Dramatic Devil’s Bowl Championship Battles Down to the Wire at Vermont 200
Five title races within 17 points entering season finale on Sept. 14-15
WEST HAVEN, VT – Stock car racing fans at Devil’s Bowl Speedway will have plenty of number-crunching to do in the grandstands at the Vermont 200 Championship Weekend on September 14-15. Five of the championship races that will be decided during the two-day event have airtight point battles and will undoubtedly come down to the final laps.
The top two drivers in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Late Model division are separated by only four points for the championship. Josh Masterson, a 22-year-old rookie from Bristol, VT, has earned three victories in his freshman season. Cagey veteran Chris Bergeron of Claremont, NH has four wins and trails his young rival by four points – the difference of just two on-track positions – entering the final 100-lap race on Sunday. Both are chased by another impressive rookie, 16-year-old feature race winner Brandon Atkins of AuSable Forks, NY, who is just 31 points out of the lead.
The 100-lap race also counts as the final event in the four-race Vermont State Late Model Championship Series, in which Nick Sweet of Barre, VT leads Chip Grenier of Graniteville, VT by a close 17 points. Sweet has an up-and-down history at Devil’s Bowl but won the track’s most recent Vermont State event – the People’s United Bank 100 – in June. Grenier has taken a shine to Devil’s Bowl, finishing second to Sweet in June and second to Brent Dragon in a photo finish on Vermont 200 Weekend in 2012.
The intermediate Renegade division championship fight is one of the closest in Devil’s Bowl history with Richie Turner of Fairfax, VT, defending champion Robert Gordon of Milton, VT, and top rookie Brad Bushey of Cambridge, VT just three points apart entering the final race. The Central Vermont Motorcycles Mini Stock class has Jake Noble of Benson, VT trying to fend off rookie Chuck Bradford of Addison, VT for the title, with Chris LaVair another 14 points behind.
The Enduro Series points race will likely come down to the final lap, as Eric “Mongo” Messier of Hinesburg, VT and “Wild Bill” Fountain of Altona, NY enter the race tied at the top of the standings. At the opposite end of the spectrum, Todd Stone of Middlebury, VT will clinch the lead-division Bond Auto Parts Modified championship simply by taking the green flag in the two 50-lap features scheduled for the division.
The Vermont 200 Championship Weekend is Devil’s Bowl Speedway’s final event of the year and spans two jam-packed days. Special non-winner’s “Shootout” races and first-round qualifying begin at 1:30pm on Saturday, Sept. 14, followed by a barbeque, music, and a bonfire. Championship main events are on Sunday, Sept. 15, with action beginning at 1:30pm. One-day adult general admission is $10 on Saturday and $20 on Sunday, with a discount two-day ticket available for $25; admission is free for kids 12 and under both days. Free camping is open Friday, Sept. 13 at 12:00 noon through Monday, Sept. 16.
Devil’s Bowl Speedway is located on Route 22A in West Haven, VT, four miles north of Exit 2 on U.S. Route 4. For more information, visit www.devilsbowlspeedwayvt.com or call (802) 265-3112. Devil’s Bowl Speedway is on Facebook at facebook.com/DevilsBowlSpeedway and on Twitter at @DevilsBowlSpeed.
OFFICIAL CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS – entering Vermont 200 Championship Weekend, Sept. 14-15
Devil’s Bowl Speedway – West Haven, VT – NASCAR Whelen All-American Series
Bond Auto Parts Modified (Div. I)
Pos.-(Car No.)-Driver-Hometown-Points
# – denotes rookie
1. (1X) Todd Stone, Middlebury, VT – 966 pts. (9 wins)
2. (69) Hunter Bates, Middlebury, VT – 861 pts. (1 win)
3. (78) Vince Quenneville, Jr., Brandon, VT – 854 pts.
4. (19) Jessey Mueller, Olmstedville, NY – 847 pts. (4 wins)
5. (27) Ron Proctor, Charlton, NY – 841 pts.
6. (4) Leon Gonyo, Chazy, NY – 813 pts.
7. (55L) Joe Williams, Scotia, NY – 784 pts.
8. (95) Jeff Haskins, Wells, VT – 616 pts.
9. (5VT) Dave Snow, Brandon, VT – 600 pts.
10. (55) Cody Sargen, Greenfield Ctr., NY – 598 pts.
Late Model (Div. II)
Pos.-(Car No.)-Driver-Hometown-Points
# – denotes rookie
1. (11X) # Josh Masterson, Bristol, VT – 560 pts. (3 wins)
2. (27) Chris Bergeron, Claremont, NH – 556 pts. (4 wins)
3. (4NY) # Brandon Atkins, AuSable Forks, NY – 529 pts. (1 win)
4. (9NY) Hunter Bates, Middlebury, VT – 500 pts. (1 win)
-tie- (3RB) Robert Bryant, Jr., Brooklyn, CT – 500 pts.
6. (87) Dan Petronis, II, Mechanicville, NY – 439 pts. (1 win)
7. (61S) # Johnny Scarborough, Bomoseen, VT – 363 pts.
8. (25) Chris Curtis, Rutland, MA – 334 pts.
9. (26) # Seth Bridge, Mendon, VT – 323 pts.
10. (05NH) Ricky Bly, Sunapee, NH – 317 pts.
Renegade (Div. III)
Pos.-(Car No.)-Driver-Hometown-Points
# – denotes rookie
1. (17) Richie Turner, Fairfax, VT – 430 pts. (2 wins)
2. (H20) Robert Gordon, Milton, VT – 427 pts. (3 wins)
-tie- (51) # Brad Bushey, Cambridge, VT – 427 pts. (2 wins)
4. (19) # Ray Germain, Jr., Bristol, VT – 377 pts.
5. (26VT) # Stephen Donahue, Graniteville, VT – 359 pts. (1 win)
6. (99) # Richard Lowrey, III, Charlotte, VT – 339 pts.
7. (11) Jimmy Bushey, Mooers Forks, NY – 224 pts.
8. (7) Ray Benoit, Milton, VT – 178 pts.
9. (23) Jon Boutin, St. Albans, VT – 126 pts.
10. (9) Robin Cummings, Milton, VT – 116 pts.
Central Vermont Motorcycles Mini Stock (Div. IV)
Pos.-(Car No.)-Driver-Hometown-Points
# – denotes rookie
1. (8) Jake Noble, Benson, VT – 618 pts. (2 wins)
2. (18) # Chuck Bradford, Addison, VT – 603 pts. (2 wins)
3. (4) Chris LaVair, Gabriels, NY – 589 pts. (4 wins)
4. (11) Mike Whalen, Jr., Plattsburgh, NY – 566 pts. (1 win)
5. (51) John McCarron, Rensselaer, NY – 535 pts.
6. (5) Bobby LaVair, Gabriels, NY – 514 pts. (2 wins)
7. (71) Matt Monaghan, Colchester, VT – 471 pts.
8. (73) Kyle Watrous, Bomoseen, VT – 428 pts.
9. (92) Garry Bashaw, Lincoln, VT – 424 pts.
10. (007) # Lacey Hanson, Orwell, VT – 396 pts. (1 win)
Sources: Justin St. Louis/Devil’s Bowl Speedway PR
PHOTO: Only three points separate Richie Turner (#17), Robert Gordon (#H20), and rookie Brad Bushey (#51) in the race for the Renegade division championship entering Vermont 200 Weekend at Devil’s Bowl Speedway. (MemorEvents photo)