Saturday 7/21 NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Results
Waterford, CT — Beautiful weather graced Waterford Speedbowl Saturday evening for a six-division NASCAR Whelen All-American Series racing program. Fans in attendance were treated to a cleanly competed event as the first four feature races were slowed by only one caution period among them. Scoring victories on the evening included Shawn Monahan of Waterford who won an absolute thriller in the night’s SK Modified® feature. Corey Hutchings of Salem won his third Street Stock feature on the year while Oakdale driver Wayne Burroughs picked up an exciting first-ever win in the Mini Stock division. Corey Barry of Plainfield won his second consecutive SK Light Modified race, Dana Dimatteo of Farmington won his second Saturday Series Legend Cars event of 2012 and Chris Garside of Waterford took a hometown win in the Saturday Series for the X-Car division.
Monahan led the field to the green flag to start the 35-lap NASCAR Whelen All-American Series SK Modified® feature race. He bolted out to the early lead over Jeffrey Gallup, who was comfortable in second position ahead of Joe Perry, Ed Puleo and Joe Gada as the field singled out. Top guns Rob Janovic Jr., Keith Rocco and Tyler Chadwick were racing further back to crack the top-ten positions when Rich Brooks spun in turn two on lap-9 to bring out the first caution flag.
On the restart it was Monahan back ahead of Gallup with Puleo racing to third outside Perry, who was back in a battle with Gada for fourth. Kyle James and Keith Rocco battled side-by-side behind that pair for sixth position while Diego Monahan, Janovic and Chadwick were trying to make up ground through the field behind them. The second caution flag flew on lap-15 for Corey Larson and Corey Coates as the two came together in turn four.
The restart attempt saw Monahan lead Gallup to turn one, however trouble at the rear of the field saw Jeff Rocco go hard into the front stretch wall to keep the race halted under yellow. Following the cleanup Puleo enjoyed his best run of the season to date, advancing to second inside of Gallup on lap-16.
Behind the leaders several cars bunched up two by two in tight formation when trouble broke out. Contact sent Kyle James from the top of the track into the low groove between turns three and four, leaving point leader Janovic nowhere to go. James collected Janovic sending both cars careening hard into the wall out of turn four to bring out another caution flag on lap-17, ending the night for both.
The field was only able to make it to turn one on the restart attempt before action picked up again, this time with Gallup and Perry making contact in turn one. The field scattered and the caution flag waved as Gallup had a right front tire down on his car, keeping the racing at bay with 17 laps complete.
Monahan led Puleo for the restart with Perry and Gada side-by-side for third. Keith Rocco made quick work of the battle for third by stealing the spot away with a three-wide maneuver down the back chute into turn three on lap-18. Just one more lap was scored complete when fluid on the track from an ailing car at the back of the field necessitated the sixth caution flag of the race.
The action picked up in a big way at the front of the field following the next restart. Monahan resumed his lead while Puleo fell back into a side-by-side tussle with Rocco for second. Puleo made slight contact with the backstretch wall on lap-19 outside of Rocco, causing the field to check up. Rocco pulled away into second while Puleo resumed after dropping positions to Tom Abele Jr., Craig Lutz and Chadwick.
The battle for the lead put the fans on the edge of their seats as Rocco was able to track down Monahan and get to the leader’s outside and rear bumper on multiple occasions over the next several laps. Each time, however, Monahan successfully held back Rocco’s advances to maintain his lead. With 25-laps on the scoreboard Rocco had tucked back in line behind Monahan before making a blitz on his lead down the back chute to get underneath. Just as it appeared Rocco may have found a move that worked, Brett Gonyaw spun in turn four to bring out a caution flag. Rocco’s move was pulled back and he lined up outside Monahan for the restart.
Rocco stayed alongside Monahan when the green flag came back out, staying a half car to his outside through the final caution flag which waved on lap-27 when a several car wreck on the front chute collected Jeff Pearl, Gallup, Gonyaw, Will Schneider and Al Stone leading to a lengthy cleanup. Pearl’s crew was put to task to repair the damage to his machine to keep pace in the championship points hunt.
