (Annarummo) on the bottom,” Hinckley continued. “He looked a little tight, and that was the only way I was going to get him. I want to thank him for running me so clean. I’m happy to be back in Seekonk’s Victory Lane.” “My right rear tire was totally used up by the time of the last restart,” Annarummo, who won the previous True Value event at Seekonk, admitted. “I started in fourth gear just to keep from buzzing the tire, but it didn’t matter. Still, we came home second with the car in one piece.” 

In the Airgas 50 for the Seekonk Late Model class, 18 year-old standout Matt Breault put an excalamation point on his Rookie of the Year quest by scoring a decisive victory. The Acushnet, MA native, who began his career in the track’s SYRA Mini Cup division six years ago, started fifth and quickly moved to second behind Bryan Connors. Breault used the inside lane to take over the lead on lap 3. The first of two cautions waved when Kevin Folan rode over the nose of Mark Hudson’s machine and slammed the frontstretch concrete, inflicting severe damage to his Pontiac-bodied mount. 

When racing resumed, Ray Alexander’s second-place ride faded on the outside while Gerry DeGasparre and Robin Berghman charged forward. At the halfway signal, Gerry ran second, ahead of Kevin Casper, Berghman, two-time winner Jeramee Lillie, Connors, Becker, and Alexander. A multi-car crash involving Becker, Jon Dickerman, Connors, Bob Hussey, and Alexander slowed the proceedings on lap 27, setting up a Breault-DeGasparre front row restart. The pair made contact coming down to the green, but Breault drove away undeterred. DeGasparre seemed to lose the handle on his Chevy after the incident, fading to fifth as Casper, Lillie, and Berghman claimed second through fourth, the order they held at the race’s conclusion. 

The victory was the 10th of Breault’s Seekonk career and second this season, paying a total of $700. Kyle Casper, Mike Becker, Jon Dickerman, Randy Clark, and Bill Bernard ran sixth through tenth at final tally. 

In Sport Truck action, Rochester, MA’s Adam Murphy drew even with point leader Mike Cavallaro in the win column, posting his fifth victory of the season in the 20-lap contest. Three yellows punctuated the first 8 laps, with Ted Berube spinning and collecting several others on the first circuit. David Haywood led the initial laps before Murphy’s fifth-place starting Nissan pickup drove into the lead on lap 3. While battling for second with Zach Tucan, Hugh Bowser spun in turn two on lap 8, bringing out the final yellow. 

At the crossed flag signal, Murphy and Tucan led two-time winner Charlie Rose, Andy Jeffery, Cavallaro, Rob Murphy, Haywood, and Lenny Guy. Rose and Cavallaro took second and third from Tucan in the next two circuits, and the two put on a show for the runner-up spot while Murphy drove off into the sunset. At the finish, it was Murphy scoring the win and maintaining his second place status in the championship standings, followed by Rose, Cavallaro, and Tucan. Rob Murphy was fifth across the line but was disqualified in the post-race technical inspection, moving Andy Jeffery into the top five. Haywood, Guy, Bowser, Mike Ronhock, and Brian Murray comprised the balance of the top ten. 

The 20-lap Street Stock feature produced the 12th different winner in 14 races as last year’s top rookie, Patrick Delaney of Swansea, MA took down the checkered flag for the first time in his career. Joe Melberg led the opening laps with Dan Lineham applying the pressure from behind. The two made contact on lap 4, with Melberg going around and Lineham having to restart from the tail. Delaney inherited the lead at this point, lost it to two-time winner Mike Mitchell, who drove under him on lap 8, but regained it several laps later. Mitchell, who was trying to hold off rookie Mark Henshaw, Jr., was tapped by the second place machine, causing both cars to lose momentum. Delaney drove past the duo and did not relinquish the top spot the rest of the way through. At the line, Delaney beat Henshaw by 84 one-thousandths of a second to earn the win with Mitchell third and Bob Bettencourt fourth. Frank Duquette was fifth, ahead of Paul Lallier, who started 16th, Steve Axon, who regained command of the points lead, Billy Brady, Chris DeMoura, and previous race winner Ryan Lineham. 

