NASCAR National Champion Keith Rocco Coming to Devil’s Bowl Speedway
Connecticut driver will race opening Late Model championship event Sunday
WEST HAVEN, VT – Former NASCAR National Champion Keith Rocco will trek north to Devil’s Bowl Speedway on Sunday, May 13 for the Mother’s Day Special event. The Wallingford, CT superstar will compete in the championship-opening race for the J&S Steel Late Model division.
Rocco was the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series National Champion in 2010 and has ranked fourth or better for each of the last five years. The Devil’s Bowl feature event will be the fourth race of his busy weekend; Rocco will run an open-wheel SK Modified and a full-fender Late Model on Friday night at Stafford Motor Speedway in his native Connecticut, heads to Monadnock Speedway in Winchester, NH on Saturday for a 200-lap NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour event, and rides north for his first-ever race in Vermont on Sunday.
“We’re coming to race, to have fun, and hopefully to win,” Rocco declared. “If you’re not trying to win, you shouldn’t be out there, right?”
The 27-year-old, who is an engine builder by trade, already has six victories this season including one Late Model win at Stafford and another at Waterford (CT) Speedbowl in the same No. 1 Fearn Electric/ Clarence Realty-sponsored Toyota that he will drive at Devil’s Bowl. He reports that he has already received setup advice from last weekend’s American-Canadian Tour Spring Green winner Wayne Helliwell.
“All I really know about Devil’s Bowl is that it used to be a dirt track and now it’s paved,” Rocco admitted. “I’ve been told that it’s similar to Stafford, maybe a bit flatter. I’ve gotten to know Wayne Helliwell a little over the years, and he gave me a good starting point for a Devil’s Bowl setup last week. It must be pretty good, since he just won that big race.”
Rocco’s championship credentials may precede him, but Devil’s Bowl Speedway’s J&S Steel Late Model division regulars will be ready and waiting when he arrives. Main contenders Craig Bushey, Kevin Elliott, Matt White, Chris Wilk, and Norm Andrews of Vermont, New Yorkers Dan Petronis and Danny Sullivan, and New Hampshire’s Bryan Town will be gunning for Rocco on Sunday and each other all year. The J&S Steel Late Models will be joined in NASCAR Whelen All-American Series action by the Bond Auto Parts Modifieds, Renegades, and Bombers.
General admission for the Mother’s Day Special on Sunday, May 13 is $10 for adults, $9 for seniors (62+), and free for children 12 and under. Devil’s Bowl Speedway is located on Route 22A in West Haven, VT, six miles north of Exit 2 on US Route 4. For more information, call (802) 265-3112 or click www.devilsbowlspeedwayvt.com.
Sources: Devil’s Bowl Speedway PR
PHOTO: Former NASCAR Whelen All-American Series National Champion Keith Rocco is coming to Devil’s Bowl this weekend. (NASCAR photo)