Pennink Celebrates Modified Racing Series Victory; O’Sullivan Claims Two Wins On World Series Weekend
Thompson, Conn: Rowan Pennink’s victory in the Valenti Modified Racing Series 75-lapper highlighted an action packed night at Thompson International Speedway that offered 11 features of racing. John Studley, John Lowinski-Loh, Tommy O’Sullivan, Jesse Gleason, Eric Bourgeois, Glen Thomas, Jr., Chris Correll, and Dave Richardi all visited victory lane on World Series weekend. Eric Berndt won his second career NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour pole for Sunday’s 150-lap tour race.
Rowan Pennink picked up his third victory of the season in the Valenti Modified Racing Series after taking the lead at lap Justin Bonsignore led from the pole before caution slowed the race for the first time at lap two. On the restart, Bonsignore drove back out front with Todd Owen right on his bumper. On lap four, Owen shot around to the lead with Bonsignore and Christopher in tow. Owen drove straight to the front when racing resumed after a caution on lap 11 with Chris Pasteryak getting underneath Bonsignore for second. Pasteryak attached himself to Owen’s bumper, and heading into turn one on lap 17, shot to the bottom and drove to the lead. Pasteryak put some distance over the rest of the field once out front while Christopher took over second. Louie Mechalides took that spot from Christopher when the Plainville, Conn. native pulled his ailing machine onto pit road at lap 34. Mechalides set his sights on Pasteryak, who was maneuvering through lapped traffic nearly a second in front of him. Caution flew at lap 40 with many cars electing to go down pit road, but Pasteryak was not one of them. Rowan Pennink joined Pasteryak on the front row for the restart, and took over the lead when the green flag dropped. On the next circuit, Brad VonHouten and Leo Oliviera made contact. Oliviera’s car climbed the outside retaining wall and traveled over 100 feet on that wall before coming to a stop in the middle of turns one and two. The race went under red flag conditions as safety and track personnel attended to Oliviera, who escaped unharmed, and his car. On the restart, Pennink jumped to the lead with Pasteryak and Richard Savary in tow. Lap 50 brought out the caution once again, and on the restart, Pennink drove straight to the front as Pasteryak held off a challenge for second. Jon McKennedy and Steve Masse rounded out the top-four. McKennedy used the bottom to get by Pasteryak on lap 54 while Masse followed his line on the following circuit. Pennink held off McKennedy through two more restarts, but it was getting harder for him to shake McKennedy, who was glued to his rear bumper as they hit five laps to go. Caution flew with two laps to go setting up a green-white-checkered finish, but even that was not enough to shake Pennink, who drove to the victory.
John Studley held off Cam McDermott to win the 20-lap Lite Modified feature Saturday night. Corey Barry took the early lead, but a wreck in turn one brought out the caution before the second lap could be completed. On the restart, Barry drove right back out front with Nick Salva in tow, but Zach Aszklar was on the move and took over the second position by lap four. Aszklar got a run on Barry on the restart, but could not quite complete the pass. The battle allowed Troy Talman to sneak by for the lead before caution flew at lap seven. Tony Membrino, Jr. challenged Talman, but couldn’t get enough momentum to get by. Aszklar did get a run, and took over second from Membrino before the lap was complete. Aszklar spun in turn two setting up a restart with Talman, Cam McDermott and Membrino leading the charge. Talman held on to his lead at the drop of the green with McDermott filling his rear view mirror. On lap 13, McDermott took the low groove to drive by for the lead on the backstretch before caution slowed his pace. Talman reclaimed the lead on the restart with John Studley knocking him from the point in turn four of lap 16. McDermott used the bottom of the racetrack to take second away from Talman on lap 17 and attach himself to the back of Studley’s bumper. Studley could not be shaken from the point, however, and drove on to the checkered flag.
John Lowinski-Loh put another notch in his belt by winning the 20-lap Thompson Modified feature Saturday night, and putting his season win total to ten in the division. John Lowinski-Loh took the lead after Brian Tagg got squirrelly on the start. Lowinski-Loh pulled ahead of Chad LaBastie by ten car lengths by the end of the second circuit, but was reeled back in by a caution at lap four. LaBastie stayed with Lowinski-Loh on the restart, and pulled ahead by a nose heading into turn three. Lowinski-Loh fought back, however, and held on to the lead as they crossed the start/finish line on lap five. The race went green the rest of the way with Lowinski-Loh dominating to the checkers.