The only sour note of the action-packed and well-attended four-hour show came during Street Stock qualifying, when another competitor turned and pushed Middletown, RI veteran Jim “Pepe” Silvia nose-first into the outside concrete at a high rate of speed. Silvia was transported to Newport Hospital for treatment and observation after the accident. For the second consecutive week, the Fast Friday Series succumbed to rain. 

The Northeastern Midget Association roars into town for the annual Boston Louie Seymour Memorial, presented by Coors Light, on August 25. The weekly Pro Stocks, Late Models, Sport Trucks, and Street Stocks will also be in action. Adult grandstand admission tickets are priced at $17 for this event. Senior citizen discounts are also available on general admission tickets for all Saturday night races. All guests 55 years of age and older will receive a $2 discount. Guests must present photo identification for proof of eligibility if requested. Children 12 and under are admitted free. 

The third annual Open Wheel Wednesday show, featuring the Viveiros Insurance-sponsored Modified Madness 100, a $10,000 to win open competition Modified affair, takes place on Wednesday, August 29. The Northeastern Midget Association and Pro Four Modified Series will also be in action. The pit area will open at 1 PM on race day with Modified inspections beginning at 1:30 and practice for all divisions running from 2 to 6 PM. Qualifying begins at 7 PM. Grandstand admission is $18 for adults, $5 for juniors ages 13 through 15, and free for children 12 and under. Pit admission is $30. The speedway campgrounds will be open for overnight campers beginning on Tuesday evening, August 28. For more information, contact the speedway office at (508)-336-9959 or visit online at www.seekonkspeedway.com. 

True Value Modified Racing Series Airgas 100 (100 laps)  

1. #06-Les Hinckley, Windsor Locks, CT
2. #12-Vinnie Annarummo, Swansea, MA
3.  #4-Tony Ricci, Westbrook, ME
4.  #28-Dwight Jarvis, Ascutney, VT
5.  #43-Kirk Alexander, West Swanzey, NH
6.  #73-Jon McKennedy, Chelmsford, MA
7.  #17-Jack Bateman, Canaan, NH
8.  #40-Louie Mechalides, Tynsboro, MA
9.  #35-Dale Evonsion, East Hartland, CT
10.  #48-Ed Dachenhausen, Danbury, CT

Airgas Late Model 50 (50 laps)   

1. #20-Matt Breault, Acushnet, MA
2. #88-Kevin Casper, Somerset, MA
3. #3-Jeramee Lillie, West Warwick, RI
4. #81-Robin Berghman, East Providence, RI
5. #71-Gerry DeGasparre, Jr., Pawtucket, RI
6. #28-Kyle Casper, Somerset, MA
7. #00-Mike Becker, Avon, MA
8. #13-Jon Dickerman, Weymouth, MA
9. #93-Randy Clark, East Harwich, MA
10. #47-Bill Bernard, Holliston, MA
    

Sport Truck Feature (20 laps)   

1. #81-Adam Murphy, Rochester, MA
2. #41-Charlie Rose, Jr., Tiverton, RI
3. #80-Mike Cavallaro, Seekonk, MA
4. #3-Zach Tucan, Taunton, MA
5. #2-Andy Jeffery, Middleboro, MA
6. #24-David Haywood, Tiverton, RI
7. #77-Lenny Guy, New Bedford, MA
8. #22-Hugh Bowser, Taunton, MA
9. #5-Michael Ronhock, Mashpee, MA
10. #13-Brian Murray, Tiverton, RI

Street Stock Feature (20 laps)   

1. #71-Patrick Delaney, Swansea, MA
2. #17-Mark Henshaw, Jr., Raynham, MA
3. #40-Michael Mitchell, Manville, RI
4. #21-Bob Bettencourt, Jr., Fall River, MA
5. #03-Frank Duquette, East Freetown, MA
6. #77-Paul Lallier, Pawtucket, RI
7. #04-Steve Axon, Attleboro, MA
8. #48-Billy Brady, Marstons Mills, MA
9. #08-Chris DeMoura, North Dighton, MA
10. #19-Ryan Lineham, Coventry, RI

Sources: Todd Baptista/Seekonk Speedway PR

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