Quenneville Jumps to Top of NASCAR National Rookie Standings
Brandon, VT driver leads tight battle with Devil’s Bowl Speedway performances
WEST HAVEN, VT – Devil’s Bowl Speedway stock car driver Vince Quenneville, Jr., has moved to the top of the national Division I Rookie of the Year standings in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series (NWAAS). Quenneville jumped ahead of Thayne Hallyburton and Austin Peters with a seventh-place finish in last Friday’s Carrara Masonry & Concrete C.J. Richards Memorial for the Bond Auto Parts Modifieds.
Quenneville, of Brandon, VT, started his driving career at Devil’s Bowl Speedway 25 years ago and won the 2003 Modified track championship, but is a first-time NASCAR license holder in 2012 and is considered a rookie in the Whelen All-American Series. The NWAAS program encompasses nearly 60 race tracks in the United States and Canada including Devil’s Bowl Speedway, an asphalt half-mile in West Haven, VT. Quenneville returned to weekly competition at Devil’s Bowl in 2012 two seasons away and opened the year with back-to-back victories. He picked up a third win on June 29.
“After 25 years of racing I’m a rookie again,” Quenneville laughed after the latest NWAAS standings were announced on Tuesday afternoon. “I set two goals this year: To win the NASCAR Rookie of the Year title, and to have a shot at a championship. It’s odd to be chasing a rookie title after racing as long as I have been, but the NASCAR program is a great opportunity and it was part of the reason I wanted to race at Devil’s Bowl this year.”
Quenneville is certainly within reach of his goals; he trails 2011 Devil’s Bowl Speedway, NWAAS Vermont State Champion, and NWAAS Vermont Rookie of the Year Ron Proctor by just seven points (615-608) entering Friday night’s Cat Country 105.3 event. Should Quenneville stay where he is through the end of the season, he’ll pocket $1,000 for the Vermont rookie prize and another $2,000 for the national title.
Canadian driver Hallyburton races a Limited Late Model at Barrie Speedway in Ontario and trails Quenneville in NWAAS Div. I rookie standings by seven points (333-326). Tennessee Late Model driver Austin Peters of Kingsport Speedway sits third, also at 326, followed by Waterford (CT) Speedbowl Modified driver Ed Puleo (316 points) and Barrie driver Shawn Murray (304).
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Devil’s Bowl Speedway is in action on Friday, July 27 as Cat Country 105.3 hosts a full card of racing and the annual St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital fundraiser beginning at 7:30pm. Regular general admission is $10 for adults, $9 for seniors (62+), and free for children 12 and under. Gates open at 5:00pm with racing scheduled to begin at 7:30pm.
Devil’s Bowl Speedway is located on Route 22A in West Haven, VT, four miles north of Exit 2 on US Route 4. For more information, call (802) 265-3112 or click www.devilsbowlspeedwayvt.com. Devil’s Bowl Speedway is on Facebook at facebook.com/devilsbowlspeedway and Twitter at @DevilsBowlSpeed.
Sources: Devil’s Bowl Speedway
PHOTO: Devil’s Bowl Speedway Bond Auto Parts Modified driver Vince Quenneville, Jr. (#78) of Brandon, VT leads the national NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Rookie of the Year standings. (MemorEvents photo)