Jimmy Blewett Looking to Keep Stafford Success Going in 42nd Annual CARQUEST Tech-Net Spring Sizzler this Weekend
Stafford Springs, CT — As the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour comes to Stafford Motor Speedway this weekend for the 42nd Annual CARQUEST Tech-Net Spring Sizzler, one driver who will be looking forward to the trip is Jimmy Blewett. Blewett has scored two of his five career WMT wins at Stafford, and he recorded top-9 finishes in each of the four WMT races at Stafford last season, including a pole position and third place finish in the CARQUEST Fall Final.
“I always enjoy coming to Stafford,” said Blewett. “Stafford is one of the best tracks on the schedule, the fans there are always great, and I feel like it’s my best track,” said Blewett. “I really enjoy a challenge, and Stafford is one of the toughest tracks we go to. We usually have a good car at Stafford, so we’re feeling pretty good. With the equipment that my grandfather has given me, I definitely feel like we can come up to Stafford and go home with a win. I feel like my strong point is the longer races because the longer the race goes, the better I get, so the Sizzler being 200 laps long is a good distance.”
While Blewett’s best career finish in the CARQUEST Tech-Net Spring Sizzler is fifth place, that finish came in last year’s Sizzler, and with 2 Stafford wins to his credit, he knows what it will take to be victorious this Sunday.
“The key to winning at Stafford is to qualify well and have good track position for your pit stop,” said Blewett. “I think we’ll be shooting for somewhere around 120-125 laps on our first set of tires and I wouldn’t be surprised if you see guys come into the pits twice for tires.”
A win in the CARQUEST Tech-Net Spring Sizzler would be special for Blewett in several ways. His brother John was a Sizzler winner back in 2001and joining his brother as a Sizzler winner in his family owned car would mean the world to Blewett.
“There’s a lot of history at Stafford,” said Blewett. “When you look at some of the names that have raced and won at Stafford, all the big guys have won there. It would definitely mean a little extra with John being a Sizzler winner, but to be able to win the race in the family car with John looking down on us would mean the most. John did everything for me on my cars right up until I started driving for Ed Partridge. Now that I’m on my own, it gives me a whole new perspective to see how hard John had to work to get to the track. I’d love for my name to be in the record books as a Sizzler winner.”
The 42nd Annual CARQUEST Tech-Net Spring Sizzler is also the first leg of the CARQUEST Triple Crown Series, which will pay a $25,000 bonus to any driver that can win the three CARQUEST sponsored WMT races at Stafford this season.
“This is a nice deal that CARQUEST is giving us,” said Blewett. “It’s nice to have a company like CARQUEST and a track like Stafford supporting the Whelen Modified Tour with programs like this. It certainly gives the guys a little extra incentive to race hard and win. It’s definitely possible to win three races, and we hope we’re the team that will win those three races. If someone can pull off the three wins, it would definitely be a big boost for a team that needs the money with how the economy is at the moment.”
Blewett and the rest of the Whelen Modified Tour field will hit the track in pursuit of the $25,000 CARQUEST Triple Crown bonus for the first time on Saturday, April 27 with a practice session in the morning and then the race for the Coors Light Pole Position gets underway at 2:30pm. The Sizzler continues on Sunday, April 28 with the CARQUEST Belts & Hose Pit Party from 11am-12noon followed by Stafford’s SK Modifieds® and Late Models joining the Whelen Modified Tour in feature action.
Tickets for the “Greatest Race in the History of Spring” are on sale now at the Speedway Box Office. Tickets are priced at $38.50 for adult general admission tickets, $5.00 for children ages 6-14, and children ages 5 and under are admitted free of charge when accompanied by an adult. Reserved seating is priced at $42.00 for all ages. All ticket prices include 10% CT Admission Tax.
For more information on the 42nd Annual CARQUEST TECH-NET Spring Sizzler®, or to order tickets, contact the Stafford Motor Speedway track office at 860-684-2783 or visit us on the web at www.staffordspeedway.com.
Sources: Scott Running/Stafford Motor Speedway PR