Late Model Track Champion Adam Gray Joins Stafford Speedway Late Model Field for 2009 Season
Stafford Springs, CT — Stafford Motor Speedway’s Late Model division has added another track champion to its lineup for the 2009 season. Adam Gray, who won the Late Model track championship at Monadnock Speedway last season, will join the Late Model field for the 2009 season and race for Rookie of the Year honors. Gray won the Late Model championship in the same season that his father, Barry, won the ProStock championship at Monadnock.
“We’ve been talking about coming to race at Stafford the last couple of seasons, and with Monadnock shutting the Late Model division down, we figured we would make the move to Stafford now rather than waiting any longer,” said Gray. “I would have liked to have been able to defend my championship this year, but we can always say we won the last Late Model championship.”
Gray’s championship at Monadnock saw him wheel into victory lane 6 times during the 2008 season, but he will be bringing a new car to Stafford to campaign for Rookie of the Year honors. Gray says that it is all a part of his team’s preparation. “It would take some work for us to change over our Monadnock car to make it legal for Stafford, so we figured it would be more feasible for us to start from scratch and come to Stafford fresh with a new car,” said Gray.
“We’re the type of team that is going to learn whatever we can at the track and then do our homework to make the car faster for the next race. We’re not looking to just ride around.”
Stafford’s Late Model division boasts some of the greatest full body competition of any track in New England, which makes for a tough learning curve. Gray and Stafford Late Model driver John Warren are good friends, and thanks to Warren, Gray has some limited on-track experience at Stafford in a Late Model as he prepares for his rookie season. Gray also feels that by watching the races during the 2008 season, he has already begun his climb up the rookie ladder.
“We were at the track every week last year to watch the Late Model races,” said Gray. “By watching the Late Models, I learned how guys race with each other on the track and it gave me a good idea of the type of line I need to run. John Warren is a good friend of ours and I was able to take his car out for a practice session last year, so I have some limited experience. Now I just need to get behind some of the veteran drivers and learn the fast way around the track. Stafford is a great facility and their race program is excellent. We are absolutely ecstatic and we can’t wait to start racing at Stafford.”
In spite of the stiff competition in the Late Model division at Stafford, rookie drivers have done well during the past several seasons. During the 2007 season, Corey Hutchings won the track championhip as a rookie, while Dillon Moltz won 2 races as a 16-year old rookie. Last season’s Late Model Rookie of the Year, Brian Chapin, nearly won 2 events himself, but Gray has modest goals set for himself and his team for the 2009 season.
“We’re not looking to set the world on fire by any means, we have a whole lot to learn,” said Gray. “There is a bunch of guys at Stafford who really know how to get around the track in a Late Model. I think a win is something that is possible for us, but it’s not really a goal of ours right now. We’re looking to get a top-10 finish in the points standings and win the Rookie of the Year title. If we can do that, we can say that we had a successful season.”
The battle for the top rookie honors during the 2009 season should be a tight race that will go down to the last race of the season as Gray will be joined in the rookie class by Alan Provost, who has won a race in each of the last two seasons in Stafford’s SK Light Modified division, and John Kasper, who was a winner in the DARE Stock division this past season.
The chase for Late Model Rookie of the Year kicks off during the 38th Annual Tech-Net Spring Sizzler, scheduled for April 24th through April 26th. Tickets for “The Greatest Race in the History of Spring” are now on sale at the Stafford Motor Speedway box office. Tickets are priced at $35.00 for adult general admission tickets, $5.00 for children ages 6-14, $38.00 for reserved seats, and free for children ages 5 & under. Tickets are good for admission to the Saturday April 25, and Sunday, April 26 portions of the Tech-Net Spring Sizzler, with the Friday, April 24 practice session open the public free of charge.
For more information, contact the Stafford Motor Speedway track office at 860-684-2783 or visit us on the web at www.staffordspeedway.com.
Sources: : Scott Running/Stafford Motor Speedway PR