Rick Gentes won in the Outlaw Late Model feature after leading every lap of the 25-lap feature. Gentes jumped to the lead at the drop of the green flag and pulled ahead to a healthy margin over Gerry DeGasparre, Jr. and Charlie Rose. The field strung out and ran single file as the race went green and allowed Gentes to continue to put distance over the rest of the field. Gentes dominated the remainder of the race – never relinquishing his lead en route to the checkered flag.
Tommy O’Sullivan got sent to the rear for jumping the restart at the beginning of the Late Model race, but it didn’t stop him from showing everyone he had a car to win. O’Sullivan took the lead on a lap eight restart and never relinquished it en route to the victory. Damon Tinio took the early lead as Randy Tucker got squirrelly deep in the field. Tucker saved the car and kept the race under green as Tinio pulled ahead to a five car length lead over John Falconi. Ryan Waterman got sideways going into turn four on lap eight and spun bringing out the caution. Falconi used the outside groove to get a solid run on Tinio in turns one and two, but caution for an incident on the backstretch stopped his momentum. Tinio didn’t give Falconi a chance to get a run o him, and drove straight to the front of the pack. Caution tightened them up yet again with a shakeup on the restart. Falconi jumped out front out of turn four, crossed over in front of Tinio on the outside lane, which allowed O’Sullivan to take the lead on the inside. Tinio settled into second with Falconi in third by the halfway mark. O’Sullivan pulled away to a commanding lead. Tinio cut the lead down to five car lengths, but ran out of time and O’Sullivan took the victory.
After winning in the Late Model division, Tommy O’Sullivan jumped into an Outlaw Strictly Stock and dominated the 20-lap feature event. O’Sullivan held off his brother Mike O’Sullivan on the final restart to lead every lap of the race en route to his victory. O’Sullivan jumped out to the lead at the start and put a half-a-straightaway over Corey Hutchings and Paul Newcomb, Jr. The field strung out across the length of the 5/8th’s mile oval as O’Sullivan began to lap the field by lap eight. Caution came out for a car in the turn three wall at lap eight with O’Sullivan reclaiming the top spot on the restart, but another caution lined up O’Sullivan and Hutchings on the front row. Hutchings made a solid bid for the lead – running door-to-door with O’Sullivan through one and two. O’Sullivan and Hutchings battled it out until, coming around turn four, Hutchings spun and brought the caution out. O’Sullivan and his brother Mike O’Sullivan went back to green on the front row with Tommy O’Sullivan beating him into turn one. Once out front Tommy O’Sullivan pulled ahead once again by a half-a-straightaway.
Jesse Gleason survived several restarts to take the win in the Limited Sportsman feature race. Gleason drove to the front at the start of the race with Jason Chicolas and Corey Fanning rounding out the top three. Gleason set a torrid pace and began to approach the tail end of the field when caution flew at lap seven. When racing resumed, Gleason was just as strong and continued to lead the 29-car field, but caution tightened it up again. Fanning jumped to the lead on the restart, but Gleason retaliated and reclaimed the lead on the same circuit. On lap 11, Scott Sundeen got into the mix when he got up alongside Tom Shea for the third position. The two ran door-to-door for a lap before Sundeen got the spot and then drove by Fanning on the bottom for second. A two-car accident on the front stretch brought out the caution at lap 17 and put Gleason and Sundeen on the front row for the restart. Gleason was unstoppable and drove out front and to the checkers unchallenged.
Eric Bourgeois took the lead at the start of the Mini Stock feature and dominated the event before taking the checkers. Bourgeois took the lead at the start with Steve Violette and Steve Michalski in tow. The field stretched out single file until caution tightened them back up at lap six. Bourgeois reclaimed the lead on the restart with Violette and Joe Baxter close behind, but caution would slow their momentum at lap eight. Bourgeois was unstoppable and jumped to the point again when the race resumed, but caution at lap 10 would make him have to do it all over. And that’s exactly what he did. Violette, meanwhile, held off Scott Michalski to hold on to second. Bourgeois pulled ahead by nearly a second over the rest of the field as he drove to the checkers.
