Griffith Shines in Front of Hometown Crowd in Gate City Classic
HUDSON, NH – Derek Griffith continued his stunning season, as the 18-year-old driver picked up his second victory of his career in the Gate City Classic at Hudson International Speedway.
Griffith led the field to green, with Matt Frahm matched to his outside. Mike Parks and Cory Casagrande made contact before the field completed one lap, with Parks spinning to the infield. One the restart, Griffith began to flex his muscles, jumping out to a quick lead, before series rookie Nick Boivin spun off turn 4, bringing out the second caution. The field would settle in for a long green flag run, until Casagrande and Jeremy Harclerode made contact on lap 41, erasing Griffith’s sizable lead. The final caution of the race occurred on lap 47, when George Helliwell and Mike O’Sullivan tangled off turn 2, subsequently ending O’Sullivan’s night.
On the restart, Griffith lost the lead to veteran Larry Gelinas, resulting in Gelinas leading lap 48. That would turn out to be the only lap the youngster would not lead, as Griffith retook the point on lap 49. Griffith would not be challenged again, as the pilot of the FEP/Tyngsboro Motors/M.O.M. Toyota nabbed the victory, to the cheer of the crowd.
An excited Griffith would say, after the race, “I’m shocked. I’m out of words. It’s awesome to finally come here and win a Pro Stock race. I’ve gotten a couple wins here in smaller cars, and finally to show them I’m a driver that can win some bigger races, I’m more than happy to do it here in front of my fans.”
Not only did Griffith pick up the victory, but the Louie Mechalides-owned team gave away two bikes to children in the crowd, a new program the Granite State Pro Stock Series has created, and will continue to do for the remainder of the season.
Gelinas would settle for second, after engaging in battle with Barry Gray in the closing laps. Gelinas would go on to say, “Barry stuck his nose in there a couple times, but we had enough bite off the corner, so it worked out for us.”
Gray, after starting eighth, would round out the podium, finishing third. Gray would comment on the battle with Gelinas, saying, “It was a lot of fun. He ran me clean at Monadnock [Speedway], and we told him we’d repay the favor. It’s fun running when you can run like that, and not get wrecked.”
Brad Babb fought his way from his ninth-place starting position to cross the line fourth, with Tommy O’Sullivan completing the top five, unofficially. Matt Frahm, who fought an ill-handling car all race long, held on for sixth, with Jeremy Harclerode, in just his second start with the series, finishing seventh. Casagrande, Helliwell, and Josh King completed the top ten. Gelinas and Parks picked up qualifying heat victories.
The Granite State Pro Stock Series will be back in action on June 27, as the series travels to Star Speedway. For more information on the Granite State Pro Stock Series, visit www.gspss.net.
GATE CITY CLASSIC
UNOFFICIAL FINISH
Hudson International Speedway
6/14/15
Pos (Start) Driver Hometown
1. (1) Derek Griffith Hudson, NH
2. (5) Larry Gelinas Buxton, ME
3. (8) Barry Gray Belchertown, MA
4. (9) Brad Babb Windham, ME
5. (3) Tommy O’Sullivan Wilbraham, MA
6. (2) Matt Frahm Hampstead, NH
7. (13) Jeremy Harclerode Newmarket, NH
8. (7) Cory Casagrande Stafford Springs, CT
9. (6) George Helliwell Derry, NH
10. (10) Josh King Vernon, VT
11. (16) Geoff Rollins Groton, MA
12. (17) Nick Boivin Belchertown, MA
13. (14) Billy Joerres Somerset, MA
14. (4) Mike Parks Walpole, NH
15. (12) Bobby Cabral Kingston, NH
16. (11) Mike O’Sullivan Springfield, MA
CONTINGENCY AWARDS
AR BODIES (Hard Luck) 07 – George Helliwell
BOND AUTO PARTS (Last Car on Lead Lap) 1 – Cory Casagrande
BOND AUTO PARTS (Halfway Leader) 12 – Derek Griffith
DRACO SPRINGS (Most Positions Gained) 51NH – Jeremy Harclerode
FIVE STAR AUTO BODIES (5th Place) 16 – Tommy O’Sullivan
MACLELLAN METAL FINISHING (Heat 1 Winner) 37ME – Larry Gelinas
MACLELLAN METAL FINISHING (Heat 2 Winner) 66 – Mike Parks
SEYMOUR PERFORMANCE PRODUCTS (Random) 4ME – Brad Babb
RB PERFORMANCE (3rd Place) 29 – Barry Gray
RB PERFORMANCE (7th Place) 51NH – Jeremy Harclerode
SHERWOOD WHEELS (Most Laps Led) 12 – Derek Griffith
SUNOCO RACE FUELS (Heat 1 Winner) 37ME – Larry Gelinas
SUNOCO RACE FUELS (Heat 2 Winner) 66 – Mike Parks
VDL FUEL SYSTEMS (5th Place) 16 – Tommy O’Sullivan
POWERTRAIN TECHNOLOGY (4th Place) 4ME – Brad Babb
COIL-OVER COMMANDER (Feature Winner) 12 – Derek Griffith
Sources: Mike Parks/GSPSS PR