Whelen Modified Tour Stat Advance: Stafford

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The second half of the 2014 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season will commence with the Call Before You Dig 811 150 on Friday, Aug. 8 at Connecticut’s Stafford Motor Speedway. Below is a statistical look at the performance of the tour and selected drivers at the track:

Call Before You Dig 811 150 Setup:
• Season points leader Doug Coby and third-place Bobby Santos have combined to win 11 of the last 17 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour events at Stafford Motor Speedway, including the first two this season. Coby is the two-time defending winner of the Call Before You Dig 811 150.
• A two-time race winner this year, Justin Bonsignore has closed to within just four points of championship leader Coby. Bonsignore ran second to Coby in the tour’s last visit to Stafford in June.
• Halfway through the season and consistent contenders Ted Christopher, Donny Lia, Ryan Preece and Ron Silk are still looking for their first victories. All have won before at Stafford.

At Stafford Motor Speedway:
History
• The Stafford Springs Agricultural Park opened in 1870. The current race track was originally used for horse racing, which gave way to automobiles after World War II.
• Stafford Motor Speedway became a NASCAR-sanctioned track in 1959 and was paved in 1967.
• Stafford is one of nine tracks that have been a part of the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series program in each of its 34 years of competition.
• The inaugural NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour race at Stafford was held on April 14, 1985. Richie Evans won the 80-lap race as part of the 14th Annual Spring Sizzler weekend.

Notebook
• The NWMT has held 112 races at Stafford since 1985, a total second only to the 124 events at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park.
• There have been multiple races at Stafford in 29 of the tour’s 30 seasons. The lone exception was 1988, when there were no NWMT dates at the track.
• There have been 31 different race winners at Stafford, led by Mike Stefanik’s 20 victories.
• There have been 42 different pole winners at Stafford, led by Stefanik’s 17. Ryan Preece set the track qualifying in the 2012 Spring Sizzler.
• No driver has started all previous 112 races at Stafford. Jamie Tomaino has missed only one – the inaugural tour date.
• There have been seven races won in wire-to-wire fashion at Stafford, the last by Ron Silk in 2011.
• Ryan Preece was the youngest Stafford race winner at 18 years, 9 months and 14 days.
• Ted Christopher was the oldest Stafford victor at 53 years, 3 months and 28 days.
• The Call Before You Dig 811 150 entry list features eight drivers that have previously won at the track: Stefanik (20), Christopher (12), Doug Coby and Bobby Santos (6), Donny Lia (4), Preece (2), Silk (1) and Tomaino (1).

Stafford Motor Speedway Data
Race #:  8 of 14 overall, 3 of 4 at Stafford
Track Layout:  .5-mile asphalt oval
Race Length:  150 laps (75 miles)
Banking/Turns 1 & 2:  9 degrees
Banking/Turns 3 & 4:  7.5 degrees

Qualifying/Race Data
2013 Race Winner:  Doug Coby, 69.713 mph, 1:04:33
2013 Pole Winner:  Bobby Santos, 97.965 mph, 18.374 secs.
Qualifying Record:  Ryan Preece, 100.424 mph, 17.924 secs., 4/29/12

Active Category Leaders at Stafford:
Wins
1. Mike Stefanik … 20
2. Ted Christopher … 12
3. Doug Coby … 6
Bobby Santos … 6

Poles
1. Mike Stefanik … 17
2. Donny Lia … 8
3. Bobby Santos … 7

Top Fives
1. Mike Stefanik … 50
2. Ted Christopher … 28
3. Jamie Tomaino … 12

Top 10s
1. Mike Stefanik … 74
2. Jamie Tomaino … 53
3. Ted Christopher … 48

Laps Led
1. Mike Stefanik … 2,165
2. Ted Christopher … 2,083
3. Doug Coby … 784

Laps Completed
1. Jamie Tomaino … 15,948
2. Mike Stefanik … 13,697
3. Ted Christopher … 12,185

Starts
1. Jamie Tomaino … 111
2. Mike Stefanik … 95
3. Ted Christopher … 86

Selected Driver Highlights:
Justin Bonsignore (No. 51 chem3.com Chevrolet)
• Has five wins, four poles and 39 top 10s in 67 career starts.
• Ranks second in points, four behind Doug Coby, on the strength of two wins and top fives in five of seven races. Won the opener at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park and at Monadnock Speedway.
• Has 10 top 10s, an average finish of 12th and a best result of second (2013 Spring Sizzler, June 2014) in 18 career starts at Stafford Motor Speedway.

