Rocco Nails Last Lap Effort; Thomas, Galvin, Field, Morgan Win
Waterford, CT — Keith Rocco executed a thrilling final corner, last lap pass to score victory in the 35-lap SK Modified® main event on the Speedbowl’s season opening Saturday night race program. He was joined in Victory Lane by two-time and defending Late Model champion Bruce Thomas Jr., Josh Galvin in the Street Stocks, Dan Field in the Mini Stocks, and Ryan Morgan took home top honors in the Legends Cars.
Ron Yuhas Jr. led the SK Mod field from his pole starting position at the drop of the green. Yuhas, Rob Janovic Jr. and Keith Rocco began to pull away under green flag conditions while Diego Monahan, Tyler Chadwick and Dennis Gada battled for fourth place behind. The event continued caution free as positions swapped throughout the field. Rocco began to apply pressure to Janovic for second position, while Gada pressured Chadwick for fourth.
Shortly after halfway, Gada executed an outside pass on Chadwick to move into fourth looking to reel in the lead trio. Rocco maneuvered around the outside of Janovic with 14 laps remaining and set his sights on Yuhas, who had built some breathing room. With Rocco closing on Yuhas as the leaders approached heavier lapped traffic, Jeffrey Paul’s night ended prematurely when he erupted into smoke on the backstretch laying down fluid that necessitated the event’s only caution with 9 laps remaining.
Yuhas resumed control on the restart with Rocco, Janovic, and Gada in pursuit. As the laps narrowed down, Rocco began to look both high and low. As the pair came through turns 3 and 4 for the final time, Rocco jumped to the outside groove and drag raced Yuhas to the stripe, edging him by a bumper in a classic Speedbowl finish. Rocco’s margin of victory was .013 seconds. Janovic, Gada, and Chadwick completed the top-five.
Bruce Thomas Jr. returned to victory lane with an impressive performance in the 30-lap Bob Valenti Auto Mall Late Model feature event. Thomas took the lead from Vin Esposito just a 2 laps in and rolled to his 38th career Speedbowl win. Thomas withstood a handful of restart attempts, the final after Tom Metcalf took a hard hit into the wall between turns 3 and 4. Esposito, Allen Coates, Rich Staskowski, and Jeff Smith completed the top-five.
Galvin made up for being shut out of victory lane in 2008 by capturing the Street Stock’s opening 20-lap feature. Walt Hovey Jr. took the lead from his outside pole position to lead the first several laps with Galvin, Ronnie Oldham, and 2008 champion Al Stone III in tow jockeying for track position. Galvin slipped under Hovey to take the lead, and with 12 laps remaining a tense moment occurred as a lapped car spun in turn 2 directly in front of the lead pack. The field scattered, and Al Stone III took the brunt of the hit with the spun car requiring a visit to the pits. On the restart, Hovey and Oldham made contact battling for second bringing out caution again, and both resumed from the rear of the field. Galvin was in control the remainder of the event winning by one car length over Brandon Plemons. Chuck Rogers rallied for third, while Jonathon Avery finished a strong run in fourth and Ted Dupre, a past champion of the division returning after several years away, ended up fifth.
The Norwich Bulletin Mini Stocks rolled out for their 20-lap event and saw Phil Evans grabbing the early lead and battling with two-time defending champion Ken Cassidy Jr. Cassidy would assume control of the event on lap 6 and lead through multiple restarts, while Field and Louis Bellisle III worked their way into contention. The top four ran inches apart before yet another caution slowed the field with 3 laps remaining. Field inched his way ahead of Cassidy under green flag conditions and restarted from the pole, and would go on to win his 19th career Mini Stock event. Field has won a Mini Stock event each of the past 8 seasons. Cassidy held off Bellisle for second, while early leader Evans finished fourth and Ian Brew ran strong for fifth.
In Legends Car action, young Ryan Morgan bested a healthy and active Legends Car division. Shaun Buffington and Jason Palmer, 2008’s Saturday and Wild ‘n Wacky Wednesday respective champions, paced the field early with Morgan in pursuit. Contact between the two sent both cars spinning, drawing the event’s first caution on lap 9. Morgan inherited the lead and would pace the field as Palmer and Buffington worked their way back through the field and into contention. After a caution set up a green-white-checkered finish, Morgan would get the jump on Joey Cipriano, while Palmer and Buffington got together for the second time in the event jockeying for position bringing out the final caution. Morgan beat back challenges from Cipriano and Tony Flannery to take down his first Saturday Night Legends victory. The top three finishers are all teenagers.