The final restart again saw Monahan hold his lead back into turn one. Rocco actually nosed ahead into the lead outside of Monahan on lap-28 however Monahan refused to back down, reclaiming the top spot on lap-29 for the final run to the checkered flag. Rocco tried valiantly to hold on outside Monahan but began to fade in the final laps. Monahan cleared Rocco for good on lap-31 and went on to the win, his first at the track since 2008 after running on a limited basis over past seasons. Chadwick moved to third following the final restart and challenged Rocco for second, taking the spot at the checkered flag. Rocco’s run ended in third, while Diego Monahan and Abele rounded out the top-five.
Rocco’s finish vaulted him to the point lead as point leaders Janovic and Pearl both were victim to attrition. Chadwick moved to second in points behind Rocco.
Hutchings benefited by a mid-race caution flag on lap-12 of the 25-lap NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Street Stock feature to line up behind leaders Joe Arena of Bristol and Chris Meyer of North Franklin. Following the restart, Hutchings got to Meyer’s inside to take second, then used a veteran move to sneak inside of Arena on lap-17. Hutchings had to hold back Arena and Meyer briefly before flexing his muscle to take his third win of the season in the division. Meyer and Arena finished second and third.
Burroughs was impressive in picking up a first-ever victory in the 25-lap NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Mini Stock race. He led from the drop of the green flag in a caution-free run straight through the checkered flag. Burroughs did not have it easy, however, as last week’s race winner Mark Panaroni of Ivoryton charged to second position by lap-17 and chased Burroughs to the checkered flag. Burroughs drove a smooth race to close out his win. Panaroni drove hard to finish second while Ian Brew of Wood River Junction, RI was strong during the race to claim third.
Barry was fast in the 25-lap NASCAR Whelen All-American Series SK Light Modified feature, tracking down early leader Tyler Jackson of Milford. Barry made the move to Jackson’s inside to streak into the lead on lap-10. The race was another caution-free event and Barry had no challengers on his route to victory, having to navigate lapped traffic as his only hurdle. Jackson finished in second while Shayne Prucker of Stafford Springs completed a good run in third.
Dimatteo returned to Legend Cars Victory Lane for the second time of the year in the division’s 20-lap race. After a caution flag on the opening lap, the race ran trouble free the rest of the way once underway. Dimatteo led on lap-3 past Kyle Rogers of Waterbury. He had to survive a scare with lapped traffic on lap-14 with Paul Kusheba of Monroe tailing him, coming out unscathed and racing to the win. Kusheba and Matt Pappa of Nassau, NY were second and third.
The night’s 20-lap X-Car event for the division’s Saturday Series was won by another hometown driver, Chris Garside. He made a cameo appearance in the race behind the wheel of the car piloted by Glen Thomas Jr. in the division’s Wild ‘n Wacky Wednesday series. The race was another that ran without a caution flag.
