Coffee Cup TQ-Midget Race Filled with Stafford Motor Speedway Regulars
Providence, RI — Woody Pitkat did his best at chasing Keith Rocco in the 2010 SK Modified® point standings at Stafford Motor Speedway. Now, Pitkat, 31, of Stafford, Conn., is bringing his outdoor talents to the indoor scene. Pitkat will drive a car owned by indoor TQ-Midget expert Lou Cicconi, Jr., for the upcoming Coffee Cup at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center in Providence, R.I., scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 5th.
The Coffee Cup will include the TQ-Midgets and Senior Champ Karts in a one-day event on February 5. Race time begins at 7 p.m. Tickets for the Coffee Cup are available at the Dunkin’ Donuts box office, online at www.ticketmaster.com or by calling Ticketmaster at 1-800-745-3000. This will mark Pitkat’s first indoor entry at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center.
“He’s in for quite an experience,” said Cicconi, a multi-time TQ-Midget feature winner. “He’ll be working the wheel, dodging cars, accelerating and braking many times during a lap. There is nothing like the close and competitive racing you get from racing indoors.”
The Coffee Cup event returns with enthusiasm from the local crowd. Mike Stefanik of Coventry, R.I., is the defending champion of the event. He did so only after making his indoor debut less than a year before.
“Winning that event was pretty incredible and it meant a lot,” Stefanik said. “The caliber and variety of drivers who attend the indoor events makes it a unique feat to win. Last year, you had the best in the TQ-Midget business, but there were guys like dirt Modified driver Billy Pauch, Indy 500 veteran Davey Hamilton and NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver David Reutimann.”
Although the allure of big-league drivers makes the race an experience, it’s the local presence that draws the experience. Stafford Motor Speedway SK Modified® regular and former NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion Ted Christopher of Plainville, Conn., is a regular entry on the indoor TQ-Midget series. Christopher won the return of sanctioned racing to Rhode Island in March of 2010. Christopher has also claimed indoor events at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, N.J.
NEMA Midget ace Randy Cabral is an early entry for the upcoming Coffee Cup race, as well. Cabral has competed indoors before and enjoys the atmosphere.
“It’s exciting from the driver’s seat so I can only imagine what it’s like for the fans in watching us do battle on a hockey rink,” Cabral said.
Of course, Cicconi, the defending champion of the Gambler’s Classic at Boardwalk Hall, is seeking his first ever victory at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center as is indoor ace Joey Payne, who will drive a TQ-Midget owned by Jim “Timex” Morgan, a former professional bullrider turned race car driver.
Sources: Jerry Reigle/AARN