Statistical Advance: UNOH Showdown
Analyzing The Whelen Modified Tour At Thompson
Daytona Beach, FL — The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour will be joined for the first time by the NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour for a new special event on Sept. 11 at Thompson (Conn.) International Speedway with the UNOH Showdown.
Selected Driver Highlights:
Eric Beers (No. 45 Chevrolet)
• Has two wins, nine poles and 68 top 10s in 165 career NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour starts.
• Is fourth in points with seven top 10s in 11 races.
• Leads all drivers in laps completed with 1,638, one shy of the entire season’s total.
• Has a win, a pole and 16 top 10s in 43 career starts at TIS.
Jimmy Blewett (No. 76 Chevrolet)
• Has five wins, a pole and 26 top 10s in 84 starts.
• Has one top-10 in five appearances in 2011.
• Has five top 10s in 22 starts at TIS, including a pair of runner-ups. Also has 10 DNFs.
Justin Bonsignore (No. 51 Chevrolet)
• The 2010 Sunoco Rookie of the Year.
• Has a win, two poles and 12 top 10s in 27 starts.
• Is up to a career-best eighth in points with a win and five top-fives.
• Has one top-five finish in five TIS races.
Ted Christopher (No. 36 Chevrolet)
• The 2008 NWMT champion. Has 41 wins and 23 poles in 302 career starts. His 41 wins rank third all-time and his 23 poles are eighth. Has at least one win in 13-straight seasons.
• Has three wins and seven top 10s in nine starts this year. Did not attend the two previous races.
• Has 13 wins, seven poles, 38 top 10s in 73 NWMT starts at TIS.
• Has led laps in 12-consecutive NWMT races at TIS and 1,723 of the 9,578 laps in his career.
• Is a five-time TIS track champion out of the Sunoco Modified division – including 2010 – and is closing in on 100 overall career victories at the track.
James Civali (No. 79 Pontiac)
• Has four wins a pole and 35 top 10s in 68 career NWMT starts. Also has two wins, three poles and 12 top 10s in 16 career NWSMT appearances.
• Is up to ninth in the 2011 NWMT standings with five top 10s in 11 races.
• Has a win, a pole and eight top 10s in 19 career starts at TIS.
Doug Coby (No. 52 Chevrolet)
• Has a win, four poles and 43 top 10s in 111 career starts.
• Is sixth in points with eight top 10s in 11 races this year.
• Has a best finish of third – four times – and 13 total top 10s in 30 career starts at TIS.
Matt Hirschman (No. 3 Chevrolet)
• Has two wins, three poles and 34 top 10s in 68 career starts.
• Is seventh in points with top-10 finishes in five of 11 races this year.
• Has seven top 10s in 19 TIS starts with a best finish of second on two occasions.
Donny Lia (No. 11 Ford)
• The 2007 and 2009 NWMT champion.
• Has 15 wins, 15 poles and 54 top 10s in 112 career NWMT starts.
• Has DNFs in both of his appearances this year.
• Has two wins, three poles and nine top 10s in 25 career starts at TIS
Rowan Pennink (No. 93 Chevrolet)
• Has a win and 33 top 10s in 68 career starts.
• Is third in points. Finished in the top 10 in the first eight races of the season, but has been 14th or worse the last three outings.
• Has 11 top 10s – with a best finish of second in the 2011 Icebreaker – in 18 career starts at TIS.
Woody Pitkat (No. 28 Chevrolet)
• Has 19 top 10s in 52 career starts
• Has four top 10s in eight appearances in 2011, including a career-best finish of second at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in August.
• Has three top 10s with a best finish of seventh in 14 career starts at TIS.
• Has three wins in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Sunoco Modifieds at TIS in 2011.
Ryan Preece (No. 40 Chevrolet)
• Has three wins, three poles and 32 top 10s in 63 career starts
• Has three top 10s in six appearances in 2011.
• Has eight top 10s in 16 starts at TIS with a best finish of second in the 2010 World Series.
Erick Rudolph (No. 98 Chevrolet)
• Has a win, two poles and 24 top 10s in 46 career starts.
• Is 10th in points with five top 10s in 11 outings.
• Has three top 10s in 10 career races at TIS.
Bobby Santos (No. 4 Dodge)
• Earned the 2010 NWMT championship.
• Has six wins, seven poles and 29 top 10s in 54 career starts.
• Is fifth in points this year with a win, three poles and six top 10s in 11 outings.
• Has two wins, three poles and 11 top 10s in 19 career starts at TIS. First win came there in 2007.
Ron Silk (No. 6 Chevrolet)
• Has six wins, four poles and 49 top 10s in 92 career starts.
• Tops the standings by 77 point on Todd Szegedy. Has two wins and seven top fives in 11 races.
• Has led more laps than any driver in 2011.
