Santos III Scores First Career WMT Win in Ole Blue at Thompson; Perley, Cabral Winged Winners; Blewett, Connors, Levesque Also Feted
Thompson, CT — The 34th Annual World Series is now in the record books ending a bittersweet racing season at Thompson International Speedway. Adding their names to the history books were Bobby Santos III of Franklin, MA, in the Whelen Modified Tour; Chris Perley of Rowley, MA, in the International Supermodified Association (ISMA); and Randy Cabral of Plymouth, MA, in the Northeastern Midget Association (NEMA). Also garnering World Series glory was Jimmy Blewett of Howelll, NJ, in the Sunoco Modifieds, Jeff Connors of Ellington in Pro Stocks, and a surprise winner in the Late Models Ron Levesque, Jr. of Tiverton, RI. Ben Seitz had a run for the ages when the young driver from Pocassett, MA, scored an unprecedented fourth Northeastern Midget Association driving championship.
For the second week in a row, a new winner has graced victory lane during a Whelen Modified Tour event at Thompson International Speedway. After competing in the Busch Series race at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Charlotte and jumping a plane back to New England, Bobby Santos III took the lead from Matt Hirschman on lap 131. Veteran Reggie Ruggiero came storming back through the pack after his pit stop to finish second. Hirschman finished third.
“I feel like I never proved myself in a Modified, I proved myself today,” said Bobby Santos in a post race interview. “I have to thank my family and my parents, they have done everything for me.”
Fittingly the grandson of a New England Hall of Famer won his first career win in the legendary Ole Blue for fellow honoree Lenny Boehler.
Chris Perley of Rowley, MA, capped off his championship season with a commanding victory in the ISMA season-finale. Perley showed why he is called the “Rowley Rocket” as he shot through the field. A bold pass on lap 36 to the outside of leader Dave McKnight proved to be the winning pass. The champ went on to stretch his lead considerably over the final stages of the race. McKnight had to settle for second ahead of Mark Sammut on the podium. A complete run down of the World Series ISMA action can be found at www.nemaracing.com.
Randy Cabral of Plymouth, MA, scored his third win of the season in impressive style on Sunday afternoon in NEMA Midget competition. Ben Seitz of Pocasset, MA, had a history making run. Shane Hammond, aboard the Cabral family #36, led early, relinquishing the lead to Cabral. Once out front, Cabral set a blistering pace lapping cars at will. Point leader Joey Payne was quickly working his way through the field, leaving title-chaser Ben Seitz in his dust. The drama of the season-long championship chase reached a fever pitch when the mount of Joey Payne abruptly slowed. Seitz continued to run a conservative race. Out front it was all Cabral, who cruised to the victory over Greg Stoehr and Nokie Fornoro. Shane Hammond and BJ MacDonald rounded out the top five.
With his run, Seitz became the first driver in history to win four consecutive championships. A complete run down of the World Series NEMA action can be found at www.nemaracing.com.
Jimmy Blewett of Howell, NJ, made a triumphant return to the victory lane at Thompson. Blewett was greeted by a number of his fellow competitors and a standing ovation when he exited his TS Haulers #12 in victory lane. Blewett took over the lead before the completion of the first lap and never looked back. In the early going, Blewett and second-running Malone drove away from the rest of the pack. Blewett withstood a pair of late race restarts and persistent challenges from Malone to score the victory. Josh Steeves came home with an impressive third place finish over Bert Marvin and a returning Ted Christopher.
Jeff Connors of Ellington, CT, a former divisional champion, led green to checker in the Pro Stock feature event to kick-off the Sunday features on World Series Weekend. The division had a tough time getting going but after a set of cautions at the early going, the competitors ran without incident. Right from the drop of the green flag, Connors led a charging pack that included Jay Macedonio and Wayne Dion. After halfway, Fred Astle joined the battle. The four cars ran nose to tail. As the laps began to click off, the freight train at the head of the pack continued to get longer as Jeff Zuidema, running in fifth, joined the lead pack. With less than 10 laps to go, the top five began to dice for position. The chargers peeked out of line for position but no one mustered up a real challenge. In the end, Connors was victorious over Macedonio. A pair of Seekonk Speedway legends, Dion and Astle, finished ahead of Zuidema inside the five.
Ron Levesque, Jr. of Tiverton, RI, was the beneficiary of a tumultuous ending of a shortened Late Model feature event. A star-studded group of competitors, the likes of Corey Hutchings, Woody Pitkat, Jay Stuart, and Marc Palmisano, who among them share a number of championship honors, led the Late Model field. But the lead was not the place to be as early leaders Corey Hutchings and Woody Pitkat both encountered problems at the head of the pack. Some excellent racing was overshadowed by a number of cautions and a late race melee. Unsportsmanlike conduct marred what could have been a thrilling finish to the Late Model main event. Marc Palmisano dove underneath Gentes to take over the top spot. Contact between the two collected the remainder of the top five. The racers of Marc Palmisano and Tom Sullivan sustained catastrophic damage. Speedway officials red checkered the race giving the win to Levesque Jr. Thore Foss, Mike Scozelli, Scott Fanning, and Gentes rounded out the top five.
SK Modified Feature Finish (Top Ten): 1. Jimmy Blewett, Howell, NJ; 2. Kerry Malone, Needham, MA; 3. Josh Steeves, Webster, MA; 4. Bert Marvin, Waterford, CT; 5. Ted Christopher, Plainville, CT; 6. Tommy Cravenho, Raynham, MA; 7. Geoff Gernhard, Salem, CT; 8. Bobby Santos, III, Franklin, MA; 9. Danny Cates, Chaplin, MA; 10. Todd Ceravolo, Gales Ferry, CT.
Pro Stock Feature Finish (Top Ten): 1. Jeff Connors, Ellington, CT; 2. Jay Macedonio, Somerset, MA; 3. Wayne Dion, Warwick, RI; 4. Fred Astle, Jr., N. Westport, MA; 5. Jeff Zuidema, N. Brookfield, MA; 6. Mike O’Sullivan, Springfield, MA; 7. George Bessette, Danbury, CT; 8. Todd Owen, Somers, CT; 9. Jim Banfield, S. Glastonbury, CT; 10. Rob Murphy, Rochester, MA.
Late Model Feature Finish (Top Ten): 1. Ron Levesque, Jr., Tiverton, RI; 2. Thore Foss, Ronkonoma, NY; 3. Mike Scorzelli, Schuylerville, NY; 4. Scott Fanning, Smithfield. RI; 5. Marc Palmisano, Hadley, MA; 6. Wayne Coury, Sr., Milford, CT: 7. Tommy O’Sullivan, Springfield, MA; 8. Steven Witt, Auburn, MA; 9. Jeremy Sadowski, Voluntown, CT; 10. Jeff Hessleton, Auburn, MA.
NEMA Feature Finish (Top Ten): 1. Randy Cabral, Plymouth, MA: 2. Greg Stoehr, Bridgewater, MA; 3. Nokie Fornoro, Stroudsburg, PA; 4. Shane Hammond, Halifax, MA; 5. BJ MacDonald, Dublin, PA; 6. Ben Seitz, Pocasset, MA; 7. Erica Santos, Franklin, MA; 8. Jeremy Frankoski, Newark Valley, NY; 9. Paul Scally Raynham, MA; 10. Drew Fornoro, Newton, MA.
Sources: Dale Wolbrink /Thompson Int’l Speedway PR