Flanagan, Ivory, Donovan, Dion, and Maher pick up Fast Friday wins
Seekonk, MA — Warwick Whizz Ed Flanagan, Jr. held off Fall River’s John Robidoux at the finish line for his second win of the season in Pure Stocks. Robidoux has been trying to catch Flanagan, who holds fifth place in the division, where Robidoux stands sixth. Lakeville’s Jamie Burch roared in behind the leaders with all top 3 cars finishing on the same second. Mark Boisvert of Uxbridge and Griswold, CT’s Steve Larose rounded out the top 5. Flanagan had started sixth on the field, while Robidoux had to work his way up from seventeenth.
Swansea’s Mark Miranda started on the pole and outran Westporter Jeremy Lambert at the outset. Lambert and Kent Hopkins of Taunton got loose in the first turn, but came out in second and third behind Miranda. Robidoux, meanwhile, spent his first lap negotiating his way up from eighteenth to twelfth in that first, single circuit.
Into lap 2, Miranda held a 4 car lead over the field with Lambert and Hopkins trailing, followed by Burch, Flanagan, Dirk Eykelhoff of Oakdale CT. and Fairhavenite John Frias.
By lap 7, Flanagan had moved up to third, behind Miranda and Lambert. Miranda continued to move away from the rest of the field, holding an 8-car advantage by lap 10. Flanagan was all over Lambert’s rear bumper.
North Dighton driver Chris Lima and Tim Demarderosian of Bristol got together in turn 2, bringing out the caution. Both drove away from the spin, but the field came back together, pulling Miranda back to the pack. On the restart, Miranda and Lambert battled door-to-door briefly, but Lambert went back to the front. Flanagan then got under Lambert and secured second and two laps later, on the 17th circuit, edged by Miranda for the lead. Robidoux had caught the leaders and passed Lambert into second and got briefly into Flanagan’s side. But the latter made a good save and continued at the front.
Flanagan forged a 4-car lead over Robidoux, Miranda, Burch and Lambert.
Lap 14 saw Lambert and Warwick’s Vinnie Pangelinan get into each other in turn for, creating a great deal of smoke and bringing out the yellow flag.
Flanagan lined up on the pole with Robidoux on his shoulder. Miranda and Burch made up the second row, with Swansea’s Bill Chouinard and Larose behind them. Division leader Nick Uhrig of Warwick was lurking just outside the top 10 in the eleventh spot, but had been finding tough going.
Flanagan nailed the lead again with Robidoux on his bumper but a turn one mass crash involved Kent Hopkins, Demarderosian, Dough Benoit, Dirk Eykelhoff and Chris Lima.
After an extensive cleanup, the field set up for the second restart on the lap. Flanagan edged Robidoux through turns 1 and 2, and then took the lead at the stripe. On the next lap, Burch was trying to work under Robidoux for second with Larose and Boisvert trailing. Behind them, Earl Curtin and Miranda were door-to-door as were Uhrig and Chouinard.
Into lap 23, with two to go, Flanagan led Robidoux and Burch. Into the penultimate circuit, Robidoux was working hard on Flanagan. A tap in turn 3 of the final circuit loosened Flanagan but he held it straight and thundered down the finishing straight to the victory by ¾ of a car over Robidoux.
Curtin, of West Warwick was sixth, followed by Miranda, Uhrig, and Chouinard. Frias rounded out the top 10.
Chris Ivory, on his first attempt among Seekonk’s Sport Four competitors, scored a decisive win in a growing field of competitors. The Waterford visitor claimed the lead going into lap 5 and was unassailable for the remainder of the race.
Cranston driver Robert Henry started on the pole with Vincent Arregado on his shoulder. Henry nabbed the lead on the second turn but Arregado got sideways in turn three and Warwick’s Ken Silva got into his side as a field of cars piled in.
The restart had Henry on the pole again with Coventry driver Taylor Therrien on his shoulder. Arthur Phillips was low in the second row and Ivory sat the outside, after avoiding the pileup.
Henry went ahead at the restart, but Therrien jumped to the front. Ivory came around into second and began to chase her down on lap 4. Ivory was sticking low and went under Therrien into the lad at the stripe on the next circuit. They led Arthur Phillips, Silva, and last week’s winner, Ed Gould of Warwick in Lap 7. On lap 9, Ivory had already increased his lead to 5 cars, and there was another 8 lengths between second and third.
By lap 13, Ivory was beginning to lap the field and had a comfortable 10-car lead over Therrien. It was another 3 cars back to Phillips. Another circuit gave Ivory a ¼-lap lead. But Therrien got into Arregado as she attempted to go under as she was lapping him, sending her up into the turn two wall on her drivers’ side. She was able to restart the car and drive it to the pits.
On the restart, Ivory was away like a rocket. Gould came around Phillips for second as Phillips got high and to the outside, allowing David Westgate, Jr, to move into third.
Ivory led by four cars in lap 17 and continued to pull away as the field became a pace line. He crossed the stripe at the finish ahead of Gould by 4 lengths. Westgate finished third, just ahead of Silva. Phillips rounded out the top 5. Bickford finished sixth, followed by Henry, Therrien and Arregado.
Westgate’s finish edges him two points closer to Silva in the championship points, where they stand 1-2. However, the lead stands in the area of 20 points, making the last Fast Friday competition a mountainous climb for Westgate to overtake Silva.
