Ted Christoper, Woody Pitkat, Zach Aszklar, Cory Casagrande & Cliff Saunders Honored as 2012 Stafford Speedway Track Champions
Stafford Springs, CT — Stafford Motor Speedway welcomed a guest list of nearly 500 people consisting of teams, drivers, sponsors, and employees this past Friday night, November 16 at the La Renaissance Banquet Facility in East Windsor to officially honor Ted Christopher, Woody Pitkat, Zach Aszklar, Cory Casagrande, and Cliff Saunders as the 2012 Stafford Motor Speedway NASCAR Whelen All-American Series track champions.
With Stafford Motor Speedway broadcasters Matt Buckler and Joe Coss serving as the Masters of Ceremony, the 43rd annual Stafford Motor Speedway NASCAR Champions Awards Ceremony not only honored thier five track champions, they also honored the top-20 points finishers from the SK Modified®, Late Model, SK Light, Limited Late Model, and DARE Stock divisions. Special awards that were presented during the evening's festivities were Most Popular Driver Awards, Most Improved Driver Awards, SPAFCO Race Chassis & Parts Rookie of the Year awards, and the UNOH Ultimate Mechanic of the Year Award.
The 2012 SK Modified® season saw Ted Christopher add to his record haul of Stafford track titles by capturing the 8th championship of his career. Christopher won the season opening CARQUEST Tech-Net Spring Sizzler feature and he was on the podium in each of the first three SK Modified® races this season. A 20th place finish on May 25th left Christopher having to play catch up in the points standings, but once he retook the points lead following the June 29th feature, he led the standings for the remainder of the 2012 season. In 18 starts this season, Christopher and the #13 Broadband Access team posted 4 wins, 13 top-5, and 15 top-10 finishes for an average finish of 5.3, which gave him the championship by a 34-point margin over Woody Pitkat.
The 2012 Late Model championship chase saw Woody Pitkat collect his second Late Model track championship at Stafford. Pitkat finished second in the season opening CARQUEST Tech-Net Spring Sizzler, but he found himself 4th in points after the first five races. But after those first five races, Pitkat and the #88 New Haven Truck and Auto Body team stamped their mark on the title chase with 6 consecutive finishes of first or second. A win in on the final Friday night of Sept. 14 gave Pitkat a nearly insurmountable 46 point lead and he won the championship despite a 20th place finish in the season ending CARQUEST Fall Final. Pitkat's final margin of victory in the championship chase was 36 points over Mike Quinitliano and Pitkat posted 4 wins, 13 top-5 and 16 top-10 finishes in 17 starts this season for an average finish of 4.5.
The SK Light championship race was a three-way battle for much of the 2012 season between Zach Aszklar, Dylan Kopec, and Tony Membrino, Jr. Kopec won 4 of the first 5 races during the year, but Aszklar was able to consistently finish in the top-5 while Kopec's season was very inconsistent. Kopec and Aszklar swapped the lead between themselves several times during the summer with Membrino lurking in a close third. But Askzlar's consistency allowed him to win the championship in the most bizarre of circumstances. Aszklar recorded a win and a second place finish in the final 2 races leading into the season ending CARQUEST Fall Final. All Aszklar needed to do was finish within 9 positions of Membrino to win the championship, but a mid-race accident that saw Kopec climb up and over the top of Aszklar's car put him out of the race and left the championship in jeopardy. Several laps later, Membrino would encounter problems of his own, which put him out of the race and Aszklar celebrated a championship with a wrecked race car. For the season, Aszklar and the #28 Beecher and Bennett Funeral Services team posted 2 wins, 12 top-5 and 16 top-10 finishes in 19 races to win the championship by 8 points over Bob Charland, who leapfrogged into second with a victory in the CARQUEST Fall Final feature event.
The Limited Late Model championship was a 2-car race for much of the season between Cory Casagrande and Josh Wood. Wood established his championship credentials early in the season by winning 6 out of the first 8 races. While Wood was winning, Casagrande wasn't far behind as he was finishing on the podium every week. In fact, for the 2012 season, Casagrande finished on the podium in 17 of the 18 races. Wood led the standings for much of the year, as Casagrande didn't reach victory lane until the 12th race of the season on Aug. 17th. But once Casagrande found his way into victory lane, he won 5 of the final 7 races to give him and the #1 Shark Cycle team the championship by a 12-point margin over Wood.
In the DARE Stock division, Cliff Saunders was a model of consistency throughout the 2012 season and he used that consistency to carry himself and the #4 American Sleeve Bearing team to their very first track championship. Saunders had two main championship rivals throughout the season in Kyle Casagrande, who won 6 races, and Austin Bessette, who won 3 races. For the entire 19 race schedule during the 2012 season, Saunders' worst finish was an 8th place finish on Aug. 17th. Along with his 2 wins, Saunders posted 15 top-5 and 19 top-10 finishes to win the championship by 22 points over Bessette.
Receiving awards for Most Improved Driver were Brian Sullivan in the SK Modified® division, Mark St. Hilaire in the Late Model division, Bob Charland and Tony Membrino, Jr. in the SK Light division, and Jesse Hinze in the Limited Late Model division. The Most Improved Driver award is given to a driver who exhibits the greatest degree of improvement in on-track performance over the past season. Nominees are selected and voted upon by a committee of select Stafford Motor Speedway management and track officials.
The SPAFCO Race Chassis and Parts Rookie of the Year awards were presented by Ken Barry of SPAFCO Race Chassis and Parts to Matt Galko from the SK Modified® division, Kevin Gambacorta from the Late Model division, Joey Ferrigno from the SK Light division, and Josh Wood from the Limited Late Model division. The awards will be worth a $700.00 bonus to Galko, and $500.00 bonuses to Gambacorta, Ferrigno, and Wood from SPAFCO Race Chassis and Parts. Each Rookie of the Year bonus will be paid out in $100.00 weekly increments to each driver as they attend events during the 2013 season.
The winners of the Most Popular Driver Awards were Ryan Preece in the SK Modified® division, Jim Peterson in the Late Model division, Jay Goff from the SK Light division, David Arute from the Limited Late Model division, and Cliff Saunders from the DARE Stock division. The Most Popular Driver Awards are voted on by the fans who attend Stafford Motor Speedway race events and fill out the ballots found weekly in the track's PitStopper Magazine.
The UNOH Ultimate Mechanic Award was awarded to Mike O'Sullivan. O'Sullivan prepared and maintained the championship winning SK Modified® car of Ted Christopher. The UNOH Ultimate Mechanic Challenge Award was available to NASCAR licensed crew members in the NASCAR Whelen All American Series who were nominated by their drivers. The UNOH Ultimate Mechanic Track Champion was determined by applying the NASCAR point system based on NASCAR points earned at the track, by the driver they are registered with, counting up to the highest 14 finishes. O'Sullivan will receive $300 in cash and a UNOH Ultimate Mechanic Challenge Award.
For more information about the 2012 Stafford Motor Speedway Champions Awards Ceremony, or to order a video of the night's festivities, contact the Stafford Motor Speedway's track office at (860) 684-2783 or visit us on the web at www.staffordspeedway.com.
Sources: Scott Running/Stafford Motor Speedway PR