Ted Christopher (No. 13 J&R Pre-Cast/Cape Cod Aggregates Chevrolet)
• The 2008 NWMT champion has 42 wins, 24 poles and 188 top 10s in 342 career starts. His 42 wins rank third all-time and his 24 poles are eighth.
• Is looking to end a 36-race winless drought. It’s his longest such streak since the start of his career when his first win came in his 94th race.
• Has top 10s in all seven races this year with his new team, including three podiums.
• Has 12 wins, four poles, 48 top 10s, an average finish of 13th and 2,083 laps led in 86 career NWMT Stafford starts.
• Is an eight-time NASCAR Whelen All-American Series track champion at Stafford in SK Modifieds, where his 101 triumphs are more than double second place on the division’s wins list. Has a record 121 overall career victories at the track entering this week’s events.

Doug Coby (No. 2 Dunleavy’s Repair/HEX Performance Chevrolet)
• The 2012 NWMT champion has 10 wins, four poles and 73 top 10s in 150 career starts.
• Is the season points leader by four tallies on Justin Bonsignore. Won the non-points UNOH Battle At The Beach on the short track at Daytona International Speedway in February and has podiums in four of the seven regular season races, including a win at Stafford in June.
• Has six wins, two poles, 20 top 10s and an average finish of 13th in 38 career Stafford NWMT starts.
• Has 18 career NWAAS victories at Stafford, including five in SK Modifieds.

Eric Goodale (No. 58 GAF Roofing/RBSCorp.com Chevrolet)
• Has a win, a pole and 31 top 10s in 80 career NWMT starts.
• Inherited the NWMT’s active starts streak lead, now at 78 races, with Ed Flemke Jr. not competing this year.
• Ranks seventh in points after seven events. His first career victory was earned in June at Riverhead Raceway.
• Has four top 10s, an average finish of 15.5 and a best result of fifth (Aug. 2011) in 23 Stafford starts.

Matt Hirschman (No. 52 Furnace & Duct/Seekonk Grand Prix Chevrolet)
• Has two wins, three poles and 43 top 10s in 84 career NWMT starts.
• Ranks ninth in points with four top 10s, highlighted by a third-place effort at Riverhead Raceway.
• Has a pole, 15 top 10s, an average finish of ninth and a best result of second (2008 Fall Final) in 21 Stafford starts.

Donny Lia (No. 4 Mystic Missile Racing Dodge)
• The 2007 and 2009 NWMT champion has 17 wins, 19 poles and 74 top 10s in 148 career starts.
• Ranks 12th in points with a pair of top 10s and a best result of second at Waterford Speedbowl.
• Has four wins, eight poles, 23 top 10s and an average finish of 11th in 38 career Stafford races.

Woody Pitkat (No. 88 Buzz Chew Chevrolet/Elbow East Chevrolet)
• Has a pole and 38 top 10s in 85 career starts. Best career finish is second, recorded three times: August 2011 Loudon, 2012 Stafford Fall Final and 2014 Thompson Icebreaker.
• Ranks 10th in points this year with four top 10s and a best result of second in the Thompson opener.
• Has 13 top 10s, an average finish of 14.5 and a best result of second in 24 NWMT Stafford starts.
• Is the defending Stafford NWAAS track champion out of the SK Modified division, where he has 27 career wins. Has 71 overall career victories at the track, one shy of tying Bugs Stevens for second all-time.

Ryan Preece (No. 16 East West Marine/Diversified Metals Ford)
• The 2013 NWMT champion has nine wins, 12 poles, 26 podiums, 45 top fives and 60 top 10s in 102 career starts.
• Ranks fifth in points with six top 10s and a best result of second at Monadnock.
• Has two wins (Aug. 2009, June 2013), three poles, 14 top 10s and an average finish of 13th in 28 Stafford races.
• Earned the 2011 NWAAS Stafford track title in SK Modifieds, where he has 20 career wins, including a division-high eight a year ago.