The Speedbowl returns to action Saturday April 25 with another 5-division program featuring NASCAR Whelen All-American Series action for the SK Modifieds, Late Models, Street Stocks and Mini Stocks plus the Legends Cars. Wild ‘n Wacky Wednesdays begin on May 6. For more information, visit www.speedbowl.com or contact the track offices at 860.442.1585
Speedbowl 4/18 Finishers, Hometown:
SK Modifieds (35-laps): 1. Keith Rocco, Wallingford 2. Ron Yuhas Jr., Groton 3. Rob Janovic Jr., 4. Dennis Gada, Salem 5. Tyler Chadwick, Ledyard 6. Diego Monahan, Waterford 7. Jeff Pearl, Salem 8. Frank Mucciacciaro Jr., Milford 9. Don Fowler, Clinton 10. Justin Gaydosh, Newtown 11. Corey Hutchings, Salem 12. Wendell Dailey, Gales Ferry 13. Joe Perry, Fishers Island, NY 14. Rich Hammann, Tolland 15. Dennis Charette, Southington 16. Mike Sweeney, Middletown 17. Joe Gada, Salem 18. Jeffrey Paul, Ledyard 19. Wayne Arute, Berlin
Bob Valenti Auto Mall Late Models (30-laps): 1. Bruce Thomas Jr., Groton 2. Vin Esposito, Seymour 3. Allen Coates, Ledyard 4. Richard Staskowski, Hope Valley, RI 5. Jeff Smith, Old Lyme 6. Larry Goss, N. Windham 7. Joe Curioso, Pawcatuck 8. Jimmy Rosenfield, Middleboro, MA 9. Mark Hudson, Norton, MA 10. Richard Duranti, Waterford 11. Ernie Bertrand, N. Branford 12. Tom Metcalf, N. Stonington 13. Time Jordan, Plainfield 14. Brian Andronaco Jr., Wilton 15. Robert Leblanc Jr., Norwalk
Street Stocks (20-laps): 1. Josh Galvin, Uncasville 2. Brandon Plemons, Uncasville 3. Chuck Rogers, Waterford 4. Jonathon Avery, Waterford 5. Ted Dupre, Westbrook 6. Ed Puleo, Branford 7. Chris Meyer, N. Franklin 8. Jack Aquilina, Oakdale 9. Walt Hovey Jr., Chaplin 10. Ronnie Oldham Jr., Old Saybrook 11. Mark Cooper, Northford 12. John Puglisi, Orange 13. Steve Barrett, Preston 14. Ed Lamb, New Haven 15. Nate Appell, Westbrook 16. Al Stone III, New Haven 17. Kevin Talbot, Moosup 18. Kevin Burr, Waterford 19. Greg Moran Jr., Preston 20. Ray Downing Sr., Clinton 21. Randy Waterman, Danielson
Norwich Bulletin Mini Stocks (20-laps): 1. Danny Field, Deep River 2. Ken Cassidy Jr., Lisbon 3. Louis Bellisle III, Lisbon 4. Phil Evans, Uncasville 5. Ian Brew, Wood River Jct., RI 6. Kyle James, Ashaway, RI 7. Randy Churchill Jr., Niantic 8. Ken Lyke Jr., Orange 9. Nick Pappacoda, N. Branford, CT 10. Glen Colvin, Clinton 11. Mark Panaroni, Ivoryton 12. Dave Sylvia, Groton 13. Christina Cunliffe, Stratford 14. Chris Williams, Niantic 15. Sean Caron, Hartford 16. Dale Sherman, Charlestown, RI 17. Greg Moran, Sr., Preston 18. Charles Canfield, New Haven 19. Ray Christian III, Norwich 20. Bill Leonard, Wood River Jct, RI 21. Chris Correll, Old Lyme 22. Tommy Silva, Waterford 23. Charles Beal, Ledyard
Legends-Saturday (20-laps): 1. Ryan Morgan, Mystic 2. Joey Cipriano, Waterbury 3. Tony Flannery, E. Hampton 4. Mark Esposito, Easton 5. David Stanton, New Britain 6. Jay Palmer, Berlin 7. Art Moran Jr., Preston 8. Richard White III, N. Stonington 9. Giovanni Giarratana, Newington 10. Kyle Rogers, Waterbury 11. Carl Bohn, Waterford 12. Shaun Buffington, Plainfield 13. Paul Kusheba IV, Monroe 14. Carl Blandina, Milford 15. Edward Field, Deep River 16. Adam Gada, Bozrah 17. Dennis Pantani, Branford DNS – Troy Talman, Oxford; Dana Demateo, Farmington; Dylan Liseo, E. Hartford; Christian Pedersen; William Munro, N. Branford
Sources: Waterford Speedbowl PR