Kevin Gambacorta Looking for First Late Model Victory and Championship at Stafford Speedway
Stafford Springs, CT — With the dawn of the 2015 season at Stafford Motor Speedway drawing ever closer, one driver who can’t wait to get back on the track is Late Model driver Kevin Gambacorta. Gambacorta, of Ellington, has won races and championships in Stafford Speedway’s DARE Stock and Limited Late Model divisions, but he is still in search of his first victory in the Late Model ranks. As Gambacorta prepares for what will be his fourth full season of Late Model competition, he feels like he is primed to collect that first victory.
During the off-season, Stafford Speedway implemented a new rule for rear springs that limits them to a maximum of 400 lbs. in rate. While many Late Model teams will have to change their springs and come up with new car setups, Gambacorta won’t have to make any changes as he has been running springs that meet the new rule requirements for his three seasons of Late Model competition and he feels like that could give him a leg up at the beginning of the year.
“We’ve been close and we came pretty close a couple of times last year,” said Gambacorta. “We were pretty good last year and I think especially early in the season will be a good opportunity for us to get that first Late Model win since we won’t be changing our springs like a lot of other guys will be. Compared to what some guys were running on their cars, some of the stuff I have on my car I think guys were running back in the ‘70s and ‘80s, but those parts work for me and I understand them. I’m hoping that we’ll be a step ahead of the game while everyone is figuring out what they have and what they have to do to their cars while we know what we have, but I’m also sure there will be guys who will be fast no matter what right off the bat. I think we have everything we need to win, we just need to have a little luck on our side.”
While Gambacorta is still in search of his first Late Model victory, he is also in search of another championship at Stafford, which would be his fourth track title. Gambacorta won the very first DARE Stock championship in 2004 and he followed that up with two more championships in the Limited Late Model ranks, winning titles in 2006 and 2011. Since making his Late Model debut in 2012, Gambacorta has improved his points position every year, going from 9th to 4th to a tie for second last season.
“This will be my fourth season of Late Models and we’ve improved every year,” said Gambacorta. “I was 9th my first year, then we were 4th and we finished tied for 2nd last year, so there’s only one more spot left to go. I feel like we’re good enough to win the championship, all we need is a little luck and have some things go our way. My biggest goal is to be the first driver to win a championship in each of Stafford’s full fendered divisions. That would be pretty cool to be the only driver to do that. If we can have a year like we had last year and win some races, we finished second last year so I don’t see why we couldn’t win it all this year.”
As Gambacorta gets ready to tackle the 2015 season, he is in search of sponsorship to help him get his car up front on a regular basis. While Gambacorta has had to pay for much of his racing out of his own pocket, he has had to adapt a frugal approach to making every dollar count.
“We’d love to be able to find some sponsorship help,” said Gambacorta. “I’ve had a lot of help over the years from Rafferty Fine Grading and most of what I’ve spent on the car over the years has come out of my own pocket, so I’ve learned there’s certain parts that you need to spend money on and there’s parts you don’t need to spend on. I was almost ready to sit out this season with the birth of our son Kody. We didn’t have any major wrecks last year and we were able to use our winnings week to week to either buy a couple of tires, or put fuel in the car, and that’s how we were able to keep going. If we got some sponsorship help, that would be huge for us. We’re also looking for a spotter this season. We’ve had Randy Smith helping us out the past few seasons and he has other commitments that will prevent him from spotting for me again.”
Gambacorta’s first opportunity to collect his maiden Late Model feature win will kick off with the running of the 44th Annual NAPA Auto Parts Spring Sizzler on April 24-26. 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. As always, Stafford Motor Speedway offers free parking with overnight parking available. All tickets are good for both Saturday and Sunday admission. All ticket prices include 10% CT Admission Tax.
For more information on the 44th Annual NAPA Auto Parts 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