Keith Rocco (No. 3 Cape Cod Copper/Mr. Rooter Chevrolet)
• Has eight top 10s in 18 career NWMT starts with a best finish of third in the 2012 Stafford Spring Sizzler.
• Participated in four of seven races this year with a best finish of eighth at Waterford.
• Has an average finish of 18.5 in six career NWMT races at Stafford.
• The 2008 and 2010 NWAAS track champ at Stafford in SK Modifieds, where he ranks third on the division’s career wins list with 37. His 45 total career Stafford triumphs rank sixth all-time.

Bobby Santos (No. 44 Tinio Racing/ImperialCars.com Chevrolet)
• The 2010 NWMT champion has 13 wins, 14 poles and 48 top 10s in 87 career starts.
• Ranks third in points with a tour-high three wins (Stafford Spring Sizzler, Waterford, July Loudon) in seven races.
• Has six wins, seven poles, 15 top 10s and an average finish of 11th in 22 career starts at Stafford. Has won six of his last 16 races there, including this year’s Spring Sizzler.

Ron Silk (No. 6 TS Haulers/Calverton Tree Farm Chevrolet)
• The 2011 NWMT champion has nine wins, nine poles and 78 top 10s in 132 career starts.
• Earned the NWAAS modified division title in the New Smyrna Speedway World Series in February.
• Ranks sixth in points with six top 10s in seven outings, highlighted by a sixth-place finish at Stafford in June.
• Has a win (May 2011), two poles, 17 top 10s and an average finish of 14th in 35 career NWMT Stafford races.

Timmy Solomito (No. 75 Eastport Feeds/Axel Anderson Inc. Chevrolet)
• Has a pole and five top 10s in 14 career starts with a best finish of third at Riverhead in September 2013.
• The Sunoco Rookie of the Race in four of the first seven 2014 events, he ranks eighth in the overall standings with a best result of fourth in the Thompson opener.
• Has an average finish of 17th and a best result of eighth (2014 Spring Sizzler) in four previous Stafford starts.

Mike Stefanik (No. 1 Cady’s Tavern Chevrolet)
• Seven-time champion has 74 wins, 48 poles, 223 top fives and 300 top 10s – all NWMT records – in 451 starts.
• This will be just his third appearance of 2014 following DNFs in the Thompson opener and at NHMS.
• Holds Stafford all-time NWMT records for wins 20), poles (17), top fives (50), top 10s (74) and laps led (2,165) in 95 career starts. Last win there came in the 2008 Fall Final.

Up To Speed:
• The 2014 season is the 30th for the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour.
• The 2014 schedule features 14 races at seven different tracks across four states.
• The competition season opened with the non-points UNOH Battle At The Beach on the short track at Daytona International Speedway on Feb. 18. Ryan Preece was the polesitter and Doug Coby took the checkered flag.
• Justin Bonsignore passed first-time pole winner Woody Pitkat with nine laps to go to win the points season opener at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park on April 6.
• Rookie Tommy Barrett Jr. captured his first pole and Bobby Santos earned his sixth Stafford Motor Speedway victory on April 27.
• After two rainouts, the third race of the season finally got in the books on June 6 when Doug Coby took the checkered flag at Stafford. Santos earned the pole on the original May 23 race date.
• The first bullring race of the year saw a battle between polesitter Donny Lia and Bobby Santos on June 21 at Waterford Speedbowl, and Santos eventually won out for his 12th career victory.
• Eric Goodale earned his first career win and John Beatty Jr. his first pole on June 28 at Riverhead Raceway.
• Ron Silk earned his first pole of 2014 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on July 12 and Santos made a last-lap pass to record his first Loudon victory. Ryan Newman won the non-points Whelen All-Star Shootout the day before.
• Justin Bonsignore took the checkered flag from the pole on July 19 at Monadnock Speedway to become the first multi-race winner in tour history at the New Hampshire bullring.
• Following this week’s Call Before You Dig 811 150, the NWMT will return to action with the Budweiser King of Beers 150 on Wednesday, Aug. 13 at Thompson.

Sources: Jason Cunningham/NASCAR WMT PR