Jon McKennedy Dominates at Speedbowl “Blastoff” to Win Season-Opener for Valenti Modified Racing Series
Waterford, CT — When Jon McKennedy recently received a call from legendary New England car owner Art Barry offering him the seat in his Valenti Modified Racing Series entry, he gladly accepted. On Sunday afternoon it proved a wise decision, with the Carlisle, MA driver scoring a convincing wire-to-wire victory in the season opening “Budweiser Blastoff” at the Waterford Speedbowl.
Starting from the outside front-row, McKennedy immediately took the lead from pole- sitter Rob Goodenough. He then prevailed on several restarts during the century-distance grind.
Fifth-place starter & defending series champion Chris Pasteryak dogged the leader during the latter-stages, mounting the most serious challenge. His chances evaporated when he was forced to pit for repairs with only 24-laps remaining. Winner of the 2011 “Blastoff”, Pasteryak returned to finish 10th.
From-there, it was Rowan Pennink chasing the leader to the finish. Norm Wrenn, Mike Holdridge, and Dave Etheridge completed the top-5.
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“First, I have to thank Art and his team for giving me such a good car, and the opportunity to drive for them,” stated McKennedy. “I knew when I got the call from Art that this was something I wanted to do. Waterford is traditionally a tough place, 100-laps here can feel like 200. Sometimes it’s hard to pass, and starting from the outside-pole, I knew I had to get to the front and stay-there. We’re just really-happy to start the season on such a positive note.”
The opportunity arose for McKennedy when Barry’s son Ken opted not to drive this season due to medical issues.
“We’re really pleased to be working with Jon,” Barry said. “He’s incredibly good. My son Ken had planned to drive this season, but he’s got a slight health problem with his ears and he gets dizzy driving. I don’t think it’s safe. He’s very proud to have Jon in the car. If everything goes well, we may be interested in running for the championship.”
Twice a Valenti Modified Racing Series champion, McKennedy is also a full-time competitor on the ISMA Super Modified Series trail.
“We started pretty-far back, and we were on our way to the front and got spun on lap-8 because of a really-stupid move made by somebody that early in the race,” said second-place finisher Rowan Pennink. “We really had to work really-hard to get back up toward the front. Hey, the winner did his job today in keeping me from getting underneath him. He drove a smart race.”
Rounding-out the top-3, veteran Norm Wrenn seemed genuinely-surprised at his podium finish. “We started in the back, and it was a tough drive. Really, it was a matter of saving the tires so they’d be good at the halfway-point. Honestly? I never thought that we’d finish in third. I’m very pleased all-things considered.”
Saturday’s qualifying heat winners were Chris Pasteryak, Joe Doucette, and Jim Boniface.
The Valenti Modified Racing Series next sees action on April 21 at New Hampshire’s Monadnock Speedway. For more information, visit www.modifiedracingseries.com
(OFFICIAL FINISH, 100-LAPS): 1. Jon McKennedy, 2. Rowan Pennink, 3. Norm Wrenn, 4. Mike Holdridge, 5. Dave Etheridge, 6. Charlie Pasteryak, 7. Tom Barrett, 8. Doug Coby, 9. Les Hinckley. 10. Chris Pasteryak, 11. Jeff Malave, 12. Louie Mechalides, 13. Joe Doucette, 14. Dennis Charette, 15. Mark Bakaj, 16. Jim Boniface, 17. Mark McClay, 18. Tim Jordan, 19. Max Zachem, 20. Jack Bateman, 21. Todd Annarummo, 22. Anthony Nocella, 23. Steve Masse, 24. Rob Goodenough, 25. David Schneider, 26. Matt Mead.
Sources: Dave Dykes/VMRS PR