• Has three wins and 15 top 10s in 25 career starts at TIS. Last win was in August, 2008.
Mike Stefanik (No. 16 Pontiac)
• The 1989, 1991, 1997, 1998, 2001, 2002 and 2006 NWMT champion.
• Holds NWMT records for most titles (7), wins (71), poles (46), top fives (215) and top 10s (281).
• Is 12th in points with a win and five top 10s in 10 starts in 2011.
• Has 61 top 10s and a record 14 wins in 99 career starts at TIS. Last win was in April, 2006.
Todd Szegedy (No. 2 Ford)
• The 2002 Sunoco Rookie of the Year and 2003 tour champion.
• Has 16 wins, eight poles and 94 top 10s in 148 career starts.
• Is up to second in points with a pair of wins and podium finishes in five of the last six events.
• Has three wins, three poles and 16 top 10s in 34 starts at TIS. Last win was in September, 2008.
At Thompson International Speedway:
History
• Opened on May 26, 1940 as the first all-asphalt racing surface in the United States, and the largest track in New England at the time.
• Has one of the oldest NASCAR affiliations in the nation.
• Held NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races in 1951, 1969 and 1970.
• Has played host to 114 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour races, the most in the Tour’s 27 years.
• There have been 29 different race winners at TIS, led by Mike Stefanik’s 14 victories.
• There have been 39 different pole winners at TIS, led by Tony Hirschman’s 13.
• Features weekly competition with six NASCAR Whelen All-American Series divisions.
Notebook
• The preliminary entry list for the UNOH Showdown features nine drivers who have won at TIS during their careers: Stefanik (14), Ted Christopher (13), Ed Flemke Jr. (4), Ron Silk (3), Todd Szegedy (3), Donny Lia (2), Bobby Santos (2), Eric Beers (1) and James Civali (1).
• Christopher has won seven of the last nine events at TIS, including both dates this year.
• The winners of the last nine events held at TIS in the month of September are in this year’s race.
• The UNOH Showdown will feature separate 125-lap, points-paying races for the NWMT and NWSMT followed by a head-to-head 50-lap exhibition event.
Thompson International Speedway Data
Race: #12 of 16 overall, #3 of 4 at TIS
Track Layout: .625-mile oval
Banking: 26 degrees in the turns
Race Length: 125 laps/78.125 miles, Showdown: 50 laps/31.25 miles
Qualifying/Race Data
Qualifying Record: Bobby Santos (18.418 seconds, 122.163 mph – 4/11/10)
2010 Pole Winner: New Event
2010 Race Winner: New Event
NWMT Active Win Leaders at TIS
1. Mike Stefanik … 14
2. Ted Christopher … 13
3. Ed Flemke Jr. … 4
4. Ron Silk … 3
Todd Szegedy … 3
NWMT Active Pole Leaders at TIS
1. Mike Stefanik … 8
2. Ted Christopher … 7
3. Ed Flemke Jr. … 4
4. Bobby Santos … 3
Todd Szegedy … 3
Up to Speed:
• The 2011 schedule features 16 races at eight tracks across four states and two countries.
• Bobby Santos broke his own track record in qualifying for the season opener at Thompson International Speedway while Ted Christopher took the checkered flag on April 10.
• Doug Coby was the pole winner at Stafford Motor Speedway for the Spring Sizzler and Santos took home the checkered flag on May 1.
• Ron Silk won from the pole at SMS on May 27.
• Todd Szegedy followed Silk’s example as he captured the pole and led all 175 laps en route to victory at Monadnock Speedway on June 26. The race was postponed a day due to rain.
• In the second of four races at TIS this year, Christopher earned the pole and then came from outside the top 15 with 25 laps left to earn the victory on June 30.
• Ryan Newman took the pole and the checkered flag at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on July 16, but Szegedy was awarded the victory after Newman was disqualified due to post-race technical violations.
• Justin Bonsignore earned his first NWMT victory at his home track when he took the checkers at Riverhead (N.Y.) Raceway on July 30. Local competitor Howie Brode also captured his first NWMT pole award prior to the race.
• Christopher retuned to Victory Lane once again at Stafford when he took the Town Fair Tire 150 checkered flag on Aug. 5. Coby earned the pole earlier in the day.
• Mike Stefanik tied Tony Hirschman for the most NWMT career wins at NHMS with his seventh on Aug. 13. Santos earned the pole as the NWMT shared the race weekend at ‘Magic Mile’ with the IZOD IndyCar Series.
• Santos earned his third pole and Newman once again proved to be unbeatable as he led 109 of 150 laps in the NWMT-NWSMT combination race at Bristol Motor Speedway on Aug. 24.
• Erick Rudolph captured his second career pole and Silk his sixth career victory in the inaugural event at Delaware (Ont.) Speedway on Sept. 4.
Sources: Jason Cunningham/NASCAR WMT PR