Christopher Looks to Continue Run in Tour’s Return to Thompson
Has won six of last eight Whelen Modified Tour races at Thompson
Daytona Beach, FL — If one had to take either Ted Christopher or the field if asked to predict who might win the Budweiser ‘King of Beers’ 150 at Thompson (Conn.) International Speedway on June 30, they’d have a hard time going against No. 36.
Christopher has won six of the last eight NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour races at Thompson, and 12 total in his illustrious career. This current run that started with the 2008 World Series has been so dominant that he even finished second and fifth in those two races in which he didn’t take the checkered flag.
Christopher’s most impressive triumph in recent memory came in the Whelen Modified Tour’s 2011 opener – the Icebreaker – at Thompson when he rallied from two laps down to wind up in Victory Lane yet again.
While he may have Thompson more figured out that the next guy, Christopher says the key to his success is all about how he feels in the car.
“It’s comfort in my car and my team,” Christopher said following his Icebreaker win. “It’s basically if they can give me what I like in a race car and where I like it, that’s the whole game for me.”
If Christopher, from Plainville, Conn., is able to reach Victory Lane again in the Budweiser 150, he will match Jeff Fuller’s mark of seven wins in nine races from 1990-92 that currently stands as the most-successful stretch of victories. It would also pull him to within one win of tying Mike Stefanik on the Whelen Modified Tour’s all-time wins list at Thompson at 14.
Christopher might enter as the favorite based on his recent domination, but he will likely not go unchallenged. The No. 4 ‘Mystic Missile’ Dodge took the checkered flag in the two races that Christopher didn’t during his stretch, in 2009 with Donny Lia and in the 2010 Icebreaker with Bobby Santos. Santos also had a third-place finish at Thompson last year, and it’s arguably his best track.
The points leader through the first three races of the season, Rowan Pennink also figures to be a contender in the Bud 150. He’s finished in the top five in four of the last six races at the .625-mile speedway, including a runner-up finish to Christopher in April.
The Budweiser ‘King of Beers’ 150 will be the second of four races at Thompson in 2011 for the Whelen Modified Tour. Raceday for the Tour on Thursday, June 30 will begin practice from 2-3:30 p.m., and qualifying will follow at 5:30 p.m. The Bud 150 is set to go green at approximately 8:45 p.m., following Thompson’s six NASCAR Whelen All-American Series features.
Sources: Jason Cunningham/NASCAR WMT PR