Kaitlyn Donovan led all but the first three of 25 laps in the SYRA 750 feature race, en route to tightening the contest between her and the division leader, David Hutchins, Jr. of Somerset. The Waterford driver started the outside pole against Holliston’s Nate Bubello, who (like Donovan) was looking for a first win on the season. He finished seven second back as Donovan built a half-track lead in the closing laps. Last week’s winner, Adam Swift of Fairhaven, claimed third. Division leader Hutchins suffered bearing problems and retired after 4 laps, in fourth place, while Plymouth’s Ashley Kuhn was sidelined after just three circuits.
At the outset, Bubello ran to the front as Donovan fell back. Swift got loose in turn 4. Bubello led the field into lap 2 over Donovan, Hutchins, Swift and Kuhn. On the second circuit, Hutchins car suddenly cut to the right in turn 3 and came to a stop in 4. He was able to get moving again and went around the oval to turn 2, where he stopped with smoke trailing from his right rear. He took the car off the track, came back out and stalled again in turn 4 and returned to the pits.
Bubello and Donovan faced off again and Bubello grabbed the lead with Donovan falling back in turn 2. Swift went under Bubello for the lead on lap 3, but spun between the third and fourth turns in front of Kuhn, who caught him on the driver’s door, and brought out a red flag and the ambulance. The EMT’s were waved off after a check of Swift by track stewards and both cars went to the pits.
Swift returned for the restart, but Kuhn’s night was ended. Donovan, Bubello and Swift lined up for the restart and Donovan came quickly off the pole to the lead, but the starter called a false start, bringing the field back. Hutchins returned to the track. On the second attempt, Donovan went to the lead again over Bubello. Swift and Hutchins followed. But Hutchins’ car smoked through turn two on the lap and then again on the following circuit. He retired from the race after four laps were complete, but the extra lap had moved him one lap ahead of Kuhn for race positioning.
The lap 5 restart saw Donovan go into the lead over Bubello again. Swift came alongside Bubello and the two began to dice over second spot, exchanging the lead several times over the next few laps. By lap 9, Donovan was nursing a straightaway lead.
Bubello assumed the second spot for good on lap 17 and by lap 19, Donovan was nearly a half lap ahead and still increasing the distance with each lap.
The final 5 laps were a parade to the finish with Donovan coming home to the checkered flag for the first time in the season.
Taunton driver Branden Dion brought his SYRA 600 car home four and a half seconds ahead of his nearest competitor for a convincing Fast Fridays victory in the late season and his second win on the season. Chase Belcher of West Wareham, who led off from the pole was runnerup.
Division leader Nicholas Lascuola lost the nose of his car in an early-race crash. He was able to return to the racing, but was severely hampered by the damage and was lapped twice as the racing unwound. The Brockton native finished the race in tenth position.
Belcher went to the lead at the start with outside polesitter Curtis Rolando of Newport on his tail. But Tyler Boudreau spun in turn two, collecting Waterford’s Shelby Donovan and Portsmouth’s Kara Carpenter. Carpenter retired to the pits and was done for the evening. Boudreau was able to continue and Donovan, after a push start, rejoined the field.
Again on the restart, Belcher was on the pole. But Jason Enos of Assonet had taken over the outside. Rolando started low on the second row with Tylar Nailor of Marston Mills on his shoulder. Dion and Providence’s Willy Sanchez were row three.
On the restart, Donovan and Lascuola collided between turns 1 and 2, and all the body metal on Lascuola’s nose was shorn off, leaving roll cage and underbody. The crash was severe enough to bring out a red flag and the ambulance for a check on the drivers. Lascuola’s car was taken back to the pit area and returned without the nose for the restart.
Again, Belcher went to the front on the green, this time battling with Dion, who got a nose past at the line. Donovan spun but was able to keep going, allowing the race to continue. By lap 5, Dion was showing a long lead and Donovan had been lapped. Dion was being pursued by Sanchez, Belcher and Rolando. By lap 7, Enos was battling Rolando for fourth.
David Lougee, Jr. spun on the front stretch, coming to rest in the infield in front of the starter. Dion again took the lead on the lap 6 restart and was not headed again. Belcher, Enos and Rolando pursued. The field stayed in an extended pace line with no positions changed.
On the final lap, however, Rolando and Sanchez were able to pass Enos into third and fourth, relegating Enos to fifth.
Louie Maher topped the field of V6 Mini Modifieds for a close win over Chris Kuebler in a shortened field of 5 competitors. Maher had started scratch on the field.
Eric Vilandre started at the pole with Wayne Brooks on the outside of the front row. Kuebler and Keith Caruso were the second rank, with Maher behind them.
Kuebler came on quickly at the starting line and ran around Vilandre and Brooks into the lead as the green flag fell on the field. Maher made the big leap from fifth to second on the start and Caruso followed him into third.
Three laps in, Maher attempted to go low under Kuebler and they ran nerf bar-to-nerf bar with Caruso giving chase. Vilandre and Brooks trailed the field distantly.
Maher took over the lead with Caruso attempting to pass Kuebler on the high side. There was another wheel-to-wheel duel between them before Kuebler edged back into second. He then put himself on Maher’s rear bumper. The lead trio had a 7 car lead on Brooks and Vilandre.
Maher began to encounter lapped traffic on lap 10 and into lap 11. Kuebler was still pestering his rear bumper and on lap 12, he was trying again to get underneath for the lead. Maher held him off for a lap and a half, running high, and edged out to a lead.
Kuebler began a tactic of turning down on the straights to get under Maher, but the latter continued to hold him off. A sudden dash at the finish line had Kuebler almost through to the win, but Maher held on for the victory by a fender. Caruso came around for the third spot.
Sources: Seekonk Speedway PR