“I just won the World Series! This is awesome!” said Glen Thomas, Jr., who led every lap of the Outlaw Mini Stock feature event en route to his victory in the division. Thomas took the early lead, but an accident on the backstretch put the race into caution before the first lap was completed. Thomas held off Mark Panaroni to drive out front once again with Eric Bourgeois in third. The top three pulled away from the rest of the field as all eyes turned to Travis Jurcik who was all over Roger Ducharme for the fourth position. Ducharme held him off as the race slowed for a caution at lap seven. On the restart, Panaroni stuck with Thomas into turn one, but it was all Thomas out front into turn two. Thomas stole the show as he pulled away to a commanding lead over the 25-car field. On lap 12, more than a handful of cars piled up in turn four and brought out the caution flag. Panaroni tried again to knock Thomas from the lead, but Thomas wasn’t having it and drove right back to the front, and three laps later, to the checkered flag.
Chris Correll won the New England Truck Series feature in a wild finish that saw him spin out of the lead just before the start/finish line. Jason LaFayette led the charge at the start of the 20-lap feature as Correll grabbed the second spot from Glen Noll on lap two. Caution set up a restart where Correll took over the lead, but LaFayette wasn’t about to back off and challenged on the bottom in turn two. After a brief battle, LaFayette settled back into second after failing to knock Correll from the point. Duane Noll rounded out the top-three. Correll, LaFayette, and Noll pulled away from the rest of the field, and ran nose-to-tail until lap 15 when LaFayette attempted an inside pass on Correll. Noll took advantage and drove by LaFayette on the inside for the second spot allowing Correll to pull ahead by three truck lengths, which Noll closed up by the final lap. As they came around turn four, Noll made contact with Correll and spun him out of the lead. Correll was awarded the win.
Dave Richardi won the Harry Kourafas Memorial 25-lap Pro Four Modified feature Saturday night after taking the lead on a restart. Robin Berghman took the early lead until caution slowed the pace after the first circuit. Phil Lausier, Dan Fresh and Dan Meservey, Sr. joined Berghman in making up the first two rows for the restart, and again it was Berghman out front with a five-car length advantage. Lausier lost the second spot to Dave Richardi on lap three before caution flew again. When racing resumed, Richardi outraced Berghman into turn one to take over the lead. Richardi kept a comfortable distance over the No. 07x until lap eight when Berghman started putting the pressure on – looking on the bottom groove for a way around. Richardi held her off until lap 15 when Berghman got underneath him going into turn one. The duo raced side-by-side with Richardi holding on to the lead through lapped traffic. Richardi pulled ahead by five car lengths and drove unchallenged to the checkered flag.
VALENTI MODIFIED RACING SERIES FEATURE FINISH (TOP 10): 1. Rowan Pennink, New Egypt, NJ; 2. Jon McKennedy, Chelmsford, MA; 3. Steve Masse, Bellingham, MA; 4. Richard Savary, Canton, MA; 5. Louie Mechalides, Tyngsboro, MA; 6. Chris Pasteryak, Jewett City, CT; 7. Max Zachem, Preston, CT; 8. Todd Owen, Somers, CT; 9. Charles Pasteryak, Lisbon, CT; 10. Norm Wrenn, Nashua, NH.
LITE MODIFIED FEATURE FINISH (TOP 10): 1. John Studley, Framingham, MA; 2. Cam McDermott, Scituate, RI; 3. Zach Aszklar, Wallingford, CT; 4. Tony Membrino, Jr., Plantsville, CT; 5. Troy Talman, Oxford, MA; 6. Victoria Bergenty, Plainville, CT; 7. Corey Barry, Plainfield, CT; 8. Tyler Jarvenpaa, Orange, MA; 9. Adam Brooks, Winchendon, MA; 10. Ronnie Williams, Tolland, CT.
THOMPSON MODIFIED FEATURE FINISH: 1. John Lowinski-Loh, Milford, MA; 2. Chad LaBastie, Uxbridge, MA; 3. Danny Gamache, Jr., Woonsocket, RI; 4. Jay Sundeen, Douglas, MA; 5. Brian Tagg, Oxford, MA.
