Doug Coby Leads Star Studded Field to UNOH Showdown at Thompson
THOMPSON, CT — Current NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour points leader and defending UNOH Showdown champion, Doug Coby, will lead an impressive field of open-wheel NASCAR Modifieds to Thompson September 8th & 9th. The second annual UNOH North/South Showdown at Thompson Speedway will feature both of NASCAR’S Modified Touring divisions in a weekend racing spectacular.
The NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour will travel north to take on the northern Whelen Modified Tour in a race program like no other. Each Tour will conduct separate qualifying and each will compete in its own individual points race. The WMT will run their Town Fair Tire 75-lap main event and the SWMT will compete in its own Green Pointe Energy 75-lap feature. Once each of these races is complete, the best of each Tour will be combined into the non-points, 50-lap UNOH Showdown race with more than $50,000.00 on the line with the winner’s share amounting to more than $15,000.00.
Last year in the inaugural UNOH Showdown event, it was Doug Coby who won both the NASCAR WMT points race and the 50-lap Showdown. George Brunnhoelzl, III, the current points leader on the NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour, claimed the win in the Southern Points race. Both Tours are expected to arrive at Thompson with impressive car counts to compete in this one-of-a-kind event.
Ron Silk, the 2011 WMT champion, was victorious in the most recent meeting of the two Tours when he claimed the victory in the UNOH Perfect Storm 150 at the Bristol Motor Speedway in Tennessee. He bested a 36-car starting field and closed the gap to 27 points between himself and current points leader Coby. The UNOH Showdown weekend will play a key role as competitors from both Tours close in on the date when the 2012 champions are crowned.
The NWSMT has had an impressive influx of new talent during the 2012 season. Two of the Sunoco Rookie of the Year contenders are in the top five in the points standings. Danny Bohn sits second in the standings and Kyle Ebersole is 5th. Bohn, of Freehold, NJ works for Ray Evernham Enterprises as a fabricator and has roots in go kart racing. Ebersole, a student, hails from Hummelstown, PA and also got his start in go kart racing. Both drivers have made quite an impression with their performances in the NWSMT and will be racing at Thompson for the first time as part of the southern Tour. Jason Myers, Tim Brown, Burt Myers, Andy Suess and Frank Fleming are just a few of the many other southern Tour drivers expected to compete during UNOH Showdown weekend.
Representing the northern contingent in addition to Coby and Silk will be drivers like Ted Christopher, Ryan Preece, Mike Stefanik, Todd Szegedy, Donny Lia, Jimmy Blewett, Justin Bonsignore and many more. All Tour cars will qualify through time trials scheduled for 4:30 PM on Saturday, September 8th with feature events on Sunday, September 9th.
Grandstands will open at 10 AM on Saturday and at 9:30 AM on Sunday. A big Fan Appreciation Party will be held on the race track beginning at 10:30 Sunday Morning. Racing is slated for a 12:30 PM start. Thompson’s NASCAR Whelen All-American “Super 6” weekly divisions will also play a big role in this amazing racing weekend with two feature events on Saturday and the remaining four on Sunday. The complete schedule of events for this busy weekend is posted on the Thompson web page.
When the race track is silent, all attention will be focused on the Thompson Club House where great food, drink and entertainment will highlight the menu. It all starts with the famous Thompson all-you-can-eat breakfast buffet on both Saturday and Sunday mornings. The Saturday night offering is a wonderful menu of dinner selections along with great music for listening and dancing late into the night.
Advance tickets are available for the UNOH Showdown weekend by calling the Thompson Speedway track office. 860-923-2280. All major credit cards are accepted and tickets can be mailed or held at the box office. The entire weekend’s list of activities may be found at www.thompsonspeedway.com
Sources:Russ Dowd/Thompson International Speedway PR