Waterford Speedbowl Saturday 7/21 NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Results:
NASCAR Whelen All-American Series SK Modifieds® (35-laps): 1. Shawn Monahan, Waterford; 2. Tyler Chadwick, Ledyard; 3. Keith Rocco, Meriden; 4. Diego Monahan, Quaker Hill; 5. Tom Abele Jr., Norwich; 6. Craig Lutz, Miller Place, NY; 7. Matt Gallo, Kensington; 8. Ed Puleo, Branford; 9. Joe Gada, Salem; 10. Brett Gonyaw, Manchester; 11. Adam Gada, Bozrah; 12. John Montesanto, North Branford; 13. Wendell Dailey, Gales Ferry; 14. Larry Goss, North Windham; 15. Corey Coates, Ledyard; 16. Paul French, Andover; 17. Jeff Pearl, Salem; 18. Joe Perry, Ashaway, RI; 19. William Scheider, Northport, NY; 20. Al Stone III, New Haven; 21. Jeffrey Gallup, Feeding Hills, MA; 22. Richard Brooks, Groton; 23. Kyle James, Ashaway, RI; 24. Rob Janovic Jr., Waterford; 25. Brent Sweet, Monroe; 26. Jeff Rocco, Wallingford; 27. Corey Larson, Bolton
NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Street Stocks (25-laps): 1. Corey Hutchings, Salem; 2. Chris Meyer, North Franklin; 3. Joe Arena, Bristol; 4. Josh Galvin, Franklin; 5. Dan Darnstaedt, Durham; 6. Ted Dupre, Westbrook; 7. Walt Hovey Jr., Chaplin; 8. Brandon Plemons, Uncasville; 9. Mike Caprio Jr., New Haven; 10. Phil Evans, Uncasville; 11. Greg Moran Jr., Preston; 12. Scott Young, Willimantic; 13. Bill McNeil, Preston; 14. Kaitlyn Brice, Manchester; 15. Ronnie Oldham Jr., Old Saybrook; DNS – Norm Root Jr., Westbrook
NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Mini Stocks (25-laps): 1. Wayne Burroughs Jr., Oakdale; 2. Mark Panaroni, Ivoryton; 3. Ian Brew, Wood River Junction, RI; 4. Jeffrey Cembruch, Wallingford; 5. Ken Cassidy Jr., Lisbon; 6. Nick Pappacoda, Branford; 7. Joseph Fogarasi, Columbia; 8. Bill Leonard, Charlestown, RI; 9. Ray Christian III, Norwich; 10. Garrett Denton, Hope Valley, RI; 11. Doug Curry, Groton; 12. Chris Garside, Waterford; 13. Christopher Ivory, Oakdale; 14. Dale Sherman, Charlestown, RI; 15. Christina Kellerman, Stratford; 16. Jeffrey Lee, Uncasville; 17. Floyd Chesbro, Griswold; 18. Sean Caron, East Hampton
NASCAR Whelen All-American Series SK Light Modifieds (25-laps): 1. Corey Barry, Plainfield; 2. Tyler Jackson, Milford; 3. Shayne Prucker, Stafford Springs; 4. Cam McDermott, Scituate, RI; 5. Paul French, Andover; 6. Chris Ignazio, Colchester; 7. Corey Larson, Bolton; 8. Jason Ferreira, Lowell, MA; 9. Larry Goss, North Windham; 10. Paul Tommasino, Meriden; 11. Alan Benincaso, Westport; 12. Rob Gallaer, Sherman
Legends Cars Saturday Series (25-laps): 1. Dana Dimatteo, Farmington; 2. Paul Kusheba IV, Monroe; 3. Matt Pappa, Nassau, NY; 4. Giovanni Giarratana, Newington; 5. Nick Ladyga, Voluntown; 6. Dylan Izzo, Westport; 7. Kyle Rogers, Waterbury; 8. Cory Dimatteo, Farmington; 9. Peter Cirilli, Farmington; 10. Nicholas Sowa, Middletown; 11. Calvin Therrien, Vernon; 12. Stephen Kopcik, Newtown; 13. Kyle Hardwick, Chaplin; 14. Art Marrero, Baltic; 15. Ed Field, Deep River; 16. David Johnson, Arlingham, MA; 17. Christopher Kearney, Ellington; 18. Richard Erlandson, Moodus; 19. Scott McKnickle, Ledyard; 20. John O’Sullivan, Salem; 21. Joey Ternullo, Middletown
X-Cars Saturday Series (20-laps): 1. Chris Garside, Waterford; 2. Brad Voglesong, Middletown; 3. Wayne Shifflett, Preston; 4. Mitchell Bombard, Willimantic; 5. Melissa Clavette, Bozrah; 6. Christopher Thomas, East Hampton; 7. Onie Pierce, Norwich; 8. Christopher Lee, Uncasville; 9. Henry Lavallee, Uncasville; 10. Shaun Parker, Taftville; 11. Kim Bickford, Griswold; 12. Chuck McDonald, Groton; 13. Kristie Hamel, Jewett City; 14. John Bowes, Willington; DNS – Ron Dimauro, Plymouth
Sources: Waterford Speedbowl PR