Szegedy Earns Inaugural NASCAR Whelen Modified Pole At Lime Rock
Edges Christopher In Qualifying At Connecticut Road Course
Lakeville, CT — Todd Szegedy became the first Coors Light Pole Award winner for the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour at Lime Rock Park Friday.
Szegedy ran a lap of 53.099 seconds on the 1.5-mile road course for an average speed of 101.697 mph. Szegedy was among the final group of cars to go out under NASCAR’s road-course qualifying rules, and the time on his second lap knocked Ted Christopher off the pole. Christopher had posted a lap of 53.220 (101.466) in the second-to-last group and wound up second overall in qualifying for Saturday’s Lime Rock 100.
“I wasn’t sure what to expect,” said Szegedy, who had his practice sessions Friday morning limited to six laps with issues that forced the team to change engines. “We went out and blasted out a 54.0 (on the first qualifying lap), so we knew we could pick up speed. But there was just so much more that I wanted to try. I messed up on a couple corners every lap. So I think, myself, I’m good for another half second or better.”
[Photo Gallery] by Nicholas Teto
#2 – Todd Szegedy
#98 – Erick Rudolph
Erick Rudolph qualified third, followed by Mike Stefanik and Rowan Pennink. Points leader Bobby Santos qualified 10th. Each of the five groups had four minutes to post their best lap.
This is the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour’s first visit to the historic Connecticut course. It’s the Tour’s first road-course race since Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International in 2000, which was won by Christopher.
Christopher also had his practice abbreviated by mechanical issues.
“We put it together for the time trial laps and that’s it,” Christopher said. “It turns now.”
It’s Szegedy’s seventh career pole and he reflected on winning the pole in the Tour’s inaugural event at Lime Rock.
“It’s cool. It’s awesome. I’ve got to win the race tomorrow,” said Szegedy. “But it’s a start. … Everybody had great composure today and hopefully that carries over tomorrow and we can get some more of these road races.”
The green flag for the Lime Rock 100 is scheduled for Saturday at 12:15 p.m.
Sources: Jason Cunningham/NASCAR WMT PR
Qualifying Results
NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour – Lime Rock 100 LineupRace Saturday; Qualifying Friday
at Lime Rock Park
Lakeville, Conn.
Lap Length: 1.5 miles
1. (2) Todd Szegedy, Ridgefield, Conn., Ford, 101.697
2. (36) Ted Christopher, Plainville, Conn., Chevrolet, 101.466
3. (98) Erick Rudolph, Ransomville, N.Y., Chevrolet, 101.414
4. (16) Mike Stefanik, Coventry, R.I., Pontiac, 100.925
5. (93) Rowan Pennink, Huntingdon Valley, Pa., Chevrolet, 100.756
6. (52) Dale Quarterly, Westfield, Mass., Chevrolet, 100.645
7. (3) Ryan Preece, Berlin, Conn., Chevrolet, 100.039
8. (6) Ron Silk, Norwalk, Conn., Chevrolet, 99.824
9. (59) Chuck Hossfeld, Ransomville, N.Y., Chevrolet, 99.572
10. (4) Bobby Santos, Franklin, Mass., Dodge, 99.449
11. (51) Justin Bonsignore, Holtsville, N.Y., Chevrolet, 99.232
12. (39) Richie Pallai, Jr., Yorktown Heights, N.Y., Chevrolet, 99.214
13. (28) Woody Pitkat, Stafford, Conn., Chevrolet, 98.616
14. (58) Eric Goodale, Riverhead, N.Y., Chevrolet, 98.266
15. (50) Kevin Goodale, Riverhead, N.Y., Chevrolet, 98.207
16. (46) Doug Coby, Milford, Conn., Chevrolet, 98.162
17. (8) Glenn Tyler, Hampton Bays, N.Y., Chevrolet, 98.087
18. (10) Ed Flemke, Jr., Southington, Conn., Chevrolet, 96.950
19. (90) Renee Dupuis, Glastonbury, Conn., Chevrolet, 95.369
20. (76) Eric Beers, Northampton, Pa., Chevrolet, 95.181
21. (99) Jamie Tomaino, Howell, N.J., Chevrolet, 94.452
22. (33) Wade Cole, Riverton, Conn., Chevrolet, 94.073
23. (15) Danny Knoll, Jr., Buffalo, N.Y., Chevrolet, 93.539
24. (38) Jake Marosz, Middletown, Conn., Chevrolet, 90.891
25. (26) Gary McDonald, Ronkonkoma, N.Y., Chevrolet, 88.244