OUTLAW LATE MODEL FEATURE FINISH: 1. Rick Gentes, Woonsocket, RI; 2. Gerry DeGasparre, Jr., Pawtucket, RI; 3. Charlie Rose, Tiverton, RI; 4. Robert Pelland, III; 5. Paul Newcomb, Jr., Plymouth, MA; 6. Ryan Posocco, Stafford Springs, CT; 7. Tony Anello, Islip, NY; 8. Bill Ahern, Billerica, MA; 9. Mike Sweeney, Jr., Meriden, CT; 10. Rob Visconti, Lindenhurst, NY.
LATE MODEL FEATURE FINISH (TOP-10): 1. Tommy O’Sullivan, Wilbraham, MA; 2. Damon Tinio, Mendon, MA; 3. Glenn Boss, Danielson, CT; 4. John Falconi, Oakham, MA; 5. Corey Hutchings, Salem, CT; 6. Wayne Coury, Milford, CT; 7. Jeramee Lillie, West Warwick, RI; 8. Robert Palmer, Lisbon, CT; 9. Derryck Anderson, Jr., Warwick, RI; 10. Robert O’Connell, Jr., Wrentham, MA.
MINI STOCK FEATURE FINISH (TOP 10): 1. Eric Bourgeois, East Haddam, CT; 2. Steve Violette, Canterbury, CT; 3. Scott Michalski, S. Killingly, CT; 4. Mike Viens, Seekonk, MA; 5. Roger Ducharme, Foster, RI; 6. Joe Baxter, Pascoag, RI; 7. Craig Phillips, Fitchburg, MA; 8. Louis Bellisle, III, Lisbon, CT; 9. Jeff Moffat, Smithfield, RI; 10. Brent Gleason, Norwich, CT.
OUTLAW MINI STOCK FEATURE FINISH (TOP 10): 1. Glen Thomas, Jr., Groton, CT; 2. Mark Panaroni, Ivoryton, CT; 3. Richard Fournier, Warwick, MA; 4. Eric Bourgeois, East Haddam, CT; 5. Beth Adams, N. Swansea, MA; 6. Nick Anderson, Oxford, MA; 7. Andy Publicover, Sudbury, MA; 8. Jeff Moffat, Smithfield, RI; 9. Nathan Taylor, Waukegan, CT; 10. Chris Ivory, Oakdale, CT.
OUTLAW STRICTLY STOCK FEATURE (TOP 10): 1. Tommy O’Sullivan, Wilbraham, MA; 2. Paul Newcomb, Jr., Plymouth, MA; 3. Mike O’Sullivan, Springfield, MA; 4. Andy Brooks, Winchendon, MA; 5. Anthony Crimaldi, Port Monmouth, NJ; 6. Sean Foster, Willington, CT; 7. Corey Hutchings, Salem, CT; 8. Andrew Durand, Chicopee, MA; 9. Dan Stebbins, Bernardston, MA; 10. Dana Shepard, Putney, CT.
LIMITED SPORTSMAN FEATURE FINISH (TOP 10): 1. Jesse Gleason, Lisbon, CT; 2. Corey Fanning, Mapleville, RI; 3. Jason Chicolas, Sutton, MA; 4. Scott Sundeen, Douglas, MA; 5. Ed Puleo, Branford, CT; 6. Kevin Mason, W. Warwick, RI; 7. Corey Hutchings, Salem, CT; 8. Phil Evans, Uncasville, CT; 9. Joe Arena, Bristol, CT; 10. Chris Meyer, North Franklin, CT.
PRO FOUR MODIFIED FEATURE FINISH (TOP-3): 1. Dave Richardi, No. Easton, MA; 2. Robin Berghman, E. Providence, RI; 3. Dan Meservey, Jr., Brewster, MA;
NEW ENGLAND TRUCK SERIES: 1. Chris Correll, Montville, CT; 2. Jason LaFayette, Somers, CT; 3. Bert Ouellette, Dayville, CT.
Sources: Penny Aicardi/Thompson International Speedway PR